Uber Reports Over 3,000 Sexual Assaults on 2018 Rides
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-12-07
SAN FRANCISCO–Uber, as part of a long anticipated safety report, revealed that more than 3,000 sexual assaults were reported during its U.S. rides in 2018. | That figure includes 235 rapes across the company\'s 1.3 billion rides last year. The ride-hailing company noted that drivers and riders were both attacked and that some assaults occurred between riders. | The Thursday report, which the company hailed as the first of its kind, provides a rare look into the traffic deaths, murders and reported sexual assaults that took place during…
truthdig.com/articles/uber-reports-over-3000-sexual-assaults-on-2018-rides/

\'No Spiritual Surrender: A Dedication to the Standing Rock Movement\' Photos of Resilience
Brenda Norrell | indybay.org | 2019-12-06
Photojournalist Ryan Vizzions photos of Standing Rock Water Protectors in the camps and on the frontlines have appeared around the world. Vizzions\' new book chronicles the resilience and resistance of Water Protectors and the militarized police they faced, with forwards by Joye Braun, Cheyenne River Lakota, and Pte San Wastewin, Hunkpapa Lakota.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/06/18828677.php

How the Battle of Seattle Made the Truth About Globalization True
Walden Bello | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
The Battle of Seattle in late November 1999 is, for me, memorable in many ways. For one, I still remember being given a good beating by a policewoman when I tried to prevent her buddies from hauling off the irrepressible Medea Benjamin, then the director of Global Exchange, from a sit-in at the entrance to…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/how-the-battle-of-seattle-made-the-truth-about-globalization-true/

The Plot to Discredit and Destroy Julian Assange
Robert Scheer | truthdig.com | 2019-12-06
A day after dozens of doctors around the world released a statement about their mounting concerns regarding Julian Assange\'s health as he\'s detained in a British prison, Truthdig Editor in Chief Robert Scheer spoke with Tariq Ali, a renowned British journalist and co-editor of a recent collection of essays titled \" In Defense of Julian Assange.\" To Scheer, Ali and the book\'s many contributors, the case agains…
truthdig.com/articles/the-plot-to-discredit-and-destroy-julian-assange/

Ukrainian Neo-Nazis Flock to the Hong Kong Protest Movement
Ben Norton | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-06
Ukrainian fascists who previously fought in a US-backed neo-Nazi militia joined the anti-China protests in Hong Kong, sharing their tactics and showing off their tattoos. | *** | Neo-Nazis from Ukraine have flown to Hong Kong to participate in the anti-Chinese insurgency, …
globalresearch.ca/ukrainian-neo-nazis-flock-hong-kong-protest-movement/5696942

A Lesson From the Danes on Immigration
M. G. Piety | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
Denmark is in the news now because of its purported hostility to immigrants. Brooke Harrington, a sociology professor at Dartmouth, published an op ed in the New York Times on Tuesday about how she was nearly carted off to a Danish prison for giving invited guest lectures to the Danish parliament. Danes had tightened up…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/a-lesson-from-the-danes-on-immigration/

Meeting of Australian teachers passes resolutions in defence of Julian Assange
wsws.org | 2019-12-06
The teachers have taken an important stand which points the way forward for other educators, and for all sections of the working class, in the fight for democratic rights and against the persecution of Assange.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/06/foot-d06.html

French public sector strikers call to free Julian Assange
wsws.org | 2019-12-06
Strikers denounced the imprisonment of the Australian journalist under appalling conditions in Britain, for having revealed imperialist war crimes in Iraq.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/06/fras-d06.html

Kerry\'s Endorsement of Biden Fits: Two Deceptive Supporters of the Iraq War
Norman Solomon | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
On Thursday afternoon, the Washington Post sent out a news alert headlined \"John Kerry Endorses Biden in 2020 Race, Saying He Has the Character and Experience to Beat Trump, Confront the Nation\'s Challenges.\" Meanwhile, in Iowa, Joe Biden was also touting his experience. \"Look,\" Biden said as he angrily lectured an 83-year-old farmer at a campaign stop,…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/kerrys-endorsement-of-biden-fits-two-deceptive-supporters-of-the-iraq-war/

Of Course John Kerry Endorsed Joe Biden
Norman Solomon | truthdig.com | 2019-12-06
Both have repeatedly lied about their support for the war in Iraq. Is it any surprise that the one is now backing the other for president?
truthdig.com/articles/of-course-john-kerry-endorsed-joe-biden/

Why Are Some of the World\'s Biggest Polluters Sponsoring UN Climate Summit?
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-06
A group of climate activists walked out of a panel at the U.N. climate summit in Madrid on Thursday to protest the presence of Shell, BP and Chevron. Representatives from the oil companies were taking part in an event organized by the International Emissions Trading Association. This comes as the Spanish government is facing criticism for reaching out to Endesa, Spain\'s biggest corporate greenhouse gas polluter, to sponsor the U.N. climate talks. We speak with Pascoe Sabido, a researcher and campai…
truthout.org/video/why-are-some-of-the-worlds-biggest-polluters-sponsoring-un-climate-summit/

Alternative Climate Summit Honors Victims of Corporate Crimes
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-06
We broadcast from Madrid, Spain, where the United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP25, began Monday and will continue through next week, as environmental leaders from around the world gather to negotiate global solutions to the climate crisis. Activists have converged on Madrid for the conference and are hosting an alternative summit of their own: Cumbre Social por el Clima — the Social Summit for the Climate. The alternative summit has been organized by social justice and environmental gro…
truthout.org/video/alternative-climate-summit-honors-victims-of-corporate-crimes/

