G. Dunkel (2019-07-19). U.S. replaces bombs on Iran with a cyberattack. workers.org President Trump called off a bombing attack on Iran on June 20 because he was \"shocked\" at 150 projected casualties. He then called on the U.S. Cyber Command to conduct a series of attacks against that country. Virtual attacks on command and control systems can cause as much infrastructure damage . . . | Continue reading U.S. replaces bombs on Iran with a cyberattack at Workers.org

Kenn Orphan (2019-07-19). Stranger Things, Stranger Times. counterpunch.org To say we live in extraordinarily strange times is perhaps the ultimate understatement. Strange times indeed, and terrifying as well. Rising global fascism, the continued threat of nuclear war, an imperiled biosphere and a climate that is rapidly heating up. In the US it is even more apparent. There are concentration camps on the southern More

Mike Garrity (2019-07-19). Environmentalists and Wilderness are Not the Timber Industry\'s Big Problem. counterpunch.org For decades the timber industry and its political allies have claimed that efforts to maintain Montana\'s functioning forest ecosystems and native wildlife have \"shut down\" logging. But two recent articles reveal that the basic economic principles of over-supply and over-production in the timber industry are the real problems, not environmentalists, the Endangered Species Act, or being More

Vijay Prashad (2019-07-19). Revolutions are not the train ride, but the human race grabbing for the emergency brake. mronline.org Impossible to deny the reality of poverty in our world. Studies of the data on income and wealth routinely show that billions of people on the planet live with minimal access to resources. These studies demonstrate that poverty cannot be measured merely by the financial resources that are not available; they demonstrate how billions of […] | Source

Anthony DiMaggio (2019-07-19). System Capture 2020: The Role of the Upper-Class in Shaping Democratic Primary Politics. counterpunch.org The Democratic primary season is upon us, and the party\'s candidate list is a useful starting point for assessing the impact of affluence on American politics. Classic works by sociologists of decades past, including C. Wright Mills and G. William Domhoff, posited that U.S. political institutions were captured by elite economic actors, who seek to enhance their own material positions at the expense of the many. More

Eds. (2019-07-19). Rainforest on fire. mronline.org On the Front Lines of Bolsonaro\'s War on the Amazon, Brazil\'s Forest Communities Fight Against Climate Catastrophe | Source

Ron Jacobs (2019-07-19). Dancing with Dr. Benway. counterpunch.org William S. Burroughs was a writer and a wreck; a cynic and a seer, a misanthrope and a muse. He was not really the hero type; he lacked the wholesomeness those seeking heroes are looking for. Nor was he a rock star. However, his books and approach to life inspired rock musicians, guitar heroes and More

The Canary (2019-07-19). Multibillion-pound investment in schools \'desperately\' needed, say MPs. thecanary.co Schools \"desperately need\" a multibillion-pound cash injection and the Government should draw up a 10-year funding plan, a cross-party group of MPs has said.A report by the Education Select Committee found that funding for schools and colleges had failed to keep pace with the extra demands being placed on institutions, such as providing mental health support and disabilities provision.This, coupled with growing pupil numbers and rising costs, meant the sector had been put under \"significant strain\" over the past 10 years, the MPs found.Robert Halfon, chairman of the committee, called for a \"bottom-up national ass…

Miguel A. Cruz-Díaz (2019-07-19). It Was Never Just About the Chat: Ruminations on a Puerto Rican Revolution. counterpunch.org The current upcoming generation of Puerto Ricans has galvanized those that came before in a way never before seen on the island. What musician and up-and-coming founding parent Bad Bunny called the \"no more\" generation has taken to the streets. Hell, they have taken the streets! And they keep coming back, day after day, beating after beating carried out by cops driven more and more unhinged. More

Joseph Natoli (2019-07-19). Gaming the Climate. counterpunch.org The greater divisiveness of the various warring factions in Game of Thrones places our own national divisiveness on to small, less frightening screen only because our divisiveness does not include White Walkers and their Army of the Dead. The Thrones is a world of all against all far more confusing than our own U.S. war More

