Newspaper Clippings

[OYID]

What are PSYOPS?
Could a well-known intelligence tactic be behind the recent scandal?

Jonas Larsson for The Worker

It was February Fifteenth, 1948. Those days, the shadow of Fascism was storming through the East coast, landing at our doors and slowly but surely enslaving the American peoples. Toppling a government whose name they would steal and attempting to subdue resistance with public acts of Terror. These were methods that they had learned in Europe: to use wanton violence against the civilian population with the aim of provoking a certain emotion, specifically that of fear, so that the defeated may be better dominated.

But even as the Nazis carried out their reign of Terror against free women and men, huge battles raged on in the North East and the fields of Virginia bore witness to the greatest and most heroic struggle this land has ever seen. This time it wouldn't be fought by brothers against brothers, but by free and democratic peoples resisting against the heavy boot of tyranny and oppression.

It was February Fifteenth, and free men died fighting hordes of panzers while their wives worked day and night in whatever factories we had left, taking care of the children even as their fathers defended them with their lives. It was a cold February night in Chicago, and all the women had come home from the factories already and were tiredly making dinner for their children. They turned on the radio to listen to music and hear news about the War, when suddenly the transmission cut off and something unscheduled started to play.

Citizens of the United States...This is your President, Paul V. McNutt...

Accounts of that day say that at first disbelief took over the public, but as women and the elderly huddled around their radio sets all over Chicago apartment buildings and housing blocks, the known style and mannerisms of the President lent the transmission verisimilitude. The voice spoke of recent withdrawals on all fronts, of well-known issues with supplies and communications. None of this was news to the women of Chicago on that February night, but then the voice went on to add something incredible.

It is with great regret that I announce...our defeat...at 2000 hours today...I signed the formal, complete and unconditional surrender of the United States...

Shock washed over them but not before the final, and most terrible, part of the transmission was heard...

The army lines...are falling apart...I implore my countrymen...to flee...the Germans...will have no mercy...

It was too much for anyone to bear. Panic took hold of the listening public, and all over the city, women packed their belongings in a frenzy, grabbing their children and filling the hallways with crazed preparations, flooding down into the streets in troves and heading for the outskirts of town. Even then, some chose to remain and fight so their fellow citizens might have time to flee. Imagine the surprise of these improvised militawomen erecting makeshift barricades as the soldiers approaching them wore the uniforms not of the dreaded SS but of the US Army, bearing not the news of a hurried withdrawal but an Executive Order to restore peace.
And inform of the falsehood of that night's transmission.

The next day, as the panicked refugees returned home, the newscasters referred to the incident as a Nazi hoax, although it wouldn't be until a decade later than the people would learn the technical name of what had gone on that night: Psychological Operations, abbreviated as PSYOPS in the intelligence community, are intelligence operations similar to terrorism which aim at a target population's hearts and minds, seeking to elicit a specific response, emotion, or plant a belief that will further the interests of those who carry out the operation in some way.

The history of the Second Great War is no stranger to Psychological Operations: folks from the West Coast will testify to the constant deluge of Japanese pamphlets, which constitute "White" PSYOPS, as the identity of the operator is publicly-known. There are also "grey" type operations, where the identity of the operator is deliberately left ambiguous, and finally Black PSYOPS, where the identity of the operator is actually falsified and those who carry the PSYOPS out seek to frame another party for whatever they're doing.

Due to their secretive and facetious nature, it's much harder to prove the existence of a Black-type Psychological Operation, but it has been done before and their reality has been proven. In 1958, when the Mexican Revolution was finally winding down and our two nations were increasing their geo-political cooperation, right before a Presidential summit, a scandal broke. Much like today, but more than twenty years ago, headlines across the nation alarmed the public with stories of Mexican submarines aggressively patrolling the Texas and Louisiana shorelines. Panic was spread, speeches were made, characters attacked, and then...the truth.
Three weeks of scandal, until finally one of those famous submarines crashed into a sandbank and got stranded for all to see. In the end, it did not bear the red, white and green of the Mexican flag but red, white and blue; it had not the Águila Patria but the spurious Bald Eagle painted along its side and its fin bore not the Escudo Nacional but the well-known and dreaded sight of a Swastika, which wasn't even painted over after the submarine was sold by Germany to the Segregationist Fascists.

This incident laid bare what many MS Americans already suspected: that our allies were being framed by the Fascists in order to undermine our mutual relations, and that the entire scandal with the submarines was nothing more than a ploy, a lie, a fabrication. In other words, it had been a black-type Psychological Operation, launched from Washington with probable Berlin approval.

Stories like this abound in a world wrecked by Fascism and Imperialism. PSYOPS are a well-known and established weapon in the Fascists' arsenal, so it should come as no surprise that a recent scandal whipped up by the corporate press against the Socialist President has raised many doubts as to its possible nature as a secret Black-type Psychological Operation, launched precisely at a moment when MSA support for Haiti was beginning to cast doubts over Fascist designs over the island. It should be noted that the MSA Right-Wing has always stood against doing anything to undermine the brutality and action of the Tonton Macoutes. Let's also remember how the Socialist Defense proposal in Congress was already gaining some traction, and had even been proven as effective during the recent and tragic Houston Riots, so how fortunate for the Right-Wing that this scandal broke just in time to draw attention away from rising Socialist success, especially in light of the praised Federal reaction to the Louisiana refugee crisis.

