Latest articles
by Andre Vltchek / January 2nd, 2016
Day and night, for years, an overwhelming force has been battering this quiet nation, one of the cradles of human civilization.
Hundreds of thousands have died, and millions have been forced to flee abroad or have been internally displaced. In many cities and villages, not one house is left intact.
But Syria is, against all odds, still standing.
During the last 3 years I worked in almost all of Syria’s perimeters, exposing the birth of ISIS in the NATO-run camps built in Turkey and Jordan. I worked in the occupied Golan Heights and …
by Edward S. Herman / January 2nd, 2016
Mark Weisbrot, a co-director with Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), has written an enlightening book that pulls together many of the analyses that CEPR has been producing over the past several decades. The book, Failed: What the “Experts” Got Wrong about the Global Economy, is important and useful because it provides an alternative framework of analysis to the one used by establishment experts, media and policy-makers. What is more, this alternative framework and description of reality is well supported by empirical evidence and is …
by Eric Walberg / January 1st, 2016
The defeated ogre, licking his wounds, finds little comfort from his hawkish “best friend”, despite his love for Israeli birds for whom he helped raise more than ten million Canadian dollars to build a bird sanctuary in the Promised Land. This was in preference to Canadian birds, who along with almost all other Canadians, had their funding slashed.
He did this with the help of the Jewish National Fund (JNF), an innocuous sounding organization, one which operates worldwide, but one which was founded to ‘disappear’ Palestinians and their homes, building bland pine …
Resolution severely criticises the "Occupying Power"
by Stuart Littlewood / January 1st, 2016
Can this be true?
Something important and, freedom lovers may think, rather wonderful seems to have happened at the United Nations, and it went largely unreported in mainstream media. The UN General Assembly approved a draft resolution ‘Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources’ (document A/70/480).
It was adopted by 164 to 5 against (Canada, Israel, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, United States), with 10 abstentions (Australia, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Honduras, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, South Sudan, Togo, Tonga, …
by Roberto Armstrong / January 1st, 2016
If graded in terms of encouraging and developing a well-rounded and informed citizenry in a democratic country, the best most public schools I am familiar with would be a “D”. Put simply and bluntly, our public primary and secondary schools, our community colleges and universities are bureaucratic institutions whose main social and intellectual aim and achievement is the indoctrination of students in the prevailing corporatist-consumerist-racist-sexist social norms and whose primary institutional interest is self-preservation.
Certainly some of the worst effects of this system have been leavened by imaginative and deeply dedicated teachers who have been fighting worthwhile and, too often, losing …
by Carolyn Coe / January 1st, 2016
They have descended from homes built on the mountainside. Women sit together in the cemetery not to mourn but to wait for the duvet distribution to begin. When I approach them, each woman extends a hand in greeting. Some have the needed small stamped pieces of paper to receive two duvets but most don’t. One of the women tells me about the pain in her chest, her legs. She talks about the war. I listen to all the manifestations of her suffering. I understand only a handful of words but as …
by Eve Mykytyn / January 1st, 2016
Much has been made of the ‘fact’ that the top 20 donors to the Sanders campaign are all unions and the top 20 donors to the Clinton campaign are corporations or law firms. This is probably true as far as it goes. Various leftish wing sites go on to explore that the corporations give far more money to Clinton than the unions can supposedly afford to give to Sanders.
Information such as this fits nicely into the idea that Sanders is a left wing candidate who will, at a minimum, help to define Clinton’s somewhat obscure politics. The problem is that …
by Scott Noble / December 31st, 2015
Plutocracy is the first documentary to comprehensively examine early American history through the lens of class. A multi-part series by filmmaker Scott Noble, Part I focuses on the the ways in which the American people have historically been divided on the basis of race, ethnicity, sex and skill level.
