June 23, 2021: Military Calls Socialists Terrorists; Teamsters Take Aim at Amazon; U.S. Seizes Iranian Websites

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TODAY'S HEADLINES:


A leaked U.S. military document describes socialists as
terrorists and lists them alongside neo-Nazis and the far right,
according to a report by the Intercept.


Meanwhile, Motherboard reports that the Teamsters union is about
to announce a coordinated nationwide effort to organize Amazon
workers.


And lastly, the U.S. appears to have seized Iranian news sites
under suspicious circumstances


THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:


The Intercept has a shocking, yet somehow predictable report from
the U.S. military today.


According to a leaked document, soldiers are being told that
anarchism and socialism both represent so called terrorist
ideologies.


The document, according to military sources interviewed by the
Intercept, is part of a longer training manual designed for the
Navy’s internal police. It’s part of the military’s wider
internal push against extremism inside its ranks.


The Intercept reports that a section of the training document
subtitled “Study Questions” includes the following question:
“Anarchists, socialists and Neo-Nazis represent which terrorist
ideological category? A source told the Intercept that the
correct answer was quote “political terrorists.” endquote.


This is basically the what we all worried about when the military
announced it would crack down on domestic extremists in its own
ranks. Puting socialists, and even anarchists, on the same level
as neo-Nazis and far-right groups who actively wish harm against
other Americans doesn’t make any sense.


But it does help push resources and the power of the status quo
into suppressing leftist thought. As one anonymous military
official told the Intercept::


“It’s just ineffective training because whoever is directing the
Navy anti-terror curriculum would rather vilify the left than
actually protect anything. Despite the fact that the most
prominent threat is domestic, right-wing terror.”


Teamsters Take Aim at Amazon


Motherboard reports that the Teamsters union, one of the largest
and most powerful forces in organized labor, is about to get
serious with Amazon.


The Teamsters are expected to announce publicly today that
they’ll be embarking on a coordinated, nationwide effort to
unionize workers at Amazon.


Randy Korgan, the Teamster’s National Amazon Director, said in a
video obtained by Motherboard that the union would quote “build
the types of worker and community power necessary to take on one
of the most powerful corporations in the world and win. That
video was set to play at the Teamsters convention on Tuesday, and
on Thursday, delegates from Teamsters local unions will vote on a
similar resolution, which Motherboard reports should pass
comfortably.


That resolution will create and fund a specially designed Amazon
Division within the Teamsters, to aid Amazon workers in
unionizing and defend standards in the logistics industry. But
unlike the massive NLRB election in Bessemer, the Teamsters plan
to take on Amazon with a more guerilla warfare strategy.
Motherboard reports that the union is going to try to apply
direct pressure wherever possible, with work stoppages,
petitions, and other collective action.


The hope is that it also cuts down the opportunities Amazon has
to throw its massive pocketbook into anti-union campaigns, like
it did in Bessemer.


Details on the rest of the program are still scarce, but
Motherboard reports that the union says it has committed
“tremendous resources” to the effort.


U.S. Seizes Iranian Websites


The U.S. government seized dozens of American website domains
connected to the government of Iran on Tuesday, saying that they
were connected to disinformation campaigns.


The AP reports that the domains of a handful of sites, including
Iran state television’s English-language arm Press TV, redirected
to a federal notice saying the sites had been seized by the U.S.
Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Export Enforcement and
the FBI.


A U.S. official anonymously told the AP that these sites were
linked to disinformation campaigns, but otherwise the reasons for
their seizure is unclear. Iran tightly controls much of its state
media, as do many other countries. And though it’s not a perfect
comparison, there’s plenty of disinformation coming out of our
own news sources as well.


What that means is this action is most likely a shot in a broader
conflict with the Iranian government. Actions like this don’t
usually happen in a vacuum, especially considering the ongoing
international talks about Iran’s nuclear program and the
country’s new hard-line president.


This story was still developing as of script time on Tuesday
evening, but we may have a clearer picture of what this means for
Iran’s relationship to the U.S. in the coming days.


AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:


The Daily Beast reports that back in 2019, Donald Trump asked his
advisors and lawyers what the FCC, courts, and the DOJ could do
to mess with or mitigate SNL, Jimmy Kimmel and other TV hosts,
proving that once again that he was the thinnest skinned
president we’ve ever had.


The LA Times reports that a top aide to LA’s mayor Eric Garcetti
mocked labor icon Dolores Huerta in a private facebook group, and
has been placed on administrative leave -- just in case you’re
wondering what people in the halls of power think of activists
and social justice leaders.


BuzzFeed News reports that The Biden administration will let
immigrants sent or deported to Mexico without a court appearance
under a Trump-era policy seek entry into the U.S., a major change
for some families stuck in immigration limbo for months if not
years.


Joe Manchin said on Tuesday that he would vote to open debate on
the Democrats Voting Rights bill, which he previously said he
didn’t support. This isn’t an endorsement of the bill, just a
vote to move procedure along, however, so we’re really not far
from where we were last week.


AM QUICKIE - JUNE, 23, 2021


HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner


WRITER - Jack Crosbie


PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw


EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn