State of siege in Kashmir: A warning to the international working class
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
Western governments and media have maintained virtual silence over the police state crackdown against 13 million Kashmiris.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/pers…
Blackwater mercenary Nicholas Slatten sentenced to life in prison for initiating 2007 Nisour Square Massacre
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
Eight months after being found guilty a third time for first-degree murder, Slatten was sentenced Wednesday for his role in the notorious massacre in Baghdad during the height of the US occupation of Iraq.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/slif…
US Issues Arrest Warrant for Iranian Tanker Leaving Gibraltar
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-17
The United States issued a warrant to seize Iran’s Grace 1 oil tanker before it leaves Gibraltar’s waters in what appears to be a last ditch effort to prevent the vessel from continuing its journey into the Mediterranean. | RELATED: | UK Snubs Trump, Orders Release of Iranian Oil Tanker | A U.S. federal court issued the warrant this week to seize the Grace 1 in Gibraltar, along with all of its contents, which include the oil it carries and nearly US$1 million. | “A network of front comp…
telesurenglish.net/news/US-Issues-Arrest…
Questions continue over Russian nuclear accident
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
The dangers associated with the rapidly accelerating global arms race are clear, even as questions remain over the nature of the nuclear explosion that occurred in Russia’s far north last week.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/nyon…
Steele dossier ‘pumped myths’ into the US justice system — former Trump adviser Carter Page
rt.com | 2019-08-17
The former MI6 agent credited with launching Russiagate concocted dangerous lies and myths that made a mockery of the US justice system and misled the American people, former Donald Trump campaign adviser Carter Page has told RT. | …
rt.com/usa/466725-carter-page-russiagate…
Trump’s Immigration Crackdown Is Quietly Targeting Labor Protections
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-08-17
| New Orleans — Martha came to the United States from Mexico to work in a seafood processing facility in the Gulf South on a temporary labor visa, but it’s unclear if all of her fellow laborers were similarly documented. Her boss allegedly threatened to call immigration authorities and have workers deported if didn’t they finish high volumes of work on time. | Workplace retaliation is against the law, regardless of where workers come from. Having attended know-your-rights trainings with labo…
truthout.org/articles/trumps-immigration…
Trump’s contempt for working-class expressed in new expanded public charge rule
Shawn Fremstad | nationofchange.org | 2019-08-17
This week the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officially published regulations that radically expand the definition of an archaic immigration law term, public charge, to include various non-cash benefits that supplement earnings and other income, but are impossible to live on in the absence of other income. The people most impacted include millions of working-class and middle-class US citizens who plan to marry or are married to foreign nationals. | Under the longstanding law and policy that existed before the new regulati…
nationofchange.org/2019/08/17/trumps-con…
Venezuelan military court jails union official as working-class opposition grows
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
The indictment of Rubén González is part of an attempt to criminalize growing social opposition among workers and the impoverished masses.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/vene…
Sudanese protesters sign transition deal with army
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-08-17
Sudan’s army and the country’s pro-democracy movement have signed a final powersharing deal at a ceremony in the capital Khartoum.The move paves the way for a transition to civilian-led government following the overthrow of president Omar al-Bashir in April.Sealing the deal established a joint military and civilian council to rule for a little over three years until elections can be held.A military leader will head the 11-member council for the first 21 months, followed by a civilian leader for the following 18.Pro-democracy supporters headed to the capital Khartoum to celebrate (AP)The agreement will also establ…
thecanary.co/breaking-news/2019/08/17/su…
Sudan Reach Final Power-Sharing Agreement
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-17
The Sudanese political crisis might be reaching its final stages following an agreement between the main opposition coalition and the ruling military council on Saturday. | RELATED: | Sudan Factions Sign Pact Ushering in Transitional Government | According to a statement from the Transitional Military Council (TMC) on Saturday, a final power-sharing agreement has been reached with the main opposition opposition alliance, Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC), after strenuous negoti…
telesurenglish.net/news/Sudan-Reach-Fina…
Jeremy Corbyn vows to reverse ‘depressing’ decline of town centres
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-08-17
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has said there is “nothing more depressing” than seeing town centres decline as shoppers turn to out-of-town warehouses for online deliveries.He wants councils to have the power to reopen abandoned shops which have been left vacant for 12 months or more and bring back into use some of the estimated 29,000 physical retail units abandoned.Under Labour’s plan, local authorities will be able to turn vacant shops over to start-ups, co-operative businesses and community projects.Mr Corbyn was joined by local Labour group leader Linda Thomas, right, and Bolton West candidate Julie Hilling for…
thecanary.co/breaking-news/2019/08/17/je…
Carnegie Library workers vote to Join United Steelworkers
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-08-17