It's our patriotic duty to remain vigilant against precisely these sort of actions, which, if carried out unopposed, represent a threat not only to our national sovereignty, but to freedom and independence of our very minds.

((OOC: Source: Huojin))

[Huojin]

Presidential Assassin Appears Before Court

The Wichita Eagle
July 25th, 1981

Arthur Paley, the assassin of President Charles Stone, appeared before a court in Kansas City earlier today. Having previously been charged with a number of offences, foremost among which being the murder of the President, Mr. Paley’s attorneys entered on his behalf a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, presenting defense psychiatric reports indicating him to be psychotic and legally insane at the time of the shooting - and therefore incapable of standing trial. The prosecution refutes these claims, their own studies concluding Mr. Paley to be both legally sane, and capable of appreciating the wrongfulness of his actions.

The initial phase of the trial concerned the establishment of the facts - namely the precise events leading to the assassination of the President. Attempts were also made by the prosecution to show premeditation, with records introduced into evidence of Mr. Paley practicing at a gun range in Colorado. What followed was the beginning of the main phase: the insanity trial.

This phase remains ongoing, with defense and prosecution witnesses being called to testify as to Mr. Paley’s mental state. At one point during the trial, a former classmate of Paley’s characterisation of him as “an attention seeker” and a “gun nut” prompted an outburst in the court room, with Paley decrying his former classmate as a “stooge of the communists” and the shouting to the courtroom that he would “get [them] all”. An unnamed sources within the MS District Attorney’s office suggested that law enforcement has uncovered “troubling political ties” on the right of the spectrum.

[Huojin]

Star Tribune
Governor Meier Names Nordquist's Replacement
After lengthy deliberations, Bob Meier names Morgan Lewis to complete the remainder of Vice President Nordquist's term in Congress.

[[because I totally forgot to put it in the turn >_>]]

[Huojin]

From CBS News Headquarters in Kansas City, this is the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite, and our correspondents around the globe.



“Good evening.”

Haitian Papers

“Our top story tonight continues to be the on-going ‘Haitian Papers’ scandal - an alleged leak of classified government documents outlining the Roux-Johnson Administrations alleged plans to conduct extensive OSS disinformation campaigns within nearby Mountain States allies, in order to further a national agenda contrary to this country’s alliance with Mexico; including misleading the Haitian government about the willingness of nations like Cuba and the MSA to become involved in their civil unrest; planning the deployment of troops and ships to Haiti; and potentially orchestrating the overthrow of the Haitian government.

We continue to say “alleged” as despite the repeated statements by The Kansas City Star alleging the veracity of the report, continued denial has been the Administration’s position on the matter as proceedings finally came before the Supreme Court earlier today. As the parties entered the Court, what the Kansas City police have estimated to be in excess of 1,500 people had gathered outside. Carry signs decrying the government’s actions in response to this story, and composed in large part of students and young people, the protestors ranks also featured journalists and veterans, as well as the occasional local politician, the protestors were kept back from the Supreme Court building by police barricades, remaining there throughout most of the day.

Inside the Supreme Court, in the case of Capital Cities Communications Co. v. Mountain States, Attorney General Bradley O’Hara continued to insist that the Star’s report was false and libellous - and that the nature of these libels was so seriously damaging to national security as to warrant an injunction. Meanwhile Capital Cities continued to support their original position, that not only were these documents genuine, but that they were protected in publishing them by the First Amendment - and that the injunction ought to be overturned. In a statement issued after the close of preliminary proceedings today, counsel for Capital Cities had this to say:

[cut to footage outside Supreme Court building - a well dressed lawyer addresses a huge group of clamouring reporters]

“The Star has, throughout this issue, attempted to work closely with the Mountain States government, and we will continue to stand alongside Mr. Harding, and his editor, Mr. Aitken. Prior to breaking this story, the Star made contact with the government, and with the President’s office in particular, to ask for comment, confirm details, and so on - all to ensure these documents were responsibly reported. However at every turn, the government has refused to assist in the reporting of this story, maintaining its falsehood despite assertions to the contrary by independent experts - we only hope that these proceedings before the Supreme Court will resolve the matter once and for all.”

[cut back to the studio]

The Roux-Johnson Administration continues to affirm it’s position, with the President directly calling the reports “forgery and fabrication”. Moreover, today both Vice President Nordquist and Secretary of State Joseph Crocker stood by the President, calling the ‘Haitian Papers’ “falsehood” and “spurious” respectively. This despite the government’s lowest approval ratings since records began, falling below the never-before-touched 20% line to a staggeringly low 19%. The only major department heads not to comment are the Secretary of the Treasury, who was unable to be located, and the Secretary of Defense, whose office declined to comment. This perhaps unsurprising from the only Republican in the Cabinet, as despite the Vice President’s statement calling for the country to “move forward into the future together”, Congressional Progressives and Socialists continue to attack their Republican counterparts - calling proceedings inquiring into the leak a capitalisation by the “Right-wing” of fascist “accusations”. However Secretary Cabrini’s reticence raises yet more questions for some, as the Department of Defense was, according to the leaked documents, directly involved in the drafting. In response to questions regarding political tensions, the DOD had these statements to make:

“The DOD does not believe that there is any evidence of a right wing plot directed against the American public, and urges political unity for the sake of national security.”

