By Any Means Necessary

In this episode of By Any Means Necessary, hosts Sean Blackmon and Jacquie Luqman are joined by Q. Anthony Omene, Toronto-based freelance writer and historian to discuss the roots of the ongoing “Freedom Convoy” protest against COVID-19 measures in Canada, the class character of the protest and the far-right reactionaries organizing the protests, the dark money behind the protests and how that debunks the claim that this is a working class movement, and the myth of Canada as a “kinder younger brother” to the US.


In the second segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Taya Graham and Stephen Janis, hosts of the Police Accountability Report on The Real News Network to discuss corrupt policing in the town of Milton, West Virginia and what it reveals about the political economy of policing in small rural towns, how the cases in Milton reveal the true purpose of the police to enforce inequality and enact violence against working class people, and how traffic stops and policing not only keep poor people poor but also make people afraid to speak out and exercise political power.


In the third segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Vicki Cervantes, North America Coordinator of the Honduras Solidarity Network to discuss the arrest of former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez, the organized crime, narcotics, and corruption that flourished under Hernandez and the blind eye that the US turned because of his service to capital, what looms for Hernandez in his trial, which will be overseen by a judge who is a member of Hernandez’s party, and the destruction that current president Xiomara Castro has inherited from Hernandez’s presidency.


Later in the show, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Dr. Jared Ball, a father, husband, Professor of Africana Studies at Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, the curator of imixwhatilike.org and author of the book, “The Myth and Propaganda of Black Buying Power” to discuss the celebrity gloss being slathered onto cryptocurrency in order to draw more people into the crypto bubble, the censorship of Kendrick Lamar and the anti-police line in his 2015 hit “Alright” and how it exemplifies the cooptation of Black musical artists and Black culture, and how Kanye West and his current antics exemplify the toxicity of celebrity culture.

In this segment of By Any Means Necessary, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Vicki Cervantes, North America Coordinator of the Honduras Solidarity Network to discuss the arrest of former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez, the organized crime, narcotics, and corruption that flourished under Hernandez and the blind eye that the US turned because of his service to capital, what looms for Hernandez in his trial, which will be overseen by a judge who is a member of Hernandez’s party, and the destruction that current president Xiomara Castro has inherited from Hernandez’s presidency.

In this segment of By Any Means Necessary, hosts Sean Blackmon and Jacquie Luqman are joined by Q. Anthony Omene, Toronto-based freelance writer and historian to discuss the roots of the ongoing “Freedom Convoy” protest against COVID-19 measures in Canada, the class character of the protest and the far-right reactionaries organizing the protests, the dark money behind the protests and how that debunks the claim that this is a working class movement, and the myth of Canada as a “kinder younger brother” to the US.

In this segment of By Any Means Necessary, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Taya Graham and Stephen Janis, hosts of the Police Accountability Report on The Real News Network to discuss corrupt policing in the town of Milton, West Virginia and what it reveals about the political economy of policing in small rural towns, how the cases in Milton reveal the true purpose of the police to enforce inequality and enact violence against working class people, and how traffic stops and policing not only keep poor people poor but also make people afraid to speak out and exercise political power.

In this episode of By Any Means Necessary, hosts Sean Blackmon and Jacquie Luqman are joined by Sohrob Aslamy, a doctoral candidate at Syracuse University to discuss the theft of Afghanistan’s frozen assets by the US government after Joe Biden announced that they would be split in half between the Afghan people and the families of victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks, the piecemeal attempts at the resolution of economic crises caused by the US invasion and occupation of Afghanistan through humanitarian aid, the efforts to strange the Afghan economy and force it to remain dependent on foreign aid, and how this theft and sanctions only hurt the Afghan people despite what Joe Biden says.


In the second segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by technologist Chris Garaffa, the editor of TechforthePeople.org to discuss the growing surveillance infrastructure developed by Apple and other companies advertised as a means of finding lost items but features little regulation and can be easily used maliciously, the culture of acceptance around surveillance that has been inculcated within children partly as a result of pandemic schooling, Apple’s anti-competitive practices forcing app developers to adopt its payment platform and the widespread adoption of this strategy across tech giants, and the recently revealed CIA collection of data from American citizens.


In the third segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Sputnik News Analyst and transgender activist Morgan Artyukhina to discuss the wave of anti-LGBTQ legislation introduced in state legislatures in 2022 and hoe those bills are taking inspiration from other right-wing bills that attack other marginalized groups, the historic weaponization of children against progressive causes like integration and how that same tactic is being used to push these bills, and how these attacks on LGBTQ people constitute an attack on all workers and present a false choice that must be met with solidarity.


