Zack Gehan

Professional inequality hater. Leftist who knows markets are necessary, but many-million dollar incomes are not. Economist. Contractor at @CGDev. Views my own.

[Tamer Nahed @Tamer_Alnoaizy]

I don’t know if anyone will care about what I am saying, but the outside world must know exactly what is happening here… not later, but now.

What we are experiencing in Gaza has gone beyond the limits of human endurance. The camps have turned into a terrifying hotspot for the spread of diseases. With the beginning of summer and thousands of families crowded into extremely tight spaces next to garbage dumps, illness is spreading rapidly, as if it has become part of daily life. There is also an incomprehensible media silence regarding the scale of this growing health catastrophe, despite repeated warnings from medical teams and field workers.

Skin diseases, infections, and contagious illnesses are spreading widely, especially among children, in an environment that lacks the most basic conditions of hygiene or treatment. Rats are everywhere between the tents, insects are spreading heavily and causing continuous injuries, and there are no means of control such as poisons or pesticides. My nieces are part of this reality… their bodies are covered in painful bites that worsen every day without effective treatment.

The situation is collapsing with no real solutions. Medicines are scarce, disinfectants are almost nonexistent, and unsafe water is contributing directly to the spread of disease, while the healthcare system is beyond its capacity.

As of now, cases are estimated at around 160,000 people and still increasing, most of them children. This is not an exaggeration… it is a complete health collapse inside the camps.

[Zack Gehan @ZackGehan]

@worldranking_ We will, by then, either find ways to make pregnancy less arduous and dangerous for women, make relationships mutually safe and rewarding, and make the world a place people can enthusiastically bring children into. Or, if we still haven't, perhaps we will dwindle, and deserve it.

[Zack Gehan @ZackGehan]

@worldranking_ 'To avoid extinction' is so laughably long in the future that this headline is pure cynical, motivated fearmongering, targeted at people who don't automatically know that. Who don't automatically think in systems and realize all the assumptions that are implicit. Normal people.

[Zack Gehan @ZackGehan]

Ingredient 1 of income, wealth, and power inequality: Lobbying.

https://t.co/oYrwmr9LaM

[Gandalv @Microinteracti1]

Finally, the United States is waking up 🚨

Representative Ted Lieu just drew a crystal clear red line, and it matters more than most people seem to realize.

“If any military member, from the generals on down, participates in using force against Greenland without congressional authorization, they are following illegal orders.”

That is not rhetoric. That is the law. And he is putting everyone on notice.

This is how a constitutional system is supposed to work. Civilian control. Congressional authority. No freelance militarism because a president feels impulsive or humiliated or bored. Orders that violate the Constitution are not orders. They are illegal commands, and obedience is not a defense.

What I like here is the timing. This is not said after the damage is done. It is a preemptive warning. A flare shot into the sky saying: think very carefully before you cross this line.

For years, too many people in Washington treated norms as vibes and laws as suggestions. This is a reminder that the system still has teeth if people are willing to use them. And that responsibility does not magically disappear when you put on a uniform.

More of this please. Clear boundaries. Plain language. Zero ambiguity. That is how you stop bad ideas before they turn into irreversible disasters.

[The Resonance @Partisan_12]

“American taxpayers who are desperate for a better life here in America, they need to hand over billions of dollars to the Israeli government and the IDF. And we need to shut the F**k up about any of our critique. AIPAC is evil..”

—Ana Kasparian American Journalist

[World Food Programme @WFP]

WFP Statement | #Gaza

On the morning of 20 July, a 25 truck WFP convoy carrying vital food assistance crossed the Zikim border point destined for starving communities in northern Gaza.

Shortly after passing the final checkpoint beyond the Zikim crossing point into Gaza, the convoy encountered large crowds of civilians anxiously waiting to access desperately needed food supplies.

As the convoy approached, the surrounding crowd came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire.

We are deeply concerned and saddened by this tragic incident resulting in the loss of countless lives. Many more suffered life-threatening injuries. These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation. This terrible incident underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions under which humanitarian operations are forced to be conducted in Gaza.

Today’s violent incident comes despite assurances from Israeli authorities that humanitarian operational conditions would improve; including that armed forces will not be present nor engage at any stage along humanitarian convoy routes.

There should never, ever, be armed groups near or on our aid convoys, as reiterated on many occasions to all parties to the conflict. Shootings near humanitarian missions, convoys and food distributions must stop immediately. Any violence involving civilians seeking humanitarian aid is completely unacceptable.

We stand firmly by our principles of operating with independence, impartiality and neutrality. It is one of the many reasons why communities trust us.

The World Food Programme continues to call for the protection of all civilians and aid workers delivering life-saving assistance. WFP teams accompanying convoys should not have to risk their own lives in the effort to save others. Without these fundamental conditions in place, we cannot continue providing life-saving support across the Gaza strip.

Gaza’s hunger crisis has reached new levels of desperation. People are dying from lack of humanitarian assistance. Malnutrition is surging with 90,000 women and children in urgent need of treatment. Nearly one person in three is not eating for days. Food aid is the only way for most people to access any food – as the cost of a one-kilogram bag of flour has surged to over USD100 in local markets.

Only a massive scale-up in food aid distributions can stabilize this spiraling situation, calm anxieties and rebuild the trust within communities that more food is coming.

An agreed ceasefire is long overdue. All hostages should be released, and humanitarians should be able to reach the civilian population in Gaza with critical food supplies in a consistent, predictable, orderly and safe manner -- wherever they are across the Gaza Strip.

WFP is ready. We have food supplies nearby, experienced teams on the ground, and proven systems in place to respond at scale. We did it before and we can do it again.

We urgently call on the international community and all parties to advocate for, and facilitate, the delivery of life-saving food aid to starving populations inside Gaza – safely, securely, wherever families are, and without obstruction.