Staff (2019-08-24). Trump\'s Concentration Camps for Children. therealnews.com This week, the Trump Administration declared that immigrant children can be detained indefinitely, and in conditions that can be described as concentration camps. We talk to Sasha Abramsky of The Nation…

Staff (2019-08-23). Bolsonaro May Send Army to Fight Massive Amazon Fires. truthdig.com France accuses the Brazilian leader of lying over his commitment to save the rainforest, which is seen as crucial to slowing global warming.

Mark Gruenberg (2019-08-23). Climate change, Amazon fires come to France with G7 protests. peoplesworld.org BIARRITZ, France—The continuing controversy over international action — or lack of it — to deal with climate change, and the latest big threat to the environment, the massive Brazilian Amazonian wildfires, will descend on the G7 summit here this weekend. The object: To force the leaders of the world\'s top industrialized nations to do something …

Vijay Prashad (2019-08-23). Hybrid wars are destroying Democracies. mronline.org In Brazil recently, I gave an interview to Brasil de Fato, which was born in 2003 as the weekly magazine of the World Social Forum. It is now one of the most important windows into Brazil\'s political world. The newsletter this week carries the text of most of the interview. | Source

Eds. (2019-08-23). Top 1% up $21 Trillion. Bottom 50% down $900 Billion. mronline.org The insights of this new data series are many, but for this post here I want to highlight a single eye-popping statistic. Between 1989 and 2018, the top 1 percent increased its total net worth by $21 trillion. The bottom 50 percent actually saw its net worth decrease by $900 billion over the same period. | Source

RT (2019-08-23). \'Who is our bigger enemy?\': Trump lashes out, compares Fed chairman Powell to Chinese President Xi. rt.com President Donald Trump has lashed out at the Federal Reserve chairman, after Jay Powell refused to cut interest rates to Trump\'s liking, a move that would have given the president ammunition to escalate his trade war with China. | \"As usual, the Fed did NOTHING!\" Trump tweeted on Friday, after Powell announced that he would \"sustain the expansion\" of the US economy, but not by slashing interest rates by a whole percentage point, as Trump has repeatedly called for. Instead, Powell is likely to lower rates by around a quarter of a percentage point, from their current level of 2.25 percent. | Also on rt.com…

Kenn Orphan (2019-08-23). The War on Indigenous People is a War on the Biosphere Itself. counterpunch.org \"Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.\" — E.O. Wilson \"Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.\" —Cree Proverb \"The essence of capitalism is to turn nature into More

Staff (2019-08-23). Trump Never Had a Grand Strategy for China. truthdig.com President Trump has delayed the new tariffs he threatened to impose on Chinese imports in the early fall, and exempted some other Chinese imports altogether. The de-escalation of the Sino-U.S. trade war is especially welcome, given the markets\' renewed concerns about impending recession. Also striking was the president\'s tacit acknowledgment that the tariffs threatened to harm the Am…

David Rosen (2019-08-23). The White-Nationalist Great Fear. counterpunch.org A century ago, the nation was wracked by race wars known as the \"Red Summer\" of 1919. Today, race wars are resurging, but implemented not by gangs or groups as in the early-20thcentury but by isolated — and heavily armed — individuals who share a common white-nationalist ideology. During much of the late-1910s and early-20s, gangs More

RT (2019-08-23). \'Winning is for capitalists\'? Socialist Monopoly takes a whack at America\'s favorite bogeyman. rt.com A new \"socialist\" Monopoly reboot has won over conservatives and triggered eye-rolls from liberals — and mysteriously disappeared from store shelves faster than you can say \"a spectre is haunting Europe.\" | Monopoly: Socialism — subtitled \"winning is for capitalists\" and \"what\'s yours is ours\" — has joined Hasbro\'s increasingly bizarre stable of Monopoly spinoffs that now includes Monopoly Game of Thrones, Monopoly for Millennials, Monopoly Star Wars, and Monopoly Gamer. Or has it? As of Thursday night, the game is no longer listed on Target\'s website, where it was sold for $19.99, and only a h…

Pete Dolack (2019-08-23). The Realism and Unrealism of the Green New Deals. counterpunch.org A problem facing advocates of serious action to deter global warming is that the costs of not acting aren\'t quantifiable and remain somewhat abstract. In contrast, calling for a phase-out of fossil fuels understandably leads to fears of job losses, especially since capitalism isn\'t going to offer new employment for those displaced. There will be More

Esteban Guevara (2019-08-23). Newark fights for clean water. liberationnews.org Residents in Newark are organizing and fighting back for the right to clean water.

Staff (2019-08-23). Justice Department Sent Anti-Semitic Post to Immigration Judges. truthdig.com WASHINGTON—The Justice Department\'s immigration arm sent judges a morning news briefing that included a blog post from a virulently anti-immigration website that also publishes work by white nationalists.