Pittsburgh, PA – Workers at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh voted overwhelmingly to join the United Steelworkers (USW) union, August 14, after launching their organizing campaign in June. They are seeking a collective bargaining agreement that would cover employees across 19 branches and the library support center. | The United Library Workers began discussing unionization last summer in hopes of gaining a voice when it comes to making decisions that affect the library, the people they serve and their own working environment. | “I am so excited for us to start this next chapter and look forward to working tow…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/8/16/carnegie…
After 10 years, federal executions set to resume
Gloria Rubac | workers.org | 2019-08-17
Attorney General William Barr is moving the United States backward. He is taking hard-fought civil rights gains to the dumpster. Just like President Donald Trump, he has nothing but racist contempt for people caught up in the so-called criminal justice system. Barr suddenly announced in a Department of Justice press . . . | Continue reading After 10 years, federal executions set to resume at Workers.org…
workers.org/2019/08/17/after-10-years-fe…
Hong Kong teachers’ rally kicks off another weekend of protests
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-08-17
School teachers in Hong Kong are marching to the official residence of the city leader as another weekend of protests got under way.An overflow crowd rallied at a public square in the financial district before setting off for Government House, carrying signs that read “Protect the next generation” and umbrellas to ward off intermittent downpours.Teachers say they want to show their support for the protesters, many of whom are students.Pro-democracy protesters wait to cross a road during a march (Vincent Yu/AP)They said the government should answer the protesters’ demands and stop using what they called police vio…
thecanary.co/breaking-news/2019/08/17/ho…
Outrage as Colorado police returned to duty after shooting 19-year-old in the back
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
The officers involved in the murder of De’Von Bailey, the 537th person killed by police in the US this year, have already been returned to active duty.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/colo…
“One By One, They’re Dying”: Activists Protest Tennessee’s Fifth Execution in a Year
Liliana Segura | theintercept.com | 2019-08-17
Stephen West was killed in the electric chair on August 15, and abolitionists are vowing to step up the pressure to stop executions in Tennessee.
theintercept.com/2019/08/17/tennessee-de…
Media Blackout on Brazil’s Anti-Bolsonaro Protests – Why are New York Times and Guardian downplaying resistance to Brazil’s far-right president?
Brian Mier | fair.org | 2019-08-17
by Brian Mier August 13 protest against Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro in Belo Horizonte, one of 211 cities where demonstrations took place (photo: Dowglas Silva). | Hundreds of thousands of Brazilians took to the streets of 211 cities on August 13 to protest far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s austerity cuts and privatization plans for the public university system. It was the third in series of national education strikes, dubbed “the Educat…
fair.org/home/media-blackout-on-brazils-…
Media Blackout on Brazil’s Anti-Bolsonaro Protests
Brian Mier | commondreams.org | 2019-08-17
“The issue of under-reporting and ignoring protests by Brazil’s so-called ‘organized left’—the labor unions and popular social movements that make up the traditional support base for the Workers Party—is a historic problem,” Mier writes. (Photo: Douglas Silva) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
commondreams.org/views/2019/08/17/media-…
Antifa may be branded ‘organization of terror,’ Trump warns, ahead of Portland right-left showdown
rt.com | 2019-08-17
Portland, Oregon, is bracing itself for a major right-wing rally — an event previously marred by clashes with anti-fascists. Warning any would-be violent counter-protesters, Donald Trump said events will be “watched very closely.” | …
rt.com/usa/466731-antifa-branded-terrori…
VIDEOS show Antifa attacking bus, cornering right-wing protesters as Portland rally turns violent
rt.com | 2019-08-17
Footage has emerged of several violent attacks by Antifa on right-wing demonstrators in Portland, Oregon. The new clashes come as US President Trump threatened to designated the left-wing movement as an “organization of terror.” | …
rt.com/usa/466737-portland-clashes-proud…
Playing Role of Pesticide ‘Cheerleader,’ EPA Rebukes California with Ban on Warning Labels for Roundup
Andrea Germanos | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-17
President Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency was accused of being a pesticide “cheerleader” last week after the agency said it would not approval labels that say that glyphosate–the active ingredient in Roundup and other weedkillers–is known to cause cancer. | In …
globalresearch.ca/epa-rebukes-california…
According to the Federal Government, 19 Million Acres of Farmland Were Not Planted with Crops this Year
Michael Snyder | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-17
If that headline sounds really bad to you, that is because the situation that we are facing is really bad. Over the past few months, I have written article after article about the unprecedented crisis that U.S. farmers are facing …
globalresearch.ca/19-million-acres-farml…
Pentagon to name new facility after Curtis ‘Bombs Away’ LeMay
rt.com | 2019-08-17
The US Strategic Command, which oversees America’s nuclear arsenal, plans to name a new facility after the legendary but controversial bomber General Curtis LeMay, who notoriously said there are ‘no innocent civilians.’ | …
rt.com/usa/466686-base-name-bomber-nebra…
Weekend Read: Slavery shaped America’s pathology on race and whiteness
splcenter.org | 2019-08-17
Four hundred years ago this month, the White Lion, a warship commanded by English privateers, docked at Point Comfort in the colony of Virginia.
