April 2023 | Countercurrents

Archive for April, 2023

National Education Assembly’s Declaration Calls for Saving Education from Privatization and Commercialization

There has been a lot of concern recently regarding the direction of education policy in India, particularly regarding the Union Government’s National Education Policy 2020 (NEP). The National Education Assembly (NEA), organized at Delhi on April 30 has helped to shape and consolidate these various apprehensions being felt increasingly by many educationists, students and teachers as well as their numerous[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 30/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Foiled Escape: UC Global, the CIA and Julian Assange

However described, the shabby treatment of Julian Assange never ceases to startle. While he continues to suffer in Belmarsh prison awaiting the torments of an interminable legal process, more material is coming out showing the way he was spied upon while staying at the Ecuadorian embassy in London. Of late, the Spanish daily El País has been keeping up its[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 30/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Source: author & AI-image by www.craiyon.com

AI’s Moral Mistress

The recent developments on artificial intelligence (AI) seem to move way too fast for way too many people. As a consequence, an AI moratorium – including a petition – has been suggested to slow down the penetrating speed of AI growth. Some ethics experts argue that the potential risks of AI suggesting everything goes too fast, support such a move.[Read More…]

by Thomas Klikauer — 30/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Ranajit Guha: A Tribute

Ranajit Guha breathed his last on 28th April 2023 at Vienna Woods in Austria. Indisputably, he was the greatest historian of the past century, and his passing away is an intimate loss to the field of social sciences. Guha was born on 23rd May 1922, in Siddhakati village of Bakarganj district, now in Bangladesh. He was born in a family[Read More…]

by Mucheli Rishvanth Reddy — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Masar Badil’s Liberation Conference in Ottawa calls on activists to normalize Palestinian resistance in all its forms

Caption: Left: Charlotte Kates, the international coordinator of Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network (https://samidoun.net/) | Right: Khaled Barakat, Palestinian writer and researcher and co-founder of Masar Badil-The Palestinian Alternative Revolutionary Path Movement (masarbadil.org) at the Liberation Conference in Ottawa, April 28, 2023 At Friday’s session of Masar Badil’s Liberation Conference in Ottawa, April 28, 2023 (SAW Gallery, 67 Nicholas St., Ottawa,[Read More…]

by Rima Najjar — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

In memory of late Dipankar Chakraborty on 10th death anniversary

This year, on January 27th, democratic forces commemorated the 10th anniversary of late Professor Dipankar Chakraborty, the founding editor of the independent left Bangla journal Aneek and a stalwart of the Association for Protection of Democratic Rights. Without doubt one of our finest and most progressive intellectuals, who till his last breath, strived to render service to humanity. Above all a[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Proliferation of fake Aadhaar Cards a threat to integrity of 2024 elections

To Shri Rajiv Kumar Chief Election Commissioner Election Commission of India (ECI) Shri A C Pandey Election Commissioner Election Commission of India (ECI) Shri Arun Goel Election Commissioner Election Commission of India (ECI) Dear S/Shri Rajiv Kumar/ Pandey/ Goel, In my earlier letter dated 19-4-2023 (https://countercurrents.org/2023/04/doubts-about-the-ecis-preparedness-to-conduct-2024-general-elections-transparently-and-in-compliance-with-section-128-of-the-rpa1951/), I expressed doubts about the ECI being ready for conducting 2024 elections in[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

History, Fact and Fiction

I hazard an intrusion into an area which professional historians might regard trespass or even worse.Nevertheless as a person interested in lessons of history and the way these are consciously or unconsciously dispensed one needs must observe and watch closely the unfolding project to refashion it in a particular way to derive a preconceived lesson.Reasons are plain and need not[Read More…]

by Hiren Gohain — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Nuclear War on Edge

Nuclear war is unthinkable, but also uncontrollable once a spark is lit. There’s no turning back once that big misstep occurs. Indeed, the film Dr. Strangelove (Director Stanley Kubrick, 1964 Columbia Pictures) is all about what could happen if the wrong person pushes the wrong buttons, as US Air Force General Jack Ripper (George C. Scott) sends his bomber wing[Read More…]

by Robert Hunziker — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Avoiding Climate Disaster: Our Last Chance?

The most recent IPCC report https://countercurrents.org/2023/04/2023-ipcc-ar6-summary-for-policymakers-last-warning/?swcfpc=1 https://popularresistance.org/ipcc-this-is-the-make-or-break-decade-for-climate-action/ https://popularresistance.org/does-climate-inaction-violate-human-rights/ https://countercurrents.org/2023/04/making-sense-of-the-latest-ipcc-report-2023/?swcfpc=1 The report states that globally “approximately 3.3 to 3.6 billion people live in contexts that are highly vulnerable to climate change.” “Increasing weather and climate extreme events have exposed millions of people to acute food insecurity and reduced water insecurity, with the largest adverse impacts observed in many locations and/or communities[Read More…]

by John Scales Avery — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Australia: Outsourced to the US Military Establishment

It’s a very funny thing. In the US, the provision of services in such industries as security and intelligence is outsourced in a sprawling complex of contractors and subcontractors. In Australia, the entire military and security establishment is outsourced to Washington’s former mandarins, many of them earning a pile in consultancy fees. This, perhaps, is what Australia’s Defence Minister Richard[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

How a Tribal Rights Lawyer Is Winning Back the Rights of Nature

Attorney Frank Bibeau found a way to legally protect nature by suing the state of Minnesota in the name of manoomin, or wild rice, sacred to the Ojibwe people. The United States was founded on the declaration that all people are inherently endowed by their Creator with the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but what about the rest[Read More…]

by Aric Sleeper — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Why Struggle of Women Wrestlers Against Sexual Harassment Needs Wider Support

Several leading women wrestlers of India have been in the thick of a struggle against sexual harassment since the beginning of this year. They have been helped by some male wrestler colleagues as well. Although these wrestlers of both genders include those who have won several honors and medals at the international level, their struggle against powerful, politically very well-connected[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Swadeshi thinking is the seed of hindutva nationalism, observes Saarang Narayan

Saarang Narayan is a postgraduate researcher (doctoral candidate) at the School of History, University of Leeds. He holds Bachelors’ and Masters’ degrees in History from Delhi University and the University of Oxford respectively. His research interests centre around histories of Hindu Nationalism, development, globalisation, and post-colonial Indian history in general. Saarang has been working on hindu nationalism and its economic[Read More…]

by Abhish K Bose — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Why do I not want to watch ‘The Kerala Story’

Inspired by ‘Kashmir Files’ a new breed of films and filmmakers are on the rise. A government which wants to hide and close ‘Gujarat files’, ‘Godse files’ wants films such as ‘Kashmir files’, ‘Kerala story’, ‘Delhi files’ and ‘Razakar files’ to come out. The film titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is to be released on 5th May. The film is directed[Read More…]

by T Navin — 29/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Dollar’s Dominance Faces Threat, Says Former White House Economist

De-dollarization could become a reality as a BRICS alternative to the dollar could enjoy high prospects for success, said a former White House adviser. A report by Business Insider — The dollar’s dominance would face a threat unlike any other from a BRICS currency, former White House economist says, April 26, 2023 — said: Joseph Sullivan, who served as a[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

It’s time to launch another liberation movement for Modi Free India

As the world’s so-called largest democracy heads for a general election in May, 2024, overseas Indians need to mobilize to rid their home country of a Hindu supremacist leader. Narendra Modi first got elected as the Prime Minister of India in May, 2014. He has completed almost ten years in power. A diehard member of the RSS, a right wing[Read More…]

by Gurpreet Singh — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Hindustan Zinc Ltd made debt ridden helping the Vedanta Group

How the government reduced the joint venture Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL) from a debt-free company to an indebted one, indirectly helping the Vedanta Group To Smt Nirmala Sitharaman Union Finance Minister Dear Smt Sitharaman, I refer to my earlier letter dated 17-3-2023 (https://countercurrents.org/2023/03/is-the-government-deliberately-or-otherwise-helping-the-promoters-of-the-vedanta-group/) in which I expressed my concerns about the multiple ways in which the government have taken action,[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Muslim Women and Personal Law in India: Debates and Struggles

There are three things that should be noted in the debates related to Muslim personal laws. First, the diversity of Muslim women’s living conditions. Two, the characteristics of Islam. Third, the constitution and laws of the countries where Muslims live. By integrating and considering these three things, we need to devise political programs that provide justice and equal opportunities for[Read More…]

by Mubashir VP — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Five Reasons for Welcoming Saudi Arabia-Iran Accord

The entirely avoidable, artificial enmity between Saudi Arabia and Iran has hopefully come to an end as a result of the accord reached with the help of China. All three involved countries have authoritarian regimes, but despite this the accord should be widely welcomed. There are several strong reasons for this. First and foremost is the fact that the prospects[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

An Israeli soldier takes aim from behind a vehicle at a position in the Deir Sharaf area as the Israeli army closes the western entrance leading to Nablus, in the occupied West Bank on October 12, 2022.
(Photo by Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP via Getty Images)

Why I’m Saying No to the IDF as a 17-Year-Old

As my birthday approaches, I grow more and more anxious because a professional organization of trained terrorists that calls itself an army wants me to be one of them. And if I say no, a prison sentence will be the result. As a soon-to-be 18-year-old Israeli high school student, enlistment is the only thing waiting for me after I finish[Read More…]

by Fred Hidvegi — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Erasure vs. Sumud: How the Nakba Came to Define the Collective Palestinian Identity

On May 15, 2023, the Palestinian Nakba will be 75 years old. Palestinians all over the world will commemorate the tragic occasion, known as the ‘Catastrophe’, when nearly 800,000 Palestinians were made refugees and nearly 500 towns and villages were ethnically cleansed of their inhabitants in historic Palestine between late 1947 and mid-1948. The depopulation of Palestine carried on for[Read More…]

by Dr Ramzy Baroud — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

China’s President XI JinPing Takes Initiative to Make Peace between Russia and Ukraine

Towards understanding the Impulse of Time, Nature of Things, Peace and Conflict Resolution Are we witnessing a time when most exemplary vigilance is subject to unthinkable surprises? We, the People, We, the Humanity realize that horrors of wars, forced displacement of several millions of people and human sufferings and pains coming out of the raging war between Russia, Ukraine and[Read More…]

by Dr Mahboob A Khawaja — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

A Game of Thrones in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: The Master Mind and Cover-up of Investigations in Easter Bombing in Sri Lanka

‘The Owl of Minerva takes flight only at Dusk’ –Walter Benjamin “We have met the enemy, and he is us” — Pogo Comics quoted in the “ISIS is US: The Shocking Truth Behind the Army of Terror.” April is the cruelest month: Four years ago as the Fahrenheit rose on a beautiful Easter Sunday morning in April 21, bombs exploded[Read More…]

by Darini Rajaisngham-Senanayake — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — South Asia

The Rise of China (and the Fall of the U.S.?) Tectonic Eruptions in Eurasia Erode America’s Global Power

From the ashes of a world war that killed 80 million people and reduced great cities to smoking rubble, America rose like a Titan of Greek legend, unharmed and armed with extraordinary military and economic power, to govern the globe. During four years of combat against the Axis leaders in Berlin and Tokyo that raged across the planet, America’s wartime commanders —[Read More…]

by Alfred W McCoy — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Disrespect to dead teenage girls by West Bengal police

Condemn savage, abominable & shameful conduct of West Bengal Police towards the dead female bodies and repeated denial of violence on women by the State Feminists in Resistance (FIR), a feminist group based in Kolkata, expresses condemnation and deep resentment at the brutal modus operandi that the State of West Bengal has adopted to tackle and bypass the public[Read More…]

by Press Release — 28/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Human Rights

Poverty and Crisis: Sucking Humanity Dry

The World Bank says nearly 80% (560 million) of the 700 million people who were pushed into extreme poverty in 2020 due to COVID policies were from India. Globally, extreme poverty levels increased by 9.3 per cent in 2020. In 2022, it was estimated that a quarter of a billion people across the world would be pushed into absolute poverty in[Read More…]

by Colin Todhunter — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Chris Matlhako Obituary

Chris Matlhako left us on Thursday morning, 20 April 2023. He served as mascot to the entire liberation movement till he breathed his last, as well as the working-class across the world. His exit is major loss to the anti-imperialist movement worldwide, in which he played a most laudable role. At the time of his passing, Chris Matlhako served the South African[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Role of the Civil Servants

Is the LBSNAA Director trying to trigger a shift away from Sardar Patel’s vision? To Shri Rajiv Gauba Cabinet Secretary Dear Shri Gauba, Writing on the occasion of the 2023 Civil Service Day, the Director of the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) is reported to have said, “The task of defining an Indian ethos for the civil service began[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Important Chinese Intervention In Ukraine Imbroglio

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Ukrainian counterpart, Vladimir Zelensky, have spoken over the phone, in their first official conversation since Moscow launched its military operation in Ukraine more than a year ago. Media reports said: Xi told Zelensky that “dialogue and negotiations are only viable way out.” “China will neither watch the fire from the other side, nor add[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Khader Adnan is not a Don Quixote tilting at windmills; he is a patriot

“We don’t feel desolate on a path because of the scarcity of travelers.” Caption: Left: Sheikh Khader Adnan / Right: The Sheikh’s wife Randa Musa (Umm Abdel-Rahaman), carrying a poster of her husband that says in Arabic, Hunger striking is the key to my freedom. When Sheikh Khader Adnan of Islamic Jihad first went on hunger strike in 2011, the term[Read More…]

by Rima Najjar — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Young People From the U.S. Travel to Cuba and Break the Siege

by Manolo De Los Santos and Kate Gonzales It’s a hot and crowded Tuesday morning in the Yoruba Cultural Center in Havana, and the air sticks to the skin. You can hear the fluttering of paper as people fan themselves, and a surprise blackout takes out the sound system with a flicker of the lights. And yet, 150 young organizers from[Read More…]

by Manolo De Los Santos — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Core Issues for Creating A Better and Safer World

How to create a better world has been the most abiding concern of thoughtful and caring people all through human history. Increasing commitment to justice, equality and peace appeared to several of these people as the most obvious way for achieving this. One way of achieving this related to improvement of human relationships and more compassion towards other forms of[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Counter Solutions

Enigmatic Tarek Fatah (1949-2023): An Appraisal

Tarek Fatah was born in Pakistan and recently passed away in Toronto, Canada. I knew him since my arrival in Canada as an immigrant in 2002. He was the mentor, guide, and philosopher of the Muslim Canadian Congress (MCC), established in Toronto not long after 9/11 in December 2001. The MCC aims at establishing a “progressive, liberal, pluralistic, democratic, and[Read More…]

by Taj Hashmi — 27/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Polycrisis? What Polycrisis?

