(2020-08-05). Republicans sabotage as negotiations delay pandemic relief package. workers.org 
Aug. 3 — Talks between the Republican administration and its majority Republican Senate with the Democratic Party House and Senate leaders have failed so far to reach agreement. This impasse holds up the emergency relief, which Republicans call CARES-2, beyond the date when vital unemployment supplements expired and the rent . . . |
(2020-08-05). House Speaker Pelosi signals readiness to cut unemployment benefits. wsws.org Congress continues to quibble over a new bill as the crisis deepens for millions of workers and their families.
(2020-08-05). Boston school workers blast 'reopening plans'. workers.org 
Boston Public School nurses, teachers and bus drivers occupied City Hall Plaza on July 29, vowing to defend public safety by any means necessary. The action was a response to the threatening, dangerous demands of the White House, Wall Street and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker to "get back to school . . . |
(2020-08-05). Massive explosion in Beirut kills dozens and injures thousands. wsws.org A deadly explosion in the port district of Beirut, Lebanon Tuesday evening flattened buildings in the immediate vicinity and sent a shock wave across the city.
(2020-08-05). Massive Explosion Destroys Beirut Harbor, Hundreds of Casualties. globalresearch.ca A massive explosion rocked the Lebanese capital Beirut this afternoon Tuesday 04 August 2020, the center of the explosion was in the Beirut harbor. | The Lebanese people who lived through a lengthy civil war and several confrontations with Israel and …
(2020-08-05). Brazil: From pandemic to genocide. workers.org 
Since the pandemic began, Brazilians have suffered 93,000 deaths and 2.7 million infections — the second highest number of infections in the world after the United States. Far from marshaling his country's resources to battle the disease, Bolsonaro has intentionally sabotaged Brazil's COVID-19 response. Like his U.S. analog, the right-wing . . . |
(2020-08-05). How Trump managed to lead the World with the worst response to COVID-19 pandemic. mronline.org 
Six months ago, on January 30, the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). Ten days before this, the Chinese government had said—to great alarm—that the coronavirus could be transmitted from human to human.
(2020-08-05). The virus, the GDP and the profit motive. workers.org 
"The coronavirus pandemic's toll on the nation's economy became emphatically clearer Thursday," the New York Times wrote July 30, "as the government detailed the most devastating three-month collapse on record, which wiped away nearly five years of growth." Specifically, the gross domestic product, "the broadest measure of goods and services . . . |
(2020-08-05). Struggle makes headway, but fight far from over in Portland, Ore. workers.org 
When federal officers entered Portland, Ore., over the July 4 weekend and began to confront Black Lives Matter protesters, it quickly became clear that the protesters were not going to be driven out. The presence of federal officers only galvanized protesters, who turned out by the thousands night after night. . . . |
(2020-08-05). Protesters SUE Seattle over 'expensive gear' required to confront cops, demand ban on riot control weapons. rt.com 
A group of protesters has sued the Seattle government, arguing that "unmitigated police violence" has imposed a monetary cost on their right to demonstrate freely, forcing them to buy expensive gear to safely confront the cops. | Filed by five plaintiffs who took part in ongoing protests in Seattle, the suit seeks a temporary restraining order barring the city's police department from wielding force and crowd control munitions on demonstrators, alleging heavy-handed police tactics have made "safe protest prohibitive," as "one needs an exceptional amount of protective gear to enjoy that freedom." | Also on rt.c…
(2020-08-05). Los Angeles DA's husband charged with ASSAULT for pointing gun at BLM protesters on his porch. rt.com 
The husband of Los Angeles' first black district attorney has been charged with multiple counts of assault with a firearm for pointing a gun at Black Lives Matter protesters who showed up on the couple's doorstep. | David Lacey, whose wife is LA District Attorney Jackie Lacey, has been charged with three counts of assault with a firearm, according to
(2020-08-05). Biden's wife says he WILL debate Trump, as his campaign blames right wingers for 'imaginary controversy'. rt.com 
Joe Biden's wife confirmed in a Fox News interview that he will go through with plans for debates with President Donald Trump, ignoring the advice of some political strategists and media outlets such as CNN. | "Oh yes, he will," Jill Biden told Fox's Dana Perino on Tuesday. "I think they've already, I think it's three debates they've decided on. So yes, he will be there." She added that her husband, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, will make up his own mind rather than being swayed by those who are urging him to skip the debates. | Jill Biden's comments echoed those of Biden campaign spokes…
(2020-08-05). Pentagon Plans to Destroy Dozens of Soviet Cities and the So-called Cold War. globalresearch.ca Though remaining unmentioned in official texts, the origins of the dubiously titled Cold War can be traced to policies pursued by American leaders during World War II itself. Following Nazi Germany's calamitous defeat at Stalingrad in early 1943, Washington's ongoing …
(2020-08-05). Fiat Chrysler bribed UAW with tens of millions, new GM court filing alleges. wsws.org The new documents contain allegations of massive corruption on the part of the UAW, exceeding anything brought to light so far by the parallel criminal probe by the FBI.
(2020-08-05). Widespread protests in Bolivia oppose postponement of elections. wsws.org Since Monday, a movement of strikes and blockades of main roads by workers and peasants has been spreading in Bolivia.
(2020-08-05). Statewide online workshop on community control of Florida police. fightbacknews.org Tallahassee, FL -The Tallahassee Community Action Committee (TCAC) hosted an online training and workshop, July 30, over Facebook Live on the topic of community control of police. The event was led by experienced anti-racism leaders who are active in the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR), and also founding members of their local organizations: TCAC and the group that inspired TCAC's own founding, the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC). | "NAARPR, JCAC and TCAC all have political repression and police overreach central to their origin stories," noted Tallahassee Communi…
(2020-08-05). Staying on Message: Australia, the US and the AUSMIN Talks. counterpunch.org The Satrap Chronicles of the US imperium will have, near the top of their various ingratiating themes, such Australian politicians as Senators Linda Reynolds and Marise Payne. They resemble Siamese consuls, hard to tell apart (robust build, similar of voice and manner). For another, their views form the putty of derivative policy that has characterised
(2020-08-04). The 1 Percent's Attack on Unemployment Benefits is a Sign of Our Broken Democracy. counterpunch.org Members of the One Percent, such as former restaurateur Andrew Puzder, have urged Congress to not renew the $600 a week unemployment supplement Congress enacted as part of the CARES Act. They argue, in Puzder's words, that "this $600 per week bonus is discouraging work" for low-wage earners. No one receiving unemployment benefits will make themselves
(2020-08-04). We Need an Economic Survival Package Not Another Stimulus. counterpunch.org 
There continues to be enormous confusion about what we should be trying to accomplish in the next pandemic relief package. This is best demonstrated by Republicans' obsession with getting people back to work, with a mixture of cuts to unemployment benefits and return to work bonuses. Ignoring the questionable economic logic (there is zero evidence
(2020-08-04). Anger grows across the US as closed-door talks continue on expired unemployment relief. wsws.org Millions of American workers don't know how they'll pay rent or where their next meal will come from.
(2020-08-04). How to generate unemployment and deflation. indybay.org The theory put forward by fair-weather philosophers that the pandemic will be a salutary shock leading to a better, more sustainable world is wrong. Forced renunciation and economic decline do not make anything better. Less is not more, but less. Corona is not an opportunity, it is an evil. We can only hope that one day it will pass.
(2020-08-04). Mass unemployment to worsen in Australia following Victorian lockdown. wsws.org Workers, especially those in casual and insecure employment, will bear the burden of the sweeping "state of disaster" COVID-19 restrictions announced by Victoria's Labor government.