Meanwhile press opinion continues to turn against the administration, with outlets up and down the country running stories about the repercussions of the Administration’s “cover up attempts”. Comments by a source who declined to be named but whose identify we have verified as being a senior editor at a major national paper suggest that these reactions are in part to the accusations and censorship that have been “repeatedly directed at a cooperative press”. Only party-affiliated newssheets, such as the Socialist Party’s self-published The Worker, have come out in favor of the Administration’s position - and with party loyalties wavering for both sides, it may only be a matter of time before calls for resignation and even impeachment come not from political commentators, but from within their own ranks.

Only time will tell how far this scandal will spread, and who the casualties will be.

And that’s the way it is. July 29th, 1981.”

[Coin]

Carpenter: Administration "Deflecting and Misleading" on Papers

July 29th, 1981

As the crisis over the Haitian Papers intensifies, with the administration's censorship of The Star before the Supreme Court, House Republican leader Matthew Carpenter today criticised the response of the Coalition to a call in Congress for an impartial investigation.

The Progressives and Socialists continue to categorically deny the Papers' authenticity. But with independent experts claiming their legitimacy, public support for the Coalition is lower than for any American government in history.

Meeting Mexican and MSA businesses in Mexico today, he made a short statement on the Coalition claim of "undemocratic corporate media terrorism" on the issue.

I'm sick and tired of this far-left administration trying to claim opposition to their agenda is fascist. The people of the MSA want the truth. We asked for that calmly and impartially and got shot down. They're deflecting and misleading in their arguments... what business here and among our allies need is answers, honesty and openness.

[BgKnight]

Robert Campbell's Visit to Haiti - Motives Questioned

With the Haitian papers exploding into the limelight questions have been raised about the motives of the Socialist-led coalition and their Representatives and Senators. One particular question by Senator Baker regards the motives of one Robert Campbell, a self-declared Democratic Trotskyist visiting Haiti.

Speaking in a radio interview, Senator Baker stated:

"If the Haitian papers are indeed unfabricated, which the evidence tends to suggest, precisely what drove Mr Campbell to take his trip to Haiti? This is a pressing question, especially following the revelation that Mr Campbell is one of the main supporters of intervention - military and otherwise - in the region. This sort of behavior is questionable from a Communist supporter of ostensibly democratic principles and a supposed friend of Mexico.

What the American people want to know is was Congressman Campbell aware of any administration plans to be involved in Haiti. And if so, was his trip part of a concerted effort by the Socialist Party to drum up support for a military invasion of Haiti.

This ties up to the overall question, about the air force issue. Specifically, the Socialist support of purchasing inferior weapons for the short term rather then developing modern arms for the long term.

While we don't know whether the papers are indeed genuine, the administration's refusal to support an independent investigation can only deepen questions over government motives behind certain policies."

[Smyg]

Nuclear Republicans - What's Next for Republican Energy Policy?
Selected Excerpts from The Benefits of Nuclear Expansion in the MSA, by Senator Zachary Goldman, R-L, Nov. 1977

With the ongoing scrutiny directed towards several prominent energy companies, and with it the increased attention paid towards the sector as a whole, the Mountain States Economic Review has decided to publish selected quotes from a prominent Republican supporter of a new direction in the field:

The achievements of President Stassen in raising the cap on domestic energy production from 30% to 50% is a significant step forward for the development of a fair and profitable market for MS American firms. Certainly it is a significant improvement on the previous Reuthers administration's 1967 settlement, but it should be remembered that this will not be the last summit on the issue; nor should it be. A cap is simply unacceptable as a permanent solution.

Looking at the states of Europe and Asia, we have seen the great benefits of harnessing atomic power, despite the lack of free competition. On the other hand we have also seen the negative effects of not having full control over national energy policy here in the MSA. Take a moment to imagine if we could design and plan our own energy policy without treaty limitations and using that very same technology within the framework of American democracy, innovation and ability.

There is no material barrier stopping us from acquiring civilian atomic energy capability. We have the technology. Even in the hypothetical situation that none of our international partners - for example the Commonwealth, or even Mexico - would assist us in perfecting such a system, based on my research I personally have no doubt that our engineers and scientists could accomplish such a feat unaided by foreign entities. While the initial investment costs would not be inconsiderable, they are minuscule in comparison to the benefits for future generations of American citizens.

Studies show that the nation will face an increasing demand for electricity in the coming years; this is exacerbated by the limitations on the energy market in North America. In the short term, failure to solve these issues will have a damaging impact on our economical development. In the long term it is also a question of overall sustainability in relation to both our prosperity and our environment. Oil, gas and coal will remain vital to the market, but there is one answer - so far ignored - that is clean, cheap and effective in the long term.