The concept of ‘polycrisis’ is increasingly being used to designate the accumulation of compounding crises that human societies are facing, and that they are increasingly struggling to address and failing to solve. Yet this concept somehow misses the fact that there might be an inherent historical logic to the piling up and conjunction of these crises at this particular moment in[Read More…]

by Paul Arbair — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Counter Solutions

By Willy Stöwer, died on 31st May 1931 [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Sailing on Planet Titanic

As I sit down to write this, April 15, 2023, it is 111 years to the day since the RMS Titanic sank beneath the waves of the North Atlantic. The largest moveable object humanity ever created, advertised to be unsinkable, it was the highest expression of the pride and hubris of the time. Torn open by an iceberg, over 1,500[Read More…]

by Patrick Mazza — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Capitalism Is Killing the Planet―and It’s Okay To Be Angry About That

After a decade in the climate movement, one tends to get pretty good at avoiding the clawing hands of despair. It’s not that they’re not there, of course—the fear and anxiety that come with knowing that we’re living through the most consequential years in history, and that we’re doing nowhere near enough with them, are always there, lurking in the background of one’s[Read More…]

by Alec Connon — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

CPP Leaders Benito Tiamzon and Wilma Austria mercilessly executed

All democrats should unequivocally condemn in the strongest terms the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) for the brutal torture and cowardly killing of CPP leaders Benito Tiamzon (and Wilma Austria-Tiamzon), together with eight other revolutionaries after they were captured in Samar province on August 21, 2022. The murder of the Tiamzons follows the pattern of the wilful killings perpetrated[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Politicians and the Anzac Tradition: A Story of Manipulation and Mythology

While the mass slaughtering of, and slaughter by, soldiers, is always a touchy subject of commemoration, a tension has existed between those who did the fighting, and those who ordered it. Comfortably secure in furnished rooms and battle props, planners would, as they still do, draw up the blueprints, concoct the strategy, and give the orders. In Australia, politicians should[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Did Fox News Just Find Religion?

by Rev. Graylan Scott Hagler and Ariel Gold Tucker Carlson got fired! Many liberals are celebrating, calling it a reckoning — a win for racial justice and decency. With this bombshell revelation, some might even believe that Fox News has finally gotten religion and seen the error of its ways. It’s better late than never, they say. Salvation is always[Read More…]

by Ariel Gold — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

How Ecofascists Are Fueling Racism and Deadly Violence

It’s not often that conservative lobbyists beat the drum for increased environmental oversight and regulation. But that’s what happened this month when the far-right Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), through its legal arm, filed a brief in federal court demanding that the Department of Homeland Security conduct an extensive environmental impact study examining, of all things, immigration policy. In a press[Read More…]

by Stan Cox — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Lok Sabha Polls: Rahul Gandhi – A Political Threat for BJP?

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and his close party colleagues are probably well aware that he is least likely to be let off easily in defamation charges filed against him. In this context, Surat court’s rejection of his plea (April 20) for stay on his being held “guilty” of criminal defamation by a Magistrate Court on March 23 may be viewed[Read More…]

by Nilofar Suhrawardy — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Death came from the sky: One massacre, too many

Pablo Picasso’s ‘Guernica’. War, its infinite brutality and bestiality! It’s eternal, tragic, deathly realism. It’s private and public sorrow. A war within. A dictatorial State in a bloody and damned war against its own people. In a moment it seemed to be a small, little slice of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II in Japan – the cities bombed[Read More…]

by Amit Sengupta — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — South Asia

Photograph Source: Felipe Gabaldón – CC BY 2.0

In defence of decolonial and disruptive curriculum

Universities are no longer producing critical mass to question power for social, political and economic transformation of society for greater common goods. Universities are no longer producing independent knowledge traditions to address essentialist and emancipatory needs of individuals and societies in short run and long run. The governmental and non-governmental funding bodies control the nature, scope, structure and outputs of[Read More…]

by Bhabani Shankar Nayak — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Earthly Birthday Greetings to Stan Swamy in Heaven

Dear Stan, It is your birthday today here on earth! You would have completed eighty-six years, if you were around. Well, that was not to be; on 5 July 2021 you were murdered by a brutal and fascist regime, which did not want a human rights defender like you to continue living! This is your second earthly birthday up above.[Read More…]

by Cedric Prakash — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Parliamentary Panel Expresses Regret at “Extremely Poor Utilization of Funds” for Development of Skills and Entrepreneurship

The role of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India, has become very important in the context of the challenge of increasing employment opportunities and improving quality of employment for young aspirants. If taken up properly, a lot of the work of this ministry can give much hope to youth in difficult times of high levels of[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 26/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

2023 Paradox: 75th Anniversary Of 1948 UDHR Launch & Start Of South African & Israeli Apartheid

2023 marks the 75th anniversary of the launch of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948. Unfortunately in 1948 inhumanity prevailed with the launch of Apartheid in South Africa by the newly-elected neo-Nazi Afrikaaner National Party, and of genocidal Apartheid Israel in Palestine by the neo-Nazi Zionist settler-colonialists who murderously depopulated Palestine of over half of its Indigenous[Read More…]

by Dr Gideon Polya — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Salute 50th Anniversary of National Democratic Front of Phillipines

Communists and revolutionary democrats should salute in the National Democratic Front of the Philippines on the historic occasion of the 50th anniversary on April 24th.Homage should be paid to Jose Ma. Sison, Benito Tiamzon, Wilma Austria, Fidel V. Agcaoili, Antonio Zumel, Julius Giron, as well as other key leaders of the Party and the NDFP, as well as peace consultants[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Neo-Buddhists have progressed more than Hindu Dalits

Dr. Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar first hinted at religious conversion during the Mahad Talab Satyagraha in 1927 when he said, “We want equal rights in society. We will achieve as far as possible by remaining in Hindu society or if necessary, by kicking this useless Hindu identity.” In the beginning, Dr. Ambedkar tried his best to reform Hindu society. He[Read More…]

by SR Darapuri — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Annihilate Caste

Exclusion of Darwin from School syllabus deprives rational Knowledge to Indian School children

Several scientists, educators last week raised serious concern about NCERT removing theory of evolution from science syllabus in class X curriculum of CBSE. The letter said, “Understanding the process of evolution is crucial in building scientific temper”. And depriving students of this exposure is ‘ travesty to of education’. Sadly, the list of deleted science topics include, Charles Darwin, molecular[Read More…]

by Dr. Soma Marla — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Weaponise FCRA against NGOs; Monetise it for political parties, Bizarre ways of the government

In recent times, one came across several examples of how successive governments have weaponised the Foreign Contributions (Regulation) Act [FCRA] against NGOs who took up people’s causes and questioned the illegalities committed by public authorities against adivasis, the disadvantaged sections and the people at large. For example, it was reported a few days ago (https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/centre- recommends-cbi-inquiry-against-activist-harsh-manders-ngo-aman-biradari- 3877494#pfrom=home-ndtv_indiatrending) that the Ministry[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Schemes for Transgender People Need Better Implementation

There are not many schemes for welfare of transgender people in India and so special care has to be given for the proper implementation of the few that exist. At the level of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment there is a scheme, or rather a sub-scheme or part of a wider scheme which is devoted exclusively to the[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Edward Abbey

Edward Abbey park ranger desert solitary author – avatar of beautiful traumatized Earth wrote to us with a pine needle with tip of the tail of a gopher snake, “there is a kind of poetry, even a kind of truth in simple facts.” a pinyon jay on shaded ground a chickadee on a swaying branch a leaf, a bud[Read More…]

by David Sparenberg — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Stories of permafrost

“If something is permanently frozen, is it alive or dead?” After emerging from a deep dive into the terrific world of melting permafrost, typically defined as “ground (soil or rock and included ice or organic material) that remains at or below 0°C for at least two consecutive years” to use a low-hanging definition from The International Permafrost Association, I scribbled that question[Read More…]

by Hanna Oosterveen — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Global Polycrisis as a Pathway for Economic Transition

This article is part of an ongoing collaboration between the United Nations Development Programme (Bureau for Program & Policy Support’s Strategic Innovation Unit & the Inclusive Growth/Chief Economist) and One Project. The purpose of the collaboration is to connect expertise in new economics with an emerging understanding of the global polycrisis. In this first article, we synthesize existing work and[Read More…]

by Zack Walsh — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Counter Solutions

In this photograph taken on April 12, 2023, visitors look at photographs at an exhibition that marks 10 years since the Rana Plaza building collapse disaster, in Dhaka. (Photo: Munir Uz Zaman/AFP via Getty Images)

10 Years After Rana Plaza, Fast Fashion’s Complex Supply Chains Still Put Workers at Risk

The fact that big brands don’t source garments directly makes it harder to investigate exploitative labor practices. On April 24, 2013, a multistory garment factory complex in Bangladesh called Rana Plaza collapsed, killing more than 1,000 workers and injuring another 2,500. It remains the worst accident in the history of the apparel industry and one of the deadliest industrial accidents in the[Read More…]

by Ravi Anupindi — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Monster Heat Hits 1/3rd of World Population

It has started, and it’s fierce… Monster Heat! “It’s a ‘monster heat spell like none before,” according to climatologist and weather historian Maximiliano Herrera, describing Asia’s heatwave as the worst in history. (Source: Extreme Heat Scorches Asia, Affecting at Least a Third of the World’s Population, The Verge, April 19, 2023) Global warming is hitting full stride as SE Asia,[Read More…]

by Robert Hunziker — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Blood, Golf and Saudi Arabia: The LIV Tournament in Adelaide

The recently concluded LIV Tournament in Adelaide was a matter of bread, circuses and golf. It was something of a triumph for the chief sponsor: the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and, more notably, the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Critics, and criticism about the regime and the blood spattered House of Saud, were generally forgotten. This vulgar display of denial[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Businesses and environmental consciousness in contemporary times

Environmental degradation is a significant issue caused by human activities like overconsumption[i], industrialization and deforestation[ii], leading to unsustainable economic growth. The negative consequences of environmental deterioration are widespread and include pollution, biodiversity loss, animal extinction, deforestation and desertification, global warming, and numerous additional issues [iii], and it is crucial to manage the ecosystem properly to prevent further damage. Environmental degradation[Read More…]

by Pema Choden Bhutia — 25/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Environmental Protection

With $2,240 Billion, Global Military Expenditure Reaches New Record High In 2022

Global military expenditure increased by 3.7 % in 2022 and reached a new record high of $2,240 billion, with the three largest spenders being the U.S., China and Russia, according to new data published on Monday by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The U.S. remains the world’s biggest military spender with its military expenditure having reached $877 billion[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Water Scarcity: Issue in Tourist destinations?

Tourism as an economic activity has boomed substantially and is adding to local and seasonal pressures on the water supply systems of tourist destinations worldwide.[i] The fact that the theme of the 2013 UN World Tourism Day highlighted tourism’s contribution to water access serves as an example of how the issue of water use by the tourism industry has garnered[Read More…]

by Pema Choden Bhutia — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Environmental Protection

Sudan: Coups, Imperialists and Resistance

January 30, 2022. Update added April 23, 2023 Like all the nations of the Horn of Africa that abut the Red Sea, the main passageway for the transit of Middle Eastern oil, Sudan has been a prize desired by many imperialist nations. (For a background summary of the region, see this.) For 75 years, there has been a large leftist[Read More…]

by Ellen Isaacs — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Secrecy Versus Democracy: New Developments

A government with many secrets is not a democracy What are we to think when governments make every effort to keep their actions secret from their own citizens? We can only conclude that although they may call themselves democracies, such governments are in fact oligarchies or dictatorships. In a democracy, the citizens must control the actions of their government.[Read More…]

by John Scales Avery — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

High Levels of Distress and Stress in USA Emphasize Need for Linking External and Internal Reform

High and increasing levels of distress and stress in the USA point to the need for integrating internal and external reforms. According to a Federal Reserve Report of 2018 on the economic well-being of US households about 40% of adults in the country would not be able to meet a $400 emergency with cash, saving or even a credit card[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

War, What Is It Good For?

I was born on July 20, 1944, amid a vast global conflict already known as World War II. Though it ended with the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 before I could say much more than “Mama” or “Dada,” in some strange fashion, I grew up at war. Living in New York City, I was near no[Read More…]

by Tom Engelhardt — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The growing crisis of the Colorado River: A sign to us all

There is a growing crisis out in the southwestern part of our country that has a message for us all. Politicians and the mainstream media from all over the country are ignoring it or generally treating it as a “one-time” issue to cover, not understanding that it is a sign of great importance for all Americans and the world. The[Read More…]

by Kim Scipes — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Environmental Protection

Why Dadasaheb Phalke Award Eludes Manipuri Master Aribam Syam Sharma?

When it comes to the regional cinemas of India, one of the most illustrious industries is located in Manipur. Releasing about one hundred films a year, the Manipuri film industry is not only productively consistent, but is also entirely self-sufficient – a result of the Manipuri films’ cultural specificities that help them with their regional popularity. Also, with the absence[Read More…]

by Aditya Modak — 24/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Who ‘stagnated’ the Ambedkarite ‘movement’?

Ambedkarite movement is a term most Dalits, Bahujans, Activists, Academia from Social Sciences and Political fraternity are aware of. This has been and will be used abundantly in their writings, speeches, slogans etc. No one can in totality define ‘Ambedkarite Movement’ but one surely knows what it means in their respective domain. Having travelled enough, after meeting abundance of activists,[Read More…]

by Vivek Sakpal — 23/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Annihilate Caste

Flaming Forest, Wounded Valley-Stories from Bastar and Kashmir By Freny Manecksha

‘Flaming Forest, Wounded valley- stories from Bastar and Kashmir’ is a gripping account with lively narratives of first hand experiences in Bastar and Kashmir, where neo-fascist state repression has simmered to a boiling point, since 1947. Manecksha illustrates how the fabric of human rights has been ripped apart, violating the laws of the Constitution. More than the commentary — of[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 23/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

The Me of Me

1. I went searching for the me of me! Who is it? What is it? How will I know? Is it unchangeable—a hyper-essence? If I found it, would I know God— In the infinitesimal form of me? I went to “Impeccable Dry-Cleaning.” “Can you take out this stain?” I wondered. “This is the stain of my living. This[Read More…]

by Gary Corseri — 23/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Failure of the State administration to curb the violence in Sambalpur condemned, Appeal to restore peace

The ‘ GANATANTRIKA ADHIKAR SURAKSHAA SANGATHAN (GASS), Odisha, while expressing its grave concern over the communal violence that broke out in Sambalpur city (western part of Odisha bordering Chhatishgarh) on Wednesday, April 12, when a motorcycle rally was organised in the run-up to Hanuman Jayanti and also during the Hanuman Jayanti procession* which was held on Friday, April 14, strongly[Read More…]

by Ganatantrik Adhikar Surakha Sangathan — 23/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Think Tanks and Funding Sources: Autonomy and Sovereignty

This year, within the world of research organisations, the big news is the suspension of FCRA registration of Centre for Policy Research (CPR) and probe into Oxfam India accounts. Both are interlinked as per news reports: Oxfam giving funds to CPR, without authorization. However, the amount under probably investigation from Oxfam India, as per Annual Report 2021-22, was a mere[Read More…]

by Dr Narasimha Reddy Donthi — 23/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

The Centre, not the consumers, should bear a portion of DISCOM losses

To Chief Ministers Respected Chief Minister, It is reported that (https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/telangana/2023/apr/22/centre-wants-consumers-to-share-losses-of-discoms-2568272.html) the Ministry of Power “has asked State governments to pass on 50% of the losses incurred by Discoms to consumers. The Ministry released its draft Electricity (Amendment) Rules, 2023, by substituting two clauses in the Electricity Rules, 2005, and sought the comments of the States by May 1” The stand[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 23/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Celebrating and supporting Earth Day

Today April 22 2023, is the 53rd ‘Earth Day’, which was first held on April 22, 1970. Earth Day is celebrated to demonstrate support to environmental protection. LIVING IN HARMONY & MINDFULNESS May we be receptive to the wisdom of nature and the knowledge that if her laws are obeyed, our lands and people will flourish May we bring back[Read More…]

by Pratap Antony — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Sophisticated Naval Forces Bombed Nord Stream, Says Danish Navy Veteran

