Around 100,000 farmers from across the country converged and marched to the parliament of India in New Delhi demanding a special session to discuss their problems. They were stopped near Parliament Street Police station in the national capital, where their leaders addressed the protesters. The farmers, who have been camping at the Ramlila ground since Thursday, began their march to[Read More…]
“With law shall our land be built up, but with lawlessness laid waste.” Njal’s Saga, Iceland, c 1270 AD The present United Nations Charter After the unspeakable horrors of World War II, delegates from 50 Allied nations met in San Francisco California. The purpose of the conference, which took place between 25 April and 26 June, 1945, was to[Read More…]
Thanksgiving is quite a U.S. holiday. In one day, we manage to eat and enjoy 44 million turkeys, twice the number consumed at Christmas. Yes, vegetarians may live longer and vegans even more so, but the smell of a roasting turkey in the kitchen, lingering in the nostrils, titillating appetites as friends and relations gather, is synonymous with Thanksgiving —[Read More…]
That time of the year. Student evaluations are being gathered by the data crunchers. Participation rates are being noted. Attitudes and responses are mapped. The vulnerable, insecure instructor, fearing an execution squad via email, looks apprehensively at comments in the attached folder that will, in all likelihood, devastate rather than reward. “Too much teaching matter”; “Too heavy in content”; “Too[Read More…]
The United Nations Universal Children’s Day – 20 November – has come and gone – and nothing has changed. No action that would now protect children any more than before, no move even by the UN to call on nations at war to take special care to protect children – if for nothing else but the fact that children[Read More…]
On November 28, sixty-three U.S. Senators voted in favor of holding a floor debate on a resolution calling for an end to direct U.S. Armed Forces involvement in the Saudi-UAE coalition-led war on Yemen. Describing the vote as a rebuke to Saudi Arabia and the Trump Administration, AP reported on Senate dissatisfaction over the administration’s response to Saudi Arabia’s[Read More…]
It is welcome that finally there has been a little pushback, including from leading journalists, to the Guardian’s long-running vilification of Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks. Reporter Luke Harding’s latest article, claiming that Donald Trump’s disgraced former campaign manager Paul Manafort secretly visited Assange in Ecuador’s embassy in London on three occasions, is so full of holes that even[Read More…]
Amid the barrage of racist, anti-immigrant, and other attacks launched by President Trump and his administration in recent months, a series of little noted steps have threatened Native American land rights and sovereignty. Such attacks have focused on tribal sovereignty, the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), and the voting rights of Native Americans, and they have come from Washington, the courts, and[Read More…]
When widespread demonstrations forced Egypt’s long-time dictator, Hosni Mubarak, to resign as president in February 2011, it appeared as if this important Arab state was destined for dramatic, positive change. However, in less than twenty-nine months, Egypt’s military ended the country’s democratic experiment and reinstated an even more repressive dictatorship. How differently might Egypt’s revolution have evolved had the United[Read More…]
Local officials and residents have confirmed that US airstrikes on Tuesday night killed at least 30 civilians in southern Afghanistan’s Helmand Province. These tragic deaths are the latest war crime in the 17-year US-NATO occupation, aimed at subjugating the geo-strategically critical nation to the dictates of the US and its allies. The strikes were part of a “surge” of US[Read More…]
A most vital issue far exceeding Brexit in importance – the rumbustious bear NATO, has surfaced. It is world’s most unwanted powder keg. No enlightened EU intellectual, if genuinely honest, would want to dispute its irrelevance. The last best indication was when French President Macron’ in Paris in the face of Pres. Trump, pleaded for a European Army without[Read More…]
Many people, including most Peak Oilers, expect that oil prices will rise endlessly. They expect rising oil prices because, over time, companies find it necessary to access more difficult-to-extract oil. Accessing such oil tends to be increasingly expensive because it tends to require the use of greater quantities of resources and more advanced technology. This issue is sometimes referred to[Read More…]
It is impossible to see peace prize or freedom awards as anything other than fragments of an industry. In time, ideals become marketable and matters of commodity. Those who go against this market rationale face the fires of moral outrage. The business of promoting peace in the wrapping of human rights protections is its own market, with false advertising. It[Read More…]
The homelessness issue has been a source of controversy at the local, state and national levels for some time now. There has been some limited progress, but this problem has certainly not been resolved humanely. Sometimes lost in the debate about this issue is that the homeless are fellow human beings, including families with children, and most of them really[Read More…]
What do Argentinian protesters have in common with French protesters? – They both strongly dislike their governments, and their leaders (sic). The protests in Argentina against the upcoming G20 meeting and around the IMF are just a pretext for an overall malaise – which is an understatement – vis-à-vis President Mauricio Macri and his debt-driven austerity program, that has left[Read More…]
I know all about bearing witness. I started doing it when I was five when I tried to help Hiroshima Maidens hosted and put up by my Quaker Meeting when in NY, USA for no charge reconstructive surgery. They stayed with Quaker families who drove them to and from treatments, They also were in a terrible condition, although each[Read More…]
The # MeToo movement may have started out in the West but in the true spirit of ‘ sisterhood’ it has managed to draw in women set apart at least geographically…In India the first salvo was fired by Tanushree Dutta, an actor in the Indian film industry, who naturally was counter questioned by every passionate, concerned patriarchal voice who thought[Read More…]
(Many of Kashmir’s politicians have been acting like chameleons, changing their ideologies and convictions like the colours of these lizards) During the last seventy years Kashmir has given birth to a class of politicians who can be called the political “Chameleons”. They have been changing their colours with every political upheaval and now these have turned into virtual “Dinosaurs” destroying[Read More…]
When Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, ordered his army to carry out a limited operation in the besieged Gaza Strip on November 12, he certainly did not anticipate that his military adventure would destabilize his government and threaten the very survival of his right-wing coalition. But it did, far more than the multiple police investigations into variouscorruption cases involving Netanyahu’s family[Read More…]
On Wednesday, November 28, 2018, over 100 U.S. scholars, intellectuals, and activists published the open letter to Senator Bernie Sanders below and invited others to add their names to it. Sanders was working to force a new Senate vote on ending, or at least reducing, U.S. participation in the war on Yemen. Signers of the letter below wished to encourage[Read More…]
As Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman tours friendly Arab nations in advance of the Group of 20 (G-20) industrialized nations summit in Argentina, Saudi diplomacy aims to achieve two goals: put the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi behind it and thwart Qatari efforts to benefit from the kingdom’s predicament. The Saudi campaign is producing predictably mixed results. It is[Read More…]
L’Antidiplomatico Interview AB: Let’s start from today’s crisis in the Sea of Azov. The European Union and NATO have given full support to Ukraine after the violation of Russian sovereignty by two Ukrainian vessels. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg gave his full support to Poroshenko, who declared martial law. What does a country like Italy risk in continuing its[Read More…]
Several recent reports collectively endorsed by thousands of expert scientists have warned the world that time is running out to save Humanity and the Biosphere from further catastrophic climate change and further massive biodiversity loss. Massive harm has already occurred due to continuing carbon pollution, population growth and economic growth and it is clear that zero growth in these areas[Read More…]
What does President Trump’s recent nomination of retired Army General John Abizaid to become the next U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia signify? Next to nothing — and arguably quite a lot. Abizaid’s proposed appointment is both a non-event and an opportunity not to be wasted. It means next to nothing in this sense: while once upon a time, American diplomats abroad wielded[Read More…]
Steve Bannon. The Oxford Union. A university that has been the breeding, sculpting and minting ground for British prime ministers for centuries and the Establishment. Here, Bannon, strategist of the Trump campaign in 2016, was in full swing, spearing his enemies and mocking the elite with an approach he has come to master. The audience was hushed, bewildered, even stunned. [Read More…]
BJP government has been destroying each and every institutions of this union brick by brick ever since they entered into the office. Cultural institutions and Educational institutions such as Pune Film Institute, Indian Council of Historical Research, Indian Institute of Advanced Study at Shimla, Indian Council of Historical Research etc, bureaucratic institutions, Economic institutions, nothing has been left out in[Read More…]
Co-Written by Syed Mujtaba & Mirza jahanzeb Since 1989, the People of Jammu and Kashmir were killed, tortured, humiliated, and disappeared. Thousands of the people were killed due to cycle of violence prevalent in Jammu and Kashmir. Thousands of the people became permanently disabled due to ongoing circles of violence. Many are those who lost their beloved children, daughters, sisters,[Read More…]
Neoliberalism as economic theory was always an absurdity. It had as much validity as past ruling ideologies such as the divine right of kings and fascism’s belief in the Übermensch. None of its vaunted promises were even remotely possible. Concentrating wealth in the hands of a global oligarchic elite—eight families now hold as much wealth as 50 percent of the world’s population—while demolishing government[Read More…]
A combined force of the US military and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) pointed assault rifles and fired tear gas, rubber bullets and flash bang grenades at impoverished workers and their families on Sunday. The crowd, which included many women and young children, attempted to cross the US-Mexico border between San Diego and Tijuana to apply for asylum. US officials[Read More…]
There is a code that underlies all creation. It is not something hidden from us, but rather, like the purloined letter, something we do not notice because it is too obvious. On any brisk fall day, we see but do not see the creation code that openly operates before our eyes, as our minds engage a subliminal process of comparing[Read More…]
But for most of us, the movement was a life-giving force. To join a hundred thousand others in marches and rallies, to know that even if you felt helpless against the power of government you were not alone in your feelings—that people all over the country, of all ages, black and white, working people and middle-class people, were with you—was[Read More…]
Unfortunately, only the rarest individual has the capacity to see through the elite-promulgated delusion that generated this benign expression and its twin notions that 1.5 degrees celsius (above the preindustrial level) is an acceptable upper limit for an increase in global temperature and that the timeframe for extinction-threatening outcomes of this ‘climate change’ is the ‘end of the century’. If[Read More…]
An Egyptian Kangaroo Court Sunday (Nov. 25, 2018) confirmed the penalty after being convicted in the death of Hisham Barakat, who was killed in a car bombing in eastern Cairo in 2015, according to the official MENA news agency. The son of senior Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Taha Wahdan was among those condemned to death. There have been no credible[Read More…]
The tyranny of human rights violations – planned and alleged goes unabated across the globe. Late American historian Howard Zinn must have sensed the human cries against the Nature and called “Tyranny is tyranny.” Nobody seems to care for the dried-ink paper written words and meanings of the UNO human rights declarations or respect for human dignity in crisis and[Read More…]
Thanks to Professor Bruce Lerro for his ideas- and questions-filled article, “Facing the music: religion, nationalism and sports have enchanted the working class; socialism hasn’t”, posted in e-journal Countercurrents on November 19, 2018. Professor Bruce Lerro correctly points out propaganda material, media, mode and tact the ruling classes constantly use to confuse the working class for keeping the working class[Read More…]
At the time when we are facing difficult political situation and even when the people of the country seems to have made up their mind to defeat the sectarian communal forces, the political parties seems to be still calculating their petty interests and not focusing on joining hand to defeat the forces against our constitution and civility. Not that they[Read More…]
In so far as it may have been assumed that the growing manifestations of global warming through extreme weather events will cause people to realize the reality and the implications of carbon emissions, this is only partly happening, due to ongoing attempts by large part of the mainstream media to attribute these events to natural causes., masking the existential threat[Read More…]
Most of those who have had a chance to witness Chinese internationalist mega-projects, clearly understand that the West is near to collapsing; it will never be able to compete with tremendous enthusiasm and progressive spirit of the most populous country on earth, which on top of it, is built on socialist principles (with Chinese characteristics). Writing this essay in[Read More…]
