Defying West's Sanctions, Russia Stands Tall as World's No. 4 Economic Powerhouse
Defying West's Sanctions, Russia Stands Tall as World's No. 4 Economic Powerhouse
Despite global pressures, Russia's economy continues to demonstrate resilience, maintaining its fourth-place position worldwide by GDP (PPP) and even doubling its lead over Japan in just one year.Sputnik International
We Deserve Better: A New Social Media Bill of Rights
I believe that the time has come for a new Social Media Bill of Digital Rights. Just as the original Bill of Rights protected individual freedoms from government overreach, we need fundamental protections for our digital communities from corporate control and surveillance capitalism.So what could such a Social Media Bill of Rights include?
- The right to privacy & security: The ability to communicate and organize without fear of surveillance or exploitation.
- The right to own and control your identity: People and their communities must own their digital identities, connections and data. And, as the owner of an account, you can exercise the right to be forgotten.
- The right to choose and understand algorithms (transparency): Choosing the algorithms that shape your interactions: no more black box systems optimizing for engagement at the expense of community well-being.
The right to community self-governance: Crucially, communities of users need the right to self govern, setting their own rules for behavior which are contextually relevant to their community. (Note: this does not preclude developer governance.)- The right to full portability – the right to exit: The freedom to port your community in its entirety, to another app without losing your connections and content.
ActivityPub is of course mentioned.
We Deserve Better: A New Social Media Bill of Rights
Earlier this year, I was a part of a CNN documentary, Twitter: Breaking the Bird, which gave memuch pause for reflection about the state of social media and how we got here. This year alonewe’…Techdirt
Mechanize likes this.
Linux Breaks 5% Desktop Share in U.S., Signaling Open-Source Surge Against Windows and macOS
Linux Breaks 5% Desktop Share in U.S., Signaling Open-Source Surge Against Windows and macOS
Linux has surpassed 5% desktop market share in the US (5.03% in June 2025), per StatCounter, driven by privacy concerns, rising costs of Windows/macOS, and user-friendly distros like Ubuntu.Ryan Gibson (WebProNews)
like this
US losing ground to China due to Trump’s policies, Democrats warn
The United States is losing strategic ground to China due to US President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the global stage and transactional approach to foreign policy, a Democrat-authored report has warned.
Surveying Trump’s first six months in office, the report warns that his tenure has “significantly undermined” Washington’s ability to compete with China.
The report highlights staff reductions at the US Department of State and the “chaotic gutting” of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Agency for Global Media – which oversees Voice of America and Radio Free Asia – as moves that have weakened US power and influence.
US losing ground to China due to Trump’s policies, Democrats warn
Sentiment towards the US is deteriorating even among Washington’s closest allies, according to Pew survey data.Erin Hale (Al Jazeera)
like this
What if Ukraine falls? This is no longer a hypothetical question – and it must be answered urgently
What if Ukraine falls? This is no longer a hypothetical question – and it must be answered urgently
Europe offers platitudes, Trump dithers, and Ukraine and its extraordinary people stand on the brink. Nato must step up, says Guardian foreign affairs commentator Simon TisdallSimon Tisdall (The Guardian)
It has been evident since the dying days of 2023, when its counteroffensive stalled, that Ukraine is not winning.
"not winning" hm... I wonder if there might possibly be another way to say that?
like this
like this
Linux smashes through five per cent desktop share in the US
For the first time ever, Linux has clawed its way past the five per cent desktop market share barrier in the United States so maybe 2025 is finally the much predicted year of Linux on the desktop.StatCounter’s latest figures for June 2025 show Linux holding 5.03 per cent of the US desktop market. That might sound modest, but it is a massive milestone for the open-source faithful who have been banging on for decades that Linux would one day break through. Even more satisfying, Linux has now overtaken the “Unknown” category in the stats, a small but symbolic victory that shows the growth is no longer being ignored or misattributed.
It took a grinding eight years for Linux to crawl from one to two per cent by April 2021. Another 2.2 years were needed to hit three per cent in June 2023. From there it snowballed, taking only 0.7 years to cross four per cent in February 2024 and just four months later Linux is through five per cent.