Whoever sabotaged the Nord Stream pipelines likely had access to fast-moving underwater drones, one of Denmark’s most “experienced navy divers” told Bloomberg on Thursday. NATO forces trained with these unmanned underwater vehicles near the blast site prior to the explosions. The diver said that “finding the pipelines without precise coordinates or tracking technology, then transporting and placing the explosives, would have challenged diver-saboteur,” in[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

On Earth Day, A 20-Point Plan to Definitely Resolve the Climate Crisis

World Earth Day (April 22) is a good time to suggest solutions for the climate crisis, so here is a 20-point plan that will definitely solve the climate crisis within a framework of increasing justice, peace, cooperation and democracy — 1.Reduce inequalities significantly, help the poorest peasants and workers much more, curb high luxury consumption of the richest in a[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

El Niño Threatens Unparalleled Heatwaves

Can the world handle a climate that exceeds the far-reaching excesses of 2022 when the entire world turned upside down with unprecedented flooding, fires, and drought? NOAA and climate researchers in Germany and China believe an El Niño, starting in 2023-24, is in the works. El Niños equate to more heat throughout the planet. Buckle-up! El Niño could increase ocean[Read More…]

by Robert Hunziker — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Vasudhaiva Kutumbakkaam, G20 and Climate Change

Climate change is a global issue and the task to elevate the climate catastrophe is a common responsibility. The recent disasters of rising sea levels in the island countries, irreparable damage caused by floods in Pakistan, drought in Madagascar forcing migration, destructive heat waves in Indian farm lands are eye-opening instances which cannot be ignored. This triggers poverty, reduces crop[Read More…]

by Rudrani Garg — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Time Mustn’t Be Allowed to Run out on Julian Assange

Review of Guilty of Journalism by Kevin Gosztola Despite whatever charges Julian Assange may be accused of, it is well known that the WikiLeaks publisher was targeted for exposing the war crimes of the US government. In an upside-down Bizarro World, the screws are being ever so gradually tightened on Assange by the war criminals and their criminal accomplices. It[Read More…]

by Kim Petersen — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

“Jiski Jitni Sankhyaa Bhaari, uski utne kee Bhaagidaari!” – Manyawar Kanshi Ram jee

“Equitable representation of each group/community (in all power structures of the society).” “How can anyone (in the right mind, today, in the age of democracy), question the soundness of the above slogan (which is the essence of democracy)?” What do “Democracy” with “universal suffrage” mean? The word “democracy” has been derived from “demos,” which means “the people” in the Greek[Read More…]

by Dr Satinath Choudhary — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Kshama Sawant: Walking in the footsteps of Bhakna and Ambedkar

Kshama Sawant, who was declared as Radical Desi Person of the Year 2023 for being instrumental behind the historic ordinance to outlaw caste-based discrimination in Seattle, making it the first city outside India to do so, has carried forward the legacy of two great men. April being the birthday month of the Ghadar movement – cofounded by Sohan Singh Bhakna[Read More…]

by Gurpreet Singh — 22/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Has the Environment Ministry blocked its Parivesh website in violation of Section 4 of the RTI Act?

To Shri Rajiv Gauba Cabinet Secretary Government of India Dear Shri Gauba, I find that the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MEFCC) has blocked information hitherto available at its Parivesh web portal. Some news reports have also confirmed this. Does MEFCC know that, under Section 4 of the Right To Information Act (RTIA), it has the statutory obligation[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 21/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

U.S. Dollar Losing Reserve Status At Stunning Pace, Says Eurizon CEO

Western sanctions against Russia have accelerated the move away from the U.S. dollar worldwide, Stephen Jen, the CEO of London-based asset management company Eurizon, warned on Tuesday. The dollar’s share in global reserves fell ten times faster last year than over the past two decades, Jen said, as cited by Bloomberg. The process began as some countries started to look[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 21/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

A man grieves during a mass funeral for members of a family was killed in a U.S. drone airstrike, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, Aug. 30, 2021. (Photo: Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

High Costs of US War on Terror Have Not Led to Basic Corrective Actions

The terrible 9/11 attacks led the USA military and foreign policy establishment to launch a prolonged series of military actions in many countries with the stated aim of curbing terrorism and terror. These have been collectively called the war on terror or terrorism, the global war on terror and the 9/11 wars. Although there have been criticisms and debates linked[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 21/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Atlanta’s “Cop City” and the Struggle for Climate Justice

Along the South River, in the southwest corner of DeKalb County, Georgia, lies a forested area of about 300 acres that has been owned by the nearby City of Atlanta for over a century. It was once part of a vastly larger wooded landscape, home to the Muskogee (Creek) people. They gave the river and forest the name “Weelaunee.” In[Read More…]

by Stan Cox — 21/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Indian Federation of Trade Union stages 7th Conference in Tirupati

The seventh all-India Conference of IFTU from 16-18th April took place in the backdrop of politics of hatred and divisiveness. Open calls are being given for the eradication of minority communities by saffron seers with no action taken but anyone questioning the Modi government is foisted in cases and jailed. Draconian laws like the UAPA are freely operating to crush[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 21/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Commemorating Ambedkar Jayanthi/ Equality Day

14th April is commemorated each year in the memory of B. R. Ambedkar. Because of his radical stance in favour of the oppressed Dalits, his birthday is referred to as “Bhim Jayanthi” and “Equality Day” Contemporary India sorely needs a reincarnated Dr. Ambedkar. In his lifetime, he aspired for a society that gives equal rights, opportunities, and respect to the[Read More…]

by Dr Ranjan Solomon — 21/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

BRICS To Pass G7 In Economic Power, Says Bloomberg

The BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa – is expected to increase their share of the global economy to nearly 35% by 2028, Bloomberg reported on Monday. According to Bloomberg’s calculations based on the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) data, this year, the BRICS countries will contribute 32.1% of the world’s growth, compared to the Group of[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Losing ‘Deterrence’: How Palestinian, Arab Resistance Changed Rules of War with Israel

When Israel launched a war against the Gaza Strip in August 2022, it declared that its target was the Islamic Jihad only. Indeed, neither Hamas nor the other Gaza-based groups engaged directly in the fighting. The war then raised more questions than answers. Israel rarely distinguishes between one Palestinian group and another. For Tel Aviv, any kind of Palestinian Resistance[Read More…]

by Dr Ramzy Baroud — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Hunger Profiteers, Granny Killers and Skin-Deep Morality

Today, a fifth (278 million) of the African population are undernourished, and 55 million of that continent’s children under the age of five are stunted due to severe malnutrition. In 2021, an Oxfam review of IMF COVID-19 loans showed that 33 African countries were encouraged to pursue austerity policies. Oxfam and Development Finance International also revealed that 43 out of 55 African Union member[Read More…]

by Colin Todhunter — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Initiating Caste Census: Real Tribute to Ambedkar Today

This year 2023, 14th April saw plethora of organizations celebrating Baba Saheb Ambedkars 132nd birth anniversary probably more than before. The occasion was marked by gaiety and celebratory spirit among the large sections of SC/ST/OBC sections for whom he is the messiah. His contributions are recognized more and more, not only nationally but even at global level with over 150[Read More…]

by Dr Ram Puniyani — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Why Can’t the Constitution Bench Hearing Same-sex Marriage Pleas Concurrently Also Hear Kashmir Petitions?

Tension between Executive and Judiciary is healthy for democracy. According to Lord Woolf “the tension is acceptable because it demonstrates that the courts are performing their role of ensuring that the actions of the Government of the day are being taken in accordance with the law. The tension is a necessary consequence of maintaining the balance of power between the[Read More…]

by Shobha Aggarwal — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Libelled by the Bot: Reputation, Defamation and AI

Cometh the new platform, cometh new actions in law, the fragile litigant ever ready to dash off a writ to those with (preferably) deep pockets. And so, it transpires that artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, for all the genius behind their creation, are up for legal scrutiny and judicial redress. Certainly, some private citizens are getting rather ticked off about what[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Obsolete Cold War Attitudes Are Holding Europe Back

Instead, an independent foreign policy is desperately needed—and gaining support. Recently, the United States has been followed by a number of European countries in supporting a cold war policy toward Russia and China. This has created increasing problems in Europe—bringing a major war to the continent, creating serious economic difficulties, and intensifying a decline in living standards. In this context,[Read More…]

by Fiona Edwards — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

What The Jerusalem Post is trying to criminalize in Europe, as Israel has successfully criminalized it in Palestine

It’s not just al-Quds and Samidoun that are under attack; it’s the whole lot of us Palestinians Caption: Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network poster: “Freedom for all of our Palestinian prisoners” In the warped mind of The Jerusalem Post and other Zionist mouthpieces for Israel, Palestinians must not defend their prisoners or mourn their martyrs. If they do, whether by[Read More…]

by Rima Najjar — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

As Americans Pay Income Taxes, Revenue Heads to Israel

San Francisco (04-19) – On Tax Day April 18, fourteen activists wearing t-shirts emblazoned with “75 Years of Israeli War Crimes” in front of a backdrop decorated with “Crime Scene” tape, chained themselves at the entry and escalators to the building housing the Israeli Consulate. The human chain achieved its desired effect by closing the consulate and access to the[Read More…]

by Phil Pasquini — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

We STILL Don’t Get It: It is an Empire, Folks!

In mid-March 2023, David Swanson published a very interesting article: “Iraq and 15 Lessons We Never Learned.” There were some things in there I agreed with, some I disagreed with, others I might want to debate. Still, I appreciated his effort to pull together ideas from these experiences. However, there’s one thing that he did not put out (although he[Read More…]

by Kim Scipes — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Imperialism

Leaks Reveal Reality Behind U.S. Propaganda in Ukraine

by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies Leaked document predicts a “protracted war beyond 2023.” Image credit: Newsweek The U.S. corporate media’s first response to the leaking of secret documents about the war in Ukraine was to throw some mud in the water, declare “nothing to see here,” and cover it as a depoliticized crime story about a 21-year-old[Read More…]

by Medea Benjamin — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

One World, Earth without Borders: Solutions for Times of Survival Crisis

Socrates said, “I am not a citizen of Athens, not a citizen of Greece, I am a citizen of world.” A time may have come today 2400 years later to give much more attention to this most basic identity of human beings which unfortunately is also most neglected. Most members of humanity have been identifying themselves more in terms of[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Counter Solutions

Sexuality, Marriage and State

Modern nation-states were established to secure citizenship rights and ensure egalitarian and democratic governance based on constitutional rules and regulations shaped by the values of secularism and science. These principles are central to governance and public administration. States and governments can manage various conflicts during the governance process for greater common good by adhering to constitutional values based on science[Read More…]

by Bhabani Shankar Nayak — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Patriarchy

A regime of hurt sentiments

As J.M. Coetzee has written, taking ‘offence’ at something is usually a reaction of powerful and oppressive groups in the face of any challenge to their power or the possibility of losing it. Throughout the ages and across the world, the censorship of views, speech, depictions, expression, etc. has been rationalized in the name of ‘morality’, ‘decency’, ‘blasphemy’, and whatnot. In[Read More…]

by Arjun Banerjee — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Let’s give Bhagat Singh his due on World Book Day

Often portrayed as a trigger happy radical, the towering Indian revolutionary should be remembered as a book lover, who continues to inspire many to read even today. Bhagat Singh was executed for waging war against the British occupation of India in 1931. He believed in an armed resistance for not only a liberated homeland, but to establish a classless and[Read More…]

by Gurpreet Singh — 20/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

China Will Be The World Economy’s Biggest Growth Driver In The Next 5 Years, Doubling The U.S. Contribution, Says IMF

China will become the biggest driver of global growth over the next five years and will contribute double what the U.S. adds, according to the International Monetary Fund. Based on Bloomberg calculations from data in the IMF’s World Economic Outlook (A Rocky Recovery, April 2023, https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/Issues/2023/04/11/world-economic-outlook-april-2023) released last week, China’s slice of global gross domestic product expansion will be at 22.6%, India’s[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

RAFAH REFUGEE CAMP, GAZA STRIP - MAY 15: Palestinian refugee Mohamad Mahmoud Al-Arja, 80, from the Rafah refugee camp, holds up a key allegedly from his house in Beer AI-saba, now located in Israeli, during a rally May 15, 2007 the in Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza strip. Palestinians are marking May 15, as Nakba Day or Catastrophe Day, as the 59th anniversary of the al-Nakba, the day the Israeli state was created in 1948. (Photo by Getty Images)

PC Racist Australia: Voice For Indigenous Australians But Censoring Supporters of Indigenous Palestinians

Politically correct racist (PC racist) Australia ignores a shocking reality: while 60% of Australians rightly support a Constitutionally-enshrined Recognition and Voice for Indigenous Australians, pro-Zionist MPs are advocating adoption by Australia’s 43 universities of the anti-Semitic International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Definition of anti-Semitism that threatens the freedom of speech of academics and students in relation to the human rights[Read More…]

by Dr Gideon Polya — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

80th Anniversary of Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

80 years ago the world witnessed one of the most heroic uprisings in the history of the world. Manifesting the spirit of liberation from tyranny, courage scaled heights almost unparalleled in rebellion of a persecuted community On the eve of Passover 1943 — the nineteenth of April — a group of several hundred poorly armed young Jews lit the spark of[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

State causes 13 deaths as lakhs are scorched by heat at a government rally

The deaths due to poor arrangemens at the Maharashtra government organised big gathering in Navi Mumbai on April 16 are also a pointer to the new class of alleged spiritual leaders . Maharashtra has a living Warkari tradition of devotion, there is no religious leader involved,people voluntarily walk in a spirit of piety to the Vithal temple in Pandharpur for[Read More…]

by Vidyadhar Date — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Stop Encounter Killings in UP: End State lawlessness!

