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2021-12-03: News Headlines

David Swanson (2021-12-03). Why We Should Oppose the Democracy Summit. warisacrime.org By David Swanson, World BEYOND War, December 2, 2021 The exclusion of certain countries from the U.S. "democracy summit" is not a side issue. It is the very purpose of the summit. And excluded countries have not been excluded for failing to meet the standards of behavior of those that were invited or the one …

Peoples Dispatch (2021-12-03). Saudi Arabia extensively lobbied to derail war crimes probe in Yemen, says report. peoplesdispatch.org A report by The Guardian said that an extensive Saudi lobbying effort was one of the reasons behind the defeat of a resolution to extend the term of an independent war crimes investigation into human rights violations in Yemen…

teleSUR (2021-12-03). Puebla Group Rejects US Harsh Policy Against Cuba. telesurenglish.net On Thursday, Cuba's Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodriguez welcomed that the Puebla Group condemned the U.S. smear campaign and economic blockade against his country. | RELATED: | "We appreciate the solidarity of the Puebla Group with our people, who suffer the consequences of coercive policies that go against international conventions and obey the anachronistic logic of the Cold War," Rodriguez stated. | The forum also condemned th…

Editor (2021-12-03). The American prison system's war on reading. mronline.org This April, the Iowa Department of Corrections issued a ban on charities, family members, and other outside parties donating books to prisoners.

Ana Malinow (2021-12-03). An Obscure Agency Is Threatening to Hand Medicare Over to Wall Street. truthout.org In the face of massive support for Medicare for All and the failure of the U.S.'s for-profit health care system, the inevitable fall of the medical-industrial complex can be predicted, if not with precision, with certainty. Everyone is aware of the impending demise, none more so than those in charge of the for-profit health care system and their supporters in Congress, as evidenced by the frenetic activity at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to transfer the traditional Medicare p…

Peoples Dispatch (2021-12-03). Rights organizations call for renewed probe into possible war crimes in Yemen. peoplesdispatch.org The call by rights organizations comes a day after The Guardian revealed that Saudi Arabia had used a mixture of threats and inducements to persuade countries to vote down an extension of the probe into possible war crimes in Yemen…

WSWS (2021-12-03). ECDC warns Omicron variant to become dominant in Europe in a "few months" wsws.org European governments are refusing critical social distancing measures and relying exclusively on vaccinations, which the Omicron variant may largely evade.

F. William Engdahl (2021-12-03). Who Gains from Ethiopia Tigray War? dissidentvoice.org If you want to know who is likely to be at war, just look at who is given the Nobel Peace Prize by the Norwegian (NATO) Parliament. Obama got it just days into office before he escalated the war in Afghanistan. Henry Kissinger got it in the 1970'S. And two years ago the Prime Minister …

Brittani Banks (2021-12-03). Why Amazon Is Terrified of Its U.S. Workers Unionizing. independentmediainstitute.org The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has just ruled that a historic union vote held earlier this year among Amazon warehouse workers in Bessemer, Alabama, by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) was not valid. The highly publicized vote, which took place over several weeks in February and March 2021, resulted in a …

Sam Wainwright (2021-12-03). WA Labor's electoral reforms: one step forward, two steps back. greenleft.org.au Under the cover of applying "one vote, one value" to elections for the Legislative Council, last month WA Labor also pushed through legislation that disadvantages smaller political parties, writes Sam Wainwright.

Fred Fuentes (2021-12-03). Adani protester given suspended prison sentence, latest example of escalating repression. greenleft.org.au A new report by Greenpeace, Global Warning: the threat to climate defenders in Australia, has identified an alarming escalation in repression against climate activists. Fred Fuentes reports.

_____ (2021-12-03). South Korean Dictator Dies, Western Media Resurrects A Myth. popularresistance.org General Chun Doo Hwan was the corrupt military dictator that ruled Korea from 1979-1988, before handing off the presidency to his co-conspirator General Roh Tae Woo. Chun took power in a coup in 1979, and during his presidency he perpetrated the largest massacre of Korean civilians since the Korean war. He died on November 23rd, in pampered, sybaritic luxury, impenitent and arrogant to the very last breath. | Many western media outlets have written censorious, chest-beating accounts of his despotic governance and the massacres he perpetrated (here, here, here, and here)– something they rarely bothered to do when…

Eric Walberg (2021-12-03). Afghan Emirate's Challenge to the World. dissidentvoice.org What happened to news about Afghanistan? After their spectacular sweep of the entire country and overnight victory, there is no news now. And Taliban websites remain closed. Just human interest stuff about traitors/ cowards/ whatevers fleeing to the US or wherever. A convening of Afghan women parliamentarians, holding a mock Afghan parliament in exile (a …

Ivan Stoiljkovic (2021-12-03). 'It was once our home': Socialist Yugoslavia before the breakup. peoplesworld.org On November 29, 1943, in the midst of the Second World War, a beautiful, big, and strong socialist Yugoslavia was established in the town of Jajce in central Bosnia. It was established by the Anti-fascist Council for the National Liberation of Yugoslavia (AVNOJ), at its second session, as a state of equal nations and peoples …

Phillip Smith (2021-12-03). How Oregon is turning the page on America's disastrous drug war. nationofchange.org "Our immediate focus is to ensure every Oregonian knows these critical harm reduction and recovery services are being invested in and expanded so that they will be available to anyone who wants and needs them, and that they can feel comfortable and safe accessing them."

