Just doing a talking entry. I did write an entry this morning "No pause in the assault on Gaza" and some missed it because of the title. Apparently, the feed -- I've never looked at it -- shows a video (the first one in the post) and the title only so some e-mailing must have missed it. Thank you to Brady who e-mailed to explain he'd missed it due to the feed and only found it by accident. I'll assume the others e-mailing (over forty) missed it for the same reason. In addition, I did a joint-post with Wally, Cedric, Betty, Ann and Isaiah that went up a little while ago:
Iraq? As we focus on the assault on Gaza, we mention Iraq, we do not focus on it. Cilia e-mailed asking if there was anything I felt we missed re: Iraq?
Yeah, Speaker of the House Mohammed al-Halbousi was removed from his post. By the country's Supreme Court. He was removed from office over an accusation that he forged the signature of MP Laith al-Dulaimi. The court removed al-Dulaimi from office as well.
The story we didn't have time for. I read over the Iraqi Constitution and there's nothing in there that gives the Federal Court the power to remove any MP from office. The Council of Representatives has the power to remove one of its members. But the Court has no say in that at all. They can't even arrest for a felony (in Iraq, forgery is a felony) without the permission of the Council of Representatives.
They've created a power for themselves that does not exist.
By removing both the accuser and the accused (al-Dulaimi and al-Halbousi), they've also made clear that they didn't determine guilt in the matter. Now they would have had to have had permission to do that from the Council. That's in the Constitution. So removing both the accuser and the accused? That makes no sense. One was telling the truth, one wasn't. I have no idea which.
But the Supreme Court has no power to remove a member from the Council -- Speaker or otherwise. This should could cause an outcry in Iraq for that reason. It should also alarm legal observers around the world.
The Supreme Court in Iraq now believes it can remove any member of Parliament. And no one got convicted, by the way. Grasp that as well. So anytime the Court doesn't like a member of Parliament or that members politics, it's now claiming it can remove the member. That is not how the government and its checks and balances are structured in the country's Constitution.
Other than that, I think we've included most of what was taking place. I also think Iraq is directly related to what's going on in Gaza. I've said that the Iraq War had awakened people in the US. I did that many years ago. And Rebecca has noted that at her site repeatedly. The rights of the Palestinian people has been an issue for Rebecca for decades now, going back to college. The Iraq War was an education on occupation for Americans. So Gaza and Iraq are linked.
And you'll note that Iraqi people feel that as well. That's why they've had non-stop protests since the latest assault began.
Yaz e-mails to note that I haven't noted Susan Sarandon. No, I hadn't. I also hadn't noted Melissa Barrera. I have noted one or two videos on the matter, reposted those. But I hadn't written anything about either. I don't know Melissa and I wasn't even able to picture her in my mind when the story broke. Once a friend told me she was in SCREAM VI, I knew who she was. But we've had a lot to cover in the snapshots.
So here's my thoughts and we'll start with Susan.
If you don't know, minor league/boutique agency UTA dropped Susan as a client.
People get dropped all the time and UTA probably did it to get publicity since it's not CAA or William Morris. It's been on a downward slide since their hey-day of stand up comics. It's a small player in America for talent agencies. It's much more regional than LA or NYC based.
I don't see this as a problem for Susan. I may be wrong. Again, to me, a little nothing wanted press attention and thought they could get some of the hacks like that awful woman with the bad wig who thinks that being a TV star in the '00s means something in 2023? It doesn't. You know the crowd, the ones cheering for Palestinians to be killed and pretending that the government of Israel is the government of Jewish people around the world. It's not. It's a right-wing, fright-wing government.
And we cold be really rude and note incidents about Israel, things that took place there. Like when an African-American (Michael Jackson) visited The Wailing Wall in 1993, he was pelted with stones -- they literally threw stones at him -- and continued stoning him as he ran to his limousine. I don't know where we get off thinking any country houses 100% angels. We could go down a long list of those type of incidents to refute the blood thirty crowd that keeps saying things like, "Well a gay person couldn't live in Gaza." Really? Gay people live everywhere, all over the world, they always have. Some places are more advanced and hospitable but, regardless of that, I don't care where you live, if there are at least 100 people in your town or city, there are gay people there.
Susan will be fine. Nothing she said was awful. Unless some Jewish person is offended because they think being compared to a Muslim is an insult. Was that the big bad she did?
Grow the hell up -- that's my response to anyone attacking, just grow the hell up.
After 9-11, the US government terrorized Muslims, that's what her remarks were about and I'm sorry if you're too damn stupid or too damn deluded to admit that reality. It was very scary for Muslims in this country in the immediate aftermath of 9-11 and, you can argue, there's still fear before the assault on Gaza began.
Susan spoke truth. She did that with the Iraq War too and people tried to kill her career over that. It didn't take. A man wanted to represent her early in her career and he attacked her politics. Susan didn't sign with him. She's brave and she always speaks her mind.
I'm not worried about her and I hope I'm right not to worry. With regards to Melissa, I am worried. She's just starting out and I do fear how this impacts her career. I hope it doesn't impact in a negative manner. I think she was very good in SCREAM VI and that it's the franchise loss and not not her loss. If this does hurt her in US films, she can return to making films in Mexico and she can also make them in Europe and other countries.
Both women are being attacked for defending the Palestinian people. Guess what? That is the world opinion. Elderly an delusionals in the United States don't grasp that the propaganda days are over. There is no pass that life treated you horribly so you can treat others horribly. The propaganda took for so long in the US because there has always been anti-Arab sentiment. I was appalled by Tom Hayden years ago to hear him speak of Arabs. And he was a 'progressive.' And of 'the left.' And of the '60s radical left.'
The (ongoing) Iraq War left Americans seeing the US government directly attacking Arabs -- no proxy war -- and we saw occupation. It was a first for many. And it impacted the young especially. Which is why they're not playing like this story started on October 7th. This is a story of colonization. This is a story of stolen land. This is a story of attempts to create a 'reservation' and then to push them completely out -- that's what the 'settlers' (invaders) are doing when they take over a Palestinian home.
Susan's fine, in my opinion (and I could be wrong). She did a brave thing and that is her image. She might lose out on a film or two over the next few months but young directors are coming up and they're on her side. The propaganda and the Americans who are believing it are dying. That's the reality.
Susan doesn't deserve to be attacked for her beliefs but this actually, in the long run, harms her attackers and not her.
UTA is the ultimate loser. Their action in dropping Susan didn't just put them on the wrong side of history, it also alienates young actors, directors, writers, etc. UTA is not a success, not at the level it needs to be. It's a few rungs lower than ICM and ICM got absorbed by CAA last year.
And we're going to have to stop there because we need to feed the content monster. I should have had this done and up nine minutes ago.
The public e-mail account for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
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