Later in the show, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Ajamu Baraka, National Organizer of the Black Alliance for Peace to discuss how some elements of the western left gave in to corporate media propaganda regarding the 2014 coup in Ukraine and how some of those elements continue to fall for the demonization campaign against Russia as NATO and the US escalate tensions over Ukraine, how the attacks by the western press on Russia share similarities to the attacks against Ethiopia when it was the target of the US and allied forces, and Joe Biden’s comments on the Ukraine crisis and the irony of his comments on protecting Ukraine’s national sovereignty.

In this segment of By Any Means Necessary, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Sputnik News Analyst and transgender activist Morgan Artyukhina to discuss the wave of anti-LGBTQ legislation introduced in state legislatures in 2022 and hoe those bills are taking inspiration from other right-wing bills that attack other marginalized groups, the historic weaponization of children against progressive causes like integration and how that same tactic is being used to push these bills, and how these attacks on LGBTQ people constitute an attack on all workers and present a false choice that must be met with solidarity.

In this segment of By Any Means Necessary, hosts Sean Blackmon and Jacquie Luqman are joined by Sohrob Aslamy, a doctoral candidate at Syracuse University to discuss the theft of Afghanistan’s frozen assets by the US government after Joe Biden announced that they would be split in half between the Afghan people and the families of victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks, the piecemeal attempts at the resolution of economic crises caused by the US invasion and occupation of Afghanistan through humanitarian aid, the efforts to strange the Afghan economy and force it to remain dependent on foreign aid, and how this theft and sanctions only hurt the Afghan people despite what Joe Biden says.

In this segment of By Any Means Necessary, Sean and Jacquie are joined by technologist Chris Garaffa, the editor of TechforthePeople.org to discuss the growing surveillance infrastructure developed by Apple and other companies advertised as a means of finding lost items but features little regulation and can be easily used maliciously, the culture of acceptance around surveillance that has been inculcated within children partly as a result of pandemic schooling, Apple’s anti-competitive practices forcing app developers to adopt its payment platform and the widespread adoption of this strategy across tech giants, and the recently revealed CIA collection of data from American citizens.

In this episode of By Any Means Necessary, hosts Sean Blackmon and Jacquie Luqman are joined by Dr. Jack Rasmus, economist, radio show host, & author of 'The Scourge of Neoliberalism' to discuss the recently reported increase of the inflation rate and how corporations are driving the increase in prices, the myths about the causes of inflation being propagated by politicians, the price gouging that corporations are engaging in as evidenced by the increase in the prices of things like food, and how the national debt driven by war spending and pandemic bailouts that have been abused by the corporations that received them have contributed to the current issues facing the country.


In the second segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Greg Elich a member of the Solidarity Committee for Democracy and Peace in Korea and the author of Strange Liberators: Militarism, Mayhem, and the Pursuit of Profit to discuss the upcoming general elections in south Korea and the geopolitical contours that affect the race and US involvement in the peninsula, how south Korea’s proximity to north Korea and China impacts the stakes of the election and US interest in the eventual winner, and current president Moon Jae-In’s myopic focus on a peace declaration that would have little effect on the potential for peace on the Korean peninsula.


In the third segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by K.J. Noh,a scholar, educator and journalist focusing on the political economy and geopolitics of the Asia-Pacific. He’s also a member of Veterans for Peace, and senior correspondent with Flashpoints on KPFA to discuss Antony Blinken’s recent tour of Pacific island nations in a blatant attempt to shore up support for its cold war drive against China, China’s record in paying attention to and helping the island nations that the US has ignored until now, and how Blinken’s visit and promises of support expose the real reason behind this visit as the US deals with similar issues.


Later in the show, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Rachel Hu, co-host of the podcast It’s Not You, It’s Capitalism to discuss Eminem’s reference to Colin Kaepernick’s protest during his Super Bowl halftime performance and how the NFL’s blackballing of Kaepernick highlights many issues with the NFL, the militaristic elements added to the Super Bowl and to sports at large, the continued and intensifying war drive against Russia over Ukraine and the corporate media’s attempts at manufacturing consent, and the activism that has emerged after the killing of Amir Locke.

In this segment of By Any means Necessary, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Greg Elich a member of the Solidarity Committee for Democracy and Peace in Korea and the author of Strange Liberators: Militarism, Mayhem, and the Pursuit of Profit to discuss the upcoming general elections in south Korea and the geopolitical contours that affect the race and US involvement in the peninsula, how south Korea’s proximity to north Korea and China impacts the stakes of the election and US interest in the eventual winner, and current president Moon Jae-In’s myopic focus on a peace declaration that would have little effect on the potential for peace on the Korean peninsula.