Toward Freedom Editor (2021-12-03). Why Does Independent Media Matter? A Webinar on Nicaragua, Haiti, Venezuela, Honduras and the Black Liberation Struggle. towardfreedom.org Toward Freedom hosted a webinar December 2 to welcome new editor, Julie Varughese, who reported on her time covering Nicaragua's November 7 elections. Regular contributors Danny Shaw and Jacqueline Luqman discussed the Pink Tide in Latin America, Haiti and how Hollywood depicts the Black liberation struggle.

WSWS (2021-12-03). US and NATO ramp up anti-Russia war drive. wsws.org US and NATO representatives are pressing ahead with hysterical anti-Russian rhetoric and threats of war.

WSWS (2021-12-03). Referendum on direct election of UAW officers passes. wsws.org A little over 140,000 voted out of close to 1 million eligible active workers and retirees, a mere 14 percent turnout, reflecting the deep alienation felt by workers toward the UAW.

teleSUR (2021-12-03). Gunmen Attack Four Libyan Election Centers. telesurenglish.net On Thursday, the Libyan High National Elections Commission (HNEC) said that four of its election centers have been attacked by a group of gunmen. | RELATED: | Said Al-Qasabi, head of the main operations chamber of the HNEC, said that gunmen in civilian clothes launched the attacks on Wednesday, taking away 2,312 voter cards and damaging 69 others. Interior Minister Khaled Mazen on Tuesday warned that obstructing the…

Staff (2021-12-03). From Abortion Bans to Anti-Trans Laws, a Christian Legal Army is Waging War on America. democracynow.org As the Supreme Court looks poised to uphold Mississipi's 15-week abortion ban and possibly overturn Roe v. Wade we speak to The Nation's Amy Littlefield about her investigation into the Christian legal army behind the Mississippi law as well as anti-trans laws across the country. She also critiques the mainstream pro-choice movement's failure to center the poor and people of color. "There is a change coming within the movement because of its reckoning with these past missteps including, frankly, the failure to adequately protect Black women and to stand up for the safety of the people whose rights were eroded fir…

Ana Perdigón (2021-12-03). 21N Elections: Scrutiny of Vote Count for Indigenous Representatives Concludes. orinocotribune.com This Thursday, December 2, Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) announced that it had concluded the tabulation of the voting minutes issued in the elections to choose Indigenous representatives for legislative councils and municipal councils. | The voting minutes were issued in each of the 74 authorized voting centers in eight states of the country. | "The Ad Hoc commission for the 2021 elections…

Staff (2021-12-03). Opposition Deputy José Brito Asks CNE to Repeat Elections in Pariaguán, Anzoategui State. orinocotribune.com This Thursday, December 2, José Brito, a deputy representing Justice First in Venezuela's National Assembly, asked the National Electoral Council (CNE) to repeat the regional and municipal elections in Pariaguán (Anzoátegui State) after the disqualification of the victor Tomás Bello. | In the company of the candidate for the Democratic Alliance for mayor of the Miranda municipality of Pariaguán, Tomás Bello, Brito went to the headquarters of the CNE to challenge the electoral process of that jurisdiction. He denounced that, following the disqualification of the elected candidate, a substitution of candidates was…

Staff (2021-12-03). Opposition's Presumed Candidate for Barinas State Re-election. orinocotribune.com With the opening of the new electoral process in the state of Barinas, following the controversial decision issued by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) that confirmed the disqualification of Freddy Superlano as the opposition (MUD) candidate—even when Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) forecast his victory—it is presumed that they will nominate his wife, Aurora Silva de Superlano, to run as candidate for governor. | The CNE authorities have already announced that the period for political organizations to present their offers is underway. For their part, regional media reported on the possib…

teleSUR (2021-12-02). Israel Is Unwilling To Genuinely Investigate Its War Crimes. telesurenglish.net On Thursday, the Israeli NGO Betselem and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) denounced that Israel covers up the truth and protects the political and military officials responsible for the murder of over 200 Palestinians between 2018 and 2019. | RELATED: | The Israeli authorities did not carry out a real and comprehensive investigation into the crackdown on the Great March of Return protests, through which Palestinians called for an end to the…

Andreína Chávez Alava (2021-12-02). Venezuela: Maduro Reinforces Vaccination Over Omicron Variant, Condemns Western 'Political' Response. venezuelanalysis.com The United Nations also criticized Western nations for imposing a "travel apartheid" against southern Africa following the Omicron Covid-19 variant appearance.

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2021-12-02). The Covid-19 Omicron Variant: Towards a Fourth Wave Lockdown? Pretext to Introduce New Repressive Policy Measures. globalresearch.ca Global Research is the object of censorship. | Please forward this article to friends and colleagues, post on your blog and on social media. *** | Both the governments and the media in chorus are now engaged in a …

Staff (2021-12-02). Headlines for December 2, 2021. democracynow.org Supreme Court's Conservatives Signal Support for Mississippi Anti-Abortion Law , U.S. Detects Omicron Coronavirus Variant in California, U.N. Chief Blasts "Travel Apartheid" as Nations Deny Entry to Africans Over Omicron Variant, Russia Expels Some US Ambassadors as Blinken Warns Russia Against Invading Ukraine, Burmese Military Helicopters Attack Villagers in Region Where Resistance to Coup Remains Strong, Women's Tennis Association Suspends Tournaments in China Over Peng Shuai Case, 15-Year-Old Suspect in Michigan High School Shooting to be Tried as an Adult, Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams to Run for Governor i…