(2020-08-04). US teachers protest against reopening of schools, demand safe working conditions. peoplesdispatch.org Trade unions representing teachers and support staff from 35 school districts undertook the protest against the push to reopen in-person classes. Unions have argued that in-person classes could pose a risk to public health…
(2020-08-04). 50 dead, over 2,700 injured in Beirut blasts. peoplesdispatch.org The powerful blasts took place in the port area of Beirut devastating many buildings in the vicinity. The exact cause is still unknown although government sources said ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse was the reason…
(2020-08-04). 'A bomb of some kind'? Trump says US military officials 'think' deadly Beirut blast was an ATTACK. rt.com 
President Trump has claimed the blast that rocked Beirut was likely an "attack," citing US military officials who "seem to believe" the explosion was not accidental, despite widespread reports it was a chemical warehouse accident. | The blast erupted at a port warehouse in the Lebanese capital on Tuesday, killing at least 70 people and leaving thousands injured. Though the exact cause of the explosion has not been determined, and no Lebanese official has labeled the incident an attack, Trump told reporters that the Pentagon believes a bomb was involved. | "It would seem like it based on the explosion," Trump s…
(2020-08-04). 'Fully Destroyed': Massive Explosion at Port Rocks Beirut. commondreams.org www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Militarized BORTAC Border Patrol Raids & Ransacks Medical Camp on U.S. Border, Arrests 30 Migrants. democracynow.org 
In Arizona, heavily armed Border Patrol officers raided the medical camp of humanitarian group No More Deaths and detained 30 migrants whose whereabouts are now unknown. It was the second raid in just two days on the camp, which provides water, food and medical attention to refugees crossing into the United States through the scorching Sonoran Desert. "Immediately after they entered the camp, the first thing they did was round up all of the No More Deaths aid workers and zip-tie them, remove their phones," says Montana Thames, a humanitarian aid worker with No More Deaths. "It was very clear they didn't want any…
(2020-08-04). Teachers protest Jordan government's closure of union and harsh crackdown. wsws.org As poverty and social unrest rise, the government has used the draconian emergency laws introduced in March to curtail democratic rights.
(2020-08-04). Teacher Protests Erupt As #DemandSafeSchools Takes Off. commondreams.org www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). 100 Top Economists Call for End of Carbon Economy to Usher in 'Greener' and More Just World. commondreams.org "We must not miss this opportunity to rebuild the economy to fulfill our vision of a just and livable world." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Armenia's Risky Tovuz Strategy Dramatically Backfired. thealtworld.com The latest clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan occurred along their shared border in Tovuz, north of Nagorno-Karabakh. Both sides blame one another but a compelling argument can be made that Armenia was the aggressor. Azerbaijan has no dispute with Armenia over this territory and has nothing to gain by destabilizing this strategy region through which important international energy pipelines and the BTK railway pass. The Mingachevir Dam is also located nearby, and if Armenia attacked it during another war, then the consequences would be disastrous for the millions of Azerbaijanis downstream. | It's actually…
(2020-08-04). Assange Wins Award, Appears In Court Facing New Charges. popularresistance.org WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's case management hearing yesterday continued the travesty of legal due process to which he has been subjected for more than a decade. | The journalist and publisher is fighting extradition to the United States, where he faces politically motivated frame-up charges of espionage with a combined potential sentence of 175 years. He has not attended hearings via videolink for the last three months on the advice of doctors, due to his fragile state of health and the threat of exposure to coronavirus. | At the previous hearing on June 29, District Judge Vanessa Baraitser had scolded Ass…
(2020-08-04). Document exposes new US plot to overthrow Nicaragua's elected socialist gov't. thegrayzone.com A disturbing new document outlines plans for a US regime-change scheme against Nicaragua's elected leftist government, overseen by USAID, to…
(2020-08-04). "Wipe the Soviet Union Off the Map", 204 Atomic Bombs against 66 Major Cities, US Nuclear Attack against USSR Planned During World War II. globalresearch.ca According to a secret document dated September 15, 1945, "the Pentagon had envisaged blowing up the Soviet Union with a coordinated nuclear attack directed against 66 major urban areas.
(2020-08-04). U.S. Cold War China Policy will isolate the U.S. not China. dissidentvoice.org 
CODEPINK (Credit) Tensions between the United States and China are rising as the U.S. election nears, with tit-for-tat consulate closures, new U.S. sanctions and no less than three U.S. aircraft carrier strike groups prowling the seas around China. But it is the United States that has initiated each new escalation in U.S.-China relations. China's responses …
(2020-08-04). Public Health vs. Politics: White House Scrapped Nationwide COVID-19 Testing Plan to Hurt Blue States. democracynow.org 
As the U.S. coronavirus death toll passes 155,000, there is still no national testing program, with widespread shortages and delays hampering efforts to contain the pandemic. This continues months after President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner launched a White House task force with the goal of establishing a national testing plan. We speak to investigative reporter Katherine Eban, whose explosive Vanity Fair report chronicles Kushner's fumbling efforts and the sudden decision to abandon the project on political grounds. "The participants expected that at any moment in early April, the plan would be announced,"
(2020-08-04). "Release Them All": Calls Grow to Stop Jailing Immigrants as Transfers & Deportations Spread COVID. democracynow.org 
The U.S. government continues to hold tens of thousands of asylum seekers and immigrants in detention centers and jails, ignoring the advice of medical experts as the coronavirus continues to spread. ICE has also continued to transfer and deport people — including those who are infected — making it a global superspreader. We speak with Luis Angel Reyes Savalza, an immigration attorney and co-director of Pangea Legal Services in San Francisco, who himself is undocumented and recently got arrested at a protest outside the mansion of California Governor Gavin Newsom demanding the release of people in sta…
(2020-08-04). "It's Basically a Death Sentence": Hunger Strikers Demand Release as Virus Surges in ICE Jails. democracynow.org 
People being held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement jails are holding work strikes and hunger strikes over the lack of access to personal protective equipment or quality medical care, and to demand their release. We speak with Joe Mejia, an asylum seeker who was among a group of prisoners at Yuba County Jail in California who led a hunger strike while he was held there for nearly 11 months. "That place is dangerous," Mejia says. "It is a death sentence to detainees, especially right now with the coronavirus."
(2020-08-04). Headlines for August 4, 2020. democracynow.org Concerns Mount over Politicization of COVID-19 Vaccine, as Trump Lashes Out at "Pathetic" Dr. Birx, WHO Warns There May Never Be a Coronavirus "Silver Bullet", Trump Threatens to Sue Nevada After It Expands Voter Access, Leaked Video Shows George Floyd Pleaded for His Life, Cooperated with Police, Before He Was Killed, Video Shows LAPD Shot Peaceful Protester in the Head as He Held His Arms in the Air, Prosecutor Clears Arkansas Officers Who Pushed Black Man into the Ground for 6.5 Minutes Before He Died, Census Bureau Cuts Short Collection Efforts by One Month, Mexican Man Dies After Falling from Border Wall, Me…
(2020-08-04). Mohammed Rafi: Singer and Human Par Excellence. counterpunch.org Mohammed Rafi, the greatest humanitarian and singer, breathed his last forty years ago today, on July 31, 1980, due to multiple heart attacks while rehearsing for an album at home. Over 20,000 people, including film people, attended his funeral amidst heavy downpour. Rafi's versatility; his command over different genres; his modulating techniques to suit a vast
(2020-08-04). US GDP Collapses and Economic Rebound Fades. globalresearch.ca This past week US economy collapsed in the 2nd quarter by 32.9% at annual rate and nearly 10% just for the April-June period. Never before in modern US history—not even in the worse quarters of the 1930s great depression—has the …
(2020-08-04). The GOP Is Trying to Steal Away Our Right to Vote—Time to Fight Like Hell to Keep It. commondreams.org "Enforcing the right to vote should not be controversial," writes Jackson. "It should enjoy support across the political spectrum." (Photo: Common Cause) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Another Hiroshima is Coming…Unless We Stop It Now. counterpunch.org 
When I first went to Hiroshima in 1967, the shadow on the steps was still there. It was an almost perfect impression of a human being at ease: legs splayed, back bent, one hand by her side as she sat waiting for a bank to open. At a quarter past eight on the morning of
(2020-08-04). Trump RUINED our Venezuela coup and botched 'winning play,' cries Democrat Senator & gets ROASTED online. rt.com 
The Democratic Party's gripes with President Trump are many, yet the latest may be the most bizarre to date. One Senator argued that Trump's brash personality bungled a perfectly good, American-style coup in Venezuela. | If Senator Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut) had his way, opposition leader Juan Guaido would be occupying the Presidential Palace in Caracas right now, after the successful ousting of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Despite the weight the US threw behind Guaido last year, the young upstart's planned coup was a failure, and Murphy blames Trump for that loss. | 2/ In early 2019, an opportunity…
(2020-08-04). Trump RUINED our Venezuela coup and botched 'winning play,' cries Democrat senator before getting ROASTED online. rt.com The Democratic Party's gripes with President Trump are many, yet the latest may be the most bizarre to date. One senator argued that Trump's brash personality bungled a perfectly good, American-style coup in Venezuela. | If Senator Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut) had his way, opposition leader Juan Guaido would be occupying the Presidential Palace in Caracas right now, after the successful ousting of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Despite the weight the US threw behind Guaido last year, the young upstart's planned coup was a failure, and Murphy blames Trump for that loss. | 2/ In early 2019, an opportunity…
(2020-08-04). Lee Camp: A Dozen Reasons Now is the Time for Housing as a Human Right. mintpressnews.com America is not based on hard work. Get it out of your head that this society is set up to be fair. Fair would be everyone with a roof over their head.
