Month

Archives: May 2017

Is the European Refugee Crisis being Driven by Drought and Climate Change?

By Baher Kamal | (Inter Press Service) | - - ROME (IPS) - Water–everybody talks about it, warns against its growing scarcity, excessive waste, the impact of climate change, the frequent severe…

The Mystery of Washington’s Iran Derangement Syndrome

By Danny Sjursen | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - “Everywhere you look, if there is trouble in the region,” Secretary of Defense James Mattis told reporters on a mid-April visit to Riyadh,…

Baghdad and Manchester: Let’s Commemorate ISIL Victims in Both

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - ISIL (ISIS, Daesh) lashed out at the civilian population in Iraq on Tuesday with three bombings and over 60 casualties. With its signature…

Coal in Death spiral as India cancels 14 gigs, and Solar prices Plummet

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - China and India have knocked the United States off the top spot of the index of best places to invest in renewables. Analysts…

If They’re Wrong, the Planet Dies

By Edward Hunt. | ( Foreign Policy in Focus) | - - The Obama administration could have done more to stop climate change. The Trump administration couldn't have done less. . .…

The rising homegrown terror threat on the right

By Arie Perliger | (The Conversation) | - - The murder in College Park, Maryland of Richard Collins III, an African-American student who had recently been commissioned as a second lieutenant in…

Germany: We Europeans must Depend on Selves, not Trump’s USA

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, certainly knew what she was doing when she made her otherwise cautious statement. "The times," she said,…

Beautiful A-Bombs and CO2: All the ways a Disturbed Trump could Blow up the World

By Tom Engelhardt | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - He’s huge. Outsized. He fills the news hole at any moment of any day. His over-tanned face glows unceasingly in living rooms across…

Is Rouhani’s Reelection a step toward Democracy for Iran?

Ebrahim Deen | (Informed Comment) | - - Hassan Rouhani’s victory in Last Friday’s Iranian presidential election, by a large majority, portents a continuation of the country’s path toward global reengagement, both…

Anger and youth fan flames of terror – not race and religion

Simon Mabon | (The Conversation) | - - The bombing of Manchester Arena on May 22 struck the very heart of British society. It was a horrific, direct assault on the innocent…

Mosul curses ISIL corpses: “Beguiled by promises of Virgins, you’re Garbage now”

Special Correspondent | (Mosul) | (Niqash.org) | - - NIQASH’s Mosul correspondent left the city shortly after the extremist Islamic State group took over. But most of his family remained. After 34…

Allies Furious as Trump w/draws from G7 Climate Commitment, May leave Paris Accord

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Trump bombed at the G7 summit in Italy. Despite an "intense" discussion with Germany, France and the others, who made it clear as…

Trumpism: White Terrorist Murders 2 after harassing Muslim-American

TeleSur | - - According to one witness, the suspect was heard saying “get off the bus, and get out of the country because you don't pay taxes here.” Amidst rising rates…

Iraq Parliament Mulls ending Freedom of Assembly

By Afef Abrougui | ( Globalvoices.org) | - - When armed men in civilian clothes kidnapped journalist Afrah Shawqi from her home on 26 December 2016, journalists and activists quickly took to…

Who are Egypt’s Coptic Christians, ISIL’s latest Victims?

By Paul Rowe | (The Conversation) | - - Coptic Christians in Egypt have been attacked while traveling on pilgrimages and bombed while praying on Palm Sunday, amid an accelerating series of…

Top 5 Questions about Kushner’s back channel to Moscow

Retraining Workers for Climate Action: How the Light Gets In

H. Patricia Hynes | (Informed Comment) | - - Every now and then I re-visit these lines of the Canadian poet and songwriter, Leonard Cohen: Ring the bells that cannot ring Forget…

Roger Ailes: The Man Who Destroyed the News

By Neal Gabler | ( Billmoyers.com) | - - The founder of the right-wing network inflicted harm on the body politic that may be impossible to heal. Fox News creator and former…