splcenter.org/news/2019/08/17/weekend-re…
Senior Tory says Boris Johnson’s rhetoric has led directly to death threats
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-08-17
A Tory former attorney general has accused Boris Johnson of “behaving like a demagogue” and said the Prime Minister’s rhetoric has led directly to him receiving death threats.Remain-supporter Dominic Grieve insisted he wanted to stay in the Conservative Party to “save” it from the likes of Mr Johnson — who he claimed was “hijacking” it.The Beaconsfield MP lambasted the PM’s “tub-thumping populism”, which he said had led “straightforwardly” to the death threats he has received.Mr Grieve, who said someone was arrested in respect of a death threat against him recently, told the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland progr…
thecanary.co/breaking-news/2019/08/17/se…
ALEC fails to denounce dangerous and racist views of its leaders and members
Scott Zimmerman | nationofchange.org | 2019-08-17
It has been a banner week for extremist politicians linked to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). | ALEC’s Washington State Chair, Rep. Matt Shea, promoted and maintained close ties to an extremist group training children and young men for battle in a “Biblical warfare” while schooling them in the “biblical teachings” of racist preacher John Weaver, according to a new exposé published by The Guardian. The revelations come just weeks after the W…
nationofchange.org/2019/08/17/alec-fails…
Northwest grocery workers prepare to strike
Johnnie Lewis and Joshua Hanks | workers.org | 2019-08-17
Aug. 2 — “Are you aware that Fred Meyer pays $3.53 more per hour to male workers than to female workers?” A United Steelworkers’ member posed this question to a Fred Meyer grocery store shopper. Shoppers were shocked and stopped to listen. Most took flyers showing the facts and figures, . . . | Continue reading Northwest grocery workers prepare to strike at Workers.org…
workers.org/2019/08/17/northwest-grocery…
The Dangerous New US Consensus on China and the Future of US-China Relations
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-08-17
| The trade war and technological competition with China are symptomatic of a much larger issue: a dangerous gridlock in US-China relations that may become permanent, with dire consequences not just for the two countries’ economies but also for the global economy and quite possibly East Asia’s and international security. Martin Wolf, Financial Times columnist, is right to conclude: “Across-the-board rivalry wit…
truthout.org/articles/the-dangerous-new-…
Private Prisons Face 87.4 Percent Financing Gap as Banks Continue to Flee
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-08-17
| As of August 2019, eight banks — JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, SunTrust, BNP Paribas, Fifth Third Bancorp, Barclays, and PNC — have publicly committed to ending their future financing relationships with the private prison industry, including CoreCivic and GEO Group. Together these eight banks represent an estimated $2.35 billion — or 87.4% — of the credit lines and term loans that are central to these companies’ operations. | Notably, all of the banks t…
truthout.org/articles/private-prisons-fa…
UK: Record £9.2 billion of NHS budget handed to private firms
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
A third of hip replacements carried out in the NHS are now done privately and community health and mental health provision have seen five years of continual gains by the private sector.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/nhsp…
Japan-South Korea conflict intensifies
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
South Korea announced this week that it has removed Japan from a list of countries that qualify for accelerated supply of South Korean products, after Japan had imposed a similar measure against South Korea on August 2.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/jpsk…
Open Arms Allowed to Land 27 Minors at the Lampedusa Port
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-17
Defeated by international pressure and pressured by divisions in the far-right ruling class, Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Salvini authorized on Saturday morning the landing of 27 “unaccompanied minors” from the Open Arms ship to the Lampedura port. | RELATED: | ‘Situation On Board is Dramatic’, Open Arms Says | “Against my will and in another example…
telesurenglish.net/news/Open-Arms-Allowe…
Facial recognition technology and identity politics
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
The Democrats are seeking to channel mass opposition to the wholesale invasion of privacy into a campaign to regulate and “equalize” facial recognition technology.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/face…
‘Bolton Is Desperate to Start a War’: US Issues Warrant to Seize Iranian Oil Tanker
Jake Johnson, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-08-17
“Perfectly illustrates the U.S. trying to impose its domestic laws on the rest of the world. It should provoke worldwide outrage.” | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
commondreams.org/news/2019/08/17/bolton-…
To Fight White Supremacist Violence, Let’s Not Repeat the Mistakes of the War on Terror
James Risen | theintercept.com | 2019-08-17
National security experts are calling for a war on terror akin to the fight against Al Qaeda and ISIS. But that campaign has been a disaster.
