The times they are a-changin’

JVL Introduction

On his Rootless Cosmopolitan blog Tony Karon uses the anniversary of D-Day as a timely reminder that, contrary to the pomp and self-aggrandisement of the celebrations, it was not the US that saved the world from Nazism, but the Soviet Union.

As Karon says, “ Biden appears to live in a 20th century imaginary in which the U.S. leads a global crusade to defend and advance democracy and freedom against tyranny.”

As Chris Ngwod in offering an African perspective predicts:

“Whatever assumptions of Western moral legitimacy, let alone superiority, that somehow survived the catastrophic war-profiteering frauds of Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, they are now coming to a gruesome end in Gaza….

“The tragedy unfolding in Gaza has also exposed the inadequacy of the post-1945 international system, the decaying foundations of Euro-Atlantic dominance and colonialities that have passed their sell-by dates.”

And Karon concludes with a quote from a leading pollster in the US: “Young voters do not look at our politics and see any good guys. They see a dying empire led by bad people.”

RK

PS:

Come mothers and fathers
Throughout the land
And don’t criticize
What you can’t understand
Your sons and your daughters
Are beyond your command
Your old road is rapidly agin’
Please get out of the new one
If you can’t lend your hand
For the times they are a-changin’

This article was originally published by Rootless Cosmopolitan on Sat 8 Jun 2024. Read the original here.