William Rivers Pitt (2021-12-02). With Omicron in US, GOP Hard-Liners Are Still Trying to Thwart Vaccine Mandates. truthout.org Stop me if you've heard this one before: The current federal spending agreement that funds many operations of government is set to expire at midnight on Friday. Absent a new deal, or at least a vote to kick the can down the road a bit, much of the federal government will shut down, again. M*A*S*H didn't get this many reruns. | The last one ran 35 days, from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019, and happened because then-President Donald Trump wanted to staple funding for his draconian bor…

Staff (2021-12-02). Spain's Zapatero Urges Resumption of Mexico Talks. orinocotribune.com Former head of the Spanish government, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, urged a resumption of the meetings between the government of Venezuela and the opposition, in the dialogue known as the Mexico Talks, which were suspended after the kidnapping of diplomat Alex Saab by the United States. | During his participation in the assembly of the Puebla Group, the former Spanish prime minister said that "it is the only way" to advance in solving the problems that the country faces. | "My opinion is that the dialogue that has been taking place in Mexico between the opposition and the government of Venezuela is a fundamental…

In Defense of Liberation! (2021-12-02). Socialism in the Global South w/ Comrades Ramiro Sebastián Fúnez and Libre X. Sankara. anchor.fm In this episode I have on Comrades Libre X. Sankara from Troika Kollective (@troikakollectiv on Instagram and Twitter) and Ramiro Sebastián Fúnez, host of Unmasking Imperialism on Youtube, director of "Nicaragua Against Empire" (youtu.be/-wUDr0tQxqs) | We discuss the situations in Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua briefly, touching mostly upon the recent elections in Nicaragua and Venezuela, as well as the false accusations levied by the US Empire against these nations at this time. We also go in depth to discuss the overall situation facing Central and South America, as colonized nations, and how their figh…

_____ (2021-12-02). Revival of Class Politics in the U.S…. Will It Be Socialism or Fascism? strategic-culture.org The U.S. empire, like the USSR, is imploding out of its own corruption, says Harriet Fraad in an interview with Finian Cunningham. | Over the past year, the massive upheaval in the United States from workers going on industrial strike and walking off jobs signifies an increasing awareness of class politics. In the following interview, Harriet Fraad says that American workers are overcoming decades of suppression from anti-communist propaganda as well as a betrayal by the two main political parties. | Workers are becoming aware of their rights and their conditions of exploitation under the corporate capitalist sys…

_____ (2021-12-02). Potential Legislation On China Amounts To A New Cold War. popularresistance.org Congress is itching to pass a sweeping bipartisan package that threatens to enshrine a new Cold War, this time against China, and they're counting on the American public's inattention to get it through by the end of the year. After months of stalling in the House, and a failed attempt to attach the legislation to the annual defense bill, majority leader Chuck Schumer and Speaker Nancy Pelosi struck a deal this week for a bicameral conference on the anti-China legislation. | The US Innovation and Competition Act is a massive piece of legislation purporting to make the United States more "competitive" with China ec…

WSWS (2021-12-02). National Labor Relations Board orders new union election at Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama. wsws.org The Biden administration is intervening not to defend workers' democratic rights, but to impose a labor police force over this decisive section of the working class…

_____ (2021-12-02). Hondurans Break The US-Imposed Narco Siege Of Their Government. popularresistance.org Brian Nichols, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, visited Honduras the week before the presidential elections. His stated purpose was to "encourage the peaceful, transparent conduct of free and fair national elections." He did not meet with the de facto President, Juan Orlando Hernández. | The gesture was clear and illuminating on two levels. | First, it showed that the U.S. government had already accepted the irrefutable truth that the center-left coalition led by Xiomara Castro would earn the votes of the Honduran people (as we go to publication, she was in the lead with 53.6%). Hondur…

teleSUR (2021-12-02). Honduran President Hernandez Accepts Victory of Xiomara Castro. telesurenglish.net On Wednesday, Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez congratulated President-elect Xiomara Castro, who won 52.31 percent of the votes in the Nov. 28 general elections. | RELATED: | "I want to congratulate Castro and all our compatriots, whose civic display in these elections strengthened democracy," Hernandez stated, recalling that the electoral process took place in peace and order. | "The will of Hondurans is s…

_____ (2021-12-02). Activists Make Last-Minute Bid To Stop Blasting In Whale Breeding Grounds. popularresistance.org Activists have made a last-minute bid to stop Royal Dutch Shell from exploring for oil and gas in whale breeding grounds off the coast of South Africa. | The fossil-fuel giant had planned to search for oil and gas reserves by setting off underwater explosions along a stretch of South Africa known as the Wild Coast, according to MSN. The explorations were slated to begin December 1. However, four environmental and human rights organizations filed a legal challenge Monday night to stop the blasting, Greenpeace Africa said. | "Shell's activities threaten to destroy the Wild Coast and the lives of the people living t…

PSL Asheville (2021-12-02). Activists bring message of climate justice to Asheville Holiday Parade. zcomm.org "Today, we marched for peace and a future for our children; what could be more in the spirit of the season than that?"

