Argentina

The class struggle from above found its most intense, comprehensive and retrograde expression in Argentina, with the election of Mauricio Macri (December 2015). During the first two months in office, through the arbitrary assumption of emergency powers, he reversed, by decree, a multitude of progressive socio-economic policies passed over the previous decade and sought to purge public institutions of independent voices.
Facing a hostile majority in Congress, he seized legislative powers and proceeded to name two Supreme Court judges in violation of the Constitution.

The question of the Malvinas Islands (Falkland Islands) remains one of those unresolved disputes in international politics which seldom receives much attention from the world community. This is a pity since the United Nations has for the last 50 years called upon the two parties to the dispute — Argentina and Britain — to negotiate a peaceful solution through bilateral negotiations.

The big boys are confident that Sen. Marco Rubio has locked up the Republican nomination.
But who’s locked up Rubio?
I called my bookie in London. The betting professionals were not surprised at Marco Rubio’s big Iowa showing. The smart money has been on Rubio since October 31–despite the fact that Rubio was polling at just 9%.
Paul Krishnamurty, politics odds analyst at Betfair.com, told me that, among professional betters, over just two days, Rubio soared from zero to odds-on favorite to win the GOP nomination.

Activist Sergio Chorolque was hit with charges just days after his mother was ordered to remain behind bars Human rights advocates that support Chorolque have alleged the charges are motivated by him and his mother’s activism. | Photo: Diario Veloz teleSUR – January 31, 2016 The son of a prominent Argentine indigenous activist was charged […]

teleSUR | January 27, 2016 Milagro Sala was jailed 11 days ago for speaking out against President Mauricio Macri, sparking a wave of protests against criminalization of dissent. Thousands of Argentines gathered in Buenos Aires’ central Plaza de Mayo Wednesday to protest the criminalization of social protest and demand freedom for Milagro Sala, a dissident […]

Monsanto is trying to evict a bevy of protesters who have gathered in an agricultural province of Cordoba, Argentina. The protesters aim to stop a massive GMO seed plant which would spew vast clouds of toxic fumes and leave regular spills of the neonics, fungicides, and numerous other poisons that would be applied as seed coatings.
A Monsanto-friendly judge armed the monopolizing company with permission to evict the group, so now goons from Monsanto are trying to drive off the camp which is blockading further progress of the plant.

For now, Argentina is lost and Venezuela is deeply wounded, divided and frustrated. Virtually everywhere in socialist Latin America, well-orchestrated and angry protests are taking place, accusing our left-wing governments of mismanagement and corruption.

Happy New Year to All! May 2016 bring peace to you and your loved ones.
Over the holidays, I had the opportunity to stay away from airports and hike Runyon Canyon with my dogs. For those of you that have never traversed Runyon’s peaks and dips, they are nature’s respite from the urban streets of Los Angeles, yet located in the heart of the City of Angels. It’s a place in which to observe, reflect, and think about what’s coming ahead.

Mark Weisbrot, a co-director with Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), has written an enlightening book that pulls together many of the analyses that CEPR has been producing over the past several decades.

The IMF is the leading international monetary agency whose public purpose is to maintain the stability of the global financial system through loans linked to proposals designed to enhance economic recovery and growth.
In fact, the IMF has been under the control of the US and Western European states and its policies have been designed to further the expansion, domination and profits of their leading multi-national corporations and financial institutions.