Keep on Dreamin', Get Yourself Strong
Maybe this is what we have to do now to get to the world we're yearning for
Hi all,
I joined Substack in September, 2023, so had less than a month to focus on anything besides the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
I landed in the right place at the right time. So many of us are going through similar feelings of outrage, not only over Israel’s actions but over our countries that supply Israel with money, military equipment and diplomatic cover for the genocide it’s committing.
People here on Substack have been such a support — providing perspectives, information and a level of caring that I’ve needed, and that I wish would somehow translate into food getting to the people in Gaza, the killing and other atrocities being stopped, and for a just peace for Palestinians.
How do we make this happen?
Maybe it’s the exuberance of Springtime here in the northern hemisphere, or the need for a more constructive perspective, but I’ve been seeing the theme that I’m working with expressed by others on this platform lately. And we need it now.
Before I get into that, I want to share some posts that I found clarifying, and that made a big impression on me.
The title of the first one says it all: If supporting genocide is not a red line for you, what the hell is? Since I’m across the pond in Canada, I can’t comment on the politicians since I’m not that familiar with them, but they have a lot in common with the politicians here. For the life of me, I can’t understand how these people are able to rationalize genocide.
Naomi Klein has released a long last chapter to the book Doppelgänger that she has rewritten since October 7th, and it gives context to the genocide Israel is committing against Gaza. It clearly lays out the structures in our minds that make it acceptable to many, and how some of these structures got there. Here’s where you can subscribe to her newsletter.
This short video presents essential information for understanding the ‘ceasefire’ the USA is calling for. In a nutshell, it would allow for the continued genocide in Gaza. This is why it was vetoed by Russia and China.
And then there’s this piece of diabolical legislation from the USA:
Lastly, and this one knocked my socks off, there’s this post by Caitlin Johnstone. Here is an excerpt:
A new poll by the Pew Research Center has found that half of Americans have no idea whether more Israelis or Palestinians have died in the so-called “Israel-Hamas war”.
“Most Americans report having strong emotional reactions to the Israel-Hamas war,” the Pew Research Center writes. “Yet, for the most part, Americans are not paying very close attention to news about the conflict. One sign of this limited attention is that only about half of U.S. adults can correctly answer a question that tests their factual knowledge by asking whether the number of deaths in the war, so far, is higher among Palestinians or among Israelis.”
The answer of course is that many, many times more Palestinians have died since October 7 than Israelis. There were reportedly 1,163 Israeli deaths on October 7 with the IDF claiming to have lost 246 troops in the ground offensive thereafter, while the Gaza Health Ministry says Palestinian deaths in Gaza are nearing 32,000 (arguably a massive underestimate).
I know — it’s unbelievable. As Israel commits genocide, half of Americans polled don’t know that more Palestinians are being killed than Israelis. What does that tell us about the state of the media people are basing their opinions on?
I’ve been horrified by the genocide Israel is committing against Gaza for so long that I want to flip the script, and articulate what I actually want.
And I think the posts above tell us a lot about that.
Obviously, I don’t want genocide. And I want peace, fairness for everyone, and an economy and society where we can live harmoniously together, learn about each others’ cultures, and thrive. And a fair and capable international body that can stop this kind of insanity.
And, frankly, I’m fed up with NATO. I’d like to see it scrapped and have the money that now goes towards military equipment — its only purpose being to kill and destroy — go towards restoring our degraded planet, caring for all of life, and repairing our crumbling infrastructure. I’d like to see that money funding education and health care, both of which should be free for everyone. And housing for all. And robust publicly owned health care systems that include preventative care.
Naomi Klein’s article illustrated how deeply ingrained and supported the notions of white supremacy are in our western culture. How Hitler, like Netanyahu, was supported and inspired by western governments’ genocidal policies used against indigenous people and others. And supported by the politicians of the day at first.
This superior attitude is reinforced in so many ways. Ever played the game ‘Catan’ previously known as ‘Settlers of Catan’? There you go: Terra Nullius as a board game. Did people ever live on those lands being settled? If so, whatever happened to them? Exactly what happened and is happening to other indigenous people, including those in Gaza would be my guess. And this is just one small example.
I want us to unlearn notions of white supremacy and instead learn how to be caring, inclusive, and generous with everyone.
The poll Caitlin Johnstone refers to in her article and the video about the American ‘ceasefire’ being proposed show the need for correct information and honest reporting. I’m so tired of having to sift through lies to get an accurate understanding of what is going on in the world today. I’m not willing to go along with the BS that so many are being fed. How can people believe this stuff? It baffles me. We need trustworthy news sources and honest reporting.
And I’m so fed up with the sneaky, deceptive and destructive laws that countries are putting in place. Besides what the second video above describes, in many countries anit-semitism is being legally defined as being unsupportive of Israel as it commits genocide.
Maybe it’s time now to take a deep breath, look out the window, watch the clouds float by, and dream a little. Maybe we need to get our fingers in the dirt and prepare the soil for what we want to grow. And maybe, along with veggies, we need to figure out how to grow the world we want.
How do we do this together?
I can’t say I know, but a refreshed mind and some earth wisdom might give us a few ideas.
One thing I do know is that genocide is wrong. And that we’ve got the numbers, the know how, and the technology to create the kind of world we want together. We just have to figure out how.
Let’s get outside and do some dreaming. And then let’s get together with our inspirations and create the kind of world we so desperately want.
As the song says, “Keep on dreamin’, get yourself strong.”
Thank you for this post, Diana. I really appreciate the links to Naomi Klein’s writings. This includes a previous link that you shared to one of her articles that I might have otherwise missed. Take good care.
Love this Diana -- the analysis and anger are spot on, but also absolutely right that we need to be dreaming and resting (I'm a big fan of yoga nidrā) to have the clarity and resources to even know how the world needs to change. Otherwise our nervous systems are so overwound that we stay distracted and in panic mode where we can't think straight.