Louisa Willcox (2019-07-19). Wild Thoughts About the Wild Gallatin. counterpunch.org For the last 30 years a view of the stunning Gallatin Range has greeted me nearly every morning. Our window looks out on three dark green hogbacks that link the broad belly of Paradise Valley to the spine of the Gallatin Mountains. Her expression shapes my day, sometimes glowering, radiant, or showing off a new More

Michael Sainato (2019-07-19). The Billionaires v. Bernie. progressive.org The democratic socialist candidate is under attack from the super rich, their corporations, lobbyists, and think tanks. Some are even backing his 2020 Democratic primary rivals.

Binoy Kampmark (2019-07-19). Spying on Julian Assange. counterpunch.org History\'s scope for the absurd and tragic is infinite. Like Sisyphus engaged in permanent labours pushing a boulder up a slope, the effort of making sense of such scope is likewise, absurdly infinite. To see images of an exhausted and world-weary Julian Assange attempting to dodge the all-eye surveillance operation that he would complain about More

Ralph Nader (2019-07-19). Will Any Disgusted Republicans Challenge Trump in the Primaries? counterpunch.org In 1956, then Senator John F. Kennedy authored a best-selling book titled Profiles in Courage, in which he told the stories of Senators in American history who, on principle, bucked the tides of power. Today, some Republican writer or conservative syndicated columnist — George Will or Max Boot — should write a book called Profiles More

Ramzy Baroud (2019-07-19). Who Killed Oscar and Valeria: The Inconvenient History of the Refugee Crisis. counterpunch.org History never truly retires. Every event of the past, however inconsequential, reverberates throughout and, to an extent, shapes our present, and our future as well The haunting image of the bodies of Salvadoran father, Oscar Alberto Martinez Ramirez and his daughter, Valeria, who were washed ashore at a riverbank on the Mexico-US border cannot be More

Nick Pemberton (2019-07-19). This Is Heaven!: A Journey to the Pearly Gates with Chuck Mertz. counterpunch.org Note: This is merely a humble recount of a vision and it in no way reflects the *real actions of Chuck Mertz, Jesus Christ or anyone else. Note: This is a translation of a dream-like state and therefore cannot be fully understood within the constraints of narrative and the naturally alienating medium of reconstruction of More

David Bravo (2019-07-19). Precinct or Neighborhood? How Barcelona Keeps Rolling Out the Red Carpet for Global Capital. counterpunch.org Barcelona\'s MontjuàØc fairground occupies twenty-seven hectares of municipal land, an area equivalent to twenty-one blocks of the city\'s Eixample district. Its centrality is enviable, its installations obsolete, and its use is discussible, to say the least. Is today\'s Barcelona using this public land in a way that best fits its needs? There\'s plenty of time More

Helen Yaffe (2019-07-19). Cuban Workers Celebrate Salary Rise From New Economic Measures. counterpunch.org \'Today is Cuban workers\' day!\' a Cuban friend told me in late June, beaming at the news that all employees of the island\'s \'budgeted\' state sector would receive significant salary rises, commencing from 1 July 2019. Cuba\'s budgeted sector incorporates organisations and entities which operate with a state budget and mostly provide services free to More

David Macaray (2019-07-19). Adventures in Script-Writing. counterpunch.org Over the years I\'ve had approximately twenty scripts produced at small theaters in and around Hollywood and Orange County. None of these plays were celebrated or spectacular, mind you, just some offbeat comedies (in what might be called the \"minimalist\" tradition) that were fortunate enough to attract modest audiences willing to pay $25. Live theater, More

Marshall Auerback (2019-07-19). The Numbers are In, and Trump\'s Tax Cuts are a Bust. counterpunch.org The most commonly heard refrain when Donald Trump and the GOP were seeking to pass some version of corporate tax reform went something like this: There are literally trillions of dollars trapped in offshore dollar deposits which, because of America\'s uncompetitive tax rates, cannot be brought back home. Cut the corporate tax rate and get More

