nous les 99%

Published on Intrepid Report, by Gilad Atzmon, July 24, 2014.

In his speech to the nation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged yesterday that the war on Gaza is a battle for the existence of the Jewish State. Netanyahu is correct. And Israel cannot win this battle; it cannot even define what a victory might entail. Surely the battle is not about the tunnels or the militants’ underground operation, the tunnels are just weapons of resistance rather than the resistance itself. The Hamas and Gaza militants lured Israel into a battle zone in which it could never succeed and Hamas set the conditions, chose the ground and has written the terms required to conclude this cycle of violence … // Continuer la lecture de « The end of Israel »

Linking human rights and education in a revised Constitution has huge implications for those training teachers – Published on Times Higher Education THE, by Audrey Osler, July 17, 2014.

… The festivities are particularly noteworthy this year for another reason: Norway has revised its Constitution. Yet it’s not just the language of the Constitution that’s been updated. Buried in the document is a new clause addressing education, which may have considerable significance for those working in higher education, particularly those engaged in teachers’ professional education … // Continuer la lecture de « Norway’s quiet revolution »

Published on Russia Today RT, by Dr. Roslyn Fuller, July 21, 2014.

… For example, the IMF and World Bank repeatedly loaned to Mobutu Sese Seko, dictator of the Democratic Republic of Congo (then Zaire) in order to keep him – and the enormous natural resources within his country – out of the communist camp during the Cold War. Mobutu blew the cash on whatever struck his fancy and the people of the Congo spent decades trying to pay back the money – in fact, by the late 1980s they had paid billions of dollars just in fees related to the nation’s debt, never mind the debt itself. Such irresponsible and short-sighted lending trapped the citizens of the DRC, and many others like them, in a perpetual debt cycle.   Continuer la lecture de « Refusing to share: How the West created BRICS New Development Bank »

Published on naked capitalism, by Yves Smith, July 21, 2014.

One way to induce a Pavlovian reflex in mainstream economists is to invoke the expression “free trade”. Conventional wisdom holds that more trade is always better; only Luddites and protectionists are against it. That’s one big reason why the toxic Trans Pacific Partnership TPP and its evil twin, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership TTIP, have gotten virtually no critical scrutiny, save from more free-thinking economists like Dean Baker. They have been sold as “free trade” deals and no Serious Economist wants to besmirch his reputation by appearing to be opposed to more liberalized trade.   Continuer la lecture de « More Challenges to “More ‘Free Trade’ is Always Better” Orthodoxy »

Video – The Ascent of Money: A Financial History by Niall Ferguson, Epsd. 1-5 FULL, 240.14 min, uploaded by Spirit of Revelation, Nov 7, 2011 (again a chance for those who have still not got it).

Other Links:   Continuer la lecture de « … rich, richer … poor, poorer … »

Published on The Bullet, Socialist Project’s E-Bulletin no. 1011, by Dan La Botz, July 17, 2014.

… Electoral Breakthrough?

In November 2013, the statistics seemed to be confirmed by the stunning victory of socialist Kshama Sawant in Seattle that attracted the attention of both the U.S. left and the major news media. The victory of Socialist Alternative candidate Sawant seemed to suggest that something might be changing politically in America. Now, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who openly calls himself socialist but is not a a member of any political party, says that he is considering a run for President of the United States, though he is not clear about whether he will run as an independent or a Democrat.   Continuer la lecture de « The Working Class and Left Politics: Back on the American Radar »

Published on RiaNovosti.ru, July 16, 2014.

The Stockholm District Court upheld Wednesday an arrest warrant issued for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on charges of rape and sexual molestation. The press statement, announcing the court’s decision, runs counter to what Assange’s team of lawyers aimed for, when they claimed that an arrest warrant issued in late 2010 has no grounds to remain in force. The legal team indicated that their client would appeal the decision, speaking to the press about the ruling … // Continuer la lecture de « Stockholm Court Upholds Arrest Warrant for WikiLeaks Founder Assange »

Published on PressTV.ir, by RS/HJL, July 17, 2014.

The BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) are giving a lead. It should be BRIIICS (the three “I”s are India, Indonesia and Iran). Yet, even that is unfair because many other countries now aspire to the freedom from Western domination and bullying that the BRICS association represents … // Continuer la lecture de « BRICS give a lead, but … »

Published on Dissident Voice, by Luke Eastwood, July 15, 2014.

To much trumpeting the IMF have kindly agreed to help out desperate and war torn Ukraine. How wonderful they are we are all meant to think, but the truth couldn’t be more opposite.

The International Monetary Fund was set up in 1945, describing itself as an “organization of 188 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.”   Continuer la lecture de « The Real Purpose Of The IMF »

Interview with Emmanuel Jal – Published on Russia Today RT, July 14, 2014.

Child soldiers are the worst – they have no idea about the future and they don’t have children, so they can actually scream as they go forward into battle, Emmanuel Jal, a former child soldier who is now a world-famous rapper, told RT’s Sophie&Co. Jal has lost his mother during the war in South Sudan and became a child soldier, but then his life changed dramatically.   Continuer la lecture de « Child soldiers are the worst, they have no plans and don’t know about death »

Published on Russia Today RT, July 14, 2014.

The UK’s spy agency has developed a number of crafty tools to monitor and comb the web, planting false information when necessary, Glenn Greenwald said while disclosing a fresh batch of Snowden’s files.

The tools were created by the Joint Threat Research Intelligence Group (JTRIG) within the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), according to the leaked documents havoc can be caused … // Continuer la lecture de « Snowden files: Manipulating polls, netting from LinkedIn and YouTube in GCHQ’s bag of tricks »

Published on Al-Ahram weekly online, by Ahmed Eleiba, July 10, 2014 (on the effect of the new developments in Iraq on the security situation in Sinai).

Security has been tightened in Sinai, with military operations claiming 18 takfiri militants since the beginning of this month. Additional measures are expected soon, especially in the light of the continuing existence of border tunnels, more of which have been discovered recently.   Continuer la lecture de « Egypt: Not an easy scenario »

Published on Real-World Economics Review Blog, by Editor / from June Sekera, July 9, 2014.

… 4. The Three Types of Public Goods:

• Category #1: No effective market. In this category are goods and services that market-based suppliers lack incentive to invest in producing either because:
• a) their benefits are spread so broadly that their value cannot easily be captured in an exchange between an individual buyer and seller so it is impractical or impossible to charge users individually. For such goods and services, collective payment is more practical, or it is the only way they will be produced.   Continuer la lecture de « Re-thinking the Definition of Public Goods »

Published on Intrepid Report, by Dennis Rahkonen, July 10, 2014.

Abortions are often necessary, and only each female, in her own unique circumstance, can determine what constitutes a legitimate abortion need. No one has the defensible authority to second-guess or demonize any woman who arrives at that conclusion. The death of even a single already-born, living, breathing, socially functioning female from medical complications, wire hanger/back alley desperation, or suicide—because safe, legal pregnancy termination was unavailable to her—is a far worse travesty than the “holocaust of murdered babies” in which “of” is the sole, not-wildly-inapplicable word.   Continuer la lecture de « The higher morality of reproductive choice »

Published on The Bullet, Socialist Projects’s E-Bulletin no 1006, by Richard Swift, July 9, 2014.

The commons is not just a battlefield between corporate predators and those who resist them – it is also a source of hope for those willing to imagine a world beyond capitalism. It represents a space between the private market and the political state in which humanity can control and democratically root our common wealth. Both the market and the state have proved inadequate for this purpose. In different ways, they have both led to a centralization of power and decision-making. Both private monopolies and state bureaucracies have proved incapable of maintaining the ecological health of the commons or managing the fair and equitable distribution of its benefits … // Continuer la lecture de « the Commons as a fount of hope »