Bolivia\'s Coup Government: a Far-Right Horror Show
Forrest Hylton | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
Since coming to power on November 12, Bolivia\'s right-wing coup government, led by interim president Jeanine Añez, has quickly consolidated power and achieved international legitimacy. So far, the Añez government has succeeded in calling elections for 2020; persecuting journalists, political opponents, and human rights activists; and, following two massacres of unarmed, mainly indigenous protesters that…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/bolivias-coup-government-a-far-right-horror-show/

Why Do We Punish the Peacemakers?
Linda Pentz Gunter | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
You\'re liable to run into trouble if you try to suggest there is a greater threat to planetary survival than climate change. But there is. It\'s called nuclear war. Granted — and thank goodness — climate change is finally all the rage now. Rage has taken over, and rightly so, especially among the young whose…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/why-do-we-punish-the-peacemakers/

Chuck Herrick Peace and Freedom Memorial Park
DARIN | indybay.org | 2019-12-06
Clearly Indybay media should also topic Anarcho-Geography* as well as Anarcho-Urban Studies**. Berkeley, California. Consider this to be under the topical influence of Urban Direct Action within a their-storical contemplative premise. [*For more on this topic see Prof. Simon Springer.] [**On this topic I would personally field any inquiry.]…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/05/18828635.php

UN evaluates progress in improving peacekeeping performance
news.un.org | 2019-12-06
The international community on Friday took stock of action to improve UN peacekeeping in line with a Security Council resolution aimed at enhancing performance at all levels, both at Headquarters in New York and in the field.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/12/1052941

With People in the Streets Worldwide, Media Focus Uniquely on Hong Kong
Alan MacLeod | fair.org | 2019-12-06
Unlike protests against US client states, the Hong Kong demonstrations were frequently given the approving \"pro-democracy\" label (CNN, 8/30/19). | 2019 may be remembered as the year of the protest, as demonstrations are engulfing the world. From the Yellow Vests in France to demonstrations in Lebanon, Gaza, Chile, Ecuador and Haiti, sustained movements all over the planet have taken to the street demanding change. Yet US corporate media have been disproportionately interested in only one: the Hong Kong protests.
fair.org/home/with-people-in-the-streets-worldwide-media-focus-uniquely-on-hong-kong/

Soldiers Seriously Injure A Palestinian Teen Near Hebron
IMEMC News | imemc.org | 2019-12-06
Israeli soldiers shot and seriously injured, Friday, a Palestinian teen in Beit Ummar town, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, after the army invaded the town, and attacked Palestinians protesting the invasion. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said its medics provided the essential treatment to the …
imemc.org/article/soldiers-seriously-injure-a-palestinian-teen-near-hebron/

UN rights chief \'extremely concerned\' over deadly crackdown on protesters in Iran
news.un.org | 2019-12-06
In the wake of recent protests in Iran, the top United Nations human rights official expressed alarm on Friday over multiple human rights violations which have reportedly taken place across the country.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/12/1052911

Algeria: Thousands Hold Last Rally Before Presidential Election
telesurenglish.net | 2019-12-06
Thousands marched in different cities of Algeria to demand the presidential election scheduled for Dec. 12 to be canceled. They took to the streets on the 42nd consecutive Friday of protests against the \"shadowy\" ruling elite, which has been controlling Algeria since its independence in 1962. | RELATED: | Tens of Thousands of Algerians March To Cancel Election | \"Down with the military regime!\", \"We want a civil state and a true transition!\" and \"No to the elections as long as the maf…
telesurenglish.net/news/Algeria-Thousands-Hold-Last-Rally-Before-Presidential-Election-20191206-0003.html

Chilean Mothers Perform Feminist Dance Act to Protest \"Historic Abuse\"
telesurenglish.net | 2019-12-06
About ten thousands of Chilean senior women took part Wednesday in the \"Un violador en tu camino\" campaign (\"A rapist in your way\"), a made-in-Chile dance routine that has spread worldwide as a powerful tool of protest against \"historic abuse suffered by women in a patriarchal system.\" | RELATED: | Chile: Municipalities Call Citizens to Independent Consultation | Organized by the women\'s group \"Las Tesis Senior\" at the gates of the National Stadium — located in Santiago\'s…
telesurenglish.net/news/Chilean-Mothers-Perform-Feminist-Dance-Act-to-Protest-Historic-Abuse-20191206-0007.html

Presidential Pardon for Netanyahu?
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-06
Is a deal in the works for Netanyahu to step down as prime minister in return for a presidential pardon — with the aim of avoiding a third election next year? More on this below. | *** | Netanyahu faces prosecution for …
globalresearch.ca/presidential-pardon-netanyahu/5696866

Conviction and Removal Aren\'t the Issue; It\'s Impeachment of Trump That is Essential
Dave Lindorff | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
A lot of pundit verbiage and Democratic Party internal debate as well is being wasted on the question of whether Trump could be convicted successfully in a Senate currently run by a lickspittle Republican majority afraid of their shadows and devoid of any concern for the fate of Constitutional government. Let\'s accept that the 20-plus…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/conviction-and-removal-arent-the-issue-its-impeachment-of-trump-that-is-essential/

UN agency hails Brazil \'milestone\' decision over Venezuelan refugees
news.un.org | 2019-12-06
Brazil\'s move to recognize thousands of refugees from crisis-wracked Venezuela through a new accelerated procedure, has been welcomed by the UN refugee agency, UNHCR.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/12/1052921

Bolivia\'s New Right-Wing Gov\'t Targets Foreigners With \"Anti-Terror\" Death Squads
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2019-12-06
The new move creating an unaccountable armed security force directly aimed at foreign terror will do little to quash fears that Bolivia is heading down the road to a totalitarian dictatorship.
mintpressnews.com/bolivia-right-wing-govt-unveils-anti-terror-death-squads-foreigners/263249/

Trump-Appointed Judges Will Imperil Progressive Change \"for as Long as We Live\"
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-06
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell rammed through eight of President Donald Trump\'s lifetime judicial picks in just three days this week, accelerating the far-right court takeover that one commentator warned is \"absolutely going to hamstring efforts to make the U.S. into a responsible, civilized country, for as lo…
truthout.org/articles/trump-appointed-judges-will-imperil-progressive-change-for-as-long-as-we-live/

Fastest-Growing DC Lobbying Firms Benefit From Trump Ties
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-06
For many well-connected Washington lobbying firms, business is booming after President Donald Trump\'s 2016 election. | At least 22 lobbying firms saw revenue more than double in the Trump era compared to the previous three years, with many signing high-dollar contracts with big-name clients, an OpenSecrets analysis found. | The reasons for the revenue spikes vary. Some lobbying firms simply received a bigger check from exist…
truthout.org/articles/fastest-growing-dc-lobbying-firms-benefit-from-trump-ties/

Despite Strong Job Growth, Wage Growth Isn\'t Accelerating
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-06
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the economy added 266,000 jobs in November. While this figure is inflated by the return of roughly 50,000 striking GM autoworkers, upward revisions to the prior two months\' data brought the three-month average to a solid 205,000. The unemployment rate edged down to 3.5 percent, returning to a 50-year low. | The job growth was widely spread across industries. Manufacturing added 54,000 jobs, somewhat more than the number of returning strikers. It appears that the sector…
truthout.org/articles/despite-strong-job-growth-wage-growth-isnt-accelerating/

We Must Overcome Our Atomization to Beat Back Neoliberal Fascism
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-06
This week in the United States, the impeachment hearings made clear that President Trump abused his office and committed a crime against the Constitution. Not only did he attempt to pressure the Ukrainian government into investigating his presidential political rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in exchange for military aid, Trump also used the power of his administration to pressure loyal followers, such as Rudy Giuliani (his personal lawyer) to claim that Ukraine, not Russia, had intervened in th…
truthout.org/articles/we-must-overcome-our-atomization-to-beat-back-neoliberal-fascism/

Harvard Grad Workers Are Striking Over Medical Debt and Sexual Harassment
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-06
Graduate students at the wealthiest university in the world said they are foregoing dental care, facing thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket medical costs and struggling to get by on salaries as low as $18,000 in Boston, one of the most expensive cities in the U.S. | The unionized graduate workers at Harvard University went on strike Tuesday after more than a year of trying to negotiate a contract. On the picket line at Harvard\'s medical campus on Wednesday, Tessa Green, a biophysics Ph.D. stud…
truthout.org/articles/harvard-grad-workers-are-striking-over-medical-debt-and-sexual-harassment/

Why Taiwan Won\'t Welcome China\'s Dissidents
Nick Aspinwall | thenation.com | 2019-12-06
Why Taiwan Won\'t Welcome China\'s Dissidents…
thenation.com/article/taiwan-refugee-china-hongkong/

Trump Fails Again to Bring Our Troops Home From Mideast: Mulling Escalation of 14,000 US Troops to the Middle East to Counter Iran
Juan Cole | commondreams.org | 2019-12-06
A new contingent of 14,000 troops would double the extra total sent in 2019 alone and bring the over-all number to 74,000. (Photo: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/syria_us_troops.jpeg …
commondreams.org/views/2019/12/06/trump-fails-again-bring-our-troops-home-mideast-mulling-escalation-14000-us-troops?cd-origin=rss

Iran Denounced Letters to UN as \'Desperate Falsehood\'
telesurenglish.net | 2019-12-06
Iran has said it is determined to proceed with its ballistic missile program, as it rejected as a \"desperate falsehood\" the letter from the United Kingdom, Germany, and France to the United Nations Security Council, accusing Tehran of developing missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads. | RELATED: | US Military Finishes Pullback From Northeast Syria | The three Europeans ambassadors called on UN Secretary-General (UNSG) Antonio Guterres to inform in his next report that Iran\'s missi…
telesurenglish.net/news/iran-denounced-letters-to-un-as-desperate-falsehood-20191205-0014.html

Why the Douma Chemical Attack Wasn\'t a \'Managed Massacre\'
Jefferson Morley | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
In the long-running nightmare of the Syrian civil war, the attack at Douma was a déjà vu atrocity with big consequences in Washington. On April 7, 2018, a working-class neighborhood in greater Damascus suffered a chemical attack that killed at least 43 people. Six days later, President Trump ordered a cruise missile attack on a…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/why-the-douma-chemical-attack-wasnt-a-managed-massacre/

Is Kashmir India\'s Palestine?
Robert Fantina | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
In August of this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India suspended Article 370 of the constitution, the provision that granted some level of autonomy to Kashmir. Already heavily policed by Indian soldiers, nearly 40,000 additional troops were deployed to \'calm\' (read: further oppress) the population following Modi\'s repressive and illegal decision. Travel in and…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/is-kashmir-indias-palestine/

Across the Balkans: From Banja Luka to Sarajevo
Matthew Stevenson | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
An account of a journey from Croatia to Kosovo, by way of Bosnia-Hercegovina and Serbia, and with a detour into Montenegro. This is part III of a series. Serb war memorial outside the Banja Luka train station. To catch the train from Banja Luka to Sarajevo, I had to ride a bus to the edge…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/across-the-balkans-from-banja-luka-to-sarajevo/