[Huojin]

HOUSE LAYS FIGHTER BILL TO REST, BUT NEW CONGRESSIONAL CAUCUS RISES

After a long-fought battle by Republicans in Congress to secure funding for a new defense contract to build a new air superiority fighter platform for the MS Air Force, the ADF Bill finally fell to a protest vote by Coalition Congressmen after internal debate over whether the Secretary of Defense, Joseph Cabrini, has been accurately representing the interests of the military. The bill was already on the rocks after it was vetoed by President Roux-Johnson after a successful passage through Congress, but Congressman Matthew Carpenter and his Republican colleagues remained optimistic about its prospects. However efforts to rally the two-thirds majority needed to overturn the President’s veto fell apart quickly as questions over Secretary Cabrini’s position on the bill came under greater scrutiny, culminating in the testimony before Congress of the Air Force Chief of Staff, the former Chief of Staff, and a retired General, and the bill’s subsequent defeat as having become too embroiled in politicking to achieve its aims.

Yet from the death of the Fighter Bill, a new Congressional Caucus has been born. Disheartened by this defeat, a small group of Republicans have broken off to form the Republican Patriotic Defense Caucus (R-P). The new caucus is led by Congressman Eugene Pławski of Texas, a former officer in the Navy. The congressman was joined in founding this caucus by Senator Franklin Weeks of Iowa, and it soon attracted Neo-Conservative rebel, Congressman Grant Mason, a retired Air Force general who broke ranks with his fellow caucus members to denounce efforts to scupper the Fighter Bill. Senator Weeks, also a veteran of the MSA’s armed services (though in this case, a retired Vice Admiral in the Navy), formerly led the Republican Moderate faction, before his waning influence there allowed Senatorial newcomer Vernon Baker to rally and re-energise the Moderate Caucus. Despite all three having come from different Republican factions in the past (Conservative, Moderate, and Neo-Conservative), they state that they have united over their concerns for the nation’s defense. In spite of this, they have stressed they are not a single-issue caucus, and are formulating concrete plans on social and economic policy to present in a press release, so that the nation knows fully where they stand.

A curious new political development, it remains to be seen if in this increasingly uncertain times, the Patriotic Caucus will serve as a rallying point for disaffecteds elsewhere in Congress.

[[Heads up, retconning Eugene Plawski into the continuity in place of Marlon Gardner, R-C congressman from Texas.]]

[Snacks]

Shot Across the Bow?
Progressive Hard Left from both houses of Congress unleash criticism of Republican Neoconservatives.

Surprise waves have rocked political circles of all sorts after news that the Progressive-Socialist coalition refused to support the overriding of President Roux-Johnson’s veto on the Air Defense Fighter Development Bill, which had developed compromise and firm bipartisan support prior to the veto. While some initial reports speculated that this was due to deference to Roux-Johnson’s objections, House transcripts released after the latest hearings on the bill show these initial reports to be far from the truth.

Representative Cecilia Ortega, Whip for the House Majority, led a group of Progressive and Socialist Representatives in either voting for or in abstention from the bill following testimony by multiple air defense experts (all of whom were Generals, past or present) which revealed that recent claims by Republican Neoconservatives and Secretary of Defense Cabrini were often inaccurate and in some cases totally false. While Representative Ortega and Majority Leader Geoffrey Wise stressed that they still support development of a new fighter, they nonetheless decided it was not appropriate to debate the matter without beginning anew given these recent revelations.

Since the end of voting on the ADF, several Hard Left lawmakers have spoken out in support of the move. We were fortunate enough to be allowed a brief meeting with Representative Ortega, during which she elaborated on her decision not to pursue a veto override, stating that

It has been made more than clear to myself and my fellow Progressives that legitimate debate on solving our nation’s defense needs has been disrupted by the dishonesty of multiple Neo-conservatives, who have leveled accusations of ‘bullying’ and politicizing military matters while doing just that. The Neoconservative caucus has not only set out to manipulate congress with lies, but to blur the lines between the legislative and judicial branches, having convinced the Secretary of Defense to spin these lies to the president. My fellow Progressives understand our priorities, and whatever flak we may be receiving from our peers across the aisle, we have the integrity to see that Congress cannot meaningfully help the military when the person in the executive branch responsible for carrying out that help has shown himself to be unfit for the duty he was entrusted with.

Similar statements were made to the press by several Hard Left members of Congress, including Senate Majority Leader Nathan Hanlon, who voiced agreement with Representative Ortega and had some criticism of his own for those across the aisle in an open letter, excerpted below:

Representative Ortega has been nothing less than professional in her conduct in the House, and I don’t think she needs me vouching for her. Nonetheless, she does have my support, and I believe she was absolutely correct in her handling of this bill. The fact is, the Hard Left caucus prides itself in supporting our nation’s military. We understand the need for modernizing our air force and the House records make it plain that Hard Left Representatives actively took steps to resolve issues that had hindered the bill’s passage and brought it bipartisan support. The problem here, sad as it is to say, lies with the Republican Party.

I don’t intend to paint them all as villains, of course, and I have a great deal of respect for many of my Republican colleagues. Nonetheless, I feel that the falsehoods and hypocritical accusations of the Neoconservative caucus are responsible for poisoning this legislation and the atmosphere of Congress. The inability or lack of concern of the Republican Party when it comes to preventing such inexcusable behavior has damaged the credibility of the party of Lincoln.

Especially troubling is what could, at most charitable, be called the incompetence and partisanship of Secretary Cabrini. Cabrini was confirmed by the Senate because he had all the qualifications to do this job and because Charles Stone, ever a peacemaker, believed it an opportunity for bipartisanship that would strengthen this nation. The spectacular manner in which Secretary Cabrini has failed to honor his duties as a Cabinet member and head of an executive department is shocking, I believe, to every member of Congress except for his Neoconservative friends and it is an insult to the vision of Charles Stone, who hoped to provide the American people with qualified and honorable leadership.

Not only is the behavior of the Neoconservatives a slap in the face to their constituents, who elected them believing they were strong on the defense of the Mountain States, but a disservice to the American people for their Congress to be scandalized by the double dealing of certain Republican legislators, who at best have vehemently spread untruths, and at worst find the intentional short-changing of the MSA’s military to be part of their agenda.

President Roux-Johnson is not a foolish man, and with the fact that his Secretary of Defense has been lying to him revealed, I can't imagine that Secretary Cabrini can genuinely expect to remain in his position. While the Coalition will not abide by this duplicity, the ethical burden does not rest on the President's nor Congress' shoulders to see that the Neoconservatives act with integrity. That would be on their party, who so far have allowed them to behave so dishonestly, and have attempted to pawn that responsibility off on the rest of America. I will not abide by that, the Progressive Party will not, and I certainly doubt that the people of the Mountain States will.

[OYID]

The Worker, 31st July, 1981

President Speaks in Mossville, Louisiana; Announces Speaking Tour

Speaking before a small crowd of one hundred people, mostly members and supporters of the Socialist Party and its affiliated groups, President Roux-Johnson stood on a stage, humble and unassuming but for the podium emblazoned with the Presidential seal, and announced an upcoming speaking tour this past Tuesday evening as the green buckthorn swayed. Named the "Campaign to Defend Democracy", the President said the tour will take him across eight states, in some of which he will be making multiple stops.

"The purpose of this tour is to clear up the widespread disinformation and confusion surrounding a recently-fabricated so-called 'scandal'", said the MS American premier, "As clearly the Congressional and even the Judicial process in Kansas City has become far too politicized to guarantee me a fair treatment. The enemies of this administration are mounting an all-out attack against the people's democratic choice. Fortunately, our friends in the Coalition have spoken out in our support, and while we are certainly thankful, it's clear that the time has come to hit the road, and make our case face-to-face to the MS American peoples."

The President announced that he would be making this tour aboard “the noble and storied transport that is the train", on a specially-commissioned formerly-retired passenger unit donated by the Worker's International Union and renamed as The New Red Special, in honor of the locomotive used for Eugene Debs's famous 1908 Presidential campaign. Many media outlets noted, somewhat miffed, that preferential treatment was being given to community-owned and independent media, "in light”, said the President’s Press Secretary, “of the unseemly manner in which corporate media has ganged up on the administration."

The most dramatic moment of the speech, however, came near the end, when the President announced a much-expected reorganization within the Cabinet: "It is my conclusion that the advice and declarations made and given by the man who currently holds the office of Secretary of Defense were not only unsound, but possibly motivated by something other than commitment to safeguarding the best interest of the peoples and freedoms of the MSA. Therefore, I now officially ask for the resignation of Joseph Cabrini from his post, so that the process of appointing and confirming his replacement can begin immediately and without delay. As a man, I expect Mr. Cabrini to own up to the situation and tender his resignation to me personally. I inform him that I will be traveling tonight and tomorrow, but that in two days' time he can find me at West Memphis, Arkansas, and so can all of you fine folks listening out there."

He added that in the next few days he would be signing a number of Executive Orders "to address many grave situations affecting our country's daily life."

The President then took some questions. Answering a query made by W89H St Paul Community Radio, he specified that the tour would "probably include meetings with community leaders" but repeated that his main interest was in "making his case to the American people” as opposed to "pandering to lobbyists and special interest groups."

Before withdrawing to board the train, the President, accompanied by Senator Philip Donovan (who will be speaking at New Mexico University tomorrow), declared: "During my years in KC I have come across all manner of trickery and deception, and many cases of outright corruption, but I had never before seen such a concerted effort to overthrow democracy quite like this supposed 'scandal'. I'm sick and tired of typical KC intriguing and backroom conspiracies. I'm sick and tired of secrets, it's finally time for the American public to hear some truth, and that's fully what I intend to say to them."

he President concluded his speech firmly, saying: “Ladies and gentlemen, it's been a pleasure. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some libel to refute."

[OYID]

Excerpts from a recent talk by Senator Philip Donovan at the University of New Mexico at Albuquerque...

Today I'm going to talk about Democracy and its relation to the idea of Socialism, which should come as no surprise. As you're surely aware, I stopped teaching my regular courses in recent years to serve in office as a member of the Socialist Party. This also means it's likely you expect me to speak about the ongoing public drama over a series of accusations levied at the administration, and I will, in a way, but I will focus on a theoretical level rather than specific cases for now. This is, after all, an academic conference.

Democracy, at its core, is the rule of the people, yes, but, more specifically, it is the voluntary rule among equals. The condition of possibility for any true democratic government to take place (and therefore for the idea of democracy to have any meaning) is for all votes to count the same; that is, for every citizen of the Republic to have an equal say on the run of the State. The problem arises, of course, the moment we step off of the realm of abstract theoretical consideration and begin to apply these principles to the real world. We quickly find that such parity is much more imperfect than what we would think, and that while it's true that all citizens can register to vote and scratch a ballot at least every two years, it's also true that the richest members of our society have a whole different range of possibilities to enforce their will upon the political-government system, such as campaign donations, lobbyists, think tanks, traditional political parties, the corporate media, and so on.

The contemporary concept of Democracy is, to put it in historical terms, eminently Jeffersonian: our third President was aware of the limitations of Democracy on abstract, and so he raised the banner of an egalitarian republic, where the power and tools at the disposal of a wealthy few were balanced out by the organization, education and participation of yeomen and laborers. This is the same question we're still addressing today: how to build a real, meaningful, Democracy, a voluntary rule among equals, in a social reality which is already unequal. This is, precisely, the point where Socialism comes in, as a solution and a tool to be used in service of the greater democratic ideal.

Of course, maybe that characterization is incorrect. After all, it's only natural for the dispossessed masses to seek to use Democracy to achieve Socialistic objectives. The relation is dialectical.

Socialism as a school of thought has a long and troubled history from the late Eighteenth Century until the present days, with some precedents going back even further, but for the purposes of this talk it'll be defined as the general political tradition which puts emphasis on social issues, places the good of society as a whole as a higher priority than that of limited groups or individuals, and, decisively for our present exposition (and as a natural consequence of its two previous characteristics), advocates for an equal distribution of wealth among society in general. It's true that many who have claimed to pursue the Socialist idea have, in the past, sacrificed Democracy in the service of this idea. The result is a brutal regime that, by foregoing freedom in favor of justice, forgets its true purpose and crushes both. Socialism without Democracy, as a Socialist leader once said, is a barracks.

So why do we speak of a relationship between Socialism and Democracy? Well, for starters, we don't simply speak of a relationship but, in fact, maintain that the idea of Socialism is actually integral to achieving Democracy. We established earlier that true Democracy can only happen among equals, and yet we also established that society, as it stands, is entirely unequal. It is exactly there that Socialism comes in. As a call for the organization and education of the working class and the dispossessed masses, which finds its material realization in the form of the trade union and the political party, it can provide not merely a counterweight to the power of a rich select few, but it opens up the real possibility of working towards a point in the future where a real Democracy among equals may exist.

Now, this has many obstacles, of course. If you'll remember the election of 1968 and the unceremonious treason...

[Huojin]

Paley Shot After Not-Guilty Verdict!

The Wichita Eagle
August 1st, 1981

Arthur Paley, the man who shot and killed President Charles Stone, was himself shot and killed as he left the courthouse in downtown Kansas City. His shooter was immediately apprehended by KC police, and identified as Mr. James Riddle - a former felon with ties to organised crime. The KCPD have declined to comment on Mr. Riddle's arrest, or any possible motive for the shooting.

This crime was all the more poignant, as earlier this morning, Judge Charles Bradley hear the verdict in the case of Mountain States v. Paley, with the jury finding Arthur Paley not guilty by reason of insanity. Despite an outburst in the courtroom from Mr. Paley during the last days of the trial wherein he expressed some far-right associations, the defense successfully argued the point of Mr. Paley's less-than-coherent mental state - not to mention a degree of baiting by the prosecution - and that crucially, whatever any alleged political views, he could not have been able to comprehend the wrongness of his actions at the time of the assassination. With the judge stressing that to the jury that burden was on the prosecution to show beyond reasonable doubt that Mr. Paley was sane and capable, such an outcome was perhaps inevitable.

The outcries at the use of the insanity defense, already growing as the trial developed, have been somewhat overshadowed by this painful reminder of the grip of organised crime within our society.

[OYID]

The Worker, August 1st 1981

President Comes Out Swinging at West Memphis; Begins Declassification of OSS Documents

Speaking at the Eugene Woods Community Center yesterday as part of Wallace House’s “Campaign to Defend Democracy”, President Roux-Johnson delivered a fiery speech to a crowd of his collaborators, sympathizers and assorted onlookers.

Appearing without the customary Presidential suit and tie as he did in Mossville, Louisiana, but rather sporting an ordinary brown jacket over a common civilian shirt, the President began his speech by talking about the historical legacy of West Memphis, remembering his fondness for the soulful tunes of BB King and Sonny Boy Willamson, but he quickly moved on to explaining the nature of his tour: “The whole point of coming out here and speaking to you folks is to explain to you face to face what’s really going on in the capital. I know it’s not customary to do this: the groups and cliques that usually run politics are accustomed to having their lackeys in the Right and in the media do their talking for them, but as a Socialist and a worker I don’t have the option, nor the inclination, to do so. I’m an everyday man who started out carrying a bunch of freaking big boxes along the waterfront, who only got into politics when he saw how he and his fellow workers were mistreated by the big boss men.”