Analysts say AI workloads, the backlash against surveillance-heavy proprietary platforms, and the never-ending trainwrecks of Apple have made Linux a more attractive option for ordinary users. Microsoft’s increasingly locked-down Windows 11, with its forced online accounts and hardware restrictions, has not helped either.
I guess Apple and MS are finally finding out.
Linux smashes through five per cent desktop share in the US
2025 really is the year of Linux on the desktop For the first time ever, Linux has clawed its way past the five per cent desktop market share barrier in the United States so maybe 2025 is finally the much predicted year of Linux on the desktop.Nick Farrell (Fudzilla)
like this
Sectarian tension, Israeli intervention: What led to the violence in Syria?
The recent violence in Suwayda began after Bedouin armed groups kidnapped a Druze trader on the road to Damascus on July 11, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a United Kingdom-based monitor.
The abduction quickly turned into more widespread violence between the two communities – which have a longstanding rivalry due to land disputes – eventually dragging in Syrian government forces.
Syria’s new government has been attempting to impose its authority after a 14-year civil war and the end of half a century of al-Assad family rule. However, it has found it difficult to do so in Suwayda, partly because of Israel’s repeated threats against the presence of any government forces in the province, which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Sectarian tension, Israeli intervention: What led to the violence in Syria?
Israel continues to bomb Syria, ostensibly to support Druze forces in the southwest, even after ceasefire is declared.Mat Nashed (Al Jazeera)
uBlock Origin is forever disabled in Chrome. Why it happened and what to use instead
uBlock Origin is forever disabled in Chrome. Why it happened and what to use instead
uBlock Origin got forever disabled in Chrome due to the browser's transition to MV3. What does it mean for the extension's many users and what are the alternatives?Ekaterina Kachalova (AdGuard)
adhocfungus likes this.
I've read about this, haven't tried it. Says it's a chromium-based browser with ad-block.
Pro doesn't like this.
GitHub - uazo/cromite: Cromite a Bromite fork with ad blocking and privacy enhancements; take back your browser!
Cromite a Bromite fork with ad blocking and privacy enhancements; take back your browser! - uazo/cromiteGitHub
UK online safety law is going to change the way we use the internet
UK online safety law is going to change the way we use the internet
The UK's Online Safety Act is intended to stop children from accessing pornography online, but its potential implications are much wider reachingMatthew Sparkes (New Scientist)
You mean this Bill Gates?
GATES, GMOs & GEOENGINEERING
In 2006, the BMGF (Bill and Melinda Gate's Foundation) donated $100 million and formed an alliance with the Rockefeller Foundation to help spur a “green revolution” in Africa, with a major focus being to encourage the use of pesticides and “advanced” (i.e. GMO) seeds.
In 2010, the BMGF purchased 500,000 shares in Monsanto, the world’s largest producer of GMO food as well as pesticides like glyphosate (Roundup), making it abundantly clear that this so-called benevolent charity is up to something other than eradicating disease and feeding the world’s poor.
Since 2015, the BMGF has donated a total of $15 million to two global campaigns aimed at “ending world hunger” by encouraging small farmers around the world to use GMOs.
Interestingly, while the BMGF is heavily promoting GMO to farmers, at the same time it’s investing in the ‘Doomsday Crop Diversity Vault,’ a seed bank located in Norway. Other investors include the Norwegian government, the Rockefeller Foundation, and major GMO seed and agrichemical companies.
Food for thought … Why is the BMGF pushing GMO seeds (which destroy the plant seed varieties) while at the same time investing tens of millions of dollars to preserve every seed variety known in a bomb-proof doomsday vault near the remote Arctic Circle “so that crop diversity can be conserved for the future”? Think about it.
Since 2007, Gates has been personally funding and closely involved in the Fund for Innovative Climate and Energy Research (FICER), based at Harvard University, which carries out research into the possibility of blocking the sun in order to mitigate global warming, using chemicals or particles of metals such as aluminum.
In 2012 FICER announced their intention to spray sun-reflecting sulphate particles into the atmosphere to artificially cool the planet, and they also contemplated using aluminum for the same purpose.