When Saudi General Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz went shopping in the late 1980s for Chinese medium-range missiles capable of carrying nuclear, chemical or biological warheads he made no bones about keeping the United States, one of the kingdom’s closest allies, in the dark. it was “my task to negotiate the deal, devise an appropriate deception plan, choose a[Read More…]
“America First!” That’s how Donald Trump began and ended his November 20 statement addressing Saudi Arabia’s gruesome murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul, Turkey, on October 2. Khashoggi’s murder had sparked a global furor and created what the Washington Post called a “foreign policy crisis” for the U.S. Trump had dodged and double-talked around the issue of[Read More…]
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday (Nov 24) called for Muslim unity and resistance against what he called “hostile” policies of the United States and Israel. “Muslims have no way but to remain united in order to achieve victory over the US and fight its blatant oppression,” Rouhani told the 32nd International Islamic Unity Conference which kicked off in the[Read More…]
[The first part 1 of this article addressed the need for Cuba’s participation in conflicts in Zaire, the Congo and Guinea-Bissau during the 1960s to remain concealed for over three decades. It covered the background to the struggles, what Cubans found in Africa, the role of race relations in Cuba’s campaigns, and the recruitment of doctors. This Part 2 explores[Read More…]
Governments and ruling regimes tend to face revolution in the face of harsh hikes in prices. Margaret Thatcher’s rule in Britain was rocked by the poll tax. In France, the once enthusiastically embraced Emmanuel Macron has decided to leave the ground rich with challenges against his administration. The Yellow Vests, the gilet jaunes, have decided to take up the chance[Read More…]
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange remains arbitrarily detained in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. As he is in a critical situation under a special protocol imposing prison-like surveillance, news emerged that shed light on the grave danger he has been facing.Last week, the Washington Post reported that the US Justice Department, in what appeared to be an error of cut and[Read More…]
Twilight of the American Century. Andrew J. Bacevich. University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame, Indiana, 2018. The histories of empires and the histories of war are generally written by the winner to put themselves in a positive light. It has been difficult for the U.S. empire to maintain their facade of goodness for their endeavours after World War II,[Read More…]
To mark the International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women (IDEVAW) and 16 Days of Activism (25 November to 10 December), public sector unions launched a campaign to demand paid leave for all survivors of domestic violence. This is a part of efforts to strengthen labour laws and policies that can help stop violence and harassment. “While the #MeToo movement[Read More…]
“Are we under oath to help in the concealment of details of those who thrive on fraud despite the knowledge that 3 lakh farmers committed suicide across the country as they could not repay small amounts of loans? Not only the Constitution but also my conscience is the guiding factor and basis for my order in this case,” the Information[Read More…]
There are many dalit writers who have tried to expose oppression through their literary works. Some of them had to change their names so that their caste could not become an obstacle in their forward journey. One of them is Manoranjan Byapari who changed his surname to conceal his identity as dalit Namashudra. In his autobiography ‘Interrogating My Chandal[Read More…]
In between lies man’s perennial striving
Out of mundane struggles of hell
To become the total man —
From a human being to being human(e)
That unlocks the door to Heaven!
The language of political discourse is the biggest casualty after the Sangh Parivar inspired government came power in India. The C grade rhetoric and to convert everything into a street fight of tu tu main main is the art that one can learn in the Sangh. The daily dose of jumlas and distorted versions of history is another art they[Read More…]
They call it ‘dharm-sansad’ but why should we need it when we have the ‘sansad’ elected by the people. But dharmsansad actually is the brahmanical monopoly over us. It is meant to maintain it because politically elected ‘sansad’ has given representation to diverse sections of our society. Political elected sansad discuss, debate and decide but the dharmsansad has no faith[Read More…]
As the government of French President Emanuel Macron moved to ban protests against its fuel tax increase, strikes and demonstrations in support of the protest movement spread across France yesterday. Fuel tax protesters in France At present, the Facebook pages associated with the fuel tax protests, referring to themselves as “yellow vests,” have defied the government order and are maintaining[Read More…]
More than 100 people were arrested during a week of action across the UK as protesters demanded the government treat the threats posed by climate change as a crisis and take drastic steps to cut emissions to net zero by 2025. Thousands of people joined a mass protest that blocked roads and bridges in central London, with some gluing themselves to government buildings[Read More…]
Every person has some flaws. My two major ones, which I remember from when I was a toddler, are that I am sanctimonious and stubborn. … I laugh at myself about both of these tendencies. No wonder that my sister bit me when we were both toddlers for my being this way. Yet it is a double-edged sword. Here, let[Read More…]
Abstract: In the context of growing gap between the demand and the availability of energy and fresh water in India, the close relationship between the usage of energy and water needs a diligent focus for obvious reasons; especially in the context of fast looming Climate Change phenomenon. This nexus has a major impact on various associated issues of the natural[Read More…]
Two attacks in Pakistan, including a brazen assault on the Chinese consulate in Karachi, are likely to complicate prime minister Imran Khan’s efforts to renegotiate China’s massive, controversial Belt and Road investments as well as an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout and ensure that Pakistan is shielded from blacklisting by an international anti-money laundering and terrorism finance watchdog. The attack[Read More…]
David Sanger and William Broad reported in The New York Times [1] on Thursday that before Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was implicated in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, American intelligence agencies were trying to solve a separate mystery: was the prince laying the groundwork for building an atomic bomb? According to the report, the Saudi heir apparent[Read More…]
‘El sueno de la razon produce monstruos’ (The sleep of reason produces monsters) – Francisco Goya, the famous Spanish artist, in his note to his etchings called `Los Caprichos’, made in 1799. Goya’s words – and his paintings that he did later (during 1820-23) depicting a dark vision of his surrounding reality – arouse ominous echoes in our society today. [Read More…]
Can you change the past by changing the present? Would Hinduising Faizabad, Allahabad, Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Hyderabad and so many other great Indian cities help wipe out the country’s rich Islamic past? After all, every inch of the land carries the unmistakable imprint of the rich Muslim contribution to the great Indian civilization. Ironically, this ire against India’s former rulers pointedly[Read More…]
A new estimate by the aid agency Save the Children that 85,000 children have died of hunger since in Yemen since Saudi Arabia’s US-backed bombings of the country began in 2015 underscores the criminal character of Washington’s sponsorship of this horrific slaughter. The charity said 85,000 was a conservative estimate of how many children under the age of five had[Read More…]
The 2018 Bangladesh General Election scheduled on December 30, 2018 marks the end of two consecutive terms of the ruling Awami League (AL), first ever by any political party since 1991, the year when parliamentary democracy was re-introduced in the country through a mass movement against a military dictatorship. AL’s decade long rule has witnessed both good and bad. During[Read More…]
The unconstitutional act of the governor of Jammu and Kashmir in disallowing political parties to explore formation of a new government reflect that the Modi government is not interested in resolving the Kashmir issue, rather, it would like to use the sentiments of ‘nationalism’ during the elections. It is like playing with fire where a historical grievance of a community[Read More…]
The CPIO, Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), stated that as RTI application was not filed before the PMO, first and second appeals were also not filed before it, the order of CIC directing the PMO to provide action related information on former RBI Governor is not tenable. “…No notice or other documents relating to this case have been received in the[Read More…]
Text and Photos: Andre Vltchek It is strange that when you come from the south, near to the DMZ (De-militarized zone, which divides Korea into two parts), you will see many flags and sentimental ‘peace’ slogans, but nothing that would represent the points of view of the North Korean people. All the flags are those of ROC (Republic of[Read More…]
[Part 1 of the article addresses the need for Cuba’s participation in conflicts in Zaire, the Congo and Guinea-Bissau during the 1960s to remain concealed for over three decades. It covers the background to the struggles, what Cubans found in Africa, the role of race relations in Cuba’s campaigns, and the recruitment of doctors. The second part will explore[Read More…]
Curiosity for the undiscovered last tribe, that tantalising moment when eyes are cast upon the previously unseen, remains the anthropological Holy Grail. But to do so would lead to the natural consequences that come with contact and invasion: the foisting of an alien divinity upon others, most probably a monotheistic Sky God, whose grammatically challenged invocations are found in a[Read More…]
Over the past more than ten years I have wandered around almost every tiger sanctuary in India from Kaziranga and Manas in Assam to Idukki in Kerala. I lived in the middle of the Anamallais for seven years. In my childhood and youth in the 1960’s and 70’s, I spent every summer and winter holiday with my dear friend[Read More…]
Credit: Flickr/Eli Duke. CC BY 2.0. The emergence of interest in degrowth can be traced back to the 1st International Degrowth Conference organized in Paris in 2008. At this conference, degrowth was defined as a “voluntary transition towards a just, participatory, and ecologically sustainable society,” so challenging the dogma of economic growth. Another five international conferences were organized between 2010 and[Read More…]
For many decades now, all over the world, identity politics has become a major cause of social conflict. Masses of common people have been forming themselves into racial, ethnic, religious and linguistic identity groups, and, from time to time, they have been fighting against each other, often by violent means, for power and a higher share of the given resources[Read More…]
I can promise that I will not trample a man to death in NJ during a Black Friday store event as has happened. I will not cause a miscarriage through ramming up against a woman at another store as has happened. I will not get into a grab and punch festival at yet another store while fighting over some[Read More…]
“I never thought I’d see the day a White House would moonlight as a public relations firm for the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia.” Senator Bob Corker (R-Tennessee), Twitter, Nov 20, 2018 Accused of being mendacious, incapable of holding to a foundation of facts and indifferent to the world of evidence, President Donald J. Trump has stumped international relations watchers[Read More…]
The mid-term election dust has settled here in the United States, so it’s a good time to look into a familiar bit of political reportage involving our two “official” parties. The vote went along party lines. The vote went along party lines. The vote went along party lines. You know you hear it all the time. Its repetitive nature suggests[Read More…]
A snake will begin to consume itself under two circumstances – first, when mistakes its tail for prey, and second, when under conditions of extreme stress, it attempts reptilian suicide. The People’s Republic of China, that great repository of Maoist/Marxist ideology, is today consuming its ideological tail for both reasons. Any discussion of modern-day China must begin with the question[Read More…]
A major TV network of Pakistan, SAMA, has strongly advocated for recognition of the Jewish entity, Israel, by the government of Imran Khan. Anchor of a popular SAMA program Khara Sach (Naked Truth), Mubashir Luqman, Monday (Nov 19) called on the government of Pakistan to recognize Israel because Saudi Arabia is about to recognize and “we should do before them.”[Read More…]
It is interesting to see how the victim card is being played by many of those who should have been speaking against the order of privilege. Long back, our friend and Editor of Dalit Voice, V T Rajshekar theorised Aryan-Zionist relationship. Rajshekar has been blunt and clear about his theory but perhaps he was too bold and open to be[Read More…]
The philosophic science of right has as its object the idea of right, i.e., the conception of right and the realisation of the conception. In order to gain a proper perspective of Hegel’s place in the history of philosophy, it might be useful to focus on one key concept which has evolved significantly in meaning, from the time of Hegel.[Read More…]
They are perhaps eighteen months old, bigger than the biggest leopard, yet vulnerable and in danger, when apart from their mother. Their mother, Ranthambore’s T-19 Krishna, like all tiger mothers, knows that raising young is a full-time job and Alexa can’t do it. Tiger cubs are born blind, the size of a house cat, totally helpless in every way. Krishna[Read More…]