Comeygate: How Orwell can Explain why Trump keeps Changing his Story

By Rebecca Gordon | ( Tomdispatch.com | - - The Trump administration seems intent on tossing recent history down the memory hole. Admittedly, Americans have never been known for their strong grasp…

Only Putin is happy with Trump’s NATO Bull-in-China-Shop Catastrophe

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) Back in 2016 the talking heads on tv kept expecting candidate Trump, who made headlines almost daily saying racist and offensive things, to "transition." Their theory…

Thousands protest against Trump in ‘hellhole’ Brussels

EurActiv.com | - - Thousands of protesters carrying effigies of Donald Trump marched through Brussels on Wednesday (24 May) after the US president arrived for talks with the EU and NATO.“Trump not…

Iran: Does the Rouhani Win Matters for Human Rights?

Iran: Does the Rouhani Win Matter for Human Rights?

By Tara Sepehri Far. | ( Human Rights Watch ) | - - In Second Term, Should Move on Rights Reforms When the 2017 election season kicked off April 21, Iranian President…

What Iranian women want: rights, jobs and a seat at the table

By Azadeh Davachi | (The Conversation) | - - Issues affecting women were conspicuously absent from Iran’s 2017 presidential election. That’s unless one finds useful the leading conservative candidate Hojjat al-Islam Ebrahim…

US Reputation under Trump Tanking, Costing Economy Billions

By Daniel Korschun, Boryana V Dimitrova, and Yoto V. Yotov | (The Conversation) | - - U.S. News and World Report recently published its annual “Best Countries” ranking, based on how thousands…

Pope to Trump: Climate Change is Real and we have to act in Solidarity

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Pope Francis gave Donald J. Trump a going away present after their meeting on Wednesday. It was a copy of his Encyclical on…

Boycott Trump! Hit him where it Hurts

By Mattea Kramer | ( Tomdispatch.com ) | - - In normal times, Dee from New York would have ordered her copy of The Handmaid’s Tale from Amazon, but these are not…

What is the Sunni-Shiite Divide into Which Trump just Stepped?

Ken Chitwood | (The Conversation) | - - In his address in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, May 21, while calling on Muslim leaders to lead the fight against terrorism, President Donald Trump…

Fascist, Go Home! After Bombing, Manchester Residents Shut Down Anti-Muslim Demo

TeleSur | - - “The people of Manchester don’t stand with your xenophobia and racism,” one man shouted at the English Defence League racists. In the aftermath of Monday's tragic bombing, the…

The Other Terrorism: Toxic CO2 Gas Promoted by Trump Budget, Shell

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Terrorism is properly defined as non-state actors using violence against civilians to achieve a political purpose. Some argue that this definition lets states…

Supreme Court Strikes down N. Carolina’s Racial Gerrymander

TeleSur | - - Ultra-conservative Justice Clarence Thomas sided with four liberal justices in the 5-3 majority decision. Yesterday the Supreme Court struck down North Carolina's congressional map. The court found the…

Trump, Saudi Arabia and yet another arms deal

Russell E. Lucas, Michigan State University The first stop on Donald Trump’s first trip as U.S. president was to Saudi Arabia. That was no accident. His decision was surely based on the…

Terror and Geopolitics: Manchester 2017 and 1996

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Manchester, UK, was hit with the deadliest bomb attack on Monday since a June Saturday morning in 1996, when a massive 3000 lb.…

Rouhani’s win a Victory for Reform, will Trump waste Opportunity?

By Shahram Akbarzadeh | (Informed Comment) | - - In Iran's election, Hassan Rouhani’s re-election was not a forgone conclusion. Criticism of Rouhani’s performance focused on growing unemployment, as the economy was…

Erdogan, Trump, the Russians and General Flynn: The Tangled Web

By Carl Max Kortepeter | (Informed Comment) | - - When Sally Yates testified that she had told the Trump Organization, before his appointment as National Security Adviser, that General Flynn was…

Was/Is there an Islamic Enlightenment? (de Bellaigue)

William Eichler interviews Christopher de Bellaigue | Informed Comment | - - Eichler: 1. In the conclusion to The Islamic Enlightenment you describe modern jihadists as “miracle-grow Muslims” who have been “incubated…

America Should stay the Course with Rouhani

By Robert Harvey | (Project Syndicate) | - - LONDON – Hassan Rouhani has won re-election as Iran’s president in a landslide, meaning that it is he who will be dealing with…

Trump on Islam: Neo-Orientalism and anti-Shi’ism

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Trump's speech on Islam, written by notorious Islamophobe Stephen Miller, who used to organize Orwellian Two Minutes Hate sessions against Muslims at Duke,…

Trump in Absolute Monarchy during Iran’s Election

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The spectacle of Trump and of cronies such as alt-Neo-Nazi Steve Bannon hobnobbing with the Saudi monarchy, of the president curtsying to King…

Alabama Passes Bill to Protect Confederate Monuments even at cost of Economy

TeleSur | - - Some Southern cities are rethinking the appropriateness of keeping such emblems on public property. Not Alabama. Alabama lawmakers on Friday approved a bill that prohibits the removal of…

Palestinians: ‘Day of Rage’ against Trump in occupied West Bank

Ma'an News Agency | - - RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Palestinian factions in the central occupied West Bank city of Ramallah have called upon the Palestinian people to partake in a "Day of…

If Trump can Hunt the Undocumented by Cell Phone, what can he do to You?

By Adam Schwartz | (Electronic Frontier Foundation) | - - In the latest sign of mission creep in domestic deployment of battlefield-strength surveillance technology, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) earlier this…

Wikileaks’ Assange claims Victory after Sweden drops Charges, Vows to Publish More

TeleSur | - - Swedish prosecutors dropped the rape investigation into WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Friday, saying the investigation had not been able to proceed because of legal obstacles. "Today is…

Are Iran and Saudi Arabia Heading Toward War?

By Mohammed Nuruzzaman | (Informed Comment) | - - Relations across the Persian Gulf are deteriorating fast. Iran and Saudi Arabia are once again at daggers drawn and sounding highly menacing to…

Disaster or Repair? Trump heads to Saudi for Islam Address

by Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Trump left Friday afternoon for Saudi Arabia, where he will be feted with steak and ketchup by the Saudi monarchy and will deliver…

Trump calls Special Counsel a “Witch Hunt”: But what is his relation to Russia?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Now that a Special Counsel (former FBI director Robert Mueller) has been appointed by the deputy head of the Department of Justice, it…

Was Chelsea Manning trying to stop the Endless War? Whistleblowing and Morality

By Peter Van Buren | (Tomdispatch.com) | <p>“My guilt will never go away,” former Marine Matthew Hoh explained to me. “There is a significant portion of me that doesn't believe it should…

Revival of Iraqi Communism among Youth alarms Shiite Militias

Mustafa Habib | (Niqash.org) | - - Last week’s kidnapping of seven activists in Baghdad could be another sign of increasing tensions between secular parties in Iraq and the country’s ruling religious…

The Iranian Election: It’s the Economy, Stupid!

By Stella Morgana | The Conversation | - - On May 19, Iranians will choose their next president and determine what direction the country will take. The race has become tighter now…

Why Watergate is not the Right Analogy for the Trump Constitutional Crisis

By Neal Gabler | (Billmoyers.com) | - - Contrary to the myth, Nixon’s resignation was anything but the inevitable consequence of a powerful constitutional juggernaut. A witness indicates H.R. Haldeman, Nixon's chief…

GOP not the party of ‘Security’ as Intel Allies Flee Trump

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Globally, US security partners are beginning to rethink sharing sensitive intelligence with the United States. That decisio should worry all Americans, since it…

Could Comey Memo lead to Impeachment of Trump?