That’s right, it’s no longer a “conspiracy theory” folks. Those ‘criss cross’ lines in the sky aren’t funny shaped clouds and they aren’t normal exhaust from planes. They are chemical trails (aka “chemtrails“) being intentionally sprayed into the atmosphere. Heck, there are actually multiple patents on this technology.
don't like this
A Latvian politician known for his anti-Russian views was wounded in Ukraine
A Latvian politician known for his anti-Russian views was wounded in Ukraine
The head of the Ogre region of Latvia, Egils Helmanis, was wounded in Ukraine. This was reported by Patriks Griva, the press secretary of the Ogre region, in a video message, according to Sputnik.newsmaker newsmaker (English News front)
"Hands up", Kiev: Ukraine coordinates concerts of Russian artists in Moldova
"Hands up", Kiev: Ukraine coordinates concerts of Russian artists in Moldova: EADaily
EADaily, July 17th, 2025. In the near future, a number of concerts with the participation of popular Russian performers are planned in Moldova.EADaily
Ukraine wing of US-founded terrorist group says it was involved in killing of intelligence officer in Kyiv
Ukraine wing of US-founded terrorist group says it was involved in killing of intelligence officer in Kyiv
The Base, a far-right group with suspected links to Russia, said killing of Ivan Voronych was ‘only the beginning’Ben Makuch (The Guardian)
Starmer and Merz find their happy place: War
Starmer and Merz find their happy place: War
Germany’s leader will use a London visit Thursday to finalize a wide-ranging pact that goes big on security cooperation.Esther Webber (POLITICO)
Trump administration pulls $4bn in funds for high-speed rail in California
Trump administration pulls $4bn in funds for high-speed rail in California
US president blasts long-delayed project to link Los Angeles and San Francisco as ‘boondoggle’ and ‘train to nowhere’.Al Jazeera
Japan’s exports fall for second straight month with no U.S. trade deal in sight, raising recession fears
Japan’s exports fall for second straight month with no U.S. trade deal in sight, raising recession fears
The decrease in exports was a reversal of the 0.5% rise expected by economists polled by Reuters, and comes amid a lack of a breakthrough in trade talks with the U.S.Lim Hui Jie (CNBC)
Trump Softens Tone on China to Secure Xi Summit, Trade Deal
Trump Softens Tone on China to Secure Xi Summit, Trade Deal
President Donald Trump has dialed down his confrontational tone with China in an effort to secure a summit with counterpart Xi Jinping and a trade deal with the world’s second-largest economy, people familiar with internal deliberations said.Jenny Leonard (Bloomberg)
‘Obvious similarity’ between Ukraine and Nazi Germany – Medvedev
‘Obvious similarity’ between Ukraine and Nazi Germany – Medvedev
Ukraine is resembling Nazi Germany in terms of dictatorship and economic degradation, the former Russian president has saidRT
Colombia plans to sever its relations with NATO
Colombia plans to sever its relations with NATO
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has announced plans to end relations with the North Atlantic Alliance. “We must leave NATO, there is no other way.newsmaker newsmaker (English News front)
like this
In the first place, it don't make sense. Colombia is not really North nor Atlantic, it's more of a Pacific /s
Put down this rightist treaty org relation.
are qr codes and pkpass files the same? what other formats do transportation authorities use?
cross-posted from: lemmy.ml/post/33289366
obligatory I know this is not a linux question, but you provide good information and alternativesqr code is the squares code that, if used with a qr code scanner redirects me automatically to a website or to download a pkpass file, right?
after downloading said pkpass file to my android, any wallet application like fosswallet should recognize it and add it to the local library (on my android device), right?
what other formats do transportation authorities use?
To those residing in Germany, is pkpass use widespread there? What are common formats used there?
They are not at all the same thing.
A QR code is just a 2D barcode that can be used to hold a certain amount of alphanumeric data (and amount is limited by size).
While pkpass is an Apple format used in its wallet app to store data.
Aren't all barcodes 2D?
EDIT No wait, they're basically 1D aren't they? Nevermind!
Exactly. No matter the y dimension. Barcode data is only stored in x. Whereas QR uses x and y for data.
They also use the corner squares and a few specific dots to allow scanning from greater angles. Basically allowing the data to be read in 3d space. Even though only 2d is used to store that data.
This is why QR can work well with cameras. Whereas bar codes are designed for very short range laser reflection.
PS lots of info on QR online including open source programs to make your own.
The same goes for bar codes. But readers involve some very simple maker skills. Making simple barcode readers was a common school science project in the early 90s.