(Kashmir has the highest potential for the development of Winter Tourism if proper facilities are provided. We could easily have half a dozen ski-resorts!) In mid-eighties, one had the opportunity of flying in a helicopter with a European ski expert over the snow areas of entire Kashmir valley. He had remarked that Kashmir has unlimited “White Gold”. The oil reserves[Read More…]
John Scales Avery: Dear friend and colleague in the peace movement, dear highly respected and admired Editor Binu Mathew, can you tell us about your childhood and education? What are the influences that led you to become the Editor of Countercurrents.org, one of the world’s most important and influential alternative news websites? Binu: I hail from Kerala state, India, the[Read More…]
The killers of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi may have gotten more than they bargained for. The killing has sparked multiple battles that are likely in coming months to shape relationships ranging from that between the United States and Saudi Arabia to those between US President Donald J, Trump, his Republican party, the US Congress, and the country’s intelligence community. The[Read More…]
The Post-World-War-II world order was dominated by the one WW II major combatant that had only 0.32% of its population (the lowest percentage) killed by the war: the United States. The Soviet Union’s comparable number killed by the war was the highest — it was 13.7% — 42 .8.times higher than America’s. The U.S. was the main force that defeated[Read More…]
The November 12 botched Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip is delineating Tel Aviv’s failure to utilize its army as a tool to achieve Palestinian political concessions. Now that the Palestinian popular resistance has gone global through the exponential rise and growing success of the Boycott Movement, the Israeli government is fighting two desperate wars. Following the Gaza attack,[Read More…]
He had killed a sambhar stag the previous night. Sambar are plagued by horseflies and their defence against them is to roll in the mud which when it dries off, makes a very effective shield against the biting insects. This part of the forest, in Ranthambore, has a river flowing over a very rocky bed. Flowing is what it does[Read More…]
Smash Brahmanical Patriarchy has created a lot of hurt among the ‘liberal’ brahmins while the hardcore are threatening twitter to apologise. A privileged brahmin journalist wrote that it has become a norm to ‘blame’ brahmins who are a ‘minority’ community. She compared attacking brahmanism to Nazi treatment to jews during Hitler’s regime. If I am not wrong, Hitler was never[Read More…]
“We’re committing Twitter to help increase the collective health, openness, and civility of public conversation, and to hold ourselves publicly accountable towards progress” – says the pinned tweet of Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter Inc. It appears grand, socially sensitive and super cool. A giant social media platform ‘committed’ to ‘public conversation’ for the sake of ‘progress’? That’s just wow.[Read More…]
On a day when the skies had opened up in Thiruvanathapuram on the eve of the beginning of the crucial month of Vrischikam, along the outskirts of the urban world, 500 children from different schools were preparing to travel into the city. They were carrying in their minds the tunes and words[Read More…]
20 years ago, Colin Campbell and Jean Laherrere published an article on “Scientific American” that was to start the second cycle of interest on oil depletion (the first had been started by Hubbert in the 1950s). Their prediction turned out to be too pessimistic, at least in terms of the supply of combustible liquids, still growing today. Yet, it was a valuable[Read More…]
At the close of the 13th ASEAN Summit in Singapore on the 15th of November 2018, the Prime Minister of the island Republic, Lee HsienLoong, warned that the trade war between the United States of America and China may create circumstances “where ASEAN will have to choose one or the other.” He added, “I hope it does not happen soon.”[Read More…]
Nazareth: Palestinians in Gaza should have been able to breathe a sigh of relief last week, as precarious ceasefire talks survived a two-day-long, heavy exchange of strikes that threatened to unleash yet another large-scale military assault by Israel. Late on Tuesday, after the most intense bout of violence in four years, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas, the Islamic[Read More…]
USING THE INK OF MY TEARS I WROTE TO YOU ,THE ONE WITH GOLDEN ATTIRE. These verses are a fair display of our contemporary atmosphere in Kashmir. With the growing number of vehicles, roads in Kashmir are spattered with blood as accidents resulting in injuries and fatalities have been mounting over the years. No doubt, road accidents are in high[Read More…]
A large number of people in all 157 villages of 33 Gram Panchayat of Narasingpurblock in Cuttack district are continuously suffering from Chronic Kidney Diseases (CKD). The patients are also continuously dying because of lack of proper treatment.The government of Odisha has closed its eyes from this epidemic like situation. On 17t – 18th November, 2017 a seven-members’team of Ganatantrik[Read More…]
The “migrant caravan” is making its way towards the US border – and is facing countless obstacles and much opposition along the way. Most recently, protests erupted when a large group of the migrants reached the Mexican border town of Tijuana. Unsurprisingly, Donald Trump was quick to join the clamour, accusing them of causing “crime and big problems in Mexico” https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1064227483187318784 The[Read More…]
“Grieved by the loss of their lands, dissatisfied with reservation(aka, concentration camp)life, and ultimately brought to a condition of near starvation, the Dakota people appealed to US Indian agencies (involving ex-Minnesota governors Sibley and Ramsey) without success. The murder of five whites by four young Dakota Indians ignited a bloody uprising in which more than 300 whites and an unknown[Read More…]
This is a story that needs a little background because as the story the background is equally important. I went to Oslo in 2010 to study a Master program at the Oslo University College (now Oslo Metropolitan University). Like any other European city, a lot of international students go to study in Oslo (and in Norway). Because of my inclination[Read More…]
The death toll from wildfires in California could rise to more than 1,000, which would make it one of the deadliest and most horrific disasters in modern American history. While the official number of dead from the Camp Fire in Northern California rose to 76 over the weekend, nearly 1,300 are listed as missing, many of them elderly. Confirmed fatalities[Read More…]
“They say they can’t believe it, it’s a sacrilegious shame Now, who would want to hurt such a hero of the game? But you know I predicted it; I knew he had to fall How did it happen? I hope his suffering was small. Tell me every detail, I’ve got to know it all, And do you have a[Read More…]
What people communicate is a matter of choice. But what can be more revealing are the issues they choose to avoid. There are certain prominent pro-GMO activists who describe themselves as ‘science communicators’. They hit out at those who question their views or who have valid criticisms of GM technology and then play the role of persecuted victim, believing that,[Read More…]
Religion, nationalism and sports as propaganda for the ruling class In the closing section of my course Brainwashing Propaganda and Rhetoric: Dark Psychology in the 20th Century, I ask my students to compare organized religion, nationalism and sports, not only to determine the kind of propaganda they are (black, gray or white), but also the devices and artifacts that are used. This includes[Read More…]
“California is a state of geographical extremes: the deserts, the Sierras, the long ocean coast, and the central valleys. It is a critical agricultural state, and every visitor ought to travel through the San Joaquin, Imperial, or Sacramento Valleys to see the sources of the food we eat. Go during a harvest and watch the brown-skinned men, women, and children[Read More…]
The note-ban was a foolish attempt to tackle the black economy and a policy-induced self goal by the Narendra Modi government. The response to its fall-out is more authoritarianism. Demonetisation is like a bad dream etched in our memories. Weddings were postponed and medical treatment was curtailed for lack of money. Long queues formed outside banks. Small businesses closed due[Read More…]
While living in the world of information technology, today the ‘connectivity’ is what really matters. People of all age groups, gender, caste, religion and regions have access to global connectivity through internet available in their handsets and computers. This is comparatively a new phenomenon as a decade ago; neither connectivity nor hardware availability was in common reach, however with the[Read More…]
At least two more persons died of starvation in Jharkhand in the last 25 days. This takes the total number of hunger deaths in the state to 17, since September 2017. The most recent victim is 45-year old Kaleshwar Soren who died of hunger and destitution on 11 November in Mahuatanr village of Jama block of Dumka district. A fact[Read More…]
The Indian-Americans have a moral duty to prevent India from being labeled as a “Country of Particular Concern” by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). If India were to be ascribed with such a label, it would hinder the flow of foreign direct investments and subsequent reversal of economic prosperity achieved in the last twenty years. This[Read More…]
Birth anniversary tribute-21 November 2018 As you read these lines, 1.6 billion Muslims across the world, from Morocco to Jakarta, will be paying homage to the Prophet Muhammad on his birthday. This day, 1,429 years ago, Prophet Muhammad delivered the historic Last Sermon (khutabat al-wida) on the parched terrain of Mount of Mercy (Jabal ar-Rahmah) in the Uranah valley of[Read More…]
A report released by the Watson Institute of International & Public Affairs at Brown University indicates the total sum spent on the “war on terror” is much larger than previously suggested. Professor Neta C. Crawford, the author of the study, revealed that the US government is set to spend nearly $6 trillion on post-9/11 wars by the end of the 2019 fiscal[Read More…]
The Panchayats of 17 districts of Jharkhand have not received 14th Finance Commission grants just as yet. Despite getting 6.4 billion from the finance commission, the state government could not provide funds to the panchayats, as the money has not been released as yet by the Treasury. While the Gram Panchayats were suppose to utilize this money for various basic[Read More…]
That the current U.S. president places a premium on loyalty has been evident from the start — loyalty not to the institutions of government and their legal functions but loyalty to the boss. Former FBI director James Comey cannot forget a certain memory of Donald Trump’s style recalling for him something familiar. It took him back to the days when[Read More…]
There are now overt indications that this planet is becoming uninhabitable. Not only are increasing numbers of humans migrating from near the Equator, northward toward nations that have more temperate climates, but also there are stronger and more frequent hurricanes and longer droughts and spreading desertification and larger and more frequent forest fires, all of which are lowering agricultural productivity[Read More…]
According to the white paper on Jammu & Kashmir published by the government of India early in 1948, Government of India made it clear that they would regard “Instrument of accession” as purely provisional until such time as the will of the people of the state be ascertained. This instrument of accession was signed under the Indian Independence act 1947, which[Read More…]
The British Prime Minister Theresa May presented the draft of the so-called Brexit deal with the EU to the House of Commons. The three-hour long confrontation showed that she would never get this deal approved, not even by her party. The MPs robbed the agreement like a dead body. Nevertheless, she insisted multiple times, “to see it through” because it[Read More…]
Peace is the foundation of prosperity among the nation states of the world and harmony forms the basic foundation of that enterprise.Man is the wonderful creation of God with an inherent sense of metaphysical and worldly belongings. The savage societies of the pre-historic times without any order and hierarchy of social organisation subsequently in the long timeframe paved way for[Read More…]
Sri Lanka is the 103rd country to join the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions. Sri Lanka acceded to the Convention on March 01, 2018. Under the Convention, Sri Lanka is required to show transparency and report annually in a public document on use, stockpiling, clearance and destruction. These obligations include issuing an immediate and effective warning to civilians living in[Read More…]
The murderous attack on the RTI activists and environmentalists Agnes Karshiing and Amita Sangma and their driver E. Kurbah in Meghalaya is only the latest case of people with power using force to suppress dissent. Most such attacks come from the government but in recent years private bodies have been taking over more and more of them. The khap panchayats getting young couples hanged[Read More…]
What is the status of Shudras who constitute the largest social bloc in India? In the North India, the Yadavs, Kurmis of Bihar, Yadavs and Jats of Uttar Pradesh, Gujjars of Rajsthan, the Shudras of Bengal, who are still outside the bracket of Bhadralok, the Patels of Gujarat, Marathas and Kumbis of Maharashtra, Lingayats, Vakkalingas of Karanataka, Nairs and Menons[Read More…]
Amazon has reached the far corners of the earth… and the highest elevations. Delivery men venture 11,562 feet up in the Himalayas to leave a package. While the company may serve a useful purpose in remote regions, its phenomenal growth also reveals that no town is immune from its less desirable consequences. The online retailer’s omnipresence has been all too apparent in[Read More…]
The vast array of consumer products available in the modern markets, needs of a large mass of compulsive buyers that merry-go-round in a spending spree. The great engine that produced the consumer goods, was born with the industrial revolution of the 19th-century. The industrial revolution and the phenomenon of mass consumption were preceded by the feudal age household economics and[Read More…]
