Blinken, Blinkers, and Nod

One lesson from “the George Floyd Uprising” is that “it is best to come to all demonstrations with goggles, gas masks, laser pointers, and shields. You never know what a casual sleepover might become.” --CrimethInc.com, a website that has become an Ann Landers hub for anarchists, Antifa activists, and radical leftists.

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The American war machine depends on tiny bits of metal, some as small as dimes. Rare-earth magnets are needed for F-35 jet fighters, missile-guidance systems, Predator drones and nuclear submarines.
China makes most of the world’s rare-earth magnets, with 92% of the global market share.

Now, how could that happen?

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Gold consumption in China rose 6 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, according to the China Gold Association. It had a 9 percent increase last year.


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Blinken, Blinkers, and Nod

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that he made clear to Israeli leaders US opposition to a major attack on the Gaza city of Rafah and said he suggested "better ways" to address Hamas.

"Our position is clear. It hasn't changed, it won't change," Blinken told reporters.

"We cannot and will not support a major military operation in Rafah absent an effective plan to make sure that civilians are not harmed, and we've not seen such a plan."

"At the same time, there are other ways -- and in our judgment, better ways -- of dealing with the real ongoing challenge of Hamas that does not require a major military operation" in Rafah, Blinken said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to launch an assault on Rafah to root out Hamas despite US opposition and regardless of whether the militants accept a proposal for a temporary ceasefire in return for freeing hostages.

One may well wonder what these solutions are. But there is no question what the "position" of the country is: the U.S. is opposed to the invasion of Rafah. That's it. And the source of that position is not foreign circumstances or humanitarianism, it is the domestic election. The politicians in the Democrat Party think they can't win the coming national election without the support of their pro-Palestine wing. Our foreign policy is wagged by domestic politics.

And, of course, the public position the Americans have taken will give a peculiar impression to the world when it is ignored.

Identity politics and factionalism generate small-minded enthusiasm and donations. But it is hard to develop national policies out of provincial shards.