Your generic "barcode" for something like a UPC is considered a 1D barcode and uses things like the spacing of the lines and thickness to encode data. Although some 1D barcodes can detect the barcode is damaged they cannot do error recovery.
Your 2D barcodes, like QR or Data Matrix, store data in both directions and depending on format can have varying levels of error correction (duplicate data) built into the barcode. They also obviously can take up less room and hold the same or more data as well. You do need a scanner that can do 2D barcodes though, as not all scanners will read them.
A Stoccolma la scomparsa dei contanti ha creato vari problemi
A Stoccolma la scomparsa dei contanti ha creato vari problemi
Per esempio alle donne vittime di violenza domestica, ma non soloIl Post
Subaru Telescope Discovers "Fossil" of the Early Solar System
The Subaru Telescope has made an exciting discovery: a small body beyond Pluto, with implications for the formation, evolution, and current structure of the outer solar system.The object officially designated 2023 KQ~14,~ was found as part of the survey project FOSSIL (Formation of the Outer Solar System: An Icy Legacy), which takes advantage of the Subaru Telescope's wide field of view. The object was discovered through observations taken in March, May, and August 2023 using the Subaru Telescope.
![](https://poliverso.org/photo/preview/640/53348658 "Subaru Telescope Discovers "Fossil\" of the Early Solar System | Obsevation Results | Subaru Telescope")
Subaru Telescope Discovers "Fossil" of the Early Solar System | Obsevation Results | Subaru Telescope
The Subaru Telescope has revealed a fourth member of the sednoids, a group of small bodies with peculiar orbits around the outer edge of the Solar System that includes Se...Subaru Telescope
reshared this
Microsoft saved $500 million using AI — after slashing over 15,000 jobs in 2025
Microsoft saved $500 million using AI — after slashing over 15,000 jobs in 2025
While AI may not be the direct cause of Microsoft’s recent layoffs, it’s already delivering impressive productivity gains — saving $500 million in the call center alone last year.Kevin Okemwa (Windows Central)
Dutch MPs want citizens to own the copyright to their faces
A majority of Dutch MPs are backing a proposal to give citizens the copyright to their body, facial features, and voice to prevent people from creating AI-generated deepfakes and putting them online.
Denmark has already announced it will extend copyright law to ensure people maintain the right to their own person and GroenLinks-PvdA, VVD, NSC and D66 MPS now want to follow suit.
They have also called for action against big tech companies that do not act against the dissemination of deepfakes on their platforms.
Obando said any case against big tech companies would be a “challenge” and may turn into a battle of “David against Goliath”. “An individual would have to take on an often anonymous perpetrator or a big tech platform,” he said.
Privacy watchdog Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (AP) is calling on people who are the victims of sexually suggestive deepfakes to report them so it can impose fines and other measures.
Duursma and Obando both warned that the new legislation could compromise freedom of expression. However, parody and satire using deepfakes would still be allowed under the proposed rules.
Twitter founder Jack Dorsey pumps $10 million into a nonprofit to build Nostr-based social media apps
Jack Dorsey pumps $10 million into a nonprofit focused on open-source social media | TechCrunch
Jack Dorsey backs nonprofit 'and Other Stuff' with $10M to build open social technology.Sarah Perez (TechCrunch)
like this
Hackers Are Finding New Ways to Hide Malware in DNS Records
New ways, but they are really creative!
https://www.wired.com/story/dns-records-hidden-malicious-code/
For the first time, astronomers witness the dawn of a new solar system
For the first time, astronomers witness the dawn of a new solar system
International researchers have, for the first time, pinpointed the moment when planets began to form around a star beyond the Sun.www.eso.org
Ten children a day losing a limb in Gaza, warns UN-backed body
Ten children a day losing a limb in Gaza, warns UN-backed body
Ten children a day are losing one or both limbs in Gaza due to Israel's assault on the Palestinian enclave, a report warned on Tuesday.Alex MacDonald (Middle East Eye)
The Solidity Language open-source package was used in a $500,000 crypto heist
Code highlighting with Cursor AI for $500,000
Kaspersky GReAT experts uncover malicious extensions for Cursor AI that download the Quasar backdoor and a crypto stealer.Georgy Kucherin (Kaspersky)
ESWIN and Canonical team up to port Ubuntu to EBC77 RISC-V SBC
ESWIN Computing EBC77 RISC-V SBC To Support Ubuntu Linux
Canonical announced today that they teamed up with ESWIN Computing to ship Ubuntu Linux as the preferred operating system on their ESWIN Computing EBC77 Series single board computerwww.phoronix.com
like this
TheAlbatross
in reply to crankyrebel • • •crankyrebel
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •TheAlbatross
in reply to crankyrebel • • •But why? There's no need for that for everything to make sense. Epstein was a wealthy financier who also was a sex trafficker of young people to the rich and famous. We know he worked with Trump and Trump has been confirmed to have been on the island where he pimped out the young people he trafficked.
