Daily Archives: December 26, 2021

2021-12-26: News Headlines

_____ (2021-12-26). On Contact: Slow-Motion Execution Of Julian Assange. popularresistance.org On the show, Chris Hedges discusses the torture of Julian Assange with his father, John Shipton. | Julian Assange committed the empire's greatest sin — he exposed it as a criminal enterprise. He documented its lies, callous disregard for human life, rampant corruption, and innumerable war crimes. Republican or Democrat, Conservative or Labour, Trump or Biden — it does not matter. The goons who oversee the empire sing from the same satanic songbook. Empires always kill those who inflict deep and serious wounds.

Dr. Anjum Sarfraz (2021-12-26). AUKUS Leading to Nuclear Arms Race in Indo — Pacific Region. moderndiplomacy.eu To contain Chinese military and economic, influence especially in the Indo — Pacific region, USA and its allies are making all efforts including the supply of nuclear submarines (subs) to Australia a trusted associate. On 15 September 2021 Prime Minister of UK Boris Johnson, US President Joseph Biden and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison issued …

Editor2 (2021-12-26). Ukraine in the Great Game. orinocotribune.com By Alexander Dugin — Dec 21, 2021 | Throughout history, Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia were intertwined with a set of solid cultural, political, and economic links, to the point that the division did not appear more than mere administrative under Soviet jurisdiction. But it all changed after the collapse of the Union. | The escalation between the West and Russia | Today, under Joe Biden's neoconservative and ultra-globalist administration, relations between Russia and the United States are so strained that humanity is on the verge not of a Cold War (which has long been ongoing), but of a nuclear war, World War…

Timothy Alexander Guzman (2021-12-26). Poking the Russian Bear: US-NATO Aggression and Russia's Red Line. globalresearch.ca Following the Taliban's victory over US-NATO forces in Afghanistan, Washington is walking into another death trap, but this time on Russia's borders with the neighboring Ukraine. So now, Washington's non-partisan bureaucrats and the Military-Industrial Complex are calling for ways to …

Julia Conley (2021-12-26). Desmond Tutu, Fierce Opponent of South African and Israeli Apartheid, Dies at 90. truthout.org Leaving behind a legacy of fighting for oppressed people in South Africa and around the world, Archbishop Desmond Tutu died Sunday at age 90 in Cape Town, South Africa. The cause was reportedly cancer. | Advocates for human rights, health equity, economic justice, and nonviolence honored Tutu, who helped lead the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which was formed afterwards. | The Elders, the independent group of global leaders working for j…

Editor2 (2021-12-26). The Socialist Program Red Star Over the Third World w/ Vijay Prashad: Lessons of Soviet History — Part 2. orinocotribune.com This interview is an episode of | Russia's October Revolution in 1917 and the rise of Soviet power rev…

Stephen Sefton (2021-12-26). Nicaragua — National Reality, Neocolonial Delusion. orinocotribune.com By Stephen Sefton and Jorge Capelan — Dec 22, 2021 | An academic called Jonah Walters has recently published a couple of attacks on the political and economic model being worked out in Nicaragua under the country's Sandinista government led by President Daniel Ortega. One attack published by the North American Congress on Latin America "Ortega's Developmentalism Is Based on the "Popular Economy"—But What Does that Mean?" alleges that the unquestionable economic democratization of Nicaragua's economy is in fact a mirage, in reality reinforcing neoliberal patterns of oligarchic and corporate economic pow…

Newsroom (2021-12-26). The Future of Work is About People, not Tech. moderndiplomacy.eu The future of work—with advanced technologies and new working arrangements—is here and is changing economic opportunities and employment relationships. However, according to the 2021 APEC Economic Policy Report, certain economic structures, laws and institutions across APEC remain products of the past. The report highlighted four megadrivers of the future of work. These are technological change, climate …

Olga Malik (2021-12-26). Pakistan—Russia Gas Stream: Opportunities and Risks of New Flagship Energy Project. moderndiplomacy.eu Russia's Yekaterinburg hosted the 7th meeting of the Russian-Pakistani Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation on November 24—26, 2021. Chaired by Omar Ayub Khan, Pakistan's Minister for Economic Affairs, and Nikolai Shulginov, Russia's Minister of Energy, the meeting was attended by around 70 policy makers, heads of key industrial companies and businessmen …