theintercept.com/2019/08/17/domestic-ter…
Terrorism survivors: ‘I lived in fear that I would be killed’
United Nations | un.org | 2019-08-17
To mark the International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism this coming Wednesday, UN News travelled to Chad and the Far North region of Cameroon in West Africa to interview people who have personal stories to tell about how terrorism has shattered their lives.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/08/1…
The Plot to Attack Iran:‚Ä® How the CIA and the Deep State Have Conspired to Vilify Iran
Eugene E Ruyle | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
NPML, 6501 Telegraph Ave, Oakland (just North of Alcatraz Ave.)…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/15/1882550…
Jewish Activists and Allies Confront Amazon for Profiting Off ICE Terror
Jake Johnson, Common Dreams | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
More than 1,000 Jewish activists and allies gathered at an Amazon book store in New York City on Sunday to protest the online retail behemoth’s collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which swept up nearly 700 people last week in what was reportedly one of the agency’s largest-ever raids.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/15/1882549…
#CloseTheCamps: Protest by Public Health & Healthcare Workers for Migrant Rights
Public Health Justice Collective & Others | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), 630 Sansome St, San Francisco 94111…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/15/1882549…
#CloseTheCamps: Protest by Healthcare & Harm Reduction Workers for Migrant Rights
Do No Harm Coalition, Public Health Awakening | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), | 630 Sansome St, San Francisco 94111…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/15/1882550…
Haight Ashbury Peace Vigil
Cat Bell | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
Corner of Masonic and Fell at the Golden Gate Park Panhandle…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/14/1882549…
APTP Monthly Membership Meeting: Scott Morris on Santa Rita Jail
Anti Police-Terror Project | indybay.org | 2019-08-17
East Side Arts Alliance | 2277 International Blvd. | Oakland, CA 94606…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/08/17/1882553…
Milwaukee VA workers fight union busting
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-08-17
Milwaukee, WI – Fifty Veterans Affairs workers and supporters rallied outside the Zablocki VA hospital August 12 to protest union-busting, attacks on high-quality public veteran healthcare, and bad faith bargaining by the VA administration. | The rally was organized by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 3 and supported by the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO, Milwaukee Area Labor Council, Veterans for Peace and elected leaders including Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, U.S. Congresswoman Gwen Moore and U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin. | AFGE members and representatives detailed shocking accounts of the ex…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/8/17/milwauke…
Tlaib agrees to Israeli terms, then reverses herself on West Bank visit
wsws.org | 2019-08-17
The events of the past two days have provided a fresh demonstration of the cowardice of the Democratic Party and the absence within it of any principled opposition to Donald Trump’s authoritarian agenda.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/17/dems…
Trump’s ‘Deal of the Century’: A plan for peace, or destruction?
unitedEditor | uwidata.com | 2019-08-17
Trump’s ‘Deal of the Century’ bills itself as an effort at establishing peace between Israel and Palestine, but in reality aims at advancing Israel’s interests, and fundamentally altering the geopolitical balance of the Middle East. THE US’ TRUE MOTIVATIONS The US established a new strategy in the Middle East after the end of World War …
uwidata.com/4948-trumps-deal-of-the-cent…
Palestine: Dangerous Bill in US Congress to Crush the PLO and the PA
Zaha Hassan | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
A bipartisan US bill currently being considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee puts at stake the ability of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to engage diplomatic and legal channels to support Palestinian national aspirations and to seek accountability through international …
globalresearch.ca/dangerous-bill-congres…
Israel Reverses Ban on US Congresswoman Tlaib
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
Israel has decided to reverse the ban on U.S. congresswoman Rashida Tlaib Friday after she agreed to just visit her family in the occupied West Bank on humanitarian grounds. | RELATED: | Israel Confirms Banning Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib from Visiting Palestine Over BDS Support | Tlaib, a critic of Israeli policy towards Palestinians, has agreed to respect the restrictions imposed on her during the occupied West Bank trip and will not promote the Boyco…
telesurenglish.net/news/Israel-Reverses-…
Israel Fears a Visit by Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib
Yoav Litvin | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
On July 16, Somali-American Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar, together with Representatives John Lewis and Palestinian-American Rashida Tlaib, introduced bill HR-496 which is meant to affirm Americans’ “right to participate in boycotts in pursuit of civil and human rights at home and abroad, as protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution”. Though not explicitly mentioned, HR-496 is at least…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/israel-fears…
Rashida Tlaib Blasts Israel for ‘Oppressive Conditions’
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib blasted Israel on Friday for imposing “oppressive conditions” on her visit to the occupied West Bank. | RELATED: | Israel Reverses Ban on US Congresswoman Tlaib | Israel, who was conditionally allowing Tlaib to visit the occupied West Bank, issued a list of demands for the U.S. congresswoman that prohibited her from promoting the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) during her stay. | The U.S. congresswoman, in turn, said she would not visit her family there…