(2020-08-04). Elliot Abrams Confirms to Senate Hearing That US Still 'Working Hard' to Overthrow Maduro in Venezuela. commondreams.org Admission was latest sign that high pressure campaign on Venezuela's leftist government—including crushing economic sanctions—remains. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). John Bellamy Foster: Marxs Ecology — review. mronline.org 
Marx's Ecology: John Bellamy Foster details the ecological foundation of Marx's critique of capitalism and argues that it has great relevance to understanding the environmental crisis we face today.
(2020-08-04). Critique of the Gotha Programme — Karl Marx. mronline.org 
On this episode of Red Menace Alyson and Breht discuss 'Critique of the Gotha Programme' by Karl Marx…
(2020-08-04). Britain's jobs massacre continues. wsws.org Many have no jobs to go back to, with young people especially hard hit in hospitality and retail.
(2020-08-04). Migrant farmworkers in Spain protest amid COVID-19 surge. wsws.org Low-paid agricultural workers are seen as an entirely dispensable workforce, forced to work back-breaking days in appalling conditions.
(2020-08-04). Refugees freed from Greek camp 'hell' left homeless. indybay.org When Amir Hussein was finally allowed to leave the horrific migrant camp of Moria on the Greek island of Lesbos, it was supposed to be the end of a year-long odyssey.
(2020-08-04). Cornel West and Tricia Rose Talk AOC, Racial Justice, and More. therealnews.com 
The two say they want to address the urgency of the civil rights movement happening right now.
(2020-08-04). COVID Stimulus Checks Shouldn't Penalize One-Parent Households. counterpunch.org 
Both the HEROES Act passed by the House in May and Senate Republicans' HEALS Act announced this week would provide a new round of stimulus in the form of one-time cash payments to most Americans, but with some major differences. One of these differences is in how the bills treat one-parent households with children, the
(2020-08-04). The Pandemic Reveals a Europe More United Than the United States. counterpunch.org 
During the Trump era, America increasingly seems like a motley collection of states brought together for reasons of territorial contiguity and little else. The conservative South is ravaged by a pandemic. The liberal Northeast waits patiently for elections in November to oust a tyrant. A rebellious Pacific Northwest faces off against federal troops sent to
(2020-08-04). Shape Yourself Into The Perfect Weapon Against The Empire. thealtworld.com 
Do you want to win this thing? Actually win it? | By that I mean, do you actually want to create a healthy world instead of a world where we are ruled by lying, murderous, warmongering, oppressive, ecocidal, omnicidal sociopaths? Is that something you truly, deeply want? | It's okay if you don't, but be real with yourself about it. | A large percentage of the people who get involved in revolutionary political movements and criticism of establishment power structures, if they were honest with themselves, would admit that they do so not out of a sincere desire to replace the sociopathic ruling empire with something…
(2020-08-04). ATOMIC BOMBINGS AT 75: Scholars speak out against 'unnecessary' attacks. mronline.org 
Japan was ready to surrender, making the atomic bombings of Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, and Nagasaki two days later, totally unnecessary and morally indefensible, say a panel of scholars in two video discussions.
(2020-08-04). Framing Wolves in New Mexico? counterpunch.org 
Late in May 2020, the Arizona Daily Star ran an article titled, "Advocates question investigations used to target 'problem' wolves," detailing some of the work that Western Watersheds Project has been doing to review and assess Wildlife Services' work on livestock killed by Mexican wolves in New Mexico. Together with my colleague — WWP's Arizona
(2020-08-04). Globalization and the End of the American Dream. counterpunch.org 
Immanuel Wallerstein provocatively begins one of his essays with the following cautionary note: "Globalization is a misleading concept, since what is described as globalization has been happening for 500 years." Nevertheless, in a 2000 article, "Globalization or the Age of Transition?," Wallerstein notes that after WW-II the U.S. was "the only major industrial power whose
(2020-08-04). Open Letter To My Landlord #5. dissidentvoice.org 
Our landlord doesn't read my letters, as far as we know, but it feels like it's only fair to write a letter each month, if we're not going to be paying the rent. Well, hello again. This is the fifth full month in the pandemic, and the fifth month of the suspension on evictions here …
(2020-08-04). How Companies Can Keep Their Employees Safe During a Pandemic and Civil Unrest. dissidentvoice.org 
Ivan Samkov (Pixels) This is a year unlike most we have ever seen. Few could have predicted the continuous impacts of the coronavirus, a struggling economy, the civil unrest in the streets, and deeper conversations about race and civil liberties. On top of all of that, our businesses are beginning to reopen, and the masses …
(2020-08-04). Ocean Heat: From the Tropics to the Poles. counterpunch.org 
The heat being captured by the increasing load of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is subsequently transferred into the oceans for storage. This process — global warming — has raised the temperature of the biosphere by 1 ∞C (or more) since the late 19th century. Heat introduced into any material body at
(2020-08-04). As Prison COVID-19 Cases Rise, A Mental Health Crisis Intensifies. therealnews.com 
Family visits, job programs, and recreational activities have all been put on hold because of the virus.