The President addressed the city’s legacy in Black history, and honored the memory of known figures in the anti-slavery movement: “Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass…even the little-mentioned John Brown, they all did their part to overthrow slavery in the past century, though you won’t hear typical politicians defending that last one! It’s not like the stalwart defenders of crony capitalism to stand up for the rights of the People to fight back against tyrants.”

He then went on to characterize the situation in the country and the world at large: “Right across the great Mississippi river is another city like this one. Like West Memphis, it’s full of people who are honest and diligent workers who are just trying to get by. They are also part of the great history of this nation, and many of them are also patriots who ardently believe in democracy and human rights. The difference, of course, is that Memphis is controlled by a collaborationist government, installed as a puppet by the Fascist invaders who overthrew democracy and crushed the freedoms of millions of peoples of America’s East. This totalitarian State, which has the gall to call itself the ‘United States’, represents the worst of our collective past multiplied a thousand fold. It is a safe haven for racists and murderers, a paradise for reactionaries, a Far-Right dystopia that our own domestic right-wingers can only hope to emulate. And why’s that? Because the USA of today represents the rule and victory of the privileged few, the limited and powerful Oligarchy that, now as in all of human history, seeks to control and live off the sweat and pain of ordinary hardworking peoples. We have our own Oligarchs here, of course, and were it up to them they would rule this country with an iron fist just like their counterparts in the East. In many regards, they already do. The difference, however, is that our country is still a Democracy; it gives the common ordinary People a chance to organize and fight back, if not armed with a real complete consciousness of the scope of their struggle, at least with enough self-interest and plain old common sense to vote for candidates who, while still largely representing the moneyed minority, will nevertheless offer some measure of comfort and represent the less voracious inclinations of those who hold economic Power.”

The President continued his defense of Democracy: “To put it more simply: on the one hand there’s the corporate Oligarchy, with its typical politicians, its corporate media and its lobbyists to do their bidding; on the other hand there’s the People, the worker, the student, the farmer, the small businessman, the black man and the black woman, the native American, the immigrant, the great honest hardworking folks who made this country great and yet are routinely robbed of the fruits of their labor by the selfish Oligarchs, who are now going after the People’s only way to push their interests and challenge their hold on power: Democracy. That’s what’s really behind all of this nonsensical ‘Haitian Papers’ scandal: the corporate Oligarchy of the MSA was never going to allow a Socialist President to push for the interests of the people to the detriment of its cronies, and so it has mounted this savage attack on Democracy. Remember ‘not my President’? It’s been coming for some time now. Let’s be frank: I don’t represent the Oligarchy’s best interests, it wouldn’t do for me to have time to prepare and present a pro-People budget and agenda, so of course they’ve been trying to take me down. The rich have had it out for me from day one.”

The President also announced a series of measures: “As some of you have noticed, shortly before coming here I signed the first of a series of upcoming Executive Orders offering immediate relief and aid to the people most affected by the reigning economic inequality enforced by the proudly ostentatious corporate Oligarchy. Some of this aid is also directed at the escapee and refugee community that filled these lands after the Great War, as well as their families, as a way to compensate for the destruction of everything they once knew and assert our nation’s historical role as a safe haven for the downtrodden, the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses. Of course, the typical politicians will protest: after all, aren’t public funds meant to be spent lavishly on no-bid contracts for our friends on the corporate lobby instead of helping the People? Today I make the gesture of helping those most in need in this community as a sign of goodwill and an open challenge to those who say that our nation’s coffers should be used for anything else than helping out those among us most in need. At any rate, whether you know it or not, you already paid for it in your taxes, so go ahead: help yourselves.”

The President also remembered the role of the brave resistance fighters who held the line long after the traditional army had fallen apart. "They embodied the immortal American values off self-reliance and sacrifice", said the President, Thanks to them, many of us were able to make it back alive to this beautiful Democratic country. Every day I'm here and free I am thankful for those brave men and women who stood up to Fascism. The armed citizenry is truly our nation's first and last line of defense." The President then mentioned West Memphis's notable history as an emigration hub in the immediate postwar era, and after that as a home for the thousands of escapee and refugee families still living there.

As pamphlets were given out detailing the manner in which to receive the mentioned aid, as well as other informative publications regarding the President’s ongoing public political confrontation and denouncing the actions of the Right-Wing and other agents of corporate-led “Bu$ine$$ a$ u$ual”, the President also announced a surprising decision to declassify a number of OSS documents, “to show that we really have nothing to hide and to finally begin to dismantle the rule of an Oligarchy sustained by secrets, a crypto-corporatocracy, a regime of conspiracies that accuses others of doing what is precisely their accustomed modus operandi.”

The first declassified documents deal with Operation Lee, a covert OSS operation in which the MSA funded the Far-Right militant white supremacist Klu Klux Klan in the USA, “under the logic of ‘they may be sons of bitches, but they’re our sons of bitches’, much like FDR said of Somoza once”, commented the President. Unsurprisingly, the rogue elements of the KKK who received OSS funding eventually rejoined the mainstream of the organization, which supports the Segregationist USA regime. “Yet another shameful chapter in our nation’s history. One has to wonder just what motivated anyone to think this could be a good idea. Nevertheless, it’s part of my commitment to be a true People’s President to tell the public the truth, painful as it may be to hear.”

