Where were Senators during the Standing Rock?: Sanctimonious US Senators Condemn Hong Kong Police Ignoring Far More Brutal US Cops

By Dave Lindorff

The Senate, by a voice vote with no opposition yesterday passed a bill condemning the Hong Kong government and Hong Kong police for their brutal treatment of students in the supposedly autonomous Chinese city protesting threats to Hong Kong’s freedoms and it’s promise from China of self rule until 2047. The bill, if signed into law, would assess trade and other penalties on Hong Kong for its treatment of Hong Kong protesters.

Now while I have no problem condemning police read more

Tomgram: Mattea Kramer, The Opioid Crisis in Perspective

This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here.

As a website, TomDispatch has long focused on one great twenty-first-century American addiction: our endless wars. Eighteen years after the 9/11 attacks, from Afghanistan to Syria, Yemen to Somalia, those conflicts only continue. In the process, ever more people die or are displaced; the world becomes more unsettled; read more

Morales made unforced errors: Bolivia’s Foreseeable Coup

By Ron Ridenour

Did a coup d´état take place in Bolivia with the removal of President Evo Morales? Certainly, an internal coup was a major cause, along with a rebellion calling for Morales’ resignation. When the commander of the armed forces, backed by many generals, publically calls for the president to abdicate, that is an internal coup. Did the US orchestrate this coup? Well, it would be nothing new.

The 1823 “Monroe Doctrine” asserted that Latin America belonged in the US’s backyard. read more

Talk Nation Radio: Misagh Parsa on Protests in Iran

Misagh Parsa is a Professor of Sociology who has taught at Dartmouth since 1989. A specialist on revolutions, he is the author of States, Ideologies, and Social Revolutions: A Comparative Analysis of Iran, Nicaragua, and the Philippines, as well as Social Origins of the Iranian Revolution. His most recent book which we discuss here, is called Democracy in Iran: Why it Failed and how it Might Succeed.

Total run time: 29:00
Host: David Swanson.
Producer: David Swanson.
Music by Duke Ellington.

Download read more

Which Would You Prefer–Nuclear War or Climate Catastrophe?

To:      The people of the world

From:  The Joint Public Relations Department of the Great Powers

The world owes an enormous debt of gratitude to Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Narendra Modi, Boris Johnson, and other heroic rulers of our glorious nations.  Not only are they hard at work making their respective countries great again, but they are providing you, the people of the world, with a choice between two opportunities for mass death and destruction.

Throughout the broad sweep read more

Revolution on a short leash: Student Protesters are Walking a Tightrope in Hong Kong

By Dave Lindorff

It’s hard to know what to think about the student protests in Hong Kong.

On the one hand they are incredibly inspiring.  The courage, determination, brilliant organizing in the face of corporate blocking of the social media platforms that have been so  critical early on to coordinating actions and rallying support, and the links that these masses of students have been able build with the broader Hong Kong community, have been amazing to witness. So to is the massive support read more

Courage, People! Show Some Misneach!

Misneach (mish-nyuhkh) is an Irish word meaning something like bravery, courage, spirit.

The Irish could use more misneach, as we all could. Ireland is failing to stand up to the U.S. military and its use of Ireland. And when a couple of people from the U.S. stand up in Ireland, they’re forbidden to leave the country — as if their misneach can’t be spared, as the stuff is in such low supply. For a recent conference in Limerick, I noted in limericks:

Green Ireland has a peaceful blue sky.
read more