We know that U.S. ambassadors tend to be bureaucratic and boring. If you challenge them forcefully, however, the resulting outbursts can provide stunning insights into their ineptitude and State Department policies. Consider the mind-boggling statements made by then-Ambassador to Armenia Richard M. Mills during the Q & A at Holy Trinity Armenian Church in Cambridge, MA. I had bluntly questioned[Read More…]
Look around you. The planet is burning beneath our feet; exoduses of refugees flee for their lives on nearly every continent; the drums of war, from East Asia to the Middle East beat louder; and all over, from Brazil to Poland, from the Philippines to Italy and, of course, to the U.S., fascists move toward, seize and/or further consolidate power.[Read More…]
Australia has an appalling 70 year record, surpassed only by the US, of support for genocidally racist Apartheid Israel and hence of the ongoing Palestinian Genocide that commenced with the British invasion of Palestine in WW1. Recently the fervently pro-Zionist and hence pro-Apartheid Australian Coalition Government caused suspension of the signing a major Free Trade Agreement with Indonesia (the world’s most[Read More…]
‘ A great man is different from an eminent one in that he is ready to be the servant of the society’ Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Scholars, journalists and writers analysed and critiqued on the life and works of Dr. Ambedkar in many ways. One of his great character to appreciate others irrespective of caste or religion. Though he despised[Read More…]
Shashi Tharoor, in an article published in The Print on 10th November, has made some arguments against the appropriateness of the Supreme Court verdict on Sabarimala. In making his case, he criticises the firm position of the Left-led state government on the issue and calls it misplaced. It may be recalled that on 3rd October, the prominent Congress leader had welcomed the judgment and said that “every time[Read More…]
A significant share of popular sentiment is anti-activism today. Many people hardly trust activists. In fact they loath them, abuse them on social media and often make fun of their tragedy by sharing jokes around. Not just activists, movements for justice are mocked at and believed to be undesirable. The ruling establishment not only cashes in on such sentiment but[Read More…]
It isn’t often the UN Security Council votes unanimously to remove sanctions against a country, but this past Wednesday, November 14 they did just that by saying goodbye to nine years of UNjust punishment against the small, socialist, east African country of Eritrea. It was Christmas Eve, 2009 when the USA forced through UN Security Council sanctions against Eritrea, with[Read More…]
Bertrand Russell wrote “Why I am not a Christian.” Kancha Ilaiah wrote “Why I am not a Hindu.” Shashi Tharoor wrote “Why I am a Hindu.” Shashi Tharoor thinks his book will appease Hindus. Kancha Ilaiah has had his book banned in universities but that will not stop its truths from spreading. I would like to explain why I am[Read More…]
On November 14, the Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives blocked a resolution that its supporters say would end U.S. participation in the war and famine in Yemen. It is unclear, however, what effect this resolution would have on the ground even if it were passed into law. It imposes no limits on arms sales to Saudi Arabia[Read More…]
Right-wing Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is escalating his war on the Palestinian people, although for reasons almost entirely related to Israeli politics. He has just given the greenlight to a legislation that would make it easier for Israeli courts to issue death sentences against Palestinians accused of carrying out ‘terrorist’ acts. Netanyahu’s decision was made on November 4, but[Read More…]
On November 15, 1988 the Palestine National Council (PNC) proclaimed the Palestinian Declaration of Independence at Algiers in Arabic, the language of the desert and of the holy Koran. Arabic shall always remain the sole, exclusive, official, and only authentic language for the Palestinian Declaration of Independence. Immediately thereafter, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) gave the Arabic language text of[Read More…]
Jerusalem, deemed a holy city, and seen as trade item, bargaining chip and bartering tool over the centuries. Sought by the major faiths, despoiled at stages by various empires, revived and chalice of poison in international law. Australia’s Scott Morrison, charmless in his ignorance, has come to realise the problems of relocating the Australian embassy from Tel Aviv Jerusalem. International[Read More…]
I follow the weather obsessively, but I can’t remember any other time in modern American history when a town of more than 25,000 people was demolished in just six hours, like Paradise, California, was. Maybe Homestead, Florida, during Hurricane Andrew in 1992 — but Homestead at least had a few days warning. Maybe Moore, Oklahoma, which suffered four devastating tornadoes between 1999 and[Read More…]
Ten years ago last night, I was hosting a dinner at my house for 30 or so hungry law students to talk about what life after law school might look like. The barbecue and peach cobbler were out, the iced tea was steeping, and our golden retriever Otis was ready running in slobbery circles. And 10 minutes before everyone[Read More…]
I’ve often wondered about the limits of activist’s reach and the lack of coherent, organized progressive social movements in the US. Does it come down to the precarious nature of our jobs, the stress, strain, and exhaustion caused by the realization of being a paycheck away from penury? Or is it all the fault of our monopolistic media, with the[Read More…]
Dr. Ambedkar is said to be the father of Dalit politics because he was the first person to fight for the political rights of Dalits. He was the person who during the Round Table Conferences (1930-32), called in connection with the framing of future constitution of India, got the Dalits (Depressed Classes) recognised as a minority distinct from the Hindus[Read More…]
The recent brouhaha over SC’s hat-trick judgements raises eyebrows, seeks some answers. Major General Mrinal Suman’s comment on Supreme Court of India has triggered the debate on the judicial domain of higher judiciary. Mrinal Suman comments, “If judiciary wants to govern the country, let it seek the people’s mandate.” He argues, “The higher judiciary is not mandated to govern the[Read More…]
As India is celebrating the National Press Day on 16 November, time ripened for acknowledging the contributions made by everyone for the growth of print media along with the watchdog & mentor (Press Council of India). Since its inception & functioning, the press council continues symbolizing a free and responsible press in the largest democracy of the globe. It would[Read More…]
(For last few years the political space in Kashmir has been gradually made to shrink and now even the so called “mainstream” is being squeezed out!) Recently Omar Abdullah in an interview said that the political space for main stream parties has shrunk in Kashmir. One could ask him whether there ever was real political space in Kashmir any time[Read More…]
I woke up today morning, plans swirling in the mind. What should I plan for the kids, how can I make their day special? I packed their favorite snack in their tiffins, dressed one as Spidey and the other as a Pirate…. off they ran to school. Later, maybe a nice evening spent at a soft play area, some balloons followed[Read More…]
The disgruntled former prime minister is a rather large, and growing club, on the Australian scene. The country has become known for its killing seasons, those occasions when spear wielding apparatchiks within respective political parties feel the need to execute (politically speaking) their leaders in hurried fashion. Those leaders, in turn, seek revenge and catharsis. None, it seems, seek obscurity,[Read More…]
On 15 November 1988, the Palestine National Council meeting in Algiers proclaimed the existence of the new independent state of Palestine. Later that evening, after the close of prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, the worshippers came out of the Mosque into the Great Courtyard in front of the Dome of the Rock, where the Prophet Muhammad (May Peace Be[Read More…]
This sounds like a bad joke. It ain’t. Its real. One fascist government helps another fascist government. Yes, I have written about fascism invading the west before – warning that the European Union (non-union) is being gradually, but ever faster turned into a fascist dictatorship under the guise of democratic protection of ‘Democracy’; and this by her unelected European Commission[Read More…]
I have an extraordinary sister. She is relentless in her push to serve others. Here are two examples in the following account. https://countercurrents.org/2017/03/03/the-good-sister-a-model-for-us-all/ The Good Sister, A Model For US All! in Life/Philosophy — by Sally Dugman — March 3, 2017. snow. Fourteen months older than am I, my sister was a terror as … Now, we had a little chat[Read More…]
On his 90th birthday, a tribute to the man whose life more than anyone else’s tells us what it takes to be human Six weeks after 9/11, Noam Chomsky was on a brief lecture-tour in India when one of his engagements took him to the Asian College of Journalism in Chennai. There, in the Q&A after his talk, a budding[Read More…]
What is happening to Assange should terrify the press. And yet his plight is met with indifference and sneering contempt. Julian Assange’s sanctuary in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London has been transformed into a little shop of horrors. He has been largely cut off from communicating with the outside world for the last seven months. His Ecuadorian citizenship, granted to[Read More…]
Co-Written by Evan Blake and Ben McGrath The confirmed death toll from the Camp Fire in Northern California soared to 48 Tuesday night as officials continued a systematic examination of the destroyed city of Paradise. Hundreds of people remain missing and it is believed the death toll will continue to rise. Some of the donations for survivors in Chico The[Read More…]
Chiang Mai, Thailand: Women’s groups from Asia Pacific are deeply concerned about the bill passed by the Government of Poland that will prevent any ‘spontaneous’ public gathering of climate groups during COP24 and subject human rights defenders to state-led surveillance including access and storing all personal information. The Bill initiated by the government of Poland is setting a dangerous precedent[Read More…]
In a scenario, when politics in our state has become crazy, the ‘hegemonic discourses’ have the sway, and a big lie projected as truth is accepted, restlessness is a natural corollary. To fight this restlessness instead of reading new books on Kashmir by authors published by big houses in India,- of course, tutored, of late, I have started re-reading books[Read More…]
While sifting through my Instagram feeds, I accidently stumbled upon a weird video of the actress Rakhi Sawant in which she wears a chain and a lock around her waist. In the video, she mocks every other woman coming out with the stories of the sexual abuse suffered at the hands of men and disparagingly suggests women to wear a[Read More…]
Premise: Reporting on the still unresolved abduction and murder of statesman, Aldo Moro, by the Red Brigades back in 1978—or in their name—the Rome sometimes left-wing investigative magazine, Espresso, reported that the USA and many European leaders considered Premier Moro’s project to bring the Italian Communist Party (PCI) into the Rome government destabilizing and of the utmost danger to European[Read More…]
Foreword: For many decades now, all over the world, identity politics has become a major cause of social conflict. Masses of common people have been forming themselves into racial, ethnic, religious and linguistic identity groups, and, from time to time, they have been fighting against each other, often by violent means, for power and a higher share of the given[Read More…]
There are no permanent enemies and no permanent friends, theorised William Clay, only permanent interests. The principle perhaps best applies to the current geopolitical situation of the Middle East. Having lived in the region for so long, one has seen one’s fair share of upheavals — coups and revolutions and wars and conflicts. One has had a ringside view of[Read More…]
Unveiling the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on October 31 in Narmada district’s Kevadiya Colony, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Every decision is being taken to ensure that the fruits of development reach the most vulnerable, without any corruption or favouritism, just as Patel would have wanted it”. Why is it then that the Sarpanches of 22 Gram Panchayats wrote[Read More…]
On November 9, Russia hosted talks between Afghanistan’s High Peace Council, the members of the Taliban from its Doha, Qatar office and representatives from eleven regional states, including China, India, Iran and Pakistan. The meeting showcased Russia’s re-emergence as a proactive global power and its regional clout. At the same time when the conference was hosted in Moscow, however, the[Read More…]
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who declared “sunny ways” were back after the last election, continues to waffle on what is to be done about the Khashoggi killing in Turkey by the Saudi Arabians. The problem is being “investigated” and more consultation is to be held. The real problem as presented by CBC news tonight (Monday, November 12, 2018) is[Read More…]
British author and social commentator H.G. Wells may have coined the expression that originally popularized World War I as The War that Will End War, as his book, based on articles written during that vast military conflict, was titled. In any case, in one version or another, the expression was one of the most common catchphrases of the Great War[Read More…]
Another mass shooting in America! They are so frequent they are anticipated. I favor stick gun control, and the application of the Second Amendment of the Constitution should be challenged as it now stands before weapons’ technology but continues to be interpreted along antiquated guidelines. How little is commonly known about the original purpose and history of the Second Amendment,[Read More…]
The death of morality….