Plutocracy: Divide et Impera (Divide and Rule) includes sections on Mother Jones, the American Constitution; the Civil War draft riots; Reconstruction; Industrialization; the evolution of the police; the robber barons; early American labor unions; and major mid-to-late 19th Century labor events including the uprising of 1877, the Haymarket Affair, the Homestead strike and the New Orleans General Strike. The introduction examines the …
Fear of Arabic in USA
by Sufyan bin Uzayr / December 30th, 2015
Recently, a teacher at a school in Augusta County, Virginia handed out a homework assignment. The homework, part of the Geography curriculum, dealt with world religions. Among other exercises, it included a question asking students to copy Arabic calligraphy (in order to help them understand the complexity of calligraphy in the Arabic language).
Here is the question:
The result?
It led to an angry backlash by parents of several students, as …
by Paul Craig Roberts / December 30th, 2015
One hundred years ago European civilization, as it had been known, was ending its life in the Great War, later renamed World War I. Millions of soldiers ordered by mindless generals into the hostile arms of barbed wire and machine gun fire had left the armies stalemated in trenches. A reasonable peace could have been reached, but US President Woodrow Wilson kept the carnage going by sending fresh American soldiers to try to turn the tide against Germany in favor of the English and French.
The fresh American machine gun and barbed wire fodder weakened the German position, and an armistice …
But here's something you can do to oppose them
by Jack Balkwill / December 30th, 2015
I seem to have lost my way said Alice.
What do you mean,’your way?’ asked the Red Queen.
Round here all ways belong to me.
— Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass
In the famous myth, Emperor Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Although this didn’t, in fact, happen, Nero was documented to have been a tyrant who was insensitive to the needs of the common people, and it wouldn’t have been out of character.
Nero was said to have had Christians doused in oil and set on fire to light his gardens. Among those he executed was his own mother.
Throughout history, we see a great …
by L'Ordre / December 30th, 2015
Declaring that the Mont Order is a global group of dissident thinkers, the code of Mont states in its fourth point, “the Order can relate to the Islamic world and hopes that it will overcome Wahhabism and Takfiri sectarianism, which are plots sown against Muslims to attack their unity.”
The real threat is unfortunately even broader in scope, and threatens not only the lives of Muslims with chaos and the miseries of civil war but threatens everyone. No society could be immune to a power that finds comfort in dividing everyone else to make itself feel strong. What it needs …
by Carlos Latuff / December 30th, 2015
by Ellen Brown / December 30th, 2015
While the mass media focus on ISIS extremists, a threat that has gone virtually unreported is that your life savings could be wiped out in a massive derivatives collapse. Bank bail-ins have begun in Europe, and the infrastructure is in place in the US. Poverty also kills.
At the end of November, an Italian pensioner hanged himself after his entire €100,000 savings were confiscated in a bank “rescue” scheme. He left a suicide note blaming the bank, where he had been a customer for 50 years and had invested in bank-issued bonds. But he might better have blamed the …
Diplomatic Collusion
by K.J. Noh / December 29th, 2015
On December 28th, 2015, the foreign ministers of Japan and Korea, suddenly and hastily announced a “resolution” to the “comfort women” issue, women trafficked and exploited as sexual slaves by the Japanese Army during WWII. This involved an apology by the Japanese prime minister, and the creation of fund for reparations.
“The issue of ‘comfort women’ was a matter which, with the involvement of the military authorities of the day, severely injured the honor and dignity of many women,” said the Japanese Foreign Minister. 1 billion yen ($8.3M) was also promised to the fund to assist the 46 surviving comfort women.
Former …
by John V. Walsh / December 29th, 2015
Who is the arch racist, Hillary or Trump? To answer that, let us ask another question, a simple one. Which is worse: to denigrate some members of a group or religion or race – or to kill them by the millions? And maim more millions and displace even more millions? Which is more “racist”? With that in mind, who is the arch racist, Hillary or The Donald?
Do the liberals who criticize Trump, but not Hillary, as racist forget the slogan of the anti-Vietnam War movement, “Stop the Racist Bombing.”