telesurenglish.net/english/bloggers/Rash…
Rashida Tlaib Blasts Israel for ‘Oppressive Conditions’
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib blasted Israel on Friday for imposing “oppressive conditions” on her visit to the occupied West Bank. | RELATED: | Israel Reverses Ban on US Congresswoman Tlaib | Israel, who was conditionally allowing Tlaib to visit the occupied West Bank, issued a list of demands for the U.S. congresswoman that prohibited her from promoting the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) during her stay. | The U.S. congresswoman, in turn, said she would not visit her family there…
telesurenglish.net/news/Rashida-Tlaib-Bl…
A Wave of Solidarity With Kashmir Is Spreading Across the Globe
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-08-16
| Tragedy is unfolding in Kashmir. Split between India and Pakistan, the state has been under military occupation as a result of the partition of the subcontinent in 1947 and a war between the two powers the following year. On August 5, however, the right-wing Bha…
truthout.org/articles/a-wave-of-solidari…
Trump starves Venezuela, Democrats are silent
Aaron Maté | mronline.org | 2019-08-16
The Trump administration is intensifying its economic warfare on the people of Venezuela with a crippling embargo–and facing no resistance from the Democratic Party. | Source…
mronline.org/2019/08/16/trump-starves-ve…
It’s No Wonder the Military likes Violent Video Games, They Can Help Train Civilians to Become Warriors
Neve Gordon | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Following the recent massacres in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio, the bestselling author Keith Boykin tweeted: Trump is on TV blaming the Internet, social media, video games and mental health for the mass shootings. Nonsense! Every country has Google, Facebook, video games and people with mental health issues. What they don’t have is…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/its-no-wonde…
Poetry selections for the 200th anniversary of the Peterloo Massacre
Jenny Farrell | peoplesworld.org | 2019-08-16
Percy Bysshe Shelley’s lifetime was defined by the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars, and severe political repression in England and elsewhere in Europe. In contrast to other European countries, the power of the bourgeoisie in England had been consolidated in their own revolutionary period in the 17th century. Therefore, the ruling class in England had …
peoplesworld.org/article/poetry-selectio…
Trump, el capitalismo incitan tiroteos masivos
Workers World Party | workers.org | 2019-08-16
Entre el 31 de julio y el 3 de agosto, tres terroristas hombres de raza con blanca mataron e hirieron a docenas de personas en Gilroy, California; El Paso, Texas; y Dayton, Ohio. Tres tiroteos masivos en los Estados Unidos en una semana. Los locutores de televisión expresaron que esto . . . | Continue reading Trump, el capitalismo incitan tiroteos masivos at Workers.org…
workers.org/2019/08/16/trump-el-capitali…
US Trained Honduran Police Get Medieval as Political Prisoner Edwin Espinal Released
Adrienne Pine | mintpressnews.com | 2019-08-16
The Honduran corruption canard keeps the focus on police resources and individuals rather than on the pangs of privatization, and so it is often the line favored by the U.S. State Department.
mintpressnews.com/honduras-political-pri…
Iran’s Dangerous Deterrence Policy: Trading Tankers and Another Partial Withdrawal from the JCPOA
Elijah J. Magnier | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
The UK acknowledged its first defeat by Iran when it released the Iranian super tanker “Grace 1” captured by 30 Royal Navy commandos in the first week of July in response to a US request, as the Spanish Foreign …
globalresearch.ca/iran-dangerous-deterre…
How Obama helped Trump escalate nuclear tensions with Russia
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2019-08-16
The Trump administration has dangerously withdrawn from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF). MIT professor emeritus Ted Postol explains how…
thegrayzone.com/2019/08/16/how-obama-hel…
Trump worsens threat of nuclear catastrophe with Russia
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2019-08-16
MIT professor Ted Postol warns that Trump’s withdrawal from the INF treaty threatens nuclear ‘catastrophe.’ Guest: Theodore Postol, award-winning Professor…
thegrayzone.com/2019/08/16/trump-worsens…
Dead Man’s Hand: The Impeachment Gambit
Jim Kavanagh | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
The two-year Mueller investigation of Donald Trump’s alleged collusion (“largely synonymous with conspiracy”) with Russia is over. Nothingburger. The 448-page Mueller Report has been published in full, and made into a dramatic hour-and-twenty-minute stage performance adapted by a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright with a cast of Hollywood stars. Yawn. Then there was the seven hours of…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/dead-mans-ha…
Punishing the World with Sanctions. Intended to Cause Real Pain
Philip Giraldi | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
Sanctions are economic warfare, pure and simple. As an alternative to a direct military attack on a country that is deemed to be misbehaving they are certainly preferable, but no one should be under any illusions regarding what they actually …
globalresearch.ca/punishing-the-world-wi…
US Waging Wars on Multiple Fronts: Cold Wars, Hot Wars, Economic Wars, Propaganda Wars
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
Supported by both hawkish wings of its war party, the US is waging hot wars, cold wars, economic wars, financial wars, trade wars, anti-social justice wars, anti-human rights wars, anti-democracy wars, propaganda wars, sanctions wars, tariffs wars, protest wars, homeland …
globalresearch.ca/us-waging-wars-on-mult…
