The obsession with "beating AIPAC" misses the point. The US empire doesn't support Israel simply because AIPAC lobbies for it, but because it's crucial for American hegemony.
Even if AIPAC didn't exist, the US would still support Israel just like British Empire did before it.
Even if AIPAC didn't exist, the US would still support Israel just like British Empire did before it.
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I explained this a bit more here:
x.com/Raja48/status/…
x.com/Raja48/status/…
I get the intended strategy behind trying to decouple the US from Israel. It aims to put pressure on American politicians to curb Israeli atrocities as much as possible, mainly by ending direct military aid.
However, that strategy is shortsighted because even if it succeeds, it won't truly end the Zionist settler-colonial project. US support for Israel is extremely rewarding for the empire, from securing geopolitical hegemony in the region to experimenting with military, psychological, and societal counterinsurgency tactics. Israel operates beyond the bounds of international law and can deliver things to Western colonial powers that they can't openly do themselves.
Even if the American empire is forced to stop direct military support to stop the active killing machine in Gaza, it won't fundamentally change the reality on the ground. Israel will just curb its monstrosity temporarily and accept political concessions to absorb the pressure, while the US maintains its hegemony through other means.
As long as the American empire dominates the world, Israel, as a colonial outpost, will continue to be empowered to protect American interests in the region. The settler-colonial project will not end as long as the empire is alive and kicking.
So while embracing the "America First" rhetoric can feel satisfying and while beating AIPAC-backed candidates feels like a victory, it's only a temporary fix to a permanent problem.
The settler-colonial project will only end when the material return on investment for the US and the West becomes materially negative, making the outpost too costly to sustain.
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I get the intended strategy behind trying to decouple the US from Israel. It aims to put pressure on American politicians to curb Israeli atrocities as much as possible, mainly by ending direct military aid.
However, that strategy is shortsighted because even if it succeeds, it won't truly end the Zionist settler-colonial project. US support for Israel is extremely rewarding for the empire, from securing geopolitical hegemony in the region to experimenting with military, psychological, and societal counterinsurgency tactics. Israel operates beyond the bounds of international law and can deliver things to Western colonial powers that they can't openly do themselves.
Even if the American empire is forced to stop direct military support to stop the active killing machine in Gaza, it won't fundamentally change the reality on the ground. Israel will just curb its monstrosity temporarily and accept political concessions to absorb the pressure, while the US maintains its hegemony through other means.
As long as the American empire dominates the world, Israel, as a colonial outpost, will continue to be empowered to protect American interests in the region. The settler-colonial project will not end as long as the empire is alive and kicking.
So while embracing the "America First" rhetoric can feel satisfying and while beating AIPAC-backed candidates feels like a victory, it's only a temporary fix to a permanent problem.
The settler-colonial project will only end when the material return on investment for the US and the West becomes materially negative, making the outpost too costly to sustain.
However, that strategy is shortsighted because even if it succeeds, it won't truly end the Zionist settler-colonial project. US support for Israel is extremely rewarding for the empire, from securing geopolitical hegemony in the region to experimenting with military, psychological, and societal counterinsurgency tactics. Israel operates beyond the bounds of international law and can deliver things to Western colonial powers that they can't openly do themselves.
Even if the American empire is forced to stop direct military support to stop the active killing machine in Gaza, it won't fundamentally change the reality on the ground. Israel will just curb its monstrosity temporarily and accept political concessions to absorb the pressure, while the US maintains its hegemony through other means.
As long as the American empire dominates the world, Israel, as a colonial outpost, will continue to be empowered to protect American interests in the region. The settler-colonial project will not end as long as the empire is alive and kicking.
So while embracing the "America First" rhetoric can feel satisfying and while beating AIPAC-backed candidates feels like a victory, it's only a temporary fix to a permanent problem.
The settler-colonial project will only end when the material return on investment for the US and the West becomes materially negative, making the outpost too costly to sustain.
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الهوس بفكرة "هزيمة اللوبي الصهيوني" يغفل عن جوهر المشكلة. الإمبراطورية الأمريكية لا تدعم إسرائيل لمجرد ضغط اللوبي، بل لأن وجود إسرائيل ركيزة أساسية للهيمنة الأمريكية في المنطقة.
وحتى لو لم تكن إيباك موجودة أصلاً، لما توقفت أمريكا عن دعم إسرائيل كما فعلت بريطانيا من قبلها.
وحتى لو لم تكن إيباك موجودة أصلاً، لما توقفت أمريكا عن دعم إسرائيل كما فعلت بريطانيا من قبلها.
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It's easy to attribute the Democrats' sweep to Gaza and correlate the rise of progressive candidates with the genocide. However, the reality is this sweep just follows the predictable pattern of the shuffle between both parties every few years.
Yes, Gaza's resilience against an American-led genocide shifted public opinion overall, but America has been shifting towards political progressiveness since Obama, and that itself isn't a victory. It's just another aesthetic of American "democracy."