Doubts arise about Complicity of UP Police in killing of Atiq & Ashraf Ahmed: Questions to be answered by UP Police. Why did the UP Police not seek ‘Police Custody’ of the killers of Atiq and Ashraf Ahmed when produced for remand before Duty Magistrate on 16.04.2023 itself, and agree to Judicial Custody? If the killer gang was unknown[Read More…]

by People's Union For Civil Liberties — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Will the West Turn Ukraine into a Nuclear Battlefield? Why Depleted Uranium Should Have No Place There

It’s sure to be a blood-soaked spring in Ukraine. Russia’s winter offensive fell far short of Vladimir Putin’s objectives, leaving little doubt that the West’s conveyor belt of weaponry has aided Ukraine’s defenses. Cease-fire negotiations have never truly begun, while NATO has only strengthened its forces thanks to Finland’s new membership (with Sweden soon likely to follow). Still, tens of thousands of[Read More…]

by Joshua Frank — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Penny Wong’s World View: AUKUS All The Way

If anyone was expecting a new tilt, a shine of novelty, a flash of independence from Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s address to the National Press Club on April 17, they were bound to be disappointed. The anti-China hawks, talons polished, got their fill. The US State Department would not be disturbed. The Pentagon could rest easy. The toadyish musings[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Japan Signals an Attitude Shift to the Growing Power of the Global South

In mid-April, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs released its Diplomatic Bluebook 2023, its most important guidebook on international affairs. Japan’s foreign minister, Yoshimasa Hayashi, wrote the foreword, which begins: “The world is now at a turning point in history.” This phrase is key to understanding the Japanese approach to the war in Ukraine. Hours after Russian forces entered Ukraine, the[Read More…]

by Vijay Prashad — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Jasvir Samar honoured with human rights journalism award

Radical Desi gave the visiting Indian journalist its second human rights journalism award, at a public rally held in Surrey on Thursday, April 13. Jasvir Samar is associated with the Chandigarh-based Punjabi Tribune. He has extensively written on human rights and social justice. He was presented with the award by its first recipient, Dr. Gurvinder Singh Dhaliwal, at the vigil[Read More…]

by Press Release — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Human Rights

Teaching English to the sheep

In the context of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Governments introducing English medium in all Government schools to give confidence to the village children and teachers, Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd gave these 10 youtube lectures in simple English. They cover a whole range of agrarian, animal and human relations. They also trace how the industrial process started in the villages. These lessons[Read More…]

by Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen – Inhumane Heritage of An Insanely Dangerous War Investor Control of Planet Earth Issuing from Five Centuries of Racist Colonial Capitalist Conquering and Two Genocidal World Wars – A Human Decimation Nuclear Armageddon Threatens Even As The No Longer Bearable Colossal Expenditure of Resources on Wars and World War Preparation Prevents Protecting Life[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Voluntary Simplicity—Least Heeded in Times When it is Most Needed

The concept of voluntary simplicity has been integral to some of the greatest human beings in all history and the inspirational value of their life and message influenced a very large number of followers. More generally, those who adopted voluntary simplicity used to get a lot of respect in society. Unfortunately, at a time when the world needs voluntary simplicity[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Copies of Manusmriti burnt on the birth anniversary of Ambedkar in Canada

On the eve of the birthday of the towering Indian scholar and undisputed Dalit leader, South Asian activists gathered in Surrey to light the pyre of a racist text that sanctions the brutal case system. Manusmriti is an orthodox Hindu doctrine that divides society in four caste groups, and discriminates against the so called untouchables or Dalits. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar,[Read More…]

by Press Release — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Annihilate Caste

Doubts about the ECI’s preparedness to conduct 2024 general elections transparently and in compliance with Section 128 of the RPA1951

To Shri Rajiv Kumar Chief Election Commissioner Election Commission of India (ECI) Shri A C Pandey Election Commissioner Election Commission of India (ECI) Shri Arun Goel Election Commissioner Election Commission of India (ECI) Dear S/Shri Rajiv Kumar/ Pandey/ Goel, In my letter dated 7-1-2023 addressed to you (https://countercurrents.org/2023/01/use-of-remote-evms-for-migrants-eci-should-set-its-house-in-order/), I raised concerns about the ability and preparedness of[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Political Opportunism!

‘Opportunism’ is normally defined as “the practice of using situations unfairly to get an advantage for yourself without thinking about the consequences, of how your actions will affect other people”. At a different and far serious level is ‘political opportunism’ which is based on the political philosophy of Niccolò Machiavelli, as described in The Prince and which is often regarded as a[Read More…]

by Cedric Prakash — 19/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Many coal and other mineral block allocations are non-transparent and violate the Doctrine of Public Trust

To Shri Rajiv Gauba Cabinet Secretary Govt of India Dear Shri Gauba, Subject:- Many coal and other mineral block allocations are non-transparent and violate the Doctrine of Public Trust, raising concerns about propriety as they circumvent the laws and regulations in force. I write this in continuation of my earlier letter dated 6-4-2023 on the subject (https://countercurrents.org/2023/04/most-mineral-block-allocations-violate-the-doctrine-of-public-trust/). Apparently, in the allocation of[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Financial Sanctions Could Undermine The Hegemony Of The Dollar, Admits U.S. Treasury Secretary

The role of the U.S. dollar as the world reserve currency may actually diminish due to the U.S. using its leverage on the global financial system to pursue its geopolitical goals through sanctions, Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen has admitted. However, no other currency is ready to replace it, she reckoned. Yellen was asked during an interview on Sunday[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Bombing Khartoum; CIA’s Latest Attempted Coup in Africa

As I write the Sudanese Air Force is bombing Sudan’s capital city of Khartoum, an act of desperation really, because the war launched by the CIA backed coup attempt is not going very well for the coupsters. Reliable reports from Sudan say over 75% of the country is under the control of “opposition” fighters of the Rapid Strike Forces (RSF)[Read More…]

by Thomas C Mountain — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

A Road Paved with Irritations: Macron’s Strategic Third Way

Emmanuel Macron’s recent visit to China did not quite go according to plan, though much depends on what was planned to begin with. In one sense, the French President was consistent, riding the hobbyhorse of Europe’s strategic autonomy, one hived off from the US imperium and free of Chinese influence. Europe’s third-way autonomy would be a mighty thing for the[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen – A Criminal UN Partition Igniting Civil War – Partition Stratagem Provoked Civil War in British Occupied Palestine, an Archetypical Colonial Crime Against Humanity, a Programed Murderous Aftermath of the Multi-nation Holocaust of European Jews What uncomfortable realization of the enormity of American and European society’s complicity in the Holocaust there was, formed a backdrop for additional basic[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Significant international currency reform taking place without major disruption is good for the world

If a big problem with the potential of causing major disruption gets resolved in a series of steps without causing major disruption, then this is good news for the world. In recent months this has been happening in the context of the international currency system. We must welcome this, but at the same remain cautious. The overwhelming position of the[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

India’s ‘encounter’ with Barbarism

The brutal murders of the politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf in police custody and that too in front of rolling TV cameras corroborates the worst kept secret about the Republic of India. That far from being the ‘Mother of Democracy’ it has in fact become a poster ‘Child of Barbarism’. Encounter killings or custodial deaths are only teasers[Read More…]

by Satya Sagar — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Fourth Drone Bomb Attack on Indigenous People in Bastar, Chhattisgarh! Stop This State Terror Now!

Indigenous (Adivasi) people in Bijapur district of Bastar, in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh, have been traumatised by yet another aerial bomb attack from the security forces which have been using drones to carry out these operations. Although the Indian Air Force is not officially deployed for combat in Chhattisgarh, the repeated use of aerial bombardment on civilian populations suggests a new[Read More…]

by Press Release — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Increasing inequality due to uneven distribution of wealth

Economic inequality in India has widened, with the richest 1 percent of the country owning 22 percent of the total national income, while the top 10 percent own 57 percent of the national income. Half of the population of our country is earning only 13.1 percent. It is more necessary to discuss the situation of poverty and lack of resources[Read More…]

by Vikas Parashram Meshram — 18/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Ambedkarites need to be content creators

On 14th April 2023, I had an opportunity to meet and listen to Prof Scott R. Stroud at Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Deonar Mumbai. He has recently authored an amazing book, “The Evolution of Pragmatism in India” and was speaking about the same. With a mind captivated by the contents of the talks, combined with a zeal due to[Read More…]

by Vivek Sakpal — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Annihilate Caste

The Leaking Republic: The Pentagon’s Take on Information Security

For years, US intelligence officials could hold their allies, notably the British, in contempt for leaking like sinking vessels and harbouring such espionage luminaries as the Cambridge Five. The whirligig of time has returned the favour with the latest leak from the US Department of Defense. They pose a question pregnant with relevance: Do Washington’s allies have any reason to[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Fire And Ice

Robert Frost’s poem In 1923, Robert Frost wrote a short poem entitled “Fire and Ice”. Here is the poem: Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice. From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire. But if it had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate To say[Read More…]

by John Scales Avery — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Spurring an Endless Arms Race – The Pentagon Girds for Mid-Century Wars

Why is the Pentagon budget so high? On March 13th, the Biden administration unveiled its $842 billion military budget request for 2024, the largest ask (in today’s dollars) since the peaks of the Afghan and Iraq wars. And mind you, that’s before the hawks in Congress get their hands on it. Last year, they added $35 billion to the administration’s request and,[Read More…]

by Michael T Klare — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The Rise of the South: Can BRICS Weaken the Dominance of the IMF and World Bank?

Who would have expected that the BRICS nations could rise as the potential rival of the G7 countries, the World Bank and the IMF combined? But that once seemingly distant possibility now has real prospects which could change the political equilibrium of world politics. BRICS is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. It was supposedly coined[Read More…]

by Dr Ramzy Baroud — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 16

Recapitulation and synopsis of a mega murderous double dealing racket of war that engendered the post war American genocidal neocolonial world hegemony The CIA overseen corporate media conglomerates of the Western World Powers [230C] have not only falsified a USA-UK victory over Nazi Germany, but have given the world a false picture of an initially powerless criminally insane Adolph Hitler[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Obstacles To Unity

The elusive goal of opposition unity is a perverse reality for several reasons.First and foremost is that current lot of party-workers are far more driven by personal ambitions of power and pelf than by ideology.The professed ideologies are usually covers for various narrow group interests,and equality is sought at the cost of others,liberty is also a cloak for class or[Read More…]

by Hiren Gohain — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Role of Peace Movement in a Divided World

Disturbing events in recent months have led to a deepening divide of the world between two fast consolidating power blocks, one led by the US and the NATO and the other by China and Russia. Nothing could be more disturbing for a world already faced by life-threatening problems—instead of getting together for united world action to resolve the most serious[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 17/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

U.S. Must Stop Encouraging War In Ukraine, Says Lula

Brazilian President Lula da Silva said on Saturday: The U.S. and its allies should focus on promoting peace instead of fueling the Ukraine conflict by arming Kiev. Lula has concluded a state visit to China, his country’s primary trading partner. “The united States needs to stop encouraging war and start talking about peace,” Lula told reporters in Beijing. “The European Union needs[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Lament of the Yellow Rose

I am a yellow rose lovingly cared for by an old man Who planted me in his garden I am in full bloom now but he doesn’t come to admire me. I can see part of him from here His hand is sticking out from the pile of rubble That was once his house. No one has come to his[Read More…]

by Maliha Iqbal — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Harish Chandola— Endearing Writer Who Roamed the World in Search of Solutions to Complex Conflicts

Harish Chandola breathed his last on March 26. His life of 94 years, including over six decades of active work as a journalist as author, was full of highly energetic, interesting and meaningful reporting and writing from several parts of world. He was born and brought up in a remote Himalayan village of Garhwal. At a young age he started[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Pentagon Leaks Show A Failing US-NATO proxy war in Ukraine

21 year old American Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira has been arrested and charged in the US District Court in Boston for leaking highly classified intelligence documents of the US defence force concerning the NATO-led war in Ukraine. These documents have come to be known across international media as the “Pentagon leaks”. The top brass of the US military[Read More…]

by Dr Pedro Mzileni — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

“Für uns alle,” not “über alles” The case of German suppression of Palestinian resistance and Masar Badil’s response

Palestinian resistance in the diaspora will not abandon Palestinian prisoners and they will not submit to the Berlin ban on the Prisoners’ Day marches Caption: Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network poster announcing the demo in Berlin on April 16, 2023: “Berlin prepares to commemorate Palestinian Prisoners’ Day” Nazi Germany adhered to a political ideology that aimed to empty Europe of[Read More…]

by Rima Najjar — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen – The Red Army Shatters the Wehrmacht at Great Human Cost – The Falsification of History That the USA Defeated Nazi Germany During the Second World War On December 5, two days before, the United States entered World War Two, the Red Army had begun it’s successful enormous winter counter-offensive ending the Nazi siege of Moscow. As early as[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Urgent Steps Needed for Peace and Relief to People in Myanmar

The tragic and painful death of nearly 100 persons in air attacks carried out by the military junta in Sagaing region of Myanmar on April 10 is another grim and cruel reminder that violence and distress of people have become the most defining features of this deeply troubled country. According to a statement by the UN Human Rights Chief Volker[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — South Asia

Only A Supreme Court Probe Will Reveal The Truth About Pulwama Attack That Killed 44 Jawans…

It is no surprise that former Governor of J&K, Bihar, Goa and Meghalaya, Satya Pal Malik, came up with an tell-all interview to The Wire on 14th April, in which he has made serious allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his cabinet ministers and his government, accusing them of illegal acts of Omission and Commission done with political interests in[Read More…]

by Oliver DSouza — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Abuse of science against victims of environmental crime – active role of APPCB

Dr Sameer Sharma Chairman,APPCB Sri B Sreedhar Member Secretary, APPCB Sub: Abuse of science against victims of environmental crime – active role of APPCB Sirs, We are deeply concerned about the abuse of science by Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) in environmental regulation to silence the victims. There are umpteen examples. We shall take the case of Uranium Corporation[Read More…]

by Press Release — 16/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Environmental Protection

Crucial Questions for Europe Related to External Relations and its Place in World

Europe is passing through difficult times when, due to a complex of factors, several uncomfortable issues which could remain under the carpet in normal times are getting blown up in such ways that these cannot be ignored but at the same the leadership is finding it difficult to face them in a decisive way. Of course the news headlines here[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 15/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The rich are creating water scarcity

In the current summer one would like to have a good swim or like to teach children how to swim. But there are barely eight municipal swimming pools in the sprawling big metropolis Mumbai for a population of nearly 17 million people There are a large number of private[Read More…]

by Vidyadhar Date — 15/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Disturbing Sea Level Studies

For decades, climate scientists have been sounding the alarm that unless the nations of the world stop emitting greenhouse gases global warming will bring dangerous consequences. Rather, greenhouse gases, like CO2, have escalated to new highs year-over-year without hesitation. Now, new climate studies are exposing the results of decades of a couldn’t-care-less world interwoven within a deadly entrapment of free-market[Read More…]

by Robert Hunziker — 15/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 14

Peal Harbor Surprise Japanese Attack on the US Pacific Fleet and European Colonial Forces in Asia – Germany, Italy and other Axis Countries Declare War on the United States hol On December 7th, 1941, As Hitler’s military forces, well armed, thanks to the massive investments and joint venturings of major American industrialists, were besieging Moscow and Leningrad and ‘exterminating’ communists and Jews throughout[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 15/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Can You Fight for Climate Justice Without Being Antiwar?