And which causes more blowback, more revenge attacks by the victims – …
Christmas trees, carols, church services, and the resilience of the human heart
by Eva Bartlett / December 29th, 2015
Due to corporate media’s misrepresentation of Syria, some may be surprised to know that Syrians—suffering terribly under nearly five years of the foreign war on their country—are also celebrating Christmas from Damascus to Homs to Aleppo. Glittering displays, street Santas, choirs singing carols and people singing Jingle Bells, and tacky, exuberant Christmas parades are not unique to the West.
However, most Syrians I have met who are celebrating any religion’s holy day do so with heavy hearts—the loss of loved ones to NATO’s terrorists dampens festive spirits. But they also celebrate with a determination not to be cowed into submission …
by Robert Hunziker / December 29th, 2015
Throughout the world, the name Fukushima has become synonymous with nuclear disaster and running for the hills. Yet, Fukushima may be one of the least understood disasters in modern times, as nobody knows how to fix neither the problem nor the true dimension of the damage. Thus, Fukushima is in uncharted territory, a total nuclear meltdown that dances to its own rhythm. Similar to an overly concerned parent, TEPCO merely monitors but makes big mistakes along the way.
Over time, bits and pieces of information about Fukushima Prefecture come to surface. For example, Arkadiusz Podniesinski, the noted documentary photographer of Chernobyl, …
by Brian Littlefair / December 28th, 2015
Snowden as Samson, bringing the puzzle palace down around his head; Manning as Prometheus, tortured for her gift to mankind by ceaseless humiliation at the hands of dim jarhead martinets; the men who exposed the drone-massacre sweatshops, beggared by government decree; the helpless black witnesses of Ferguson and Baltimore, always photographed silhouetted by leaping flames like victims of auto-da-fé instead of killer cops. The people who lance the government’s boils have been self-sacrificing saints or martyrs: William Binney, Tom Tamm, Tom Drake, John Kiriakou. Ralph Nacchio, Sister Megan Rice. Lynne Stewart, Barrett Brown, Christopher Dorner. They were made …
Crooks and Swindlers
by James Petras / December 28th, 2015
The IMF is the leading international monetary agency whose public purpose is to maintain the stability of the global financial system through loans linked to proposals designed to enhance economic recovery and growth.
In fact, the IMF has been under the control of the US and Western European states and its policies have been designed to further the expansion, domination and profits of their leading multi-national corporations and financial institutions.
The US and European states practice a division …
The Myth Continues
by Yves Engler / December 28th, 2015
Like children’s fairy tales, foreign policy myths are created, told and retold for a purpose.
“The Boy Who Cried Wolf” imparts a life lesson while entertaining your five year-old niece. Unfortunately foreign policy myths are seldom so benign.
The tale told about Romeo Dallaire illustrates the problem. While the former Canadian General rose to prominence after participating in a failed (assuming the purpose was as stated) international military mission, he’s widely considered a great humanitarian. But, the former Senator’s public persona is based on an extremely one-sided media account of his role in the complex tragedy that engulfed Rwanda and Burundi two …
by John Andrews / December 28th, 2015
I was brought up in Rhodesia, the country named after Cecil Rhodes, so I’m quite interested in the current controversy about the removal of his statue outside Oriel College in Oxford.
The supporters of Rhodes and other champions of British imperial history, argue that it was people like him who made Britain “great”, and “civilised” the countries they conquered. They talk about the thousands of miles of railways, and imposing colonial architecture. Whilst those things may indeed still be used by the native populations there today, that was never their original purpose. Railways were laid to help transport stolen minerals and …
by Binoy Kampmark / December 27th, 2015
However much of a prat he might seem to some, Kim Dotcom’s relevance goes far beyond his self generating hyperbole and excessive enthusiasm. In the legal battles of extradition and how services on the Internet matter, Dotcom, resident in New Zealand, remains a person of importance. So important, in fact, that the US Department of Justice has been on to him and three associates since 2012.