Jon Queally, staff writer | ( Commondreams.org) | - - "Donald Trump wanted to stop the FBI investigation, which is the definition of obstruction of justice," says Sen. Bernie Sanders. President Donald…

Erdogan & Trump: Can the Confict over Syria be Resolved?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Two really big egos met Tuesday at the White House, as Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan consulted with Donald Trump. The two countries are…

Should the Pentagon be Propping up Dictatorships around the World?

By David Vine | ( Tomdispatch.com ) | - - Much outrage has been expressed in recent weeks over President Donald Trump’s invitation for a White House visit to Rodrigo Duterte, president…

CO2 putting Oceans on verge of Oxygen Starvation for next Million Years

University of Exeter | - - Scientists believe the modern ocean is “on the edge of anoxia” – and the Exeter researchers say it is “critical” to limit carbon emissions to prevent…

Even Conservative SCOTUS can’t Stomach N Carolina Voter Suppression

by Andrea Germanos, staff writer | Commondreams.org | - - North Carolina's Voter ID Law Meets 'Its Much-Deserved Demise' Decision by U.S. Supreme Court not to review appeals court decision on 2013…

“Can you believe the World we Live in?” Trump doesn’t understand “Classified”

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Donald Trump is most probably not a Russian spy. He may have unusual connections to Russian businessmen (that isn't clear), and seems to…

It’s the wrong time to mock Republican voter outrage

By Ian Berman | (Informed Comment) | - - The Waking of the American Voter As voters express their anger at Republican politician town halls, Democrats are rejoicing saying I told you…

The Refugee Crisis and the Renewal of Our Humanity

By Gregory Alonso Pirio | (Informed Comment) | - - The colossal refugee crisis confronting humankind today has created an unprecedented opportunity to awaken our sense of common humanity and compassion. No…

Clapper Lied & Spied, now charges Trump w/ assault on Gov’t Institutions

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - During the past week we've been subjected to hours of testimony by or interviews with James Clapper, former Director of National Intelligence. On…

Trump and Israel/ Palestine: Art of the Deal or End of 2-States?

By Ali R. Abootalebi | (Informed Comment) | - - President Trump recently told the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), Mahmoud Abbas, that “I’ve always heard that perhaps the toughest deal to make…

Mosul on My Mind: What It Really Means to Be on a Flattening Planet

By Tom Engelhardt | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - The closest I ever got to Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, was 1,720.7 miles away -- or so the Internet assures me. Although…

Deadly Cholera Outbreak in Yemen Under Saudi Bombing; State of Emergency Declared

TeleSur | - - Authorities warned that the cholera outbreak could lead to an "unprecedented disaster" if not managed immediately. Officials in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, controlled by the armed Houthi…

GOP Greatest Single Threat to Mothers on Mother’s Day

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - I know it is sort of gauche to politicize Mother's Day. But then politicians politicize family values all the time. And besides, the…

American Workers in Age of Trump just aren’t being Paid Fairly

By Josh Hoxie | ( Otherwords.org ) | - - Imploring people to simply work harder ignores the fact that most jobs don’t pay enough to get ahead. The gap between the…

US Nears $100B Arms Deal for Saudi Arabia: White House Official

TeleSur | - - The official said the deal will be good for the U.S. economy. The United States is close to completing a series of arms deals forSaudi Arabia totaling more…

Is China Now the Adult in the Room? Xi and Macron Consult

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Donald Trump preferred the Neofascist Marine Le Pen as president of France, who wanted to pull out of NATO and the European Union.…

Why the Weaponization of Health Care in the Syrian War threatens Us All

By Xavier Symons | (The Conversation) | - - Few events in Syria have attracted as much attention as the alleged chemical weapon attack on the town of Khan Shaykhun. The callous…

After Mosul: The Coming ISIL Apocalypse in al-Anbar Desert

By Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) | - - While fighting against the Islamic State group drags on in Mosul, tribal and military forces in Anbar are preparing for what will…

Russians Troll Trump, release Photos of Meeting

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - CNN says White House officials were furious on Wednesday when the Russian press (the only journalists invited to the meeting of Trump with…

Dakota Access Pipeline already Leaking Oil & not Completed

TeleSur | - - Even before it is fully operational, and after months of demonstrations by Indigenous and environmental groups that warned of the same, the Dakota Access Pipeline has already suffered…

Are we Monsters?

