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Chicago is one of America’s greatest cities. Yet many of its residents live in terror in what is virtually a war zone. When a demented killer slayed 49 in a gun rampage in Orlando, Fla., there was national attention. Presidential candidates called for escalating the fight against the Islamic State in the Middle East, even though the killer seems to be a homegrown terrorist.

But in Chicago, 404 have died in gun violence this year. According to the Congressional Research Service, the murder rate averaged 16.0 per 100,000 a year from 2010-2014. That is nearly four times the national average of 4.6 per 100,000 and nearly three times the Illinois state average (5.8).

These killings are not randomly distributed. African Americans constitute about one-third of Chicago’s residents, but they account for 80 percent of its murder victims.

The killings are concentrated in endangered communities, communities burdened with abject poverty and deplorable conditions. Desperation and murder are segregated in Chicago.

Man with arms around woman's neck from the back

In the same way that Bronx-born, Brooklyn-raised Woody Allen is the motion picture poet laureate of New York Jews, Mississippi-born playwright Tennessee Williams is the theatrical poet laureate of Southern white trash. The prolific two-time Pulitzer Prize winner for the plays A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof also wrote for the big screen, including the screenplay adaptations of many of his stage productions.

Cartoon characters

Horny hotdog questions the meaning of life

Is Sausage Party the Donald Trump of animated films?

Stylistically, they have more in common than you might think, being both foul-mouthed and self-consciously outrageous.

Politically and philosophically, on the other hand, they couldn’t be more different. While Trump panders to his supporters by appealing to their fears and frustrations, Sausage Party dares viewers to question the assumptions on which most of us base our very existence.

Set in a huge grocery store, the R-rated comedy stars Seth Rogen as Frank, a hotdog in love with a bun named Brenda (Kristen Wiig). Like other food products in the store, they look forward to the day when they’ll be liberated by a “god”—that is, a shopper—who will take them to the “promised land.” Only then will Frank and Brenda finally be able to satisfy the carnal needs that have been denied them by their moral scruples, not to mention the plastic packages that separate them.

Cartoon characters

Horny hotdog questions the meaning of life

Is Sausage Party the Donald Trump of animated films?

Stylistically, they have more in common than you might think, being both foul-mouthed and self-consciously outrageous.

Politically and philosophically, on the other hand, they couldn’t be more different. While Trump panders to his supporters by appealing to their fears and frustrations, Sausage Party dares viewers to question the assumptions on which most of us base our very existence.

Set in a huge grocery store, the R-rated comedy stars Seth Rogen as Frank, a hotdog in love with a bun named Brenda (Kristen Wiig). Like other food products in the store, they look forward to the day when they’ll be liberated by a “god”—that is, a shopper—who will take them to the “promised land.” Only then will Frank and Brenda finally be able to satisfy the carnal needs that have been denied them by their moral scruples, not to mention the plastic packages that separate them.

I invite everyone to read Larisa Alexandrovna Horton excellent write up on the 28 pages of the 9/11 report that were finally declassified last week. This ought to be required reading in America. It demonstrates that the Saudi's were very much involved in the plotting and execution of 9/11. Larisa writes in her conclusion “there is concrete proof of Saudi government funding to the handlers of 9/11 hijackers – handlers who also happen to be Saudi intelligence officers. “.

 

Donald Trump is a reckless fool. But the U.S. defense establishment is M.A.D.

And herein lies one of the darker problems with the Trump candidacy, and the reason why so many establishment conservatives are awkwardly distancing themselves from America’s leading narcissist — if not running screaming into the night in fear for their lives (and everyone else’s).

Trump as commander in chief? Trump with his finger on the button?

When the subject of nukes has come up in interviews, he has come across as creepily naïve. For instance, according to MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough, Trump allegedly hounded a foreign policy expert with the question: “If we have them, why can’t we use them?”


There is a long history of anti-war and peace activism. Much of this activism has focused on ending a particular war. Some of this activism has been directed at ending a particular aspect of war, such as the use of a type of weapon. Some of it has aimed to prevent a type of war, such as 'aggressive war' or nuclear war. For those activists who regard war as the scourge of human existence, however, 'the holy grail' has always been much deeper: to end war.

There is an important reason why those of us in the last category have not, so far, succeeded. In essence, this is because, whatever their merits, the analyses and strategies we have been using have been inadequate. This is, of course, only a friendly criticism of our efforts, including my own. I am also not suggesting that the task will be easy, even with a sound analysis and comprehensive strategy. But it will be far more likely.

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