His arrest in January 2012, along with associates Mathias Ortmann, Bram van der Kolk, and Finn Batato, demonstrated how the US state prioritises economic interest. Most terrorist suspects, actual or otherwise, get the drone treatment, …
by Robert Jensen / December 26th, 2015
I am a mild-mannered (a polite term for “boring”) white Christian man, born and raised in North Dakota, a U.S. state known for being mild-mannered. I teach university courses on freedom of expression and the role of journalism in a democratic society, concepts I take seriously. I also take seriously my obligation as a citizen to participate in conversations about public policy, but I avoid shouting. And I don’t own any weapons.
But beware—I am an extremist.
I am not extreme in the way that U.S. politicians and pundits typically throw the term around these days. I don’t advocate violence to establish …
by Shepherd Bliss / December 26th, 2015
Poet Robert Bly, now 89 years old, is a radical, by which I mean he returns to the roots. Haydn Reiss has captured him in his new, moving film Robert Bly: A Thousand Years of Joy.
Watching the film was a trip down my memory’s lane, dating back to meeting the National Book Award-winning poet in the sixties. I was in boot camp training at Ft. Riley, Kansas, home of the Army’s First Division, the Big Red One. I intended to follow our family tradition, which gave our name to Ft. Bliss, Texas. I was on my way …
by Michael Parenti / December 26th, 2015
For many poor women, welfare and family assistance was their primary means of escaping abusive mates. Such programs provided support for them and their children. Cutbacks in welfare have now caused a dramatic drop in the number who dare attempt to flee hurtful relationships. Low paying jobs, chronic unemployment, and poverty in general have left many impoverished women with few survival resources.
In desperate attempts at finding means of support and escaping their batterers, some women turn to drug dealing–which, in turn, helps explain the sharp increase in the female prison population. In recent years, the number of women in prison …
The hypocrisy of the Christian "Merry Christmas"
by Andre Vltchek / December 25th, 2015
White foam, kitschy lights and embarrassing computer generated melodies. Year after year, the same crap. Not tired yet?
Christian families gather; they perform rituals, exchange gifts. All this is taking place under the crucifixion, which has been elevated to the reason, justification and excuse for the most intense, long-lasting and on-going slaughter of human beings in the history of mankind.
Merry Corporate Christmas (Photo: Andre Vltchek)
Hundreds of millions, all over the world, have died so that “the message of Jesus” could live. Millions are still dying now, so that …
by Nozomi Hayase / December 25th, 2015
Bitcoin: The End of Money As We Know It is a 2015 film written by Torsten Hoffmann, starring Andreas M. Antonopolous, Roger Ver, Bernard v. NotHaus, Jeffrey A. Tucker, Michael J. Casey and more.
In 2015, cryptocurrencies have gained wide public attention. If you want to know what Bitcoin is, this is the film to watch this holiday season. The title says it well. This 60-minute documentary film is a masterpiece, depicting both the history and future of money. It reveals the hidden threads in the development of money and where it is …
Flying the Sleigh of Mystification in the Dusk of Reason
by K.J. Noh / December 24th, 2015
It’s on full blast now, Christmas jingles, holiday “cheer”, and the endless exhortations to consume. And here comes Santa.
Why is this myth so powerful? Why does it capture imagination so deeply? Why do generations perpetuate this massive fraud to their children?
Santa wasn’t always so. He was originally St. Nicholas of Myra, in Anatolia (Asia Minor), and was originally known for rescuing women from prostitution. Legend says that he dropped gold into the stockings of three women who, having no dowries, were about to be sold into prostitution. It’s also said that he brought back to life children kidnapped and butchered. …
Pain, suffering, retrograde bureaucracy, blinders on for the elite, drudgery for the rest of us
by Paul Haeder / December 24th, 2015
Universal travel: plenty of haves and a shit more have-nots
Passing through the Columbia Gorge from Portland, Oregon, along the scenic Gorge through Hood River (once a logging place, with apples and cherries, now bloody wind surfing capital of the world), landslides chucked debris on Interstate 84, and these incredible new cataracts of water spewing from the slopes and basalt drop offs. I saw an eagle on the mile post 68, eyeing the SUVs passing by. Tons of mountain goats out, new shoots and mists and fog. There is a hustle and bustle in America, a million trucks criss-crossing the land, …