the death of reasoning ….
The death of rationality ….
I am bizzare I am death !
When the Spanish conquistador Francisco de Orellana in 1541, explored a majestic river, surrounded by a green oasis of unprecedented beauty in a pristine paradise and accompanied by mysterious animal sounds, he ran into a local tribe. A subsequent battle was fought at the mouth of the Madeira. In the record of the monk Gaspar de Carvajal, he wrote that[Read More…]
The death toll from wildfires ravaging Northern and Southern California has risen to 31. Thousands of homes and structures have been destroyed, and hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to flee from the spreading inferno. The most destructive fire is in the north—the Camp Fire, which started under the power lines at Poe Dam in Butte County. Fueled[Read More…]
The American administration under Trump has become so addicted to waging economic sanctions; a new form of war, against other countries to a point where it does not hesitate to break international laws, to impose sanctions against its strategic allies, and to face the risk of international condemnation and isolation as a result. Since his election (selection) as president, Trump[Read More…]
Hostilities cease on death. That is why the cops doff their caps after a notorious criminal (Even) is found lying dead who deservingly, then, is allowed to be given a proper burial. BUT, why the ‘traitors’ & ‘betrayers’ of a cause or community or trust or country or nation are generally denied this respect even after their death. Why people[Read More…]
Text and Photos: Andre Vltchek It stinks, it is the most polluted city on earth, but that is not the most terrible thing about it. You can drive for ten or even twenty kilometers through it, and see only ugliness, fences and broken pavements. But there are many miserable cities on this planet, and I have worked in almost all[Read More…]
Those in the war industry and the business of commemorating the dead have little time for peace, even as they supposedly celebrate it. For them, peace is the enemy as much as armed opposing combatants, if not more so. Dr Brendan Nelson of the Australian War Memorial is every bit the propagandist in this regard, encased in armour of permanent[Read More…]
A group of teenagers from country Victoria are hoping to inspire climate-change action across the country. Cutting class may seem uneventful to your average teenager, but for 15-year-old Greta Thunberg, it’s a protest. The young Swedish girl has been striking outside of the Swedish parliament, following the country’s hottest summer on record this year. Every day for two weeks she sat[Read More…]
Climate activist Greta Thunberg chose to renounce her place as a finalist for the Children’s Climate Prize. The reason being that the other finalists (six young people) and their guardians are flying to Stockholm to attend the three-day meeting known as Children’s Climate Prize and Talks – a platform where children and young people are given recognition and a space to inspire,[Read More…]
A student and youth group fighting for genuine socialism at MIT Students and young people are entering into political life amidst an unprecedented political crisis within the state apparatus, a growing danger of world war, escalating attacks on the working class and immigrants, and a political radicalization of workers and youth. Many young people are looking for a way to[Read More…]
The working class, if it decides to win in class struggle, has to assess the power of capital. Without this assessment, the struggles the working class carries on against capital turn to adventurism or capitulation or puerile disorder. Consequently, the struggle lurches in a political wilderness, or, resorts to individual heroism, formulating programs that reach the level of utopia, produce[Read More…]
I want to believe in eternal economic growth. Given what humanity is facing with climate change and other consequences of our collective consumption, it must be awfully comforting to have faith in a cornucopian future where no one ever goes wanting. Especially if all we have to do is more of the same, sticking to capitalism’s exploitative playbook. I used[Read More…]
On Friday, 9 November 2018, at the invitation of the Russian Government and under the chairmanship of the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov began what has been called “The Moscow Format” to end the armed conflicts and to find appropriate structures of governance in Afghanistan. Present for the first time were representatives of the Afghanistan High Peace Council – a[Read More…]
Perhaps the main reason people reject the need for a steady state economy is some form of cornucopianism, the belief that technological progress will overcome all ecological and physical limits, allowing endless economic growth into the indefinite future. Cornucopianism has several flavors, and I will describe three: mainstream economics, eco-modernism, and singularity theory. Mainstream Economics Fuels Cornucopian Ideas First, let’s[Read More…]
The BRICS are not what they intended to be, never really were. Today it’s clear that fascist-turned Brazil is out – so we are at RICS. There is not much to argue about. The world’s fifth largest economy, Brazil, has failed and betrayed the concept of the BRICS and the world at large. Whether you consider South Africa as[Read More…]
Former Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur Professor Guru Das Agrawal, who became an ascetic in 2011 at the age of 79 years and came to be known as Swami Gyan Swaroop Sanand, died on 11 October, 2018 on the 112th day of his fast, demanding a law for conservation of river Ganga, at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rishikesh.[Read More…]
What’s with this obsession of powerful men with grand monuments? The biggest, largest and tallest…the more insecure a leader, the more grandiloquent is his vision of his legacy. Perhaps Freud could explain the psychological causes behind these magnificent obsessions and preoccupation with size. So Egypt’s pyramids had been more than mere last abodes of pharaohs and other members of the[Read More…]
Co-Written by Kumar sanjay and Debmalya Nandy A lecture was organized on the fifth schedule of Indian Constitution, on Saturday in the Aryabhatta Auditorium of RU by the Welfare Department of Jharkhand Government. While addressing the program, the Governor Draupadi Murmu had said that currently ,there is no separate tribal Ministry in the state and had further added that she[Read More…]
Co-Written by Badre Alam Khan & Sanjay Kumar The historians of modern India have been consistently arguing for many decades about India’s colonial legacy, like elsewhere, of communal consciousness evoked by colonial census. While doing so, historians and social anthropologists have emphasized as to how colonial state had become ‘ethnographic state’. Communalism versus secularism has been fiercely debated and discussed[Read More…]
“A beautiful thing never gives so much pain , as does failing to hear and see it ! ” – GUTAV KLIMT As I come across this quote from my favourite artist my eyes are drawn to the easel on which rests the long forgotten canvas with its half drawn lotus leaves and lotuses standing in solemn impeccable majesty -defeated[Read More…]
Appropriation of Political icon is not a new phenomenon. It has been in the political arena of India since long, but politics of appropriation and co-option got new height in last four year rule of the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP). Over the last four years of BJP’s rule, they have been trying to co-opt those political icons whose legacy[Read More…]
The US-led coalition against Islamic State has carried out more than 100 new air strikes targeting the militant group’s remaining strongholds in Syria’s Deir Ezzor province, killing at least 80 civilians — including dozens of women and children — in recent weeks. US-led bombing resumed on October 24 following a particularly deadly period in which scores of Syrian men, women and children[Read More…]
Early Thursday morning, a small fire started along the Feather River in Northern California. Due to high winds and dry conditions, the fire spread rapidly to the west, and by Friday evening had burned 90,000 acres and erased the town of Paradise (population 26,000) from the map. The Camp Fire, named after the creek where it started, forced the entire[Read More…]
The United States’ so-called War on Terror has killed about half a million people in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, according to a new estimate from the Costs of War Project at Brown University’s Watson Institute. “This new body count signals that, far from diminishing, the war is only intensifying,” Stephanie Savell, co-director of the project, pointed out in a piece for Axios. The[Read More…]
Yesterday Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena blatantly violated the country’s constitution and dissolved parliament almost two years before its term officially ends. According to the gazette notification issued last night, new elections will be held on January 5 and the new parliament convened on January 17. Sirisena’s anti-democratic actions came just two weeks after he sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe[Read More…]
“Who is that with the dagger?”
“I don’t know.”
“And who is that with the stick?”
“Sorry, don’t know.”
“Who is that with the sledgehammer?”
“Don’t know.”
“And look, who is that with the pen?”
“Oh, he? He’s a journalist.”