(2020-08-04). Media lives matter? More assaults on US journalists in 2020 than in previous 3 years combined, says press freedom watchdog. rt.com 
The number of violent incidents directed at journalists has skyrocketed, according to the US Press Freedom Tracker, which said heavy-handed police tactics during BLM protests have made 2020 a uniquely dangerous year for reporters. | There have been more than 612 press freedom incidents so far this year, according to the group's July tally. The figure includes more than 87 arrests, 140 physical attacks, 143 injuries from rubber bullets or projectiles, and 76 cases where equipment was damaged. There have also been dozens of cases of journalists being teargassed or hit with pepper spray. | Latest reported aggress…
(2020-08-04). Are chrome grilles 'designed to intimidate & kill pedestrians'? Liberals and conservatives fight over pickup trucks. rt.com 
America's love affair with the pickup truck is the latest battlefield in the unending culture wars, with liberal pundits decrying these 4,000-pound killing machines, and conservatives clinging to their beloved Rams and Silverados. | After an oblivious pickup driver nearly ran Dan Neil over in a Costco parking lot, the Wall Street Journal columnist echoed the arguments of the gun control crowd and focused his attention on the tool itself, and not the user. Why, he wrote, are these square-jawed vehicles getting so damn huge? | These "behemoths," he wrote, are deadly for pedestrians caught in front of their chrom…
(2020-08-04). Illinois lawmaker calls for ABOLITION of 'racist' history classes until state comes up with more 'inclusive' alternative. rt.com 
LaShawn Ford, a Democrat in the Illinois General Assembly, has called for an immediate halt to history classes that he claims "lead to white privilege and a racist society," sparking concerns over an Orwellian revision of history. | "I'm calling on the state board of education to end the teaching of history and the local school districts to take immediate action by removing the current history books and curriculum practices that unfairly communicate our history," Ford said on Sunday at an event in Evanston, Illinois. His vague plan calls for temporarily replacing history classes by devoting greater attention t…
(2020-08-04). Tribute to xenophobia? Anti-Trump activists face backlash for 'statue' in Portland linking Putin to alleged police brutality. rt.com 
An activist group has unveiled a new 'statue' in Portland, Oregon which appears to connect Vladimir Putin to allegations of police brutality in the city. Isn't that a bit xenophobic? Twitter observers have asked. | The collective, known as the Trump Statue Initiative (TSI), used live actors covered in gold, and standing on top of a large pedestal, to create the impression that a new monument had been installed in the city on Monday. | Their performance art piece showed Donald Trump holding up a selfie-stick and making a thumbs-up sign as men wearing gas masks and riot gear pull a protester holding a 'BLM' plac…
(2020-08-04). Media ramps up campaign to get Biden out of debates with Trump, offering various excuses other than their candidate's failing mind. rt.com 
Media outlets from the New York Times to CNN and Newsweek have offered Joe Biden various reasons over the past several days to skip debates with President Donald Trump. None mentions Biden's fading ability to speak coherently. | A New York Times opinion piece on Monday suggested that presidential debates should be scrapped altogether because they've "never made sense as a test for presidential leadership." | We didn't need the debates to tell us that Trump had chosen to be the P.T. Barnum of American politics. For him, it was (and still is) all about the show, about distracting the public from reality. | CNN p…
(2020-08-04). 'Erotic mind control community has a racism problem': BLM activists go after hypnotists in latest bizarre witch hunt. rt.com 
As street battles between murky federal agents, Antifa and various mom'n'pop protest groups over systemic racism continue in Portland, it appears a similar, but more insidious war is underway… in the erotic mind control community. | A seemingly never-ending thread, posted to Twitter by a self-professed 30-something white woman, who is part of the ultra-niche sexual "So, I want to address something that will probably surprise no one: The…
(2020-08-04). Houston mayor orders police to punish residents who refuse to wear masks with $250 fines. rt.com 
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is ratcheting up enforcement of a state Covid-19 mask mandate, ordering police to cite residents who refuse to wear a face covering after being warned and to penalize them with a $250 fine. | "For months, we have been focusing on education and not citations, but now I am instructing the Houston Police Department to issue the necessary warnings and citations to anyone not wearing a mask in public if they do not meet the criteria for an exemption," the mayor said Monday at a press briefing. | The citation comes with a $250 fine. Lives are at stake, so I am taking this step to save…
(2020-08-04). Trump hints at executive action against mail-in voting, threatens to sue Nevada. rt.com 
US President Donald Trump has suggested he could sign an executive order pertaining to universal mail-in voting in the 2020 presidential race, arguing he has the authority to do so while reiterating warnings of election fraud. | As a number of states look to expand mail-in ballots for the November election amid concerns about the coronavirus, the president has repeatedly denounced the practice, telling reporters at a White House press conference on Monday that he could issue an executive order on the matter, though he did not specify what action he might take. | "I have the right to do it," Trump said, arguing…
(2020-08-04). Truman's 'Human Sacrifice' to Subdue Moscow. strategic-culture.org 
Peter KUZNICK | Sumiteru Taniguchi was one of the "lucky" ones. He lived a long and productive life. He married and fathered two healthy children who gave him four grandchildren and two great grandchildren. He had a long career in Japan's postal and telegraph services. As a leader in Japan's anti-nuclear movement, he addressed thousands of audiences and hundreds of thousands of people. He traveled to at least 23 countries. The organizations in which he played a prominent role were nominated several times for the Nobel Peace Prize. | Many of the more than 250,000 who lived in Nagasaki on August 9, 1945 were not so…
(2020-08-04). 'Optimism of the Will': Palestinian Freedom is Possible Now. counterpunch.org In a recent TV discussion, a respected pro-Palestine journalist declared that if any positive change or transformation ever occurs in the tragic Palestinian saga, it would not happen now, but that it would take a whole new generation to bring about such a paradigm shift. As innocuous as the declaration may have seemed, it troubled
(2020-08-04). The Government's Failed Track-and-Trace System is a Disaster for England. counterpunch.org Aggressive contact tracing is the strategy that will help most now, although it would have been easier to implement before Boris Johnson's credibility was shredded When I got polio on a farm in the middle of the Irish countryside in 1956, an Irish Health Ministry official visited our nearest neighbour, a farmer called Dick Cunningham, the next
(2020-08-04). Lithuania's Alleged Involvement in 2014 Ukraine Maidan Coup. globalresearch.ca New scandalous information about the 2014 Maidan coup d'état in Ukraine has emerged that implicates Lithuania's important role in instigating the violent events. David Zhvania, a former Member of the Ukrainian Parliament, revealed on his
(2020-08-04). The WEF Knows Best: The Great Global Reset. dissidentvoice.org The World Economic Forum (WEF) has just made a grandiose discovery and declared (21 July 2020) under the alarming title "This is now the world's greatest threat — and it's not coronavirus". The superb discovery is listed as "Affluence is the biggest threat to our world, according to a new scientific report." This "shocking and …
(2020-08-04). Europeans Are Waking Up to Government COVID Tyranny. Why Are We Still Asleep? globalresearch.ca Tens of thousands of Germans marched through Berlin on Saturday, proclaiming a "Day of Freedom" and demanding an end to government-mandated face masks and "social distancing." The UK and Netherlands also saw large protests against their governments' tyrannical actions in …
(2020-08-04). "ChinaGate" in the Making: US Hostility Toward China Is Bipartisan. globalresearch.ca A key factor behind Trump regime hostility toward China is election year politics. | But what's going on largely relates to China's growing political, economic, industrial, technological, and military prominence on the world stage. | The US dominated the 20th century — …
(2020-08-04). L'Iran impérialiste devient anti-impérialiste 1/2. thealtworld.com
(2020-08-04). Israel Confiscates 327 Dunams Near Bethlehem To Build Colonialist Units. imemc.org The Israeli occupation authorities have issued orders from the confiscation of 327 Dunams (80.8 Acres) of Palestinian lands to build hundreds of units in an illegal colony east of Bethlehem, south of occupied Jerusalem in the West Bank. Hasan Breijiyya, the head of the Bethlehem office of the Colonization & …
(2020-08-04). Israeli warplanes bomb targets in Syria. peoplesdispatch.org Israeli air force fighter jets, attack helicopters and other attack aircraft conducted airstrikes in southern Syria late on August 3, Monday. Israel claimed that the airstrikes were in retaliation to an attempted attack on Sunday along the northern Israel-Syria border in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. | The Syrian government is yet to confirm the specific locations targeted by the Israeli bombings. The official Syrian SANA news agency stated that the airstrikes caused significant material damage to Syrian government property, adding that no Syrians, civilian or military, were injured. | Syrian state media la…
(2020-08-04). Israel Confiscates 200 Dunams Of Palestinian Lands Near Bethlehem. imemc.org The Israeli occupation authorities confiscated, Monday, 200 Dunams of Palestinian agricultural lands in Kisan village, east of Bethlehem, south of occupied Jerusalem in the West Bank, in addition to issuing an order for demolishing a barn. Ahmad Ghazal, the deputy-mayor of Kisan village, stated that a large military force invaded …
(2020-08-04). Who decides the fate of the US Postal Service? wsws.org The assortment of former Wall Street executives, private CEOs, union financial advisors and major Republican and Democratic Party donors who sit on the USPS Board of Governors is the clearest sign of the ruling class's plans to privatize the USPS.
(2020-08-04). Updated: PPS: "Israeli Soldiers Abduct Fifteen Palestinians In West Bank" imemc.org Updated: The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) has reported that Israeli soldiers abducted, overnight until dawn hours Tuesday, fifteen Palestinians, including a young woman, during extensive and violent searches of homes across the occupied West Bank. The soldiers also shot two Palestinians in Jericho.
(2020-08-04). Garifuna leaders in Honduras still missing after 16 days. peoplesdispatch.org Armed men wearing bullet-proof vests with the insignia of the police and military kidnapped four members of the Honduran organization OFRANEH, as well another member of the Garifuna community member on July 18…
(2020-08-04). New Orleans protesters shut down eviction court and block landlords' entrance. fightbacknews.org New Orleans, LA – On the morning of July 30, over 100 people gathered around the New Orleans Civil District Court building to demand that eviction court be closed. The crowd physically prevented landlords from entering. By the end of the demonstration, protesters shut down the entire court as well as city hall. | The demonstration began with a mock trial that sentenced the court judges and local and state leadership to be evicted for not taking action to protect renters. Above the scene, demonstrators hung a banner from the court roof that read "Eviction = Death." During the trial, protesters placed furniture in…
(2020-08-04). Montreal dockworkers escalate strike action against speed-up, victimization. wsws.org The Maritime Employers Association is insisting on a threefold increase in the pace of work during weekend shifts.
(2020-08-04). Reckless President Trump: Escalation of US Aggressive Posturing against China. globalresearch.ca The dramatic escalation in America's aggressive posturing was not to be unexpected. On the question of relations with Beijing, there certainly have been intra-elite battles on whether to treat China as an essential trading partner massively bolstering the US economy …
(2020-08-04). Undeterred by evictions, South Africa's Abahlali baseMjondolo continues struggle. peoplesdispatch.org Mqapheli George Bonono of Abahlali baseMjondolo, the shack dwellers' movement of South Africa, talks about the struggles of those who are being evicted by authorities and the resistance they are putting up…
(2020-08-04). SEP candidates file brief replying to Governor Whitmer in Michigan ballot access appeal. wsws.org The brief replied to Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer's claim that April's right-wing anti-lockdown protests in Lansing means the SEP candidates should have recognized that it was safe to gather signatures.
(2020-08-04). Trump installs ex-general and anti-Islam bigot in top Pentagon post. wsws.org The appointment of retired Gen. Anthony Tata was carried out by means of a maneuver designed to bypass opposition from both Democrats and Republicans in the Senate.
(2020-08-04). Indefinite strike begins in Bolivia against postponement of general elections. peoplesdispatch.org Over 24 major interdepartmental and inter-provincial highways and roads have been blocked by protesters to demand compliance with the decision to hold elections on September 6 in Bolivia…
(2020-08-04). Were the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki a War Crime and a Crime Against Humanity? globalresearch.ca The two most often cited reasons for President Truman's controversial decision were to shorten the war and to save the lives of "between 250,000 and 500,000" American soldiers.
(2020-08-04). The US troop withdrawal and the return of German militarism. wsws.org The American withdrawal plans serve the ruling class in Europe and Germany as an excuse to accelerate their own rearmament plans.
(2020-08-04). Why the Idea of Jobless Benefits Scares the Conservative Mind. counterpunch.org When Congress passed the CARES Act earlier this year, lawmakers gave some low-wage Americans who lost their jobs an income they've been demanding for years: $600 a week, which works out to $15 an hour for a 40-hour workweek. Because the federal minimum wage is less than half that rate—stuck there due to the intransigence
(2020-08-04). Despite Official Reports, China Has Been Importing Millions of Barrels of Iranian Crude Oil. globalresearch.ca A number of high-profile reports last week cited data released on 26 July by China's General Administration of Customs (GAC) as clear evidence that China did not import any crude oil from Iran in June 'for the first time since …
(2020-08-04). Empire Is the Root of U.S.-China Hostilities. globalresearch.ca The biggest factor that has led the U.S. government to initiate a hostile relationship against China involves the concept of empire. An empire wants to be the only empire or at least the dominant empire. That is, it wants to …
(2020-08-04). Censorship. Does the U.S. Military Assassinate Journalists? globalresearch.ca As the cries of United States' 'exceptionalism' are heard from the hallowed halls of Congress, one of the alleged hallmarks is freedom of the press. No nation, the breathless masses are told, protects press freedom like the United States. This …
(2020-08-04). The Power Elite Has Always Run America. The Super Rich Bundled into the "Deep State" globalresearch.ca Sociologist C. Wright Mills wrote a book in 1956 that (sadly) still resonates today. In his book 'The Power Elite' Mills focused on groups and individuals who help to control this Republic for countless generations: | the "Metropolitan 400": members of …
(2020-08-04). California's Apple Fire burns 20,000 acres, forces thousands from their homes. wsws.org The massive fire continued to spread Monday in California's Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
(2020-08-04). Soldiers Demolish Barns Near Bethlehem. imemc.org Israeli soldiers invaded, Tuesday, Kisan Palestinian village, east of Bethlehem south of occupied Jerusalem in the West Bank, and demolished several barns. The army also delivered orders for the demolition of residential sheds near Hebron. Ahmad Ghazal, the deputy mayor of Kisan, said several army vehicles and bulldozers invaded the …
(2020-08-04). Pro-police #MeToo campaign targets French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin. wsws.org The demands for Darmanin's resignation over alleged sexual misconduct have intensified since his elevation to the powerful post of interior minister this month.
(2020-08-04). Federal Government Releases Bipartisan Anti-China Plan for Artificial Intelligence. mintpressnews.com A Washington think tank and Congress issued a bipartisan plan for AI, which utilizes the veneer of technology to formally cast China as the number one obstacle to US hegemony…
(2020-08-04). The Tyranny of Lithium Extraction in Argentina. globalresearch.ca In the middle of a raging Covid-19 pandemic, Argentina has decided to accelerate the lithium mining sector. This intensification is occurring as a part of the larger expansion of Argentinean extractivism wherein the country has
(2020-08-04). B'Tselem: "If You Build It, They Will Come" imemc.org B'Tselem — The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories: While the news is full of the plans to annex the West Bank and legalize construction in settlements — Israel is busy creating facts on the ground, as usual. Annexation or not, Israel has been demolishing homes in …
(2020-08-04). Israeli Colonists Burn Two Palestinian Cars Near Nablus. imemc.org Several fanatic illegal Israeli colonists infiltrated, on Tuesday at dawn, into Far'ata Palestinian village, west of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, and burnt two cars in addition to writing racist graffiti. Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian Authority official who monitors Israel's illegal colonialist activities in northern West Bank, said …
(2020-08-04). Army Halts Construction Of Nine Palestinian Homes Near Salfit. imemc.org The Israeli occupation army issued, Sunday, orders halting the construction of nine Palestinian homes in Kafr ad-Deek town, west of Salfit, in central West Bank. Several army jeeps invaded the village and handed local residents the stop-work orders against the nine homes as a prelude to demolishing them, local sources …
(2020-08-04). One month of the coronavirus pandemic: 7.2 million infected, 165,000 dead. wsws.org The month of July was the deadliest yet in the COVID-19 pandemic, as the disease continued to tear through the global population.
(2020-08-04). Well-attended online meeting concludes IYSSE election campaign at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. wsws.org "The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology is one of the centres of German war weapons research," IYSSE candidate Gregor Kahl told the meeting.
(2020-08-04). New COVID-19 infections take hold in first week of attempted cruise industry restart. wsws.org Among the first ship operators to resume sailings, Norwegian-owned Hurtigruten suspended operation of two ships this weekend after 36 passenger and five crew tested positive for coronavirus.
(2020-08-04). Pulling Out of Germany: Trump Adjusts the Military Furniture. counterpunch.org One noisy theme in the Donald Trump Disruption Show in an otherwise chaotic assemblage of messages has remained fairly constant: winding back US troop commitments. The US has fought its complement of wars, bloodied and bloodying. Time to up stakes and head home. It was a message that sold in 2016 across the aisles of
(2020-08-04). Dutch Government Ditches the Mask. Political Pressure Exerted on Sovereign Governments? globalresearch.ca Last Wednesday, the Dutch government decided not to impose any "national obligation" on its people to wear masks, reports The reason for opting out of the global masquerade? Minister for Medical Care, Tamara van Ark, asserted that …
(2020-08-04). Are Face Masks Effective? The Evidence. globalresearch.ca 1. Studies on the effectiveness of face masks | So far, most studies found little to no evidence for the effectiveness of cloth face masks in the general population, neither as personal protective equipment nor as a source control. | A May …
(2020-08-04). State of Pandemic Disaster: Melbourne Moves to Stage Four. dissidentvoice.org Melbourne — Being in control of a sinking ship is not enviable. Regulations previously passed have a museum feel to them, distinctly obsolete. Directions, once dictated with confidence, lack timbre. Coronavirus is serving as that most wily and cheeky of agents, with the most appropriate of accomplices: Homo sapiens. Human beings are fed up, munching …
(2020-08-04). ArcelorMittal lays off hundreds of steelworkers in Indiana, Ohio. wsws.org The layoffs in Indiana and Ohio are part of an ongoing global assault on steelworkers' jobs.
(2020-08-04). COVID-19 takes hold in Papua New Guinea. wsws.org A surge of new COVID-19 cases has been recorded in the past 14 days, threatening to overwhelm the impoverished country's ill-equipped healthcare system.
(2020-08-04). Crossing the Creepy Line: Google, Deception and the ACCC. dissidentvoice.org Belief in Google's promises is much like believing in virgin births. For a company so proud of its pursuit of a transparent information environment, it has remained committedly opaque about informing customers on the way it gathers user data. Statements from the company over the years have not been reassuring, and should foster prolonged scepticism …
(2020-08-04). Stricter lockdown reimposed in Philippines as cases top 100,000. wsws.org The Duterte administration has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with authoritarianism and anti-scientific nonsense.
(2020-08-04). Media Grossly Underestimates Massive Turnout at Berlin's "End of the Pandemic" Protest. globalresearch.ca Heiliger Strohsack!
(2020-08-04). Israeli Settlers Attack Palestinians, Soldiers Set Fire to Palestinian-owned Crops. imemc.org A large group of illegal Israeli settlers, on Saturday evening, assaulted Palestinian families, north of Ramallah, in central occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Information Center reported. According to local sources, a large number of armed illegal colonists with dogs, attacked Palestinian families, including Sheikh Mohamed al-Hajj and his family in …
(2020-08-04). Stories Of Economic Despair From America's Worst Economic Downturn Since The Great Depression Of The 1930s. globalresearch.ca The economic pain that we are witnessing right now is far greater than anything that we witnessed during the last recession. U.S. GDP declined by 32.9 percent on an annualized basis last quarter, more than 100,000 businesses have permanently shut …
(2020-08-04). New Reports Suggest Libyan Warlord Khalifa Haftar Is Working with Mossad. globalresearch.ca Reports of Israeli support for the Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar are nothing new, but as the apartheid state gains ground among Arab nations, the need to hide Mossad's role in the destabilizing of oil-rich Libya may be disappearing. | *** | The …
(2020-08-04). Workers describe unsafe conditions at the Ford Dearborn Truck Plant. wsws.org Members of the new Ford Rouge Rank-and-File Safety Committee spoke to the WSWS to describe the lack of safety protections at Ford's flagship F-150 factory, while management backed by the union is attempting to restore full production.
(2020-08-04). Imperialist Iran becomes anti-imperialist 1/2. thealtworld.com The history of Iran in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries corresponds neither to the image that Westerners have of it, nor to the image that the official discourse of Iranians gives of it. Historically linked to China and for the past two centuries fascinated by the United States, Iran is struggling between the memory of its imperial past and the liberating dream of Rouhollah Khomeiny. Considering that Shiism is not only a religion, but also a political and military weapon, it hesitates between proclaiming itself the protector of the Shiites or the liberator of the oppressed. We publish a two-part study by…
(2020-08-04). Blood test could diagnose baby brain damage just hours after birth. imperial.ac.uk An early blood test could detect which babies deprived of oxygen at birth are at risk of serious neurodisabilities like cerebral palsy and epilepsy.
(2020-08-04). Saturday 8/8: 75th Annual Hiroshima-Nagasaki Remembrance & Virtual Peace Lantern Ceremony. indybay.org Online via YouTube livestream or Zoom…
(2020-08-04). Wednesday 8/5: Black and Brown Unity: West Cliff March & Speakout. indybay.org Cowell's Beach parking lot, Santa Cruz…
(2020-08-04). Fifth COVID-19 Demonstration at San Quentin. indybay.org About 600 people marched to the west gate of San Quentin Prison on August 2nd. While they rallied inmates called out, confirming the horrific conditions inside the walls where the COVID-19 virus has spread like wildfire. | Top photo by Stephanie Mohan, Pro Bono Photo…
(2020-08-04). Judge upholds coronavirus pandemic eviction ban in San Francisco. indybay.org Eviction Ban During the Coronavirus Covid-19 Pandemic:…
(2020-08-04). Wednesday 8/5: Email and Twitter Storm for Breonna Taylor! indybay.org Online via Zoom…
(2020-08-04). Thursday 8/6: Virtual 75th Anniversary of Hiroshima & Nagasaki Commemoration from New Mexico. indybay.org Online via livestream…
(2020-08-04). Sunday 8/9: #stillhere: 75th Commemoration of the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima & Nagasaki Teach-in 8/9. indybay.org Online…
(2020-08-04). HUFF Supports the UCSC Strike Demands. indybay.org Mostly long-distance (from the city to the campus is far longer distance than it needs to be) from HUFF (Homeless United for Friendship & Freedom) for the Campus Strike (see www.indybay.org/newsitems/2020/08/02/188… ).
(2020-08-04). Saturday 8/8: How much do Black Lives Matter? Enough to share land values? indybay.org Join Zoom Meeting | zoom.us/j/94061550597?pwd=d1hRVUxITVYwUT… | Meeting ID: 940 6155 0597 | Passcode: uuc6Gd…
(2020-08-04). Wednesday 8/5: Free Graphic Design Workshop. indybay.org Online: ucsc.zoom.us/j/92186550219…
(2020-08-04). Friday 8/7: HGP's First Ever Story Exchange. indybay.org Online: www.eventbrite.com/e/homeless-garden-pro……
(2020-08-04). Thursday 8/6: #stillhere: 75th Commemoration of the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima & Nagasaki. indybay.org Online livestream…
(2020-08-04). Connecting Dots! GAP Fisher Family Attacks ILWU & SF Malcom X Academy With A KIPP Charter. indybay.org ILWU members, other unionists and supporters of public education rallied in San Francisco on August 1, 2020 at the GAP corporate headquarters. They spoke against GAP & A's owner John Fisher's plan to privatize the Howard Terminal in the Port of Oakland and and against the efforts of Doris Fisher, John's mother to bust up the SF public school Malcom X Academy in Bayview Hunters Point. SF KIPP which she runs has sued the SFUSD to allow the KIPP school to grab more rooms from Malcom X Academy public school…
(2020-08-04). Tuesday 8/18: Women's Suffrage: The Road from Ratification to the Reality Over the Last 100 Years. indybay.org Online…
(2020-08-04). COVID-19, Climate Change, And Chaos. popularresistance.org COVID-19 and the protests for racial justice have drawn attention away from the mostly bad news about the environment. Yes, the skies in most parts of the world are a lot clearer these days as people stay home and auto emissions decline. But as one study points out, even if lockdown measures continue for the next several months, global carbon emissions will only drop by between 4 to 8 percent from last year. That drop would not be enough to make a dent in overall warming trends—and as the US and other economies recover, it will be back to "normal."
(2020-08-04). There Can Be No Equality Without Employment Opportunity For All. popularresistance.org The employment opportunity that privileged the white male was much more than a job. By the 1960s, growing numbers of white men had employment that gave them steadily rising real earnings, often with decades of tenure at one organization. The "career-with-one-company" (CWOC) that had become the employment norm by the beginning of the 1960s included health insurance and a defined-benefit pension, both funded by the employee's business corporation or government agency. This white-man's world constituted the foundation for the "vast ocean of material prosperity" to which Dr. King referred.
(2020-08-04). 28 Million Evictions Loom As Houses Sit Empty. popularresistance.org Congress's inability to actually represent the real-live human beings of America, combined with an economic system that rewards lack of empathy and an excess of greed, has brought us to a dark time when an oncoming tsunami of financial ruin, destitution and evictions towers over our heads, blocking out the sunlight. | The impending evictions may soon kick 28 million people/families out of their homes. To put that in perspective, only ten million people lost their homes during the 2008 economic crisis, and that was considered by anyone paying attention to be the craziest thing to ever happen.
(2020-08-04). Ignorant, Arrogant And All-Pretentious. popularresistance.org In Rumi's Book Three of Masnavi, there is a story that goes as follows: Once, Jesus Christ was running away. His disciples, who had never seen Him like that, asked Him the reason, and He replied, "I'm running away from an ignorant man." | "But my Lord," they said, "you breathe life into death. You give sight to the blind. Why not, with your heavenly power, my Lord, turn this ignorant man into a wise one?" | "When ignorance accompanied by arrogance is incurable," Jesus said, "there is no remedy except running away from such an evil." | I would like you to recall three separate stories.
(2020-08-04). For Egalitarians, A Sudden Sense Of Possibility. popularresistance.org Something seems to be in the air these days — besides coronavirus. A hopefulness. A boldness. A conviction that we now have a real opportunity for blunting the corporate power that's done so much to make the United States the world's most unequal wealthy nation. | How can we seize that opportunity? New reports from two veteran national advocacy groups — Public Citizen and Oxfam America — are offering up a gameplan. | Public Citizen released its "blueprint for reform" last week on the tenth anniversary of the Dodd-Frank Act, the 2010 legislation that tried to clean out the corporate and financial…
(2020-08-04). There Can Be No Equality Without A Renewal Of Employment Opportunity For All. popularresistance.org The employment opportunity that privileged the white male was much more than a job. By the 1960s, growing numbers of white men had employment that gave them steadily rising real earnings, often with decades of tenure at one organization. The "career-with-one-company" (CWOC) that had become the employment norm by the beginning of the 1960s included health insurance and a defined-benefit pension, both funded by the employee's business corporation or government agency. This white-man's world constituted the foundation for the "vast ocean of material prosperity" to which Dr. King referred.
(2020-08-04). Racial And Ethnic Economic Inequality And The COVID-19 Pandemic. popularresistance.org The Democracy Collaborative prepared a report, created for the Healthcare Anchor Network, that looked at how racial and ethnic disparities in the economy are showing up in the COVID-19 pandemic and in the public policy response to the pandemic. The report also covers how the economic effects of the pandemic will likely impact racial and ethnic inequality. | Every passing day brings new, painful evidence of how the COVID-19 pandemic is disproportionately affecting people of color in the United States.
(2020-08-04). United States Stealing Syrian Oil. popularresistance.org The Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of Northeast Syria has signed an agreement with an American oil company, well-placed sources with close knowledge of the deal told Al-Monitor. One of the sources said the agreement to market oil in territory controlled by the US-backed entity and to develop and modernize existing fields was inked last week "with the knowledge and encouragement of the White House." The sources named the company as Delta Crescent Energy LLC, a corporation organized under the laws of the state of Delaware. The sources gave no further details about the company but would only say they had been…
(2020-08-04). US Empire Of Bases Is Spreader Of US COVID-19 Disaster. popularresistance.org American military personnel are getting sick in significant numbers in the midst of the ongoing pandemic. As The New York Times reported in a piece buried in the back pages of its July 21st edition, "The infection rate in the services has tripled over the past six weeks as the United States military has emerged as a potential source of transmission both domestically and abroad." | Indeed, the military is sick and I think of it as both a personal and an imperial disaster. | As the wife of a naval officer, I bear witness to the unexpected ways that disasters of all sorts play out among military families and lately…
(2020-08-04). 'How The South Won The Civil War'. popularresistance.org If you think about the Civil War as a war between two different ideologies, two different concepts of what America is supposed to be, is it supposed to be a place where a few wealthy men direct the labor and the lives of the people below them, the women and people of color below them, the way the Confederacy argued? Is that America? Or is America what Lincoln and his ilk in the Republican Party in the North defined the democracy as during the Civil War? Is it a place where all men are equal before the law and should have equal access to resources? And of course, I use the word man there, but that's because that's…
(2020-08-04). Washington's Campaign Against China Could Lead to War. strategic-culture.org When prominent U.S. personalities such as Secretary of State Pompeo speak critically and scornfully about leaders and other prominent figures of countries with whose policies they disagree, they ignore or even welcome the fact that such attacks are heard not only by the persons at whom they are aimed. The citizens of the country concerned are unlikely to disregard such criticism, and even if they may agree with some of it — perhaps all of it — on a purely practical or individual basis, they do not accept the premise that their countries are in the wrong because some foreign representative sounds off a…
(2020-08-04). Amid COVID-19 "disaster," Australian state government announces limited workplace closures. wsws.org The measures were only announced after the Victorian surge of infections had spiralled out of control, sparking fears of a collapse of the healthcare system.
(2020-08-04). State of Pandemic Disaster in Australia: Victoria Moves into Stage Four. globalresearch.ca Melbourne. | Being in control of a sinking ship is not enviable. Regulations previously passed have a museum feel to them, distinctly obsolete. Directions, once dictated with confidence, lack timbre. Coronavirus is serving as that most wily and cheeky of agents, …
(2020-08-04). BALPA pilots union enforces sell-out deal at British Airways. wsws.org The pilots voted for the agreement with a gun pointed to their heads by the union.
(2020-08-04). Earth Is Warning Us We Must Change. Will We Listen? commondreams.org "The pandemic may be seen as a not-so-subtle warning to humanity that we may be sacrificed, if necessary, to protect the health of the planet," writes Korten. "On the path to human extinction, the most vulnerable will go first, but there will be no human winners." (Illustration: Malte Mueller/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Over 100 Economists Call for an Economic Recovery That Ends the Carbon Economy. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). Government Should End Monopoly Control of Remdesivir. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). Sweeping Proposal Would Protect Kids, Farmworkers — and Everyone — From Toxic Pesticides. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). Public Citizen, Scientists: Gilead and Federal Scientists Have Neglected a Potentially Promising COVID-19 Antiviral Drug. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). BP to Cut Oil and Gas Production by 40% by 2030. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). 'Impossible for Democracy to Function': Study Reveals Growing Mistrust of American Media. commondreams.org The findings from the Knight Foundation and Gallup suggest lack of trust in news media has far-reaching effects. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Corporate Use of Facial Recognition Should Be Banned. But This Bill Will Help Slow It Down and That's a Good Thing. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). The GOP Are Standing on Trump's Sinking Ship, But Democrats Need a Vision Beyond Electing Biden. commondreams.org President Donald Trump, writes Conniff, "is so godawful, you would think more Republicans would be jumping ship already. But apart from Mitt Romney, Charlie Sykes, and a handful of other principled conservatives, GOP politicians appear to be willing to go all the way to the bottom with their epic failure of a president." (Photo: DonkeyHotey/flickr/cc) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Watchdog Demands to Know If Drug Maker Sitting on Possible Covid-19 Treatment Due to Patent, Profit Concerns. commondreams.org "It is sadly predictable that Big Pharma responds to a global pandemic by trying to bring to market only those drugs that maximize its profits." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). 'The World Is Watching': Amnesty Report Details Human Rights Violations by US Police During Racial Justice Protests. commondreams.org In a report titled, "The World is Watching," Amnesty International USA revealed on Tuesday that U.S. police violated the human rights of protesters, medics, journalists, and other people at least 125 times in the first weeks of the current racial justice uprising. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Without Urgent Action, Study Warns, Climate Crisis Could Kill as Many People as All Infectious Diseases Combined by 2100. commondreams.org "We are studying the risk of death faced by our own children." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Senator Udall Introduces "Long Overdue" Legislation to Overhaul U.S. Pesticide Rules. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). Congress Must Lift Lifetime Felony Drug Ban on SNAP and TANF During COVID-19 Pandemic. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). Privacy Advocates Herald Bill to Curb Corporate Use of 'Enormously Invasive' Facial Recognition Technology. commondreams.org New legislation put forward by Sens. Jeff Merkley and Bernie Sanders on Tuesday would curb the use of facial recognition software by corporations, helping to slow the spread of "abusive" surveillance, according to leading privacy advocates. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Oil Change International Response to BP's New Commitment to Major Cuts in Extraction by 2030. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-08-04). 'Has BP Just Woken Up to the #ClimateEmergency?' Oil Giant Announces 40% Production Cut by 2030. commondreams.org Green groups say oil giant has much further to go, but announcement marks major industry shift. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Trump's Big Lie About Covid-19 vs. Grieving Families and a Dying Democracy. commondreams.org "Trump's lies about the coronavirus," writes Hartmann, "are encouraging older people who watch Fox and believe what they see to take chances and expose themselves to the virus and, as a result, they are dying all over the country." (Photo: Piero Cruciatti/AFP via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-04). Statement From Yale Faculty on Hydroxychloroquine and Its Use in COVID-19. counterpunch.org We write with grave concern that too many are being distracted by the ardent advocacy of our Yale colleague, Dr. Harvey Risch, to promote the assertion that hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) when given with antibiotics is effective in treating COVID-19, in particular as an early therapeutic intervention for the disease. As his colleagues, we defend the right
(2020-08-04). COVID-19: We have a Treatment: Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). We do Not Need a Vaccine! globalresearch.ca We have a treatment in COVID-19 and it doesn't have the support of Big Pharma and their experts! | Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) is effective in treating COVID-19. | It is effective in halting the progression of the disease, provided it is given early …
(2020-08-04). World War II: US Military Destroyed 66 Japanese Cities Before Planning to Wipe Out the Same Number of Soviet Cities. globalresearch.ca The number of Japanese cities destroyed was the exact figure that the Pentagon compiled when finalizing plans, in mid-September 1945, to eviscerate the Soviet Union. Indeed, 66 Soviet cities were earmarked to be wiped out — with 204 atomic bombs — less than 2 weeks after Japan's surrender.
