Image is of German farmers blocking the road near the Brandenburg Gate in early January 2024.
The ruling German coalition - the FDP, the SPD, and the Greens - has been in dire straits since the war in Ukraine began due to their steadfast commitment to destroying their country as much as possible in solidarity with Ukraine destroying themselves too. Scholz is deeply unpopular, with a record low approval of 20%, and his party’s approval is even lower.
The German left has been entirely unable to take advantage of this situation, with Die Linke fragmenting due to split opinions on what position they should hold on Ukraine, among other issues. As a result, the major conservative party, the CDU, has gained a lot of voters over the past couple years. Most worrying, however, is the gains that the fascist party, the AfD, has made - from 10% in 2021 all the way to ~20% today. A significant chunk of the vote is likely protest votes due to the lack of an alternative, but a vote for fascists makes you a fascist nonetheless.
Recent controversies with the AfD - including an allegation that they held a secret meeting discussing a plan to mass-deport millions of migrants in an obvious parallel to Nazi meetings planning to remove all Jews from the country - has recently slightly damped approval for the AfD. This meeting generated counter-protests and condemnation from many Germans. It was later revealed that the meeting might not really have happened as alleged, but it doesn’t actually matter, because the AfD’s stance is being increasingly reflected by the ruling coalition, who recently introduced a bill allowing faster deportations of rejected asylum seekers and significant new powers for authorities in that regard, including potentially the criminalization of sea rescue organizations and imprisonment for aid workers.
The German government is increasingly considering banning the AfD, with their anxiety and motivation to do so rising as the AfD maintains and improves its position as Germany heads towards elections in late 2025. There are intermediate steps that could be done, such as revoking state funding, but if that doesn’t work, then the party might well be banned. While I will never argue with fascist parties being banned, this probably won’t fix anything, as the underlying economic and social conditions that are fueling these electoral shifts in the first place are not improving. Germany, the largest industrial power in Europe, is mired in a recession, particularly a manufacturing recession, from which there appears to be no escape. It has so far carefully shepherded its natural gas resources to keep the population as mollified as possible, but this has come at the expense of industry. In a trend starting from July 2022, manufacturing PMIs are still well below 50, reaching 45.5 in January 2024, which indicates decline. I suppose if you wanted to look on the bright side, it’s better than it was in July 2023, where it was a whopping 38.8, so the rate of decline is becoming a little slower.
And this is just the domestic stuff. Germany has also famously sided with Israel to support them during the ICJ genocide case, has kowtowed to Netanyahu as they bond over being Genocide Experts, and maintains its support of Ukraine, continuing to send military gear and money to be converted to scrap metal by Russian artillery - rather than spending money on doing anything about the cost of living. In the face of a historic economic downturn, it has only more fervently stated its desire to remain militarily opposed to Russia for decades.
The Country of the Week is Germany! Feel free to chime in with books, essays, longform articles, even stories and anecdotes or rants. More detail here.
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Last week’s thread is here.
Israel-Palestine Conflict
Sources on the fighting in Palestine against Israel. In general, CW for footage of battles, explosions, dead people, and so on:
UNRWA daily-ish reports on Israel’s destruction and siege of Gaza and the West Bank.
English-language Palestinian Marxist-Leninist twitter account. Alt here.
English-language twitter account that collates news (and has automated posting when the person running it goes to sleep).
Arab-language twitter account with videos and images of fighting.
English-language (with some Arab retweets) Twitter account based in Lebanon. - Telegram is @IbnRiad.
English-language Palestinian Twitter account which reports on news from the Resistance Axis. - Telegram is @EyesOnSouth.
English-language Twitter account in the same group as the previous two. - Telegram here.
English-language PalestineResist telegram channel.
More telegram channels here for those interested.
Various sources that are covering the Ukraine conflict are also covering the one in Palestine, like Rybar.
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict
Sources:
Defense Politics Asia’s youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.
Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don’t want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it’s just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists’ side.
Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.
Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:
Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.
https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR’s former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR’s forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster’s telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a ‘propaganda tax’, if you don’t believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.
Pro-Ukraine Telegram Channels:
Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.
Another L from the “Posting isn’t praxis” crowd:
https://nitter.mint.lgbt/WireRacing/status/1755938615765438851
https://twitter.com/WireRacing/status/1755938615765438851
NPR just interviewed a young Zionist woman in the Bay Area who says that reading pro-Palestine posts on social media caused her to have “night terrors” and to spend hours per day crying in her closet. ngmi
MI5 tried to recruit British man in Gaza by offering to help family escape
A British man stranded in Rafah with his young family has told Middle East Eye that MI5 offered to help them to escape from Gaza but only if he agreed to work for the spy agency.
The man, who said he did not accept the offer, now fears that his displaced family – who include a one-year-old daughter with a serious medical condition, and two other young children – is in imminent danger from an expected Israeli offensive and a humanitarian crisis that is worsening by the day.
