teleSUR (2022-02-15). Shuttle Diplomacy Continues to De-Escalate Ukraine Crisis. telesurenglish.net As tensions on the Ukrainian situation keep mounting, multiple countries have been engaged in shuttle diplomacy, trying to de-escalate the crisis. | RELATED: | German Chancellor Olaf Scholz arrived in Kiev on Monday for a working visit. After their talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the two parties discussed the peace process in and around Ukraine and the legal guarantees that would help to protect Ukraine. I…

_____ (2022-02-15). Puerto Rico: March Of Indignation Against 'Shakedown Plan' Of More Austerity. popularresistance.org Tens of thousands of teachers and other public workers have taken to the streets of San Juan, Puerto Rico in a March of Indignation to protest a debt restructuring plan given the green light by Judge Taylor Swain of New York. Puerto Ricans call it the "Shakedown Plan" because it will enforce more austerity on a land where disinvestment in education and health care and privatization of the energy system have already caused great hardship. A National Strike has been called for February 18. Clearing the FOG speaks with Monisha Rios, a Puerto Rican social worker and psychologist, about who and what are behind the pro…

WSWS (2022-02-15). Dana Fort Wayne workers speak on death of their coworker. wsws.org John Saraceno passed away under unknown circumstances on January 31 while working at the auto parts maker's Fort Wayne, Indiana, plant.

WSWS (2022-02-15). Trudeau invokes Emergencies Act to end far-right Ottawa siege, border blockades. wsws.org While today the Emergencies Act is being employed against the far-right enemies of the working class, as the class struggle intensifies, it will inevitably be turned against workers.

WSWS (2022-02-15). What's at stake in the struggle by US rail and oil workers. wsws.org Over the last several weeks, railroad and oil refinery workers in the United States have come to the forefront of a growing movement in the working class against exhausting and dangerous work schedules and the explosive rise in the cost of living.

WSWS (2022-02-15). Thousands of Australian nurses strike in NSW, defying government-court ban. wsws.org The first nurses' stoppage since 2013 reflects a growing mood of resistance among nurses, health staff and the working class more broadly.

Anonymous Contributor (2022-02-14). Police Continue Harassment and Repression as Tent Protest Enters Week Four in Boise, Idaho. itsgoingdown.org Report on continuing police harassment and repression of ongoing tent protests in Boise, Idaho. Today marks 4 weeks of ongoing protest across from the Capitol building in so-called Boise, Idaho. The state and city continue to prove their insistence on criminalizing poverty and doing all they can to crush resistance. Another raid occurred, with tons…

Tom Engelhardt (2022-02-14). Tomgram: Belle Chesler, Teaching in a World No Student Deserves. warisacrime.org This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here. Honestly, it's been hell on earth for grown-ups. Thanks largely to Donald Trump and crew, we're in the country with by far the highest Covid-19 death rate of any wealthy nation on earth. The U.S. has already left …

Brian Mier, Benjamin Norton (2022-02-14). From Canada to Brazil, rich right-wing elites are astroturfing 'trucker' protests. multipolarista.com Supported by wealthy right-wing elites, so-called "trucker" protests (led by non-truckers) have paralyzed the capitals of Brazil and Canada in less than six months. The campaigns have many similarities – including some of the same well-funded conservative networks.

Antonio C.S. Rosa (2022-02-14). Haiti, San Martin and the Odious Foreign Debt. transcend.org 7 Feb 2022 – The colonising logic of the centres of conditioning capital, from the very beginning, sought to take over Latin America, dominating it in different ways, according to their interests, beyond the principles that were proclaimed and the freedom that was promised.

Moderator (2022-02-14). Hedges: Democrats, the More Effective Evil. scheerpost.com "Let's Make a Deal," an original work by Mr. Fish. | By Chris Hedges / Original to ScheerPost | 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 less than 5% of the world's population — when the stock market fluctuates on wild rollercoaster rides…

Jake Johnson (2022-02-14). Biden Urged to Cancel Student Debt During Super Bowl at "Student Debt Stadium" truthout.org Of the many commercials and advertisements displayed during Super Bowl LVI on Sunday, perhaps the most prominent was for the personal finance company with naming rights to SoFi Stadium, the game's multibillion-dollar venue in Inglewood, California. | SoFi offers a range of financial products and services, but what drew the most attention — and ire — during Sunday's game was the company's role in the lucrative student loan refinancing business, which is set to receive a major boost…

_____ (2022-02-14). Cost Of Living Protesters Around The Country Say Enough Is Enough. popularresistance.org Protests were held in several regions on Saturday 12 February to highlight the injustice of of the cost of living crisis. | In Newcastle, a placard referred to "Tory tricksters". Meanwhile another sign held next to a baby said "I can do a better job than Boris". | Laura Pidcock, national secretary of the People's Assembly, said there's "real anger" at what she described as a "growing crisis". | The former Labour MP added: | Working people could not be working harder and yet life is getting so much more difficult.

Dana Sanchez (2022-02-14). Knowing The Probabilities: Actual Facts And Research On Day Traders Mostly Losing Money. moguldom.com The lure of being your own boss and making potentially unlimited profits while working in your pajamas proves irresistible but unachievable for 95 percent of day traders trying to make a living on very short-term price movements, and that may be generous. Day trading is defined as buying and selling on small price movements throughout a trading day, …

David Sanchez (2022-02-14). Strike victory: King Soopers grocery workers in Colorado win major wage increases. liberationnews.org The wage increases that King Soopers workers' collective action won them will make a difference for thousands of working class families in Colorado and sets a standard for grocery store workers across the country…

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2022-02-14). Seducing People with the Communal Model: A Conversation with Robert Longa. libya360.wordpress.com Cira Pascual Marquina A key spokesperson of the Alexis Vive Patriotic Force talks about the challenges of building an urban commune. The Alexis Vive Patriotic Force was born in the working-class barrio 23 de Enero during the 2002 counter-coup. The organization, which considers itself both Guevarist and Leninist, aims to carry out Chávez's project of building…

Fight Back (2022-02-14). Minnesota public defenders, support staff, taking strike vote. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – Public defense workers in Minnesota are ready to strike. The negotiating committees of both the lawyer bargaining unit and the support staff bargaining unit voted unanimously to reject a "last best final offer" from management. That unanimous vote carries with it a recommendation to strike if better terms are not reached. The membership of Teamsters Local 320 will begin voting on the offer next week, with ballots counted March 7. | At issue are wages and working conditions. Public defense workers in Minnesota are both underpaid and overworked. Pay parity with those who work in prosecutors' offic…

_____ (2022-02-14). Ottawa Trucker Protests Do Not Represent The Working Class. popularresistance.org Ottawa truckers have been blocking roads, airports, and border crossings from the U.S. to Canada to protest coronavirus restrictions and vaccine requirements. Despite the many illegal activities associated with the right-wing protests, they have not been attacked or sabotaged by police — in stark contrast to the many Indigenous protests over access to ancestral land and water. Q. Anthony Omene, columnist for The Globe and Mail & co-host of TheKulture.TV, joins The Freedom Side to explain more about what's going on.

WSWS (2022-02-14). Young workers in Australia speak on dire working conditions amid pandemic. wsws.org "I guess the government is looking at it as 'We saved enough people, it's time to just move on and whoever suffers now, it's too bad.' It's so depressing."

isabella (2022-02-14). For New York Home Care Workers, Fair Pay Is Possible. inequality.org

WSWS (2022-02-14). Puerto Rico: Teachers strikes and protests continue against debt payment deal. wsws.org Over the last two weeks a powerful movement of Puerto Rican teachers and public employees has been defying the governor and the Financial Oversight Management Board which controls the island's finances.

WSWS (2022-02-14). UK HGV drivers respond to WSWS coverage of working conditions. wsws.org "If you consider that the average school pupil can concentrate for an hour and an HGV driver who has 40 tons behind him is expected to concentrate for four hours on increasingly busy roads—it just leads to mental fatigue."

Yanis Iqbal (2022-02-14). The workings of commodified education. mronline.org The product of pedagogical labour becomes something set apart from life and abstracted into the commodity of "degrees" which can be bought and sold on the educational market.

WSWS (2022-02-14). Spain's pseudo-left covers for Podemos as it threatens Russia with war. wsws.org Mobilizing the working class against the danger of all-out war in Europe requires conscious political opposition to groups like the Morenoite Izquierda Diario web site.

WSWS (2022-02-14). Young workers in Australia speak on dire working conditions amid pandemic. wsws.org "I guess the government is looking at it as 'We saved enough people, it's time to just move on and whoever suffers now, it's too bad.' It's so depressing."

WSWS (2022-02-14). Students in Germany go on strike against herd immunity policies. wsws.org In contrast to the hostility young people confront from the political establishment, they are receiving overwhelming support from working people.

