World

Rejecting War Is Not Enough—Racism Curdles Peace

War and racism have always been violently, tragically inseparable. For centuries, the most devastating and brutal conflicts in the world have been driven by destructive notions of racial superiority and murderous assertions of ethnic differences. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is abhorrent and deeply concerning. It is an unprovoked, unjustifiable outrage and a heinous violation of international law that will have[Read More...]

How Corporate Propaganda Shapes Public Opinion

When journalism became Churnalism – the churning out of massive amount of articles in a relatively short period of time, it turned journalism into a form of corporate propaganda that reflects the ideology of media owners. Yet, it also made media outlets to be increasingly reliant on the so-called news agencies that supply newspapers and TV with news items. Associated[Read More...]

 The What, Where, How and Why of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework

On May 23, U.S. President Joe Biden officially launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) in Tokyo. Conceived and led by the United States, the IPEF has 13 founding members, including Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. “The future of 21st century economy is going to largely be written in the[Read More...]

U.S. Democracy Questioned By Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, U.S. Congresswoman

U.S. congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) denounced the U.S. political system as an “oligarchy” on Friday, resuming the long-dormant class-war rhetoric that first attracted so many young voters to her campaign in 2018. “When you look at the fact that our elections are bought, that corporations and… powerful corporate lobbies have more say in our legislation than everyday people, we[Read More...]

NATO opens Northern front in war against Russia

On May 16, Sweden and Finland announced an end to decades of neutrality, proclaiming their intention to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and its escalating conflict with Russia. Less than three weeks later, Stockholm, Sweden’s capital, has been turned into a naval garrison with the arrival of a US amphibious assault battle group, consisting of the assault ship[Read More...]

Remember Shireen Abu Akleh: Apartheid Israel Leads The World For Killing Journalists

        The World  was shocked by the recent deliberate killing by an Israeli sniper of veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. However over 50 journalists have been killed by Apartheid Israel in the last 2 decades. Careful analysis reveals that Apartheid Israel leads the World  by far in terms of  “average number of journalists killed per 10 million of[Read More...]

The Ultimate Blowback Planet

Once upon a time, long, long ago — actually, it was early in the year 2000 — I was involved in publishing Blowback: The Costs and Consequences of American Empire. It had been written by the eminent scholar of Asia, former CIA consultant, and cold warrior Chalmers Johnson. I was his editor at Metropolitan Books. In its introduction, using a word[Read More...]

Environment and war today

War environs environment. War destructs and demolishes life, all forms of environment. It’s war’s powerful approach to contradictions within and with environment surrounding life. Wars including the current Ukraine War bear this signature of destruction of and on environment and ecology. The first victim is life; and, then comes surroundings of life that help sustain life. Activities to secure, nourish[Read More...]

Platinum Jubilees and Republican Questions

The platinum jubilee will bore and cause some to yawn.  It might certainly agitate the republican spleen in the fourteen countries where Queen Elizabeth II remains a constitutional head of state.  But the question remains: How does the institution this figure represents endure, if it should at all? A rash of countries have expressed an interest in severing ties with[Read More...]

Labor Activists Launch New Organization to Challenge AFL-CIO Foreign Policy

Labor activists from across the country, members of a number of unions, publicly announced the creation of LEPAIO, the Labor Education Project on the AFL-CIO International Operations, over the weekend of April 9-10.  They held a press conference outside of AFL-CIO Headquarters on 16th Street in Washington, DC on April 8th, and followed with a four hour educational conference at[Read More...]