2020-07-09: News Headlines

Howard Lisnoff (2020-07-09). The Long Goodbye to Organized Religion. counterpunch.org It was the notice of an online meeting of a local chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace that made me think of my long and troubled relationship with organized religion. I grew up during a time in the 1950s and 1960s when membership in a temple or synagogue was a given for most Jews. And

pip.hinman (2020-07-09). Peace network: Increase in military expenditure 'unjustified and destabilising'. greenleft.org.au

yenisafak (2020-07-09). We know how to keep the peace, says Serbian president. yenisafak.com Serbia's president on Thursday attested that his government would be able to maintain peace and stability in the country amid a second day of violent protests.In a video message recorded while en route to Paris, Aleksandar Vucic likened Wednesday's riots in the northern city of Novi Sad to an incursion of fascist units into the city in 1941. Vucic urged people in Novi Sad and the rest of the country to avoid confronting the "thugs.""We, as the state, will do that. We will work and we will win. We will preserve peace for our country. Surrender was never an option," Vucic said."I am now flying to Paris to fight for…

yenisafak (2020-07-09). Pompeo says US continuing to work to establish dialogue with North Korea. yenisafak.com U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Thursday that Washington is continuing to work to establish dialogue with North Korea and is very hopeful the conversation can continue, though he declined to comment on timing or specifics."We continue to work to establish dialogue and have substantive conversations about how we might deliver this really good outcome, this outcome of delivering peace and stability to the entire peninsula," Pompeo told reporters following U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun's three days of talks in Seoul.

Leonardo Flores (2020-07-09). Biden's vision for Venezuela is virtually indistinguishable from Trump's. thegrayzone.com A recent Biden campaign event demonstrated that when it comes to Venezuela, policies of regime change, sanctions and a refusal…

Ben Norton (2020-07-09). Meet the Venezuelan coup regime's 'UK ambassador,' a pampered US heiress who threatens journalists. thegrayzone.com Juan Guaidó's UK representative, a jet-setting US socialite named Vanessa Neumann, has threatened journalists with FBI investigations for reporting on…

_____ (2020-07-09). Meet the Venezuelan Coup Regime's 'UK Ambassador,' a Pampered U.S. Heiress Who Threatens Journalists. strategic-culture.org Juan Guaidó's UK representative, a jet-setting US socialite named Vanessa Neumann, has threatened journalists with FBI investigations for reporting on her unhinged behavior. The coup-plotting heiress made her name spinning out conspiracies at neoconservative think tanks. | Ben NORTON | Since the United States initiated a coup attempt against Venezuela's elected, internationally recognized government in January 2019, the gang of far-right opposition activists the Donald Trump administration recognized as the country's unelected representatives have racked up a series of embarrassing scandals. | Top aides of the

Alan MacLeod (2020-07-09). Guaido representative threatens FBI investigation into journalists exposing her dealings. mronline.org Juan Guaido's UK "ambassador" claims that she is working with the FBI in an investigation exposing a "transnational criminal network" of journalists and outlets, including Venezuelanalysis.

Vijay Prashad (2020-07-09). The U.S. and UK are a wrecking ball crew against the pillars of internationalism. mronline.org In both the case of the sanctions against the ICC and the theft of Venezuela's gold, the United States and the UK demonstrate their disregard for international institutions and for international law.

Johanna Ross (2020-07-09). UK Commits 'Highway Robbery' of Venezuelan Gold, Says Academic. globalresearch.ca When it comes to Venezuela, Britain is suffering from split personality disorder. While the UK Foreign Office reportedly maintains 'full, normal and reciprocal diplomatic relations' with legitimately elected President Maduro's government, and with Maduro's UK ambassador, the British government has …

_____ (2020-07-09). The Impact Of The Economic War On Venezuela. popularresistance.org It would be impossible to count each and every one of the ways in which the war on Venezuela declared by imperialism has harmed the country. The aggressions that we, the Venezuelans, have experienced since 1999 have been not only economic; they have been psychological as well. There is no way to measure the consequences of the hate planted by the anti-democratic opposition, with its anti-socialist propaganda; it has extended to the point of burning people alive for being Chavistas. The outrage felt by the Venezuelan people when they see those who have sold out their native land while calling themselves Venezuelan…

Leonardo Flores (2020-07-09). VenezolanosConBiden and MAGAzuela: Two sides of the same coin. peoplesdispatch.org Leonardo Flores discusses how Venezuela plays into the upcoming elections in the US and highlights how there is little difference between Trump and Biden on the Bolivarian Republic…

WSWS (2020-07-08). US Border Patrol deployed against anti-police violence protestors. wsws.org Federal law enforcement agencies under the direction of the Trump administration are currently working with the Portland Police Bureau to suppress peaceful protests.