David Underhill (2019-07-19). The Inequality of Equal Pay. counterpunch.org \"Equal pay! Equal pay!\" the crowd chanted at the rally for the women\'s soccer team after the ticker tape World Cup victory parade in New York. They were loud and insistent—and they didn\'t mean it. Team captain Megan Rapinoe confirmed this in her speech during the rally. She didn\'t merely call for equal pay. She More

Brian Cloughley (2019-07-19). What You Don\'t Want to be in Trump\'s America. counterpunch.org Life can be bright in America — If you can fight in America; Life is all right in America — If you\'re all-white in America. — West Side Story, film version October 1961. 1961 is way back in history, the year of John F Kennedy\'s election, the Bay of Pigs, the first man in space, and lots More

Rose Ramirez — Dedrick Asante-Mohammad (2019-07-19). A Trump Plan to Throw 50,000 Kids Out of Their Schools. counterpunch.org In 1968 — just a week after Martin Luther King, Jr.\'s assassination — Congress passed the Fair Housing Act, or FHA. The law secured everyone\'s right to housing regardless of race, national origin, disability, familial status, sex, or religion. The FHA protects people from discrimination when they\'re renting, getting a mortgage, or seeking housing assistance More

David Rosen (2019-07-19). Say Goodbye to MAD, But Remember the Fight for Free Expression. counterpunch.org The Los Angeles Timesand other media outlets recently announced that MAD magazine was going to cease publishing a hard copy or newsstand edition and will only be available through subscription and in comic-book stores. More troubling, at year\'s end it will cease being published. Say goodbye to the ever-subversive freckled-faced of Alfred E. Neuman. Comedian \"Weird Al\" Yankovic was MAD\'s More

Jason Ditz (2019-07-19). US to Send 500 Ground Troops to Saudi Arabia in Response to Iran. theantimedia.com There is a plan to send \"up to 500\" US ground troops to Saudi Arabia in response to Iran tensions.

James Carden (2019-07-19). As Trump Tears Up Our Treaties, Can Local Efforts Yield Diplomatic Fruit? thenation.com As Trump Tears Up Our Treaties, Can Local Efforts Yield Diplomatic Fruit?

Tyler Durden (2019-07-19). Trump Claims US Navy Shot Down Iranian Drone in Defensive Action; Iran Denies. theantimedia.com \"We have no information about losing a drone today,\" Iran\'s Foreign Minister Zarif told reporters at the UN.

WSWS (2019-07-19). United Nations report finds global hunger on the rise for third year in row. wsws.org The rise in hunger and food insecurity around the world is inextricably linked to the rise of social inequality, the outbreak of new wars and the disastrous effects of climate change.

RT (2019-07-19). Republicans introduce resolution to designate Antifa \'domestic terrorist organization\'. rt.com Two Republican senators have introduced a resolution to \"properly identify\" Antifa as \"domestic terrorists\" who use violence against their opponents while being protected by \"liberal privilege.\"

susan_p (2019-07-19). Venezuela: Guaido's bodyguards arrested as Barbados talks resume. greenleft.org.au Three men linked to self-declared \"Interim President\" Juan Guaido were arrested on July 12, while allegedly selling weapons stolen during the failed April 30 putsch. | According to Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez, Guaido\'s personal bodyguards Erick Sanchez and Jason Parisi, as well as Sanchez\'s cousin Eduardo Garcia, were detained while reportedly trying to sell five AK-103 rifles and ten ammunition packs for US$35,000. | The rifles\' serial numbers allegedly matched those stolen from the Bolivarian National Guard post in Caracas\' Federal Legislative Palace, where the National Assembly sits. | The governme…

DLI (2019-07-19). 33 brave senior(kupuna) protectors on Hawaii\'s Mauna Kea detained by police. indybay.org On Wednesday morning, State police removed 33 senior(kupuna) protectors from a human chain that had blocked–for 3 days–access to the Mauna Kea Road, by construction equipment that are slated to begin the Thirty Meter Telescope(TMT). The protectors are part of the hundreds-strong peaceful activists that had been up at the Mauna(mountain) since last Sunday, July 14.

