The Lead

German Farm Protests Reveal the Actual State of the World: ‘This Is Just the Tip of the Iceberg’

by Stewart Battle (EIRNS) — Jan. 08, 2024

It used to be understood that governments exist for the benefit of the lives of their people, and were expected to enact policies to such effect. Imperial and geopolitical wars, and other such wasteful things were rightly seen as distractions from the true mission of government—to advance their nation and their people toward a better future.

However this seems to have been forgotten, and governments have instead been swallowed up by a strange, unnamable, omniscient blob, one that demands those governments pledge allegiance to its existence above everything else—public interests be damned!

The years following the assassination of John F. Kennedy saw a change away from the former commitments which characterized those better Americans and Westerners in the years after World War II, such as the forward-looking spirit of the space program, the commitment to science and technological progress, and the genuine effort at maintaining a durable peace worldwide. However these were whittled away, often without the subject populations even noticing it, and instead have been replaced by esoteric and meaningless slogans, such as “democracy.” All the while, wars have spread around the world—put into high gear after 9/11—Western economies have stagnated and are now collapsing, while poverty, depression, drug addiction and suicide has skyrocketed. Now, this strange blob has even begun to take away even the most basic commitment to human life!

The case of Germany has perhaps been the most extreme. It has turned from the world’s most advanced industrial power during the middle of the last century to a shadow of its former self after having shut down its nuclear power plants and its access to Russian gas and oil. Obediently, Germany has found itself more loyal to the dictates of the “rules-based order” and “going green”—some of the murmurings of the blob—even while its own people suffer as a result. This reached the height of absurdity when the Anglo-Americans blew up the Nord Stream pipelines on September 26, 2022, severing for good one of Germany’s most important energy lifelines from Russia they had spent years and billions of dollars building. This was made all the more embarrassing when President Biden admitted to Chancellor Scholz’s face that he would, in fact, “bring an end to it.”

Germany is today, along with most of the Western “democracies,” plunging headlong into a thermonuclear world war against Russia and China, and lining up for a case of criminal complicity in the genocide of Gaza—all while going bankrupt paying for it. And thanks to the Nord Stream bombing’s effects on energy prices and the overall commitment to “green” policies, Germany’s food producers have reached a point where they can no longer survive. All this, and not a peep in opposition.

It is in this context that one must see this week’s outbreak of nationwide demonstrations in Germany. It is not a protest against fuel subsidies or taxes, nor is it an outburst of right-wing extremist anger. A revolt is beginning, and in this case the protesters are being joined by other producers from across Europe to demand better—to demand a future.

As one farmer said in an interview: “This is only the tip of the iceberg to be honest, because … we are all united in getting rid of politicians who are trying to get rid of us.” He went on to say: “We are sick of the lies, we are sick of them trying to get rid of our jobs … everybody is sick of politicians who have no idea what they’re talking about, who have no education, who tell us what our lifestyle should look like.…” We’ve tried talking to and educating them, “but now we have no choice but to demonstrate.”

How can a government not support those who produce its food, yet bend over backward to finance wars that are killing and maiming tens and hundreds of thousands abroad? It is precisely here that the LaRouche movement’s proposal to take down this blob, this military-industrial-financial complex and the empire which it serves, and to retool it for useful production comes in.

In discussion with associates today, Helga Zepp-LaRouche insisted that this event is “An unbelievably important invent in Germany because it was stated very clearly by several of the farm leaders that they took the courage to step forward, to defend the interest of not only the farmers but all of Germany from the government, which many of them characterized as total junk … and now many voices are pointing to how the entire farm policy is not made by the government but by Silicon Valley, Wall Street, BlackRock, and the international cartels. So I’m pretty sure that the lasting impact will be that the naivety which they tried to artificially create as a parallel reality through the mainstream media, this has received a permanent crack. And whatever the government is going to do … it will not go away….”

With the current dynamic of the BRICS-Plus sweeping the world, and now the upcoming battle at the International Court of Justice brought by South Africa—at which not only Israel but also the blob-like complicity of the entire Western world will be on trial—all in the context of the recent massive eruption of protests across the world in solidarity with Palestine and against the policy of endless war, the opportunity for a breakthrough becomes obvious.

Therefore, Zepp-LaRouche concluded, it is urgent to push for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the full implementation of a two-state solution along with the Oasis Plan for lasting economic development in the region. “But at the same time, it is clear we need an even more general approach, which has to be a New International Security and Development Architecture, because this geopolitical conflict has to be overcome by changing geopolitical confrontation to instead cooperation between the countries of the Global North and the countries of the Global Majority.”

Contents

Strategic War Danger

• Hezbollah Commander Assassinated in Southern Lebanon (↓)
• Former Shin Bet Head Insists Release of Marwan Barghouti Is Only Hope for Peace (↓)
• French Journalist Proclaims, the West Must Avoid a Break with the South (↓)
• Talks To End War Said To Have Resumed in Qatar (↓)
• Brazilian Foreign Ministry Reminds Israel, Promoting Forced Emigration Violates International Law (↓)
• Former Guyana President Ramotar: We the People of the World Must Back South Africa's ICJ Suit (↓)

New World Paradigm

• German Farmers Demand: Stop Green Deal, Take Value of Farming Seriously (↓)
• Farmers and Allies Demonstrated All Across Germany Jan. 8—Gigantic, Peaceful, Unprecedented! (↓)

Collapsing Imperial System

• Bolivia Supports South Africa's ‘Historic’ Filing Against Israel at the International Court of Justice (↓)

Harley Schlanger Update

Watch The Daily Update with Harley Schlanger, a short video update available every weekday morning from The LaRouche Organization.

In-Depth