Editor (2021-12-02). How to picket stores that sell your employer's products. mronline.org Note: Consumer picketing can be directed against all products that a struck employer manufactures, processes, distributes, transports, or otherwise enhances in value.

Juan Cole (2021-12-02). Israel Squatter Violence toward Palestinians is Escalating. zcomm.org UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, delivered alarming remarks about the dangers of an outbreak of further violence on the part of the Israeli state…

_____ (2021-12-02). The Right-Wing Story About Human Nature Is False. popularresistance.org One common view of human beings is that we are "by nature" selfish, violent, cruel, and untrustworthy, and that, to the extent we manage to restrain these base instincts, it is because we are taught to be generous, and punished if we go around hurting others. Sometimes this view is accompanied by a story about human development: once upon a time, life was nasty, brutish, and short, a war of all against all. Prehistoric human beings were violent barbarians. Fortunately, civilization has gradually brought out the better angels of our nature. Free markets can actually direct humans' natural selfishness toward social…

Ana Perdigón (2021-12-02). CNE's Roberto Picón Issues Statement on Electoral Ruling in Barinas. orinocotribune.com One of the five rectors of Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE), Roberto Picón, issued a statement regarding the ruling that ordered new elections to be held in the state of Barinas. According to Picón, the electoral authority was not made aware of the disqualification of the opposition candidate Freddy Superlano at the time of his registration. | Through a statement published on his Twitter account, Picón wrote that the CNE was unaware of Freddy Superlano's ineligibility condition, pursuant to a resolution of the comptroller general dated August 17, 2021. | "I put on record that the disqualification of c…

Andy Kroll (2021-12-02). Countdown to World War III? tomdispatch.com When the Department of Defense released its annual report on Chinese military strength in early November, one claim generated headlines around the world. By 2030, it suggested, China would probably have 1,000 nuclear warheads — three times more than at present and enough to pose a substantial threat to the United States. As a Washington Post headline put it, typically enough: "China accelerates nuclear weapons expansion, seeks 1,000 warheads or more, Pentagon says." The media, however, largely ignored a far more significant claim in that same report: that China would be ready to conduct "intelligentized" wa…

Ann Brown (2021-12-02). The Sneaky And Hidden Tax: How High Inflation Can Heavily Tax Your Cash. moguldom.com There's more to inflation than just rising prices. Some economists say inflation is actually another way to tax your dollars. Back in February, Larry Summers, former director of the National Economic Council and an alumnus of both the Clinton and Obama administrations, warned President Joe Biden that more spending could easily trigger a spike in …

Binoy Kampmark (2021-12-02). Where there are Tailings, No Grass Grows: Serbians Protest against Rio Tinto. dissidentvoice.org Another fault line has opened in the mining wars. In Serbia, resistance is gathering steam against various deals made between Belgrade and companies that risk environmental degradation and lingering spoliation. In this regard, the globe's second largest metals and mining corporation, features prominently. Rio Tinto, bruised in reputation but determined in business, finds itself in …

Johanna Kichton (2021-12-02). People's Action: Bloated Military Budget Proves Congress Needs a Reality Check on Priorities. peoplesaction.org Contact: Johanna Kichton, press@peoplesaction.org, 202.660.0605 WASHINGTON, D.C.—People's Action today released the following statement by Director of Federal Affairs Megan Essaheb as the Senate debates the FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act: "It's rich that some senators will soon greenlight a bill, written and lobbied for by defense contractors and corporations who profit off forever wars, …

teleSUR (2021-12-02). Colombia: Piedad Cordoba Decries Persecution Towards Opposition. telesurenglish.net Former Colombian Senator Piedad Cordoba presented this Thursday before the transitional justice system her second report on the political persecution of Colombian opposition leaders by the current governments in the country. | "I claim myself as a participant of the historical political opposition to the regime. First in the struggle from the popular bases of the Liberal Party for the dismantling of the National Front and the democratic opening that was embodied in the constituent process of 1991, but that was frustrated early on," explained in the report the former candidate to the Colombian Presidency. | RE…

_____ (2021-12-02). Is the World On the Brink of DEFCON 1? journal-neo.org The looming apocalypse is shaping up nicely as Russia and China expand strategic cooperation to offset the NATO war planes apparently in the works. The propaganda war having already begun with fear mongering over false claims Russia intends invasion, now the "accident scenario" takes shape in the skies over Russia's frontiers. We've addressed the so-called …

Editor2 (2021-12-02). Cuba, China, Latin America and US Hybrid War. orinocotribune.com By John Ross — Nov 26, 2021 | This analysis by John Ross of the Renmin University of China looks at the long relationship between China and Cuba. He analyzes why it is important to defeat the US attack on Cuba. | Foreword by China Environment editors | Cuba joined Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2019, hoping it would assist in strengthening its troubled economy, which has been badly hit by aggressive US sanctions for decades. China already become Cuba's main trading partner in 2017. In October this year (2021) Cuba officially became a member of the Alliance for Energy of the Belt and Road Initiative, a pr…

John W. Whitehead, Nisha Whitehead (2021-12-02). The War Over Life, Liberty, and Privacy Rights. dissidentvoice.org Abortion on demand is the ultimate State tyranny; the State simply declares that certain classes of human beings are not persons, and therefore not entitled to the protection of the law. The State protects the 'right' of some people to kill others, just as the courts protected the 'property rights' of slave masters in their …

WSWS (2021-12-02). Titian: Women, Myth & Power at the Gardner Museum in Boston: The great Renaissance painter comes in for "moral scrutiny" from the New York Times. wsws.org The exhibition at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston (until January 2) must be counted as one of the most significant art shows today.

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2021-12-02: News Headlines

Staff (2021-12-02). Headlines for December 2, 2021. democracynow.org Supreme Court's Conservatives Signal Support for Mississippi Anti-Abortion Law , U.S. Detects Omicron Coronavirus Variant in California, U.N. Chief Blasts "Travel Apartheid" as Nations Deny Entry to Africans Over Omicron Variant, Russia Expels Some US Ambassadors as Blinken Warns Russia Against Invading Ukraine, Burmese Military Helicopters Attack Villagers in Region Where Resistance to Coup Remains Strong, Women's Tennis Association Suspends Tournaments in China Over Peng Shuai Case, 15-Year-Old Suspect in Michigan High School Shooting to be Tried as an Adult, Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams to Run for Governor i…

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2021-12-02). The Covid-19 Omicron Variant: Towards a Fourth Wave Lockdown? Pretext to Introduce New Repressive Policy Measures. globalresearch.ca Global Research is the object of censorship. | Please forward this article to friends and colleagues, post on your blog and on social media. *** | Both the governments and the media in chorus are now engaged in a …

In Defense of Liberation! (2021-12-02). Socialism in the Global South w/ Comrades Ramiro Sebastián Fúnez and Libre X. Sankara. anchor.fm In this episode I have on Comrades Libre X. Sankara from Troika Kollective (@troikakollectiv on Instagram and Twitter) and Ramiro Sebastián Fúnez, host of Unmasking Imperialism on Youtube, director of "Nicaragua Against Empire" (youtu.be/-wUDr0tQxqs) | We discuss the situations in Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua briefly, touching mostly upon the recent elections in Nicaragua and Venezuela, as well as the false accusations levied by the US Empire against these nations at this time. We also go in depth to discuss the overall situation facing Central and South America, as colonized nations, and how their figh…

WSWS (2021-12-02). National Labor Relations Board orders new union election at Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama. wsws.org The Biden administration is intervening not to defend workers' democratic rights, but to impose a labor police force over this decisive section of the working class…

Editor (2021-12-02). How to picket stores that sell your employer's products. mronline.org Note: Consumer picketing can be directed against all products that a struck employer manufactures, processes, distributes, transports, or otherwise enhances in value.

PSL Asheville (2021-12-02). Activists bring message of climate justice to Asheville Holiday Parade. zcomm.org "Today, we marched for peace and a future for our children; what could be more in the spirit of the season than that?"

Juan Cole (2021-12-02). Israel Squatter Violence toward Palestinians is Escalating. zcomm.org UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, delivered alarming remarks about the dangers of an outbreak of further violence on the part of the Israeli state…

Ana Perdigón (2021-12-02). CNE's Roberto Picón Issues Statement on Electoral Ruling in Barinas. orinocotribune.com One of the five rectors of Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE), Roberto Picón, issued a statement regarding the ruling that ordered new elections to be held in the state of Barinas. According to Picón, the electoral authority was not made aware of the disqualification of the opposition candidate Freddy Superlano at the time of his registration. | Through a statement published on his Twitter account, Picón wrote that the CNE was unaware of Freddy Superlano's ineligibility condition, pursuant to a resolution of the comptroller general dated August 17, 2021. | "I put on record that the disqualification of c…

Anis Chowdhury (2021-12-02). Profiting from the carbon offset distraction. mronline.org Carbon offset markets allow the rich to emit as financial intermediaries profit. By fostering the fiction that others can be paid to cut greenhouse gases (GHGs) instead, it undermines efforts to do so.

Binoy Kampmark (2021-12-02). Where there are Tailings, No Grass Grows: Serbians Protest against Rio Tinto. dissidentvoice.org Another fault line has opened in the mining wars. In Serbia, resistance is gathering steam against various deals made between Belgrade and companies that risk environmental degradation and lingering spoliation. In this regard, the globe's second largest metals and mining corporation, features prominently. Rio Tinto, bruised in reputation but determined in business, finds itself in …

Lee Fang (2021-12-02). Pfizer Is Lobbying to Thwart Whistleblowers From Exposing Corporate Fraud. zcomm.org Pfizer is among the Big Pharma companies trying to block legislation strengthening whistleblowers' ability to report corporate fraud…

John W. Whitehead, Nisha Whitehead (2021-12-02). The War Over Life, Liberty, and Privacy Rights. dissidentvoice.org Abortion on demand is the ultimate State tyranny; the State simply declares that certain classes of human beings are not persons, and therefore not entitled to the protection of the law. The State protects the 'right' of some people to kill others, just as the courts protected the 'property rights' of slave masters in their …

WSWS (2021-12-02). New Zealand opposition picks new right-wing leader. wsws.org The National Party's leadership turmoil reflects pressure from the ruling class to ditch all COVID-19 restrictions and conflicts over how closely to align with US war preparations against China.

WSWS (2021-12-02). Titian: Women, Myth & Power at the Gardner Museum in Boston: The great Renaissance painter comes in for "moral scrutiny" from the New York Times. wsws.org The exhibition at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston (until January 2) must be counted as one of the most significant art shows today.

