[Salon] 'SNL' Host Ramy Youssef Calls to Free Palestine and Release Hostages Being Held in Gaza in Fiery Monologue - U.S. News - Haaretz.com

[Todd Pierce <todd.e.pierce@icloud.com>]

This is a must see video from SNL two days ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grSaK7Ufhzw, as described at the bottom of this email. 

And this is from the Grayzone, one of only a handful of news sites which can claim to actually practice “objective journalism,” as compared to the “flacks,” we see presenting themselves as “journalists,” working for political campaigns presented as "think tanks,” etc., while being beneficiaries of Oligarchical wealth,” whom I won’t name:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqRzfb2oMaM

'Kill them all': inside the Israeli blockade on Gaza aid

(At 12:00, speaker channels Yoram Hazony, perfectly!)

The video above was referred to in this, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4DkyKiKx_k, as shared here yesterday morning, but the complete report as above is critical to see to recognize the actual fascist character of Israeli Settlers, and their American fellow Settlers/sympathizers. What I now call the ZioCons,” as so appropriate to describe those "New Rightists" adhering to “Zion Don,” as George Galloway calls Trump, and now making up a virtual totality of the Republican Party as an extension of the most extreme Israeli right-wing parties. Particularly those who were directly part of the Trump administration as Ambassador to Israel, or who ideologically influenced it and/or, was congruent with it, like this guy and his co-ideologues: 

https://www.vox.com/21355993/trump-israel-yoram-hazony-nationalism-tikvah

And here: https://www.thejc.com/news/yoram-hazony-in-britain-and-in-israel-there-is-no-stopping-national-conservatism-echa82bn

BLUF: "Similar forces, Hazony says, explain the current crisis in Israel, triggered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu forming a coalition with far-right parties led by Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir. 

. . . 

“Bibi is a very cautious politician and he upholds the tradition of governing from the centre that has characterised almost the whole of Israeli history,” he says. 

. . . 

"The same is true in Israel. “Ben-Gvir is not my cup of tea,” he says. He does not see the firebrand as a fascist, however. “He’s certainly on the conservative spectrum,” he adds."

(TP-I fully agree he is on the “conservative spectrum," as it is defined by Hazony, David Friedman, Trump, et al., and before them, Willmoore Kendall, in being like-minded as a political theorist. To Hazony, relative to himself, Netanyahu is a “Centrist,” which is in fact true. Relative to Hazony. Like Carl Schmitt was, to Der Führer.)

I’ve made it clear that like Ramy Youssef (whom I’d never heard of until yesterday), I support neither candidate for POTUS; each one representing the culmination of "American Exceptionalism” and "American Militarism,” with each one propagating the chimera of "Peace Through Strength,” as does our society. Manifested culturally by our totemistic “Black Rifle.” So much so, Conservative/libertarian members of Congress celebrate Christmas by showing off their weaponry on their Xmas cards, in their celebration of of the birth of the man who would form the basis of “their” Christianity by his name, but not its ultra-militaristic ideas.  

      

 And each one in 

And all in the American militarist tradition of Jesse Helms, Barry Goldwater, Scoop Jackson, to name just a few, as all are alike in looking at their underlying “political theory” (not defined by “Party”). Which I had decided to study in the course of utilizing the GWOT era GI Bill after retiring from the Army in an attempt to understand how the US could so readily and quickly turn to creating a  genuinely, “Fascist Court;” the Military Commissions I practiced in. “Fascist court” in the way that Ernst Frankel defined Germany under “martial law.” As Conservatives and libertarians like Thomas Sowell always aspired to. And achieved with 9/11, with the military (NSA) now surveilling us 24/7, in violation of the 4th Amendment of the Constitution; so despised by the “Thought Control Conservatism” of Willmore Kendall, Yoram Hazony, et al.). 