The 19th Century British politician, Lord Palmerston was of the view that: “Nations have no permanent friends or allies, they only have permanent interests.” Henry Kissinger rephrased it: “America has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests.” This applies to Russia which hosted the Taliban for peace talks in Moscow attended by Afghanistan, India, Iran, China, Pakistan and five former[Read More…]
Saudi Arabia is bracing itself for a potentially more strained relationship with the United States in the wake of Democrats gaining control of the House of Representatives in this week’s mid-term elections and mounting Turkish efforts to corner the kingdom in the Khashoggi crisis. To counter possible US pressure, the kingdom is exploring opportunities to diversify its arms suppliers and[Read More…]
This week will go down in the annuls of history as the week when the American nation failed to change course, unite and become great again. I am saying ‘become great again’ because this is the rallying cry that the current incumbent in the White House, Mr Trump, used to get the American electorate to put him in office two[Read More…]
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau House of Commons Parliament of Canada justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca Prime Minister, History is repeating itself. You have dishonourably exploited your apology for Canada’s historical rejection of Jewish refugees during World War II to falsely conflate antisemitism with and callously reject Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) efforts to protect the human rights of generations of Palestinian refugees ‘chased[Read More…]
11 November 2018 (Remembrance Day) marks the centenary of the signing of the Armistice that brought the carnage of WW1 to an end. This important centenary will be commemorated in countries that were former British allies in WW1 (UK, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Belgium and Russia) and in the opposing countries of Germany and of Austro-Hungarian Empire. Prominent[Read More…]
There has been much debate of increasing revenues by ‘increasing tax net’ so that more people can be brought under tax bracket. As the debate on levying taxes has been going on for quite some time, it may be important to discuss who are actually paying taxes and who are responsible for ‘ running major part of the economy’. Figures[Read More…]
In Act 3, scene 4, Macbeth causes chaos at a celebratory banquet at his castle when he suddenly starts to behave very oddly. Everything starts quite normally. The guests are greeted and they all sit down ready for the meal. One man is absent: Macbeth’s old friend, Banquo. The reason why he is absent is very simple – Macbeth has[Read More…]
Another horrible mass shooting took place in the US on Wednesday night, the 307th such episode on the 311th day of the year, according to a website that tracks gun violence. A 28-year-old Marine Corps veteran of the Afghanistan war walked into a country music dance club in Thousand Oaks, California on Wednesday night and opened fire with a handgun,[Read More…]
Pakistan Thursday (Nov 8) expressed concern over Indian nuclear submarine patrol. Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, said on Monday (Nov 5) the INS Arihant was a “fitting response to those who indulge in nuclear blackmail”. Foreign Office Spokesperson, Dr Mohammad Faisal, said Pakistan has taken notice of a first “deterrence patrol” of an Indian nuclear submarine and subsequent “self-congratulatory messages[Read More…]
What has the working class achieved so far in its war for emancipation? Are not the exploited of the earth encountering unfinished work in their struggles against the most experienced and resource-rich class the world has witnessed till today? These questions are apposite while examining the class struggle on the world stage. Michael D. Yates has probed the questions in[Read More…]
Understanding for intervening Constructivist and psychoanalytic oriented social research provides evidence that human behaviour is driven by the shared meanings of the subjective social experience (Blumer 1969, Mead 1934, Berger and Luckmann 1966, Moscovici 1961, Matte Blanco 1975, Carli 1993). This perspective can be used to understand the cultural drivers underlying the elite’s political and economic action. The understanding of[Read More…]
Donald Trump has now declared the caravan of refugees from Honduras and other Central American countries making their way on foot to the U.S. border an “invasion of our country” that has created a “national emergency.” “We have no choice,” he bellowed from the White House on November 1. “We will defend our borders. We will defend our country.” And[Read More…]
We just had another mass murder in the USA. A military connected person carried it out. I know two Marines. Both have shell shock permanent brain damage AND PTSD. One shot a rifle at a medical helicopter going to a hospital across the lake where he lived when back in the USA. The other raped his own daughter, realized his[Read More…]
President Donald J. Trump has a special, strained take on the world. Defeat is simply victory viewed in slanted terms. Victory for the other side is defeat elaborately clothed. Both views stand, and these alternate with a mind bending disturbance that has thrown the sceptics off any credible scent. “It wasn’t me being slow,” came Frank Bruni’s lamentation in The[Read More…]
The midterm elections are over, the result … a split-decision. The Democrats will control the House, raising the possibility of an impeachment attempt. The Senate remains under Republican control with their majority increased by one seat. The president reminded us at a post-election press conference that while he could not help in the all too numerous House elections, he did[Read More…]
The impression hits you immediately. An opening of an exhibition held to commemorate survivors and families of one of the darker atrocities of human experiments; and it features ample food and wine. The commemorative occasion, however, was in stark contrast to the mass starvation that led to the deaths of millions in the Soviet Union’s drive to collectivise farming in[Read More…]
A momentous day in the life of a leader, writer or poet is when he sees his ideas translated into reality. Iqbal did not live up to the day when his dream of a separate nation for Muslims of South Asia became a reality on 14 August 1947. He was not a part of the galaxy of leaders of[Read More…]
This is the Preface of the just released Autobiography of Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd entitled “From A Shepherd Boy To An Intellectual–My Memoirs”. Published by Samya/Sage (Select) New Delhi. Countercurrents reproduces the introduction. PREFACE I never intended to write a memoir. My two books Why I Am Not a Hindu and Post-Hindu India, generated debate and controversy among the Brahmin-Baniya[Read More…]
Three Muslim candidates were elected to the House of Representatives in Tuesday’s election. Ilhan Omar won in Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District and Rashida Tlaib won in Michigan’s 13th Congressional District. They are the first Muslim women elected to the Congress. In Indiana, Rep. André Carson (D) won his re-election bid for the 7th District. More than 90 American Muslims ran for office this year at[Read More…]
China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” is famous as an extension of their domestic infrastructure investments, but Russia is also investing heavily in infrastructure. Both countries need to do it in order to improve the future for their respective populations, and both Governments have avoided the Western development model of going heavily into debt in order to pay for creating and[Read More…]
The MNREGA Sahayata Kendras of Jharkhand have been working on strengthening the demand side of the grievance redress mechanism since their inception. The idea of a sahayata kendra led community driven grievance management and monitoring system is very recent but the experiences have been very rich and significant .The grievance redress policies and provisions as proposed in the MGNREGA ACT[Read More…]
(Apart from various perennial problems relating to demand and supply, the very system of transmitting and supplying power is extremely fragile) The recent power break down in the valley reportedly resulting from the collapse of a high voltage transmission tower caused by a foot or so of unusually heavy and untimely snowfall resulted in a power outage throughout the[Read More…]
The world economy seems to be seriously ill. The problem is not overly high oil prices, but that does not rule out energy as being a major underlying problem. Two of the symptoms of the economy’s malaise are slow wage growth and increasing wage disparity. Tariffs are being added as solutions to these issues. Radical leaders are increasingly being elected.[Read More…]
A global rise of nationalist and populist tendencies has not only given anti-migrant, Islamophobic, anti-Semitic and racist tendencies a new lease on life, but opened the door to alliances between groups that once would have had nothing to do with one another. Developments in Israel, Indonesia and Germany suggest renewed nationalism and populism is in some cases redefining how states[Read More…]
To dream of vast horizons of the Soul Through dreams made whole, Unfettered free – help me! Help me make our world anew. Langston Hughes The United Nations remains the only universally representative and comprehensively empowered body the world has to deal with challenges to the security and welfare of the world society. However, the awareness of these challenges grows[Read More…]
Dear Comrade Dr. Pravat Ranjan Sethi, Thank you for your most knowledgeable reflections on revolutionary theory and practice. I enjoyed them and benefited from them, as I am sure many others did as well. I would like to respond by putting a slightly different perspective on the subject. First, revolutionary thought is always “dialectical” because the dialectic is inherently[Read More…]
I remember those days when the former prime minister of India late Atal Bihari Vajpayee had suggested for a national debate on conversion though our constitution, even then pointing that the practice of religion is a fundamental right. This was when, he was on an official visit to Dang, Gujarat on 10th January, 1999. Here,religious violence were taking place[Read More…]
The Democratic Party won control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections on November 6, gaining more than the 23 seats required for a majority. With many House races too close to call or with large numbers of votes still uncounted, particularly in states like California and Washington, which provide for voting by mail, the five television networks[Read More…]
It appears that the KSA has crossed all lines of decency, if there were ever any. In the eyes of many in the West, it crossed them not because it has been brutally killing tens of thousands of innocent people in Yemen, not even because it keeps sponsoring terrorists in Syria, (and in fact all over the world), often on behalf[Read More…]
When Israeli troops stormed the house of Palestinian parliamentarian and lawyer, Khalida Jarrar, on April 2, 2015, she was engrossed in her research. For months, Jarrar had been leading a Palestinian effort to take Israel to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Her research on that very evening was directly related to the kind of behavior that allows a group of[Read More…]
It begins with a gruesome account: a tourist, paddleboarding and swimming in an idyllic setting baked by sun – in this case, Cid Harbour in the Whitsundays, Queensland – attacked by a shark. He suffers a massive loss of blood; he goes into cardiac arrest. The accounts that follow are just as predictable as the consequences of the shark’s work:[Read More…]
(Updated from a Duty to Warn column from 10-31-2016, just days prior to the 2016 election) By the time this column is published in the Duluth Reader and also around the world, the mid-term election of 2018 will be over. So, whether there is a blue wave or not, I have decided to update – and actually shorten (!) –[Read More…]
Pakistan is on the turmoil at the moment. In a historic judgment Pakistan Supreme Court acquitted Asia Bibi, a Dalit Christian woman who was sentenced to death by the lower courts for the charges of blasphemy. The court judgment has created an unprecedented crisis in Pakistan as the Mullahs and other Islamic fanatics have taken to the street and asking[Read More…]
It is often said that RSS follows Hitler and/or Mussolini. To what extend it is true? Hitler or Mussolini are persons. RSS is not a single person like them. It is a collective, an organisation or more aptly it represents a caste. Hitler and Mussolini were not representing the ‘Nation’ as envisaged by the RSS. They represented the state. According[Read More…]
The nation concept is 18th century phenomenon. The ‘state’ and ‘nation’ are not synonimous terms. According to one definition, “ the state is a political and geopolitical entity, while the nation is a cultural and ethnic one.’ Thus, nation has a racial tone. But not all accept this definition. Some say it consists of merger of state and nation. Dr.Ambedkar on[Read More…]
On November 11, 1888 Abul Kalam, better known as Maulana Azad, was born in Mecca and two years later his father came to Calcutta to consult a surgeon. Since then his family never went back and stayed in India. It is here that Maulana Azad was educated in traditional knowledge. He never went to any university and did not[Read More…]
It is obvious that Ram Mandir is of no use for solving pressing problems like unemployment or unremunerative prices for agricultural produce faced by a thousand million persons born in Hindu families. Secondly, those occupying high seats of power know it full well that our Constitution does not permit the State to construct a building for religious purposes[Read More…]
That seemed to be the resonating refrain of women at the HIV Research for Prevention Conference (HIVR4P2018) held recently in Madrid, Spain. And no, they were not talking about the engagement ring. Their focus of interest was the intra-vaginal dapivirine vaginal ring – a long acting female-initiated, self-administered product that has been found to be highly effective in reducing the[Read More…]