By Neal Gabler | ( Billmoyers.com) | - - We are a failed country because we have lost our compassion and sense of community. Warner Brothers and Universal have both been dusting…

How America’s Myth of the Infallible Generals gets us in Trouble

By Danny Sjursen | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - More, more, more. I was guilty of it myself. Commanding a small cavalry troop of about 85 soldiers in southwest Kandahar Province back…

The Sadism of creeping Dictatorship

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - One of the classic techniques of dictatorship is humiliation, a manifestation of the sadism of the regime. Most people want to avoid being…

Is Trump Palestine’s New Hope?

Daoud Kuttab. | (Project Syndicate) | - - RAMALLAH – On his recent visit to Washington, DC, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas surprised many by heaping praise on US President Donald Trump. Speaking…

Also Fired: Scientists at Environmental Protection Agency Review Board

Cenk Uygur & Ana Kasparian | ( The Young Turks) | (Video Report) | - - "Scott Pruitt has let go of scientists and replaced them with industry types. Cenk Uygur and…

China cancelled 100 Coal Plants but Trump going the other Way

By Oscar Reyes | (Otherwords.org) | - - States that invest in renewables are reaping the rewards. Those that stick to coal are faltering. When you’re in a hole, it’s usually best…

Are Feminism and Islam Mutually Exclusive? Fighting Hislam

By Susan Carland | (The Conversation) | - - Islam is not unique in having theological interpretations that centre on men. Christian, Jewish and Buddhist women (and men) have grappled with the…

Which Middle East Authoritarian Leader is Trump most Like?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Trump's abrupt and virtually unprecedented firing of FBI director Jim Comey raises the question of whether he and his far right wing circle…

Iran Election: Rouhani charges Rivals are ‘Executioners & Jailers’ in Risky Move

By Golnaz Esfandiari | ( RFE/RL ) | - - Less than two weeks before voting in Iran's presidential election, incumbent Hassan Rohani has risked crossing the political establishment's "red lines" in…

China’s covering a Football field with Solar Panels Every Hour in Quest to End Coal

By Janet Xuanli Liao | (The Conversation) | - - China’s remarkable growth over the past three decades has elevated it to global superpower status. But its economic miracle has also attracted…

How Many Defeats have Americans bought with $5 Trillion in War Costs?

By William D. Hartung | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - When Donald Trump wanted to “do something” about the use of chemical weapons on civilians in Syria, he had the U.S. Navy…

Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes in US Rose 57 Percent in 2016: Report

TeleSur | - - Anti-Muslim hate crimes in the United States rose by a staggering 57 percent in 2016, according to a new report released Tuesday by Muslim civil rights group Council…

John Oliver: Equal access to Internet once More Threatened

John Oliver | HBO This Week Tonight | (Video Clip) | - - "Equal access to online information is once again under serious threat. John Oliver encourages internet commenters to voice their…

NSAgate: Trump was warned (by Yates and Obama), and yet He Persisted

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The Trump administration is running as hard and fast as it can away from Michael Flynn, whom Trump briefly appointed National Security adviser.…

Who are the Children suing Trump over Climate Future?

By John Light | ( BillMoyers.com) | - - Congress and the White House aren't going to address the climate crisis anytime soon. Will judges? “We are not going to wait until…

Pope Francis, Islam and Peace-Building

Interview by Jayson Casper | (Informed Comment) | - - Dr. Kamal Boraiqa is a lecturer at al-Azhar University and a member of al-Azhar Center for Dialogue, the al-Azhar Observer for Combating…

Iran: Will Voters’ Economic Gloom Doom Rouhani’s Reelection Bid?