As my graduate education in “Political Theory” was paid for by the USG, I feel it incumbent upon me, “Duty Bound” (Good God! That term is the name of what I guess is a fictional rifle in a game!) so to speak (“Honor Bound” was the mantra at Guantanamo, selling the CIA’s illegal “concentration camp” to the world as something “Honorable” in a highly sophisticated “Cognitive Operation), to share what I know of the political theory of fascism. That is, because we, the US populace, moves inexorably toward the “Total Warfare State,” of Fascism, with the continuous incitement of people’s “collective consciousness” against the Enemy! Be they Russian, Chinese, Iranian, or any group which can just “cause us to hesitate in our decision-making,” as I read off an official military memo detailing our National Security Policy!  

We recognized no limits to our “sovereignty” such as International Law, so we openly adopted the use of Torture, to justify the lies the Cheney/Bush administration and its Republican partners and Jesse Helms Democrats like Joe Lieberman, told of the prisoners we had seized, and the wars the USG had planned (7 countries, remember? A policy “Coup,” as explained here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TY2DKzastu8). Clark in this speech omitted that PNAC and its Conservative supporters like Jeff Sessions also planned war against Russia and China. Mission Accomplished!) The only Republican Senator who voted against the Iraq War was the “liberal Republican,” Lincoln Chafee: https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/onpolitics/transcripts/senaterollcall_iraq101002.htm.

And we never regained the remnant of self-government which we thought we had retained until then, except to place it in the hands of two virtually identical party elites, defined by their common political theory of hyper-militarism. That common political theory was in one stream of the “Western Tradition,” the one our militarists naturally align with. And that, as I’ve shared here over the years, is the “Realism” of Thomas Hobbes, and the duplicity of Machiavelli, filtered down through the centuries to the USG by, chronologically: Alexander Hamilton (as he incorporates “Ragion di Stato” into the Federalist Papers, making them so popular with our Authoritarians ever since); and ultra-militarists Teddy Roosevelt, Joe McCarthy, Robert Taft (as an Asia Firster, and McCarthyite), Barry Goldwater, et al, and the ideological founders of “Thought Control Conservatism,” now represented by the “New Right.” Presenting themselves as so-called “Realists and Restrainers.”  Which the attached articles give substance to an understanding of post-WW II “Fascist Democracy”: 

 

Attachment: Machiavelli and Fascism.pdf
Description: Adobe PDF document

     

Attachment: STURZO-TOTALITARIAN STATE-1936.pdf
Description: Adobe PDF document

    

Attachment: Reason_of_State,_Propaganda,_and_the_Thirty_Years'..._----_(6._?Reason_of_State?_and_Hobbes).pdf
Description: Adobe PDF document

   

Attachment: What is Conservatism?.pdf
Description: Adobe PDF document

Now the "Realists and Restrainers” of the New Right insist their wars will only be wars in which our “interests” are at stake,” which is more verbal flim-flammery by “Conservatives,” in obviously selling “old wine in new bottles,” which one sees in their highly touted Heritage Foundation Project 2025, with its massive military buildup. Again and perpetually, as always demanded by the “Tip of the Spear” of American Militarism, the Republicans, and eagerly gone along with by Helms Democrats. Which will further spur a chain reaction of reciprocal, actual, defense spending by our target countries, China, Russia, and Iran, spelled out as they are in P2025! And potentially leading to Nuclear War, with the US employing a policy of tacit threats of nuclear war as policy  going back to post-WW II, and escalated by Cheney Doctrine conceived in 1991; post-Cold War. 