WSWS (2021-12-02). US admiral calls for "six, seven or eight" aircraft carriers in the Pacific. wsws.org Following another major joint naval exercise in the Pacific, Vice Admiral Karl Thomas declared that while the war games represented "an incredible amount of power," US allies needed to go further.

Tom Engelhardt (2021-12-02). Tomgram: Michael Klare, War With China in 2027? warisacrime.org This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here. Yep, it happened again for the 11th time this year. (In 2020, the number was 13.) An American warship, in this case the guided-missile destroyer Milius, sailed through the Taiwan Strait between mainland China and the disputed island …

Staff (2021-12-02). Opposition Governors Describe Meeting with President Maduro as Positive. orinocotribune.com On Tuesday night, November 30, the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, held a meeting with newly elected opposition governors and municipal opposition authorities. | Through their social media networks, Zulia's governor-elect Manuel Rosales, Nueva Esparta's governor-elect Morel Rodríguez, and Cojedes' governor-elect Alberto Galindez described the meeting with the head of state as positive. The gathering was convened in order to present and address the problems of the representatives' respective states. | On his Twitter account, Rosales thanked the president for his "receptivity to what was raised" and describ…

Jake Johnson (2021-12-01). Biden Continues Trump-Era Ploy to Privatize Medicare. zcomm.org More than 1,500 physicians warn that the experiment threatens "the future of Medicare as we know it."

Rick Rozoff (2021-12-01). Belarus warns of invasion under guise of NATO military exercises. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Lukashenko concerned about possible attack under guise of NATO military exercises ==== If NATO deploys nuclear weapons on Belarus, Russia borders, Russia could base nuclear arms in Belarus: Lukashenko Amid doubling of NATO flights, Belarusian and Russian Sukhois jointly patrol Belarus border ==== In view of NATO military exercises in neighboring countries it is necessary …

A Guest Author (2021-12-01). On Ethiopia: 'I've lost faith in everything "American"'. workers.org Displaced persons at a camp in Debarq, Ethiopia, Oct. 10 Ann Garrison is a Black Agenda Report contributing editor based in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2014, she received the Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza Democracy and Peace Prize for promoting peace through her reporting on conflict in the African Great . . . |

Staff (2021-12-01). Amazon Workers in Alabama Get New Shot at Union After NLRB Rules Company Broke the Law in 1st Vote. democracynow.org Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama may soon get another chance to decide whether to unionize. The National Labor Relations Board has ruled that Amazon violated U.S. labor law while waging an aggressive anti-unionization campaign against warehouse workers earlier this year in Bessemer, Alabama. This comes as Amazon workers worldwide from Bangladesh to Germany campaigned on Black Friday for fairer working conditions under the banner, "Make Amazon Pay." "If Amazon is trying to eat the world, it's also bringing many disparate sets of workers and activists and communities together to fight against the…

José Luis Granados Ceja (2021-12-01). Venezuela Greets Xiomara Castro's 'Historic Mandate' in Honduran Election. venezuelanalysis.com Castro's win marks yet another victory for the left in Latin America.

José Manuel Blanco Diaz (2021-12-01). Bolivia: Multitudinous 'March for the Homeland' Reaches La Paz. orinocotribune.com The 180 km "March for the Homeland" that set out from Caracollo, Bolivia, on November 23, arrived at the capital La Paz on Monday, November 29. The march was organized as a popular defense of peace and democracy against the seditious pretensions of the extreme right forces that are trying to carry out a coup against President Luis Arce. | The march was composed of union leaders, peasants, coca growers, workers and other social sectors. Tens of thousands of revolutionary sympathizers raised the Wiphala flag as a symbol of indigenous struggle and demanded respect for democratically elected Luis Arce's presidency.

Staff (2021-12-01). Jorge Rodríguez: We Are Not and Will Not Be Anyone's Colony. orinocotribune.com On Tuesday, November 30, the plenary of the Venezuelan National Assembly (AN) approved an Agreement of Support and Congratulations for the Brave People of Venezuela for their participation in the November 21 elections. | The president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, emphasized that on November 21 peace won, "the people of Venezuela won. What we are experiencing is a second struggle for our independence. What they [the right] wanted for Venezuela was the dissolution of the Republic and they supported all that by those who claim to be representatives of the opposition in Venezuela and now they want the p…

David Swanson (2021-12-01). Youth from Around the World Contribute to a Book on Peace. warisacrime.org By David Swanson, World BEYOND War, December 1, 2021 Five members of the World BEYOND War Youth Network (WBWYN) from five continents have contributed, together with WBW's Education Director, to a chapter in a new book (available free in full as PDF) called Problems, Threats and Challenges for Peace and Conflict Resolution, edited by Joanna …

C.J. Polychroniou (2021-12-01). Climate Justice Doesn't Start With Politicians. It Starts in the Streets. truthout.org The outcomes of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) continue to be debated across the globe, although a clear consensus has emerged among activists that it was largely a failure. There may be some hope down the road, however, as coal appears to be on its way out and grassroots pressure to transform climate policy is on the upsurge. | Jennifer Morgan, executive director of Greenpeace International, attended COP26 and witnessed personally the power of protests in the streets, wh…