Fight Back (2022-02-14). Minnesota public defenders, support staff, taking strike vote. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – Public defense workers in Minnesota are ready to strike. The negotiating committees of both the lawyer bargaining unit and the support staff bargaining unit voted unanimously to reject a "last best final offer" from management. That unanimous vote carries with it a recommendation to strike if better terms are not reached. The membership of Teamsters Local 320 will begin voting on the offer next week, with ballots counted March 7. | At issue are wages and working conditions. Public defense workers in Minnesota are both underpaid and overworked. Pay parity with those who work in prosecutors' offic…

_____ (2022-02-13). Rethinking Land And Relation In Berlin's Struggle For Housing Justice. popularresistance.org Across Europe, affordable housing is being pushed farther and farther out of reach. Homes are increasingly owned not by the people who live in them, but by companies who rent them out for profit. Housing is no longer treated as a public good, but as a commodity and vehicle for wealth and investment. | In Berlin, which currently boasts some of the fastest-rising housing prices in the world, the situation is particularly extreme. Following the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1992, private investors flocked to the city to capitalize on the state-supported financialization of the housing market. As of today, more than…

Strike Debt Bay Area (2022-02-13). Saturday 3/19: Strike Debt Bay Area Book Group: The Dawn of Everything… by David Graeber et al. indybay.org Online. | Email strike.debt.bay.area@gmail.com a few days beforehand for the the online invite.

Strike Debt Bay Area (2022-02-13). Saturday 3/19: Strike Debt Bay Area Book Group: The Dawn of Everything… by David Graeber et al. indybay.org Online. | Email strike.debt.bay.area@gmail.com a few days beforehand for the the online invite.

_____ (2022-02-12). Working Class In The UK Gears Up To Protest The Cost Of Living Crisis. popularresistance.org Broad sectors of the working class in the UK will take to the streets in cities across the country on February 12 against the rise in the cost of living. The protests are organized under the banner of the People's Assembly Against Austerity and have been endorsed by organizations such as the Communist Party of Britain (CPB), Young Communist League (YCL), Unite Trade Union, Socialist Appeal, Revolutionary Socialism in the 21st Century, Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC), Fuel Poverty Action, and others. Around 30 cities are expected to mobilize on this day of action.

Editor (2022-02-12). The Left has culture, but the World still belongs to the banks: The Sixth Newsletter (2022). mronline.org Dear friends, Greetings from the desk of the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. '[T]here is great intellectual poverty on the part of the right wing', Héctor Béjar says in our latest dossier, A Map of Latin America's Present: An Interview with Héctor Béjar (February 2022). 'There is a lack of right-wing intellectuals everywhere'. Béjar speaks …

Irvin Jim (2022-02-12). Solidarity is the road to liberation. peoplesdispatch.org This is a lightly edited version of a speech given to an international meeting held on 1 February under the banner: Free Mumia Abu-Jamal and All Anti-Imperialist Freedom Fighters! Speakers included Abu-Jamal (via a recorded statement), Angela Davis and a number of trade unionists. | Around the world, imperialism — with its dehumanization and brute violence — has allowed for a small minority to permanently accumulate wealth at the expense of the masses of our people. In recent years, women and men have been killed — from Afghanistan and Iraq to South Africa and the prison archipelago of the US.

Andreína Chávez Alava (2022-02-12). Venezuela: Storage Bottleneck Causes Setback in Oil Output and Exports. venezuelanalysis.com Caracas is reportedly in talks with bondholders to restructure its debt while Chevron is allegedly lobbying Washington for a sanctions waiver.

Julia Rock (2022-02-12). YOU LOVE TO SEE IT: Biden Faces Mounting Pressure On Student Debt. dailyposter.com

Dominique McGee (2022-02-12). Movement Politics Field Manager. peoplesaction.org About PAI People's Action Institute (501c3), and sister organization People's Action (501c4), are national progressive organizations supporting the mobilization and leadership of the grassroots in support of an agenda that reflects people over profits. People's Action/Institute builds the power of poor and working people in rural, suburban, and urban areas to win change through issue …

Editor2 (2022-02-12). 'Freedom Convoy': A Dangerous Movement for the Working Class, but Useful for the Ruling Class. orinocotribune.com By Communist Party of Canada — Feb 4, 2022 | The Communist Party of Canada views the "Freedom Convoy" as a public expression of the increasingly organized and assertive far right. The clear links between the organizers of the convoy and far-right networks indicate that this is not a spontaneous working-class demonstration. On the contrary, it is part of a global phenomenon: the rise and mainstreaming of the far right, which is demonstrated by the strong support (ideologically and financially) from the US far right and circles close to Donald Trump and the Jan. 6thinsurrection. The convoy is filled with Nazi…

Industrial Workers of the World (2022-02-12). Dill Pickle Co-op Workers Walk Out Over Unsafe Conditions. itsgoingdown.org Report on recent job actions from Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) workers in so-called Chicago. Last month, workers at the Dill Pickle Food Co-op in Chicago walked out over unsafe working conditions related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Workers at the grocery store are organized as the Dill Pickle Worker's Union with the Industrial…

Lyn Neeley (2022-02-12). Portland city workers warn: 'Don't force a strike'. workers.org Portland, Oregon Workers at Portland's Bureau of Development Services have been working without a contract for a year and a half. On Feb. 5, they held a rally and march of over 150 workers to demand that bosses and City Council agree to provide fair wages and respectful working conditions. . . . |

WSWS (2022-02-12). Unite tries to corral opposition to Labour's strike breaking against Coventry bin workers. wsws.org Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham has threatened to consider withdrawing the union's funding to the Labour Party. This is a belated and insincere attempt to placate the 70 refuse drivers faced with a scabbing operation and to head off a broader rebellion by the working class against the Labour Party and its allies in the trade union bureaucracy.

Fight Back (2022-02-12). Celebrate International Women's Day, Resist Attacks on Reproductive Freedom. fightbacknews.org Across the world, March 8th honors the contributions of women to the people's struggle. This year, Freedom Road Socialist Organization will hold events to celebrate International Women's Day (IWD). | | IWD was founded to honor the sacrifices of heroes named and unnamed. Some capitalists have tried to sanitize and co-opt International Women's Day. The origins of this day are clearly anti-capitalist. Our celebrations will carry forward that spirit. | | Long History, Global Reach | | International Women's Day originates in the struggle of working women in New York City. In 1908 there was a determined battle…

Seth Galinsky (2022-02-12). Drivers, delivery workers rally for union, higher pay. themilitant.com NEW YORK — More than 100 Uber, Lyft and other app-based ride and food-delivery workers and their supporters from New York City and Long Island rallied here Feb. 1 demanding higher pay, better working conditions, an end to arbitrary employer deactivations and for access to bathrooms and the right to form a union. | The rally was called to announce the formation of Justice for App Workers, a coalition of mainly local groups of drivers and delivery workers. Speakers addressed the rally in English, Chinese, Hindi, Spanish, Tibetan and Uzbek, reflecting the heavily immigrant workforce. | There are 100,000 or mor…

WSWS (2022-02-12). Sri Lankan nurses defy court ban and remain on indefinite strike with other health workers. wsws.org The court ban on industrial action by health workers indicates that the Rajapakse government is moving into direct confrontation with the entire working class.

Betsey Stone (2022-02-12). Socialist Workers Party campaign offers working-class road forward. themilitant.com OAKLAND, Calif. — More than 300 people, way over the 65 required, have signed the petition to put Eleanor García, Socialist Workers Party candidate for U.S. Senate, on the California ballot. In addition, over $5,000 has been raised to pay the filing fee. | Over the weekend of Feb. 5-6, campaigners fanned out to cities in the Bay Area and southern California, knocking on doors and setting up tables at supermarkets, introducing the party's program and the Militant. Supporters of the campaign from Seattle, Los Angeles, and Albuquerque, New Mexico, traveled here to participate. | "I like what you are doing," Jo…

_____ (2022-02-12). Africa Is Bringing Vaccine Manufacturing Home. popularresistance.org African countries continually find themselves at the back of the vaccine queue, but two developments could begin to change this narrative. Last week, researchers at a company in South Africa said that they have nearly completed the process of reproducing Moderna's mRNA vaccine against COVID-19. Working with the WHO's technology-transfer hub, the researchers at Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines in Cape Town made very small quantities of vaccine, based on Moderna's data, but without the company's involvement. The WHO advised them to copy Moderna's vaccine in part because the company, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts,…

Joachim Hagopian (2022-02-12). Reaching COVID-19 "Turning Point of Critical Mass": Is Nuremberg 2 Next? London Metropolitan Police Criminal Investigation. globalresearch.ca Not only is Britain's largest police force actively involved in the probe, the Hammersmith Police alongside the ICC are working together in what's being called the world's largest international crime investigation.

