Other Voices: The Connexions Newsletter |
Let's go easy on self-righteousness |
Irony Alert: If you read on, you will find yourself reading a self-righteous critique of self-righteous people. Proceed at your own risk!
Toronto’s Mayor, Olivia Chow, recently used the word “genocide” to describe Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Predictably, there has been a storm of outrage from a small but noisy pack of genocide deniers, Zionists for whom nothing that Israel does can ever be wrong. They want Mayor Chow to apologize, resign, and perhaps be burned at the stake for good measure. No surprise there.
From the other side, those of us who are appalled by the crimes committed by the Israeli state, there has been praise for Chow’s statement. Mainstream politicians, though they can hardly help but be aware of the crimes that Israel has been committing, have been loath to utter words like ‘genocide’ or ‘war crimes’ for fear of being attacked by Zionists and the pro-Israel mainstream media. Chow’s statement was a courageous act, and potentially helps to make it easier for other, more timid, public figures to speak out.
But of course – of course! – amidst the praise for Chow’s statement, there have been criticisms from ‘our side.’ In the comments I saw on Facebook, amongst the many ‘likes,’ there were several people who criticized Chow because she had not done this sooner. Several people demanded that Chow apologize – apologize! – to people in the solidarity movement for having waited so long to make an unequivocal statement.
I won’t claim to be speechless, but I’m having trouble finding words to describe this kind of idiocy. There’s a genocide going on (while there has been a reduction, but not cessation, in actual bombing, people are dying from deliberately inflicted hunger, malnutrition, and preventable diseases), and you’re demanding that someone who opposes the genocide apologize to you because they didn’t speak out sooner? Listen: this is not about you and your ego.
This is by no means the only instance of this kind of attitude. Recently, several hundred prominent Jews – Europeans, Americans, Israelis, etc. – signed an Open Letter titled “Join the Worldwide Jewish Call”. Their statement calls for “ending Israel's system of occupation and apartheid and thereby guaranteeing the future well-being of Palestinians and Israelis alike. Apply the necessary pressure, end impunity, and hold Israel's leadership accountable for its violations of international law.”
Of course, this is far from the first, or most radical, action or statement from Jews who support the Palestinian struggle. Jews have acted in solidarity with Palestinians for decades. There are many Jewish groups deeply involved in the struggle, such as Canada’s Independent Jewish Voices.
And so, of course, there are those whose first instinct is to complain that those who signed the Open Letter should have taken a stand sooner. Sure: that would have been good. But these are people who have finally, after whatever internal struggles, and conflict with their friends and families, found it impossible to remain silent. They have finally spoken out, and in so doing, opened up another big crack in the Zionist facade which supports Israeli impunity. That is a good thing!
I don’t know any more which words to use to describe us. The words I used to use, like left, progressive, socialist, no longer fit many of the people on what I consider our side. No matter. The point is: to win, we have to convince millions – many millions – of people to support alternatives to the disastrous and everworsening status quo. We have to win them over, we have to persuade them to change how they look at the world and to embrace alternatives.