Nearing the end of his speech, the President came back to the topic of violent resistance versus civic participation in the political process: “Look at the state of the world right now: you have people taking up arms in Nicaragua, Africa, the Middle East…heck, even the USA right there has its armed troubles, and it’s all because those countries are under the unyielding tyranny of a powerful Oligarchy which has closed all other avenues for peaceful expression and protest. Now, I’m not saying our Democracy is by any means perfect, but it’s a hell of a lot preferable to the bloody fratricidal alternative. That’s why it’s important to defend it however we can, so that our sons and daughters won’t be forced in the future to face a reality in which the only way to express political opinion will be out the barrel of a gun. Bringing it back to our own national reality, the modern-day Oligarchy doesn’t base its power on the plantation but on the megacorporation, yet still it aspires to treat its workers much the same. The People’s tools of resistance, the union and the ballot box, are under assault by the Oligarchs and their lackeys in KC. It is therefore my responsibility to head out into the country -the real country, close to the People and away from the Capital’s fancy restaurants and fancier clothes- and prepare a legitimate popular response to this attempted mediatic-judicial coup.”

He ended his speech with a call: “Peoples of the MSA: our great-grandfathers died to conquer Democracy, our grandfathers kept it united and cured it of the evil of slavery, and our fathers carved out this extraordinary democratic safe haven, unique in the world. It is now our duty to defend it from perfidious threats from within, likely acting in league with those from the outside. People of the MSA, now is the time to stand up for what’s right, to defend Democracy and our future, and to dare defend our rights.”

[Snacks]

Crocker Speaks out on OSS Revelations
Secretary of State "sickened" by operations revealed in documents, calls it evidence that "the struggle for freedom is never completely won."

Questioned about recent OSS documents released by Presidential order and discussed by PResident Roux-Johnson at a recent rally, Secretary of State Joseph Crocker weighed in on the matter. First stating that the information had been unknown to him, but that he was "not completely surprised, unfortunately" by OSS documents claiming to show tacit MSA support for a breakaway faction of the Klu Klux Klan in the 50s, Secretary Crocker went on to elaborate,

Personally, I am not sure that any man or woman of color who recalls that period of our nation's history should really be "surprised" by this information. They may feel shocked, as I think every red-blooded American of this day and age who understands the evil of groups like the KKK likely feels, and hurt that the government they trust could have ever been responsible for such a thing. They may feel disgusted that the generation of leaders who salvaged us from the German jackboot could have anything to do with a hate group that represents the worst of the so-called USA and German Reich's racial policies.

I felt this shock, this pain, this disgust. I have felt them as strongly as I do because they brought back memories of what this country was like, for people of color, when I was a child and a young man. A nation where those men in white robes could burn crosses as they bombed churches. A nation where state police in the south could ride their horses into a church and trample and beat black mothers, fathers, children and old grandparents. I remember how angry I felt, and how powerless I felt in that anger. There was a time after the War that I felt as though things in this country would never be fixed, and that if I were to have any power to make a better world, it would be elsewhere.

I can tell you now, ladies and gentlemen, that I was wrong then about this nation's ability to change. It changed while I was gone, so much, and I remembered all over again the greatness of my fellow Americans. That greatness is not found in perfection: I am not perfect, none of us are. Our government and society are not perfect, and they may never be, but every day we strive towards that perfection and over the horizon.

So from my shock, my anger, and my disgust I have drawn resolve, as I believe we all should. We must resolve to learn the lessons of our leaders' mistakes, and to not repeat them. We may keep an eye towards the past, but we always step forward into the better tomorrow our loved ones deserve. We have proven to ourselves that we are more than capable of doing so: that we can go from that troubled nation where black children cannot learn with white children if they are permitted schooling at all, to a nation where Black children and Hispanic and Asian children can look at people on the television- at the men and women who lead their nation and tell themselves 'I can do that, too'. What we can not do, what we can never do, is to let ourselves forget where we came from.

So yes, I think it is a good thing that President Roux-Johnson released these documents. This resolve to fix our problems, to not let injustice elsewhere go without objection, this flame needed to be rekindled. It has inspired me, I think more than many such things in my recent years, to always seek to uncover the truth. Because I must do so not because it is my job, but because it is my duty. It is my duty to speak out. It is my duty to confront the uncomfortable, the fearsome, the seductive, and the disgusting alike.

[Smyg]

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Local Congressman Comments on Presidential Affairs

Immediately after the revelation of the President's direct involvement in the "Haitian Papers" scandal, and the resignation of several prominent cabinet members, Post-Dispatch managed to catch one of our local Representatives from the Republican Party, to ask him what he believed was the right course of action in this situation.

"To you, Mr. President, I say this: Resign." The Washington University academic and veteran of the British Army, noted in the House for his stern looks and hardy support for increased ties to foreign allies, then promptly stared down our reporter before entering his automobile and departing, no doubt headed for Kansas City.