Juan Cole (2022-02-12). US Sanctions on Afghanistan are Complicit in Mass Hunger, even as Biden withholds $3.5 bn in Afghan Money. juancole.com Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) — Kevin Liptak and Natasha Bertrand report at CNN that the Biden administration has decided to split the $7 billion in Afghanistan government money held in the US and confiscated last August when the Taliban took over the country. $3.5 billion will be released for humanitarian aid in Afghanistan itself, while …

Editor (2022-02-12). The Left has culture, but the World still belongs to the banks: The Sixth Newsletter (2022). mronline.org Dear friends, Greetings from the desk of the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. '[T]here is great intellectual poverty on the part of the right wing', Héctor Béjar says in our latest dossier, A Map of Latin America's Present: An Interview with Héctor Béjar (February 2022). 'There is a lack of right-wing intellectuals everywhere'. Béjar speaks …

Irvin Jim (2022-02-12). Solidarity is the road to liberation. peoplesdispatch.org This is a lightly edited version of a speech given to an international meeting held on 1 February under the banner: Free Mumia Abu-Jamal and All Anti-Imperialist Freedom Fighters! Speakers included Abu-Jamal (via a recorded statement), Angela Davis and a number of trade unionists. | Around the world, imperialism — with its dehumanization and brute violence — has allowed for a small minority to permanently accumulate wealth at the expense of the masses of our people. In recent years, women and men have been killed — from Afghanistan and Iraq to South Africa and the prison archipelago of the US.

Dominique McGee (2022-02-12). Movement Politics Field Manager. peoplesaction.org About PAI People's Action Institute (501c3), and sister organization People's Action (501c4), are national progressive organizations supporting the mobilization and leadership of the grassroots in support of an agenda that reflects people over profits. People's Action/Institute builds the power of poor and working people in rural, suburban, and urban areas to win change through issue …

Editor2 (2022-02-12). 'Freedom Convoy': A Dangerous Movement for the Working Class, but Useful for the Ruling Class. orinocotribune.com By Communist Party of Canada — Feb 4, 2022 | The Communist Party of Canada views the "Freedom Convoy" as a public expression of the increasingly organized and assertive far right. The clear links between the organizers of the convoy and far-right networks indicate that this is not a spontaneous working-class demonstration. On the contrary, it is part of a global phenomenon: the rise and mainstreaming of the far right, which is demonstrated by the strong support (ideologically and financially) from the US far right and circles close to Donald Trump and the Jan. 6thinsurrection. The convoy is filled with Nazi…

Lyn Neeley (2022-02-12). Portland city workers warn: 'Don't force a strike'. workers.org Portland, Oregon Workers at Portland's Bureau of Development Services have been working without a contract for a year and a half. On Feb. 5, they held a rally and march of over 150 workers to demand that bosses and City Council agree to provide fair wages and respectful working conditions. . . . |

WSWS (2022-02-12). Sri Lankan nurses defy court ban and remain on indefinite strike with other health workers. wsws.org The court ban on industrial action by health workers indicates that the Rajapakse government is moving into direct confrontation with the entire working class.

WSWS (2022-02-12). Unite tries to corral opposition to Labour's strike breaking against Coventry bin workers. wsws.org Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham has threatened to consider withdrawing the union's funding to the Labour Party. This is a belated and insincere attempt to placate the 70 refuse drivers faced with a scabbing operation and to head off a broader rebellion by the working class against the Labour Party and its allies in the trade union bureaucracy.

David Ruccio (2022-02-11). How to lie with inequality statistics. mronline.org It's a "simple story," with clear political implications. Maybe that's the reason the Krugmans of the world don't want to tell it. . .

_____ (2022-02-11). New Survey: One In Four Temp Workers Reports Wage Theft. popularresistance.org A stunning 24% of workers in the temp industry say they have had their wages stolen from them by their employers, according to a survey, released Feb. 3, that examines cycles of poverty and precarity for the industry's disproportionately Black and Brown workers. | The findings are based on surveys carried out by seven worker advocacy groups, including the National Employment Law Project (NELP) and Temp Worker Justice, across the country. In the study, 1,337 temp workers in 47 states answered questions about pay, safety, job mobility, workplace discrimination and employer retaliation. | Temporary staff, or temp wo…

_____ (2022-02-11). The Left Has Culture, But The World Still Belongs To The Banks. popularresistance.org '[T]here is great intellectual poverty on the part of the right wing', Héctor Béjar says in our latest dossier, A Map of Latin America's Present: An Interview with Héctor Béjar (February 2022). 'There is a lack of right-wing intellectuals everywhere'. | Béjar speaks with a great deal of authority on these matters because, for the past sixty years, he has been intimately involved in the intellectual and political debates which have taken place in his native Peru and across Latin America. 'In the cultural world', Béjar notes, 'the left has everything, the right has nothing'. When it comes to the great cultural deba…

Camila Escalante (2022-02-11). How Nicaragua Fights Poverty & Empowers Women Through the Ministry of Family Economy (Interview). orinocotribune.com In Managua, Nicaragua, Kawsachun News interviewed Minister Justa Pérez of the Ministry of Family, Community, Cooperative and Associative Economy, known as MEFCCA. | Could you start us off with a summary of what MEFCCA does to stimulate, develop and promote the popular economy? | With pleasure, greetings. I would like to tell you that the Ministry of Family Economy arose as part of the strategy of the Sandinista government in the fight against poverty. When Comandante Daniel took office in 2007, he decided to launch a National Plan for Human Development in which a number of public policies and a number of program…

Isheka N. Harrison (2022-02-11). US Household Debt Increased By $1T In 2021, The Most Since Before Financial Crisis In 2007. moguldom.com U.S. household debt is on the rise and it hit a peak in 2021 when Americans collectively took on $1 trillion-plus in debt — the highest since 2007 before the financial crisis. The total amount of household debt held by consumers jumped from $14.6 trillion to $15.6 trillion, according to a report by the Federal …

WSWS (2022-02-11). Australia: New South Wales government agency uses "unlawful" automated debt collection system to target poor. wsws.org Thousands of vulnerable families and individuals had their bank accounts drawn down to zero without notice, a report from the state ombudsman reveals.

WSWS (2022-02-11). IG Metall's idea of solidarity: Wage and social cuts for all. wsws.org Since IG Metall works council representatives agreed to the "bidding war" between Ford plants in Germany and Spain, they have offered wage cuts, longer working hours, shorter breaks, unpaid overtime and further social cuts.

Kathryn Joyce (2022-02-11). Christian Nationalists Are Rewriting Jan 6 History. Alarmingly, It's Working. truthout.org Earlier this week, a new Pew survey

WSWS (2022-02-11). Hospital merger creates Michigan's largest chain and biggest employer. wsws.org The creation of a $12 billion company will be followed by intensified attacks on the jobs and working conditions of health care workers.

WSWS (2022-02-11). "The working class has the most power it's ever had": US oil refinery workers speak out on contract battle. wsws.org In letters to the WSWS, oil refinery and petrochemical workers expressed their determination to fight the highly profitable energy companies and denounced the United Steelworkers for keeping them on the job and imposing an information blackout.

Peoples Dispatch (2022-02-11). Working class in the UK gears up to protest the cost of living crisis. peoplesdispatch.org The rise in energy prices, cuts in wages and pensions, along with the ongoing COVID-19 crisis has made the working class households across the UK reel under a devastating cost of living crisis.

imperial.ac.uk (2022-02-11). Imperial and Brazilian universities launch project to inspire women scientists. imperial.ac.uk Imperial is working with universities in Brazil to inspire the next generation of women scientists.

_____ (2022-02-11). US Deaths Among Those Without Housing Are Surging. popularresistance.org The number of Americans dying while homeless has surged dramatically in the past five years, an exclusive analysis by the Guardian in conjunction with an academic expert at the University of Washington has shown. | An examination of 20 US urban areas found the number of deaths among people living without housing shot up by 77% in the five years ending in 2020. | The rise from 2016 through 2020 was driven by many factors, including ever-rising numbers of people living on the street and the growing dangers they face, such as violence, untreated disease and increasingly deadly illicit drug supplies. | From 65-year-o…

SAM (2022-02-11). A Super Bowl Musing: Can Pro Sports Be More Than a Billionaire Bacchanalia? inequality.org

Fight Back (2022-02-11). New York rallies for Amir Locke and Isaiah Williams. fightbacknews.org New York, NY – Over 80 people rallied in Union Square in New York City on February 8 in honor of Amir Locke and Isaiah Williams, two young Black men murdered by police. Locke was murdered by Minneapolis PD under a no-knock warrant, and Williams by Metro Police near Las Vegas while police executed a warrant for a murder he did not commit. | Speeches addressed the injustice of cops murdering Black people and it being rooted in racist inequality. They emphasized how no-knock warrants are disproportionately used as an excuse to murder Black people. The rally was followed by a march.