susan_p (2019-07-19). Venezuela: Trump diverts Central America aid to Guaido as EU threatens more sanctions. greenleft.org.au United States President Donald Trump\'s administration is reportedly diverting more than US$40 million in aid destined for Central America to the Venezuelan opposition. | According to the Los Angeles Times, a memo from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) was handed to Congress on July 11 saying that $41.9 million was being handed to self-proclaimed \"Interim President\" Juan Guaido and his team. The memo argued that there is an \"exigent\" crisis involving US \"national…

susan_p (2019-07-19). Pakistan: Release Ali Wazeer, Mohsin Dawar and PTM activists. greenleft.org.au On May 26, the army fired on a non-violent protest by the Pashtun Defence Movement (PTM) in Waziristan, killing at least 13 people and injuring dozens. | Two PTM members of the Pakistan National Assembly, Ali Wazeer and Mohsin Dawar, who led the protest, were arrested on trumped up terrorism charges and a curfew was imposed on the region. | The curfew created a humanitarian crisis, resulting in three deaths from starvation and lack of medicine. After huge protests across Waziristan and on social media, the 11-day curfew was lifted on June 17. | Today, Wazeer and Dawar still remain in detention, charged with terro…

pip.hinman (2019-07-19). Dutton\'s war on democracy. greenleft.org.au With the re-election of the Coalition government, conservatives have become emboldened to intensify their agenda of transferring even more wealth and power to the already dominant at the expense of the rest of us. | One sign of this is the rise in prominence of one the most hard-right figures in the Coalition: home affairs minister Peter Dutton. | Dutton has been at the centre of the Coalition government\'s efforts to whip up racist scapegoating and strengthen the state\'s repressive powers, a task for which he was well-prepared by his time in the Queensland police. | In 2014, he was appointed immigration minister…

WSWS (2019-07-19). US stokes war danger in Middle East following alleged downing of Iranian drone. wsws.org The regularity of incidents between the US and Iran underscores how great is the danger of a military conflagration in the region, which would quickly draw in the major powers and endanger the entire planet.

WSWS (2019-07-19). US investigators identify 70 current and former immigration agents in far-right, racist Facebook groups. wsws.org The announcement came after several Facebook groups connected to Customs and Border Protection agents were discovered to contain vulgar and sexually explicit posts.

WSWS (2019-07-19). Indian Trotskyists to hold \"Free Julian Assange\" rallies in Chennai and Kolkata. wsws.org Rallies in two of India\'s biggest cities will take forward the call issued by the World Socialist Web Site international editorial board for the formation of a Global Defence Committee.

WSWS (2019-07-19). Socialism 2019: The ex-International Socialist Organization embraces the Democratic Party. wsws.org Amid Trump\'s threats of war, unprecedented assaults on immigrants and attacks on democratic rights, Jacobin and the ex-leaders of the ISO hosted an event promoting the Democratic Party and American imperialism.

susan_p (2019-07-19). Sudan: \'The only way to ensure justice for our martyrs is in the streets.\'. greenleft.org.au Sudanese took to the streets in their tens of thousands across the country on July 13, while negotiations for a transitional civilian-led government hung in the balance. | Two days later, protests broke out again in response to the killing of a civilian, shot dead in the town of El Souk, southeast of Khartoum. Witnesses reported that members of the feared Rapid Support Forces fired on protesters, who were demanding that the paramilitaries leave their town. | Negotiations between the democratic Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) and the Transitional Military Council (TMC), which seized control following the toppl…

Jake Johnson, staff writer (2019-07-19). Calling Trump Claim \'Delusional,\' Iran Says US May Have Shot Down Its Own Drone by Mistake. commondreams.org \"All drones belonging to the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz have returned to their bases,\" said a spokesman for the Iranian armed forces | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/drone_4.jpg …

