End the Era of Human Sacrifice

Congratulations to everyone who pitched in to help get out the vote! This night belongs to you and all those who voted to protect abortion in Ohio, protect Virginians from a Republican majority, protect the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and much more on a great night for democracy. This week's bonus episode will look at the election results, what they mean for 2024, and what to know about Trump's shadow network, Project 25, and answer questions from listeners at the Democracy Defender level and higher.   One month has passed since the October 7th Hamas terrorist attack, and the Israeli leader who allowed it to happen after empowering Hamas, ignoring several credible warnings, is still in power, overseeing a historically brutal genocide. This episode looks at the Israel-Hamas war in the context of the global war of autocracy vs. democracy, including our own 2024 election. It once again calls for the immediate removal from power of Netanyahu, an important cog in the Trump-Putin global far-right movement that normalizes human sacrifice for power. Like Trump, Netanyahu wages war against the military and intelligence services, surrounds himself with a protective moat of extremists ready to commit violence on his behalf, and terrorizes the families of victims and hostages of October 7th. Let's be clear: Netanyahu's own record shows he doesn't care about the hostages—for more on that, read the show notes. Netanyahu wants and needs this war to stay in power, which means the war strategy itself cannot be trusted and must not be legitimized.   A political solution is the only way forward and can only begin with a ceasefire. To dismiss or gaslight over the issue of a ceasefire is to give longtime corrupt criminal Netanyahu good faith and legitimacy after he's spent years trying to overturn democracy in Israel. For those distraught over the crisis in Gaza, this episode includes strategies to push the Biden foreign policy team, just as they had to be pushed on Ukraine, and makes the case for why, if we don't vote in 2024, former Interior Secretary and current House GOP Klansman Ryan Zinke, with his proposal to ban all Palestinians, is back in the White House, along with close Netanyahu co-conspirators the Kushners, and Trump, making Netanyahu even more powerful and dangerous.   To help the civilians impacted by the Israel-Hamas war, donate to Doctors Without Borders and Save the Children, incredible organizations doing urgent work in Gaza and the surrounding areas: https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/ https://www.savethechildren.org/   Show Notes   "We are now in a situation where one child is killed every 10 minutes [in Gaza]," Jason Lee of Save the Children https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/11/02/israel-stikes-gaza-children-victims/   "Israel dropped almost as many bombs in Gaza in one week as the U.S. did in Afghanistan in one year -- the heaviest year. Gaza is 141 sq miles. Afghanistan is 252,071 sq miles." https://twitter.com/ericuman/status/1721342580565184559   "The United States provides the Israeli army with military and intelligence support, and is therefore required by the Geneva Conventions to ensure that bombing raids in Gaza do not breach international law." https://twitter.com/ericuman/status/1721343100830793928   Mairav Zonszein, Senior Israel-Palestine Analyst with the Crisis Group: "It is hard to understand Israel's strategy in the West Bank as anything other than an effort to push Palestinians so far to the edge they have to burst back, which then provides pretext for Israel's continued dispossession. My explainer on settler violence" https://twitter.com/MairavZ/status/1721936764183450058   Kurt Andersen thread analyzing United Nations death toll in Gaza: https://twitter.com/KBAndersen/status/1718021027727360436   Israel's Hostage Families Feel Abandoned by Israel They feel trapped in a nightmare—and ignored by their government. https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/10/20/israels-hostage-families-abandoned-israel/   Netanyahu accused of planting allies in meeting with hostage families Relatives of people kidnapped by Hamas believe PM's allies were allowed in to rally support for decisive government action in Gaza invasion https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/10/16/netanyahu-accused-planting-allies-hostage-talks-invasion/   Families of Kidnapped Israelis Meet Netanyahu, Only to Find Unknown Family Boosting PM 'We need to stop this whiny behavior. We need to win the war,' said unverified relatives who appeared at the meeting between the hostages' families and the Israeli prime minister, and stirred an uproar amongst the others https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-10-16/ty-article/.premium/hostage-relatives-suspected-to-have-been-planted-in-meeting-with-pm-to-bolster-his-policy/0000018b-37af-dc99-a1db-3fefa6ed0000   'Our patience is up': Hostages' families blast government inaction at Tel Aviv rally Relatives of those held in Gaza say authorities aren't updating them on negotiations, urge ministers to internalize what's at stake and 'take responsibility' https://www.timesofisrael.com/our-patience-is-up-hostages-families-blast-government-inaction-at-tel-aviv-rally/   Many Israelis are furious at their government's chaotic recovery efforts after Hamas attack https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/many-israelis-are-furious-at-their-governments-chaotic-recovery-efforts-after-hamas-attack   "My friend @maozinon parents were murdered by Hamas Oct 7th. I recorded a podcast episode with him to echo his message for a ceasefire and holding Netanyahu accountable, After the episode release, the offices where we recorded were broken into. The police is investigating." https://twitter.com/ShusterNoam/status/1721876199419621597   Netanyahu's coalition isn't built to last: Expect high sparks within and fragile prospects for Israel's incoming government https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/issue-brief/netanyahus-coalition-isnt-built-to-last-expect-high-sparks-within-and-fragile-prospects-for-israels-incoming-government/   Zinke Introduces Bill to Expel Palestinians from the United States https://zinke.house.gov/media/press-releases/zinke-introduces-bill-expel-palestinians-united-states   Israel's Mobileye CEO urges that Netanyahu be replaced immediately https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israels-mobileye-ceo-urges-that-netanyahu-be-replaced-immediately-2023-10-29/   The election that led to Hamas taking over Gaza https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/24/gaza-election-hamas-2006-palestine-israel/   Netanyahu's Coalition Must Remove Him Immediately https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/editorial/2023-10-30/ty-article-opinion/netanyahus-coalition-must-remove-him-immediately/0000018b-7cf1-d0f6-afeb-7ef5b1670000