Sheikh Fakhar-e-Alam (2021-12-26). Religious Tourism in Pakistan: The Case of Sikhism & Buddhism. moderndiplomacy.eu Religious tourism plays an important role in reviving the country's economic activity through promoting religious-based tourism. Realizing the economic and political importance of this sector, the Government has taken ample measures to support this industry. Hence, with Government support and improved law and order situation, religious-based tourism in Pakistan is flourishing and attracting different communities. …

Stephen Macekura (2021-12-26). Mismeasuring progress: A critique of the growth paradigm. zcomm.org Historian Stephen J. Macekura traces the origins of the growth paradigm and explains why we are still in the grips of his powerful-but-flawed economic idea today…

_____ (2021-12-26). Mongolia is Among Russia's Key Partners in Asia. journal-neo.org Russia and Mongolia are close neighbors, and their immediate geographic proximity has determined the mutual geopolitical pull of Russia and Mongolia, an objective contributing to political, military, trade and economics, cultural, and other bilateral ties. Russian-Mongolian relations, characterized by traditional good-neighborliness, are comprehensive, oriented to further development in the spirit of strategic partnership, based on …

MD Staff (2021-12-26). How wind power is transforming communities in Viet Nam. moderndiplomacy.eu In two provinces of Viet Nam, a quiet transformation is taking place, driven by the power of renewable energy. Thien Nghiep Commune, a few hundred kilometres from Ho Chi Min City, is a community of just over 6,000 people — where for years, people relied largely on farming, fishing and seasonal labour to make ends …

_____ (2021-12-26). What's Really Causing Inflation & How We Should Deal With It. popularresistance.org While times have been getting harder for workers, it is clear that capitalists (or "big business") have been doing very well. It would seem as though everyone is against inflation. But the real problem is not that prices have been increasing but that wages have not kept up with this. It is important to look not only at why inflation has increased but at the very different question of why wages have not kept up with it.

Hadas Thier (2021-12-26). Businesses Have Manufactured Inflation Fear to Protect Profits Amid Rising Wages. truthout.org For weeks, a high-pitched panic about inflation has infused the mainstream media, most absurdly in Up until recently, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell pushed back against this kind of narrative, arguing that rising prices were a s…

Ellen Brown (2021-12-26). The Real Antidote to Inflation: Stoking the Fire Without Burning Down the Barn. globalresearch.ca The Fed has options for countering the record inflation the U.S. is facing that are more productive and less risky than raising interest rates. | The Federal Reserve is caught between a rock and a hard place. Inflation grew by 6.8% …

David Waltham (2021-12-26). We should ban all new oil and gas fields. zcomm.org It would be much better for people and planet if there were no further investments in the first place…

_____ (2021-12-26). The Big Business Behind Travel Nursing. popularresistance.org As the first wave of Covid-19 hit the United States, Jen, a 53-year-old nurse struggling to pay her bills, received an intriguing message. "THE TIME HAS COME TO DEPLOY AT INCREDIBLY HIGH RATES," read the mass text from Krucial Staffing, sent to nurses nationwide in March 2020 and forwarded to Jen by a colleague. Jen (a pseudonym used to protect her from retaliation from employers) could barely believe the wages promised by the Kansas-based healthcare staffing firm. As part of its massive recruitment drive during the first wave of Covid-19, Krucial was paying $10,000 a week to nurses willing to travel‚Ä…

Liberation Staff (2021-12-26). Socialists distribute essentials, build working-class solidarity during holiday season. liberationnews.org These actions include coat and clothing distributions, toy and gift drives, serving breakfast in homeless shelters, and providing household essentials to working-class residents.