Italy: ‘The Situation On Board is Dramatic’, Open Arms Says
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
The Spanish flagged vessel Open Arms on Friday called for the evacuation “with the utmost urgency for humanitarian emergency” of all 134 migrants who are still waiting on board for Italian authorities to authorize them to disembark. | RELATED: | Italian PM Blasts Salvini for Being Obsessed with Immigration | “The psychophysical conditions of adults and minors are critical and their safety is very worrying,” a medical report prepared by Emergency, an NGO delivering medical care t…
telesurenglish.net/news/Italy-The-Situat…
Uncle Sam was Born Lethal
Paul Street | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
One of the occupational and intellectual hazards of being a historian is that current events often seem far less new to oneself than they do to others. Recently a leftish liberal friend told me that the United States under the Donald Trump had “become a lethal society.” My friend cited the neofascist Trump’s: horrible family separations and concentration camps on the border; openly white-nationalist assaults on four progressive nonwhite and female Congresswomen; real and threatened roundups of undocumented immigrants; fascist-style and hate-filled “Make America Great Again” rallies; encouragement of white suprema…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/uncle-sam-wa…
Venezuelans Caught Smuggling Gold into Dominican Republic
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
Six Venezuelans were captured in the Dominican Republic Friday for possible links to a gold smuggling ring, and are now in the process of been extradited. Two Dominican Republic nationals involved in the operation were also captured. | RELATED: | US: Already Interfering in Upcoming Venezuelan Elections | Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab announced Friday that the criminal gang dedicated to illegally obtaining and smuggling Venezuelan gold into the Dominican Republic h…
telesurenglish.net/news/Venezuelans-Caug…
The Prosecution of Julian Assange Affects Us All
Nozomi Hayase | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
With the indictment of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and the imprisonment of whistleblower Chelsea Manning, we are seeing the US government’s blatant attack on the First Amendment. This assault now is officially acknowledged by a US federal court, where the judge dismissed a Democratic National Committee (DNC) civil suit against WikiLeaks on the grounds of…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/the-prosecut…
With the Boeing 737 MAX Grounded, Top Boeing Bosses Must Testify Before Congress Now
Ralph Nader | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Two Boeing 737 MAX crashes, one in Indonesia last October and one in Ethiopia this past March, took a combined 346 lives. Steady scrutiny by the media reported internal company leaks and gave voice to sidelined ex-Boeing engineers and aerospace safety specialists. These experts have revealed that Boeing’s executives are responsible because they chose to use an unstable structural…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/with-the-boe…
British Rail: A Mass Transport System Is an Essential Public Service Not a Get-Rich-Quick Scheme for Investors
Hans Stehling | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
Outdated rolling-stock, primitive or no air-conditioning, poor service, unreliable timetables and sky-high fares make Britain’s railways the bad joke of Europe. | As millions of commuters are forced to use a rail system near to collapse, it serves a stark warning | …
globalresearch.ca/british-rail-mass-tran…
Catch and Hang Live Chickens for Slaughter: $11 an Hour Possible!
Martha Rosenberg | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Koch Foods, a giant chicken processor that supplies Burger King, Kroger and Walmart (not affiliated with the Koch brothers) lost no time in replacing the five busloads of undocumented workers taken from its Mississippi plants this month due to an ICE raid. It is already holding “job fairs” to replace the workers. The August ICE…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/catch-and-ha…
Brazil: Supreme Court Judges Sergio Moro’s Lack of Impartiality
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
Brazil’s Supreme Court (STF) will judge the lack of impartiality of former judge Sergio Moro in conducting trials against former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has remained a political prisoner since April 7, 2018. | RELATED: | Students Strike, Protest Across Brazil as Moro Orders Crackdown | From August 16 to August 22, the STF judges w…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-Supreme-C…
“Bernie is Trump” (and other Corporate Media Bullsh*t)
Eric Draitser | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
A dead-end street with a lemonade stand Where is the sky in upside down land? That question is hard if you can’t see the stars I’m really not sure, ask me tomorrow — Yasiin Bey, “Education” (featured on the album “Bandana” by Freddie Gibbs) Welcome to Bizarro World where up is down, black is white,…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/bernie-is-tr…
Did the US really intend to destroy the Soviet Union with its nuclear monopoly?
Dave Lindorff | nationofchange.org | 2019-08-16
74 years ago by the United States dropped the only two atomic bombs exploded in war on cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Today, recalling those events, remember that the US still refuses to renounce a strategy of first-strike use of its nuclear arsenal. This has me pondering two questions that should raise enormous doubts in …
nationofchange.org/2019/08/16/did-the-us…
Media Can’t Even Tell the Truth About Canada’s Foreign Policy History
Yves Engler | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
Media coverage of Canadian foreign policy is uniquely one-sided and biased. It’s so bad that few readers, listeners or viewers will have ever seen or heard an honest analysis of this country’s past, let alone current role around the world….
