Month: November 2024

The world is unprepared for the level of violence we are going to see in the streets.

Gaza is coming to your neighborhood. The election of Trump in the United States and the complicity of the West in the genocide in Palestine are interconnected. We have lost all sense of societal empathy – and the more desensitized we are – the easier it gets to commit atrocities in broad daylight.

Take, for instance, the soccer-violence in Amsterdam which is being labelled as an outpouring of anti-semitism.

The corporate narrative about Israel has done a disservice to Judaism. By equating Zionism and Judaism, our media has opened the gates to public violence.

Caitlin Johnstone explains:

The propaganda machine has been spinning its head off trying to frame soccer brawls in Amsterdam as a horrifying “pogrom” against Jewish people because the side instigating the violence were supporters of team Maccabi Tel Aviv who flew in from Israel.

Video evidence shows far right Israeli hooligans terrorizing the streets of Amsterdam, chanting “Fuck the Arabs”, starting fights, beating people, tearing down Palestinian flags, attacking a cab driver, and singing “Let the IDF win and fuck the Arabs! Why is school out in Gaza? There are no children left there!”

In the face of all this evidence of atrocious behavior by Israeli soccer fans, The New York Times ran a story with the headline “Antisemitic Attacks Prompt Emergency Flights for Israeli Soccer Fans”. The Wall Street Journal ran with “Antisemitic Attacks in Amsterdam Prompt Tight Security at Jewish Sites”. “Pogroms have returned to Europe, and the ‘anti-racist’ Left are silent,” says The Telegraph.

Meanwhile the Daily Mail sports section ran with a headline more in line with what people actually saw: “Israeli football hooligans tear down Palestine flags in Amsterdam as taxi drivers ‘fight back’ in night of chaos ahead of Maccabi Tel Aviv’s visit to Ajax”. Leaders of western nations like the US, UK, Canada and France joined the Dutch king in framing these soccer brawls and hooliganism as a historic mass-scale hate crime against Jews, while Israeli officials have been  melodramatically shrieking like their hair is on fire.

The total collapse of the media is the precursor to the collapse of society.

Our institutions are failing – and flailing.

Meanwhile in Bangladesh, regime change has led to violence and murder of Hindus. This is not a one-off, but rather a systematic wave of terror visited on the minorities in what was considered a moderate Islamic country. Hindus make up about 8% of the country’s nearly 170 million people, while Muslims are about 91%.

In Gaza, we know that 70% of the dead are women and children. We learned nothing from the Holocaust – not the Israelis, not the West.

Religious violence has returned to center stage.

The tired wars of ideology have returned. Watch next for Christian Fascism – the rising star of American politics.

Margaret Atwood tried to warn us, but we said “it can’t happen here.”

Bruh, it just happened here.

What can stop the inevitable leap from individual acts of violence to institutional conflict?

Here’s a blueprint of how individual violence can evolve into institutional conflict:

1. Personal Grievances and Identity Polarization: Individuals who feel marginalized, threatened, or discriminated against engage in isolated acts of violence. Over time, such individuals come together based on shared grievances, forming group identities that reinforce “us vs. them” mentalities. This polarization can be a catalyst for collective action, especially when individuals feel that violence is a valid expression of resistance against perceived oppression. (Sound familiar? USA! USA!)
2. Formation of Ideological Justifications: Shared beliefs and narratives, spread through media, community leaders, or charismatic figures (funded by billionaires), help legitimize violence as a justified reaction. These ideologies may emphasize historical injustices, cultural superiority, or existential threats, fostering a sense of moral obligation to act against an opposing group or institution. Ideology provides cohesion and purpose, which can help turn isolated violence into organized conflict​.
3. Organizational Support, Mobilization, and Belonging: As groups grow in number, they formalize their existence through organizations that provide resources, training, and (mis)leadership. Support networks can include political parties, militant organizations, or even religious institutions that see value in promoting collective action. Mobilization at this stage typically involves funding, weapons, and a more structured approach to violence, creating a pathway for sustained institutional or systemic conflict​. (Paramilitary pop-ups!)
4. Institutionalization of Conflict: When violence becomes systemic, it permeates institutions, such as the military, police, or political organizations, embedding conflict into governance structures. Institutions may adopt policies or practices that perpetuate violence, or opposition groups may form “shadow institutions” that operate as parallel governments or military forces. This stage signifies a shift from sporadic violence to a protracted conflict with a degree of legitimacy within political structures​.
5. Escalation and Entrenchment: In this stage, violence and conflict become deeply embedded in societal norms and institutional practices. As groups formalize warfare or prolonged institutionalized discrimination, the potential for peaceful resolution diminishes. Conflicts often become harder to resolve because they are now integral to the power dynamics within institutions, influencing policy, identity, and daily life.
6. Government as an Institution of Violence: In progress – watch the US. When your government turns on its own people – the enemy within – and starts a loyalty-program, banishing everyone but “true believers” and billionaires from the levers of power. (Game over for Democracy?)

This is an old, worn tune. But still we dance – our monkey minds gripped by fear.

Meanwhile, the Planet is dying. And lest you forget, the billionaires won’t take you to Mars.