He's a Mossad agent... why? Simply because he's Jewish? Bibi is pulling the strings.... why? Idk man this feels like some "Jewish conspiracy" bullshit with a thin veneer of "It's Bibi so it's anti-Zionist and that makes it fine".
This is a weird post and you should feel weird.
crankyrebel
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •Not because he is Jewish, but because he was a Zionist.
Jeffrey Epstein Rumored Mossad Connection Explained
Jeffrey Epstein Rumored Mossad Connection Explained
Nick Mordowanec (Newsweek)TheAlbatross
in reply to crankyrebel • • •I'm not sure the conspiracy minded ramblings of Tucker Carlson are something one has to bear in mind at any point in their lives.
Like, yeah, fuck Epstein, Trump, Bibi, and Zionism, but c'mon...
Let's pretend Epstein is confirmed as a Mossad asset, for a moment. It still isn't necessary for Bibi to be pulling the strings here for Trump to have plenty of reasons to want to shut down inquiry into Epstein's work. It's just conspiracy for conspiracy's sake.
Furthermore, I'm not sure what the point of this post is, other than promoting this conspiracy you've come up with. It's not funny and it just plays into antisemitic tropes but applies them to Zionists
SatansMaggotyCumFart
in reply to crankyrebel • • •davel
in reply to SatansMaggotyCumFart • • •They don’t resonate with us, nor do we pay them attention. The few instances where we agree are merely coincidental and usually for different reasons.
Consortium News, 2020: Epstein Case: Documentaries Won’t Touch Tales of Intel Ties
Epstein Case: Documentaries Won't Touch Tales of Intel Ties
Consortium NewsSatansMaggotyCumFart
in reply to davel • • •davel
in reply to SatansMaggotyCumFart • • •I know.
Carlson is hard to avoid. You don’t necessarily have to seek out his opinion to be aware of it. And I wouldn’t know how “left” OP is.
SatansMaggotyCumFart
in reply to davel • • •davel
in reply to SatansMaggotyCumFart • • •Limonene
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to crankyrebel • • •The tail doesn't wag the dog. AIPAC and Israel have some level of counterinfluence over the US, but the US Empire is the hegemon, and Israel its vassel. Trying to paint the US as under the control of Israel is mostly an actually antisemetic dogwhistle, and plays into the idea that a Jewish cabal is controlling the world's Empire.
I know you probably aren't intending it that way, but it's important to correctly criticize the genocidal entity "Israel." Mis-analyzing the dynamics at play weakens our chances of rectifying them.
TheAlbatross
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •Mrkawfee
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to Mrkawfee • • •anarchoilluminati [comrade/them]
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Beautifully put. It is not that the US/EU are at the mercy of Israel, or are concerned to cut ties; they know fully well what they are doing. Israel is a colony for them to assert their power in the region. If the US/EU didn't exist, neither would Israel. If Israel didn't exist, they would just create another Israel in the region for their interest.
Its not just Israel, either. Most Arab states are puppets for them too, basically showing face to their populations anti-zionism, Arab unity and all that bullshit, but then turning around and dealing with Israel and "fighting arab extremism". After sykes-picot/invading nations/influencing revolutions/pouring endless money to far right insurgents, we are effectively neutered but our resources are open wide.
Especially the monarchies, while the royals live in unimaginable wealth the common people don't live lavishly, and poverty is a rampant problem. After sykes picot the British/US supported/installed these royal families, and crushed revolutions (like the dhofar rebellion/bahraini uprising etc). They are just shells for the imperialists to suck the resources out of the people.