CounterSpin (2019-08-23). Sasha Abramsky on Trump\'s New Attack on Immigrants. fair.org Media…

Paul Haeder (2019-08-23). One Woman\'s Research on Aquatic Bioinvasions, Seaweed, Wave Energy. dissidentvoice.org Symbioses — prolonged associations between organisms often widely separated phylogenetically — are more common in biology than we once thought and have been neglected as a phenomenon worthy of study on its own merits. Extending along a dynamic continuum from antagonistic to cooperative and often involving elements of both antagonism and mutualism, symbioses involve pathogens, …

Neri Felipe (2019-08-23). Escuelita àìscar Romero in Philadelphia builds unity in the face of anti-immigrant terror. liberationnews.org The Escuelita àìscar Romero, a program of the Philadelphia branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation which primarily serves recently arrived Central American children, just concluded its first summer camp.

RT (2019-08-23). Man CRUSHED by elevator in nightmarish incident in luxury Manhattan high-rise. rt.com A malfunctioning elevator in a posh New York City apartment building killed a man in a gruesome way, as other residents watched in horror. | Video of the graphic incident, captured by the building\'s security cameras on Thursday morning, shows one person getting out of the elevator. When another passenger tries to follow, the elevator plummets down, shearing him in half and crushing his body against the shaft.Samuel Waisbren, 30, was pronounced dead at the scene. | \"The elevator took him down,\" one of the people who witnessed the event told the New York Daily News. \"It\'s awful. It was disgusting.\" | Oh my gosh…

Evaggelos Vallianatos (2019-08-23). Is Environmental Protection Possible? counterpunch.org The US EPA I joined the US Environmental Protection Agency in 1979. It happened by accident. A friend in Alexandria, Virginia, was working for the personnel office of EPA. We talked and I expressed interest in EPA. I said to him something to the effect the EPA was a great and necessary institution in late More

Andrew Levine (2019-08-23). Recession Now, Please. counterpunch.org It is a basic fact of economic life in capitalist economies: recessions happen, there are cycles of boom and bust. By the 1850s, Karl Marx had pretty well figured out the how and why, the underlying mechanisms. His account has held up well over the years, though you would hardly know it to hear mainstream macro-economists tell it. More

Rob Urie (2019-08-23). Mr. Trump Goes to Kensington. counterpunch.org The election of Donald Trump should have forced broad reconsideration of the American project. Whatever the factors one chooses to explain his political ascension, he comes from outside the realm or ordinary expectations. However, in Mr. Trump\'s case, it is the expectations that are skewed. In a world run by and for the rich, less probable explanations of how wealth and power are achieved predominate. More

Jim Goodman (2019-08-23). Farmers Need a Bill of Rights. counterpunch.org On January 11, 1944 in his annual State of the Union Address, President Roosevelt noted that while the Constitution guaranteed a set of political rights, they were in some respects inadequate. To ensure equality, Roosevelt proposed an Economic Bill of Rights that would guarantee: -Full employment with an adequate income -Freedom from monopolies and unfair More

Paul Street (2019-08-23). Notes on Inauthenticity in a Creeping Fascist Nuthouse. counterpunch.org The reigning corporate Democrats would rather lose to the right, even to a proto-fascistic white nationalist and eco-exterminist right, than lose to the left, even to a mildly progressive social democratic and environmentalist left within their own party. How else explain their insistence on promoting the ridiculous, right-wing arch-corporatist, imperialist, and dementia-plagued right-wing gaffe machine Joke Biden in the long march to the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries? More

Robert Hunziker (2019-08-23). Earth 4C Hotter. counterpunch.org A decade ago several prominent climate scientists discussed the prospects of a 4C Earth. Their concern was qualified \"… if greenhouse gases do not slow down, then expect a 4C Earth by 2055.\" Of course, that would be catastrophic, and one can only assume those scientists must have recognized real risks. Otherwise, why address the More

L. Michael Hager (2019-08-23). What Netanyahu\'s Travel Ban Has Revealed. counterpunch.org Until a few weeks ago America\'s unqualified support for Israel was solidly bipartisan. Aided by media bias and reporter reluctance to address on-the-ground realities, AIPAC and its affiliates had the public relations space virtually to themselves. Reinforced by mainstream media, the \"Exodus\" narrative captured and retained popular sympathy, while U.S. policymakers began to regard Israel More

Josue De Luna Navarro (2019-08-23). What It\'s Like to Grow Up Hunted. counterpunch.org It was a quiet Sunday night when my dad told me to hide in a closet — and stay there until he said to come out. As I sat in the dark, I knew this was part of my life, part of my identity. The darkness and fear slowly penetrated my heart. I tightened up More

