War against ISIS – Kobani known, but what about the rest of Kurdistan?

we have a wordwide media-cover on Kobani vs ISIS – but what about latest news on the rest of Kurdistan’s fight? – Nothing – only not specific general reports:

… but what about the other Kurdish cities under attack by ISIS?  Continuer la lecture de « War against ISIS – Kobani known, but what about the rest of Kurdistan? »

20th and 21st Century Socialism

Watch this Interview with Marta Harnecker and Gregory Wilpert, 27.12 min, published on Zvideo, Oct 20, 2014 – (first on TeleSUR englisch).

Related Links:

What is left of the left? Partisanship and the political economy of labour market reform: why has the social democratic party in Germany liberalised labout markets? on London School of Economics LSE /European Institute, by Patrick Lunz, July 2013, 58 pdf pages;   Continuer la lecture de « 20th and 21st Century Socialism »

a bunch of links

Why Did Evo Win?

Published on ZNet (first on TeleSUR english), by Atilio Boron, October 18, 2014.

The landslide victory of Evo Morales has a very simple explanation: he won because his government has been, without a doubt, the best in the troubled history of Bolivia. “The best” means, of course, that he came through on the great promise, so many times unfulfilled, of all democracies: to guarantee the material and spiritual well being of the large national majorities, from that heterogeneous mass of oppressed plebeians, exploited and humiliated for centuries. It is no exaggeration whatsoever to say that Evo represents a watershed moment for Bolivian history: there is a Bolivia before his government and one after, a distinct and better one that came after his arrival to thePalacio Quemado.   Continuer la lecture de « Why Did Evo Win? »

Cacouna, Couillard and the Ties that Bind

Quebec Government’s Love Affair with Big Oil – Published on The Bullet, Socialist Projet’s E-Bulletin no. 1048, by Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, Oct 17, 2014.

It’s an evening like any other. The first item on the Téléjournal is about the controversial Cacouna oil port project Then the spokesperson for TransCanada, the project’s sponsor, appears onscreen. His talking points aren’t particularly noteworthy, but his face is strangely familiar. I’ve seen it before, but where? For hours, the question nagged at me. Later that evening, it came to me in a flash: we had crossed paths during the summer of 2012 in Quebec, during negotiations between the student movement and the Jean Charest government … // Continuer la lecture de « Cacouna, Couillard and the Ties that Bind »

US, EU businesses oppose Russia sanctions but can't say it- Medvedev

Published on Russia Today RT, Oct 15, 2014.

European and US businesses are “categorically” against Russian sanctions because they act against their commercial interests, but can’t say so freely, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said. “I’m absolutely certain that European businesses are categorically against this because it’s contrary to their interests,” the Prime Minister said in an interview with CNBC aired Wednesday. “I’ve also talked with US business representatives. Naturally, they also say that they are opposed. They whisper: ‘Well, you know that this is the decision of the government and we have to comply, but we consider it completely destructive’,” he said. Continuer la lecture de « US, EU businesses oppose Russia sanctions but can't say it- Medvedev »

Switzerland bucks EU youth unemployment trend

Published on AlJazeera, by Molly McCluskey, Oct 11, 2014:

Country’s youth apprenticeship programme is credited with one of the lowest unemployment rates in Europe. While nearly half of young people in some European countries cannot find work, a unique training programme in Switzerland has ensured jobs for nearly all who want one. More than 24 million people in the European Union are unemployed, and nearly 5.2 million of them are aged between 15-24 … // Continuer la lecture de « Switzerland bucks EU youth unemployment trend »

knowledges – battles – structures – consciousnesses

humanity tries to become concious of it’s place – videos with some analogy:

Links: Continuer la lecture de « knowledges – battles – structures – consciousnesses »

Core Secrets: NSA Saboteurs in China and Germany

Published on Zcomm, by Peter Maass and Laura Poitras, Oct, 12, 2014.

The National Security Agency has had agents in China, Germany, and South Korea working on programs that use “physical subversion” to infiltrate and compromise networks and devices, according to documents obtained by The Intercept.

The documents, leaked by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, also indicate that the agency has used “under cover” operatives to gain access to sensitive data and systems in the global communications industry, and that these secret agents may have even dealt with American firms. The documents describe a range of clandestine field activities that are among the agency’s “core secrets” when it comes to computer network attacks, details of which are apparently shared with only a small number of officials outside the NSA.   Continuer la lecture de « Core Secrets: NSA Saboteurs in China and Germany »

Poverty must be challenged

Publishd on Evening Times, by Stewart Paterson, Oct 10, 2014.

NEXT week is Challenge Poverty Week and an opportunity to highlight the problems and seek achievable solutions. The problems are many and with poverty comes a load of related social issues that form a spiral of decline and a cycle of poverty. Poor health leads to a life expectancy of people born in the most deprived areas more than 10 years lower than those in the most affluent. In Glasgow it is characterised by 1.7 years off your life for every stop on the west to east train line from Jordanhill to Bridgeton.   Continuer la lecture de « Poverty must be challenged »

Freedom vs. Stability: are Dictators Worse than Anarchy? *

Published on Spiegel Online International, a commentary by Christiane Hoffmann, Oct 8, 2014.

  • Although there is always reason to celebrate the toppling of an autocrat, the outcome of the Iraq war and the rise of Islamic State have demonstrated in horrific terms that the alternative can be even worse.
  • In mid-April 2003, German author Hans Magnus Enzensberger published a piece in the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in which he celebrated the fall of Saddam Hussein. He wrote of his « deep, » even « triumphant » joy upon learning of the end of Iraq’s brutal dictatorship. The article was also full of derision and mockery for the skeptics who warned against the wisdom of US President George W. Bush’s invasion.   Continuer la lecture de « Freedom vs. Stability: are Dictators Worse than Anarchy? * »

Syria: Siege of Kobane / Kobani

Published on Frontline.in, by VIJAY PRASHAD, October * 2014.

The fate of half a million people in Kobane hangs in the balance as Islamic State fighters try to capture the Syrian city. If they take Kobane, the Islamic State will have control over the entire length of the central span of the Turkish-Syrian border … //

… Why has Daesh put so much of its firepower and its fighters into the fight against the city of Kobane? Over the course of the past two years, Daesh has tried to capture as much territory as possible towards the Turkish border. Turkey has, despite its claim to close its border posts, been—for reasons to be explored below—lax with its border posts.   Continuer la lecture de « Syria: Siege of Kobane / Kobani »

Big Banks Face Another Round of U.S. Charges

Published on New York Times, by BEN PROTESS and JESSICA SILVER-GREENBERG (and with Jenny Anderson and Matthew Goldstein), Oct 6, 2014.

The Justice Department is preparing a fresh round of attacks on the world’s biggest banks, again questioning Wall Street’s role in a broad array of financial markets … //

… The charges will most likely focus on traders and their bosses rather than chief executives. As a result, critics of the Justice Department might view the cases as little more than an exercise in public relations, a final push to shape the legacy of Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., who was blamed for a lack of criminal cases against Wall Street executives.   Continuer la lecture de « Big Banks Face Another Round of U.S. Charges »