Fight Back (2021-12-26). FRSO greetings to Communist Party of the Philippines on 53rd anniversary. fightbacknews.org From: Freedom Road Socialist Organization | To: Communist Party of the Philippines | Dear Comrades, | The leadership and members of Freedom Road Socialist Organization send our warm and militant greetings to the Communist Party of the Philippines on the occasion of the of your 53rd anniversary and we wish the CPP every success in developing the people's democratic revolution. | Working and oppressed people around the world, including here in the U.S., take inspiration from heroic struggle of the people of the Philippines and the great advances made by the CPP. Your party has grown from a relatively small organiza…

Peoples Dispatch (2021-12-26). Attack on protesting oil refinery workers in Greece condemned. peoplesdispatch.org On December 21, police attacked the workers of Kavala Petroleum who were protesting at their plant against threats of layoffs and inadequate safety measures. The All Workers Militant Front of Greece and the Communist Party of Greece have condemned these attacks…

Fight Back (2021-12-26). A great read from Mao Zedong on his birthday. fightbacknews.org To mark the 128th anniversary of the birth of Chinese revolutionary Mao Zedong on December 26, 2021, Fight Back News Service is circulating his famous 1939 article "In memory of Norman Bethune." | Comrade Norman Bethune, a member of the Communist Party of Canada, was around fifty when he was sent by the Communist Parties of Canada and the United States to China; he made light of travelling thousands of miles to help us in our War of Resistance Against Japan. He arrived in Yenan in the spring of last year, went to work in the Wutai Mountains, and to our great sorrow died a martyr at his post. What kind of spirit i…

Ana Perdigón (2021-12-25). Venezuela's Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 Evaluates Measures to Deal with Omicron. orinocotribune.com Venezuela's presidential task force for the prevention and control of COVID-19 met this Thursday, December 23, to evaluate mechanisms to deal with the Omicron variant that has recently been detected in the country. | The meeting, chaired by Executive Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, was held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Economy, Finance and Foreign Trade. | Various officials of the government were also present at the meeting, including the Minister for Health, Carlos Alvarado; the Minister for Communication and Information, Freddy àëáñez; and the Minister for Science and Technology, Gabriela Jiménez…

Syed Zain Abbas Rizvi (2021-12-25). Russian Economic Policy: The Antithesis of Turkey's Inimical Approach. moderndiplomacy.eu In my last article, I discussed the illogical approach of the Turk premier to counter inflation. The dogmatic policies of President Erdogan are driving the Turkish economy into the ground. It is fascinating to witness the antipode to Turkey's immature dovish stance embodied by Russia. Last week, the Bank of Russia — the Russian central …

MD Staff (2021-12-25). Denmark: Focus on climate policy and labour market inclusion. moderndiplomacy.eu Denmark's economy is enjoying one of the quickest post-COVID recoveries of OECD countries. While it is important to stay vigilant to further virus outbreaks, policy can now focus on advancing the country's climate ambitions and expanding employment opportunities for low-skilled, foreign-born and female workers, according to a new OECD report. Danish economic activity rebounded rapidly …

MD Staff (2021-12-25). Pandemic Drives Need for Technology Adoption Among SMEs but Barriers Remain. moderndiplomacy.eu A survey by World Economic Forum indicates that the COVID-19 pandemic has increased demand for more adoption and integration of digital technology among small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). However, they face numerous barriers to adopting technology at a critical time of need. While 97% of global companies have accelerated adoption of technology to get …

Robert J. Burrowes (2021-12-25). Are We Human? Are We Free? Defeating the World Economic Forum's 'Great Reset' before It Destroys Us. globalresearch.ca Governments are not driving 'The Great Reset'; it is an initiative of the global elite and governments are simply elite puppets. | Resistance requires solidarity as well as strategically-focused grassroots actions directed against the financial elite's 'Great Reset' agenda.

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2021-12-25). Cuba and China Sign Cooperation Plan for Joint Promotion of Belt & Road Initiative. libya360.wordpress.com Cuba-China bilateral economic relations have hit an important milestone with the signing of a Cooperation Plan for the joint promotion of the Silk and Road Initiative. The document was signed on Friday, between the governments of Cuba and China, by Cuban Deputy Prime Minister, Ricardo Cabrisas, and President of National Development and Reform Commission, He…

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2021-12-25). The 2020-21 Worldwide Corona Crisis: Destroying Civil Society, Engineered Economic Depression, Global Coup d'État and the "Great Reset" globalresearch.ca We are at the crossroads of one of the most serious crises in modern history. We are living history, yet our understanding of the flow of events since January 2020 has been blurred. Worldwide, people have been misled both by their governments and the media.

Eric Zuesse (2021-12-25). China's success against covid dwarfs The West's. Here's how & why. moderndiplomacy.eu Libertarians/neoliberals in The West can't believe the enormous extent of China's success at keeping down the rates of disease, and of death, and of unemployment, from covid-19, because China's policies on covid are, and have been, the exact opposite of libertarian/neoliberal. (What's called "libertarian" in America is called "neoliberal" throughout the rest of the world.) …

Yanis Varoufakis (2021-12-25). 4. Flat management, democratic planning and a basic income. zcomm.org Debate on a postcapitalism world…

Newsroom (2021-12-25). Iraq launches activities to combat child labour as part of nation-wide campaign. moderndiplomacy.eu The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and the International Labour Organization kicked off a series of activities that support a nation-wide campaign to tackle the worst forms of child labour in the country. The campaign, which will target over 10,000 children, their families and guardians, teachers, employers, and the media, includes awareness raising sessions …

Editor2 (2021-12-25). How Public Workers Can Stop the Privatization of Everything. orinocotribune.com By Steve Early — Dec 21, 2021 | In new book,The Privatization of Everything, Cohen and Mikaelian, describe and debunk the vast array of privatization schemes that now litter the landscape, from private prisons and charter schools to for-profit water treatment and trash collection. | Several years ago, Don Cohen, a former central labor council staffer from San Diego, appeared on a panel discussing the privatization threats faced by union members across the country. He and other speakers were addressing a conference of state, county, and municipal workers represented by the Communications Workers of America (C…

fernando_santamaria (2021-12-25). Ordering my thoughts about the "Back Better Act" zcomm.org I've been trying to read the history of the processing of "The Back Better Act" in the Wikipedia. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Build_Back_Better_Act?wprov=sfti1). The Bill derived (it was an extracted part) from the American Jobs Plan, together with the Law for Investment in Infrastructure and Labor, and was part of a package of 3.5 trillion dollars, (later reduced to

Frida Berrigan (2021-12-25). The Climate Won't Survive Our Current Appetite for Consumerism and Consumption. truthout.org Confession time: this year, I don't want to buy my kids anything for Christmas. Big one, right? Okay, let me soften that just a bit. I have bought a few modest, useful things. But that's it! No new games, no new toys, no new clothes (other than socks)… nothing. They already have too much. We have too much. Our nation is drowning in stuff and, in reality, need almost none of it. | There, I've said it! It feels good to get that off my chest, even if it makes me sound like a cold-hearted Grin…

_____ (2021-12-25). The Real Antidote To Inflation. popularresistance.org The Federal Reserve is caught between a rock and a hard place. Inflation grew by 6.8% in November, the fastest in 40 years, a trend the Fed has now acknowledged is not "transitory." The conventional theory is that inflation is due to too much money chasing too few goods, so the Fed is under heavy pressure to "tighten" or shrink the money supply. Its conventional tools for this purpose are to reduce asset purchases and raise interest rates. But corporate debt has risen by $1.3 trillion just since early 2020; so if the Fed raises rates, a massive wave of defaults is likely to result. According to financial advisor…

Luis Feliz Leon (2021-12-25). Warrior Met Coal Miners Are Spending Christmas 2021 on Strike. truthout.org This article was first published by This Christmas, as millions of families settle in to adorn fir trees, the children of striking coal miners in Alabama have asked mainly for practical gifts. Shoes and clothes top their lists, followed by Barbies and Rainbow High dolls, Legos, Nerf guns, and makeup kits. | Roughly 300 children will receive these gifts through donations collected by the Min…

Anonymous Contributor (2021-12-25). Help Save Spartacus Books in Vancouver, BC. itsgoingdown.org Call to support long-running radical infoshop and bookstore Spartacus Books in so-called Vancouver, BC. Spartacus Books is a non-profit, volunteer and collectively run infoshop on unceded Coast Salish territories. We have been running for almost 50 years and provide access to radical books and zines that are hard to find anywhere else in so-called Vancouver,…

Bejoy Sebastian (2021-12-25). Nothing left of democracy in Hong Kong. moderndiplomacy.eu Hong Kong is no longer what it was known for a few years back. The Chinese Communist Party continues to dismantle the city's democratic ethos, the latest being the drama of Legislative Council polls. Beijing has also managed to erase its bloody past from public memory. *** A week ago, on December 19, the people …

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