Daphne Wysham (2019-08-23). Saving the Planet Means Fighting Bipartisan Corruption. counterpunch.org Burning fossil fuels boils our planet — that much is generally well known. But often these fuels do serious damage before they ever get to market. They spill out of pipelines, poison groundwater, or explode on trains. Even when they don\'t, building new pipelines and export terminals helps companies sell more fuel — often of More

Ramzy Baroud (2019-08-23). Jewish Settlers Rule the Roost in Israel, But at What Price? counterpunch.org Israeli Jewish settlers are on a rampage in the occupied Palestinian West Bank. While settler violence is part of everyday routine in Palestine, the violence of recent weeks is directly linked to the general elections in Israel, scheduled to be held on September 17. The previous elections, on April 9, failed to bring about political More

Staff (2019-08-23). Putin Orders Russia to Respond After U.S. Missile Test. truthdig.com MOSCOW — President Vladimir Putin ordered the Russian military on Friday to work out a quid pro quo response after the test of a new U.S. missile banned under a now-defunct arms treaty. | In Sunday\'s test, a modified ground-launched version of a U.S. Navy Tomahawk cruise missile accurately struck its target more than 500 kilometers (310 miles) away. The test came after Moscow and Washington withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. | Speaking at a meeting of his Security Council, Putin charged that the U.S. waged a \"propaganda campaign\" alleging Russian breaches of the pact to \"

RT (2019-08-23). David Koch, billionaire conservative & one of the world\'s richest people, dies at 79. rt.com US billionaire businessman and key Republican Party donor David Koch has died at the age of 79. | Koch stepped down from the family business, Koch Industries, last year amid health problems. His death has been confirmed by his older brother Charles. | \"It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of my brother David,\" says Charles Koch in statement.— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) August 23, 2019 | David was listed by Forbes…

Tariq Ali (2019-08-23). Kashmir on the edge of the abyss. mronline.org Tariq Ali on the situation in Kashmir. | Source

RT (2019-08-23). More Russiagate unraveling? Ex-CEO says FBI instructed him to have relationship with Maria Butina. rt.com Former Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne has told media that he was ordered by the FBI to initiate a romantic relationship with imprisoned Russian gun activist Maria Butina, seemingly confirming claims made by her lawyer. | Byrne, who resigned from the online retail company on Thursday, explained to CNN\'s Chris Cuomo that he had been asked by the FBI — on the orders of then-director James Comey — to \"rekindle a romantic relationship\" with Butina. | Taken aback by the claim, Cuomo interjected: \"You believe that Jim Comey knew that you were being asked to do these things in the name of the United States gove…

RT (2019-08-23). More Russiagate unraveling? Ex-CEO says FBI instructed him to have relationship with Maria Butina. rt.com Former Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne has told media that he was ordered by the FBI to initiate a romantic relationship with imprisoned Russian gun activist Maria Butina, seemingly confirming claims made by her lawyer. | Byrne, who resigned from the online retail company on Thursday, explained to CNN\'s Chris Cuomo that he had been asked by the FBI — on the orders of then-director James Comey — to \"rekindle a romantic relationship\" with Butina. | Taken aback by the claim, Cuomo interjected: \"You believe that Jim Comey knew that you were being asked to do these things in the name of the United States gove…

RT (2019-08-23). \'Crime does pay\': CNN hires disgraced ex-FBI director Andrew McCabe. rt.com What does one get for leaking to the media, lying to federal investigators about it, and allegedly participating in a plot to derail an American election? If you answered jail time, too bad. The correct answer is a job at CNN.

RT (2019-08-23). \'Provocative\' post-INF missile test serves US neocon goal to stop détente with Russia. rt.com The decision by the United States to test a cruise missile banned under the now-expired INF treaty was a provocative move that delights neocons who oppose rapprochement between the US and Russia, analysts told RT. | Less than a month after pulling out of the INF arms control treaty, the US military tested a ground-launched Tomahawk cruise missile previously prohibited under the agreement. | Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Moscow would \"take exhaustive measures to prepare a symmetrical response\" to the test, while stressing that it is not aiming to ignite a new arms race. | Also on rt.com…

RT (2019-08-23). WATCH: Plane cabin fills with smoke moments before emergency landing. rt.com Horrified passengers of Hawaiian Airlines were lucky to escape disaster after their cabin filled with smoke during a flight to Honolulu on Thursday. Their plane made an emergency landing before the crew evacuated all on board. | Seven passengers, five adults and two children, were hospitalized after suffering \"smoke-related symptoms,\" the airline said in a statement. | Also on rt.com | | Watch Swiss fighter jets shadow Russian GOVERNMENT PLANE as \'act of hospitality\' | Smoke began filling the cabin 20 minutes before the flight from Oakland, California lan…

Gary Olson (2019-08-23). Whither the Resistance to our Capitalist Overlords? counterpunch.org All efforts to reform the American system is capitulation. — Chris Hedges Without massive resistance to white supremacy and war, the U.S. empire threatens to devour itself alive and will no doubt attempt to take us with it. — Danny Haiphong No serious change, remotely popular sovereignty, no protection and advance of the common good More