By Nader Habibi | (The Conversation) | - - Markets breathed a collective sigh of relief after Emmanuel Macron won the French presidency. But there’s another vote this month that’s just as…

What will new French President Macron do about Syria & ISIL?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Now that Emmanuel Macron is president of France, it is worthwhile asking what sort of foreign policy he would be likely to pursue.…

Bernie Sanders Talks Dems, Trump, Palestine, Syria (AJ+)

Dena Takruri | (AJ+) | (Video News report) | - - "Senator Bernie Sanders unfiltered – in this AJ+ interview with Dena Takruri, he opens up about the Democratic Party, President Trump,…

Fake President

By Neal Gabler | ( Billmoyers.com) | - - Donald Trump is master of perception, altering reality to distract the public from his lack of character. President Donald Trump shows an executive…

Israel to vote on Bill making it a “Jewish State,” demoting Arabic

Ma'an News Agency | - - BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- An Israeli cabinet committee approved a contested bill on Sunday seeking to enshrine Israel’s status as a Jewish state into the country’s central…

End the Imperial Presidency: Do we Really Want Trump Assassinating and Launching Wars at Will?

By Andrew Bacevich | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - Since the late eighteenth century, the United States has been involved in an almost ceaseless string of wars, interventions, punitive expeditions, and other…

It was ISIL, not Hackers, who Hijacked French Election

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - That hackers, most likely Russia-linked, were trying to throw the French election to Marine Le Pen this weekend by releasing thousands of emails…

GOP Rep. Labrador: “Nobody dies b/c they don’t have… Health Care”

DeMarco Morgan | (CBSN) | (Video News Report) | - - "An Idaho lawmaker is facing intense scrutiny after defending the GOP health care bill. During a town hall, Rep. Raul Labrador…

Climate change is turning dehydration into a deadly epidemic

By Jane Palmer | Mosaic, the science of life | - - A mysterious kidney disease is striking down labourers across the world and climate change is making it worse. Jane Palmer…

As Russians Hack, France decides if it Hates Foreigners

Richard Fogarty | (The Conversation) | - - On April 24, the day after her second-place finish in the first round of the French presidential elections, Marine Le Pen thundered against her…

Wind Power and the quest for 100% Renewables in age of Trump

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Are some major industrial countries only a decade or two from getting all their electricity from non-fossil fuel sources? Since it is the…

Can Iraq’s Sunni Politicians agree on post-ISIL Future?

Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) | - - "Iraq’s Sunni Muslims desperately need their politicians to present a united front and act in their interests. But the politicians cannot agree on…

Trump “Religious Freedom” Order Opens Way for LGBT Bias

Human Rights Watch | - - License for Actions Harmful to Women, LGBT People (Washington, DC) – An executive order issued by President Donald Trump on May 4, 2017, opens the way…

Trumpcare is the best Advertisement for Nationalizing Insurance

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The sadism and greed of the American Republican Party was on full display Thursday, as the House GOP voted to destroy Obamacare and…

Dems to GOP After Trumpcare Vote: hey, hey, say Goodbye (in Next Election)

By Lauren McCauley, staff writer | ( Commondreams.org) | - - President Trump celebrated with House Republicans in the White House Rose Garden amid growing call to 'make them pay' As Republicans…

Syria: Rebels denounce De-escalation Zones ok’d by Russia, Iran, Turkey

TeleSur | - - Signatories to the agreement say that there should be a cessation of hostilities in safe zones designated by the three powers by Friday. Russia, Turkey and Iran on…

American Amnesia in the Garden of War

By John Dower | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - Some years ago, a newspaper article credited a European visitor with the wry observation that Americans are charming because they have such short…

Picture of the Day: Iranian Woman Tambourine Player, 1848

British Museum | Persian Costumes | - - "Portrait of a young woman; single-page painting mounted on album folio. A young woman kneels on a yellow and white carpet while holding a…

How President Bannon’s Whiteboard Sank Trump

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Trump's approval ratings are in the toilet compared to any other modern president at this stage of his presidency. At least some of…