Fight Back (2020-07-08). Oneida Nation holds memorial ride, rally, for indigenous man killed by Green Bay police. fightbacknews.org Green Bay, WI – On Sunday, July 5, the Oneida Nation held a memorial ride and rally for Jonathon Tubby, an Oneida man killed in police custody nearly two years ago. Jonathon's family, which has filed a civil lawsuit against members of the Green Bay Police Department, had requested a one-year mourning period before beginning public advocacy. That one-year period ended in November 2019 and the family has been pursuing justice ever since. | Approximately 100 vehicles were in a procession through the Oneida reservation with signs reading, "No justice – no peace" and "Justice for Jonathon." They made stops in residen…

Andrew Korybko (2020-07-08). China-India Onset of "Cold Peace"? Mutual Disengagement Decision, Pull Back from the Line of Control. globalresearch.ca China accepts that India already made its geopolitical choice to become the US' proxy in "containing" the People's Republic, but it would prefer for their seemingly inevitable "decoupling" to be as manageable as possible, hence why it's helping its rival …

John Bachtell (2020-07-08). Separation of Trump and state: Blocking Republicans' evangelical election strategy. peoplesworld.org On Monday, June 1, President Donald Trump stood in front of St. John's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., awkwardly clutching a Bible. Moments earlier, military police had forcibly cleared peaceful demonstrators from Lafayette Park with pepper spray, flash and smoke grenades, truncheons, and rubber bullets. Outraged religious leaders across denominations immediately condemned Trump for his …

news.un (2020-07-08). Time is running out for Libya, UN chief warns Security Council. news.un.org With battle lines shifting, foreign interference growing, thousands fleeing their homes and COVID-19 cases on the rise, time is running out for bringing a peaceful end to the conflict in Libya, Secretary-General António Guterres says.

Black Lives Matter Scotts Valley (2020-07-08). Thursday 7/9: Scotts Valley: Black Lives Matter Peaceful Protest. indybay.org 5: 30pm: Meet at Skypark, 361 Kings Village Rd, Scotts Valley | March to MacDorsa Park, 1 Civic Center Drive, Scotts Valley…

Vijay Prashad (2020-07-08). The US and UK are a wrecking ball crew against the pillars of internationalism. peoplesdispatch.org Vijay Prashad writes on the imperialist actions led by the US and the UK against Venezuela and the emptiness of their commitment to international law…

Harry Levine (2020-07-07). Frank Stearns, Veterans for Peace leader and CPUSA activist, felled by coronavirus. peoplesworld.org NEW YORK—Frank L. Stearns, a long-time activist and leader in Veterans for Peace who worked in the national office of the Communist Party USA, died of COVID-19 at Cornell Medical Center in New York City on April 9, 2020. Frank joined Veterans for Peace shortly after it was founded in 1985 and became especially active …

news.un (2020-07-07). Human rights through peacekeeping essential factor in beating coronavirus. news.un.org The UN human rights chief is calling for greater investment in the human rights components of peace operations – not least to monitor the impact of efforts to contain the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Richard Eskow (2020-07-07). The War on Logic: Contradictions and Absurdities in the House's Military Spending Bill. counterpunch.org The House Armed Services Committee just passed a defense appropriations bill filled with moral contradictions and illogical absurdities. Consider: It removes some racist symbols in the military, but preserves Trump's ability to use the military against anti-racist demonstrators. It abdicates Congress' responsibility to declare war, but prevents the executive branch from moving toward peace.

_____ (2020-07-07). Black Militia Marches On Stone Mountain, Demands Removal Of Confederate Monument. popularresistance.org About 1,000 heavily armed militia, all of whom were Black, marched through Georgia's Stone Mountain Park on Saturday, challenging white nationalist groups in the area to either come out and fight or join them in demonstrating against the government. Stone Mountain State Park officials said the Black militia group was peaceful, orderly and escorted by police as they called for the removal of the country's largest Confederate monument near Atlanta. The Black militia is calling for the removal of the Confederate monument etched into Stone Mountain, GA. In 1915, the United Daughters of the Confederacy. It has been a…

yenisafak (2020-07-07). Arabs call for int'l stance against Israeli annexation. yenisafak.com Nine Arab countries on Tuesday called for an effective international stance against an Israeli plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank. | The foreign ministers of Jordan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Morocco, Tunisia, Oman and Kuwait held a virtual meeting on Tuesday. | A statement issued following the meeting called on the international community to take "clear and effective measures to prevent the implementation of the Israeli annexation plan to safeguard international law and peace".It also underlined the need to return to serious and effective talks for solving the Pal…