Germany’s last solar panel producer prepares to close shop
By Nikolaus J. Kurmayer at EURACTIV. The article is not quoted in full.
Meyer Burger, the last producer of solar modules in Germany, has announced plans to close down and relocate to the US, fuelling political debates on whether the industry deserves long-term state support to ensure its survival.
Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck’s plan to entice solar module manufacturers back onto German soil by offering generous state subsidies is faced with a dead-end. Within the fractuous government coalition, the liberal FDP party is blocking plans to grant a “resilience bonus” to would-be manufacturers, amid a continued budget crisis caused by a ruling from Germany’s top court last month which blew a €60 billion hole in the country’s finances.
Now, the Swiss module producer Meyer Burger is threatening to relocate to the US entirely, putting 500 jobs at risk.
Solar panels are mostly manufactured in China these days, but Germany is still home to some parts of the value chain. Polysilicon, for example, is produced by chemicals company WACKER in Saxony, a former communist state of East Germany.
…
“We are in talks with Meyer Burger, and we are very aware of the difficult situation of this company and the PV industry in Germany,” a government spokesperson said on Wednesday. The company set a deadline for “the second half of February 2024” and called for “resilience measures” to secure production in Germany.
Germany’s woes with solar PV manufacturing come as Europe debates its own industrial policy law, the Net-Zero Industry Act. The proposed law aims aims to support production in Europe of technologies seen as essential to achieve climate neutrality, like solar panels, wind turbines and heat pumps. Negotiations to conclude the law are now entering the final stages in Brussels after EU member states and the European Parliament both adopted their respective positions.
Neoliberalism: not even once, kids.
@[email protected] congrats on the interview
There are some google street view images of aftermath from the January 1 earthquake in Japan, and in some places they overlap with the old images so you can see what it looked like before. Don’t know if this counts as news but I found it interesting.
Spain has suspended all arms export licences to Israel since October 7, 2023, according to Spanish Foreign Minister José Albares Bueno.
https://nitter.mint.lgbt/MintPressNews/status/1754941034562212264
https://twitter.com/MintPressNews/status/1754941034562212264
FT: Republicans prepare to torpedo bipartisan deal for US aid to Ukraine
Donald Trump trashes Senate bill, as rift in the party threatens to kill last chance to boost funding for Kyiv
A bipartisan deal backed by President Joe Biden to deliver billions of dollars in US aid to Ukraine along with stricter immigration policies is facing a widening groundswell of resistance from Republicans in Congress, posing a major threat to its progress on Capitol Hill.
The legislation worth $118bn agreed on Sunday by Democratic and Republican negotiators in the Senate could be the last chance for the Biden administration to secure new military support for Ukraine in its defence against Russia’s invasion — alongside other national security goals including aid to Israel and Taiwan.
It also marks a rare compromise on efforts to curb immigration through the US border with Mexico, including restrictions on asylum, which has been a rallying cry for Republicans and a political liability for Democrats throughout Biden’s presidency.
But the bipartisan dealmaking has been trashed by Donald Trump in recent weeks — and the frontrunner for this year’s Republican White House nomination moved to torpedo the latest breakthrough again on Monday, just days ahead of a planned vote on the agreement in the Senate.
“This Bill is a great gift to the Democrats, and a Death Wish for The Republican Party,” the former president wrote on social media on Monday. “It takes the HORRIBLE JOB the Democrats have done on Immigration and the Border, absolves them, and puts it all squarely on the shoulders of Republicans. Don’t be STUPID!!!”
Trump, a foreign affairs isolationist, has treated the immigration crisis on the southern border as an opportunity to attack Biden as he steps up his push to win back the White House.
Within a few hours of Trump’s post, the leading Republicans in the House of Representatives — which also must approve the legislation for it to become law — issued a joint statement saying “any consideration of this Senate bill in its current form is a waste of time”.
“It is DEAD on arrival in the House,” they added.
The bill’s first legislative obstacle will be in the Senate, with a vote expected on Wednesday that would require the support of 60 of the chamber’s 100 senators.
At least 12 of the 49 Republican senators in total would have to back the bill for it to move forward as some Democrats are also expected to vote against it because they consider the border measures too draconian.
But the criticism from some Republican lawmakers has been brutal — and appears to doom its prospects.
Mike Lee, a Utah senator, called it “a betrayal of the American people” on X. Even some Republican senators close to the party leadership, which endorsed the deal, were wavering or expressing outright opposition.
“I cannot vote for this bill. Americans will turn to the upcoming election to end the border crisis,” John Barrasso, the Wyoming Republican and third-highest ranking senator from his party, told Politico on Tuesday.
“Now that I have seen the text, I have questions and serious concerns,” said John Cornyn, the Texas Republican senator who had previously encouraged the negotiations. Katie Britt, a Republican senator from Alabama, said the bill “would not stop President Biden from continuing his radical mass migration agenda”.
