A torrent of familiar propaganda has flooded the airwaves as the imminent collapse of Washington and its regional allies’ proxy terrorist forces in Syria approaches. Predicated on “humanitarian concerns,” global audiences are reminded of the torrent of lies, fabrications, and deceit that preceded NATO’s military intervention in Libya – a military intervention that has since left the North African nation …
Pepe Escobar – Why the ‘Sultan of Chaos’ is freaking out
Picture sleepless nights at ‘Sultan’ Erdogan’s palace in Ankara. Imagine him livid when he learns the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), backed by Russian air power, started a preemptive Battle of Aleppo – through the Bayirbucak region – cutting off Ankara’s top weaponizing corridor and Jihadi highway. Who controls this corridor will control the final outcome of the war in Syria. …
Chris McGreal – Financial despair, addiction and the rise of suicide in white America
Kevin Lowney lies awake some nights wondering if he should kill himself. “I am in such pain every night, suicide has on a regular basis crossed my mind just simply to ease the pain. If I did not have responsibilities, especially for my youngest daughter who has problems,” he said. The 56-year-old former salesman’s struggle with chronic pain is bound …
Islamist fighters in Syria, got reinforcements from Turkey – Russian Foreign Ministry
Terrorists have increased their activities ahead of the next week’s inter-Syrian talks, with insurgents in the Syrian province of Aleppo receiving reinforcements from Turkey, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said. The much-anticipated talks between the Syrian government and different opposition groups are scheduled to take place in the Swiss city of Geneva on January 25. “Unfortunately, in recent days, it’s especially noticeable …
Crawford Kilian – The Silent Epidemic Killing White American Women
A momentous new report took up just six pages in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The title had no spoilers: “Rising morbidity and mortality in midlife among white non-Hispanic Americans in the 21st century.” The authors were Anne Case of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, and Angus Deaton of …
Joseph Stigliz – When Inequality Kills
his week, Angus Deaton will receive the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics “for his analysis of consumption, poverty, and welfare.” Deservedly so. Indeed, soon after the award was announced in October, Deaton published some startling work with Anne Case in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences – research that is at least as newsworthy as the Nobel ceremony. …
David Suzuki – Healing humanity’s grief in the face of climate change
The tragedy we’re witnessing in so many places around the world is heartbreaking. Responses on the ground and in the media to events in Paris, Beirut, Syria, and elsewhere have ranged from inspiring to chilling. Too often, people express fear and distress as anger, suspicion, and scapegoating. For many reasons and in many ways, people and nature are in distress. …
Interview with Chris Hunt from GRACE – 12.03.15
Special Advisor on Food and Agriculture
Chris Hunt serves as special advisor on food and agriculture at GRACE, where he provides strategic input on the organization’s efforts to build a sustainable food future. Chris has written extensively about food and agriculture issues; his work has appeared in Civil Eats, Huffington Post, AlterNet and Ecocentric. His areas of interest and expertise include industrial livestock production, food waste, urban agriculture and food systems advocacy. Before GRACE, Chris worked as an Alumni Memorial Scholar research fellow at Colgate University, and has served two terms on the board of directors of the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater. Chris earned a BA in environmental economics from Colgate University. He’s an ardent proponent of bicycling, composting, accepting peculiar travel suggestions and walking up mountains.
Patrick Cockburn – What is Russia Doing in Syria?
The military balance of power in Syria and Iraq is changing. The Russian air strikes that have been taking place since the end of September are strengthening and raising the morale of the Syrian army, which earlier in the year looked fought out and was on the retreat. With the support of Russian airpower, the army is now on the …