Alternative Visions – US Incomes And Pre-Election Hype About Economic Recovery – 09.16.16

Jack takes on recent reports from private and government sources this past week that US incomes and the economy are finally recovering. Taking issue with Paul Krugman’s column today, ‘Trickle Up Economics’, hyping the reports, Jack cites and explains contrary data that show the reports and Krugman punditry are questionable. Alternative sources, like the Gallup Poll, show 87% of US population surveyed consider the economy poor or getting worse. Other sources show the doubling of death rates from drugs, suicide, and alcohol for the 25-64 age group—Trump’s target voters in key swing states. Jack discusses data showing Trump now leads in key swing states, Ohio and Florida, where incomes remain down as much as 10%, as well as in other swing states. Why Clinton’s campaign is trying to reorient to the 25-64 group and millennials—too little too late. The show concludes with Jack repeating his prediction of US recession in 2017-18, and predicting post-election policies of more business tax cuts, infrastructure spending, TPP, and Fed interest rate hikes are coming.

Sleepwalking into a big war

As the US presidential race approaches its climax and European officials ponder the implications of the UK’s Brexit vote, public discussion of security affairs is largely confined to strategies for combating international terrorism. Both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are trying to persuade voters of their superior qualifications to lead this battle, while European leaders scramble to bolster their countries’ defences …

Robert Parry – The Danger of Excessive Trump Bashing

The widespread disdain for Donald Trump and the fear of what his presidency might mean have led to an abandonment of any sense of objectivity by many Trump opponents and, most notably, the mainstream U.S. news media. If Trump is for something, it must be bad and must be transformed into one more club to use for hobbling his candidacy. …

American elections ranked worst among Western democracies. Here’s why.

The world is currently transfixed by the spectacle of American elections. From New York, London and Paris to Beijing, Moscow, and Sydney there is endless heated debate in the news media and across dinner tables about the factors fueling the remarkable success of Donald Trump, speculation about a brokered convention shattering the old GOP, and the most likely outcome of a polarizing Trump-Clinton battle …

Jason Leopold – he CIA Just Declassified the “WMD Document” of the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) That Supposedly Justified the Iraq Invasion

Thirteen years ago, the intelligence community concluded in a 93-page classified document used to justify the invasion of Iraq that it lacked “specific information” on “many key aspects” of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs. But that’s not what top Bush administration officials said during their campaign to sell the war to the American public. Those officials, citing the same classified document, …

Prof. James F. Tracy – The CIA and the Media: 50 Facts the World Needs to Know

Since the end of World War Two the Central Intelligence Agency has been a major force in US and foreign news media, exerting considerable influence over what the public sees, hears and reads on a regular basis. CIA publicists and journalists alike will assert they have few, if any, relationships, yet the seldom acknowledged history of their intimate collaboration indicates a …

How Obama Went From Being a Peace Candidate to a War President – Sherle R. Schwenninger

When it comes to his administration’s foreign policy, Barack Obama must feel a little like Michael Corleone in The Godfather Part III: “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.” Upon entering office, the president promised to end the wars of occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan, reset American relations with Russia, and give priority to rebuilding the …

Did the Media Just Buckle from Biotech Industry Pressure

How else to explain the extraordinary, coordinated attack on Chipotle for going GMO-free? Action Alert! After announcing that Chipotle would make the switch to using exclusively non-GMO ingredients in their food, the restaurant chain was slammed hard by major news media outlets. Here’s a sampling of some of the headlines: “Why Chipotle Mexican Grill Going GMO-Free is Terrible News” (Time); “Chipotle’s GMO Gimmick …

Big Pharma’s Mass Vaccination Agenda: Propaganda Assault on Informed Consent

Major US news media have presented a grossly distorted and misleading interpretation of vaccines and their relationship to public health since early January. These journalistic organs have suggested the recent measles outbreak in the Western US has been a crisis of monumental proportions. This flagrant and cynical sensationalism has become a foundation for intense advocacy on behalf of the pharmaceutical …