_____ (2020-07-07). Guaido Representative Threatens FBI Investigation Into Journalists. popularresistance.org Vanessa Neumann, the U.K. ambassador of self-declared President of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó, claims that she is working closely with the FBI in an investigation exposing a "transnational criminal network" of journalists, including John McEvoy, Pablo Navarette, independent outlet Venezuelanalysis and former MintPress News contributor Camila Escalante. | From the Twitter account of her communications firm, Asymmetrica, Neumann said that the four sources were involved in a "criminal conspiracy" supporting Venezuelan vice-president Delcy Rodriguez. "There is a price on your head" she informed them, "welcome to the rule…

commondreams (2020-07-06). Greenpeace Celebrates Dakota Access Pipeline Shutdown. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Abdo Shanan, The Nation, Magnum Foundation (2020-07-06). Covid-19 Has Put Algeria's Peaceful Revolution on Hold. thenation.com Abdo Shanan, The Nation, Magnum Foundation Covid-19 Has Put Algeria's Peaceful Revolution on Hold…

WSWS (2020-07-06). Seattle protester killed after being struck by car driving wrong way on closed interstate. wsws.org Police blamed protesters after a man drove into a peaceful demonstration early Saturday morning, killing one person and critically injuring another.

Nima Gerami (2020-07-06). To Defeat Systemic Racism, America Must End Endless War. commondreams.org The racism that permeates U.S. foreign policy today, writes Gerami, "is an extension of the belief in white supremacy that shaped the territorial and ideological boundaries of our nation from its inception." (Photo: U.S. Army Lt. Col. Mike Brady, Task Force Cyclone, 38th Infantry Division Public Affairs) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/afghan_peace_0_0_0.jpeg

_____ (2020-07-06). Shield of the Union: How the Russian Navy Protected America in the Civil War. strategic-culture.org Strange things happen in civil wars: During the Russian Civil War in 1919, 13,000 U.S. troops were dispatched by President Woodrow Wilson to occupy the cities of Archangelsk in the Arctic and Vladivostok on the Pacific. | Half a century earlier, thousands of Imperial Russian Navy sailors and their officers flooded the cities of San Francisco and New York. But the circumstances were very different. They were there to defend the United States from foreign invasion — not to threaten it and they brilliantly succeeded in their tasks. | The incredible story is well told in "Friends in Peace and War: The Russian N…

_____ (2020-07-06). Open Letter On COVID-19 And Humanitarian Disarmament. popularresistance.org The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy human and economic toll and shattered lives in many countries. The pandemic has also underscored that global solutions should be used to address global problems, in the current crisis and after it ends. Now is the moment to reflect on the world as it is and consider a better alternative for the future. A "new normal" should go beyond the field of public health to deal with other matters of ongoing international concern, including the humanitarian consequences of arms and armed conflict as well as peace and security more broadly. | Humanitarian disarmament, an approach to go…

RT (2020-07-06). Afghan President Ghani to host online conferences, seeking 'global consensus' on Taliban talks. rt.com Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani was expected to start pushing on Monday for a global consensus on peace talks with the Taliban. Ghani is hosting three online conferences with representatives of some 20 countries this week, AFP reported. | They aim to "build a consensus" for the peace talks at both a regional and international level, according to the Foreign Ministry in Kabul. | The United States, Russia and the United Nations will take part, officials said. Other participating countries include Pakistan, India, Iran, China, Egypt, and Qatar. | However, just hours ahead of the first online meeting on Monda…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-07-06). Venezuela denounces 'absurd decision' of UK to retain its gold reserves. mronline.org A British high court ruled on July 2 that because the UK recognizes opposition leader Juan Guaidó as president, it does not have to give the government of Nicolás Maduro access to the reserves.

_____ (2020-07-06). Ambassadors Are Not Completely Useless, It Seems. Many Are Getting Their Hands Dirty in New Diplomacy. strategic-culture.org Diplomacy is in a crisis, re-emerging as something else more sinister and darker for its ambassadors. From Venezuela to Lebanon though, their time is up. Their dirty game is no longer a secret and it will be the starving Lebanese who will unseat them. | Diplomacy has been in the news quite a bit in late June. Yet it has still left many of us wondering if there is ever a real role for diplomats to play in this junk-news, social media-obsessed world which has reduced them to mere "waiters who are occasionally allowed to sit down" as Peter Ustinov once put it. | But Venezuela's President Nicholas Maduro, who the We…

Nino Pagliccia (2020-07-06). Venezuela Is on a Path to Make Colonialism Obsolete. globalresearch.ca On June 29 the European Union (EU) slapped

Paul Dobson (2020-07-06). Venezuela: Arrest Warrants Issued for Guaido's Foreign Commissioner & US, UK Reps. venezuelanalysis.com Eleven people, including the ad-hoc Central Bank board, are charged with "usurpation of office" following the "plunder" of Venezuela's gold in the Bank of England.