globalresearch.ca/media-cant-even-tell-t…
Statehood Questioned at Hawaii’s 60th Anniversary
Kioni Dudley | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
August 16, 2019, marks the 60th Anniversary of Statehood for Hawai’i. It will go little noticed. This article offers new information on illegalities and fraudulence regarding the statehood vote, and why it should not have been accepted by the …
globalresearch.ca/statehood-questioned-h…
Fewer Banks in African American Neighborhoods Contribute to the U.S. Racial Wealth Gap
Sarah Abed | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-16
A new study published by McKinsey & Co on Tuesday found that one of the contributing factors to the U.S. racial wealth gap is the lack of banks in predominantly African American communities. Lack of access to mainstream financial services …
globalresearch.ca/fewer-banks-african-am…
‘Brazil to Leave Mercosur if Cristina Wins’, Minister Guedes
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-16
Brazil’s Economic Minister Paulo Guedes threatened Thursday to leave Mercosur if Alberto Fernandez and Cristina Fernandez win the second round of the Argentinean presidential elections on October 27. | RELATED: | Bolsonaro Cites Trump’s Discourse, Says Mercosur No Longer Seeks Chavez’s ‘Great Homeland’ | “Mercosur is, of cours…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-to-Leave-…
‘Expanding Empire’ — in 1969 and today
V. Copeland | workers.org | 2019-08-16
The following excerpt from “Expanding Empire — The global war drive of big business and the forces that will stop it” was written in 1969 during the Vietnam War. The author, Vince Copeland, was a founding member of Workers World Party and had been a militant steel worker fired in . . . | Continue reading ‘Expanding Empire’ — in 1969 and today at Workers.org…
workers.org/2019/08/16/expanding-empire-…
Newark, New Jersey suspends distribution of bottled water over expiration concerns
wsws.org | 2019-08-16
City officials were forced to stop distributions Tuesday in response to concerns over cases of bottled water that were labeled as expired.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/16/newa…
Customs and Border Protection Outage Snarls Major Airports
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-08-16
DALLAS — Travelers flying into the United States on Friday ran into long lines at major airports nationwide because of a temporary computer outage that affected the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency. | Airports warned travelers — both Americans returning home and foreign visitors — of delays, and some travelers tweeted photos and videos of huge lines. | A CBP spokeswoman said the systems were running again by early evening on the East Coast. | The agency didn’t precisely describe the breakdown, but the spokeswoman said there was “no indication of any nefarious activity.” She said officer…
truthdig.com/articles/customs-and-border…
The Vanity Cinema of Quentin Tarantino
Louis Proyect | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
After being sorely disappointed by Quentin Tarantino’s last two films– “The Hateful Eight” and “Django Unchained” –I decided to wait for a studio screener of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” in November. This is when I customarily get freebies from studio publicists hoping to influence my vote in NYFCO’s awards meeting in early December.
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/the-vanity-c…
‘Fefu and Her Friends’: Fornés’s feminist odyssey at the Odyssey
Ed Rampell | peoplesworld.org | 2019-08-16
LOS ANGELES–Originality is among those attributes I admire and cherish most in the arts, and Maria Irene Fornés’s (1930-2018) Fefu and Her Friends is singular on several fronts. First of all, the Cuban-born, Obie Award-winning playwright’s characters are eight females. This is far less common than mixed-gender or all-male casts, such as in Jason Miller’s …
peoplesworld.org/article/fefu-and-her-fr…
The War on Nature
Evaggelos Vallianatos | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Ancient Greeks, Persians, Egyptians, Mesopotamians, Chinese and Indians respected or worshipped several gods. Those gods were usually forces of nature, which opened the mind, eyes and hearts of human beings to the mysteries, beauty and truth of the natural world. The vast human majorities of the ancient world were peasant farmers and shepherds who cultivated…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/the-war-on-n…
Council withdraws threat of legal action against cyclists at cafe
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-08-16
The threat of legal action against cyclists gathering at a cafe in a small hamlet has been dropped.Velolife was set up on the site of an old pub as a cafe and bike workshop in 2016 by entrepreneur Lee Goodwin in Warren Row in Berkshire.The cafe was championed by the likes of former Olympic cyclist Chris Boardman and Team Ineos rider Chris Lawless after it was slapped with restrictions on cycle meets following noise complaints.Local cycling clubs were threatened with enforcement action by the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead for allegedly using the cafe’s car park as a starting point for meets. | A joint st…
thecanary.co/breaking-news/2019/08/16/co…
Tit For Tat: Baltimore Takes Another Hit, This Time From Uruguay
Bob Scofield | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
I imagine that however a Baltimorean feels when their city is attacked by the barbarian in the White House it has to be worse when the city is slighted by Uruguay, one of the world’s most progressive countries. On August 5th the Uruguayan Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a warning to Uruguayans traveling to the…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/tit-for-tat-…
Modern medicine declares war on loneliness with drugs & bots, threatening introverts with extinction
rt.com | 2019-08-16
With pharmaceutical and even robotic “cures” in the works for loneliness – a condition once considered part of the normal human emotional range but now framed as a health risk – we risk losing the ability to be alone at all. | …
rt.com/news/466644-loneliness-pill-robot…
“Proletarian billionaire” act wears thin: Trump’s war on workers
Joe Sims | peoplesworld.org | 2019-08-16
The U.S. working class has received special attention from the Trump campaign’s first days; since his election, it has been singled out for special assault. “America First” was portrayed as making working-class America first; “Make America Great Again” meant reawakening the greatness of the American working class. But the Trump agenda as thus marketed had …
peoplesworld.org/article/proletarian-bil…
Warnings, Ancient and Modern
Victor Grossman | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