Camila Escalante (2022-02-11). How Nicaragua Fights Poverty & Empowers Women Through the Ministry of Family Economy (Interview). orinocotribune.com In Managua, Nicaragua, we interviewed Minister Justa Pérez of the Ministry of Family, Community, Cooperative and Associative Economy, known as MEFCCA. | Could you start us off with a summary of what MEFCCA does to stimulate, develop and promote the popular economy? | With pleasure, greetings. I would like to tell you that the Ministry of Family Economy arose as part of the strategy of the Sandinista government in the fight against poverty. When Comandante Daniel took office in 2007, he decided to launch a National Plan for Human Development in which a number of public policies and a number of programs and projec…

WSWS (2022-02-11). Australia: New South Wales government agency uses "unlawful" automated debt collection system to target poor. wsws.org Thousands of vulnerable families and individuals had their bank accounts drawn down to zero without notice, a report from the state ombudsman reveals.

WSWS (2022-02-11). Hospital merger creates Michigan's largest chain and biggest employer. wsws.org The creation of a $12 billion company will be followed by intensified attacks on the jobs and working conditions of health care workers.

WSWS (2022-02-11). IG Metall's idea of solidarity: Wage and social cuts for all. wsws.org Since IG Metall works council representatives agreed to the "bidding war" between Ford plants in Germany and Spain, they have offered wage cuts, longer working hours, shorter breaks, unpaid overtime and further social cuts.

David Ruccio (2022-02-11). How to lie with inequality statistics. mronline.org It's a "simple story," with clear political implications. Maybe that's the reason the Krugmans of the world don't want to tell it. . .

Fight Back (2022-02-11). New York rallies for Amir Locke and Isaiah Williams. fightbacknews.org New York, NY – Over 80 people rallied in Union Square in New York City on February 8 in honor of Amir Locke and Isaiah Williams, two young Black men murdered by police. Locke was murdered by Minneapolis PD under a no-knock warrant, and Williams by Metro Police near Las Vegas while police executed a warrant for a murder he did not commit. | Speeches addressed the injustice of cops murdering Black people and it being rooted in racist inequality. They emphasized how no-knock warrants are disproportionately used as an excuse to murder Black people. The rally was followed by a march.

Estevan Hernandez (2022-02-10). Atlanta Homeless Union resists police sweep and win month's stay at hotel. liberationnews.org On Feb. 8, Fulton County Sheriffs reportedly threatened to forcibly remove all people from from a homeless encampment in front of Atlanta City Hall at 4 a.m. and arrest anyone who refused to leave.

Vijay Prashad (2022-02-10). The Left Has Culture, but the World Still Belongs to the Banks. dissidentvoice.org Greta Acosta Reyes (Cuba), Women Who Fight, 2020. '[T]here is great intellectual poverty on the part of the right wing', Héctor Béjar says in our latest dossier, A Map of Latin America's Present: An Interview with Héctor Béjar (February 2022). 'There is a lack of right-wing intellectuals everywhere'. Béjar speaks with a great deal of authority on …

Staff (2022-02-10). "Dignity in the Digital Age": Rep. Khanna Calls for Wealth Tax & Decentralizing, Diversifying Big Tech. democracynow.org We speak with Congressmember Ro Khanna, whose district is in the heart of Silicon Valley, about his new book "Dignity in the Digital Age: Making Tech Work for All of Us." He argues more federal regulation in the tech industry can secure an equitable society while encouraging innovation. "We need to understand that if you care about social justice and racial justice, that you have to look at the wealth generation gap," says Khanna.

_____ (2022-02-10). Puerto Rico Hasn't Had The Opportunity To Develop Its Own Economic Future. popularresistance.org "Puerto Rico received approval from a federal judge on Tuesday to leave bankruptcy under the largest public sector debt-restructuring deal in the history of the United States." The executive director of the unelected Fiscal Oversight and Management Board declared it "truly a momentous day," and a "new day for Puerto Rico." How new, exactly, is the question of many who don't see this debt deal as fundamentally changing the story for most Puerto Ricans, because that story has everything to do with the more than 100-year colonial relationship to the United States, and their enforced inability to determine their own…

WSWS (2022-02-10). Workers in Australia face soaring prices and debt. wsws.org For working-class households, the cost of living is rising far faster than incomes, deepening the decline in average real pay levels over the past decade.

Fight Back (2022-02-10). San José protests against U.S. war on Russia. fightbacknews.org San José, CA – On Saturday, February 5, anti-war protesters gathered in front of San José's City Hall to demand an end to imperial saber rattling in eastern Europe. Speakers from CODEPINK, Freedom Road Socialism (FRSO), National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, Party for Socialism and Liberation, and the El Barrio Defense Committee gathered a crowd of 30 onlookers while calling for end to the war drive against Russia. | Mike Paradela of FRSO said "We called the protest because what the U.S. government is doing is not good for working people. NATO does not benefit working people, it began as an al…

WSWS (2022-02-10). Mobilise the working class to support Sri Lankan national health strike. wsws.org Over 65,000 Sri Lankan health workers, including nurses, paramedic services, public health inspectors, medical laboratory technologists and pharmacists, began an indefinite strike over wages, allowances and working conditions on Monday.

M.K. Bhadrakumar (2022-02-10). Moscow confronts 'Good Cop, Bad Cop'. peoplesdispatch.org People in the United States use the slang "lockstep," recalling a characteristic trait of their prisons of the 19th century when inmates had to shuffle step due to the chain that linked their legs. But US president Joe Biden used that powerful evocative metaphor to convey on Monday that his country and Germany are aligned on fighting any Russian aggression in Ukraine. | "Germany is one of America's closest allies," he said, adding the two nations were "working lockstep" to address the alleged Russian aggression. Biden was speaking ahead of his bilateral meeting with new German chancellor Olaf Scholz at the White…

JANET (2022-02-10). Stop the U.S. war machine! iacenter.org By Minnie Bruce Pratt February 8, 2022 During the week of Jan. 30 to Feb. 6., an ad hoc coalition of U.S. anti-imperialist organizations in the United States held over 70 protests against U.S. and NATO aggressive actions directed at Russia. These ranged from holding signs and banners in well-trafficked areas or on highway overpasses to days of protest Feb. 5-6 to show the breadth of opposition to a U.S. war. The groups called the actions because the U.S., working through the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is threatening war on Russia, using the pretext that Russia is trying to invade Ukraine. The underlying…

_____ (2022-02-10). Teachers In Puerto Rico Strike For Wages, Benefits. popularresistance.org On Wednesday, February 9, teachers across Puerto Rico called for a national strike to protest the government and the Fiscal Control Board's (FCB) cutting of wages and pensions. Other public sector workers, namely firefighters and police, have also joined them. Teachers are demanding a decent salary, an end to pension cuts, and the resignation of Puerto Rican governor Pedro Pierluisi. Teachers have been protesting since February 4. That same day, the FCB imposed by the US Congress that has been in charge of Puerto Rico since 2016, was boasting because it supposedly already put the end of the bankruptcy process on…

Sameena Rahman (2022-02-10). Supreme Court OKs Alabama state government plot against Black voters. liberationnews.org With a slew of high-profile cases the Supreme Court is slated to hear this year, it is increasingly clear that the rightwing justices will use every opportunity to take away key rights won by mass movements and move us backwards to greater inequality.

_____ (2022-02-10). National Day Of Action: Love To Afghanistan. popularresistance.org After 20 years of war in Afghanistan, Peace Action welcomed the withdrawal of troops from the country and an end to the war. | Yet when the United States military pulled out of Afghanistan, the Biden administration also responded by choking off assets to Afghan banks and the economy by freezing the reserves of the Afghan Central Bank held in the U.S. They also imposed sanctions on those doing business with Afghanistan and cut aid. Jobs and income disappeared, people cannot afford to buy food and mass starvation is now occurring. | The Afghan people are suffering now more than ever. Hunger could kill more now than…

Estevan Hernandez (2022-02-10). Atlanta Homeless Union resists police sweep and win month's stay at hotel. liberationnews.org On Feb. 8, Fulton County Sheriffs reportedly threatened to forcibly remove all people from from a homeless encampment in front of Atlanta City Hall at 4 a.m. and arrest anyone who refused to leave.

Staff (2022-02-10). "Dignity in the Digital Age": Rep. Khanna Calls for Wealth Tax & Decentralizing, Diversifying Big Tech. democracynow.org We speak with Congressmember Ro Khanna, whose district is in the heart of Silicon Valley, about his new book "Dignity in the Digital Age: Making Tech Work for All of Us." He argues more federal regulation in the tech industry can secure an equitable society while encouraging innovation. "We need to understand that if you care about social justice and racial justice, that you have to look at the wealth generation gap," says Khanna.

WSWS (2022-02-10). Workers in Australia face soaring prices and debt. wsws.org For working-class households, the cost of living is rising far faster than incomes, deepening the decline in average real pay levels over the past decade.

WSWS (2022-02-10). Mobilise the working class to support Sri Lankan national health strike. wsws.org Over 65,000 Sri Lankan health workers, including nurses, paramedic services, public health inspectors, medical laboratory technologists and pharmacists, began an indefinite strike over wages, allowances and working conditions on Monday.