(2020-08-04). Can Israelis Broaden Their Protests Beyond Netanyahu? globalresearch.ca Israel is roiling with angry street protests that local observers have warned could erupt into open civil strife — a development Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be encouraging. | For weeks, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv have been the scene of …
(2020-08-03). Congress of millionaires robs the unemployed. wsws.org Allowing federal supplemental benefits to expire for 30 million jobless workers shows the class character of both the Democratic and Republican parties.
(2020-08-03). The Unemployment Crisis Is a True National Emergency. zcomm.org The incompetent criminals ruling the U.S. are about to push millions of Americans off a terrifying financial cliff…
(2020-08-03). Drive to reopen US schools continues despite mounting evidence of deadly consequences. wsws.org More scientific research shows the immense dangers to the health and lives of teachers, students and parents by reopening schools while the pandemic continues out of control.
(2020-08-03). Poll Reveals Surge of Fears Over In-Person Learning as Expert Warns School Reopenings in US 'Guaranteed' To Fail. commondreams.org Widespread concern comes as data predicts inevitable Covid-19 spread in schools and communities that do open for in-person instruction and amid outbreaks in schools that have already re-opened. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-03). We're Talking About Human Life Here. Unsafely Reopening Schools Is No Solution at All. commondreams.org Schoolchildren wearing protective mouth masks and face shields attend a course in a classroom at Claude Debussy college in Angers, western France, on May 18, 2020 after the country eased Covid-19 lockdown measures. (Photo: Damien Meyer/AFP via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-03). Brute Force Approach to Economic Reopening by GOP Benefits Reckless CEOs But Endangers Workers. commondreams.org A man rides through as grocery store workers and others stage a protest rally outside the Whole Foods Market, in the South End of Boston, to demand personal protective equipment, added benefits if needed and hazard pay, during the coronavirus pandemic on Apr. 7, 2020. (Photo: Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-03). At least 20 percent of US meatpackers may have contracted coronavirus. wsws.org Over 50,000 food and agricultural workers have contracted COVID-19 in the United States, according to numbers compiled by the Food & Environment Reporting Network (FERN).
(2020-08-03). US Border Patrol raids "No More Deaths" humanitarian aid camp in southern Arizona. wsws.org Last week's operation is presumed to be in retaliation for the organization's recent exposure of the involvement of the paramilitary BORTAC force in a 2017 raid.
(2020-08-03). The July days of the COVID-19 pandemic wreak havoc on the US. wsws.org The month of July saw over 2 million cases of COVID-19 and rising fatality rates in the Sun Belt states, and the pandemic is shifting to the Midwest.
(2020-08-03). Trade and tensions between the U.S. and China. mronline.org 
The Donald Trump administration uses every mechanism to cut China out of the global supply chain, but nothing seems to be working as a resolute China is unwilling to back down and dismantle its technological gains.
(2020-08-03). Report: "Woke" Corporations Supporting Black Lives Matter Quietly Funding Police. mintpressnews.com 
Corporations like JPMorgan Chase, Chevron and Marathon claim to support the movement for black lives, but their donations to police help "tyrannize the very communities" they claim to stand with.
(2020-08-03). With Microsoft Purchase of TikTok, US Tightens Grip Over International Media. mintpressnews.com Even as the government attempts to frame the debate over the banning of Chinese companies like TikTok and Huawei over privacy concerns, it continues to try to ban the encryption of data and communications at home.
(2020-08-03). Fires Are Raging in the Amazon—Again. globalresearch.ca One year has passed since the world was shocked by the
(2020-08-03). Take on the Tech Mob Now or Perish. counterpunch.org Six months into a global pandemic, the US economy just took its most grievous hit on record, while Amazon, Apple, Google and Facebook only added wealth. In just three months, April through June, so many workers were furloughed, laid off or forced to work and school from home, that the economy shriveled by 32.9% or
(2020-08-03). Brazilian Amazon Drained of Millions of Wild Animals by Criminal Networks: Report. globalresearch.ca The Brazilian Amazon is hemorrhaging illegally traded wildlife according to a
(2020-08-03). Shut It Down! Workers Shut Amazon DSF4 For Health/Safety & Living Wages. indybay.org Amazonians and workers shutdown the Amazon DSF4 warehouse on August 1, 2020 to protest the lack of health and safety and slave labor wages…
(2020-08-03). Honestly, Americans couldn't care less about Hong Kong. dissidentvoice.org 
Hong Kong skyline taken from Kowloon site (Andre Vltchek) I just spent two weeks in the United States, investigating, analyzing the situation there. I worked in Washington D.C., Minneapolis, where Mr. George Floyd was murdered by deranged cops, in New York City and Boston. COVID-19 was at my tail, as the states kept opening and …
(2020-08-03). 'Worst Possible Person': 300+ Groups Demand Senate Reject Trump's Pick to Manage US Public Lands. commondreams.org "When a nominee is clearly unfit for a position, it is the Senate's constitutional and moral duty to reject the nomination." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-03). Poland's "Lublin Triangle" Will Create Lots of Trouble for Russia-Belarus Relations. globalresearch.ca Poland's ambitions to restore its long-lost Great Power status in Europe received a fresh impetus following the establishment of the so-called "Lublin Triangle" between itself, Lithuania, and Ukraine that de-facto aims to revive the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as the core of …
(2020-08-03). Accusations of TikTok meddling in U.S. elections reflect Trump's fear of losing. thealtworld.com 
The entertainment app TikTok has been increasingly in the spotlight in recent weeks. Trump announced on Friday night that it would be banned from operating in the U.S. And on July 28 several Republican Senators demanded that the Trump administration investigate TikTok in order to assess the possibility of it meddling in the upcoming elections. | It's totally crazy to imagine that this video-sharing app could determine the next president of the United States, but the very fact that it's even being seriously discussed among leading legislators speaks to just how paranoid America has become after several years of…
(2020-08-03). UK Government Refuses To Release Information About Assange Judge Who Has 96% Extradition Record. popularresistance.org Declassified has also discovered that the judge, Vanessa Baraitser, has ordered extradition in 96% of the cases she has presided over for which information is publicly available. | Baraitser was appointed a district judge in October 2011 based at the Chief Magistrate's Office in London, after being admitted as a solicitor in 1994. Next to no other information is available about her in the public domain. A request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was sent by Declassified to the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) on 28 February 2020 requesting a list of all the cases on which Baraitser has ruled since she was app…
(2020-08-03). Former Reuters bureau chief speaks at free Julian Assange rally. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-08-03). Secret Meeting on the Privatization of Nuclear War Held on Hiroshima Day 2003. globalresearch.ca At no point since the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945, has humanity been closer to the unthinkable. All the safeguards of the Cold War era have been scrapped. "Offensive" military actions using nuclear warheads are now described as acts of "self-defense"
(2020-08-03). US Cold War China Policy Will Isolate the US, Not China. commondreams.org "The sad truth is that 30 years after the supposed end of the Cold War," write Benjamin and Davies, " the U.S. military-industrial complex has failed to reimagine itself in anything but Cold War terms, and its 'New' Cold War is just a revival of the old Cold War that it spent the last three decades telling us it already won." (Image: CodePink) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-03). "They Have No Evidence": Moroccan Journalist Omar Radi Jailed, Surveilled After Criticizing Gov't. democracynow.org 
Award-winning journalist and human rights activist Omar Radi spoke to us from Casablanca on July 16. Two weeks later, on July 29, last Wednesday, Moroccan authorities arrested him on what press freedom advocates call "retaliatory charges." Now a court has charged Radi with undermining state security by receiving foreign funding and collaborating with foreign intelligence, and also charged him with rape. He is reportedly being held in a prison that is a COVID hot spot, and has not been allowed to have visits from his lawyer or his parents. We feature our interview with Radi, which focuses in part on an Amnesty Int…