Iranian government officials want to know how the Trump administration can get away with punishing Iran and other countries for complying with the internationally recognized nuclear deal signed in 2015. “The US is, in effect, threatening states who seek to abide by Resolution 2231 with punitive measures,” said President Rouhani. “This constitutes a mockery of international decisions and the blackmailing[Read More…]
Brian Mier, editor of Brasil Wire and Voices of the Brazilian Left: Dispatches From a Coup in Progress, spoke to Green Left Weekly’s Federico Fuentes about the victory of fascist candidate Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil’s presidential elections, and what it means for the coming period. *** Much of the media has portrayed Jair Bolsonaro as a kind of “Trump of the Tropics”, but what does Bolsonaro’s[Read More…]
The major media outlets had totally ignored the important three days October 26-28 IISS Manama Dialogue 2018 conference that was organized by International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in the city of Manama; the capital of the tiny island of Bahrain. This Manama Dialogue was attended by very important international political representatives such as General James Mattis; US Secretary of[Read More…]
In a replay of 1977 anti-government demonstration against the government of Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, the government of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan is facing violent protests by religious parties to destabilize the newly elected government. In 1977, the so-called Pakistan National Alliance, comprising three main religious parties – Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan (JUP), some other[Read More…]
When Indian Bollywood star Irfan Khan took to twitter to declare that he is diagnosed with a rare disease called neuro endocrine cancer. This news sent a shockwave across India. But he recently penned a heartfelt letter about his battle against cancer, in which he wrote, “Fear and panic should not overrule me and make me miserable.That was my intention.[Read More…]
The new ‘political’ Governor of J&K, Satya Pal Malik stepped into a volatile “Disturbed Area” at a testing and disturbing time. He is not the first to do so. However, he has in this short time several firsts to his credit. He did assure Kashmiris that under his watch there will be no underhand move to install a goverment. He[Read More…]
Americans being suckered into focusing on voting for one of the two parties of the ruling genocidal Wall St. plutocracy, US CIA controlled media informs of Yemeni children dying from bombs & starvation knowing its captive audience will not turn against the American killing machine. Once USA-EU loses hegemony, the many nations that have seen their children murdered by USA[Read More…]
In recent elections, it seems American voters have had little choice but to elect candidates they perceive as being “on their side,” or perhaps as being “better than the other guy.” Since the enfranchisement of women and Black Americans in the course of the last century, voter participation has been too easily circumscribed by powerful elements, and often approached as[Read More…]
Nazareth: The victory of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil’s presidential election last week has won Israel a passionate new friend on the international stage. The world’s fifth-most populous nation will now be “coloured in blue and white”, an Israeli official said, referring to the colours of Israel’s flag. The Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately called to congratulate Bolsonaro, a former[Read More…]
With attention focused on the planned demolition of Khan al-Ahmar village, other areas of the Jordan Valley have fallen off the radar. Out of sight, however, Israeli consolidation over the Jordan Valley is continuing apace. Last month, the Israeli army demolished several Palestinian structures in the communities of al-Hadidiya and the al-Musafa area east of Jiftlik village. In al-Hadidiya, in the northern Jordan Valley, the bulldozers arrived on[Read More…]
When naive people are in trouble and go looking for someone to solve their problems for them, they often get bamboozled by cunning, politically-motivated con men who are quite willing to step in and take charge. In pre-Nazi Europe, the fascist dictators Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler were such politicians. In 1929, Germany had been victimized by the Wall Street[Read More…]
Physician burnout, depression, and suicide increasingly invade discussions within the medical field. Depression and suicide are more common among male and female physicians, with suicide rates 1.41 and 2.27 times greater than that of the general male and female populations, respectively. Though, the insults to the mental health of physicians begins much earlier in their career. While the numbers may vary from[Read More…]
The surgical dismembering of Jamal Khashoggi has sent the military establishments of several countries into a tizz. Arms manufacturers are wondering whether this is an inconvenient blip, a ruffling moral reminder about what they are dealing with. Autocratic regimes indifferent to the lives of journalists are wondering whether the fuss taken about all this is merely the fuss endured, till[Read More…]
On October 31st the US Secretary of Defense James N. Mattis and the US Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo called for a cease fire and a negotiated settlementto the war against Yemen. This was more than an obvious publicity stunt. It was a cruel Halloween prank? It is the US that is leading from behind the Saudi and other[Read More…]
Recently, the Trump administration has announced the most stringent set of sanctions against Iran to appease Benjamin Netanyahu. Donald Trump has repeatedly said during the last two years that the Iran nuclear deal signed by the Obama administration in 2015 was an “unfair deal” that gave concessions to Iran without giving anything in return to the US. Unfortunately, there is[Read More…]
I skim like a gull across the dark sea of sleep. I cannot settle. When I finally do, I dream that my teacher has come to visit me. I sit across the table from him, put my hand over his, look intently in his eyes, and tell him that I have written an equation. I watch to see his response. [Read More…]
Nearly 31 years after the ghastly massacre of 42 Muslims by the goons of the Provincial Arms Constabulary, notoriously known as PAC in the Hashimpura locality of Meerut on May 22nd, 1987, Delhi High Court over turned a lower court verdict which exonerated 16 accused of the PAC. The High Court sentenced them to life imprisonment. But the picture is[Read More…]
Kangri or Kangdhi , or Kanger in common Kashmiri parlance, is an indispensable part of socio-cultural milieu of Kashmir. All Kashmiris, cutting across gender, creed & age use & “consider it indispensable in the cold season”. Its cultural importance can be gauged from a Kashmiri saying: what Laila was to Mujnoon’s heart (legendary lovers), Kanger is to a Kashmiri. Kanger[Read More…]
Two sons did an excellent job! Both merit credit for doing a job that many other children placed in similar situations have chosen to ignore. Fathers of the two from ab initio were proactively involved in the struggle for ending the autocratic rule in the state. For their centrality in the struggle and proximity to the top leadership, the two[Read More…]
Washington’s imposition of sweeping new sanctions on Iran—aimed at strangling its economy and precipitating “regime change” in Tehran—is roiling world geopolitics. As of today, the US is embargoing all Iranian energy exports and freezing Iran out of the US-dominated world financial system,so as to cripple the remainder of its trade and deny it access to machinery, spare parts and even[Read More…]
It was only an announcement, but think of it as the beginning of a journey into hell. Last week, President Donald Trump made public his decision to abrogate the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), a 1987 agreement with the Soviet Union. National Security Advisor John Bolton, a Cold Warrior in a post-Cold War world, promptly flaunted that announcement on a trip to Vladimir Putin’s Moscow.[Read More…]
Karl Marx was possessed of demonic genius that was to transform the modern world. —Saul K. Padover (1978) For all the horrors committed in Marx’s name, the German philosopher has for more than a century struck an inspirational chord among workers and intellectuals disenfranchised by global capitalism. The development of Marx’s doctrine after his death first followed the course of a[Read More…]
Again, Professor Michael D. Yates raises critical questions in chapter 3 of his recently released book Can the Working Class Change the World? (Monthly Review Press, New York, October 2018): “How much has the working class changed the world so far? Can it go further and bring about a global transition in which capitalism is superseded by a radically democratic[Read More…]
The treasurers of various countries seem to be stumbling over each other in the effort, but taxing the digital behemoths has become something of an obsession, the gold standard for those wishing to add revenue to state coffers. Back in May, when Australia’s then treasurer Scott Morrison oversaw the purse strings of the country, it was declared that, “The new[Read More…]
Well, the Liar-in-chief is at it again. This time he is trying to enrich his corporate friends by having food boxes sent to poor people who receive food stamps instead of them getting stamps. The CEO’s of huge agricultural companies win out that way… just as they did when excess food from USA was part of loan deals in Haiti[Read More…]
A Report by Umesh Anand and Lakshman Anand Over the years, a few million women in Andhra Pradesh, now split into Telangana, have perhaps been operated on wrongly. Similar is the case elsewhere, Karnataka for example. The doctor-couple initially found it difficult to believe, but as they probed further they discovered to their dismay that a large number of rural[Read More…]
In Delhi authorities seem to have at least some understanding of the need for promoting public transport and to discourage private cars. This seems to be sorely lacking in Mumbai. Air pollution is now so bad in Delhi that the chief of the Environment Pollution Control Authority, senior administrator, Bhure Lal, warned that from November 1 the authority may have[Read More…]
Mera azm itna bulund hae, Parae sholon se dar nahin. Mujhe dar hae tu atish e gul se hae, Ye kahin chaman ko jala na dein (my confidence in self is strong, I’m unafraid of foreign flames I’m scared those sparks may ignite, that in the blossom’s bosom lay ) — Shakeel Badayuni’s couplet which was very dear to Salman Taseer who was assassinated by[Read More…]
The victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh massacre were remembered at a justice rally held in Surrey on Sunday, November 4. Organized by Indians Abroad for Pluralist India (IAPI) at Holland Park, the rally was well attended by South Asian activists who came together to denounce the pogrom aided and abetted by the Indian state following the assassination of then-Indian Prime[Read More…]
This is a modified version of the paper presented by the author at the Public Hearing against militarism: United Struggles against Militarisation from Latin America to Palestine, held in Rio de Janeiro on July 27 2018. In Thoothukudi, a port town in south east India, May 22nd 2018 was an eventful day. Thousands were gathered to mark the culmination of[Read More…]
With the far right victory in Brazil, many analysts are predicting domination of right – wing ideology in the coming years. This may sound true as elections in many countries reflect but deeper analysis might reveal the actual state. Setback to left Supporters of right point out at the outset that left ideology is on the decline. When compared to[Read More…]
The killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and potential Western sanctions against Saudi Arabia has sparked renewed debate about the value of the longstanding alliance between the United States and the kingdom. The debate is not limited to the US or the kingdom, both of which are assessing the reliability of the other even if that is a debate that is[Read More…]
In a statement this week, Istanbul’s chief prosecutor, Irfan Fidan, says Jamal Khashoggi was strangled as soon as he entered the Saudi consulate. If this alone does not make a mockery of diplomatic immunity and the purpose of a consul-general’s office, there is more: The consulate was turned into a virtual abattoir as Mr. Khashoggi was sawed into easily disposable[Read More…]
On October 29, 2018, the Supreme Court of Pakistan reversed the decision of lower courts sentencing to death Asia Bibi, a Christian mother of four for blasphemy. After 3,422 days of imprisonment in solitary confinement, the Supreme Court reversed a 2010 lower court verdict. Asia Bibi is now in seclusion and will probably leave the country as some 60 persons[Read More…]
Get Smart if you vote. Read Between the lines, I recommend. Let’s be very clear here. I do not vote anymore. It is because the political system is too broken and we need a third political party in the USA to break the impasse wherein I will not choose a lesser of two evils strategy. My Catholic Worker friends also[Read More…]
This is a speech I prepared to deliver at the Solidarity Media Awards This award was bestowed upon Countercurrents.org and me for the courageous interventions in human rights and citizen’s rights. Let me make it very clear, I do not have any such claims. I’m doing whatever little I can in my limited capacity for humanity and other species on[Read More…]
When I ask an audience, “Who believes we are on a path to self-extinction?” nearly every hand goes up. It’s a sign of a growing awareness that humanity is on a path to self-imposed environmental and social collapse. For me, that awareness is a source of hope. I recently discovered an even deeper source of hope on a trip to South[Read More…]
On Friday evening, Maulana Sami-ul-Haq was found dead in his Rawalpindi residence. The assassination was as gruesome as the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. He was stabbed multiple times in chest, stomach and forehead. Sami-ul-Haq was widely known as the “father of the Taliban” because he was a renowned religious cleric who used to administer[Read More…]
The Nair community is one of the first communities in Kerala to get educated and attain middle class status. Nairs started getting western education in the 19th century itself and got appointed to clerical positions in Malabar. In Travancore it took a little while longer post the Malayali memorial (1891). Educated Nairs agitated against Marumakkathayam and started getting into civil[Read More…]
While the body of the murdered Jamal Khashoggi, a columnist for the Washington Post has not been found, the government of Saudi Arabia has admitted that he is dead, killed during an interrogation gone wrong in their Consulate in Istanbul. But the Turkish President Erdogan insisted that it is a pre-meditated murder, which the Saudi Attorney General owned up to[Read More…]
A large proportion of mainstream Americans think Islam is incompatible with American values, according to a survey by the New America foundation and the American Muslim Institute. The “Americans’ Views of Muslims Survey” was conducted leading up to the midterm elections in November 2018 – a time period when myths and misinformation about Muslims have figured prominently in some local,[Read More…]
Over 7 months have passed since WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was deprived of his ability to communicate with the outside world in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he was granted asylum with the risk of extradition to the US, relating to his organization’s publications. Recently, after UN Special Rapporteurs for Freedom of Expression and Refugees visitedthe country, it appeared that[Read More…]
Originally invented in Milan in the year 1919 by Benito Mussolini as FasciItaliani di Combattimento, fascism is making a comeback in the 21st century. One recent sign are Germany’s Neo-Nazisholding a rally of about 8,000 in Chemnitz (East Germany) in August 2018. With that, Germany’s newish crypto-Nazi party, the AfD, seems to getcloser to the ‘fascist turn’ it has proclaimed[Read More…]
His detractors and enemies have been waiting some time for this, but it must have given them moments of mild cheer. Facebook, the all-gazing, accumulating system of personal profiles and information, poster child, in fact, of surveillance capitalism, is losing users. At the very least, it is falling to that mild phenomenon in business speak called “flat-lining”, a deceptively benign[Read More…]
Earth is the only habitable planet of the entire solar system with man as the central agent of the whole matrix.Gone are the days when the nature was in a state of equilibrium. Man has over the period of time exploited nature to such an extent that now; there is only a half-state of sorrow. The world of today is[Read More…]
Multiple Power Project along the coastline, rapid urbanization, industrial pollution driving away fish population from the coasts in Andhra Pradesh; Sagarmala and Industrial Corridor responsible for the devastation Amravati, Andhra Pradesh: On 25th day of Samvidhan Samman Yatra, activists reached Amravati, the capital city of Andhra Pradesh. On the way to first village, Kiran Kumar Vissa from Rythu Swaraj Vedika[Read More…]
The Karnataka Forest Department has decided to put together a ‘Vision Document-2030’ that would outline the governing principles of its efforts for the next several years. While the initiative itself is laudable –and unprecedented amongst our country’s states- the process in which it is being undertaken has caused serious alarm amongst concerned sections of the public. On 30th of October,[Read More…]
BJP President Amit Shah was in Kannur on October 27. It was to declare war by BJP ruling at the Centre. The war cry is : bhakti vs communist government. The battle field is Kannur, supposedly the Left bastion, and the place CPM’s Kerala Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan hails from. The latest ally BJP roped in was SNDP. The language[Read More…]
Pull on the seat-belt in your gas-guzzling car, folks, and strap in for the worst ride of our lives. This fall, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a critical report warning that humans have about 12 years — until 2030 — before global warming reaches a catastrophic level. The report concludes, frighteningly, that the world can’t allow global[Read More…]
According to the Courage Foundation, which has campaigned against the persecution of Julian Assange, the Ecuadorian Embassy in London has forbidden access to all visitors to the WikiLeaks publisher, including his lawyers, until Monday, amid an urgent lawsuit. Most immediately, the ban obstructs a legal appeal by Assange against an Ecuadorian judge’s decision last week to uphold a draconian “protocol”[Read More…]
Israel’s Nation State Law Transforms States into Tribal Governances The Middle East crisis is now a more intensified international challenge Read it carefully ─ Israel’s Nation State Law has not reinforced a nation state; it has established a privileged Jewish community, governed by communal administration, with an extension to Jews in other nations, who can align themselves with Israeli society.[Read More…]
“Back of the world in which we live, far in the background, lies another world. The relation between the two is not unlike the relation we sometimes see in the theater between the forestage scene in the regular acting area and a scrim scene projected behind it. Through a thin gauze we see, as it were, a world of gauze,[Read More…]
If Saudi Arabia is under pressure to give chapter and verse on the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in its consulate in Istanbul, Iran risks straining relations with Europe at a time that it needs European support the most by targeting ethnic rights activists. Mr. Khashoggi’s murder has focused attention on Saudi harassment and intimidation of dissidents as part of[Read More…]
East Island was an uninhabited remote island in the Hawaiian chain, but it was an important refuge for wildlife: Many of the endangered Hawaiian monk seals numbering about 1400 raised their young on that island; others like the green sea turtle and the albatross used it as a shelter. Not any more because Hurricane Walaka washed away most of the[Read More…]
Three members of the Kansas militia – Patrick Stein, Gavin Wright and Curtis Allen – who were convicted of planning to massacre Somali Muslim refugees by bombing a mosque and apartment complex in Garden City, Kansas, should be granted leniency in their sentence because they were inspired by President Donald Trump’s rhetoric that encouraged the violence, lawyers for the men[Read More…]
Although ties between Washington and Tel Aviv are stronger than ever, Israeli leaders are aware of a vastly changing political landscape. The US’ own political turmoil and the global power realignment – which is on full display in the Middle East – indicate that a new era is, indeed, in the making. Unsurprisingly, this new era involves China. China’s Vice[Read More…]
Latin America is re-converting into Washington’s backyard and as a sideline is returning to fascist rule, similar but worse than the sixties seventies and eighties, which stood under the spell of the CIA-led Operation or Plan Condor. Many call the current right-wing trend Operation Condor II which is probably as close to the truth as can be. It is all[Read More…]
Text and Photos: Andre Vltchek You all know how the saying goes: “Poor Mexico – too far from God, too close to the United States”. This proud, beautiful and deep part of the world has been plundered, ravished and humiliated for many centuries, first by the Europeans (both the Spaniards and French), then by the Norteamericanos. The vulgarity and brutality[Read More…]
“Capitalism is a hegemonic social order. Capital seeks to dominate as many aspects of our lives as possible and to control every institution, from state to schools. Very little escapes its domination, including our thoughts. Its two essential underpinnings are exploitation of wage labor and the expropriation of nature, the non-market labor of women, and the bodies of black[Read More…]
On October 2, Jamal Khashoggi was murdered in the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, while there on personal business. He was mobbed in the embassy by over a dozen high-ranking security officials who flew in from Saudi Arabia specifically for this purpose, and Turkish intelligence maintains that he was tortured and dismembered. At the time of this writing,[Read More…]
Cultural compilations such as James Frazer’s The Golden Bough are rich with these accounts: the high priest or leader of a tribe, whose lengthy tenure is wearing thin, is set for the sacrifice, either through ritual or being overthrown by another member. The crops have failed; a drought is taking place. The period of rule has ended; the time for[Read More…]
The meeting of the Delhi University Standing Committee for Academic Affairs was held on October 24, 2018 and it has recommended dropping edification of three books at Post-Graduate level. And, those books have been in MA Political Science’s syllabi for the past few years. The three books are ‘Why I am not a Hindu? – A Sudra Critique of Hindutva[Read More…]
(The way the situation is developing some strategists feel that there may be a “Limited” War between the two neighbours before the 2019 General Election!) Dr.Nishank Motwani,a Visiting Fellow at the Asia-Pacific College of Diplomacy, the Australian National University, and Consulting Researcher for Armed Conflict at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (London), wrote an article, “Be Prepared for an[Read More…]
With much fanfare, Jharkhand government signed an MoU with Adani groups in 2016 to setup a powerplant in Godda district. A recent fact-finding visit of members of Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha, an umbrella network of more than 30 people’s organisations, found that this project has gathered several accolades in the last two years – forceful acquisition of land, severe violation of[Read More…]
The discipline of International Relations (IR) has lost another outstanding scholar—Robert W. Cox (1926-2018)—who made a mark in its intellectual history in the last century, like Samir Amin. Canada-born IR theorist Cox had a long stint at the International Labour Organisation (ILO)—for over two decades—before he started teaching at Columbia University, New York. He then proceeded to take up[Read More…]
With Jair Bolsonaro’s victory in Brazil’s presidential election at the weekend, the doom-mongers among western elites are out in force once again. His success, like Donald Trump’s, has confirmed a long-held prejudice: that the people cannot be trusted; that, when empowered, they behave like a mob driven by primitive urges; that the unwashed masses now threaten to bring down the[Read More…]
Moving left has been a Brazilian political tendency for some time, a tendency affirmed through the 1990s and 2000s with the presidential administrations of Fernando Henrique Cardoso and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. But this is the same country also famed for its share of murderous military dictatorships and political convulsions. The worm would eventually turn. Between 1964 and 1985,[Read More…]
Mass murderer Joseph Stalin notoriously observed: “A single death is a tragedy, a million deaths is a statistic”. This aptly applies to justified Western outrage over the brutal murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi by the Saudi Arabian Islamofascist regime as compared to resolute Western ignoring of the over 30 million Muslim deaths from violence or deprivation in the Saudi-complicit[Read More…]
At least 40 immigrants dead in fire at US-Mexico border 
Contemporary Anti-Semitism – A Jewish View from Germany 
In memory of 40th Anniversary of Military Dictatorship in Argentina 
Poor work conditions, non-compliance with Constitutional provisions seriously impact adolescent girls in workforce 
Take action against K Surendran for insulting Women 
Calculated Exoneration: Command Responsibility and War Crimes in Afghanistan 
DOJ Called Upon to Investigate Environmental Activists Abuses 
The World’s Coffee Shops Have Emerged as Plant Milk’s Front Line 
Lara Sheehi’s ordeal, like Steven Salaita’s, is not quite over 
“Facing Clear Evidence of Peril” in a Country of Lies 
The case of Kashmir: A Gandhian Resolution 
Non-Availability of Badly Needed Funds for Dalit Students Increases Their Difficulties 
A bureaucrat-turned- minister in a mess 
Hundreds Of Thousands Of Workers’ 24-Hour Mega Transport Strike Halts Germany 
Oldest Interfaith Organization in America Calls for Children to Have More Rights Than Guns 
What’s the Best Way Out from the War in Ukraine? 
How Indigenous Land Management Practices Are a Blueprint for Climate-Resilient Agriculture 
In memory of Hugo Chavez on 10th death Anniversary 
Xi’s ‘Chilling’ Remarks: A Multipolar World Offers Challenges and Opportunities to the Middle East and Africa 
Ukraine War – US-China Relations And the Doomsday Clock 
Anti-Rahul Defamation Card Has Its Limitations! 
Questions We Should Ask to Understand Real Impact of Poverty Reduction and Welfare Schemes 
Punjab: Democracy Under Siege? 
Declaration excessive dividends by the Board of HZL may not be in compliance with Section 123 of the Companies Act 
Men, masculinities, and gender equality 
EU Warns After Russia Plans To Place Tactical Nuclear Weapon In Belarus 
A Hazardous Decision: Supplying Ukraine with Depleted Uranium Shells 
Media and the March to War 
The Basic Issue is not of Taking Sides in Superpower Rivalry, it is of Durable Peace to Save Earth’s Life 
The Pentagon’s Budget from Hell 
“…I want poetry to be detonated like a bomb!” -Nathalie Quintane 
Bundelkhand Must Choose its Priorities Carefully 
Citizenship: Beyond the Forked Vision 
Caste-wise census is necessary for balanced development 
Tribal woman murdered after rape in Rohtas and strong protest demanding punishment of culprits 
Why Avoiding Catastrophic War is the Biggest Priority Today 
Labor in market, and the mainstream economics 
Serbia Shall Never Forget NATO Aggression, Vows Serb President 
Kerala’s New Public Health Bill 2023: Subservient to Market Forces rather than Deliberative Democracy 
The Piracy of Development – The 3-Ds: Dispossession, Displacement, Destitution 
Our beloved K.P.Sasi is no more. Filmmaker, cartoonist, writer, mentor, friend and above all tireless activist championing the cause of every underdog, Sasi breathed his last, mid-afternoon this Christmas day – after battling a medical condition for months. I remember the last time I met him, almost exactly a month before he passed away, at the ayurvedic healing center in[Read More…]
