The Monthly Review — January 2025
All of New Outlook's topics, stories, and opinions you missed this past month.
For readers who crave short, snappy reads—whether you’re pressed for time, commuting, or just looking for a quick gateway into bigger ideas.
The Monthly Review is a curated preview of the topics, stories, and opinions I explore on New Outlook—from bite-sized insights to deep dives. Let’s jump in!
➊ GENESIS OF FACEBOOK — THE MILITARY
The Military Origins of Facebook by investigative journalist Whitney Webb is a must-read article. To understand some of today’s key players in politics and tech—Peter Thiel, Mark Zuckerberg, et. al—you must have a good grasp on how a social media app like Facebook came to be.
From DARPA’s Total Information Awareness to LifeLog to Facebook, the path to the world’s most popular social media platform is a complex and deeply intertwined journey. For supplementary viewing, see our coverage of the 4-part Netflix documentary miniseries American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders.
★★★★★
New Outlook Recommends
Article: The Military Origins of Facebook
Author: Whitney Webb
Source: Unlimited Hangout, 2021
➋ DAVE CHAPPELLE — THE POLITICAL FENCE-SITTER
If ever there was a moment for a comic like Dave Chappelle to ditch political correctness and say what truly needs to be said on a massive platform, his latest SNL appearance was it—a tailor-made opportunity. A moment to assess, relive, and remind the country of the corruption we’ve endured over the past four years that led us right back to a Trump presidency. A moment to reflect on the Biden campaign’s censorship scandal in October 2020, which paved the way for his election. A moment to question Biden’s mental and physical fitness for office from 2019 to 2024, and to ask who was really running the country when the President often seemed too incoherent to know what he was saying—or even where to walk after fumbling his speech. A moment to confront the rampant government overreach and medical malpractice during the COVID-19 crisis, along with the authoritarian vaccine mandates that followed. A moment to address the domino-like fall of Woke ideology and the cultural implications for movements such as Black Lives Matter, Anti-racism, and DEI. A moment to unpack the U.S.’s role in provoking Russia into war, pouring billions into Ukraine’s response, and funding Israel’s indiscriminate bombing of Palestinians. A moment to weigh the implications of the Twitter/Facebook Files exposé, which laid bare the collusion between government agencies and Big Tech to control who gets to exercise free speech online. A moment to take the national and global immigration crisis seriously, instead of reducing it to a cheap talking point just to label Trump a “wild guy.” A moment to call out the unprecedented and undemocratic maneuvering of the Democratic political machine—ousting Biden from his reelection bid and handpicking Kamala as the nominee without a primary, only for her to spectacularly fail despite the billions of dollars and institutional support behind her. And perhaps most importantly, a moment to pause and consider the chilling reality that a former president running for reelection was nearly assassinated—not once, not twice, but three times—and to ask whether this, in addition to lawfare, was the Democrats’ only path to victory.
➌ NO PRINCIPLES IN THE MAINSTREAM
Read TIME magazine, they said.
Read The New York Times, they said.
Read The New Yorker, they said.
Read The Atlantic, they said.
Read The Washington Post, they said.
Tired of the lies? Unsubscribe from them all.
➍ FALLING FOR THE PSYOP
Breaking up your family for a difference in political views is a different level of sickness when politicians on both sides spend their pastime dining and vacationing together.
➎ HOW TO DETECT PSYOP STRATEGIES
A must-watch for detecting psyop strategies in real time. Once you grasp these tactics, spotting psyops become second nature—or at the very least, you’ll sharpen your skeptical mindset. You’ll start filtering past and present events through this lens, coming away with an understanding of just how deeply these strategies are embedded.
➏ A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: JOURNALISTS
If you’re a serious journalist and you want to cover the Trump administration, how’s this for an idea:
Focus on exposing the policies, actions, and decisions of his administration and cabinet personnel that fail to meet the standards he set, or that would fail to make America great again.
Bring attention to the actions of his top donors and affiliates, and how they stand to directly or indirectly influence his administration in a way that may be destructive to the American project, or what Trump refers to as “America First.”
When he does something noteworthy or commendable that meets the standards he’s set, or that fulfill his promises in a way that prioritizes Americans first, write about it as loudly as you write about the failures of his administration. Give credit wherever it’s due, even if it goes against your personal ideological worldview.
I know, what a crazy concept! 🤯
Until you fully grasp this, maybe refrain from publishing sensationalist stories that are only built on fear-mongering and propaganda rather than actual truths. We don’t need another “Trump is Hitler” hit-piece. As journalists, you’re better than that. Or perhaps you’re not. Either way, your work will reveal whether or not you are in fact a serious journalist or a complete hack.
➐ MANUFACTURING “TRUTH” THROUGH CENSORSHIP
The need to censor, throttle, deplatform, demonetize, and debank comes from a need to protect manipulative narratives and maintain a monopoly on what is said by the powers that be to be “true.”
If events such as COVID-19, vaccines and vaccine injuries, Israel-Palestine, Ukraine-Russia, Hunter Biden laptop, Jan 6th, Trump assassination attempts, etc. were anchored by Truth, every individual and institution involved—from Big Pharma and corporate-captured scientists to the Bidens and the US corporate media—would openly welcome debate, questions, dialogue, transparency and scrutiny. But alas, they all readily dodge accountability and do not ever want to be publicly challenged or put in the spotlight.
➑ YOUR INTEGRITY EXPOSES THEIR FAILURES
I realize why so many journalists and photojournalists have so much hatred for independent journalist Glenn Greenwald, and often accuse him of many things, among them “chasing the highs of his groundbreaking Snowden revelations,” or “grifting to his rightwing audience because it’s all about the money to him.”
Glenn represents the singular outside critic, the traditional journalist who has yet to abandon his values and principles for access within the journalism/political industry. Glenn is always taking apart these types of industry journalists, holding up the mirror to their faces, having them face what they’ve become, what they’ve sold out, and the damage they’ve collectively done to the industry. And many of these journalists hate what they see. But instead of confronting that mirrored image, they concoct the most foolish reasons to call Glenn’s character and motives into question.
➒ WHAT’S A “FREE” PRESS, ANYWAY?
Why build a “free press” if none of your journalists are actually free to express how they feel about the world around them?
If you can make a compelling argument for your beliefs or contribute an investigative analysis that is anchored in truth-seeking, and gets readers to think critically, you’ve won and should have every right to surface your ideas and research.
➓ AMERICA FIRST?
They say “America First.” But only as long as Israel gets its billions of dollars in funding and the newest war has unquestionable, bipartisan military and financial support.
#Murrica
That’s a wrap! Hope you enjoyed this edition of The Monthly Review. If something resonated, drop a like, leave a comment, and let’s discuss further. Share this with a friend. Thank you for reading, subscribing, and supporting this project. Until next month!
Thank you for this round up. I think im in the middle of some shit and I found this helpful and grounding. 🙏