Fight Back (2022-02-10). San José protests against U.S. war on Russia. fightbacknews.org San José, CA – On Saturday, February 5, anti-war protesters gathered in front of San José's City Hall to demand an end to imperial saber rattling in eastern Europe. Speakers from CODEPINK, Freedom Road Socialism (FRSO), National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, Party for Socialism and Liberation, and the El Barrio Defense Committee gathered a crowd of 30 onlookers while calling for end to the war drive against Russia. | Mike Paradela of FRSO said "We called the protest because what the U.S. government is doing is not good for working people. NATO does not benefit working people, it began as an al…

Sameena Rahman (2022-02-10). Supreme Court OKs Alabama state government plot against Black voters. liberationnews.org With a slew of high-profile cases the Supreme Court is slated to hear this year, it is increasingly clear that the rightwing justices will use every opportunity to take away key rights won by mass movements and move us backwards to greater inequality.

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2022-02-09). How Nicaragua Fights Poverty & Empowers Women Through the Ministry of Family Economy. libya360.wordpress.com Camila EscalanteMinister Justa Pérez of the Ministry of Family, Community, Cooperative and Associative Economy (MEFCCA) in Managua. January 2022. In Managua, Nicaragua, we interviewed Minister Justa Pérez of the Ministry of Family, Community, Cooperative and Associative Economy, known as MEFCCA. Could you start us off with a summary of what MEFCCA does to stimulate, develop…

_____ (2022-02-09). On Contact: The Gig Economy. popularresistance.org After the end of World War II, two generations of workers in the United States were blessed with a period of unprecedented prosperity. Wages for the working class were high. Jobs were stable and came with benefits and health insurance. Unions protected workers from abuse by the business elites. Taxes on the wealthiest individuals and corporations was as high as 91%. The public school system provided a quality education to the poor and the rich. The nation's infrastructure and technology were cutting edge and unrivaled. But by the 1970s, it all began to go south. Wages stagnated. Income inequality grew, until by 2…

Staff (2022-02-09). European banks panicking over Russia-Ukraine crisis — reports. rt.com Banks in Italy, France, and Austria are most exposed | European banks are concerned that the payment system which connects them to Russia could become a casualty of the Ukraine crisis, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing its sources. The banks describe the potential disconnection of Russia from SWIFT as an "atomic bomb" for the industry because it would prevent the repayment of debts, it said. | According to research by JPMorgan, European banks with subsidiaries in Russia are most at risk from economic restrictions. The study said a handful of lenders, including UniCredit, RBI, France's Societe Generale, and…

_____ (2022-02-09). Drug Decriminalization Is Working In Oregon. popularresistance.org As COVID-19 continues to rage, another health crisis persists — one that is decades long. In the first year of the pandemic, the United States hit the devastating milestone of 100,000 overdose deaths, a nearly 28.5 percent surge from the record numbers we saw the previous year. Now, fentanyl is the leading cause of death in Americans ages 18-45. The reaction from many of our leaders has been to call for more arrests and criminalization, but this response is rooted in fear, not science. We have spent the last 50 years trying to treat a public health issue with a criminalization response, yet people are dying…

Dean Baker (2022-02-09). The Big Lie of the Elites. cepr.net The key point, that is repeatedly misrepresented in this piece, is that the harm to the working class in the last four decades was the result of deliberate policy, not something that just happened.

José Manuel Blanco Diaz (2022-02-09). President Maduro Condemns Indolence of Some Officials Toward Workers. orinocotribune.com With a tenacious call to end the indolence of some state institutions and private entities, President Nicolás Maduro asked for the support of Venezuela's working class through the functions carried out by the Productive Councils of Workers (CPT). | The statements were issued this Monday, February 7, during a meeting with workers of state-owned PDVSA subsidiary Pequiven. At the same time, President Maduro noted that Venezuela currently has sufficient funds to finance small and medium industries, including through the bank's credit portfolio. | "The assets are there, what is not there is a connection with the grass…

ALETH (2022-02-09). ww3 : a wall street crime against humanity. indybay.org wall street working both sides against eac other for double war profits…

WSWS (2022-02-09). Australia: New South Wales nurses vote for statewide strike. wsws.org The union is doing everything to isolate and divide up action which expresses immense anger among not only nurses and other health staff, but broad sections of the working class.

TASS (2022-02-09). Kiev's attempts to manipulate information not conductive to peace — Donetsk. tass.com A significant portion of the 178th session of the working group on security issues was wasted on countering the Ukrainian side's manipulative rhetoric, said Alexey Nikonorov, a negotiator for the self-proclaimed DPR in the security subgroup of the Contact Group…

_____ (2022-02-09). Wanting Peace With Russia To Focus Aggressions On China Is Just Being An Imperialist Warmonger. strategic-culture.org By Caitlin JOHNSTONE | Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz criticized the Biden administration's dangerous escalations against Russia on the House floor on Monday, not because he thinks needlessly ramping up cold war brinkmanship with a nuclear-armed nation is an insane thing to do, nor because he believes the US government should cease trying to dominate the world by constantly working to subvert and undermine any nation who disobeys its commands, but because he wants US aggressions to be focused more on China. | "While the Biden administration, the media, and many in congress beat the drums of war for Ukraine, th…

WSWS (2022-02-09). Oakland, California, school closures and budget cuts are an attack on the entire working class! wsws.org Attempts to present school closures in racial terms obscures their underlying cause and divides a unified struggle of the working class against capitalist budget cuts.

Sarah Anderson (2022-02-09). President Trump Axed an IRS Report on the Richest 400 Americans. Let's Bring It Back. inequality.org

Staff (2022-02-09). Headlines for February 9, 2022. democracynow.org Heads of State Hold More Talks as U.S. Threatens Sweeping Sanctions Amid Russia-Ukraine Tensions, NY Drops Indoor Mask Mandate; Pfizer Projects Over $50 Billion in Revenue from COVID Treatments, Canadian Truckers Shut Down Bridge Linking to U.S. as "Freedom Convoy" Grows, Israeli Soldiers Shoot Dead 3 Palestinians in West Bank City of Nablus, Millions in Horn of Africa Face Severe Hunger After Years of Drought, U.S. Approves $100 Million Military Sale to Taiwan, Outrage Mounts over School Hijab Ban in Indian State of Karnataka, Ex-Pope Benedict Asks for Forgiveness for Church's Sexual Abuse But…

ecns.cn (2022-02-09). China Red Cross donates flour to hungry Afghanistan. ecns.cn The Red Cross Society of China recently donated 130 metric tons of flour to its Afghan counterpart to help the country through its severe food crisis.

Staff (2022-02-09). European banks panicking over Russia-Ukraine crisis — reports. rt.com Banks in Italy, France, and Austria are most exposed | European banks are concerned that the payment system which connects them to Russia could become a casualty of the Ukraine crisis, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing its sources. The banks describe the potential disconnection of Russia from SWIFT as an "atomic bomb" for the industry because it would prevent the repayment of debts, it said. | According to research by JPMorgan, European banks with subsidiaries in Russia are most at risk from economic restrictions. The study said a handful of lenders, including UniCredit, RBI, France's Societe Generale, and…

José Manuel Blanco Diaz (2022-02-09). President Maduro Condemns Indolence of Some Officials Toward Workers. orinocotribune.com With a tenacious call to end the indolence of some state institutions and private entities, President Nicolás Maduro asked for the support of Venezuela's working class through the functions carried out by the Productive Councils of Workers (CPT). | The statements were issued this Monday, February 7, during a meeting with workers of state-owned PDVSA subsidiary Pequiven. At the same time, President Maduro noted that Venezuela currently has sufficient funds to finance small and medium industries, including through the bank's credit portfolio. | "The assets are there, what is not there is a connection with the grass…

TASS (2022-02-09). Kiev's attempts to manipulate information not conductive to peace — Donetsk. tass.com A significant portion of the 178th session of the working group on security issues was wasted on countering the Ukrainian side's manipulative rhetoric, said Alexey Nikonorov, a negotiator for the self-proclaimed DPR in the security subgroup of the Contact Group…

WSWS (2022-02-09). Oakland, California, school closures and budget cuts are an attack on the entire working class! wsws.org Attempts to present school closures in racial terms obscures their underlying cause and divides a unified struggle of the working class against capitalist budget cuts.

ALETH (2022-02-09). ww3 : a wall street crime against humanity. indybay.org wall street working both sides against eac other for double war profits…

WSWS (2022-02-09). Australia: New South Wales nurses vote for statewide strike. wsws.org The union is doing everything to isolate and divide up action which expresses immense anger among not only nurses and other health staff, but broad sections of the working class.

ecns.cn (2022-02-09). China Red Cross donates flour to hungry Afghanistan. ecns.cn The Red Cross Society of China recently donated 130 metric tons of flour to its Afghan counterpart to help the country through its severe food crisis.

