Israel attacks Rafah, an escalation in their genocide. Israel attacks Lebanon, an escalation in their collective punishment. The West continues to applaud, although now with some moans, an escalation in their complicity. Those murdered will not be the last. This violence, embodying the death of humanity, will spread and will destroy us all unless it is stopped.

To support this podcast: https://www.patreon.com/firethesetimes

Because we are. Whether from the grief of the on-going genocide in Gaza, military aggressions against Lebanon and Syria, the months-long war in Sudan, or the daily violence of economic/political collapse (the list goes on), we are not okay. For those of us experiencing casual white supremacy in 'the West', holding that pain has been difficult and frustrating. I share some personal reflections as I navigate all of this, hopefully with some coherence and empathy.

We are broken; the living dead. It's becoming hard to put words to it all. Yet I still make my attempt, despite the immense grief and anger.

Al-Jazeera Interview with Moataz Azaiza: https://youtu.be/BQSiGbzD4yo?si=Y2W6CPVFPxbDEqjm

Middle East Eye Interview with Plestia Alaqad:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GBaNDGCh4I

I attended the "Defend Democracy" protest in Vienna. What I witnessed disturbed me.

Is anyone else talking to themselves lately? Anyone else randomly blurting out sounds to express their immense grief and frustration while avoiding a complete mental break down? What T.V show are you binging to bridge the gaps between work, organizing for a ceasefire, and bearing witness to the ongoing genocide? I think about these things out loud in this episode, in a hopefully coherent and interesting way. I'm just so tired.

"These tears make us different from our enemy." - Wael Al-Dahdouh, Palestinian Journalist

Staying sane in this cruel and absurd world is becoming an impossibility. The only choice we have left is maintaining our humanity. I talk about this along with other things.

Since the world did not stop for Palestine, Palestine will stop the world. Or something like that. Dystopian does not begin to describe this new state of the affairs. Many will try to normalize the ongoing genocide, but we must ensure that that is their undoing. While we continue to demand a ceasefire, in anyway we can, how do we reckon and resist these new contradictions?

It felt inevitable. I've been terrified about this for years and now it's happened. On Jan 3rd, our lovely neighbours attacked our capital. It's not the first time, it won't be the last. After 3 months of genocide on Gaza, and attacks on Southern Lebanon, Isr*el's military aggression is expanding even further with full support from Western states. I share my thoughts and feels about this as a Lebanese who left Beirut largely because of the fear (and knowledge) that this was inevitably going to happen. Zi*nism and Western Imperialisms are constant threats to the safety, security, and freedom of the entire South-West Asian region.

I'm depressed. You're depressed. We're all just super mega depressed. Soo ... is it just low levels of serotonin? Our so-called 'childhoods'? Or is it because the world is falling apart and we all feel super impotent while witnessing the collapse of capitalism give way to far-right resurgence across the globe. Idk. Maybe my mother's right and I'm just not taking enough Magnesium and Vitamin D. Who knows? Anyway, in this first episode I give a flavour of what future episodes of this podcast will feel like and what topics I'll be exploring. Hope you enjoy it!