Jeffrey St. Clair (2019-07-19). Roaming Charges: Big Man, Pig Man. counterpunch.org + After the scenes of mass psychosis in North Carolina on Wednesday night, you\'d think the Democrats would finally extinguish their happy trope about \"bringing the country together\", concentrate on protecting their most valuable assets (the 4 Horsewomen of the Political Apocalypse), and throw themselves into taking POWER. As Hobbes, the English Machiavelli understood perhaps More

WSWS (2019-07-19). Drug companies poured 76 billion opioid pills into US neighborhoods in just six years. wsws.org Newly released data shows that between 2006 and 2012, as the drug epidemic spiraled out of control, drug companies flooded the country with oxycodone and hydrocodone pain pills.

WSWS (2019-07-19). French intelligence strategy document warns of \"insurrectional violence\" wsws.org The \"road map\" establishes the target of France\'s counterterrorism agencies as \"subversive movements\" and potential \"insurrectional violence\" in the population.

pip.hinman (2019-07-19). Break the link between Israeli apartheid and Australian agriculture. greenleft.org.au Most people would not be aware that two Israeli companies are the main suppliers of irrigation systems in Australia. They are potential targets for Palestine justice activists keen on expanding the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign into rural areas. | Along with the water business, FIMI/Rivulis and Netafim are deeply involved in the ongoing military oppression of Palestinians. Both companies provide military, surveillance and prison equipment to the Israeli government. | FIMI (First Israel Mezzanine Investors), which describes itself as a leader in \"micro irrigation\", also owns Israeli defence firm…

Pete Dolack (2019-07-19). All Seemed Possible When the Sandinistas Took Power 40 years Ago. counterpunch.org This week marks the 40th anniversary of the Sandinistas taking power in Nicaragua, a milestone that merits celebration regardless of our opinions on how the Sandinista Revolution evolved. Nor should the hand of United States imperialism in distorting that revolution be ignored — the huge cost exacted by the U.S.-directed and -funded Contras totaled more More

Evaggelos Vallianatos (2019-07-19). How the Trump Administration is Eviscerating the Federal Government. counterpunch.org The federal government is by no means a perfect organization. It mirrors society. Yet it is the only saving grace that prevents the collapse of society under the stress of capitalism. It funds the military establishment and provides socialist medical care to its veteran soldiers — and members of Congress. The federal government also employs More

Rob Urie (2019-07-19). The Blob Fought the Squad, and the Squad Won. counterpunch.org For students of political history, a cottage industry has grown in recent years around identifying the historical circumstances and intellectual origins of neoliberalism. While the initial conditions have been identified in…

Bruce E. Levine (2019-07-19). The Groundbreaking Public Health Study That Should Change U.S. Society—But Won\'t. counterpunch.org What variable is associated with a 12 times greater likelihood of a suicide attempt—and also doubles the likelihood of cancer, heart disease, or stroke? In the late 1990s, the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study revealed a stunningly powerful relationship between childhood trauma and later adult emotional difficulties and physical health problems. Two decades after the More

Andrew Levine (2019-07-19). South Carolina Speaks for Whom? counterpunch.org Because the African American vote is crucial, the conventional wisdom nowadays is that for Democrats to end up with a nominee who can defeat Donald Trump, Democratic candidates must win over African Americans\' hearts and minds. This is a rare case in which the conventional wisdom is spot on. Because South Carolina will be the More

The Canary (2019-07-18). Government \'still not doing enough\' over cladding after Grenfell tragedy. thecanary.co The Government is \"still not doing enough\" to remove dangerous cladding from buildings more than two years on from the Grenfell Tower tragedy, a report has said.The Commons Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee report accuses the Government of being \"far too slow\" in its response to the blaze, which killed 72 people in June 2017.The report further warns that the £200 million set aside for remediation of private sector residential buildings with aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding will not be enough.(PA Graphics)The spread of the fire at Grenfell has been linked to the use of ACM in its…