(2022-02-19). Colombia Wants Only 'Wealthy and Educated' Venezuelan Migrants. orinocotribune.com The Vice President of Colombia, Marta Lucía Ramírez, has complained about the "less wealthy and unskilled" Venezuelans who stay in Colombia as migrants. That group of vulnerable Venezuelans is at the center of the smear campaign and hybrid war against Venezuela, led by the US with its regional allied governments. | The Colombian vice president made the classist comment against migrants who are in a vulnerable economic situation or who do not have a considerably "high" academic level, during the regular session of the Permanent Council of the Organization of States Americans (OAS) this week. | "Colombia has not be…
(2022-02-19). Hedges: Democrats, the More Effective Evil. orinocotribune.com By Chris Hedges — Feb 14, 2022 | The US is a de facto one-party state where the ideology of national security is sacrosanct, unsustainable debt props up the empire and the primary business is war. | When all else fails, when you are clueless about how to halt a 7.5% inflation rate, when your Build Back Better bill is gutted, when you renege on your promise to raise the minimum wage or forgive student debt, when you can't halt the Republican suppression of voting rights, when you have no idea how to handle the pandemic which has claimed 900,000 lives — 16% of the world's total deaths although we are les…
(2022-02-19). [Perspectives] A public health manifesto. thelancet.com The way that societies divide and manage our resources and treat our planet is not working. This failure is the starting point of a number of books that have been published during the COVID-19 pandemic, including GO BIG: 20 Bold Solutions to Fix Our World by Ed Miliband. This book, partly based on Miliband and Geoff Lloyd's podcast Reasons to Be Cheerful, identifies what is wrong with our political and multilateral systems and sets out solutions to fix our world. "In saying we need to 'go big' I am advocating not just the consideration of ideas that promise significant change but for politics to rediscover its se…
(2022-02-18). The Russians Are Coming. Even in Africa, Moscow Beats a Path. strategic-culture.org For those countries who don't think they have a good deal from the EU, their regimes might well consider working more closely with the Russians. | And the cheers from the crowds seeing off the expelled French ambassador must be seen for what Europeans are. | The chicken or the egg? Did the Mali military junta's decision to bring in Russian military contractors create the inertia for Emmanuel Macron to reduce his own troops' presence there and initiate EU sanctions — or did his earlier decision to reduce troop numbers push the regime to take the measure to bring in around 400 Wagner mercenaries to keep it in…
(2022-02-18). What Red Book Will You Read This Year On Red Books Day? popularresistance.org On 16 February 2015, Govind and Uma Pansare went for a morning walk near their home in Kolhapur, in the western state of Maharashtra, India. Two men on a motorcycle stopped them and asked for directions, but the Pansares could not help them. One of the men laughed, pulled out a gun, and shot the two Pansares. Uma Pansare was hit but survived the attack. Her husband, Govind Pansare, died in a hospital shortly thereafter on 20 February at age 82. | Raised in poverty, Govind Pansare was fortunate to go to school, where he encountered Marxist ideas. In 1952, at the age of 19, Pansare joined the Communist Party of Ind…
(2022-02-18). Child Poverty Increased by 41 Percent After Monthly Tax Credits Expired. truthout.org 
New data shows that the ending of the popular Child Tax Credit payment program due to objections from conservative Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin (West Virginia) has resulted in a massive increase in the childhood poverty rate throughout the U.S. |
(2022-02-18). Sanders Calls to Cancel All Student Debt After Biden Axes $415 Millions' Worth. truthout.org 
After the Biden administration canceled $415 million of student debt for victims of for-profit colleges, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) called for all student debt to be canceled, a move that could relieve tens of millions of borrowers of what is often a huge financial burden. | On Wednesday,
(2022-02-18). Mass strikes and protests continue in Puerto Rico against debt deal. wsws.org Mass protests are culminating in a general strike across the island following the imposition of a debt settlement deal dictated by Wall Street that will gut wages and pensions.
(2022-02-18). USW pushes ExxonMobil deal to end Texas lockout: A warning to all oil workers. wsws.org ExxonMobil's latest ultimatum, which the United Steelworkers will bring to a vote on Monday, would set the precedent for the wholesale destruction of the jobs, wages, benefits and working conditions of workers throughout the entire oil industry.
(2022-02-18). Sunday 2/27: Dangerous Truths. indybay.org
(2022-02-18). United Steelworkers on strike at Sherwin-Williams. fightbacknews.org Pittsburgh, PA – 55 members of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 14919 began an unfair labor practice strike against Sherwin-Williams on Saturday, February 5 at the company's facility in Bedford Heights, Ohio. | Negotiations started on October 26, 2021, and union members had been working without a contract since the previous agreement expired on November 20. Sherwin-Williams refused to enter into an extension agreement. | Terrell Williams, president of United Steelworkers Local 14919 states, "All we are asking for is a fair and just contract that keeps up with inflation and provides economic sustainability and sec…
(2022-02-18). The Revolutionary Power Of The Real Circular Economy. popularresistance.org Most of us are familiar with the social and environmental impacts of life under the Capitalocene ('the age of capital' — the historical era shaped by the endless accumulation of capital): inequality, commodification, imperialism, racism, and much more are already causing intragenerational suffering and ecological collapse. We are bombarded weekly with publications that assess the dire state of the world — and while I don't want to focus on this, a brief reminder is in order. | There is extensive literature portraying the social and ecological degradation of our times (e.g. Intergovernmental Panel on C…
(2022-02-18). Keep it Simple. Our Elected Officials Shouldn't Trade Stocks. inequality.org