t the moment, we see only the dark face of Europe,” said Leonidas Fotinos. “They want to buy Greece cheap.” A large, young-looking man in his early 50s, Leonidas studied economics at university and was now running a small tour business on the historic Aegean island of Milos. He could hardly have been more removed from the street protests and …
Corporate Media Accused of Parroting Fear-Mongering over Patriot Act – Nadia Prupis
With key provisions of the USA Patriot Act nearing a long-awaited expiration date, there remains one last adversary to take down in the fight for privacy rights: the corporate media. The most recent case is the New York Times, which on Thursday quoted several anonymous White House officials who warned that allowing the Patriot Act to sunset is akin to “playing national security Russian roulette” …
Delusionary Thinking in Washington – Michael T. Klare
Take a look around the world and it’s hard not to conclude that the United States is a superpower in decline. Whether in Europe, Asia, or the Middle East, aspiring powers are flexing their muscles, ignoring Washington’s dictates, or actively combating them. Russia refuses to curtail its support for armed separatists in Ukraine; China refuses to abandon its base-building endeavors in the South China …
How NPR Is Doing Right-Wing’s Economic Dirty Work on Debt By Dean Baker
Billionaire Peter Peterson is spending lots of money to get people to worry about the debt and deficits rather than focus on the issues that will affect their lives. National Public Radio is doing its part to try to promote Peterson’s cause with a Morning Edition piece [2] that began by telling people that the next president “will have to wrestle with the …
Tiny Parasite May Contribute to Declines in Honey Bee Colonies by Infecting Larvae
Biologists at UC San Diego have discovered that a tiny single-celled parasite may have a greater-than expected impact on honey bee colonies, which have been undergoing mysterious declines worldwide for the past decade. In this week’s issue of the journal PLOS ONE, the scientists report that a microsporidian calledNosema ceranae, which has been known to infect adult Asiatic and European honey bees, …
How Federal Dollars Are Financing the Water Crisis in the West – Abrahm Lustgarten and Naveena
State Route 87, the thin band of pavement that approaches the mostly shuttered town of Coolidge, Ariz., cuts through some of the least hospitable land in the country. The valley of red and brown sand is interrupted occasionally by rock and saguaro cactus. It’s not unusual for summer temperatures to top 116 degrees. And there is almost no water; this …
What Is Your Vision of a Just and Climate-Stable 2050? – Lindsey Allen
Last week, thousands of people came to Seattle — on foot and by kayak — and put their bodies on the line to say “Shell No” to arctic drilling. Like many climate activists who couldn’t be there in person, I watched the events unfold on Twitter on the edge of my seat. Seeing hundreds of people stand up to a …
Challenging Operation Vulture in Ukraine by MICHAEL HUDSON
Ukraine’s collapse since the February 2014 coup has become an umbrella for grabitization. Collateral damage in this free-for-all has been labor. Many workers are simply not getting paid, and what actually is being paid is often illegally low. Employers are taking whatever money is in their business accounts and squirreling it away – preferably abroad, or at least in foreign currency. Wage …
The Rise of Scientific Fundamentalism – Larry Malerbo DO
Contrary to the beliefs of some, science is not an impenetrable body of settled fact that must be defended at all costs in the name of truth. When science becomes a worldview—a philosophy of life, a metaphysical framework that explains existence—it is no longer science; it is scientism. Anti-Holistic Conspiracy or Reality? Contrary to the beliefs of some, science is not …
Robo-Journalism Will Produce 1 Billion Web Stories in 2015 (This Isn’t One of Them); McJournalism Coming Up – Mike Shedlock
I sometimes get asked what I am going to do when I am replaced by a robot. On other occasions, I get emails from people hoping I get replaced by a robot. Those in the second group typically accuse me of not knowing what it is like to not have a job. Actually, I do know what it is like …