_____ (2022-02-08). How Targeting Programs To Poor People Leaves Out Poor People. popularresistance.org Less than one year ago, the United States government enacted one of the most effective anti-poverty programs in modern history. The Child Tax Credit (CTC), originally established in 1997, was expanded through the American Rescue Plan to provide families with children substantially larger payments, delivered monthly, while making low-income families eligible for the full benefits. This expansion changed the face of child poverty in the United States, lifting over 4 million children above the poverty line—a decrease in poverty of more than 40%‚Äâ—‚Äâand decreasing food…

Editor2 (2022-02-08). How US Meddling Split Sudan, Creating an Oil Republic Drowning in Poverty and Conflict. orinocotribune.com By T.J. Coles — Feb 1, 2022 | Following decades of US soft power aid interventions to exploit South Sudan's energy reserves and counter China's influence, the republic is trapped in humanitarian crisis. | Like most countries, the Republic of South Sudan is a complex nation of shifting alliances and external influences. | Recently, President Salva Kiir, who sports a Stetson hat

WSWS (2022-02-08). UK rail cleaners strike against poverty pay. wsws.org During the pandemic, rail cleaners have braved hazardous conditions to protect the public from infection. But outsourced cleaners have been paid a pittance and were even denied sick pay.

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2022-02-08). New Gates Foundation a US Regime Change Front. libya360.wordpress.com ALEXANDER RUBINSTEIN Zimbabwean telecom billionaire Strive Masiyiwa (right) with Melinda French Gates 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,…

Dana Sanchez (2022-02-08). US Government National Debt Now $30 Trillion: 3 Things About Impaired US Ability To Print Its Way Out Of Debt. moguldom.com Modern monetary theory or MMT is a popular theory that gives an apparent blank check to the government for printing money, which made it appealing to both the Donald Trump and Joe Biden administrations, as evidenced by the gross national debt exceeding $30 trillion for the first time on Feb. 1, 2022. The debt skyrocketed …

Staff (2022-02-08). Talk World Radio: Braxton Brewington: End Debt. davidswanson.org AUDIO: Talk World Radio is recorded as audio and video on Riverside.fm. Here is this week's video and all the videos on Youtube. VIDEO: This week on Talk World Radio we're talking about debt, including student debt. Our guest Braxton Brewington is a spokesperson and organizer for The Debt Collective. See debtcollective.org The Debt Collective …

Mark Gruenberg (2022-02-08). Construction union leaders hail Biden's pro-union executive order. peoplesworld.org

WSWS (2022-02-08). Turkish health workers strike as COVID-19 pandemic, living costs surge. wsws.org As COVID-19 cases explode and real annual inflation exceeds 110 percent in Turkey, many layers of the working class are increasingly taking strike action.

WSWS (2022-02-08). The far-right occupation of Ottawa: January 6 conspiracy hits Canada. wsws.org Absent the political intervention of the working class, all possible outcomes to the current standoff in Ottawa will only produce a further lurch to the right, imperiling the most fundamental democratic and social rights of the working class.

WSWS (2022-02-08). The far-right occupation of Ottawa: January 6 goes global. wsws.org Absent the political intervention of the working class, all possible outcomes to the current standoff in Ottawa will only produce a further lurch to the right, imperiling the most fundamental democratic and social rights of the working class.

JANET (2022-02-08). Olympic Games & U.S. propaganda: Have you been lied to about Xinjiang, human rights ‚àí and China? iacenter.org February 7, 2022 Feb. 6 update — The U.S. war propaganda machine is working overtime during the Olympics to defame China with false accusations of "human rights abuse" against the Turkic-speaking Muslim Uyghurs, based in its Xinjiang Province. As readers evaluate these claims, keep in mind these facts: 1) There is a centuries-long history of racist U.S. crimes — through state force and economic exploitation — against Indigenous, Black, Latinx and Asian and other oppressed peoples, on land now occupied by the U.S. These crimes, which continue to this day, are integral to U.S. tactics of military…

TASS (2022-02-08). Political and humanitarian subgroups of Contact Group for Donbass start work. tass.com Meetings of working groups on security and economic issues are also scheduled for Tuesday, and the Contact Group is due to hold a meeting on Wednesday…

Xiaolu Sun (2022-02-08). NFL to host vaccination clinic at Super Bowl. america.cgtn.com This year, the NFL is working with the local department to host a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for fans. And they're also offering free tickets to the Super Bowl experience for anyone who receives any dose of the vaccine at the on-site clinic. Find out more.

WSWS (2022-02-08). BNSF railroad unions pen letter begging Biden administration to intervene against punitive new attendance policy. wsws.org The letter is an attempt to divert attention from the unions' own treachery and promote illusions in the same capitalist state, which is robbing BNSF workers of their right to strike and to free speech.

Staff (2022-02-08). Hunger-Striking Teachers Say Oakland Plan to Close Schools Will Hurt Black & Brown Communities. democracynow.org We go to Oakland, where a group of teachers are on a hunger strike to protest a plan to close and merge over a dozen schools due to under-enrollment. This comes ahead of a critical school board vote Tuesday that will decide whether to proceed with the plan. Activists argue the move threatens to divert resources to charter schools and displace hundreds of Black and Brown children from their neighborhood schools. The hunger strike across multiple different schools has empowered many to speak up against longtime systemic racism, says Moses Omolade, one of the striking workers and a community schools manager at Westl…

Amy Goodman (2022-02-08). Hunger-Striking Teachers Say School Closures Will Hurt Black and Brown Kids. truthout.org Image Credit: Instagram: @westlakewarrioreagles | We go to Oakland, where a group of teachers are on a hunger strike to protest a plan to close and merge over a dozen schools due to under-enrollment. This comes ahead of a critical school board vote Tuesday that will decide whether to proceed with the plan. Activists argue the move threatens to divert resources to charter schools and displace hundreds of Black and Brown children from their neighborhood schools. The hunger strike across multiple di…

JANET (2022-02-08). U.S.-EU hide their role in Afghan hunger crisis. iacenter.org By Zach Kerner February 7, 2022 On Jan. 24, U.S. and European Union representatives met with representatives of the Taliban in Oslo to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. The meeting's purpose, according to the U.S. State Department, was the "urgency in addressing the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan" and the need to "help alleviate the suffering of Afghans across the country." (state.gov, Jan. 27) Credit: sanctionskill.org The U.S.-E.U. statement focuses primarily on the Taliban's conduct, particularly charges of women's and human rights violations. It fails to acknowledge that the ongoing crisis in Afghanis…

WSWS (2022-02-08). UK rail cleaners strike against poverty pay. wsws.org During the pandemic, rail cleaners have braved hazardous conditions to protect the public from infection. But outsourced cleaners have been paid a pittance and were even denied sick pay.

Staff (2022-02-08). Talk World Radio: Braxton Brewington: End Debt. davidswanson.org AUDIO: Talk World Radio is recorded as audio and video on Riverside.fm. Here is this week's video and all the videos on Youtube. VIDEO: This week on Talk World Radio we're talking about debt, including student debt. Our guest Braxton Brewington is a spokesperson and organizer for The Debt Collective. See debtcollective.org The Debt Collective …

Mark Gruenberg (2022-02-08). Construction union leaders hail Biden's pro-union executive order. peoplesworld.org

Xiaolu Sun (2022-02-08). NFL to host vaccination clinic at Super Bowl. america.cgtn.com This year, the NFL is working with the local department to host a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for fans. And they're also offering free tickets to the Super Bowl experience for anyone who receives any dose of the vaccine at the on-site clinic. Find out more.

WSWS (2022-02-08). Turkish health workers strike as COVID-19 pandemic, living costs surge. wsws.org As COVID-19 cases explode and real annual inflation exceeds 110 percent in Turkey, many layers of the working class are increasingly taking strike action.

WSWS (2022-02-08). The far-right occupation of Ottawa: January 6 goes global. wsws.org Absent the political intervention of the working class, all possible outcomes to the current standoff in Ottawa will only produce a further lurch to the right, imperiling the most fundamental democratic and social rights of the working class.

TASS (2022-02-08). Political and humanitarian subgroups of Contact Group for Donbass start work. tass.com Meetings of working groups on security and economic issues are also scheduled for Tuesday, and the Contact Group is due to hold a meeting on Wednesday…

WSWS (2022-02-08). The far-right occupation of Ottawa: January 6 conspiracy hits Canada. wsws.org Absent the political intervention of the working class, all possible outcomes to the current standoff in Ottawa will only produce a further lurch to the right, imperiling the most fundamental democratic and social rights of the working class.

WSWS (2022-02-08). BNSF railroad unions pen letter begging Biden administration to intervene against punitive new attendance policy. wsws.org The letter is an attempt to divert attention from the unions' own treachery and promote illusions in the same capitalist state, which is robbing BNSF workers of their right to strike and to free speech.