Can organizations sincerely say they are leading the climate justice fight without also being unapologetically antiwar? Short answer – no. Here’s why. We cannot end climate change without ending war. The United States military is the planet’s largest single emitter of greenhouse gasses and consumer of oil. The US military and its weapons, consistently deployed to secure economic dominance for[Read More…]

by Teddy Ogborn — 15/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

The Global South Is Done Waiting for the UN to Solve Humanity’s Challenges

Dag Hammarskjöld, the tragic second United Nations secretary general, once said the organization “was created not to lead mankind to heaven but to save humanity from hell.” Of course, this depends very much on what kind of hell you had in mind. The fallout from Adolf Hitler’s extermination camps must have dominated Hammarskjöld’s world during his tenure from 1953 until[Read More…]

by Roger McKenzie — 15/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Economic Empowerment of Dalits Should Not be Starved of Funds

Several well-intentioned schemes have been started by the government to take forward various aspects of empowerment of scheduled castes (SC) in India. These schemes are covered under the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment. Unfortunately the denial of adequate funds for some of these schemes is proving to be a big problem for the realization of the objectives with which[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 15/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Macron’s Warning

French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent remarks to journalists on his way home from China visit about the three-way relationship between China, Europe and the U.S. did more to rile his EU partners. This incident is a show of condition within the EU and future possibilities. An AFP report — Macron’s China remarks exasperate EU allies, April 13, 2023 — said:[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Fact-Finding team finds grave violations of Adivasi rights in Nagarhole Tiger Reserve

All-India Fact-Finding Team observes grave violations of Adivasi rights in Nagarahole Tiger Reserve, even as PM ‘celebrates’ 50 years of ‘Project Tiger’. Calls for immediate measures to uphold rights of Adivasis as per law and end evictions, intimidation and violence. ‘Celebrations’ are a cruel way of marking not 50 years of Project Tiger and conservation through protected areas, but 50 years[Read More…]

by Fact-Finding Report — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Contributions of Charles Bettelheim

Charles Bettleheim was one of the most creative, analytical and illustrious intellectuals and economists of the last century, who made a path breaking contribution. Life Sketch Charles Bettelheim was born on November 20, 1913 in Paris into a banker’s family, but he spent his early life in Switzerland and Egypt before moving back to Paris in 1922. In 1933, affected[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Lying US & Australian Labor Governments Falsely Deny Apartheid Israeli Occupation Of Palestine

The Zionist-subverted, US lackey, mendacious and traitorous Australian Labor Government has followed the Zionist-subverted American Government in falsely and extraordinarily denying the horrendous actuality of Apartheid Israeli Occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) that is acknowledged by the other 3 members of the Anglosphere 5-Eyes Club, the UK, New Zealand, and Canada, by major EU countries, and indeed by[Read More…]

by Dr Gideon Polya — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Mega Infrastructure Project in Great Nicobar Island- Need to consult the ShomPens and Nicobarese

To Smt Droupadi Murmu President of India Rashtrapati Bhawan Respected Rashtrapati Ji, Subject:- Mega Infrastructure Project in Great Nicobar Island- Need to consult the ShomPens and Nicobarese- Legal lacunae in clearances I refer to my earlier letter dated 29-1-2023 addressed to the office of Rahtrapatiji (readily accessible at https://countercurrents.org/2023/01/mega-infrastructure-project-in-great-nicobar-island-would-be-violative-of-the-constitutional-mandate-and-adversely-impact-the-lives-of-the-local-tribals/) about a Mega Infrastructure project being taken up in Great Nicobar Island. I further[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Japan Proposes to Dump Radioactive Water into the Pacific

Activists took to the streets today in front of the Japanese Consulate to commemorate the 12th anniversary of the second worst nuclear power accident in history demanding the Japanese government not allow the Tokyo Electric Power Company’s (TEPCO) to dump radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station into the Pacific Ocean. They also called for “NO Nukes” for[Read More…]

by Phil Pasquini — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

EO: Three Hooves up in High Heaven

Films featuring animals as screen filled protagonists, often in an imperfect, callous human world, have been made before. There was Robert Bresson’s 1966 Au Hasard Balthazar, which introduced audiences to a saintly donkey subject to the terrible things human beings are so often prone to inflict. In recent times, the documentary black-and-white film Gunda, directed by Viktor Kossakovsky (executive producer[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Recruiting Children

After more than 20 years of losing wars, recruiting for the U.S. Army is now officially a mess. Last year, that service fell short of its goal by 15,000 recruits, or a quarter of its target. Despite reports of better numbers in the first months of this year, Army officials doubt they will achieve their objective this time around either. The commanding general at Fort Jackson,[Read More…]

by Nan Levinson — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Jewish Voice for Peace poster: “Zionism breaks every single Jewish value! What is Zionism? Why are we anti-Zionist?”

JVP, Zionism breaks every human value, not just every “Jewish Value”

It took some doing, but at long last, Zionism is being denounced openly for what it is, a racist, settler-colonial Jewish regime aided and abetted by imperial forces and delusional Christian fanatics. Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), for example, recently addressed its Jewish constituency on the question of Zionism by publishing a statement titled “What is Zionism? Why are we[Read More…]

by Rima Najjar — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Is a US-Sponsored “Regime Change” in the Offing in Bangladesh?

Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Abdul Momen in Washington on Monday, April 10th (Blinken had asked Momen to meet him) to discuss the current state of affairs in Bangladesh; in particular, the modus vivendi for the next parliamentary elections, as well as violence against and intimidation of the media and civil society, especially under the[Read More…]

by Taj Hashmi — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — South Asia

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen – Hitler Orders a Genocidal Racist Invasion of Russia and Extermination of Jews in the Largest Land Invasion in History – Hitler Led Nazi Anglo-Saxon Affinity – UK Allies With the Soviet Union, an Alliance To Avoid War Previously Rejected by Britain On June 22nd 1941, Germany, supported by Italy and Romania, and shortly thereafter[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

The White Bomb!

Are you aware that the Indian government has once again bombed its citizens? On 7th April 2023, the Indian government dropped bombs aerially with the help of drones on the Adivasis of Bhattum, Kavurugatta, Meenagatta and Jabbagatta villages of Bastar district, Chhattisgarh. Adivasis were busy collecting Mahua leaves for living when the bombing started from 6 am onwards. After the[Read More…]

by Rejaz M Sydeek — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

To Resolve Accumulating Serious Problems of NREGA Workers, They Need Wider Support

The work provided under India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) has been a very important support for the poorest rural households, particularly women, when implemented properly and can also contribute a lot to sustainable development by promoting important work like water conservation. Unfortunately the proper functioning of NREGA has been increasingly hindered and disrupted due to big budget cuts[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Release Gautam Navlakha Immediately! Release all political prisoners

Today, 14 April 2023 marks four years, seven months and eighteen days since Gautam Navlakha’s arrest on 28 August 2018. A well-known human rights activist, respected journalist and writer of long standing, Gautam has now been incarcerated for three years since 14 April 2020 when he surrendered at the NIA office in Delhi. Gautam went to jail when the pandemic[Read More…]

by Peoples Union for Democratic Rights — 14/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Human Rights

Imperialist Powers Use ICC For Judicial Imperialism, Says Communist Party Of South Africa

The South African Communist Party (SACP), in an April statement, asserted that the timing of the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant issued against Russian President Vladimir Putin, issued just before Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia in March, indicated a political motivation and historical inconsistency. “Unfortunately, imperialist powers continue to manipulate this multilateral institution and use it for[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

How the War in Ukraine Is Shaking up the Global Arms Industry

The struggles of Russian weapons manufacturers have added to historic shifts in the global arms market. On March 21, 2023, India’s air force confirmed that a major Russian arms delivery would not occur, citing Russia’s logistical challenges stemming from its war in Ukraine. It has served as the latest example of Russia’s inability to complete weapons deals with India since the conflict began in[Read More…]

by John P Ruehl — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

A New Leader’s Big Banking Opportunity to Improve Global Development

Will the New Development Bank and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement be able to fulfill their original mission with the arrival of the new bank president Dilma Rousseff? The first event of President Lula da Silva’s long-awaited visit to China in mid-April 2023 is the official swearing-in ceremony of Dilma Rousseff as president of the New Development Bank (popularly known as the BRICS[Read More…]

by Marco Fernandes — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Alienation in Marxist Tradition

Since they were first published in the mid-nineteenth century, Karl Marx’s early writings on alienation have served as a radical touchstone in the fields of social and philosophical thought, generating followers, contestation and debate. It was in the Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 that Marx first developed his theory of alienation. His concept of “alienated labour” pushed beyond the[Read More…]

by Marcello Musto — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve – Second World War Begins with Germany’s Genocidal Racist Invasion of Western Poland. Soviets Regain Western Ukraine and West Belarus, territory the USSR had been forced to give up in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk – British and French ‘Sitz Krieg’ followed by Nazi ‘Blitz Krieg’ of Europe The day after the German-Soviet[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

At a Time of Increasing Concern Regarding Sanctions, Security Council should Compensate Iraq

There is increasing concern all over the world regarding the increasing and widespread use of economic and related sanctions by some of the richest and most powerful countries, led by the USA and other NATO member countries, taking undue advantage of their extraordinary privileged position in financial matters. This concern is reflected in several resolutions passed by international bodies, including[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Stranger in a Strange Land

I wonder how many of you reading this agree with the above? In order to best fit this narrative you have to be someone who dismisses this current economic, financial and political system. Everywhere I look I see how corporate driven America is owned by the Super Rich. By Super Rich I must categorize it as those who are at[Read More…]

by Philip A Farruggio — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Al-Aqsa Mosque Waiting for the Arab Leaders

Truth has its own Language How do you contemplate wisdom, reason and respect for tolerance and decency out of the political chaos, blind terror, religious awe, and moral and intellectual hatred filled trajectory submerged in inhuman action? The live video portrayal across the global networks of Israeli police using stern grenades, smoking blasts and beating the worshipers at midnight prayers[Read More…]

by Dr Mahboob A Khawaja — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Quest for Religious War: How Israel is Unifying Arabs and Muslims around Palestine

By ordering a brutal attack against Palestinian worshipers inside Al-Aqsa Mosque on the 14th day of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu knew very well that the Palestinians would retaliate. Netanyahu’s motive should be clear. He wanted to generate a distraction from the mass protests that have rocked Israel, starting in January, and divided Israeli[Read More…]

by Dr Ramzy Baroud — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Legalising Same-Sex Marriage – Appeal to Member Countries of G-20 Summit 2023 in India

Hon’ble Members, The logo of the G20 meet in India has a message of ‘one earth, one family, one future’. Lofty idea indeed but pray could LGBTQIA community be permitted to marry and have a small family of their own before they think of becoming part of the one world family. Under India’s Presidency the G-20 Summit 2023 must resolve[Read More…]

by Shobha Aggarwal — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Protest against Ballada hill bauxite mining projcet

The Odisha government a friend in need of Adani, but in whose interest?

by Dr. Golak Bihari Nath and Deba Ranjan The Hindenburg report titled “Adani Group: How The World’s 3rd Richest Man Is Pulling The Largest Con In Corporate History” was published on January 24, 2023. According to the report, “Adani Enterprises, a conglomerate has been engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades. Well[Read More…]

by Deba Ranjan — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

An asteroid named Aribam Syam Sharma

There is a very famous story which I had repeated recently at the North East film festival conducted by NFDC at Mumbai. Noted filmmaker from Sikkim Mr.Santen Bhutia was a fellow panelist who had narrated an incident which had happened to him just the other day at Gateway[Read More…]

by Joshy Joseph — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Memory of Balraj Sahni on 50th Death anniversary

Today on April 13th we commemorate the 50th death anniversary of Balraj Sahni. Rarely has any actor let alone Indian actor as skilfully or as deeply immersed into the character of a common or oppressed man or expressed sensitivity in such depths, which could appear surreal at times. Balraj Sahni infused realism in acting to depths almost unprecedented. Balraj blended[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

‘Rationalization’ of Text books or Communalization of Polity?

Text books of schools are also a site of contestation between differing versions of nationalism. The two inheritors of colonial India, India and Pakistan show this in a parallel and opposite ways. In Pakistan since the country came up in the name of Islam, it taught a history in schools which began with Mohammad bin Kasim ruling in Sind in[Read More…]

by Dr Ram Puniyani — 13/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Swapna Liddle’s book on the Fall of the Mughal Empire

Swapna Liddle is not only a very good scholar of the history of Delhi, she is a very good communicator both in her writing and in speaking, one can understand so much from her whether it is about the changes to the Central vista in Delhi or the 1857 rebellion or the walks through historic areas of the capital. In[Read More…]

by Vidyadhar Date — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

BRICS Overtakes G7 In Terms Of GDP, Finds Study

BRICS countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa — have surpassed the Group of Seven (G7) in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), data published by the UK-based economic research firm Acorn Macro Consulting shows. The G7 club of industrialized countries consists of the U.S., Canada, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, and Japan.[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Finnish President receives Nobel Peace Prize in 2008. Photo Credit: Nobel Prize

Finland’s NATO Move Leaves Others to Carry On the “Helsinki Spirit”

by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies On April 4, 2023, Finland officially became the 31st member of the NATO military alliance. The 830-mile border between Finland and Russia is now by far the longest border between any NATO country and Russia, which otherwise borders only Norway, Latvia, Estonia, and short stretches of the Polish and Lithuanian borders where[Read More…]

by Medea Benjamin — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Paresh Chattopadhyay (1927–2023): Singleness of Purpose

The eminent Marxian socialist scholar and critic of Lenin’s Marxism, Paresh Chattopadhyay (PC) passed away on January 14, 2023, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was emeritus professor of political economy in the department of sociology at the University of Quebec, Montreal. With a mastery of Marx in the original and an admirable presentation of Marx’s thought, PC made his readers[Read More…]

by Bernard D’Mello — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 11

The Colonial Powers Munich Award to Hitler Is the Last Straw in Bringing About The ‘Infamous’ Molotov-Ribbinthrop Pact. Stalin’s Last Minute Surprise Switch to Collaboration and Temporary Safety With Sudetenland gone to Germany, Czechoslovakia had lost 70% of its iron/steel industry, 70% of its electrical power and 3.5 million citizens to Germany as a result of the settlement. American historian[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

UN Vote Condemning Sanctions Represents Strong World Opinion on Their Increasing Misuse

On April 3 a resolution condemning sanctions being imposed increasingly on many countries was approved by 33 votes to 13 in the United Nations Human Rights Council. While the countries which voted against this condemnation included the USA and its well-known European allies, the countries which voted for condemning sanction regimes represented a much greater part of the world and[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Will It Never Stop? From Forever War to Eternal War

“It is time,” President Biden announced in April 2021, “to end the forever war” that started with the invasion of Afghanistan soon after the tragic terror attacks on this country on September 11, 2001. Indeed, that August, amid chaos and disaster, the president did finally pull the last remaining U.S. forces out of that country. A year and a half later, it’s[Read More…]

by Karen J Greenberg — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Pakistan’s poor governance amid Climate Change

Pakistan faced the horrors of climate change in the form of disastrous floods of 2022. According to the report of the National Disaster Management Authority, the country witnessed over 166mm of rain as opposed to the average 48mm. Around 30 million people became displaced due to the deadly floods. The spell of rain began in June 2022 which led more[Read More…]

by Anam Zahra — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Fear is making inroads into our homes

Why has the state killed Jivan, the protagonist in Megha Majumdar’s much-reviewed, highly praised novel, A Burning? For her alleged ‘crimes against the nation’, ‘sedition’—for simply sharing a Facebook post posted by one of her Facebook friends on Kolabagan Train Attack which killed more than a hundred people—for writing a caption ‘Policemen paid by the government watched and did nothing[Read More…]

by Abu Siddik — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Need for effective policy on agriculture problem

In the last few days, the way farmers, farm laborers and laborers from all over the country registered their presence in the capital Delhi by protesting on a large scale, it has to be said to be unprecedented. The ever-darkening Asmani Sultani crisis on agriculture is at the root of the peasant movement agitators. In this context, one of the[Read More…]

by Vikas Parashram Meshram — 12/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Four years since the arrest and imprisonment of WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange

April 11 marks four years since WikiLeaks founder and publisher Julian Assange was violently dragged from Ecuador’s London embassy and arrested by the British police. Since that time, Assange has been imprisoned, without interruption, in the maximum-security Belmarsh Prison, described by some as “Britain’s Guantanamo Bay.” Assange’s ongoing detention, in a facility designed to hold terrorists and violent criminals, is[Read More…]

by Oscar Grenfell — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Human Rights

Zionazism: Genocidally Racist Apartheid Israel Is Presently Attacking 5 Countries

Western Mainstream media (MSM) are reporting the Israeli police violence against worshippers in the Al-Aqsa Mosque, token rocket responses by Palestinians, and horrendously disproportionate Israeli bombing of Gaza, Lebanon and Syria. While the West rightly condemns the Russian invasion and occupation of 20% of Ukraine, it fervently supports genocidally racist Zionazi Apartheid Israel that in 2023 is violently attacking 5[Read More…]

by Dr Gideon Polya — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

How Dalit friendly is Mayawati?