The Supreme Court Case That Made Michael Bloomberg\'s Campaign Possible — and Doomed Kamala Harris
Jon Schwarz | theintercept.com | 2019-12-06
Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris of California suspended her presidential campaign on Tuesday. Why? Because, she said, she did not \"have the financial resources we need to continue. I\'m not a billionaire. I can\'t fund my own campaign.\" | Meanwhile, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who definitely is a billionaire, has spent at least $57 million of his own money since he jumped into the race on Novem…
theintercept.com/2019/12/06/kamala-harris-bloomberg-billionaire-buckley-valeo-supreme-court/

2019 Sacramento Kwanzaa: A Special Karamu Celebration
Khubaka, Michael Harris | indybay.org | 2019-12-06
The notion of \"potluck\" Kwanzaa in the 21st Century is a challenging local tradition that should not be a salient notion or limiting factor toward embracing Umoja year round and throughout the Kwanzaa season, Matunda ya Kwanza.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/05/18828650.php

Study Reveals How UK Intelligence Works with Media to Smear Jeremy Corbyn
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2019-12-06
The United Kingdom goes to the polls December 12 in a pivotal vote that will decide the future of the country. Like in 2017, the Labour Party, under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, is surging towards the ruling Conservative Party in the last weeks of campaigning. But he will not become Prime Minister if the UK\'s security services have anything to do with it. Corbyn, frequently compared to Bernie Sanders in terms of ideology, spent decades in the political wilderness, a lonely leftist voice among a party embracing neol…
mintpressnews.com/new-study-reveals-uk-intelligence-smear-campaign-against-jeremy-corbyn/263231/

SPD youth leader defends Germany\'s grand coalition government
wsws.org | 2019-12-06
In a long interview with the Rheinische Post, Kàºhnert warned \"of the consequences of a hasty exit\" from the ruling grand coalition.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/06/germ-d06.html

The US Is Manufacturing A War With Iran Under Cover Of The Impeachment Distraction
Ryan Cristián | thelastamericanvagabond.com | 2019-12-06
Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (12/5/19). As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth …
thelastamericanvagabond.com/daily-wrap-up/us-manufacturing-war-with-iran-under-cover-impeachment-distraction/

What We Must Do
Joseph Natoli | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
The Warming Planet \"The United Nations released an exceptionally bleak report today, which warns that, at the current pace of greenhouse gas emissions, global temperatures will rise by as much as 3.9 degrees Celsius (almost 7 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2100.\" — The United Nations Environment Programme report, Nov. 2019…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/what-we-must-do/

The Systematic Torture of Palestinians in Israeli Detention
Al-Shabaka | imemc.org | 2019-12-06
by Yara Hawari, for Al Shabaka Palestinian Policy Network Since the establishment of Israel in 1948, the Israeli Security Agency has been torturing Palestinians. Al-Shabaka Senior Palestine Policy Fellow Yara Hawari argues that the use of torture in Israeli detention is systematic and legitimized through domestic law, and outlines steps for the …
imemc.org/article/the-systematic-torture-of-palestinians-in-israeli-detention/

Despite Warmest Decade on Record, We Still Act Like \"Addicts Blowing Our Carbon Budget\"
Andy Rowell | commondreams.org | 2019-12-06
\"Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere hit a record level of 407.8 parts per million in 2018 and continued to rise in 2019. CO2 lasts in the atmosphere for centuries and the ocean for even longer, thus locking in climate change.\" (Photo: Andrew Hart/flickr/cc) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/fossilfuels_1.jpeg …
commondreams.org/views/2019/12/06/despite-warmest-decade-record-we-still-act-addicts-blowing-our-carbon-budget?cd-origin=rss

Matunda Ya Kwanza: Our \"California Grown\" Pan African Celebration of Life
Khubaka, Michael Harris | indybay.org | 2019-12-06
In Dr. Maulana Karenga\'s own words he says, \"The origin of Kwanzaa on the African continent are in the agricultural celebrations called the \'first fruits\' celebrations and to a lesser degree the full or general harvest celebration. 2019 Sacramento Kwanzaa and California State Capitol Kwanzaa continues our journey toward expanding California Pan African Global Trade and Investment.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/05/18828646.php

Grace Blakeley: The World Must be Saved from Financialization
Bryan Bowman | indybay.org | 2019-12-06
Even when times are good, the many have been largely excluded from the success enjoyed by the few. Where many see a strong economy today, Grace Blakeley sees not only the early indicators of an inevitable recession, but the \"death throes\" of an entire economic model that is crumbling before our eyes. She warns of a bleak future but also offers a hopeful alternative vision.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/06/18828676.php

Fall 1941: Pearl Harbor and The Wars of Corporate America
Dr. Jacques R. Pauwels | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-06
Washington knew a Japanese fleet was on its way to Pearl Harbor, but welcomed the attack since a Japanese aggression would make it possible to \"sell\" the war to an anti-war American public.
globalresearch.ca/fall-1941-pearl-harbor-and-the-wars-of-corporate-america/28159

Reopening Auschwitz — The Conspiracy to Stop Corbyn
Media Lens | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-06
Thoreau got it right: \'Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.\' (Thoreau, \'Walden\', Penguin, 1983, p.68) | The same is certainly true of propaganda. We can laugh now at McCarthyite paranoia warning of Soviet tentacles threatening …
globalresearch.ca/reopening-auschwitz-conspiracy-stop-corbyn/5696943