Staff (2022-02-08). Hunger-Striking Teachers Say Oakland Plan to Close Schools Will Hurt Black & Brown Communities. democracynow.org We go to Oakland, where a group of teachers are on a hunger strike to protest a plan to close and merge over a dozen schools due to under-enrollment. This comes ahead of a critical school board vote Tuesday that will decide whether to proceed with the plan. Activists argue the move threatens to divert resources to charter schools and displace hundreds of Black and Brown children from their neighborhood schools. The hunger strike across multiple different schools has empowered many to speak up against longtime systemic racism, says Moses Omolade, one of the striking workers and a community schools manager at Westl…

_____ (2022-02-07). Why Airbnb Banned Me (And My Hubby, Too!). strategic-culture.org By Michelle MALKIN | So here is the grim reality of life in Woke America 2022. In November, I spoke at a peaceful conference held by an organization that is deemed a "hate group" by the Southern Poverty Law Center and Anti-Defamation League. The title of my talk was

rebekah (2022-02-07). America's Inherited Wealth Dynasties Park Trillions Out of Reach of Taxation. inequality.org

Staff (2022-02-07). Is the NFL Run Like a Plantation? Ex-Player Donté Stallworth Responds to Bombshell Racism Lawsuit. democracynow.org Ahead of the Super Bowl this weekend, we speak to former National Football League player Donté Stallworth about racism and anti-Blackness in the league. Last week, former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores sued the NFL, as well as three teams — the Dolphins, Broncos and Giants — for discriminating against him as a Black candidate during his interview process. In his complaint, Flores says the NFL is "racially segregated and is managed much like a plantation," with wealthy white owners and head coaches at the top while the majority of players who risk bodily injury are Black. "Hop…

_____ (2022-02-07). Argentina Turns To Russia And Joins China's Belt And Road. popularresistance.org Argentina is trapped in $44 billion of IMF odious debt taken on by corrupt right-wing regimes. Seeking alternatives to US hegemony, President Alberto Fernández traveled to Russia and China, forming an alliance with the Eurasian powers, joining the Belt and Road Initiative.

Antonio C.S. Rosa (2022-02-07). US National Debt Surpasses $30 Trillion for the First Time. transcend.org 2 Feb 2022 – On Monday [31 Jan], the U.S. Treasury Department announced that the national debt surpassed US$30 trillion, which included US$23.5 trillion in debt held by the public and US$6.5 trillion in intergovernmental holdings.

_____ (2022-02-07). After Amazon Tragedy, Workers Come Together To Demand Safe Working Conditions. popularresistance.org The fight for justice and accountability continues for six Amazon employees who were killed when a warehouse roof collapsed during a tornado in December. | Federal officials are investigating possible health and safety violations at the facility in Edwardsville, Illinois, a suburb of St. Louis. Illinois lawmakers are considering raising statewide standards for warehouse construction to prevent future tragedies. And family members of one of the employees, Austin McEwen, recently filed a wrongful death suit against the giant retailer.

_____ (2022-02-07). After Amazon Tragedy, Workers Demand Safe Working Conditions. popularresistance.org The fight for justice and accountability continues for six Amazon employees who were killed when a warehouse roof collapsed during a tornado in December. | Federal officials are investigating possible health and safety violations at the facility in Edwardsville, Illinois, a suburb of St. Louis. Illinois lawmakers are considering raising statewide standards for warehouse construction to prevent future tragedies. And family members of one of the employees, Austin McEwen, recently filed a wrongful death suit against the giant retailer. | "My daughter was not expendable," said Jeffrey Hebb at a January rally in front…

Anonymous103 (2022-02-07). Military And Political Situation In Iraq On February 7, 2022 (Map Update). southfront.org Click to see full-size image | On February 6, one PMU member was killed and four others were injured in an ISIS attack in Diyala province; | On February 6, Iraqi National Security Service in Nineveh arrested a terrorist cell of 3 ISIS members working in logistical support; | On February 7, Iraqi parliament indefinitely postponed the scheduled election of the national president after only 58 of the 329 lawmakers showed up; | The Foreign Ministers of Saudi Arabia and Iraq have discussed the reasons…

Rick Rozoff (2022-02-07). DW: New German government more Atlanticist than its predecessor. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Deutsche WelleFebruary 7, 2022 Germany's Olaf Scholz is in Washington amid Ukraine crisis The chancellor himself appeared on public broadcaster ZDF on Wednesday night to flatly deny that he was being too passive and that NATO partners considered Germany unreliable: Not only was he working intensively with all NATO partners, he said, but he was …

WSWS (2022-02-07). US death toll from COVID-19 heading toward 1 million. wsws.org America's COVID-19 death toll stands as an indictment of a capitalist social order completely indifferent to the death and suffering of the working population.

International Action Center (2022-02-07). Olympic Games & U.S. propaganda: Have you been lied to about Xinjiang, human rights ‚àí and China? workers.org Feb. 6 update — The U.S. war propaganda machine is working overtime during the Olympics to defame China with false accusations of "human rights abuse" against the Turkic-speaking Muslim Uyghurs, based in its Xinjiang Province. As readers evaluate these claims, keep in mind these facts: 1) There is a centuries-long . . . |

Kassandra Frederique (2022-02-07). Drug Decriminalization Is Working in Oregon. Other States Should Follow. truthout.org As COVID-19 continues to rage, another health crisis persists — one that is decades long. In the first year of the pandemic, the United States hit the devastating milestone of

WSWS (2022-02-07). Pennsylvania Governor Wolf raises minimum wage for state employees, calls for a $15 statewide minimum. wsws.org Facing reelection in the fall, Wolf has called on the Republican-dominated state legislature to raise the state's minimum wage to $15 per hour. There is little prospect the proposal will go into effect.

Anonymous Contributor (2022-02-07). Boise Tent Demonstration Remains Strong in Face of Continued Police and Far-Right Harassment. itsgoingdown.org Report on the ongoing situation in Boise, Idaho, as houseless demonstrators continue to face down harassment and attacks from the far-Right and police. Folks are three weeks into the tent demonstration in so-called Boise, Idaho. Lasting through multiple police raids, attacks from local fascist groups, and a whirlwind of misrepresentation in local media; folks are…

Shawgi Tell (2022-02-07). Miserable Bankruptcy of Mainstream Economics. dissidentvoice.org Capital-centered economics is unscientific and irrational. It does not provide people with a coherent, integrated, and cogent understanding of the economy. Instead it increases confusion every day, leaving people rudderless and disoriented about what is really happening. The capitalist economic system is always chaotic, anarchic, and violent, but the last two years have been more …

WSWS (2022-02-07). Australian government at war with itself as parliament resumes. wsws.org The Coalition's meltdown is part of a crisis of the entire political establishment, fuelled by mass popular opposition to the profits-before-lives pandemic policies, social inequality and onslaught on wages and conditions.

Zach Kerner (2022-02-07). U.S.-EU hide their role in Afghan hunger crisis. workers.org On Jan. 24, U.S. and European Union representatives met with representatives of the Taliban in Oslo to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. The meeting's purpose, according to the U.S. State Department, was the "urgency in addressing the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan" and the need to "help alleviate the suffering of . . . |

Kevin Mwanza (2022-02-07). What Is Liquid Staking? Staking Yields Are Not Enough, Yield-Hungry Investors Turn To 'Liquid Staking' To Juice Yield. moguldom.com Liquid staking, which allows cryptocurrency users to stake any amount of Ethereum without locking up their stake and to effectively unstake their ETH without the requirement of transactions being enabled, has been gaining popularity among investors in recent days. Considered a 'breakthrough crypto technology," liquid staking combines the benefits of staking and DeFi (decentralized finance," …

_____ (2022-02-07). Argentina Turns To Russia And Joins China's Belt And Road. popularresistance.org Argentina is trapped in $44 billion of IMF odious debt taken on by corrupt right-wing regimes. Seeking alternatives to US hegemony, President Alberto Fernández traveled to Russia and China, forming an alliance with the Eurasian powers, joining the Belt and Road Initiative.

WSWS (2022-02-07). US death toll from COVID-19 heading toward 1 million. wsws.org America's COVID-19 death toll stands as an indictment of a capitalist social order completely indifferent to the death and suffering of the working population.

rebekah (2022-02-07). America's Inherited Wealth Dynasties Park Trillions Out of Reach of Taxation. inequality.org

Staff (2022-02-07). Is the NFL Run Like a Plantation? Ex-Player Donté Stallworth Responds to Bombshell Racism Lawsuit. democracynow.org Ahead of the Super Bowl this weekend, we speak to former National Football League player Donté Stallworth about racism and anti-Blackness in the league. Last week, former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores sued the NFL, as well as three teams — the Dolphins, Broncos and Giants — for discriminating against him as a Black candidate during his interview process. In his complaint, Flores says the NFL is "racially segregated and is managed much like a plantation," with wealthy white owners and head coaches at the top while the majority of players who risk bodily injury are Black. "Hop…

_____ (2022-02-07). After Amazon Tragedy, Workers Come Together To Demand Safe Working Conditions. popularresistance.org The fight for justice and accountability continues for six Amazon employees who were killed when a warehouse roof collapsed during a tornado in December. | Federal officials are investigating possible health and safety violations at the facility in Edwardsville, Illinois, a suburb of St. Louis. Illinois lawmakers are considering raising statewide standards for warehouse construction to prevent future tragedies. And family members of one of the employees, Austin McEwen, recently filed a wrongful death suit against the giant retailer.

