Showing posts with label murder. Show all posts
Showing posts with label murder. Show all posts

Monday, January 12, 2026

Weekly Roundup: American Authoritarian Empire: From Minneapolis to Venezuela to Greenland (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

Brad returns from a two week break to examine three disturbing stories that reveal how authoritarian power is expanding in the United States and how empathy is being systematically stripped from public life. He begins with the killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis, a white American poet and mother shot by an ICE officer during an operation. The administration's response was marked by complete indifference, with officials offering no compassion for Good or her family and JD Vance asserting that the officer should have absolute immunity. Brad argues this case represents a dangerous shift. The logic of impunity long applied to marginalized communities is now being extended outward, signaling that anyone can become a target once state violence is normalized.

The episode then turns to the U.S. operation in Venezuela and Trump's escalating threats toward Greenland. In Venezuela, Trump openly framed the military action around oil interests rather than democracy, reviving a Monroe Doctrine style vision of hemispheric control rooted in Christian and Western supremacist ideology. Threats toward Greenland further signal an imperial mindset that would shatter NATO alliances and dismantle the post World War II international order. Across all three stories, Brad traces a consistent theme. Empathy is treated as an obstacle to power, impunity is expanding, and figures like JD Vance are refining a more polished authoritarian message for the future. The result is a political project that no longer seeks separation or retreat, but expansion, domination, and the erosion of democratic restraint.
Interview: 

 

David Frum on Trump’s Venezuela Venture (Al Franken podcast on YouTube)

We had a chaotic start to the new year with Donald Trump invading Venezuela and kidnapping dictator Nicolás Maduro. We’re joined by The Atlantic's David Frum to help us make sense of and give us important context on the situation. Trump says that America is running the country and might be there for years to come. It sounds more like old-fashioned imperialism than a democratic transition.

Trump has openly admitted that this is about oil. He says he's taking Venezuelan oil and putting it into a special account controlled only by the President. Isn't it the job of Congress to appropriate how money is spent in this country?

We also discuss the administration's plans for Greenland. Are we actually prepared to seize it from our NATO ally, Denmark? Trump says yes. How crazy is that?!

Al also shares his thoughts on the horrific situation in his home state of Minnesota as ICE’s reckless aggression led to the murder of Renee Good.
Interview: 

FBI Ices Out Minnesota (Andrew McCabe and Allison Gill; Unjustified podcast)

Minnesota leaders push for the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to be included in the FBI's investigation into the killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis.

DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s federal indictment of the alleged pipe bomber may have come too late to be within the federal statute of limitations.

As expected, a federal judge has ruled that the Trump-appointed US Attorney in the Northern District of New York was unlawfully appointed, and a separate judge has ordered Lindsey Halligan to address why her name is still appearing on indictments in the Eastern District of Virginia.

Congressional Representatives are asking a judge to appoint a special master and an independent monitor to compel the Department of Justice to release the Epstein Files pursuant to the law.

Plus listener questions…
Interview: 


Friday, December 19, 2025

GOP signals end to probes into military’s killing of boat strike survivors - The Washington Post

"Whether lawmakers or analysts call them a war crime or murder, the real problem is these uses of deadly force are not legally justified," said Geoffrey Corn, a professor of law at Texas Tech University and a former Army lawyer...
 

Thursday, April 10, 2025

Palestinian American teen shot dead by Israeli settler, officials say | West Bank | The Guardian

Settler violence in the West Bank, including incursions into occupied territory and raids on Bedouin villages and encampments, has intensified since Israel's war on Gaza began in October 2023. 

 European countries and the previous US administration under Joe Biden imposed sanctions on violent Israeli settlers, though the White House under Donald Trump removed these sanctions. 

The Israeli military has also in recent months carried what it called a "large-scale military operation" in the West Bank to root out militants...

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/06/palestinian-teen-citizen-killed-israeli-settler


 

Tuesday, December 24, 2024








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