The wise priest Laocoà∂n, old legends say, vainly warned against the famous “Trojan horse”. A hostile god sent giant serpents which strangled him and the big wooden present was opened. The soldiers hidden inside opened Troy’s gates so the Greek battalions could rush in, kill the men, enslave the women and destroy the city. Its…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/warnings-anc…
Financial turbulence continues as major economies move towards recession
wsws.org | 2019-08-16
The gyrations in financial markets and the growing signs of recession–threatening to set in motion a crisis even more severe than that of 2008–pose vital political issues before the working class in every country.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/08/16/mark…
The Biotech-Industrial Complex Gets Ready to Define What is Human
Stuart A. Newman | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Fabricating part-human-part-nonhuman animals, with features of both, seemed like something out of Greek mythology until the late 20th century. New research then on “geeps,” fully developed, viable mixtures of goats and sheep, showed that constructing such “chimeras” was a real possibility. Still, the warning by H.G. Wells, a century before, in his novel “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” that scientific experiments like this could go terribly awry, seemed fantastical. But this will soon change. At the end of July, it was reported that the biologist Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte, director of a laboratory at the Salk Insti…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/the-biotech-…
The Washington Post’s Anti-Sanders Bias Is Irrefutable
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-08-16
Bernie Sanders has taken to calling out corporate media for their anti-progressive bias, and their feathers have gotten quite ruffled. | In a campaign event Monday in New Hampshire, Sanders told the crowd: We have pointed out over and over again that Amazon made $10 billion in profits last year. You know how much they paid in taxes? You got it, zero! Any wonder why the Washington Post is not one of my great supporters, I wonder why? New York Times not much better. | The next day, he returned to the same point: And then I wonder why the Washington Post, which is owned by Jeff Bezos, who owns Amazon, doesn’t write pa…
truthdig.com/articles/the-washington-pos…
Ironies Abound in the Obama Documentary, ‘American Factory’
Ed Rampell | progressive.org | 2019-08-16
A Chinese billionaire reopens a shuttered Ohio GM plant, hiring some 2,000 Americans to work side-by-side with imported Chinese workers. Culture clash or cultural revolution?
progressive.org/dispatches/ironies-aboun…
Red States Cut Worker Pay by $1.5 Billion
Negin Owliaei | commondreams.org | 2019-08-16
Most of these localities also have poverty rates far higher than the U.S. average. (Photo: Shutterstock) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
commondreams.org/views/2019/08/16/red-st…
To Defeat Fascism, We Must Dismantle Capitalism
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-08-16
“The Terror of the Unforeseen” | A book by Henry A. Giroux | Henry A. Giroux’s book “The Terror of the Unforeseen” analyzes the conditions that have enabled and led to Donald Trump’s rule and the consequences of that rule, which have ushered in an authoritarian version of capitalism. Giroux provides a realistic analysis that holds out the hope that, through collective efforts, change is possible and democracy can be saved. | There is an intellectual debate on whether or not the power wielded by the likes of Trump, Nigel Farage, Marine Le Pen, Viktor Orbán, Matteo Salvini, Geert Wilders, Heinz-Christian Strache, o…
truthdig.com/articles/to-defeat-fascism-…
‘Today We Seek Those Fish in Discovery Channel’
Kavitha Muralidharan | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
“It’s past 11.40 this morning, so next comes an update on speed,” announces A. Yashwanth on the Kadal Osai radio station.
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/today-we-see…
Is White Supremacism a Mental Illness?
Nick Pemberton | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
“The most noxious element of neoliberalism is the reduction of all social issues to personal responsibility.” –Henry A. Giroux “Violence is one of the most fun things to watch.” — Quentin Tarantino Have you ever wondered why we [women] are not just in armed combat against you? It’s not because there’s a shortage of kitchen…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/is-white-sup…
Neoliberalism and Environmental Calamity
Rob Urie | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Current conditions represent a political emergency of sorts, meaning that ways of solving environmental and social problems will either be worked out or circumstances, led by the environment, will assume a life of their own. Given that these conditions are the result of historical processes that were decades and centuries in the making, understanding how…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/neoliberalis…
Kind of Blue at 60
David Yearsley | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue was released on August 17, 1959–sixty years ago tomorrow. That was ten years after, and ten degrees cooler, than the little big band of Miles’ Birth of the Cool. With Kind of Blue the baby had grown up: sleeker, more earnest, now distrustful of irony, and also cagier, suspicious without wanting to show anything that might suggest defensiveness. Its icy hauteur sets the standard for art that draws you in by pretending it doesn’t need anyone or anything but itself.
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/kind-of-blue…
That Debacle at the Border is Genocide
Susan Miller | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Prepared text for at talk at Cornbread and Beans, Norman, Oklahoma. (August 9, 2019.) I’m grateful for the invitation to speak to you. I’m a Democrat and the child of Democrats, and lately, I’d vote for the yellow dog. I believe that what I’m going to talk about today is central to our mission and values…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/that-debacle…
Have They No Decency?
Andrew Levine | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Before lightening and the Electoral College struck, making Donald Trump president, he famously boasted that he could walk out onto Fifth Avenue, shoot somebody, and become even more popular than he already was with his base. He was probably right — literally, even back then, before the Trump-induced accelerated degradation of the ambient political culture…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/have-they-no…
People’s Music for the Soul
Ron Jacobs | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-16
Folk music can mean many things. It can be songs one learned as a child from a record or a musical relative. The songs can be classic tunes with words as old as the songs themselves or the songs can be old tunes with brand new words. Or the entire tune can be a new…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/16/peoples-musi…