The following paragraph is spells out from the article above on Hobbes and Reason of State. I know no one reads my attachments, if they even read my emails, but it's my way of not the being the proverbial “Good German.” With each article above showing the innate “fascist” character of Kendall’s and Hazony’s “political theory” as political theorists themselves, on the fascist side. As a lawyer and Army Officer, I’m "duty bound" to defend the Constitution, against its enemies. And with “New Rightist” Adrian Vermeule’s “Common Good Constitutionalism, endorsed by NatCon Patrick Deneen, so popular here, the “battle lines are drawn, between them as enemies of the Constitution, with their so-called “Common Good Constitutionalism” borrowed from Carl Schmitt, and that dwindling number of defenders of the Constitution, none of whom will be found in the New Right, the NatCons, the Republicans, and especially, none will be found amongst the ZioCons of Trumpism/DeSantism, as two sides of the same coin. 

"From the late sixteenth century onwards, this notion of utility or

profit was increasingly encapsulated in another term, which would

itself long outlast the phrase ‘reason of state’, becoming an almost

indispensable piece of political vocabulary: ‘interest’. When the French

political analyst Ren´e de Lucinge (a friend and admirer of Botero) used

the term in his influential treatise of 1588, he had to explain what he

meant by it. He noted that all actions of princes were motivated by

honour or profit, and that the former was often subordinated to the

latter: ‘We shall therefore concern ourselves only with profit, which we

may call ‘‘interest’’.’⁶ Botero then popularized the use of ‘interest’ as

a fundamental principle of political analysis: ‘It should be taken for

certain,’ he wrote in Della ragion di stato, ‘that in the decisionsmade by

princes interest will always override every other argument; and therefore

he who treats with princes should put no trust in friendship, kinship,

treaty nor any other tie which has no basis in interest.’⁷ Nine years later,

Botero would sum up his view with the simple phrase, ‘reason of state is

little else than reason of interest’; the term was by now well established.⁸"

Here can be seen the “Original ZioCon,” of the post-Cold War Era, and with his Contract for America, also the opening round of fire against Russia by the demand for NATO expansion within that “Contract,” though that isn’t explained here:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1995/01/20/gingrich-takes-on-book-foes/4f1d7b7d-1de5-447c-baa7-183e24a5d500/

“Gingrich originally was offered a $4.5 million advance to write two books for a publishing company controlled by media magnate Rupert Murdoch, who has billions of dollars at stake in telecommunications business pending before the federal government.”

https://www.congress.gov/bill/104th-congress/house-bill/1595

H.R.1595 - Jerusalem Embassy Relocation Implementation Act of 1995 104th Congress (1995-1996) Sponsor: Rep. Gingrich, Newt [R-GA-6] (Introduced 05/09/1995)	Rep. Gingrich, Newt [R-GA-6] (Introduced 05/09/1995)
Committees:	House - International Relations
Latest Action:

https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2024-03-31/ty-article/.premium/snl-host-ramy-youssef-calls-to-free-palestine-and-release-hostages-being-held-in-gaza/0000018e-9413-d9a4-a7bf-dc5b11dc0000

'SNL' Host Ramy Youssef Calls to Free Palestine and Release Hostages Being Held in Gaza in Fiery Monologue - U.S. News - Haaretz.com

Rachel FinkMar 31, 2024 2:03 pm IDT

Comedian and actor Ramy Youssef took the opportunity as the host of this week's Saturday Night Live to call for a free Palestine and for the release of the hostages taken on October 7, both of which garnered large bursts of applause from the live studio audience.

Youssef, the creator and star of Hulu's Ramy who recently appeared in the Oscar-winning film Poor Things, took to the stage for the NBC sketch show's cold open in what was his first stint as SNL host.

He began his monologue by acknowledging the convergence of three "important religious holidays" this weekend – Easter on Sunday, the holy month of Ramadan, and "Beyonce releasing her new album."

• Gaza at the Oscars: The Jonathan Glazer controversy and what he really said
• Israeli TV show lampoons pro-Palestinian protests in U.S. universities
• 'Uncommitted' voters in Michigan send stark message to Biden over his Israel-Gaza policies

Youssef, who is a practicing Muslim, told the audience, "I'm doing the Ramadan one."