Dear Director Comey: We’re Nauseous too, at your Disingenuous Self-Defense

Sam Seder | (Majority Report) | (Video News Clip) | - - "In this Majority Report clip, we watch FBI Director James Comey defend his decision to send a letter to Congress…

Extreme: Missouri, Arkansas Floods smash Century-Old Records

Via | The Watchers: Watching the World Evolve and Transform | - - Historic flooding hits Missouri and Arkansas, more heavy rain on the way Parts of Missouri and Arkansas are experiencing…

Uh, oh: French Left can’t bring itself to Vote for Macron

TeleSur | - - TeleSUR spoke with two French voters to discuss Sunday's second-round presidential election in France and lesser evil voting. French voters are confronted with a difficult choice on Sunday's runoff presidential election:…

India’s Electric-Car Plans could Leave Trump & US in Dust

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - India's announcement that it wants to have its automobile fleet go completely electric by 2030 is a bigger deal than it seems on…

Top 3 Ways the People can build a Trump-Free, Carbon-Free Future

By Jeremy Brecher | ( Waging Nonviolence ) | - - As the thousands of foot-weary protesters look back on the Peoples Climate March in Washington, D.C. — and its scores of…

Iran Committed to Nuclear Deal, Opens Bonanza to European Investors

EurActiv | euroefe.es | translated by Sam Morgan | - - The head of the Iranian atomic energy agency (AEOI) said on Saturday (29 April) that his country will honour its commitments…

Power, Water, Music: Mosul comes back to Life

Special Correspondent | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) | - - Locals in the parts of Mosul, from which extremists have been pushed out, are celebrating small signs of returning life: For one thing,…

Trump Empire-Dynasty Expands via White House Ties

By Nomi Prins | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - President Trump, his children and their spouses, aren’t just using the Oval Office to augment their political legacy or secure future riches. Okay,…

Kimmel Tearfully pleads for Affordable Care Act in wake of Son’s Heart Defect

Jimmy Kimmel | (ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live) | (Video Clip) | - - "Jimmy and his wife Molly welcomed their second child together, William “Billy” Kimmel. At three days old, Billy had…

Trump’s Real sin in DC is not distinguishing between “Good” and “Bad” Dictators

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Donald J. Trump's peculiar comments about and relationship with dictators and loonies among foreign leaders have upset a range of observers, from sincere…

Hamas in new charter accepts 1967 borders for Palestinian state

Ma'an News Agency | - - BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- The Hamas movement announced its new charter Monday evening, presenting an acceptance of a Palestinian state along the 1967 "Green Line" border, while…

Priebus: Trump Could Amend Constitution to Abolish 1st Amendment

TeleSur | - - A constitutional amendment to stem negative coverage of any administration would require a supermajority in both houses of Congress. U.S. President Donald Trumps's chief of staff, Reince Priebus,…

Coultergate and the Truth About Campus Speech

David Faris | (Informed Comment) | - - The cancellation of human outrage machine Ann Coulter’s speech at the University of California-Berkeley has generated yet another round of pearl-clutching and hand-wringing about…

Trump sends US Troops to Patrol Turkish-Syrian Border as Ankara Threatens US Allies

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Only one fighting force in Syria is practically speaking taking on Daesh (ISIS, ISIL) on the ground, and that is the Syrian Democratic…

Press Freedom in Middle East Cratering in Age of Brutal Dictatorships

By Brian Whitaker | ( Al-Bab.com ) | - - Among the 22 countries belonging to the Arab League, 17 are ranked as "bad" or "very bad" in the annual World Press…

Hassan Minhaj was told not to Roast Trump, But did Anyway (WH Correspondents)

Hassan Minhaj | (White House Correspondents Dinner) | (Video Clip) | - - "Daily Show correspondent Hasan Minhaj took full advantage of Donald Trump's absence by taking aim at the president and…

20 Million People Could ‘Starve to Death’ in Next Six Months

By Baher Kamal | (Inter Press Service) | - - ROME (IPS) - Urgent action is needed to save the lives of people facing famine in North Eastern Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan…