Daily Archives: February 1, 2022

2022-02-01: News Headlines

_____ (2022-02-01). Cuba And The World Demand Lifting Of US Blockade. popularresistance.org This Sunday, January 30, on the streets of Cuba and other parts of the world, the demand for lifting the illegal US blockade against Cuba prevailed. This came just days after the 60th anniversary of the officialization of this hostile policy against the Caribbean island. | According to the Twitter profile of the Cuban Foreign Affairs Ministry, from the cities of Santa Clara in the center of the country, and Bayamo in the east, the family of the Antillean nation joined a caravan that demanded the end of the economic, commercial and financial siege. "Compatriots residing in Italy and friends of #Cuba build #Puentes…

Staff (2022-02-01). Role of Workers' Productive Councils in Venezuela's Economic Recovery—Interview with Manuel Páez. orinocotribune.com On February 19, 2020, President Nicolás Maduro decreed an energy emergency and a state of exception in the country's hydrocarbon industry, which led to the creation of the General Staff of the Workers' Productive Councils (CPTT). Manuel Páez, who belongs to the presidential commission of the CPTT for the hydrocarbon sector, in an interview with àöltimas Noticias, explained that there are "71 colleagues who were assigned (by the president and the working class itself) the task of directing the transformation of the industry… presenting a new management model, which is basically collective management." | Páe…

WSWS (2022-02-01). Poverty in Germany: 2021 report exposes profit-before-lives policy. wsws.org 13.4 million Germans, or 16.1 percent of the population, lived in poverty in the first year of the pandemic, 200,000 more than in 2019.

WSWS (2022-02-01). Omicron disaster intensifies political instability in Australia. wsws.org With little popular support for the Labor Party, except in the negative sense of wanting to oust the Coalition, there are mounting fears in the ruling class that any election will result in an unstable, minority government.

WSWS (2022-02-01). Workers Struggles: The Americas. wsws.org Longshore workers are battling attacks on jobs, working conditions and pay, with inflation rampaging across South America.

deweylaura (2022-02-01). Marxist IQ: Black History Month. cpusa.org February is Black History Month. This month is of great importance, as the forces of racism and reaction, led by the Republican Party, are attempting to make Black history once more invisible in the history of the United States. Today we see in Republican-controlled states legislation banning the teaching of critical race theory in …

Sarah Hathway (2022-02-01). Socialist: 'Government neglect to blame for COVID-19 crisis in aged care'. greenleft.org.au The Socialist Alliance candidate Sue Bull said said the federal government hand-out to aged care workers won't solve the mounting pandemic death toll among the aged. Sarah Hathway reports.

Alex Miller (2022-02-01). Socialist Green New Deal — Scottish style. greenleft.org.au Alex Miller reviews a new booklet from the Scottish Socialist Party that makes the case for a socialist green new deal.

WSWS (2022-02-01). The fight for Trotskyism and the political foundations of the World Socialist Web Site. wsws.org The World Socialist Web Site is publishing today the text of a report delivered by David North 25 years ago, on February 1, 1997, motivating a decision to end publication of the SEP's printed newspaper and replace it with an international website.

WSWS (2022-01-31). The Democratic Party spearheads war drive against Russia. wsws.org While public opinion overwhelmingly opposes war with Russia over Ukraine, the Democrats are leading a bipartisan campaign of economic, political and military provocations that threatens to trigger a nuclear war.

Global Research News (2022-01-31). Selected Articles: Press Stunned as Ukraine President Zelensky Points Finger at West. globalresearch.ca Dear Readers, | As everyone faces difficult times, the company which deals with the fulfillment of book sales on behalf of Global Research is no longer able to provide its services. We are unfortunately suspending the sale of print books until …

WSWS (2022-01-31). Ukraine war would threaten regional and global food prices. wsws.org A disruption of Ukrainian wheat and grain exports would be especially damaging to countries such as Afghanistan, Sudan, Yemen, Libya, Lebanon, Indonesia, Malaysia and Bangladesh.

Peoples Dispatch (2022-01-31). Progressive sections in Czech Republic protest plans to dispatch ammunition to Ukraine. peoplesdispatch.org The Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSCM) and other left-wing groups have condemned the pro-war policy of the Czech government and demanded de-escalation of tensions in Europe…

Sadiyah Garrett (2022-01-31). Ukraine crisis: What's at stake for the UK? nationofchange.org Britain — like other western powers — is coming to Ukraine's aid. It's threatening economic sanctions against Russia if it invades. It's providing Ukraine with anti-tank weapons and armoured vehicles. It's promising to deploy British forces to eastern European members of the Nato military alliance if Russian troops cross Ukraine's borders. But why is the …

_____ (2022-01-31). How Erosion of Social Cohesion Makes the World a More Dangerous Place. strategic-culture.org The main characters of the global game are dealing mostly unprepared with the contradictions of the future world, Claudio Gallo writes. | As the old joke says: capitalism's centuries are numbered. Everybody knows that Marx's millenarian predictions went wrong: the New Man didn't come, and we are still here in a world divided between the haves and have nots, as Hemingway titled his most social novel. But the Western economy's contradictions are indeed stronger than ever. Take the recent World Economic Forum Global Risks Report. It draws on the views of over 12000 country-level leaders: after two years of the pande…

_____ (2022-01-31). Is Erdogan Trying to Revise his Foreign Policy? journal-neo.org Turkey has lately shown signs of a clearly growing socio-political crisis in the country. Its economy is going through a difficult, if not disastrous, phase: the lira is plummeting, foreign exchange reserves are shrinking, external debt and unemployment are skyrocketing. Against this background, the approval rate for Recep Tayyip Erdogan as head of state has …

Rehad Desai (2022-01-31). Joining the dots: Pandemics and political economy. greenleft.org.au Climate Justice puts the people most affected by the crisis at the centre of the solution. Health Justice must do the same, argues Rehad Desai.

_____ (2022-01-31). New Report: Small Business's Big Moment. popularresistance.org Small businesses build local wealth, with benefits for nearly every aspect of the community and region. They offer a path to prosperity for hard-working entrepreneurs. They keep a larger share of their economic output within the community than businesses with outside ownership, putting that output to work to support schools, public safety, roads, parks, affordable housing, and many other vital public needs. And young, small businesses create the bulk of the nation's new jobs. | But one of the biggest challenges facing America's communities is leveling the playing field for small businesses and intentionally movin…

Isheka N. Harrison (2022-01-31). Top Reparations Scholar And Economist Dr. Darity: Black Students May Be Less Damaged By Stereotypes At HCBUs. moguldom.com Renowned economist and Duke University Professor Dr. William "Sandy" Darity Jr. co-authored a study that shows negative racial stereotypes have little to no impact on the performance of Black students who attend historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). Published in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, the study relied on data from lab experiments …

_____ (2022-01-31). How Much Electricity Europeans Consume. strategic-culture.org Strong economic growth, combined with colder winters and warmer summers, boosted global electricity demand in 2021 by more than 6% — the largest increase since the recovery from the financial crisis in 2010. The fast rebound in overall energy demand strained supply chains for coal and natural gas, pushing up wholesale electricity prices. Despite the impressive growth of renewable power, electricity generation from coal and gas hit record levels." — iea.org | (Click on the image to enlarge) |

Editor2 (2022-01-31). Following "Unjustifiable" UAE Bombing of Saada Prison, US & UN Condemn Yemeni Retaliation. orinocotribune.com By Ahmed Abdulkareem — Jan 25, 2022 | "This is the latest in a long line of unjustifiable airstrikes carried out by the Saudi-led Coalition on places like schools, hospitals, markets, wedding parties, and prisons." — Ahmed Mahat, head of the Doctors Without Borders mission in Yemen | SAADA, YEMEN — In a scene rife with chaos and crying, volunteers and a rescue squad pulled the bodies of 91 prisoners from the rubble of the Sa'ada City Remand Prison in southern Yemen on Tuesday. Early last Friday morning, United Arab Emirates (UAE) warplanes supported by the United States targeted the overcrowded p…

WSWS (2022-01-31). Expiration of expanded tax credit throws millions of US children into poverty. wsws.org Amid a surge in the Omicron variant which has sickened millions, the Democrats have allowed expanded child tax credit (CTC) payments to expire with 30 million families not seeing the payments on January 15 after just six months of the program.

WSWS (2022-01-31). Labour run Coventry council mount strike breaking operation against bin workers. wsws.org Unite the union is doing everything to isolate and end a dispute that is the highest expression of an offensive by councils of all political stripes, allied with private company management, against workers throughout the sector.

_____ (2022-01-31). Union Membership Resumes Its Fall. popularresistance.org Union membership fell by almost 2% in 2021 as employment rose by over 3%. That took union density—the share of the workforce belonging to unions—down from 10.8% in 2020 to 10.3% last year, where it was in 2019. Density rose in 2020 because more nonunion workers lost their jobs in the covid crisis than their unionized counterparts, but 2021's return to employment undid that. | For the private sector, just 6.1% of workers were unionized last year, down from 6.3% in 2020, an all-time low for a series that goes back to 1900. (Official numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics began in 1983; I've assembl…

Marilyn Bechtel (2022-01-31). Aniversario del tratado nuclear observado con llamados a la ratificación de EE. UU. peoplesworld.org LIVERMORE, Calif. — Cuando los trabajadores ingresaron por la puerta oeste del Laboratorio Nacional Lawrence Livermore en la mañana del 21 de enero, fueron recibidos por manifestantes que mostraban pancartas de 8 pies que decían: "El mundo para EE. UU.: las armas nucleares son ilegales: únase al Tratado!" Los manifestantes, de Tri-Valley Communities Against a …

Michael Arney (2022-01-31). Labor History: A brief history of the NYS Working Families Party. peoplesworld.org NEW YORK — Labor unions, leaders from the now defunct New Party, powerful non-profit advocacy groups, and community organizations formed the Working Families Party (WFP) of New York in 1998. It has always upheld this labor-community alliance though the strengths of its various pillars have changed. Every movement for social change experiences major and minor …

WSWS (2022-01-31). National Labor Relations Board schedules new election at Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama. wsws.org The RWDSU's campaign at Amazon has relied on unprecedented support from the Democratic Party, for whom the pro-corporate unions are a key element in their strategy to enforce labor discipline upon and increasingly restive workforce.

Alexander Rubinstein (2022-01-31). New Gates Foundation trustee led plot to overthrow Zimbabwean leader alongside US gov't. thegrayzone.com Listed as a US asset while spearheading Zimbabwean regime change plans, billionaire Strive Masiyiwa joins a cast of technocratic zealots on Gates' new board of trustees. In a shake-up of an institution named for one of the world's wealthiest and most influential oligarchs, Zimbabwean billionaire Strive Masiyiwa was appointed to the Gates Foundation's board of trustees this January. He will be joined on the board by a seemingly diverse cast of corporate elites known for their embrace of technocratic and …

Jake Johnson (2022-01-31). Pharma Hikes Cost of 866 Drugs While Lobbying to Kill Build Back Better. truthout.org Major pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. hiked the prices of nearly 870 prescription medications during the first month of the new year as lock-step Republicans and right-wing Democrats — Through January 20 of this year, according to an analysis released Sunday…

Ali Abunimah (2022-01-31). EU using "Green Deal" funds to power Israeli settlements. electronicintifada.net Brussels' latest financial gift rewards Israel's criminal behavior.

WSWS (2022-01-31). Brazil's Workers Party lays out 2022 election program: austerity and corporatism. wsws.org Behind bombastic announcements that the party intends to "undo" the austerity imposed over the last five years, the PT is criticizing Bolsonaro's inability to control spending and attract foreign capital.

Winona Gray (2022-01-31). Broad coalition launches campaign to save the Great Salt Lake from profit-driven decline. liberationnews.org Drinking water and agriculture should be prioritized over unnecessary uses for this precious resource.

WSWS (2022-01-31). SEP (Australia) files objection to party deregistration. wsws.org The SEP is demanding the basic democratic right to stand candidates in its name at the looming federal election in order to advance, in the broadest possible way, the necessary socialist perspective, based on the protection of health and lives, not private profit.

Editor (2022-01-31). Africa was at the centre of Lenin's work. mronline.org Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, the father of Bolshevism, never stepped foot in Africa, but his influence upon the continent has been tremendous. Alongside the ideas of Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, Lenin's revolutionary theories provided the framework for an entire generation of African socialists during the twentieth century.

WSWS (2022-01-31). Stop the intra-company bidding war at Ford! No concessions—neither in Saarlouis nor in Valencia. wsws.org We are no longer prepared to accept the systematic sellout of our jobs and the constant deterioration of our wages and working conditions without a fight.

William Briggs (2022-01-31). COVID-19 vaccines, a 'testament' to capitalism? greenleft.org.au There was no altruism in the speed in which pharmaceutical companies developed successful vaccines. The very future of capitalism relied on science's ability to keep the wheels turning, argues William Briggs.

William Briggs (2022-01-31). COVID-19 vaccines a 'testament' to capitalism? greenleft.org.au There was no altruism in the speed in which pharmaceutical companies developed successful vaccines. The very future of capitalism relied on science's ability to keep the wheels turning, argues William Briggs.

Minnal Kunnan (2022-01-31). Pasadena residents demand better housing. liberationnews.org Over the last five years, Pasadena residents have come together and organized the Pasadena Tenants Union to combat the city's rising housing costs. PTU was able to quickly mobilize during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to protect tenants by successfully campaigning for an eviction moratorium and are currently fighting for a city charter amendment that would establish rent control, just cause eviction, and a rental housing board.

Sameena Rahman, Zach Farber (2022-01-31). The socialist case for CalCare. liberationnews.org Single-payer universal healthcare is within reach for Californians. On Jan. 20, Assembly Bill 1400, also known as CalCare, passed the California state assembly appropriations committee. If CalCare passes the assembly floor by Jan. 31 it will advance to the state senate.

Staff (2022-01-31). PSUV Training System to be Relaunched Within '3 Rs Dot Net' Strategy. orinocotribune.com The National Training System of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) will be reactivated throughout Venezuela within the framework of the "three Rs dot net" initiative carried out by the president of the party, Nicolás Maduro, to build the new era of transition to socialism. | Reading circles, courses, and diplomas, as well as the Institute of Higher Studies, will return to their activities "with more force," following the exceptional situation created by COVID-19. The pandemic will force them to adapt to a new work methodology, said PSUV Vice President for Training, Héctor Rodríguez, in this regard. Th…

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