Different parts of the present day Big Picture all hang together as dangerous and worsening: foreign relations confrontations; the coup operations against Donald Trump and the U.S. Presidency; and the pandemic and collapse of the economic/financial system. The sane reaction is to do everything to generate international deliberation about the alternatives. This is the function of the Schiller Institute’s Sept. 5-6 international conference, and also of the pre-event process of discussion now underway. This mobilization keeps open the prospect of the proposed P-5 (five permanent members of the UN Security Council—U.S., Russia, China, France and the U.K., whose leaders have agreed upon it, but for which there is no guarantee.
(See schillerinstitute.org Conference title: “War Drive Towards Armageddon or a New Paradigm United by the Common Aims of Mankind”)
The U.S. warhawk face-off against China has ratcheted up this week. Yesterday, the State and Commerce Departments announced that 24 major Chinese firms were being put onto the U.S. standing “Entities List” of companies involved or related to actions considered inimical to U.S. interests. The reason? “Malign acts” by China, specifically, for upgrading and militarizing land formations in the South China Sea. The cited firms include major construction and related enterprises, with sub-units active in building projects all around the world, now potentially proscribed. Already today, for example, the U.S. ambassador to Costa Rica warned that a Chinese firm involved in a Central American highway project is on the proscribed list.
At the same time come actual acts of live military tension. On Aug. 25, a U.S. U-2 spy plane went from South Korea into China’s Northern District, in the Gulf of Bohai area, whose fly-space territorial claim the U.S. disputes. The incident occurred during live-fire Chinese military drills. Later on, China fired two missiles into the South China Sea area, from two different launch locations, seemingly to make the point that the escalating U.S. air and naval forays in that region are not acceptable. The dangers of miscalculation and escalation are dramatic.
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper is travelling in person in the Pacific region over the coming days, leading up to the date of V-J Day, for the stated purpose of conferring with various interests on stepping up deterrence to contain China. On Aug. 29, he will meet in Guam with Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kono.
This kind of belligerence was the focus of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last night in his address to the second day of the Republican Convention, made from Jerusalem, where he is on tour (breaking the custom, if not the Hatch Act, against engaging in political activity while on state duty). In contrast to the tenor of the other elements of the evening’s agenda—titled, “Land of Opportunity”—Pompeo made a litany of boasts of successful confrontations around the world, beginning with facing down the “predatory aggression of the Chinese Communist Party.” He denounced China for “spreading death,” and added Biblical references, which came across as militancy: “Be faithful, endure and finish well.”
This contrasted specifically with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who addressed the convention eloquently last night, and warned explicitly against the warhawk policy. Paul said, “President Trump is the first president in a generation to seek to end war rather than to start one…. If you hate war, like I hate war … join me in supporting President Trump.”
On the latest expression of the dirty operations against President Donald Trump himself — who has recently reiterated the stance Senator Paul spoke of, come the blatant comments from Hillary Clinton yesterday, on how to get rid of Trump, no matter what. She explicitly spoke of subverting the November elections. She said that under no circumstances must Joe Biden concede victory to Trump if Trump wins. Draw out the result, and gain final victory regardless! Line up all the “legal” preparations for this now.
Finally, there are the worsening conditions of life for billions of people around the world, with the combined pandemic and economic breakdown. The World Food Program’s latest situation report (Aug. 20) stresses their lack of resources to distribute both food and what they call the “common service” material from other UN agencies—medicines, PPE, disaster aid, etc. Towards the $5 billion the WFP needs by December, only $750 million is pledged.
In the U.S., the formal de-structuring of local and state government functioning is underway. FEMA, the National Guard, and other initiatives by the Trump Administration are crucial, but cannot substitute for economic depth. There is not only the insane campaign to “de-fund” police departments, but there is a huge loss of public sector workers of all kinds — from waterworks employees, to clerks, mechanics and other staff, due to the loss of revenue of state, county and other vital entities — port authorities, airports, etc. Over half a million such public sector jobs have been cancelled in just the past six months, estimates the National League of Cities.
These reports just underscore the significance of the Schiller Institute conference intervention. Schiller Institute President Helga Zepp-LaRouche stressed today that, “We need the impact for a P-5 Summit. We’re on a dangerous trajectory, which, sooner or later, will lead to catastrophe,” unless we succeed in changing course. Pitch in and spread the word.
