(2025-05-06). A Perspective of Discontent: an Open Letter to Democrats. counterpunch.org 
Ever since Trump's electoral victory in November 2024 I have been receiving multiple daily solicitations for funds to support the Democratic Party, individual Democratic candidates for Congress or State Offices, and notification of worthy campaigns on public issues such as the protection of Social Security, Medicare, and reproductive rights, as well as on voter protection in various forms. I am personally sympathetic with resistance to this perverse Republican effort to dismantle democracy and constitutional governance in the United States by taking giant steps toward legitimating autocratic rule with fascist fea…
(2025-05-06). A Medic in Gaza with Dr. Aldo Rodriquez. counterpunch.org On this episode of CounterPunch Radio, Rebecca Maria Goldschmidt speaks with Dr. Aldo Rodriguez, an Independent Medic from Mexico who was part of the first group of doctors to enter Gaza after October 7, 2023. Speaking for his Gaza colleagues, he recounts the massive casualties, primarily children, and the hospital conditions amidst the relentless bombing
(2025-05-06). The Interweaving of Bosniak and Serbian Historical Revisionism. counterpunch.org 
In the Sarajevo Canton Assembly, it remains impossible to pass a motion to rename streets that currently honor individuals compromised by their collaboration with the Croatian fascist occupation regime of the Independent State of Croatia. Among those commemorated are: Reis-ul-Ulema (the supreme Muslim religious leader) Fehim Spaho; Ustaša colonel Sulejman Pačariz; Mustafa Busuladžić, a Croatian conservative
(2025-05-06). Wage Growth Slowed in April. counterpunch.org 
One underappreciated item in the April jobs report was the sharp slowing of wage growth in recent months. This is bad news both for what it tells us about the labor market and also because wages are where workers get their paychecks. Slowing wage growth, especially in the context of rising prices due to tariffs,
(2025-05-06). India and Pakistan's Crisis: Water, War and Warnings. counterpunch.org 
India and Pakistan appear once again to be inching towards the precipice of a perilous confrontation in the wake of a terrorist attack in Pahalgam in the heavily militarized region of Kashmir. The assault left 26 Indian tourists dead. Without waiting for even the semblance of an investigation, India rushed to accuse Pakistan within minutes after the
(2025-05-06). "The Best Pope in My Lifetime" counterpunch.org 
Pope Francis died on Easter Monday at the age of 88. On April 22, Nabil Al-Tikriti, a Professor of Middle East History at the University of Mary Washington, stated that: "Pope Francis was an incredible pope, by far the best of my lifetime." Al-Tikriti noted that "Francis was outspoken about humanity in Gaza" and praised
(2025-05-06). Trump is Stripping Protections From Marine Protected Areas, Threatening the Future of Fishing, Whales, Corals and other Ocean Life. counterpunch.org 
The coral reefs of Palmyra Atoll, part of Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument, provide nurseries for many fish species. Andrew S. Wright/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via Flickr, CC BY-SA The single greatest threat to the diversity of life in our oceans over the past 50 years, more than climate change or plastic pollution,
(2025-05-06). Urgent Appeal: Stop the Judicial Coup in South Korea and Defend Democracy. counterpunch.org Shocking Ruling On May 1, 2025, South Korea's Supreme Court issued a politically charged decision that overturned the acquittal of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, the leading candidate in the upcoming presidential election, on charges of election law violation. Lee had endured intense repression under the administration of impeached former president Yoon Suk-yeol, having been subjected
(2025-05-06). Government Burning of Public lands is Harming Humans and Killing Millions of Birds. counterpunch.org 
Using the fear of wildfires, the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) are spending billions of taxpayer dollars to intentionally burn millions of acres of National Forests and BLM lands. Their plans are to continue to do so for the next 20-30 years. The smoke from burning mostly green and often wet trees and brush heavily and frequently fills Western valleys,