Early on Tuesday, at least 21 Republican Senators had declared they would vote against the bill, meaning it would fall at the first hurdle — another sign of the growing number and influence of isolationist hardliners on Capitol Hill as Trump extends his dominance over the party.
The expected failure of the bill also marks the latest blow to traditional Republican foreign policy hawks and political pragmatists who backed the bipartisan breakthrough, including Mitch McConnell, the party’s Senate leader. His future as leader could now be in jeopardy.
McConnell on Monday appealed for Republicans to come around and back a package that would help the US and its allies “regain the upper hand” over an “emerging axis of authoritarians” in Moscow, Beijing and Tehran.
“Make no mistake: the gauntlet has been thrown. And America needs to pick it up,” he said.
Democrats and the White House have also not given up hope the deal can at least pass the Senate.
“The $64,000 question now is whether or not senators can drown out the outside noise, drown out people like Donald Trump who want chaos, and do the right thing for America,” Chuck Schumer, the Democratic senate majority leader, said on Monday afternoon.
During a trip to Nevada on Monday, Biden was asked how the bill would pass the upper chamber. “With 60 votes, and you’re gonna watch,” the president responded.
Its not 2022 anymore. Crime is out, immigration is in! Y’all ready to hear about the “migrant crisis” non-stop from now until November 6th, 2024?
It’s funny how FT framed the title about being related to Ukraine, when this is pretty much all related to Donald Trump wanting to run on immigration.
Also little bit electoralism brain - why in fuck trump doesn’t want border bill, does he really care about ukraine that much? If he wasn’t so vain, saying biden does his policies (infrastructure bill, china, border) is fairly despiriting to democratic believers, and democrats win on voter turn out
Another example why Syrians love Russia:
“The Russian army carried out a humanitarian operation in the city of Basra al-Sham in Daraa governorate. The Russian side donated medical equipment, medicines and food parcels to an optical hospital.”
It’s noteworthy that Daraa is is the Southwest of Syria and thus under complete US embargo and blocked from receiving UN aid. Most of the infrastructure had to be completely rebuilt after it was liberated from US-israel-Qatar-Turkish backed terrorists in 2018.
Bluesky opened to public registrations.
Add me nerds so I can remove all the liberals they auto-followed for me: lenins2ndcat.bsky.social
If you could ask Putin one question with an honest answer, what would it be?
Civilians storming the legislature, with only a few indirect deaths, in an attempt to keep the sitting President in power? Horrible evil authoritarian treason.
The President ordering the military to shell the legislature, directly killing many, in an attempt to keep himself in power? Cool and good, actually.
lmao EU gardeners agitating to sanction Tucker Carlson
spoiler
Tucker Carlson’s interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin could see the conservative pundit targeted by European Union lawmakers, current and former members of the European Parliament have told Newsweek.
Carlson visited Russia this week, and on Tuesday revealed he would “soon” be releasing an interview with the Russian leader.
Carlson’s work in Russia could see the former Fox News host in hot water with the EU, Guy Verhofstadt, a former Belgian prime minister and current member of the European Parliament, told Newsweek.
The lawmaker—who has called for the EU to explore imposing a “travel ban” on Carlson—described Carlson as “a mouthpiece” of former President Donald Trump and Putin, adding: “As Putin is a war criminal and the EU sanctions all who assist him in that effort, it seems logical that the External Action Service examine his case as well.”
…
One European diplomatic official, who did not wish to be named as they were not authorized to speak publicly, told Newsweek that any future travel restrictions would likely require proof that he is linked to Moscow’s aggression, something that “is absent or hard to prove.”
Still, Luis Garicano, a former MEP, told Newsweek he agreed with Verhofstadt’s stance. “He is no longer a newsman, but a propagandist for the most heinous regime on European soil and the one which is most dangerous to our peace and security,” Garicano said of Carlson.
The content of Carlson’s interview with Putin is not yet clear but, given the pundit’s long-time defense of aspects of Russian policy, critics expect it to be sympathetic to Moscow.
“First of all, it should be remembered that Putin is not just a president of an aggressor country, but he is wanted by the International Criminal Court and accused of genocide and war crimes,” MEP Urmas Paet, who previously served as Estonia’s foreign minister, told Newsweek.
"Carlson wants to give a platform to someone accused of crimes of genocide—this is wrong. If Putin has something to say he needs to say it in front of the ICC. At the same time Carlson is not being a real journalist since he has clearly expressed his sympathy for the Russian regime and Putin and has constantly disparaged Ukraine, the victim of Russian aggression.
No comment even needed. The bold sentence gives me deep anger.
Saw someone claim that 10000 Hamas fighters have been killed. Has Israel even put out any statments on how many Hamas fighters they’ve killed? Seems like a total ass pull and I feel like wrecking this piece of shit.
Edit: Did a quick search and I saw a few places (Wikipedia, NPR) report that Israel and US intelligence claim anywhere between 5000-9000 Hamas fighters have been killed.