_____ (2021-12-01). IPCC Warns That Capitalism Is Unsustainable. popularresistance.org A leaked draft of the third part of the upcoming IPCC report establishes that we must move away from the current capitalist model to avoid exceeding planetary limits. It also confirms that, as stated in the article published by CTXT on August 7, "Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions must peak in at most four years". The document also acknowledges that there is little chance of further economic growth. | The signatories of this article, scientists and journalists, have analysed a new part of the Sixth Report, leaked by the scientists' collective Scientist Rebellion and Extinction Rebellion Spain. The leak clearly shows…

_____ (2021-12-01). The Latin American Left Is Ready For 2022. popularresistance.org Latin America, the 21st century's leading region for progressive victories, is in the midst of a leftist resurgence. A new "pink tide" is commencing, with the left holding office in a number of countries and challenging for power in upcoming presidential elections. Kicking off a collection of articles on Latin America's left, we present an overview of the continent's war between progressive and conservative forces as flashpoints loom from Chile to Brazil. | The original pink tide of leftist electoral victories began in the early 2000s, reaching a climax between 2006 and 2007. Evo Morales assumed the presidency in…

Ann Brown (2021-12-01). Jury Awards $10 Million To Woman Who Stepped On Rusty Nail At Walmart. moguldom.com Back in June 2015, April Jones stepped on a rusty nail while shopping at a Walmart in Florence, South Carolina. She sued and a jury awarded her $10 million on Nov. 30, 2021. Her injury led to multiple surgeries and eventually she had to have her leg amputated as a result of an infection caused …

Berry Craig (2021-12-01). Right wing steers country toward white supremacy and dictatorship. peoplesworld.org Murray, Ky., State University historian Brian Clardy says it's past time for the Democrats to start reminding voters—loudly, clearly, and unceasingly—precisely where Donald Trump and the Trumpian Republicans are steering the country: Straight toward white supremacy and authoritarianism. "This is not bean bagging," he said. "This is not cocktail party conversation. This is real. This …

Clodovaldo Hernandez (2021-12-01). Isaías Rodríguez: Barinas Case Could Harm the Credibility of the Elections. orinocotribune.com Isaías Rodríguez, former attorney general and former vice president of Venezuela, warned that with the intervention of the Electoral Chamber of the Supreme Court in the Barinas governorship case, Venezuela may lose the credibility that it has been able to build though the elections, both nationally and internationally. | In the opinion of Rodríguez, who was also a member of the constituent assemblies of 1999 and 2017, the Electoral Chamber does not have competence to decide on an electoral result such as that of Barinas, since it is a matter that should be decided by the Constitutional Court. | "I speak fundament…

Gary Olson (2021-12-01). Thoughts on the Left's Response to Capitalism's Global Death Spiral. dissidentvoice.org For those whose personal and political identities are virtually indistinguishable, these are especially vexing times. Specifically, during this historical stage of capitalism it's challenging to abide by Gramsci's optimism of the will and heart and not acquiesce to pessimism of the mind, to the intellect's awareness of certain recalcitrant realities in our world. And residing …

Kevin Annett (2021-12-01). Why are Catholic Churches Being Trashed? dissidentvoice.org Catholic church burns to the ground, Attawapiskat First Nation Hello Mr Annett, I am a Detective with the Vancouver Police Department, and my partner and I have been assigned to look into some of the more recent incidents in the city of Vancouver that relate to the vandalism towards Catholic Churches and ongoing protests from …

WSWS (2021-12-01). Growing outrage among Australian teachers and parents over school COVID infections. wsws.org Opposition to school reopenings is a significant element in the wider hostility toward the political establishment and its callous indifference to the lives and well-being of working people that Australia's new electoral laws are designed to silence.

_____ (2021-12-01). Who is Capable of Settling the Conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan? journal-neo.org One year after the second Karabakh war, the border between the two republics is again turbulent. Periodically, the media and official representatives of Armenia and Azerbaijan report about the violation — by the enemy, of course — of the ceasefire, defined by trilateral Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan statement of November 9, 2020, and sometimes even about …

WSWS (2021-12-01). Indigenous people in Australia twice as likely to be infected with COVID-19. wsws.org The increasing number of infections and deaths in indigenous communities was both predicted and preventable, but the warnings of health experts and community leaders were ignored.

Caitlin Johnstone (2021-12-01). We're Sleepwalking Into Nuclear War. zcomm.org There are no checks or balances on this insane agenda. It's supported by all mainstream parties and all mainstream media outlets…

Staff (2021-12-01). "The Viral Underclass": COVID-19 and AIDS Show What Happens When Inequality and Disease Collide. democracynow.org As December 1 marks World AIDS Day, we look at the pandemic that preceded COVID-19 and how recorded deaths of complications from the coronavirus this year have surpassed those of HIV/AIDS in the United States. The head of UNAIDS has warned the COVID-19 pandemic may result in an increase in infections and deaths from HIV and AIDS. Both viruses disproportionately impacted vulnerable minority communities. Although treatment rollout for HIV/AIDS was uniquely inhibited by homophobia, racism, and sexism, it was also plagued by corporate greed and U.S. exceptionalism. "We're seeing very similar dynamics again now with C…

Rick Rozoff (2021-12-01). Videos: U.S. troops in Latvia train for war. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com 1st Brigade Engineer Battalion conducts bangalore explosive breach training Soldiers with 1st Brigade Engineer Battalion (1BEB), 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team (1ABCT), 1st Infantry Division (1ID) conduct bangalore explosive breach training during exercise Winter Shield 2021 at Camp Ādaži, Ādaži, Latvia, Nov. 22, 2021.