Only a few politicians ever stood against this, mainly Nasser and Mossadegh come to mind. Mossadegh dared nationalize Iran's oil and got overthrown, then got a brutal pro-west monarchy installed. Nasser nationalized the Suez canal and got invaded by the UK/France/Israel.
Israel is just a colony for them to directly meddle in the region and keep the people in their place. This works exceptionally well, sadly. They prioritize profits over the people, leaving millions here to suffer.
I honestly believe the middle east will only ever be free once these bullshit Sykes-Picot borders are abolished, Israel no longer existing (not death to the population, to the apartheid state) and ending imperialist meddling in the region. That is a distant dream though 🥲
Whooh that was a lot to write lol, I was bored and saw this so thought might as well share this wall of text/infodump xd. Tl;dr: Israel is a western colony and the middle east is not truly independent.
If you're interested to start learning about this, I highly recommend starting at Sykes-Picot/WW1, specifically the battles against the Ottomans, and the Arab revolt, those events caused the creation of the modern middle east as we know it.
Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to 𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥 • • •𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •No problem, sadly I don't have any good recommendations, but a book that has lots of praise is about the Sykes Picot agreement (JIC: it was a secret treaty by the British/French defining borders/spheres of influence in a purely economic POV, which caused the insane instability/wars/shuffling around minorities and people in the next century, agreed upon behind the backs of the Arabs who fought against the Ottomans after they were promised most of the land by the Brits/French) A line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle that Shaped the Middle East. I've heard about
A Peace to End All Peace: The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East too. Wikipedia is also a solid source about this stuff, it would also be good to research Arab nationalists/socialists and their works, since they've probably addressed most of this stuff too.
Honestly this is such a nuanced and shitshow of a topic, it's both funny and depressing at the same time lol. Good luck with your search! And have a good week
A Line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle th…
GoodreadsCowbee [he/they]
in reply to 𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥 • • •caligohollow
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •ScatterBrain
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Both the meme and you are kinda wrong. Today, with Trump, Netanyahu does indeed hold influence on Trump, and has for some time. He likely has held influence on some democrats as well. This is because Israel and Russia both likely received blackmail material from Epstein, and are pressuring Trump with that blackmail today. This was always the stick to keep Trump in line. The meme is wrong because Netanyahu is happy with Trump, while Putin isn't. I believe it is much more likely that Putin is pushing the Epstein narrative now to replace a disobedient Trump with Vance, as Putin and Heritage can do a lot sans Trump. You will notice that the conservatives calling for the list now are generally pro Heritage Foundation, a Putin ally. President Vance is the plan now.
I don't hate Jews or Israel. I hate the far right party and Netanyahu.
KimBongUn420
in reply to ScatterBrain • • •It's actually you that is wrong. Your analysis is great man theory bs
LupineTroubles [he/him, they/them]
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •I am not sure I agree with this fully, in the sense obviously Israel is a project of Western hegemony and that Israel exists and existed at behest of US and Europe as a foothold to keep the politics of the region volatile and easily influenced. So at a state level, Israel is beholden to US and the West not the other way around. However states don't exist as some sort of supranational hivemind that dictates politics and diplomacy purely with raison d'état, a state and its institutions are composed of people who themselves have direct influence on policy that can at times go against that raison d'état or just have obvious conflicts of interests that are navigated within circumstances of policy. I don't think at this stage anyone can deny that Israeli lobbies, chiefly AIPAC, has disproportionate influence over US politicians at legislative level, executive and judiciary is generally independent of this but house and senate seems to have reached a sort of critical mass of AIPAC-backed (directly funded and supported) candidates that essentially share a mission in Zionism and any which falls out of this line just has to fight against the establishment at very disadvantage terms.
So while I agree that the idea that Israel is somehow the ones that are pulling the strings are an antisemitic trope and ignoring the fact that Israel started as an European colonial project that was backed and supported by West for Western interests and directly tied to US policy in middle-east, and as Biden said once if it didn't exist it'd be necessary to invent it, we can't just ignore the undue and disproportionate influence that Israeli Zionist lobbies have in US politics especially at legislative level. Of course this is not just Israel, since there exists other lobbies such as Gulf lobby that are doing similar things and at times even seem to have more influence at executive but it is not quite at the level of AIPAC and the rest.
Avicenna
in reply to crankyrebel • • •