The ever-rightward moving Democrats are using their most reliable constituency to thwart Sanders. Continue reading
Israel is a nation-state. Criticizing its apartheid ruthlessness is unrelated to anti-Semitism. Claims otherwise turn truth on its head. Continue reading
The Trump administration is barreling ahead with plans to drill for oil in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the largest refuge in the country and an area of global ecological importance. Continue reading
US controlled Haiti endured over 500 years of severe repression, slavery, despotism, colonization, reparations, embargoes, sanctions, deep poverty, starvation, unrepayable debt, overwhelming human suffering, and destructive natural disasters. Continue reading
“America will never be a socialist country,” Donald Trump declared in his State of the Union address. Someone should alert Trump that America is now a hotbed of socialism. But it is socialism for the rich. Everyone else is treated to harsh capitalism. Continue reading
One of the most disturbing aspects of the past two years of Donald Trump foreign policy has been the assumption that decisions made by the United States are binding on the rest of the world. Apart from time of war, no other nation has ever sought to prevent other nations from trading with each other. And the United States has also uniquely sought to penalize other countries for alleged crimes that did not occur in the US and that did not involve American citizens, while also insisting that all nations must comply with whatever penalties are meted out by Washington. Continue reading
On January 28, home invaders murdered 58-year-old Rhogena Nicholas and 59-year-old Dennis Tuttle of Houston, Texas. Nicholas and Tuttle wounded five of the (numerous) armed burglars before being slain. Continue reading
The case that will be documented here is that Venezuela’s people are suffering from a tragic national situation which actually cannot be reversed by anything that’s within the power of Venezuela’s government to do or to block. In order to understand this very unfortunate reality (if one wants to understand it), one must first understand the relevant parts of the broader situation in the world that affects Venezuela. What’s dooming the country isn’t merely a local situation, but instead is global and environmental. It also is economic, pertaining to the role that Venezuela is playing in the global economy. But the economic factor is definitely not of the kind that it’s commonly assumed and alleged to be. It is instead very different. Continue reading
Who gets taxed in the United States—and by how much—can change both drastically and fast. Back in early 1916, for instance, America’s richest faced income tax rates that posed, at worst, no more than a minor inconvenience. On income over $500,000, about $11.5 million in today’s dollars, deep pockets faced a mere 7 percent federal income tax levy. Continue reading
The US is the world’s leading human rights abuser globally. Regionally, the dishonor goes to Israel along with Washington’s presence. United they’re an axis of pure evil. Continue reading
Face it, guys, religions are basically just teaching tools. “So what exactly are they supposed to teach us?” you might ask. They are supposed to teach us how to be good. Continue reading
I met Uncle Sam in a parking garage off 14th street, midway between the Capitol building and the White House. The meeting was arranged by a certain Madam X, who claims to have had an affair with Uncle Sam and prefers to remain anonymous, as the wife is unaware, but, according to Madam X, “a spiteful bitch who can overthrow your regime in a heartbeat.” Continue reading
Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) is getting significant media attention these days, after Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview that it should “be a larger part of our conversation” when it comes to funding the Green New Deal. According to MMT, the government can spend what it needs without worrying about deficits. MMT expert and Bernie Sanders advisor Prof. Stephanie Kelton says the government actually creates money when it spends. The real limit on spending is not an artificially imposed debt ceiling but a lack of labor and materials to do the work, leading to generalized price inflation. Only when that real ceiling is hit does the money need to be taxed back, and then not to fund government spending but to shrink the money supply in an economy that has run out of resources to put the extra money to work. Continue reading
BOGOTÁ, Colombia—Several troubling situations are currently playing out across Colombia, yet the country’s continuing downward spiral into drug-fueled and politically-motivated violence has caused little concern in Washington, offering yet another clear indication that the U.S.’ current posturing on Venezuela is hardly motivated by concerns about “democracy,” “human rights,” or the welfare of the Venezuelan people. Continue reading
Five years after spearheading what is inaptly referred to as a ‘government of national reconciliation,’ Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah has finally resigned. Continue reading