The last thing – the most stupid thing we can do – is to attack people who come over to our side for not having done so sooner. Ulli Diemer |
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Genocide two years on: It is the West, not Gaza, that must be deradicalised |
Jonathan Cook writes: "The genocidal fervour in Israeli society is an open secret. Soldiers flood social media platforms with videos celebrating their war crimes. Teenage Israelis make funny videos on TikTok endorsing the starvation of babies in Gaza. Israeli state TV broadcasts a child choir evangelising for Gaza’s annihilation." This is not just about a demon unleashed among Israelis, says Cook. It is about a demon in the soul of the West. It is us – the power bloc that established Israel, arms Israel, funds Israel, indulges Israel, excuses Israel – that really needs deradicalising. |
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Emission reductions: Promises, promises, promises |
COP30 is now underway in Belem, Brazil. The 2025 report, issued just before the conference began, says that “The Paris Agreement has been pivotal in lowering projected global greenhouse gas emissions.” To the casual reader, that sounds like good news. Don’t be deceived, says Ian Angus. The sneaky word in those sentences is "projections" : actual greenhouse emissions in 2024 were higher than ever. In fact, the current rate of growth is more than four times higher than in the 2010s. The Earth is warming faster than ever. The projections are based on nothing more than aspirational targets which bear no relationship to reality. As Greta Thunberg said four years ago before COP26: “Blah blah blah. This is all we hear from our so-called leaders. Words that sound great, but so far have led to no action.” |
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The Four Mentors of King Charles |
Craig Murray, a former British ambassador with in-depth knowledge of the upper class, asks some pointed questions about our King, and his peculiar choice of mentors. Says Murray: “You just can’t have your four closest non-official life guides as paedophiles by accident.” |
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Can Europe Survive Its Own Leaders? The War Narrative and Economic Collapse |
Michael Hudson discussed the question of why Europe – or at least the European elite – is pursuing policies which are going to have a devastating effect on their own economies and people. “How is it," he asks, "that the EU bureaucracy is able to put in warmongers who have almost a traumatic hatred of Russia, an emotional wanting to go to war with them, that is not shared by the voters and the population at large?” Hudson says: “Europe is in a pre-collapse situation, a pre-crisis situation. But in the end, you cannot keep a false narrative going when reality becomes stronger and stronger. And the gap between reality and ‘the narrative’ becomes so strained that finally people realize, ‘that doesn’t work.’” |
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OpenAI Slipped Shopping Into 800 Million ChatGPT Users’ Chats − Here’s Why That Matters |
Your phone buzzes at 6 a.m. It’s ChatGPT: “I see you’re traveling to New York this week. Based on your preferences, I’ve found three restaurants near your hotel. Would you like me to make a reservation?”
You didn’t ask for this. The AI simply knew your plans from reading your calendar and email and decided to help. When ChatGPT makes suggestions, you don’t see them as ads. They feel like recommendations from a knowledgeable friend. This is known as the "advice illusion": you don’t know whether those businesses paid for placement or whether better options exist that ChatGPT didn’t show you. The AI revolution could make it so easy to let the algorithm decide that people could forget what it’s like to truly choose for themselves. |
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An independent news website dedicated to original investigative journalism and analysis on politics and empire, founded and edited by award-winning journalist and author Max Blumenthal.
Wikipedia, increasingly notorious for setting any pretense of objectivity or truthfulness aside where anything or anyone on the left is concerned, claims that "The Grayzone's news content is generally considered to be fringe, and the website maintains a pro-Kremlin editorial line, centered around an opposition to the foreign policy of the United States and a desire for a multipolar world." Check out the Grayzone for yourself at https://thegrayzone.com.
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The CBC: How Canada's Public Broadcaster Lost Its Voice (and How It Can Get it Back) By David Cayley |
Author and producer David Cayley, who for three decades made radio documentaries for CBC Radio’s Ideas, goes back to the CBC’s roots to examine how it lost its way and to ask searching questions about the nature of media and the “public” in the twenty-first century. The CBC’s narrow programming choices, dogmatic politics, and politically correct hosts cater to ever shrinking audiences. The once proud broadcaster has alienated so many viewers and listeners that Canada’s Conservative Party now sees a winning strategy in promising to defund it. Cayley calls for a bold new vision—a CBC that transcends its recent past and rebuilds as a unifying force, championing curiosity, dialogue, and a pluralistic Canadian identity.
Sutherland House, 2025. 320pp |
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The Old Oak [dir. Ken Loach, 2023] |
The Old Oak is the last pub standing in a once thriving mining village in northern England, a gathering space for a community that has fallen on hard times. There is growing anger, resentment, and a lack of hope among the residents, but the pub and its proprietor TJ are a fond presence to their customers. When a group of Syrian refugees move into the floundering village, a decisive rift fueled by prejudices develops between the community and its newest inhabitants. The formation of an unexpected friendship between TJ and a young Syrian woman named Yara opens up new possibilities for the divided village.
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In Praise of Civil Disobedience |
Democracy has failed, having been fatally corrupted. In these circumstances, says Craig Murray, civil disobedience is not just ethically justified, it is the duty of the good citizen. |
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Copyright Connexions 2025. Contents are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License. This means you are welcome to share and republish the contents of this newsletter as long as you credit Connexions, and as long as you don’t charge for the content. Issues edited by Ulli Diemer |
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