_____ (2021-12-01). NATO Parliamentarians Send Letter To Biden For No-First-Use Policies. popularresistance.org 34 current and former legislators from NATO countries sent a joint letter yesterday to United States President Biden encouraging him to adopt a policy of no-first-use (or sole purpose) of nuclear weapons in the current U.S. nuclear posture review, and to use the occasion of the 10th Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty Review Conference in January 2022 to universalise this policy. | The call by the legislators contradicts recent reports that United States allies want the US government to retain the option of initiating nuclear war (first-use options). | "Let us state clearly that we do not believe that a first-use op…

Editor2 (2021-12-01). Morocco-Algeria: A War on the Horizon? orinocotribune.com By Guadi Calvo — Nov 22, 2021 | The Moroccan regime, in full view of the whole world, continues to repress the Saharawi people, whom it continues to murder unceremoniously, not satisfied with having usurped eighty percent of its territory and continuing to exploit its phosphate deposits since 1975, the most important in the world, and also one of the world's largest fishing grounds, with the consent of the Spanish crown, a fundamental partner in the dispossession of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). | In November 2020, after an exchange of fire between the Moroccan army and Saharawi militiamen in…

Isheka N. Harrison (2021-12-01). NAASD Calls For Slavery Remembrance Day, $1.25B Budget For Active Federal Atonement. moguldom.com The National Assembly of American Slavery Descendants (NAASD) has come out in support of the Slavery Remembrance Day resolution introduced by U.S. Rep. Al Green of Texas and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. The bill proposes that August 20 be designated Slavery Remembrance Day to "serve as a reminder of the evils of slavery." The …

Peoples Dispatch (2021-12-01). Prominent Egyptian activist Hossam Bahgat found guilty of insulting election authorities. peoplesdispatch.org Bahgat is the founder-director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR). He has previously been targeted by successive governments for his work towards the advancement of civil liberties and human rights in Egypt…

WSWS (2021-12-01). The Man Who Paints Water Drops: Korean painter Kim Tschang-Yeul and the crisis of postwar art. wsws.org A documentary unveils the trauma and unresolved grief at the root of a renowned Korean artist's most famous work.

José Manuel Blanco Diaz (2021-12-01). Does Henrique Capriles Want to 'Knock Down' Juan Guaidó? orinocotribune.com After the defeat suffered by Venezuelan opposition groups in the mega-elections of November 21, there is talk about the need for the right to renew its leadership in the coming weeks, facing future political and electoral challenges. One of the names most frequently mentioned is that of Henrique Capriles, as a possible replacement for former deputy Juan Guaidó. | In this sense, the debate increased within the right around the figure of Guaidó and his imaginary "interim government," lacking any legitimacy and questioned from within the oppositionist ranks themselves, who accuse him of not meeting objectives set al…

Staff (2021-12-01). Barinas State PSUV Governor Argenis Chávez Resigns. orinocotribune.com This Tuesday, November 30, Argenis Chávez announced his resignation as governor of the state of Barinas. Chávez made the decision to comply with the two complex judgments made by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) this week related to the counting of votes and a second election that will take place in the eastern Venezuelan state. The resignation was issued despite the fact that the TSJ statements did not mention anything regarding Chávez's position being in question. | In addition, Chávez resigned from his candidacy for re-election for the new elections that will be held in the state on January 9, 2022, while an…

Staff (2021-12-01). Leopoldo López's Latest Gaff: He Calls on People to Take to the Streets over Supreme Court's Barinas Decision. orinocotribune.com On Monday, November 30, Leopoldo López, fugitive from Venezuelan justice, claimed that protests regarding the decision issued by the Electoral Chamber of the Supreme Court over the Barinas governorship election "are legitimate and necessary." | López, who currently resides in Spain, wrote on Twitter that, despite the "traps and obstacles, Freddy Superlano won; he had all the ballots, people took to the streets to defend his victory; the CNE delayed his proclamation and now the Supreme Court's invalid decision suspends the results over the count of three ballots." | López reiterated that in the midst of an "usurpa…

Staff (2021-12-01). Leopoldo López's Latest Gaffe: He Calls on People to Take to the Streets over Supreme Court's Barinas Decision. orinocotribune.com On Monday, November 30, Leopoldo López, fugitive from Venezuelan justice, claimed that protests regarding the decision issued by the Electoral Chamber of the Supreme Court over the Barinas governorship election "are legitimate and necessary." | López, who currently resides in Spain, wrote on Twitter that, despite the "traps and obstacles, Freddy Superlano won; he had all the ballots, people took to the streets to defend his victory; the CNE delayed his proclamation and now the Supreme Court's invalid decision suspends the results over the count of three ballots." | López reiterated that in the midst of an "usurpa…

Brasil de Fato (2021-12-01). Chile's far-right candidate tours the US. peoplesdispatch.org José Antonio Kast, the far right-wing candidate who is in the second round of the Chilean presidential elections, is touring the United States this week. According to the Chilean press, the politician, who is a defender of dictator Augusto Pinochet, seeks to "dispel concerns" that he is an "extremist". | Kast embarked for the United States on Monday November 29 and has already had a meeting with Republican Senator Marco Rubio, a congressman allied with former President Donald Trump and a declared enemy of the governments of Venezuela and Cuba. Rubio is an advocate of gun ownership and advocates against legislatio…

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