(2025-05-06). East Side Story: SEEFest Celebrates 20 Years of Screenings from the "Other" Europe in LA. counterpunch.org For two decades the South East European Film Festival has been the main gateway for films from primarily the former "Iron Curtain" countries to get a toehold in Los Angeles, the movie capital of the USA (and being Americans, but of course, we like to think of the world). More than any other major film
(2025-05-05). Danger: Global Security is Now in the Hands of Trump, Rubio and Hegseth. counterpunch.org 
Most of our recent presidents have been engaged as commanders-in-chief in managing conflict in the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, and Southwest Asia, although we proclaim that China is the number one security challenge. The military budget continues to climb, and Donald Trump wants to increase the Pentagon budget to more than $1 trillion, while virtually every other aspect of the overall budget faces cost cutting. Our infrastructure is crumbling but funds are not available to remedy the situation, largely due to the bloated defense budget. The Congress has given bipartisan support to increased defense spending, i…
(2025-05-05). Midwife's 14-Year Sentence Highlights Attacks on Women's Autonomy, Global Surge in Unnecessary C-sections. counterpunch.org 
(2025-05-05). The Trump Presidency Continues Its Destruction of the Ruling Class. counterpunch.org 
(2025-05-05). Starvation In Gaza: When Words Are Not Enough. counterpunch.org 
The children of Gaza are not hungry—they are starving. They are dying slowly and visibly, not because of a natural disaster, but because Israel has deliberately blocked food and medicine from reaching them. As 2.3 million people face the horror of the Israeli engineered famine, the world watches, shakes its head—and does nothing. This is
(2025-05-05). The Sage of Austin, Texas. counterpunch.org 
Thorne Dreyer, Notes from the Underground: 77 Articles that Bring the Past to Life. Austin: New Journalism Project, 2025. 476pp, $27.00 In the days of Campus Movement yore, i.e., the 1960s-70s, Austin, Texas, yielded nothing to San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Madison, Wisconsin or Burlington, Vermont. Its claims upon bohemianism and political resistance had a unique
(2025-05-05). Silliness on the First Quarter GDP. counterpunch.org 
As we all know, GDP shrank at a 0.3 percent annual rate in the first quarter, the first decline in GDP in three years. The main factor from an accounting standpoint was a huge surge in imports which are counted negatively in GDP. Many analysts were quick to dismiss the negative growth number and instead
(2025-05-05). How Decision-Making Is Affected by Social Conformity. counterpunch.org 
The rapid growth of digital technologies in the last quarter-century has multiplied the number and types of possible influences on individual values and opinions. Has the digital era changed the level of social conformity in the population? And how can this be measured? A 2023 meta-analysis of research on conformity suggests that the level of
(2025-05-05). Palestine Has Exposed Every Lie the West Tells the World. counterpunch.org 
There are very common refrains in our society. You know them: The United States and the West stand up all over the world for democracy, free speech, a free press, free markets, the rule of law, and human rights. This is what they tell us. What meaning these sentiments, which is indeed all that they
(2025-05-05). The Legal Limits of Trump's Crackdown on Sanctuary Cities. counterpunch.org 
Immigrant rights advocates call on Philadelphia officials to strengthen the city's sanctuary policies at a rally on Dec. 10, 2024. Manuel Vasquez/Juntos, CC BY-NC-SA President Donald Trump signed an executive order on April 28, 2025, that demands the U.S. attorney general, in coordination with the secretary of Homeland Security, publish a list of cities and
(2025-05-05). "You're Fired!" Millions Reject Trump. counterpunch.org 
Of all the epithets seething from the foul mouth of King Donald I (his preferred title) — "deranged," "wacko," "lunatic," "crazy," "crooked," "loser," "criminal," "corrupt," the most timely, functional one is his favorite: "YOU'RE FIRED." Launched from his TV program, "The Apprentice," while a failed businessman, Trump, using the poisonous tusks of Elon Musk, has
(2025-05-05). The Gallatin River is Crying: "May Day, May Day!" counterpunch.org 
"Mayday, mayday, mayday" is not a celebration of the first day of May, but "an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal" for a life-threatening emergency. And right now, it's the once-pristine Gallatin River crying "mayday" as it faces the life-threatening emergency of being further — and most likely permanently — degraded by