The 76th consecutive Friday weekly meeting today of the International Peace Coalition (IPC) began with Schiller Institute founder Helga Zepp-LaRouche discussing the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election in the United States. We are in “an extremely interesting moment in history” in which “the direction has not been decided.” Trump has announced diverse choices for members of his Cabinet, but, “You cannot read from the previous history of these people, what they will do in the future.” She suggested that with former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence, “The truth about where the war in Ukraine stands will for sure come out,” as well as the truth about the actual authors of the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage.
However, “there is no point speculating or commenting on events”; our job is to propose solutions. We need to create a consensus on the economic development of the Global South as an alternative to geopolitical wars. Imagine a world in which the nations of the BRICS join hands with the U.S. and Europe to accomplish this in everyone’s self-interest. The migrant crisis besetting both the U.S. and Europe is a case in point: The only way to solve the crisis is by full-set development of the nations of the South, rather than subjecting them to looting and wars. The Schiller Institute is preparing an emergency report on this crisis and its solution, which will be published in ten days or so. Everyone should take part in the Dec. 7-8 Schiller Institute conference where these topics will be addressed in depth.
Col. Richard H. Black (ret.), a Marine combat veteran, former head of the U.S. Army’s Criminal Law Division at the Pentagon, and former Virginia State Senator, heartily endorsed the appointment of Tulsi Gabbard, recounting his first contact with her over the question of U.S. sponsorship of terror groupings in Syria. “She is not an indoctrinated individual,” he concluded.
On the BRICS, he said that the Oct. 22-24 summit in Russia demonstrates that U.S. attempts to isolate Russia have failed. The genocidal effects of U.S. sanctions against Syria, and the ludicrous sanctions against Russia, including banning crippled children from participating in the Paralympic Games, are horrendous. There has been “deep revulsion and fear engendered by the theft of the Russian treasury,” which he described as the greatest theft in world history. Biden’s participation in dropping 2,000 lb. bombs on Gaza “has badly stained America’s reputation in the world.”
Colonel Black’s presentation inspired an in-depth dialogue among the participants. Former Guyanese President Donald Ramotar intervened to voice his concern over Gabbard’s position on Gaza, which he compared to that of Netanyahu, and warned that she appears to have a strong anti-Islamic bias. In response, Colonel Black echoed Mrs. Zepp-LaRouche in saying that the cabinet appointees will be carrying out Trump’s policies, which remain to be seen. IPC co-moderator Dennis Speed added that the accusations by U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and others, that Gabbard is “in Putin’s pocket,” suggests that something is going on here that bears further scrutiny. Returning to the case of Syria, Colonel Black reported on the CIA’s willingness to deploy modern, mechanized armies of ISIS and al-Nusra to steal Syria’s oil and grain. Trump’s efforts to pull out of Syria were met with “an effective rebellion by the Deep State,” supported by the collective propaganda capabilities of the corporate media. Zepp-LaRouche called for the lifting of the Caesar Sanctions to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people.
Professor and author Glenn Diesen spoke about the Nov. 3-7 Valdai Discussion Club annual meeting, addressed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, at which Diesen had a lengthy exchange with Putin in the open discussion session. The BRICS initiative has elevated the nations of the Global South to being autonomous nations, rather than “pawns in blocs.” Asked about Putin’s proposal of a “polyphonic world order,” Diesen described it as “an important part of multipolarity.” Unipolarity has “corrupted diplomacy,” he said.
Mike Robinson, co-editor of the UK Column, agreed with Colonel Black’s assessment of the role of the “Western media” in crafting a narrative to justify the destruction of Syria, highlighting the role of “BBC Media Action,” supported by the British Foreign Office. His colleague Vanessa Beeley, who resides in Syria, has actively broken with the enforced consensus among putative journalists. Robinson also noted Donald Trump’s promise to reverse the trend toward censorship. The shift toward reliance on social media is creating financial problems for the “mainstream media,” to the extent that the British government is now subsidizing it by purchasing ads, while using so-called “terrorism legislation” and the “Online Safety Act” to silence unapproved narratives.