Mayawati became the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh four times. It is generally expected that during this time she would have done a lot in the interest of Dalits but the ground reality is quite opposite as it is clear from the following few examples: – 1. Mayawati banned the showing of the film “Teesri Azaadi” made by Kanshi Ram[Read More…]

by SR Darapuri — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

The Price of Solidarity: Palestine, Indonesia and the ‘Human Rights’ Dilemma

When I excitedly shared the news on social media that Indonesia had refused to host the Israeli team as part of the Under-20 World Cup, scheduled from May 20 to June 11 in Indonesian cities, some readers were unimpressed. Though any news related to Palestine and Israel often generates two sharply different kinds of responses, the latest act of Indonesian[Read More…]

by Dr Ramzy Baroud — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Democracy or Apartheid: You Can’t Have Both

For two consecutive nights this week, during the holy month of Ramadan, the Israeli military stormed Al-Aqsa mosque. They entered the mosque before prayer was over, firing rubber bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas at Palestinian worshippers. These events left at least 12 Palestinians injured, and over 400 were arrested on the first night. Following the raid, Israeli violence spread[Read More…]

by Nour — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

Can Christians Be ‘at Home’ in BJP-Ruled India?

On Easter Monday, Malayali Catholics and the rest of the world woke up to the news that the BJP leaders in Kerala visited Catholic bishops on the eve of Easter. The BJP state vice-president even attempted to climb the Malayattoor hillock, one of the eight international shrines of the Catholic Church. The recent victories in the supposedly Christian-dominated Meghalaya and[Read More…]

by An Indian Citizen — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 10

Final Collaborations With Hitler at Vienna and Munich Made to Appear as Only Appeasement Austria Forcibly United With Nazi Germany Expressly Forbidden in the Versailles Treaty Notwithstanding The Allowed Successful Murderous Fascist War For Spain Taken For Granted in Outright Collaboration Republican Spain’s Last Chance, The Battle of the Ebro By 1938, Hitler must have felt strong enough to accomplish union (Anschluss)[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Calculated Misrepresentations: The US Withdrawal from Afghanistan

Succeeding administrations have a chronic habit of blaming their predecessors. The Biden administration has been most particular on the issue, taking every chance to attack former President Donald Trump for the ills of his tenure. But the effort to almost exclusively lay blame at Trump’s door for the US fiasco in Afghanistan was a rich one indeed, given the failings[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Prosecuting Donald Trump

Donald Trump is currently being charged with 34 felonies The State of New York, under the leadership of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr., has arrested the former president, finger-printed him, and charged him with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, in violation of Penal Law §175. Trump’s major crimes The crimes for which he[Read More…]

by John Scales Avery — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Agrivoltaics: The Farm-to-Solar Trend That Can Help Accelerate the Renewable Energy Transition

Using the same land for the production of both agriculture and solar energy is a win-win for the climate and farmers. Access to solar power is increasing in rural parts of the U.S., partly with the support of farmers who lease out their land for utility-scale solar arrays. This farm-to-solar trend known as “agrivoltaics”—defined by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as[Read More…]

by Tina Casey — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Counter Solutions

Fifty Years After Chile’s Coup, the First Year of Popular Unity

Ten days after the 1973 coup against the Popular Unity (UP) government of President Salvador Allende, the military opened the Río Chico concentration camp on Dawson Island, located in the Strait of Magellan, near the southern tip of Chile. The island had served as an extermination camp by a Catholic order between 1891 and 1911 to confine the Selk’nam and Kawésqar peoples, who[Read More…]

by Taroa Zúñiga Silva — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Militarism and the madness of war

Militarization of society is happening today with great haste, not least reinforced by the war in Ukraine. People are caught up in the war and forced to choose sides. Speaking out against armaments is difficult, if not impossible, when there is a threatening enemy on your doorstep. But that is not the case in Denmark. Security experts have stated that[Read More…]

by John Graversgaard — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Everywhere there’s a struggle for liberation, you’ll see the Palestinian flag: Not only is it possible to fight, but it is also possible to win and to achieve victory

Caption: No to Zionism! Poster by Marc Rudin (Jihad Mansour) 1980 Marc Rudin | The Palestine Poster Project Archives Arabic says: “There is no solution but to uproot Zionism”. Recently, I attended a Zoom meeting titled “Palestine: Land, Liberation And Return,” part of the lead-up to the Ottawa Liberation Conference (Confronting Colonialism, A Vision for Liberation) that’s being organized by[Read More…]

by Rima Najjar — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Palestine

When the state Bombs its own people

Fourth drone attack in three years, mockery of democracy in Bastar The adivasi villagers of Bastar have once again made themselves heard against the aerial bombings or drone attacks in their villages. As reported by media, Villagers of Bijapur have alleged drone attacks on their villages on 7thApril 2023. It is reported that villages, namely, Jabbagatta, Meenagatta, Kavargatta and[Read More…]

by Press Release — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Six Problems in Implementing NREGA which should be Resolved Immediately

India’s rural employment guarantee scheme has been a big help for the poorest rural households in recent years. This scheme has been created under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) to which the name of India’s most respected leader Mahatma Gandhi is often added, making it MG-NREGA. It has attracted international appreciation as a means of providing the kind[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Nathu(ram) Killing a Rambhakt: A Symbol of Attack on the Benign Form of Nationalism by its Malign Form

In her recent fortnightly column for The WIRE, the senior journalist Pamela Philipose, questions ‘[w]hat accounts for the scale of such violence that accretes around a festival meant to celebrate Lord Ram, regarded …as Maryada Purushottam, as the embodiment of the perfect man? What accounts for this willful destruction of maryada (dignity, peace), year after year, during a festival meant[Read More…]

by S K Arun Murthi — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Visual Politics of Hindi Cinema and the movie ‘Gangaajal’

The decade of 1990s has marked by the growth of Mandal and Kamandal politics. It was also the period when global effects of popular culture had spurred the Indian viewership pattern and the transnational flows of goods, information technology, media culture, people, markets, and cinema have created new dimensions of understandings. Diasporas, pop songs and advertisements became significant baseline[Read More…]

by Vikash Kumar — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Annihilate Caste

Churn in Opposition

Rahul Gandhi may be forgiven for worrying about vicious attacks on the image painstakingly built over months of triumphant Bharat Jodo Yatra.But images are perhaps not the most important part of the campaign to save democracy,indeed the country.And it is just a waste of time for the entire manpower of the party to throng the streets for weeks on end[Read More…]

by Hiren Gohain — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Judicial Verdict: Media’s Independence & Criticism of Govt.!

Criticism of the government cannot be construed as anti-national or anti-establishment. Laying emphasis on this, undeniably, the Supreme Court of India has played a major role by specifically stating that “criticism” of government cannot justify government’s decision to revoke license of a TV channel. Led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, apex court recently scrapped an order of Ministry of Information[Read More…]

by Nilofar Suhrawardy — 11/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Ozone Troubles, Once Again

NASA: “Without ozone, the Sun’s intense UV radiation would sterilize the Earth’s surface.” It was 36 years ago in panic mode when the world came together like never before unanimously agreeing to ratify The Montreal Protocol, banning CFCs. This was done to protect ozone (O3), which is a widely-dispersed layer of molecules at 10-30 miles in the stratosphere that shields[Read More…]

by Robert Hunziker — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Truth is Radical

A Prose Poem or Ecosophic Meditation Look: Civilization ended in a post-midnight place named Auschwitz; with the terminal moment of anti-event, at the irreversible dropping of The Bomb on Hiroshima. The ultimate supermall of death. The ultimate militarization of ideological and scientific progress. There has been, of course, throughout the history of human crime, much deception, betrayal, atrocity. Suffering has[Read More…]

by David Sparenberg — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Arts/Literature

Why Citizens and Friends of Ukraine Should Present an Alternative Policy Framework

All available evidence regarding the present situation in Ukraine appears to suggest that the best course of action here would be to have an unconditional ceasefire as early as possible, to be followed by an internationally supported, large-scale reconstruction and rehabilitation program as well as talks with Russia to settle all contentious issue and try to secure durable peace as[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Germany’s Ethics Council on Artificial Intelligence

Source: AI’s answer to AI on www.craiyon.com + human input, i.e. the author Germany has a problematic relationship with morality. On the one hand, it is home to moral philosophers such as Kant with his categorical imperatives, as well as Hegel’s slightly more upmarket concept of Sittlichkeit. Yet on the other hand, Germany is also the country that carried out[Read More…]

by Thomas Klikauer — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 9

Hitler and Mussolini Permitted To Go To War on the Side of a Spanish Fascist Revolt With Merciless Bombing of Republican Spain During the Spanish Civil War July 1936-April 1939 The fascist led military uprising in Spain was set to begin in the Spanish protectorate in Morocco so that control of Spanish Morocco could be achieved and forces sent to the Iberian Peninsula to[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

90 Seconds to Midnight – The Doomsday Clock and Me

I’m not a TikTok person. I’m too old. But when I finally ventured onto that popular but much-maligned app, which traffics in short videos and hot takes, I was surprised to find many videos about the Doomsday Clock. It’s nothing like a conventional timepiece, of course. It’s meant to show how close humanity has come to nuclear Armageddon — to[Read More…]

by Frida Berrigan — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

A Review of White Malice: The CIA and the Covert Recolonization of Africa by Susan Williams

New York: Public Affairs Press, 2021. ISBN: 978-1-5417-6829-1 (hardcover) Africa has long been looked at by outsiders as a continent that is hopelessly mired in corruption and incapable of social and economic development. This especially pertains to sub-Saharan Africa, overwhelmingly populated by black people, thus fitting the trope of white supremists that black people cannot successfully govern themselves. This book[Read More…]

by Kim Scipes — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Ukraine-Russia vs. Palestine-Israel: Exposing The Hypocrisy of the West

As Russian troops continue their assault on Ukraine, Western countries persist in invoking international law, imposing crippling sanctions against Russian leaders and entities while publicly supporting Ukrainian armed resistance and opening their borders with open arms to refugees. However, we see such support utterly absent for people enduring Israel’s illegal occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem as well[Read More…]

by Aqib Sattar — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Lost Lives, Broken Dreams – The death of equality of education : The Tragic Consequences of Discrimination in Indian Higher Education

Statistics put India at the 33rd rank in education in the world. Definitely we are not at the top but everyone claims we are progressing. We have moved from the 40th rank we were in in 2018. Yes, there has been progress – our total enrolment in higher education has increased nearly 4.14 crores in 2020 – 21. The All[Read More…]

by Dr Anita Christine Tiphagne — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

How Not To ‘Rationalise’ Text Books or ‘Reduce Burden on Students’

‘To Kill a Mocking Bird‘ This novel by Harper Lee published in 1960 – which focusses itself on a white lawyer Atticus Finch’s rather lonesome struggle for justice for a black young man who has been falsely accused of rape of a white girl, in a town ‘steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy’ has mesmerised generations of readers and even[Read More…]

by Subhash Gatade — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Spare the JPC road and spoil the Adani child- Need for regulating conglomerates and monopoly control

Two recent exposures of the Gautam Adani conglomerate, have inflicted sufficient market punishment on it. One by the Hindenburgh short seller’s accusation of “brazen stock market manipulation and accounting fraud”, triggered an huge sell-off of its shares, wiping out about $118 billion of its market valuation. While the Bangalore – based Ken report’s exposure of non-repayment of debt worth[Read More…]

by Dr Aurobindo Ghose — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Hindutva groups orchestrated Ram Navami violence for political gains

This year, on the day of Ram Navami, communal violence took place across India. Incidents of violence was reported from Delhi, Uttar Pradesh (Mathura), Maharashtra (Aurangabad, Mumbai), Telangana (Hyderabad), Gujarat (Vadodara), West Bengal (Howrah), Bihar (Bihar Sharif, Sasaram). Violent processions with swords and guns were taken out, and hateful and abusive slogans were given against the religious minorities at several[Read More…]

by Rishi Anand — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Why Is Communal Violence So Common in India? A Way Forward

by MD Tabrez Alam & Dr Afroz Nothing Good ever comes of Violence- Martin Luther Communal violence, characterized by conflicts and tensions between religious or ethnic groups, continues to be a significant problem in modern India. As present Indian PM Mr Narendra Modi once said from Red Fort speech “Be it caste or communal violence, they stall the growth of the[Read More…]

by MD Tabrez Alam — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Deleting portions from textbooks a matter of great concern

Statement by concerned historians on the recent changes made by the NCERT in school textbooks The recent decision of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to drop entire chapters from the history textbooks for class 12, as well as from other classes and to delete statements from other textbooks is a matter of deep concern. Using the[Read More…]

by Press Release — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Ousmane Sembene: Senegalese Voice, Universal Vision

This essay is a brief exploration of the life, times and legacy of one of the most distinguished cultural figures of modern Africa – the Senegalese trade unionist, writer and filmmaker, Ousmane Sembene (1923-2007), whose birth centenary is being observed this year. Sembene made practically all his films out of his own writings, which were often autobiographical in character. Commonly[Read More…]

by Vidyarthy Chatterjee — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Antony surname matters

Much has been written and said about A K Antony’s son Anil Antony’s grand entry into the Bharatiya Janata Party, some even pointing out the importance of the occasion since his induction took place on the 44th anniversary of the Hindutva party’s formation. But many forgot to mention, deliberately or not, that the day also saw deployment of paramilitary forces,[Read More…]

by Santosh Kumar — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Great Nicobar Island- A “Mega Infrastructure Project” cleared by Ministry of Environment without prior consultation with the NCST

To Smt Alka Tiwari Secretary NCST Subject:- Great Nicobar Island- A “Mega Infrastructure Project cleared by Ministry of Environment without prior clearance by NCST Dear Smt Tiwari, I had earlier addressed the National Commission for the Scheduled Tribes (NCST) vide my letter dated 27-11-2022 (readily accessible Here ) and requested for NCST’s intervention under Article 338A(9) of the Constitution to safeguard[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Coal block auctions in Telangana attract prohibitive provisions under PESA/FRA

To Smt Alka Tiwari Secretary NCST Dear Smt Tiwari, I understand that the Ministry of Coal has notified Sathupalli-3 and Penagadapa coal blocks in Telangana. These blocks are located in villages covered within the Scheduled Areas of the State as follows: Sathupalli-3 coal block: Lankapalli and Kottur villages in Khammam district Penagadapa coal block: Penagadapa, Seethaigudem, Tippanapalle villages in Bhadradri-Kothagudem district Since these coal[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 10/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Sankey Road, Bengaluru – Governments are hostile to peaceful protests

Citizens protesting against felling of trees are pejoratively called “environmental activists”, “buddhijeevi-andolanjeevi”, and worse, by a certain section of politicians and people. Transcending political ideology, state and central governments, and powerful persons intoxicated with the promise of money flowing out of the current model of development, view all public protests with undisguised hostility. Bengaluru police demonstrated government-sanctioned hostility when it[Read More…]

by S G Vombatkere — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Environmental Protection

Swedish Investigator Says State Actor Involved In Nord Stream Sabotage

A state actor’s involvement in the blast of the Nord Stream pipelines last year is the “absolute main scenario”, said the Swedish prosecutor investigating the attack. A Reuters report — State actor involvement in Nord Stream pipeline attacks is ‘main scenario’, says Swedish investigator, April 6, 2023, — said: A state actor’s involvement in the blast of the Nord Stream[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Most mineral block allocations violate the Doctrine of Public Trust