The real challenge is what's next for these progressive elected officials. Are they going to be able to stop the wars without replacing them with non-spectacle means? Are they going to fight structural racism, dismantle corporate power, and deliver reparations for Black folks?
Or will these new elected officials be socialized into accepting the status quo with cosmetic changes? Will they truly challenge the American empire or just hold a placard next time Netanyahu gives a speech in Congress?
Gaza's struggle was a radical challenge to American and Zionist hegemony, not a campaign to elect a few progressive imperial managers into office to make life easier for Muslim Americans.
Yes, Gaza's resilience against an American-led genocide shifted public opinion overall, but America has been shifting towards political progressiveness since Obama, and that itself isn't a victory. It's just another aesthetic of American "democracy."
The real challenge is what's next for these progressive elected officials. Are they going to be able to stop the wars without replacing them with non-spectacle means? Are they going to fight structural racism, dismantle corporate power, and deliver reparations for Black folks?
Or will these new elected officials be socialized into accepting the status quo with cosmetic changes? Will they truly challenge the American empire or just hold a placard next time Netanyahu gives a speech in Congress?
Gaza's struggle was a radical challenge to American and Zionist hegemony, not a campaign to elect a few progressive imperial managers into office to make life easier for Muslim Americans.
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People really forget how the Democrat vs. Republican cycle works. This Democratic sweep reminds us of Obama in 2008: celebrated as a huge win for the anti-war movement, only for people to fall back into thinking this time is different.
That's how the political duopoly functions: when people are frustrated with the ruling party, they pivot to the other in a desperate bid for change.
Every few years the cycle resets, movement energy and resources are exhausted, and the imperial system emerges stronger than before no matter who is in the office.
That's how the political duopoly functions: when people are frustrated with the ruling party, they pivot to the other in a desperate bid for change.
Every few years the cycle resets, movement energy and resources are exhausted, and the imperial system emerges stronger than before no matter who is in the office.
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A progressive victory might bring about domestic change, but at a fatal cost: it prolongs the delusion that the US empire is redeemable.
Wasting our limited energy and resources on reforming the system only delays its inevitable collapse and delays justice for its victims.
Wasting our limited energy and resources on reforming the system only delays its inevitable collapse and delays justice for its victims.
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Some Muslim men are busy harassing a Muslim woman podcaster over her "modesty" while passively watching women in Gaza be annihilated.
They displace their political impotence onto a woman over a short video. This selective outrage & misplaced energy & priorities are sickening.
They displace their political impotence onto a woman over a short video. This selective outrage & misplaced energy & priorities are sickening.
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Intentionally or not, Tucker Carlson does a great job of exonerating the US empire from its crimes by blaming its imperialist agenda to an external force.
This misdiagnosis leads anti-imperialist movements away from the true source of exploitation & violence: American hegemony.
This misdiagnosis leads anti-imperialist movements away from the true source of exploitation & violence: American hegemony.
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Anything but admitting that Democrats are as bad as Republicans but with better liberal PR.
It's one thing to utilize the Democratic platform to push "radical change" within the two-party system but another to be delusional that one party is better and more ethical.
It's one thing to utilize the Democratic platform to push "radical change" within the two-party system but another to be delusional that one party is better and more ethical.
Haley Stevens’ betrayal today shows us it’s not that progressive Democrats, or even democratic socialists, need their own party. It’s that politicians like Haley Stevens always had more in common with Republicans like Mike Rogers and Donald Trump than with the Democratic base. And now she admits it.
That’s why it’s so important to run democratic primaries. It’s not enough to send Democrats to Washington, we have to send Democrats who are fighting for the things working class voters want!
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رجال غزة هم بقية الشرف والطهر في هذه الأمة. هم نجم سهيل لأمة تائهة، نائمة، ومقهورة.
تقبّل الله منكم، وعوّضكم خيراً منا.
تقبّل الله منكم، وعوّضكم خيراً منا.
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Witnessing the warriors of Gaza, our Ummah had the opportunity to rise to the greatness of their struggle but we failed them like those before us.
We are too afraid to match their dignity, courage, and sacrifice in a world defined by greed, subjugation, and cowardice.
We are too afraid to match their dignity, courage, and sacrifice in a world defined by greed, subjugation, and cowardice.
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"I condemn the Holocaust but also mourn the death of Nazi soldiers."
I’m grieving the deaths of the two Israeli soldiers killed in Hebron today, and praying for the full & speedy recovery of those who were injured.
I’ve spoken out loudly this week against Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, which imposes violence on a daily basis, and I will continue to do so. But violence is not the path to ending it — or to achieving safety, freedom, and peace for both Palestinians and Israelis.
And neither is collective punishment or ethnic cleansing of an entire neighborhood, or punishing millions of people for the criminal act of two, which Netanyahu has promised to enact in response.
I’ve seen a lot this week and I’ll have more to say about in the coming days (I’m on my way home shortly). There is a path to ending this excruciating cycle of violence. It starts by insisting that every life is sacred, that everyone is created in God’s image.
For now: Shabbat Shalom, to everyone who believes in the hard work of making peace & justice a reality, for everyone.
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Conceding to labeling the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization isn't a flex of an answer to a racist, imperialist, and Islamophobic question.
Abdul has used the same framework when discussing Palestine through labeling Hamas as terrorists too.
Abdul has used the same framework when discussing Palestine through labeling Hamas as terrorists too.
This is Tommy. Tommy had a question about my allegiances. Listen to the end to hear about his.
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Imagine claiming to be a leftist while defending an elected official in the imperial core against revolutionary students risking everything for the struggle.
Clearly, electoralism doesn't just pacify movements, it also turns "leftist" activists into mouthpieces for the state.
Clearly, electoralism doesn't just pacify movements, it also turns "leftist" activists into mouthpieces for the state.
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The problem with these analyses is relying heavily on "correcting" the representation of Muslims in the West as if that's why we are being colonized, children slaughtered, and homelands destroyed.
Our struggle isn't to "break stereotypes" but to materially end imperialism.
Our struggle isn't to "break stereotypes" but to materially end imperialism.
A little outside my usual lane, but this needs to be said.
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Since Abdul’s interview with Ezra Klein, I’ve watched parts of our movement go after him. On Wednesday, protesters chanted “traitor” at Zohran. I know I’ll be attacked for saying this, but I can’t stay quiet anymore while we turn on two of the most powerful advocates for Palestine in US politics.
I think we’re missing the bigger picture.
Zohran and Abdul are not only reaching millions of Americans outside our bubble, they're changing the way those Americans see Arabs and Muslims.
For decades, Hollywood portrayed us as terrorists and religious extremists, a threat to the West. In Reel Bad Arabs, Jack Shaheen documented how Hollywood systematically depicted Arabs as villains across more than 900 films, and that was even before 9/11. I have no doubt that this dehumanization contributed enormously to the lack of empathy Palestinians received for decades.
Now look at Abdul and Zohran. They're putting Arabs and Muslims in the middle of American political life as competent, principled American politicians, talking about healthcare, housing and the things that affect Americans' daily lives, without abandoning Palestine. A perfect example of that is Abdul's interviews on Fox. If you haven't seen them, I urge you to watch them before passing any further judgment. He was so compelling and so eloquent that even Jesse Watters, the Fox host, said afterward: “I like him. I don’t want to like him. I like him for some stupid reason.”
And it's not just that. Zohran warned that Gaza was on the brink of genocide on October 13, 2023, and Abdul was calling it a genocide by October 21. Long before they became prominent political figures, they took enormous risks by challenging the boundaries of acceptable political discourse.
And look how much those boundaries have shifted since. Without a doubt, Zohran taking that stance and winning in New York home to the largest Jewish community outside Israel was one of the biggest drivers of the broader shift we’re seeing within the Democratic Party.
Kamala Harris, who many hate for denying and enabling the genocide in Gaza is now endorsing Abdul, who calls Gaza a genocide and wants to stop arms sales to Israel. If that isn't a win for the movement, what is? And yet instead of celebrating it, we're angry at Abdul for receiving her endorsement.
Abdul did all this while also acknowledging the Jewish trauma from the Holocaust in his interview with Ezra Klein. Isn't that exactly what we've always wished politicians would do: represent all their constituents, including Jewish people, while refusing to compromise their moral principles?
And that trauma is real for Jewish people. What we Palestinians hate is how Israel has used that trauma to justify our oppression and dispossession.
Just to clarify: I don’t agree with everything they both say either. In the Ezra Klein interview, I wish Abdul had talked more about Palestinian trauma and what happened in 1948 as people don't understand it in the same way we all understand the trauma of the Holocaust.
But why does the responsibility of explaining that fall solely on him? Yes, he could have done better, but so could we as a movement.
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An issue with electoral Left is how quickly they pivot to shielding politicians from criticism. They expect us to compromise principles for "long-term strategy," undermining how political leverage works.
Instead of defending Zohran Mamdani, join us in holding him accountable.
Instead of defending Zohran Mamdani, join us in holding him accountable.
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I can't help but recall the "we beat AIPAC" celebrations after Zohran Mamdani was elected as I watch him attend a pro-Israel vigil while Israel continues annihilating Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran.
Lucky for Israel: whether the lobby loses a seat or not, the client state always wins.
Lucky for Israel: whether the lobby loses a seat or not, the client state always wins.
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Electoral politics is so "beneficial" for us that Zohran Mamdani went from marching alongside pro-Palestine movement before getting elected Mayor to attending pro-Israel vigils after.
Electoral politics is simply a pipeline to de-radicalize grassroots movements and activists.
Electoral politics is simply a pipeline to de-radicalize grassroots movements and activists.
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