WSWS (2022-02-07). Pennsylvania Governor Wolf raises minimum wage for state employees, calls for a $15 statewide minimum. wsws.org Facing reelection in the fall, Wolf has called on the Republican-dominated state legislature to raise the state's minimum wage to $15 per hour. There is little prospect the proposal will go into effect.

Anonymous Contributor (2022-02-07). Boise Tent Demonstration Remains Strong in Face of Continued Police and Far-Right Harassment. itsgoingdown.org Report on the ongoing situation in Boise, Idaho, as houseless demonstrators continue to face down harassment and attacks from the far-Right and police. Folks are three weeks into the tent demonstration in so-called Boise, Idaho. Lasting through multiple police raids, attacks from local fascist groups, and a whirlwind of misrepresentation in local media; folks are…

Shawgi Tell (2022-02-07). Miserable Bankruptcy of Mainstream Economics. dissidentvoice.org Capital-centered economics is unscientific and irrational. It does not provide people with a coherent, integrated, and cogent understanding of the economy. Instead it increases confusion every day, leaving people rudderless and disoriented about what is really happening. The capitalist economic system is always chaotic, anarchic, and violent, but the last two years have been more …

WSWS (2022-02-07). Australian government at war with itself as parliament resumes. wsws.org The Coalition's meltdown is part of a crisis of the entire political establishment, fuelled by mass popular opposition to the profits-before-lives pandemic policies, social inequality and onslaught on wages and conditions.

Kevin Mwanza (2022-02-07). What Is Liquid Staking? Staking Yields Are Not Enough, Yield-Hungry Investors Turn To 'Liquid Staking' To Juice Yield. moguldom.com Liquid staking, which allows cryptocurrency users to stake any amount of Ethereum without locking up their stake and to effectively unstake their ETH without the requirement of transactions being enabled, has been gaining popularity among investors in recent days. Considered a 'breakthrough crypto technology," liquid staking combines the benefits of staking and DeFi (decentralized finance," …

Fight Back (2022-02-06). Baltimore: Protest demands: 'No U.S., NATO war on Russia and Donbass'. fightbacknews.org Baltimore, MD — Dozens of protesters gathered on February 5 in downtown Baltimore to speak out against a possible U.S./NATO war on Russia and Donbass. Speakers called on the U.S. government to fight COVID and poverty instead of Russia. | Protesters chanted demands for money for social investments in healthcare, housing and jobs instead of the military budget and war. Cars honked their horns in solidarity as they drove by the picket. A caravan of protesters drove throughout the city after the initial picket, before meeting up with another group for a joint closing rally at a different intersection. | A coali…

Editor (2022-02-06). Chris Hedges and Louis Hyman on the Harmful Gig Economy. scheerpost.com After the end of World War II two generations of workers in the United States were blessed with a period of unprecedented prosperity. Wages for the working class were high. Jobs were stable and came with benefits and health insurance. Unions protected workers from abuse by the business elites. Taxes on the wealthiest individuals and corporations was as high as 91 percent. The public school system provided a quality education to the poor and the rich. The nation's infrastructure and technology were cutting edge and unrivaled. But by the 1970s it all began to go south. Wages stagnated. Income inequality grew,…

Benjamin Norton (2022-02-06). Trapped in IMF debt, Argentina turns to Russia and joins China's Belt & Road. multipolarista.com Argentina is trapped in $44 billion of IMF odious debt taken on by corrupt right-wing regimes. Seeking alternatives to US hegemony, President Alberto Fernández traveled to Russia and China, forming an alliance with the Eurasian powers, joining the Belt and Road Initiative.

Carlos Aznarez (2022-02-06). Argentina: An Agreement of More Submission. orinocotribune.com By Carlos Aznárez and Roberto Perdía — Jan 30, 2022 | On Friday last week, President Alberto Fernández announced the new agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by which he set the will of his government to extend the payment of the debts contracted by former right wing President Macri, and agreed to a series of commitments with the international financial organization where the US has the leading voice. | Since our incorporation into the IMF in 1956, this is the 22nd agreement, and in all of them there are mutual commitments to "lay the foundations for a sustained development". | In none of the…

Morteza Ahmadi Al Hashem (2022-02-06). Iran, Russia to hold joint agricultural working group. en.mehrnews.com Deputy Ministry of Agriculture for Horticultural Affairs said that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation will hold a joint working group in the field of agriculture.

Fight Back (2022-02-06). Baltimore: Protest demands: 'No U.S., NATO war on Russia and Donbass'. fightbacknews.org Baltimore, MD — Dozens of protesters gathered on February 5 in downtown Baltimore to speak out against a possible U.S./NATO war on Russia and Donbass. Speakers called on the U.S. government to fight COVID and poverty instead of Russia. | Protesters chanted demands for money for social investments in healthcare, housing and jobs instead of the military budget and war. Cars honked their horns in solidarity as they drove by the picket. A caravan of protesters drove throughout the city after the initial picket, before meeting up with another group for a joint closing rally at a different intersection. | A coali…

Carlos Aznarez (2022-02-06). Argentina: An Agreement of More Submission. orinocotribune.com By Carlos Aznárez and Roberto Perdía — Jan 30, 2022 | On Friday last week, President Alberto Fernández announced the new agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by which he set the will of his government to extend the payment of the debts contracted by former right wing President Macri, and agreed to a series of commitments with the international financial organization where the US has the leading voice. | Since our incorporation into the IMF in 1956, this is the 22nd agreement, and in all of them there are mutual commitments to "lay the foundations for a sustained development". | In none of the…

Morteza Ahmadi Al Hashem (2022-02-06). Iran, Russia to hold joint agricultural working group. en.mehrnews.com Deputy Ministry of Agriculture for Horticultural Affairs said that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation will hold a joint working group in the field of agriculture.

WSWS (2022-02-05). Conceptual artist places gold cube in Central Park: Once again charlatanry meets extreme wealth. wsws.org Artnet News announced this week that "An Artist Placed a Cube Made From $11.7 Million Worth of Gold in Central Park—Protected By Its Own Security Detail."

Fight Back (2022-02-05). Chicago protest demands federal charges against killer cop Jason Van Dyke. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – A delegation of activists demanding Justice for Laquan McDonald met with an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Chicago's Federal Building. They presented a letter signed by 38 organizations and unions, as well as five elected officials, demanding federal charges against killer cop Jason Van Dyke. | A statement released before the protest explained, "VanDyke was given a 'slap on the wrist' by the Cook County Criminal Court after being convicted of McDonald's murder and 16 counts of aggravated assault and is being released from prison after less than 3 1/2 years, when Black and brown and other working-class…

WSWS (2022-02-05). Canadian workers need a socialist program to defeat the threat of far-right political violence, end the pandemic and oppose war. wsws.org With the support and encouragement of a significant faction of the ruling class, far-right thugs have besieged Canada's parliament for the past week to demand all COVID-19 public health measures be abolished. These extraordinary events underscore the urgent necessity of the independent political mobilization of the working class.

WSWS (2022-02-05). With Ôªøre-election of ÔªøMattarella, Italian government will seek to enforce "EU recovery plan" wsws.org The anti-working class offensive of the Draghi government and the rise of the Fratelli d'Italia make clear how urgently necessary an independent working class movement is, a party that resolutely leads the struggle against mass infection, social impoverishment and war.

Udani Samarasekera (2022-02-05). [Perspectives] Ayoade Alakija: advancing equity in the COVID-19 response. thelancet.com Ayoade Olatunbosun-Alakija is running late for our video call because of back-to-back meetings in Geneva as the newly appointed WHO Special Envoy and Co-Chair of the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-Accelerator), a global collaboration to accelerate equitable access to COVID-19 health tools. Her Geneva visit will help her "join the dots to help move us from working in silos to working better collectively to overcome COVID-19", she tells me in between her last meeting and catching a flight back home to Abuja, Nigeria.

Peoples Health Dispatch (2022-02-05). No pause in health workers' struggles in Nigeria. peoplesdispatch.org As health workers' trade unions in Nigeria call their membership to continue strike action over bad working conditions and missed payments, attempts to limit the space for industrial action persist…

Seth Galinsky (2022-02-05). Join Socialist Workers Party, 'Militant' in campaigning. themilitant.com The international In California the fight for ballot status for SWP candidates Eleanor García for U.S. Senate and Joel Britton for governor is underway. García and Britton explain why working people need ou…

WSWS (2022-02-05). In New Zealand, rising inflation, inequality intensify social crisis. wsws.org The Labour-Green Party government's pro-business policies, imposed since it assumed office in 2017, have produced an unprecedented explosion in social inequality since the onset of COVID-19.

WSWS (2022-02-05). Bomb threats sent to historically black colleges across the United States. wsws.org The series of threats against historically black colleges and the law-and-order response of authorities follow protests and demonstrations at schools and universities against inequality and the spread of COVID-19.