"We're so loving," he said, referring to Muslims. "I feel like people don't know that about us. They know all these other things but man we love to love and we are so free with it."

The comedian pulled no punches when it came to U.S. President Joe Biden, taking several jabs at the commander-in-chief's age and mental status. "I know he's going to call," Youssef said in reference to Biden enlisting his help rallying Arab support. "I mean he'll probably forget, but someone will call."

He then recalled being contacted by the Biden campaign before the 2020 election by a man named Muhammad, who told him that Biden is "a big fan of your work" and "we love everything that you've done for Arab America." Youssef quipped, "He said it like it was a country."

"He said, 'Joe's aware [of you],'" Youssef continued. "That's huge, right? Because Joe has an awareness issue. I mean, 'Joe's aware.' That's like a Nobel Peace Prize."

Youssef ended his monologue on a heartfelt note when he spoke about two phone calls he received, one from a buddy whose ex-girlfriend recently took their dog, and the other from a friend who's entire family is suffering in Gaza, their whereabouts unknown.

"All I have is prayers," Youssef told the crowd. "That's one of the only things I can do for them right now. And my prayers are complicated. I have a lot to fit in."

"My God, please, please help Ahmed's family. Please stop the suffering. Stop the violence. Please. Free the people of Palestine. Please," Youssef beseeched, to rousing applause from the audience.

"And please free the hostages, all of the hostages, please," he added, to more loud applause.

Ramy Youssef arrives at the Oscars in March.Credit: John Locher/AP

"And while you're at it, I mean, you know, free Mr. Bojangles. I mean he is, he's a beautiful dog. I'm praying for that dog."

Youssef has been a vocal advocate for ending the Israel-Gaza War, wearing an Artists for Ceasefire pin at this year's Academy Awards. He also gave an interview to Variety Magazine from the event's red carpet saying, "We're calling for an immediate, permanent ceasefire in Gaza. We're calling for peace and lasting justice for the people of Palestine."

"It's a universal message of, 'Let's stop killing kids. Let's not be part of more war,''' he went on to say. "No one has ever looked back at war and thought a bombing campaign was a good idea. To be surrounded by so many artists who are willing to lend their voices, the list is growing. A lot of people are going to be wearing these pins tonight. There's a lot of talking heads on the news, this is a space of talking hearts. We're trying to give this big beam to humanity."

Yousef's award-winning show, Ramy, which explores the life of a Muslim-America millennial living in New Jersey with his Palestinian mother and Egyptian father has received both critical and popular acclaim. While the show primarily deals with Ramy's spiritual journey as a Muslim, there have been several recurring Jewish characters as well, including one of Ramy's love interests as well as his diamond-selling uncle's ultra-Orthodox Jewish customers.

Two years ago, Youssef traveled to Israel to film the show's third season. Production encountered a setback when Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed during an Israeli army raid in the West Bank just as filming was scheduled to begin. Several members of the crew knew Abu Akleh, having worked with her and the past, and they, along with Yousseff, joined the crowd who gathered near a Jerusalem church for her funeral.

Ramy Youssef just unleashed SNL’s most epic monologue in ages! Sheesh, talk about intense! Racism, Biden, Palestine - all while still serving up big laughs. Hands down!
pic.twitter.com/7Eb4wbaq7d

— amir syarif siregar. 🍉 (@sir_amirsyarif) March 31, 2024

It also forced production to change their plans to film inside the West Bank, where tensions were simmering after Abu Akleh's death. "That affected our whole shooting plan," Youssef told the Jewish Telegraph Agency in an interview at the time. "We ended up staying on the Jerusalem/Haifa side, and really had to push more into Haifa because of that."

Youssef's Saturday night monologue, which was trending on X the following morning, garnered universal praise across the social media platform, with one user saying, "Ramy Youssef just unleashed SNL's most epic monologue in ages! Sheesh, talk about intense! Racism, Biden, Palestine – all while still serving up big laughs. Hands down!"