Prof. Vijay Prashad (2019-08-23). World Watching the Fate of Iranian Tanker. globalresearch.ca At 11: 30pm on Sunday, August 18, the Iranian tanker Adrian Darya-1 left the shores of Gibraltar at the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea. This ship had been detained about six weeks previous by British Royal Marines and Gibraltar officials. The …

Sasha Abramsky (2019-08-23). Trump Is Legalizing Concentration Camps for Immigrant Families. thenation.com Trump Is Legalizing Concentration Camps for Immigrant Families…

Sasha Abramsky (2019-08-23). President Trump Has Legalized Concentration Camps. thenation.com President Trump Has Legalized Concentration Camps…

Coaltion to Close the Concentration Camps (2019-08-23). Emergency Palantir Mass Mobilization — #StopICEterror. indybay.org 100 Hamilton Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301-1616, United States | (Palantir Headquarters)…

Staff (2019-08-23). ICE Raids Benefit Bosses by Creating Fear in Workers. truthout.org | | On August 7, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents carried out coordinated raids at seven agricultural processing plants in Mississippi, detaining 680 immigrant workers. Officials told The Washington Post that the operation was \"the largest single-state workplace enforcement action in U.S. history.\" | The massive operation generated terror in immigrant communities alrea…

teleSUR (2019-08-23). \'Counter-G7 Summit\' Rejects Cynicism of Developed Nations. telesurenglish.net Less than 24 hours before the Group of Seven (G7) Summit begins, over 15,000 police and military have been drafted into Biarritz to prevent environmental, gender and social activists from reaching this French elegant town. | RELATED: | \'G7 Summit Should Address Crisis at the Amazon\', Germany Says | \"I know there\'s 15,000 police and it doesn\'t scare me,\" activist Genevieve Legay said, adding that the \"desperate\" French government might use its security forces to hit \"us who are aski…

M. K. Bhadrakumar (2019-08-23). Trump Fine-tunes Peace Deal with Taliban. globalresearch.ca The US President Donald Trump\'s remarks at the Oval Office in the White House on August 20 regarding the Afghan peace talks and related issues exuded an overall sense of satisfaction that the \"endless war\" is finally ending —although …

Philip Giraldi (2019-08-23). Why a Defense Agreement with Israel Would be a Disaster for Americans. Lindsey Graham\'s Blank Check. globalresearch.ca Two world wars began because of unconditional pledges made by one country to come to assistance of another. On July 5, 1914, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany pledged his country\'s complete support for whatever response Austria-Hungary would choose to make …

Dave Lindorff (2019-08-23). Are terrorist watch lists expanding under Trump? nationofchange.org My wife, Joyce, and I recently traveled to Vienna for a week, where she had been invited to perform on Austrian state radio. Passing through Heathrow on our way home, we were separated by an automated security gate. The gate, which required you to scan your boarding pass, allowed Joyce through, but when I ran …

Stephen Lendman (2019-08-23). Trump Regime Threatens Illegal Sanctions on Nations Legally Buying Iranian Oil. globalresearch.ca The US under both extremist right wings of its war party is a rogue state by any definition. | It operates extrajudicially at home and abroad. It\'s increasingly repressive and totalitarian, heading toward full-blown tyranny if the present trend continues unchecked….

Nick Cunningham (2019-08-23). U.S. to \"Drown the World\" in Oil. globalresearch.ca The U.S. could \"drown the world in oil\" over the next decade, which, according to Global Witness, would \"spell disaster\" for the world\'s attempts to address climate change. | The U.S. is set to account for 61 percent of all new …

Andrew Korybko (2019-08-23). Kashmir and the US-Russia Power Play in South Asia. globalresearch.ca Russia is reluctant to jeopardize its ultra-profitable arms relationship with India by strategically \"balancing\" South Asia, which is why the US decided to play this irreplaceable role instead by actively seeking to cut deals in both Afghanistan and Kashmir since …

Dr. Jacques R. Pauwels (2019-08-23). Eighty Years Ago… The Hitler-Stalin Pact of August 23, 1939: Myth and Reality. globalresearch.ca In a remarkable book, 1939: The Alliance That Never Was and the Coming of World War II, the Canadian historian Michael Jabara Carley describes how, at the end of the 1930s, the Soviet Union repeatedly tried, but finally failed, to …

Dr. Binoy Kampmark (2019-08-23). Imperial Sentiments: Donald Trump, Greenland and Colonial Real Estate. globalresearch.ca Haven\'t the critics worked it out yet? US President Donald Trump chugs to the coal of nonsense that may come in the wrapping of some sense. Initial mad-cat comments, when cobbled together, might reveal some pattern in time. | Take, for …