To Shri Rajiv Gauba Cabinet Secretary Government of India Subject:- Many coal and other mineral block allocations are non-transparent and violate the Doctrine of Public Trust, raising concerns about propriety as they circumvent the laws and regulations in force. It is reported that the Coal and Mines Ministries have auctioned 190 blocks during the last 8-9 years to private miners (https://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/190-major-mineral-blocks-auctioned-in-seven-years-says-pralhad-joshi-122082300863_1.html). The[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Savage Capitalism – Interview With Noam Chomsky

[The following is excerpted from David Barsamian’s recent interview with Noam Chomsky at AlternativeRadio.org.] David Barsamian: On March 20th, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued its latest report. The new IPCC assessment from senior scientists warned that there’s little time to lose in tackling the climate crisis. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, “The rate of temperature rise in[Read More…]

by Noam Chomsky — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

We Are Living Through a Paradigm Shift in Our Understanding of Human Evolution

An interview with Professor Chris Stringer, one of the leading experts on human evolution. There’s a paradigm shift underway in our understanding of the past 4 million years of human evolution: ours is a story that includes combinations with other Homo species, spread unevenly across today’s populations—not a neat and linear evolutionary progression. Technological advances and a growing body of archaeological evidence[Read More…]

by Jan Ritch-Frel — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Call For A Radically Different Relationship – Homo Sapiens / Planet Earth

Albert Einstein told us that we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.We now have an existential problem that our thinking has created; Biosphere change leading to the possibility of Homo sapiens extinction.What part of our thinking created the problem? What part of our thinking needs to change? XXXX First we need to answer these questions: When[Read More…]

by David Anderson — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 8

Chapter Eight – The Colonial Powers at Times Openly at Times Backhandedly Assisted European Fascism and Hitler’s Preparations for War – Capitalist Speculative Banking Run Colonial Empires Continued to Allow and Assist Hitler To Violate the Prohibitions of the Versailles Treaty Meant to Prevent the War Empowerment of Germany The Colonial Powers at Times Openly at Times Backhandedly Assisted European Fascism and[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Reductio Ad Absurdum

Law Minister has accused Rahul Gandhi for seeking bail in the case where he was convicted (The Hindu,April 5) of putting pressure on the judiciary. As they say,every action has a reaction. This step taken by Mr Gandhi may be understood as a natural reaction to the pressure put on him.So why such pother about a law of nature or[Read More…]

by Hiren Gohain — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Important Labor Welfare Schemes Lagging Far Behind Expectations

Fund utilization data for the first 10 and a half months of the financial year 2022-23 show that several important welfare schemes of the Ministry of Labor and Employment, Government of India, were lagging far behind expectations due to poor utilization of funds. This data is available up to 13 February 2023. For Labor Welfare Scheme the Budget Estimate (BE)[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 07/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Proposal of $9 billion to settle legal claims regarding severe health hazards of talcum powder raises wider issues

The giant pharmaceutical company Johnson &Johnson has recently proposed paying $ 8.9 billion dollars to settle thousands of legal cases relating to severe health problems including ovarian cancer being caused by its talcum powder products in North America. Health problems caused by talcum powder to small children have been a matter of concern for doctors for a much longer period[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

One David, Three Goliaths

After so many years, I have forgotten his first name, but can readily recall in my mind’s eye the pint-sized lawyer with a clean, shaven face and a shining bald to match. Mr. Dasan – that is the way I used to address him. In the mid-eighties, Mr. Dasan had a fairly good practice at the Calcutta High Court, but[Read More…]

by Vidyarthy Chatterjee — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Not natural but development policy-induced disasters in the Himalaya!

Solidarity with the ongoing struggle for justice and accountability in Joshimath! A call for a campaign to defend nature and people from destructive development! Towards an ecosystem-based human rights approach to development! We as representatives of diverse social and environmental groups from across the country express grief and concern for the people of Joshimath, facing forced displacement from their homes in[Read More…]

by Press Release — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Dr Ambedkar and Hindu nation

The nation concept is an 18th century phenomenon. The ‘state’ and ‘nation’ are not synonymous terms. According to one definition, “the state is a political and geopolitical entity, while the nation is a cultural and ethnic one.’ Thus, the nation has a racial tone. But not all accept this definition. Some say it consists of a merger of state and[Read More…]

by Nagesh Chaudhari — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Annihilate Caste

CIA’s Nord Stream Story Absurd: Seymour Hersh

According to veteran journalist Seymour Hersh, the mainstream media’s yarn about a pro-Ukrainian group that chartered a yacht named Andromeda to destroy the Nord Stream pipelines was so absurd and childish that one would suspect it was made intentionally to reinforce the truth. On April 5, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh took to Substack again to analyze the Western media’s[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Inside the Fight for LGBTQ+ Rights in Africa

The National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC) gained a historic win at the Kenyan Supreme Court on February 24, 2023. It was finally able to register as an official nongovernmental organization (NGO), after a 10-year legal battle in a country where homosexuality is outlawed. However, the LGBTQ+ community’s celebrations were cut short by a wave of backlash. A day later,[Read More…]

by Efemia Chela — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The Factors of Soft Power’s Influence on Politics

It is already at least two last decades worldwide recognized that soft power became an extremely significant instrument in both politics and diplomacy in the hands of many states but especially those whom we can call as great powers as they are the most influential on global politics and international relations. However, the crucial question arises: What are the focal[Read More…]

by Dr VladislavB Sotirovic — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Is the Jackass Party Stupid or Controlled… Or Both!?

As an informed citizen who has disdain for the Two Party/One Party Scam, I have spun towards the ‘ Lesser of ‘ party if only to save my nation from a fascist assault. Yes, it has always been there staring me in the eyes, but since the Trump swamp it has gone off the radar. This current Republican Party is[Read More…]

by Philip A Farruggio — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 7

Chapter Seven – Peculiarities of Fascism’s and Hitler’s Rise to Power – Hitler’s Mercurial Rise to Absolute Power in Germany and Its Press Coverage in the Colonial Powers In April of 1921, the victorious European Allies of World War One, notably France and England, presented a bill to Germany demanding payment for damages caused in the war which Germany had[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Emerging Unity of Farmers and Workers in India Should be Widely Welcomed

The impressive mobilization of farmers, farm workers and other workers from all over the country in Delhi on April 5 for focusing attention on their problems and several unhelpful policies of the government should be widely welcomed as this unity can be very useful in resolving several serious problems of workers and farmers which have been causing distress, tensions and[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Dr. Gurvinder Singh Dhaliwal honoured with Human Rights Journalism Award

Radical Desi has given its very first human rights journalism award to a senior Punjabi journalist. On Friday, March 31, at the commemorative event held for Bhai Balwant Singh Khurdpur at the New Westminster Gurdwara, Dr. Gurvinder Singh Dhaliwal, who has also done his PhD on Punjabi journalism in Canada, was presented with the award. Radical Desi, an online magazine[Read More…]

by Press Release — 06/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Contribution of William Hinton as a Marxist Revolutionary

William Hinton was the most renowned American scholar on post-1949 China. With unflinching resilience he defended the positive or even path breaking achievements of China and the manner the Socialist past shaped a society where the workers and peasants established their rule. His simple, flowing style is model for progressive writers to emulate, which got down to the very roots[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Class, Caste And Communism: An Interview With J. Reghu

J Reghu is one of the most prominent and controversial public intellectuals in Kerala. Even in recent years, publications by Reghu have been either withdrawn due to pressure from the far right or they were burned by the far right. He studied economics at the university and he dropped out of his doctoral program, which was registered under the title[Read More…]

by J Reghu — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Whither Lokpal?—The Reality of the Once Most Discussed Anti-Corruption Step

If you were living in India in mid-2011 and taking an even cursory glance at media headlines, you may been easily led to believe that the heavens are going to fall and there will be total collapse if the demand for Jan Lokpal (visualized then as a powerful anti-corruption agency to hear complaints against public functionaries) as a one-shot solution[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Auctioning mineral blocks without consulting the other Central Ministries and the States violates the spirit of federalism

To Shri A. L. Meena Secretary (Coal) Govt of India Shri Manoj Ahuja Secretary (Agriculture) Govt of India Dear S/Shri Meena and Ahuja, I understand that the Ministry of Coal has recently auctioned three lignite blocks, East of Sethiathope, Michaelpatti and Vadasery, which are located in the fertile Cauvery delta region of Tamil Nadu, considered the rice bowl of the State.[Read More…]

by E A S Sarma — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Finland Joins NATO – Nuclear Missiles Can Be Placed 7 Minutes Away From Kremlin

Today, 4 April 2023, Finland — which is only 507 miles away from Russia’s central command center, The Kremlin in Moscow — has joined America’s NATO military alliance against Russia, and so becomes an allowable location for the U.S. to place its nuclear missiles, which would then be within just a 7-minute blitz striking distance away from instantaneously annihilating Russia’s[Read More…]

by Eric Zuesse — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The Shift from Pink to Green in Latin America

Gustavo Petro doesn’t just want to transform his own country; he wants to change the world. The new leader of Colombia, who took office last August, is targeting what he calls his nation’s “economy of death.” That means pivoting away from oil, natural gas, coal, and narcotics toward more sustainable economic activities. Given that oil and coal make up half his[Read More…]

by John Feffer — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 6

Chapter Six – ‘Priorities of Colonial Imperialism’ Regarding the Economic and Political Priorities of the World’s Major Colonial Powers, the British and French Empires, the other European Empires and the Imperialist United States of America During the Rise of Fascism At this point in our narrative regarding the very purposeful arming of Adolph Hitler’s Nazi Germany for war, it would[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

G-20 summit in Delhi – legacy of the colonial `durbar’ of 1877, when a teenager composed a poem against its pomposity

New Delhi today sits at the centre of the global summit called G-20 – hosting VIPs from different parts of the world in the midst of pompous demonstrations of Prime Minister Modi’s suzerainty over India, and outreach beyond its borders. Coming down to brass tacks, G-20 is an exclusive club of elite capitalist states which promote neo-liberal economic policies at [Read More…]

by Sumanta Banerjee — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Welfare Schemes for Denotified and Nomadic Tribes Need A Big Boost

One of the most neglected sections of India’s society consists of denotified tribes, nomadic and semi-nomadic communities and tribes( DNT, NSN). The number of people of these communities is likely to be as high as 120 million or even more but we seldom hear about them. This neglect has also spread to welfare schemes for them which have been by[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 05/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Commemorating 40th death anniversary and 120th birthday of Joan Robinson

2023 commemorates the fortieth year since the passing of Joan Robinson and her one-hundred-and-twentieth birth anniversary. Without doubt she was one of the most illustrative, logical and creative Marxist economists of her time, whose role was path was breaking. Quoting David Henderson “Joan Robinson was arguably the only woman born before 1930 who can be considered a great economist. She[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Worshipping Lord Ram and Divisive Political Goals

Ram Navami (the day celebrated as Lord Ram’s birthday) 2023 saw acts of violence in many places, the majority of which were in Howrah, Chatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (called Aurangabad earlier), some Mumbai suburbs, Delhi and places in Bihar among others. Last few years these have become a regular part of social phenomenon, with ever increasing intensity. The large section of[Read More…]

by Dr Ram Puniyani — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Mangalore police must ensure complete protection to Dr Narendra Nayak

As Karnataka polls were declared last week the police administration in Mangalore was quick to withdraw the security provided to eminent rationalist and President of, Federation of Indian Rationalist Association ( FIRA) Dr Narendra Nayak since 2016. Dr Nayak has been not merely active promoting rationalism and scientific thinking all over the country but he has also been associated with[Read More…]

by Vidya Bhushan Rawat — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Who is attacking civility?

M Rajivlochan’s article ‘An attack on civility’ (IE 30 March 2023) has been published in response to the newspaper’s lead editorial of 25 March 2023 titled ‘Disqualified’. The editorial was about the cancellation of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s membership of Parliament after his conviction by the Surat Court in a defamation case. In the opinion of the newspaper, the[Read More…]

by Dr Prem Singh — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Over 2 Million Mid-Day Meal Cooks Are Worst Victims of Injustice and Exploitation

There have been countless statements by government authorities regarding the urgent need to empower women. However they have hardly paid any attention to the continuing exploitation within the government system of over 2 million mid-day cooks almost all of whom are women. What is more, most of these mid-meal cooks come from some of the poorest households. Many of them[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Turning Tides: The US Congress and Julian Assange

“Every government is run by liars and nothing they say should be believed.” I.F. Stone The US Congress and Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, have what can only be regarded as a testy relationship. Its various members have advocated and condoned his farcical prosecution, demanded his lifelong incarceration, even assassination, taking issue with his appetite for publishing unsavoury, classified[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Lying about Lying: Why We Must Revisit the Definition of ‘Fake News’

The phrase ‘fake news’ continues to be deployed routinely in US politics. In a polarized political atmosphere, both Republicans and Democrats distrust media organizations affiliated with opposing parties. This means that most of what is uttered or written by CNN is ‘fake news’ for Republicans, and much of what appears in Republicans-affiliated media is ‘fake news’ for Democrats. The phrase[Read More…]

by Dr Ramzy Baroud — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Ending the World’s Cycles of Conflict, Disaster and Extreme Poverty

This year marks the halfway point—eight years in and eight years out—of the UN Sustainable Development Goals to end poverty and reduce inequalities. Yet we are a long way off from these commitments, and multiple crises—now known as ‘polycrisis’—such as conflict, disaster and extreme poverty are converging on low income and lower-middle income countries, necessitating systemic change in our poverty[Read More…]

by Vidya Diwakar — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Riyadh-Tehran Pact: – Diplomatic Signals!

Irrespective of the negative campaign which United States and its allies seem to have been engaged in against China and Russia, several developments suggest that this hasn’t succeeded in turning more countries against the two. Uncle Sam has all the reasons to be totally dissatisfied by this. The diplomatic era when even a minor signal from Washington seemed sufficient to[Read More…]

by Nilofar Suhrawardy — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

What is a Soft Power?

Understanding soft power in politics and diplomacy French Emperor Napoleon I, was convinced that only two powers existed in the world: the sword and the mind. Sword can prevail over the mind in a short time but in the long run, he believed that the mind would beat the sword. As the mind is mightier than the sword is[Read More…]

by Dr VladislavB Sotirovic — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 5

The economic facilitation of a second world war equally came to mean an economic facilitation of a multi-nation Holocaust This author expects that the reaction of a good many readers to the affirmation that the ‘Holocaust could not have happened without corporate USA rearming Germany to destroy the USSR,’ would be one of protest. Skeptical readers might insist that the elite[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Rajasthan Health Law Deserves Support, Can Benefit from Further Improvements

The recently enacted Right to Health Act of Rajasthan has become a subject of hot debate with many renowned health activists welcoming it but at the same time some professional medical organizations and private health care providers opposing it. To clarify the issue, the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA), a joint platform of hundreds of health organizations and networks, has recently[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 04/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

President Xi of China at the head of the table in a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Photo credit: DNA India

The Tragic U.S. Choice to Prioritize War Over Peacemaking

by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. – Matthew 5:9 In a brilliant Op-Ed published in the New York Times, the Quincy Institute’s Trita Parsi explained how China, with help from Iraq, was able to mediate and resolve the deeply-rooted conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia,[Read More…]

by Medea Benjamin — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Day 40 of the NREGA Protest: MoRD blinks on Aadhar-Based Payment

Today, we completed 40 days of the NREGA workers’ protest at Jantar Mantar. With this milestone also arrived a significant victory for the protesting workers: the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) has agreed to take remedial action to alleviate some of the workers’ woes. A delegation of workers and activists from NREGA Sangharsh Morcha met Shri S.K. Singh, MoRD Secretary[Read More…]

by Press Release — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

2023 IPCC AR6 Summary For Policymakers: Last Warning

The Synthesis Report of the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) has recently been released including a detailed 36-page Summary for Policymakers. Section A summarizes what is known of the observed warming, its causes and impacts. However just three short quantitative sentences allow readers to determine that there are only about 10 and 20 years to go before we reach warming[Read More…]

by Dr Gideon Polya — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Pluralism, Salt Satyagraha & the Constitution of India

The 93rd Anniversary of Salt Satyagraha that lasted for 24 days can provide important lessons for appreciating India’s pluralism of religions, castes, languages, cultures, governance ideologies, and host of other diversities. The 78 trusted volunteers who accompanied Mahatma Gandhi came from various backgrounds and cultural sensibilities. As a commodity of everyday use, Gandhiji was convinced that salt provided a common rallying point[Read More…]

by A K Merchant — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Sociological perspectives on mental health

There is more to mental health besides the absence of mental diseases. The WHO’s definition of health, which is stated in its constitution, emphasizes the positive aspect of mental health: “Health is a state of complete bodily, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” Concepts of mental health include subjective well-being, perceived self-efficacy, autonomy,[Read More…]

by Sada — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Fears of minorities that their names will be deleted from electoral rolls or that they will be prevented from casting their votes- ECI needs to take special measures

by E A S Sarma — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Sparing the Athletes: Revising the Russia-Belarus Sporting Ban

Collateral damage? Deserving and worthy of their punishment? The exclusion and banishment of Russian and Belarusian athletes has become the acceptable prejudice of many governments and a slew of sporting bodies. After the invasion of Ukraine in February last year, a number banded together to find ways to punish Russia, and those of its ally, Belarus. Pitifully, and weakly, athletes[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Doctors participate in an Extinction Rebellion demonstration in London's Trafalgar Square on October 12, 2019. (Photo: Chris J. Ratcliffe/Getty Images)

Tinpot Legislators – Their One-Party Rule Will Be Ruinous for the Earth

The demise of Silicon Valley Bank last month triggered plenty of angst among solar energy developers. Before it collapsed, SBV claimed it had “financed or helped finance 62 percent of community solar projects in America,” according to Washington Post business reporter Evan Halper. At first, it wasn’t clear who might fill that gap. MAGA politicians took great delight in the disruption of what they tediously[Read More…]

by Stan Cox — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Making Sense of the Latest IPCC Report (2023)

The IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), a UN agency with climatologists from over 70 counties included) has just come out with a new report about climate change. (Available at https://www.ipcc.ch/report/sixth-assessment-report-cycle/.) The news is not good. Basically, their arguments have gotten more refined, more specific: climate change is impacting humans, animals, and plants to a greater and greater extent, things[Read More…]

by Kim Scipes — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Climate Change

Identifying Vulnerable Workers for Protection in Heat Wave Conditions

An important part of various manifestations of climate change is in the form of increasing heat waves. In India very worrying heat waves have been experienced in recent times, particularly in 1998, 2002, 2010, 2015 and 2022. As for projections for the near future, on April 1 the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) stated that above normal heat-wave days are[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 4

Chapter 4 – Profiting Well with Hitler – Hitler’s Rule Was Especially Profitable For American Corporatocracy’s Enterprises and Joint Ventures with Nazi Germany On March 4th of 1933, Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. The following reports about Hitler’s draconic economic policies benefiting US corporations are excerpted from Profits “Über Alles!” by Jacques R. Pauls, GlobalResearch, 6/8/2004. [35] Hitler’s first major initiative was to dissolve the[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Muslim intellectuals must write about caste within and without Islam: Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd

This is a Foreword by Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd to a well known book of Ali Anwar called Masawat Ki Jung (Hindi) on caste among Muslims. The English version is now published by Forward Press Delhi, with the title The Battle For Equality. The English book has just come out. It is the first ever written book on caste by a[Read More…]

by Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Dalit Scholar of Wardha University faces institutional discrimination

Rajneesh Kumar Ambedkar, a PhD scholar at Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi VishwaVidyalaya, Wardha, Maharashtra, India, has been sitting on a satyagraha at the university campus. He was forced to go on strike after the university administration failed to address his grievances. Ambedkar has alleged that he is being victimized by the university administration because of his Dalit identity. Narrating his[Read More…]

by Dr Abhay Kumar — 03/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Annihilate Caste

Planned city Jaipur being ruined by ideas imposed from Delhi

Pune Metro railway has become a laughing stock. Few people are travelling and there are any number of jokes on the social media that it should be let out for wedding parties and other celebrations. Mercifully, it has spared the historic district, it has not gone there. Jaipur Metro has done that . It is also a big failure as[Read More…]

by Vidyadhar Date — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

The meaning of Vaikom Satyagraha

If, as Will Durant wrote “[s] society is a growth in time, not a syllogism in logic, and when the past is put out through the door it comes in at the window,” the “Kerala phenomenon” of putting the past, or at least a major part of its malignant growth, out through the door, and ensuring that what came in[Read More…]

by P Radhakrishnan — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Reconciling Saudi Arabia and Iran: The significance of the China effort

It would be wrong to view the restoration of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran as something that happened suddenly. Since the Iranian Revolution of 1979, ties between the two important Muslim neighbours have been strained. For the Saudi elite the Revolution was not only anti-monarchical but also a boost to the Shia sect within Islam. For the Iranian revolutionaries,[Read More…]

by Dr Chandra Muzaffar — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

German Left Party MP Sevim Dağdelen in the Bundestag on March 31, 2023

U.S. Troops must Leave Germany, Says German MP From The Left Party

“After 78 years, it is now time for U.S. soldiers to go home. All other allies left Germany a long time ago”, said Die Linke MP Sevim Dağdelen on the floor of Germany’s parliament, the Bundestag. “The US nuclear weapons must go”, she added, in a March 31 parliamentary event on the 75th anniversary of the Marshall Plan. Berlin must break with[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Taiwanese president’s trip to US exacerbates tensions with China

In another move that is deliberately raising tensions with China, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen held a series of high-level meetings in New York on Wednesday and Thursday with American politicians and representatives. The trip to the US is being held under the guise of a “transit” by Tsai as she proceeds to visit Guatemala and Belize in central America—two of[Read More…]

by Peter Symonds — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The X-Factor in Super-Power Rivalry

Four well-known facts about super-power rivalry make it extremely dangerous; at the same time there is an X factor that can increase the danger much more, take it to an entirely new and high level. First let us briefly mention the four well-known facts. Superpower rivalry has become much worse in very recent times and rival power blocks are being[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 3

Chapter Three ‘Preparing War Profits’ – The ‘Good War’ Coverup Slogan Unmasked By Well Kept Business Records and Tax Documentation That the Second World War was a ‘good war,’ a clear fight against what a madman had brought about, has been a major and fundamental deception solidified in Wall Street owned media and movies. The famous American historian Studs Terkel[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

Stop Killing Us, Guns in America

For seven years now former Marine and anti-gun violence activist Jamal Johnson has undertaken a three week 140-mile walk from Philadelphia to Washington, DC to participate in the annual Stop Killing Us (SKU) campaign and intergenerational rally. “Every step I take is a step in the right directions” is how Johnson affirmatively surmises his long between the two cities. In[Read More…]

by Phil Pasquini — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Withdraw all false and fabricated cases against anti-POSCO and anti-Jindal Protesters

Recently the High Court of Odisha has stayed the process of land alienation for steel major Jindal Steel Works (JSW) in our Jagatsingnpur area. On March 20, 2023, The National Green Tribunal also suspended the ECs obtained by JUSL due to lack of proper evaluation of sourcing water from river Mahanadi and public hearing before the social impact assessment study.[Read More…]

by Prashant Paikray — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Only Half of the Budget for Disability Affected Persons Utilized in 10.5 out of 12 months

In the budget for financial year 2022-23 a sum of INR 1212 crore (one crore=10 million) was allocated (Budget Estimate or BE) for the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disability (DEPD). After ten and a half months had passed, up to 13 February 2023, only about half of this—INR 612 crore to be precise—had been utilized. This extremely low[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Greenpeace volunteers fly Peace Doves, bearing messages of peace, "No More Hiroshima", "Yes to Peace", "No to Rokkasho" in Japanese and in English, beside the A-Bomb Dome Memorial in Hiroshima.
Greenpeace renews their calls for peace and make this anniversary a message to world leaders to make real their commitments to nuclear disarmament, including the Japanese government to abandon plans to produce nuclear weapons.

A Gandhian Solution To ‘Nuclearisation’

In a world defined by competition over cooperation, and the acquisition of arms prioritised over the pursuit of diplomacy, the threat of a nuclear weapon being used is higher than it has been in generations. Promising national security, the modern state has come to regard nuclear weapons as an irresistible force for peace strategic stability and a more tranquil future.[Read More…]

by Shivendra Pandey — 02/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

In memory of centenary of George Lukacs’s ‘History and Class Consciousness’

George Lukacs’s “History and Class Consciousness” is a truly landmark work, and its English translation, after almost fifty years of neglect by English and American publishers, was a major development. This year we commemorate 100 years of this work being published, in year 1923. Reification and the Consciousness of the Proletariat section of this work, published in 1923, is a[Read More…]

by Harsh Thakor — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Life/Philosophy

Indore Tragedy Re-emphasizes Need for Better Safety in Religious Places

36 persons were killed in a very tragic accident caused by the falling of roof slabs on worshippers who had collected for Ram Navmi prayers. 16 others have been admitted to hospital with injuries. The tragedy occurred at a step well located inside Baleshwar Mahadev Jhulelal temple in Indore. Many people fell inside the step well when slabs well on[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

It is time to Rediscover Our Democracy

by Harshavardhan Purandare and Sandeep Pandey Rahul Gandhi’s expulsion has come at a politically convenient time for Modi government with general elections due one year from now . This time, our judiciary chooses to go for harsh punishment for verbal jibes which appear innocuous to common sense; and the government gets the opportunity to attack and suppress the opposition voices[Read More…]

by Sandeep Pandey — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

U.S. Top General On U.S. Ammunition Stockpile And Prospect Of Ukraine Winning The War

U.S. Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, has commented on problems in stockpile of U.S. ammunitions and prospect of Ukraine winning the war this year. An AP report — Milley: US has long way to go to build munitions stockpile” (March 30, 2023) — said: The U.S. military “has a long ways to go”[Read More…]

by Countercurrents Collective — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The War between Russia, Ukraine and the West Encroaching the Humanity towards Extinction

“The hell of human suffering, evil and oppression is paved with good intentions. The men who have most injured and oppressed humanity, who have most deeply sinned against it, were according to their standards and their conscience good men; what was bad in them, what wrought moral evil and cruelty, treason to truth and progress, was not at all in[Read More…]

by Dr Mahboob A Khawaja — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Inglorious Inertia: The Albanese Government and Julian Assange

The sham that is the Assange affair, a scandal of monumental proportions connived in by the AUKUS powers, shows no signs of abating. Prior to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese assuming office in Australia, he insisted that the matter dealing with the WikiLeaks publisher would be finally resolved. It had, he asserted, been going on for too long. Since then, it[Read More…]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Sub-Imperialism and Multipolarity: Brazil’s Dilemma

A look at sub-imperialism and multipolarity in Brazil historically and into the future. Galeano Names the Problem In the Open Veins of Latin America Eduardo Galeano described an 1870 genocidal war of regime change waged on Paraguay by a Triple Alliance of its neighbors, Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil, on behalf of British imperialism. The target, nationalist president Solano Lopez, died in battle.[Read More…]

by Justin Podur — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

20 Years After Catastrophe in Iraq, the War Apologists Still Dominate U.S. Foreign Policy

In Warsaw last February, President Joe Biden condemned the lawless Russian invasion of Ukraine: “The idea that over 100,000 forces would invade another country—since World War II, nothing like that has happened.” One month later marked the 20th anniversary of the greatest U.S. foreign policy debacle since Vietnam: America’s “war of choice” against Iraq, with 130,000 U.S. soldiers invading the country to[Read More…]

by Katrina vanden Heuvel — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The Simple Reason Why the U.S. Wants ‘Full Spectrum Dominance’ of the Earth

Imagine the uproar if China or Russia—or any other country for that matter—said it aimed to exercise military control over land, sea, air, and space to protect its interests and investments. This amazingly has been the stated United States policy since 1997. Full spectrum dominance, as the doctrine is known, is the reason the United States behaves the way that[Read More…]

by Roger McKenzie — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

The great importance of International Criminal Court

Establishment of the International Criminal Court In 1998, in Rome, representatives of 120 countries signed a statute establishing an International Criminal Court (ICC), with jurisdiction over the crime of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. Four years were to pass before the necessary ratifications were gathered, but by Thursday, April 11, 2002, 66 nations had[Read More…]

by John Scales Avery — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

WWII & Holocaust Could Never Have Happened Without American Corporations Investing & Joint Venturing with Hitler’s Poor Nazi Germany – Chapter 2

Chapter 2 ‘Weaponizing Nazis’ Contribution made by American capitalism to German war preparations described as phenomenal and crucial to German military capabilities With the world of the plundering Colonial Powers deep in the chaos of the Great Depression, a disastrous failure of rule by the banks of the capitalist countries, the United States internally threatened by local organizations of socialists, communists,[Read More…]

by J Jankovsky-Novak alias Jay Janson — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Book Review

US War Planners Court China’s Neighbors. What Would Buddha Say?

by Marcy Winograd and Wei Yu As the Pentagon steps up its war games in the Asia Pacific, Defense News reports the US Army has a logistical problem with waging a future war against China: too much equipment to haul from “fort to port”–and too many ports in the Pacific, from which a cyber-space advanced adversary like China might disrupt[Read More…]

by Marcy Winograd — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

Spring has Sprung an Indictment on Trump!

No sooner had Trump been indicted by a grand jury in New York than activist Nadine Seiler was outside the White House with her large homemade banner announcing it to the world. This morning she stationed herself in front of the building expressing her joy with many other enthusiastic visitors and tourists enjoying the moment. Seiler may be remembered for[Read More…]

by Phil Pasquini — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — World

NREGA and Other Development Initiatives Run Into Serious Problems

Reforms are supposed to lead to improvements but studies of several ‘economic reforms’ in many countries including India have revealed that these increased the problems of ordinary problems particularly weaker sections. On similar lines recent ‘reforms’ relating to several schemes meant for the welfare of weaker sections have given results that are very different from what genuine reforms are supposed[Read More…]

by Bharat Dogra — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — India

Zikr: In the Light and Shade of Time

Zikr: In the Light and Shade of Time (2022). Muzaffar Ali. Penguin Random House India Vintage. New Delhi. Zikr, meaning remembrance, comes out as a finely textured autobiographical narrative of one of the most famous creative minds of our times. The world knows Muzaffar Ali as a film-maker and an artist. He is an equally accomplished painter, fashion designer, music[Read More…]

by Zeeshan Husain — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Uncategorized

Stop the Witch-hunt of Journalists and Human Rights Activists in Kashmir

Release Irfan Mehraj, Khurram Parvez as well as Aasif Sultan, Sajad Gul, and Fahad Shah The PUCL strongly condemns the arrest of Irfan Mehraj, a Srinagar based freelance journalist under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) on 20th March, 2023 by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). The arrest of Irfan Mehraj was pursuant to an FIR registered in 2020, in[Read More…]

by People's Union For Civil Liberties — 01/04/2023 — Comments are Disabled — Human Rights