The Mafia, a Sicilian-Italian criminal gang that moved to the USA in the late 19th century along with much larger numbers of law-abiding immigrants, has become the stuff of romantic Hollywood glorification and demonic media fables. These are a part of grossly over-simplified American mythology about immigrant minorities bringing crime and violence to America’s shores, or delightful multi-cultural social excitement, while avoiding the fact that the overwhelming majority provided cheap foreign labor far more profitable to capital than an American working class. Continue reading
It’s Tet here. Public employees get nine days off, counting an unpaid weekend. Millions abandon cities for their home villages, leaving most of Hanoi and Saigon suddenly unclogged, so crossing the street is no longer a harrowing adventure. Prices are jacked up, including for long distance buses, hotel rooms, meals and even haircuts. Continue reading
These are dangerous times. Continue reading
The unceasing torrent of Russiagate lies turns Democrats into war hawks and causes liberals to spout nonsense that was once consigned to the fringe right wing. It’s worse than the old McCarthyism. Continue reading
You came, you saw but you failed to conquer hearts and minds. Egypt welcomed you in friendship. You and France’s First Lady were treated as honoured guests with genuine warmth. Your visit was meant to cement economic, strategic and cultural relations and, indeed, officials signed agreements worth €1.6 billion (Dh6.72 billion) but that’s where the good news ended. Continue reading
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) is a perfect case study with what is wrong with American politics. She represents fairly standard Democratic party positions on issues like gay rights, gun control, health care and redistributive tax policy. Continue reading
Hundreds of Palestinians took to the streets of besieged Gaza to show their support of the democratically-elected government of Venezuela and it’s legitimate leader, President Nicolas Maduro. Continue reading
Watching cable news, one notices that any mention of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez requires a statement that she is “too far to the left.” Several of the Democratic Party candidates for president are also identified as “too far to the left.” Continue reading
In his masterpiece, Killing Hope: U.S. Military and C.I.A. Interventions Since World War II, William Blum, who died in December 2018, wrote chapter-length accounts of 55 U.S. regime change operations against countries around the world, from China (1945-1960s) to Haiti (1986-1994). Noam Chomsky’s blurb on the back of the latest edition says simply, “Far and away the best book on the topic.” We agree. If you have not read it, please do. It will give you a clearer context for what is happening in Venezuela today, and a better understanding of the world you are living in. Continue reading
Watching Donald Trump’s State of the Union Tuesday night, I kept flashing back on the routine I saw a talk show host perform years ago at the Kennedy Center in Washington—God help me, I think it was David Frost—in which he imitated a politician giving a speech that was one endless, meaningless string of empty, non-sequitur rhetoric. Continue reading
On Tuesday evening, Trump delivered his State of the Union Address, delayed because of 35 days of government shutdown, DJT and undemocratic Dems sharing blame. Continue reading
Once upon a time, there was a place where the prevailing ethic of the very richest people was that monetary self-indulgence was tacky. Wealth, they believed, was a matter of good fortune, carrying with it an obligation to the Common Good. Continue reading
American President Donald Trump has done a lot of unheard of things since his 2016 election, most of them have been controversial and some have been utterly scandalous. The latest one to date was his shutting down of part of the U.S. government for 35 long days, on a whim, with the intention of bullying the newly elected Democratic majority of the House of Representatives. However, this time he hit a wall—a democratic wall—as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called his bluff and defeated him at his own game. Continue reading
Cold War 2.0 has hit South America with a bang—pitting the US and expected minions against the four key pillars of in-progress Eurasia integration: Russia, China, Iran and Turkey. Continue reading
When asked if US military intervention in Venezuela is coming, Trump said all options are on the table. Continue reading
The Republicans can’t control their baser greed impulse, as revealed in their latest move to abolish the federal estate tax, our nation’s only levy on the inherited wealth of the super-rich. Continue reading
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What is in store for Afghanistan?
Posted on February 14, 2019 by Eric Walberg
It’s time to think about the likely future of poor Afghanistan. It isn’t terribly bright, but we have to, so the sooner, the better. Continue reading →