The International Criminal Court (ICC) Holds Hearing on Afghanistan War Crimes, Including US Torture
Brett Wilkins | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-06
The current hearing will examine allegations that US troops and intelligence operatives tortured, raped and abused Afghan prisoners between 2003 and 2004. | *** | The International Criminal Court (ICC) opened a three-day hearing in the The Hague, Netherlands on Wednesday at …
globalresearch.ca/icc-holds-hearing-afghanistan-war-crimes-including-us-torture/5696925

Authorizations for Madness; The Effects and Consequences of Congress\' Endless Permissions for War
Matthew Hoh | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-06
I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can…Its brutality, its futility, its stupidity. — Dwight Eisenhower. For the first time in decades, passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) has been delayed due to disagreements between Democrats and Republicans. The disagreements at the center of the delay in Congress are, as usual, partisan in nature: funding for the President\'s border wall…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/06/authorizations-for-madness-the-effects-and-consequences-of-congress-endless-permissions-for-war/

Mexican Immigration Officials Destroy Asylum Seekers\' Tents
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-05
Mexican immigration officials arrived at a refugee camp in Matamoros, Mexico early Tuesday morning bearing machetes used to destroy unoccupied tents left behind by Mexican asylum seekers, according to multiple camp residents who witnessed the event. | Both refugees and volunteers said that an estimated 60 families, all Mexican nationals, were granted permission by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) to cross the bridge and begin processing in the middle of the night on Monday. | Guidelines provided by CBP ind…
truthout.org/articles/mexican-immigration-officials-destroy-asylum-seekers-tents/

Operation Condor 2.0: After Bolivia Coup, Trump Dubs Nicaragua \'National Security Threat\' and Targets Mexico
Ben Norton | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
Note from The Grayzone\'s editor: This article was updated on November 29 with more information about US sanctions against Nicaragua. | After presiding over a far-right coup in Bolivia, the US dubbed Nicaragua a \"national security threat\" and announced new sanctions, …
globalresearch.ca/operation-condor-2-0-after-bolivia-coup-trump-dubs-nicaragua-national-security-threat-targets-mexico/5696802

Global Warming and the Ozone Layer: What\'s More Dangerous, CO2 or Nuclear War?
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
Prof. Max Gluckman (1911-1975) showed how ritualized forms of rebellion against those in power \"through a controlled expression of hostility\" ultimately leads to the reinforcement of the established structures of authority. Is that not what is happening today? The movement against capitalism is funded and supported by capitalism.
globalresearch.ca/global-warming-and-the-ozone-layer-whats-more-dangerous-co2-or-nuclear-war/5690216

Medical Doctors Protest Failure of UK Home Secretary to Act on Mr Julian Assange
Doctors for Assange | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
Medical doctors who wrote to UK Home Secretary Priti Patel last month calling for urgent action to protect the life of imprisoned WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange have today issued a further urgent appeal. | Despite worldwide media coverage of their open …
globalresearch.ca/medical-doctors-protest-failure-uk-home-secretary-julian-assange/5696778

Spying on Assange: the Spanish Case Takes a Turn
Binoy Kampmark | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-05
Judge José de la Mata of Spain\'s High Court, the Audiencia Nacional, had been facing a good deal of stonewalling on the part of his British colleagues. He is overseeing an investigation into the surveillance activities of a Spanish security firm aimed at WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, during his stay at the Ecuadorean embassy in…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/05/spying-on-assange-the-spanish-case-takes-a-turn/

Doctors condemn failure of British government to answer letter demanding medical care for Julian Assange
wsws.org | 2019-12-05
The doctors state that \"the UK government\'s refusal to take the required measures to protect Mr Assange\'s rights, health and dignity appears…unlawfully and unnecessarily exposes Mr Assange to potentially irreversible medical risks.\"
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/05/doct-d05.html

Australian teenagers call for support for Julian Assange
wsws.org | 2019-12-05
\"The only way to help Assange is a mass of people having his back and supporting him so that they have to release him because the people are against it.\"
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/05/teen-d05.html

Mueller probe accessed the Google account of Assange supporter Somerset Bean
wsws.org | 2019-12-05
Somerset Bean, an artist and political activist, who has been a staunch supporter of WikiLeaks and Julian Assange, revealed on Monday that Google was compelled by court order to provide the US authorities access to his online account.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/05/bean-d05.html

How middle class Bolivia learned to stop worrying and love the coup
Wyatt Reed | thegrayzone.com | 2019-12-05
In and around La Paz, middle class Bolivians have fallen under the spell of the junta\'s propaganda campaign against Evo…
thegrayzone.com/2019/12/05/middle-class-bolivia-learned-love-coup/

Edward Snowden: In the US, I Would Likely Die in Prison for Telling the Truth
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-05
The Right Livelihood Awards celebrated their 40th anniversary Wednesday at the historic Cirkus Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, where more than a thousand people gathered to celebrate this year\'s four laureates: Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg; Chinese women\'s rights lawyer Guo Jianmei, Brazilian indigenous leader Davi Kopenawa and the organization he co-founded, the Yanomami Hutukara Association; and Sahrawi human rights leader Aminatou Haidar, who has challenged the Moroccan occupation of We…
truthout.org/video/edward-snowden-in-the-us-i-would-likely-die-in-prison-for-telling-the-truth/

Army Demolishes A Garage, Carwash Structure, Near Bethlehem
IMEMC News | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
Israeli soldiers invaded, Thursday, the village of al-Walaja, west of Bethlehem, south of occupied Jerusalem in the West Bank, before demolishing a garage, and a carwash facility. Nonviolent activist, Ibrahim Awad, said the two demolished structures are owned by a local man, identified as Husam Khalifa. He added that the …
imemc.org/article/army-demolishes-a-garage-carwash-structure-near-bethlehem/

The Mad Activist Impeaches Western Culture
Susie Day | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-05
Dear Hot-to-Impeach Congressional Democrats, I thought of you when I read \"Why the Ukraine Scheme Matters,\" the November 25 editorial in the New York Times. As usual, Times syntax and grammar are superb and the editors\' argumentation skills fully justify the current high tuition rates at name universities. So, congrats, Impeacho-crats! The Times delivered your…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/05/the-mad-activist-impeaches-western-culture/

Trump Seeks Another $250 Million in Lethal Aid for Ukraine
Jason Ditz | theantimedia.com | 2019-12-05
With other nations trying to help Ukraine negotiate a deal to end that situation peacefully, the US keeps pouring weapons into the country.
theantimedia.com/trump-seeks-another-250-million-in-lethal-aid-for-ukraine/

The Grotesque Immorality of the US War Against Vietnam. Veterans For Peace Brian Willson
S. Brian Willson | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
First published in May 2016 | Celebration of Memorial Day in the US, originally Decoration Day, commenced shortly after the conclusion of the Civil War. This is a national holiday to remember the people who died while serving in the armed …
globalresearch.ca/us-war-against-vietnam/5696831

Congo: Millions Die While the \"UN Keeps the Peace\"
Ann Garrison | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
In its most recent report to the UN Security Council, the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) blandly recounted \"progress\" in service to their mission, but what is their mission? Up until 2013, MONUSCO had …
globalresearch.ca/congo-millions-die-while-un-keeps-peace/5696797

Chuck Herrick Peace and Freedom Memorial Park
DARIN | indybay.org | 2019-12-05
Clearly Indybay media should also topic Anarcho-Geography* as well as Anarcho-Urban Studies**. Berkeley, California. Consider this to be under the topical influence of Urban Direct Action within a their-storical contemplative premise. [*For more on this topic see Prof. Simon Springer.] [**On this topic I would personally field any inquiry.]…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/05/18828635.php

Great March of Return to Resume Next Friday
IMEMC & Agencies | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
The High National Committee for the March of Return and Breaking the Siege in the Gaza Strip has announced that the border protests will resume next Friday, Days of Palestine reported. In a meeting held on Monday, members of the National Committee discussed several important issues and affirmed in a …
imemc.org/article/great-march-of-return-to-resume-next-friday/

Soldiers Abduct One Palestinian, Injure Many Schoolgirls, In Jerusalem
IMEMC News | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
Israeli soldiers abducted, on Thursday afternoon, one Palestinian and injured many schoolgirls in Anata Palestinian town, northeast of occupied Jerusalem. Najwa Refa\'ey, the principal of Anata H School for Girls, said many army jeeps invaded the street in front of the school, and attacked many young men who protested the …
imemc.org/article/soldiers-abduct-one-palestinian-injure-many-schoolgirls-in-jerusalem/

Biased Media Coverage of Iranian Unrest and Protest Movement
Andrew Korybko | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
The Mainstream Media is pushing forth the weaponized narrative that the Iranian government is carrying out a cover-up of mass killings that supposedly occurred during its recent unrest, though this is nothing more than an infowar conspiracy designed to make …
globalresearch.ca/iranian-unrest-cover-up-mass-killings-infowar-conspiracy/5696826

ALEC-Crafted Laws Could Send Me to Prison for a Decade for My Activism
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-05
This week, corporate executives and legislators from around the country are gathering in Scottsdale, Arizona, for the American Legislative Exchange Council\'s (ALEC) annual States and Nation Policy Summit, where they will craft policies to introduce into state legislatures. More than a dozen groups have protested outside the meeting. ALEC is a shadowy group — meeting in secret, hiding its membership, and prohibiting journalists and the public from observing its activities. Various watchdogs ha…
truthout.org/articles/alec-crafted-laws-could-send-me-to-prison-for-a-decade-for-my-activism/

Crimes against Humanity: US Sanctions Harm One Third of World\'s People
Sara Flounders | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
The most insidious and pervasive form of modern warfare by Wall Street and the Pentagon, acting in coordination, is passing largely unnoticed and unchallenged. This calculated attack is rolling back decades of progress in health care, sanitation, housing, essential infrastructure …
globalresearch.ca/crimes-against-humanity-us-sanctions-harm-one-third-of-worlds-people/5696794

Soldiers Abduct Fourteen Palestinians In West Bank
IMEMC News | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
Israeli soldiers abducted, on Thursday at dawn, at least fourteen Palestinians from their homes in several parts of the occupied West Bank, after the soldiers invaded and violently searched homes, the Palestinian Prisoners\' Society (PPS) has confirmed. The PPS said the soldiers abducted Sufian an-Natsha, Islam Rajabi and Mohammad Rajabi, …
imemc.org/article/soldiers-abduct-fourteen-palestinians-in-west-bank-2/

SEP candidate Thomas Scripps addresses UK Somali community hustings
wsws.org | 2019-12-05
The November 30 meeting was attended by representatives of voluntary and campaigning organisations. The Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Green Parties and Plaid Cymru also sent representatives.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/05/soma-d05.html

U.S. Considers Sending Several Thousand More Troops to Mideast
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-12-05
The news comes amid reports of escalating violence in Iran and meddling by Tehran in Iraq, Syria and other parts of the region.
truthdig.com/articles/u-s-considers-sending-several-thousand-more-troops-to-mideast/

Donald Trump Keeps Navy SEALs Above the Law
Matthew Cole | theintercept.com | 2019-12-05
Rear Admiral Collin Green had a problem. Green, a Navy SEAL and commander of Naval Special Warfare, knew that his community — 3,000 active duty SEALs, their families, and the several thousand former and retired SEALs who make up their elite military tribe — was locked in a culture war over one notorious SEAL. What could he do about Eddie Gallagher? | Gallagher, a sniper and medic, had stabbed an injured and unarmed ISIS detainee who may have been as young as 14 during a deployment in Mosul, Iraq, in 2017. The case had made headlines internationally, and Gallagher had won prominent support from Preside…
theintercept.com/2019/12/05/donald-trump-eddie-gallagher-navy-seals/

How American Exceptionalism is Killing the Planet
William J. Astore | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-05
Ever since 2007, I\'ve been arguing against America\'s forever wars, whether in Afghanistan, Iraq, or elsewhere. Unfortunately, it\'s no surprise that, despite my more than 60 articles, American blood is still being spilled in war after war across the Greater Middle East and Africa, even as foreign peoples pay a far higher price in lives lost…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/05/how-american-exceptionalism-is-killing-the-planet/

ICC Holds Hearing on Afghanistan War Crimes, Including US Torture
Brett Wilkins | commondreams.org | 2019-12-05
By 2006, at least 100 prisoners had died in US custody in Afghanistan and Iraq, most of them violently, according to government data. (Photo: US torture Image by Witness Against Torture) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/torture_0.jpeg …
commondreams.org/views/2019/12/05/icc-holds-hearing-afghanistan-war-crimes-including-us-torture?cd-origin=rss

South Bay Indigenous Solidarity: Protecting Juristac, Organizing Meeting
South Bay Indigenous Solidarity | indybay.org | 2019-12-05
In the classroom on the basement level of the First Unitarian Church of San Jose. Entrance via the gate on the right hand side of the building. Wheelchair accessibility is available.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/03/18828581.php

Judge Orders Hunter Biden to Reveal How Much He Made at Ukrainian Oil Company
Tyler Durden | theantimedia.com | 2019-12-05
Hunter Biden has been ordered by an Arkansas judge to produce five years of financial records in his paternity case.
theantimedia.com/hunter-biden-ukrainian-oil-company/

When imperialism targets Cuban doctors, it targets human solidarity
W. T. Whitney Jr. | peoplesworld.org | 2019-12-05
News item: Three right-wing Latin American governments have forced out Cuban doctors working in their countries. Over 8,000 of them departed from Brazil in late 2018 and 382 doctors left Ecuador in mid-November 2019. Some 700 Cuban doctors exited Bolivia after the coup there on Nov. 10. Brazilian President Bolsonaro alleged that Cuban doctors were …
peoplesworld.org/article/when-imperialism-targets-cuban-doctors-it-targets-human-solidarity/

Soldiers Destroy Machines In Industrial Structure, Demolish Four Rooms, Near Hebron
IMEMC News | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
Israeli soldiers invaded, Thursday, the ath-Thaheriyya town, south of Hebron in southern West Bank, and destroyed machines in a blacksmith and lathe workshop, in addition to demolishing four residential rooms in Yatta nearby town. The soldiers invaded the ath-Thaheriyya town, before storming a blacksmith and a lathe workshop, and deliberately …
imemc.org/article/soldiers-destroy-machines-in-industrial-structure-demolish-four-rooms-near-hebron/

Family of Sami Abu Diak Demand Israel Release Body
IMEMC & Agencies | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
The family of prisoner Sami Abu Diak, who recently died from cancer while in Israeli custody, called on human rights and humanitarian institutions to promptly intervene, the Palestinian News and Info Agency (WAFA) reported. The family appealed to human rights and humanitarian organizations to pressure the Israeli authorities to release …
imemc.org/article/family-of-sami-abu-diak-demand-israel-to-release-body/

Illegal Israeli Colonists Install Mobile Home, Burn Tires, Near Jenin
IMEMC News | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
Many fanatic illegal Israeli colonialist settlers installed, Thursday, a mobile home on Palestinian lands in Burqa village, north of the northern West Bank city of Jenin, and burnt tires on the man Jenin-Nablus road. Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian official who monitors Israel\'s illegal colonialist activities, said the colonists invaded private …
imemc.org/article/illegal-israeli-colonists-install-mobile-home-burn-tires-near-jenin/

International Support Growing for BDS Movement
IMEMC & Agencies | imemc.org | 2019-12-05
European Union (EU) countries\' are taking steps towards boycotting the Israeli apartheid system, using its legal, legislative and parliamentary institutions to oppose the occupation, Palestine News Network reported. The EU condemned the Trump administration\'s positions and policies carried out in the Palestinian Territories, occupied by Israel since 1967, especially in …
imemc.org/article/international-support-growing-for-bds-movement/

Pompeo vows intervention against \"riots\" in Washington\'s \"own backyard\"
wsws.org | 2019-12-05
Immediately following Pompeo\'s provocative speech, the US slapped new sanctions on Venezuela and Cuba, which the secretary of state accused of fomenting violence.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/05/pomp-d05.html

Impeachment hearing opens with Democratic Party blast against Russia
wsws.org | 2019-12-05
The opening statement by House Judiciary Committee Chair Jerrold Nadler set the tone for a hearing that repeatedly returned to the bogus allegations of massive Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/05/impe-d05.html

Bolivia\'s Russiagate scandal is a provocation to renege on agreed-upon deals
Eds. | mronline.org | 2019-12-05
The fake news allegations that Russia \"meddled\" in Bolivia\'s recent election in order to help (\"former\") President Morales win and the more recent claims late last month that its soldiers are supposedly \"waiting for his return\" in order to presumably help restore him to power are nothing more than provocations designed to manufacture the \"plausible […] | Source…
mronline.org/2019/12/05/bolivias-russiagate-scandal-is-a-provocation-to-renege-on-agreed-upon-deals/

Pelosi Asks House Democrats to Draft Articles of Impeachment
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-12-05
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi compared President Donald Trump to a despotic tyrant in a press conference Thursday and announced she has asked House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler to prepare articles of impeachment. | \"The facts are uncontested,\" said Pelosi, a California Democrat. \"The president abused his power for his own personal political benefit at the expense of our national security.\" | Watch Pelosi\'s announcement: | The House Intelligence Committee released its 300-page report on the president\'s abuse of power on Tuesday. The document details how Trump used the release of Congressionally-approved militar…
truthdig.com/articles/pelosi-asks-house-democrats-to-draft-articles-of-impeachment/

Today\'s Republican Party Preserves US Legacy of Slavery and Imperialism
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-05
On the Thursday of the second week of the House Intelligence Committee\'s impeachment hearings, former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara had a special guest on his weekly podcast, Carl Bernstein. It was Bernstein, with fellow Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward, whose reporting broke open the story of how the…
truthout.org/articles/todays-republican-party-preserves-us-legacy-of-slavery-and-imperialism/

Pelosi calls upon House Judiciary Committee to write articles of impeachment
John Wojcik | peoplesworld.org | 2019-12-05
In an historic address to the nation this morning, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared that the Congress of the United States is moving forward for the fourth time in the nation\'s history to impeach the president of the United States. Her announcement was a rejection of the argument mounted yesterday before the Judiciary Committee by …
peoplesworld.org/article/pelosi-calls-upon-house-judiciary-committee-to-write-articles-of-impeachment/

Ukraine scandal involves a trifecta of unconstitutional Trump abuses
John Bachtell | peoplesworld.org | 2019-12-05
The impeachment of a U.S. president for the fourth time in history is more serious than any of the three that have gone before it. This time there is before the American people proof that Donald Trump is guilty of a trifecta of \"high crimes and misdemeanors\" stipulated in the Constitution as impeachable offenses. He …
peoplesworld.org/article/ukraine-scandal-involves-a-trifecta-of-unconstitutional-trump-abuses/

Speaker Pelosi Seeks Articles of Impeachment
John Nichols | thenation.com | 2019-12-05
Speaker Pelosi Seeks Articles of Impeachment…
thenation.com/article/pelosi-articles-impeachment-announcement/

Public Citizen Supports Call for Articles of Impeachment Against President Trump
commondreams.org | 2019-12-05
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2019/12/05/public-citizen-supports-call-articles-impeachment-against-president-trump?cd-origin=rss

Impeachment of Trump Appears Inevitable in the House
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-05
The House Judiciary Committee convened Wednesday for eight and a half hours of testimony to discuss what the Constitution requires for impeachment. It was an exercise that didn\'t reveal any new information on the investigation, but rather laid out the legal justification for Trump\'s potential impeachment. The hearing underscored that any eventual impeachment will most likely be partisan. Judiciary Committee Republicans continued the House GOP\'s approach of raising procedural complaints and bad-faith attacks on the D…
truthout.org/articles/impeachment-of-trump-appears-inevitable-in-the-house/

The GOP Grievance Machine\'s Desperate Attempt to Upstage the Case for Impeachment
Joan Walsh | thenation.com | 2019-12-05
The faux outrage was triggered when an impeachment witness used the name of the president\'s teenage son to make a point. It didn\'t work.
thenation.com/article/impeachment-barron-trump/

The Republican\'s Star Impeachment Scholar Is a Shameless Hack
Elie Mystal | thenation.com | 2019-12-05
The Republican\'s Star Impeachment Scholar Is a Shameless Hack…
thenation.com/article/turley-impeachment-hypocrisy/

Professor Turley Is Dead Wrong on Impeachment and Here\'s Why
Hank Edson | commondreams.org | 2019-12-05
Professor Jonathan Turley testifies before the House Judiciary Committee about Impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump at the U.S. Capitol December 4, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/turley.jpg …
commondreams.org/views/2019/12/05/professor-turley-dead-wrong-impeachment-and-heres-why?cd-origin=rss

DeVos Accused of Scheming to Stop Next President From Canceling Student Debt
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-05
Billionaire Education Secretary Betsy DeVos this week proposed handing over the federal government\'s $1.5 trillion student loan portfolio to a \"stand-alone government corporation,\" a move observers condemned as a corrupt ploy to strip the next president of the ability to cancel student loan debt. | \"This very much appears to be a Betsy DeVos scheme to block the next president from unilaterally forgiving f…
truthout.org/articles/devos-accused-of-scheming-to-stop-next-president-from-canceling-student-debt/

New Silk Roads in Action at China-Kazakh Border
Pepe Escobar | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-05
We are cruising on a pristine, 380 km-long four-lane superhighway from Almaty to Khorgos — finished in 2016 for $1.25 billion, 85% of the cost covered by a World Bank loan. And then, suddenly, riding parallel to us, there\'s the …
globalresearch.ca/new-silk-roads-china-kazakh-border/5696770

Tufts University Severs Ties with Family Behind OxyContin
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-12-05
BOSTON — Tufts University is cutting ties with the billionaire family that owns OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, saying it will strip the Sackler name from its campus and accept no further donations amid concerns over the family\'s role in the opioid crisis. | University officials announced the decision Thursday, ending a relationship that has spanned nearly four decades and brought $15 million to the school\'s science and medical programs. Tufts leaders said they considered the issue for more than a year before concluding it is inconsistent with the school\'s values to display the family\'s name. | \"We had to de…
truthdig.com/articles/tufts-university-severs-ties-with-family-behind-oxycontin/