By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – President Obama on Friday pledged not to turn Syria into an arena for a proxy war between the US and the Russian Federation. But he went on to criticize president Vladimir Putin for attempting to prop up Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad and predicted that Syria under […]
Archives for October 2015
Can anti-Muslim Bigotry Help Donald Trump Or Ben Carson Win The Republican Race?
AJ+ | (Video News Report) | – – “Donald Trump may still lead the Republican polls, but Ben Carson is now only a point behind. What do the two candidates have in common? Well, for one thing, they’ve both been involved in anti-Muslim sentiment this month.” AJ+: “Can Bigotry Help Donald Trump Or Ben Carson […]
Afghanistan’s Elite Special Forces led in Recovering most of Kunduz from Taliban
By Frud Bezhan | (RFE/RL) | – – Afghanistan’s much-maligned security forces were facing their greatest challenge yet in trying to retake a key northern city from the Taliban — and expectations were not high. But, when the smoke cleared, Kunduz was back in government control, and predictions of a bloody and protracted street war […]
Alabama Requires Photo IDs for Voting, Then Shutters DMV Offices in Black Counties
By Andrea Germanos, staff writer | ( Commondreams.org) | – – “The ‘decision to cut out ID services to almost all counties with a majority black population is discriminatory and wrong,’ says ACLU of Alabama.” Some observers say that Alabama’s move to close dozens of drivers license offices is a discriminatory move that could trigger […]
Mercer, targeting Christians, kills 1/3 the annual gunshot death toll in England
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The shooter at Umpqua Community college in Roseberg, Oregon, Chris Harper Mercer, had three hand guns, likely semi-automatics, and an assault rifle. He killed 9 people on campus and wounded at least 7, before he was himself shot and killed. He asked people their religion and […]
Reason Trumped: How the Donald Phenom will Change our Lives
By Nomi Prins | ( Tomdispatch.com) | – – The 2016 election campaign is certainly a billionaire’s playground when it comes to “establishment candidates” like Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush who cater to mega-donors and use their money to try to rally party bases. The only genuine exception to the rule this time around has […]
Is Putin Gambling it all on Syria?
By Scott Lucas | (The Conversation) | – – For those watching closely, the signal for Russia’s first airstrikes came in a statement early on September 30 by Kremlin spokesman Sergei Ivanov, just after the upper house of the parliament authorised military operations: To observe international law, one of two conditions has to be met […]
Union: 70 percent of Gaza workers live in poverty
Ma’an News Agency | – – GAZA (Ma’an) — Around 70 percent of workers in Gaza live in poverty, the director of the Gaza General Federation of Trade Unions, Sami al-Amsi, said on Thursday. Al-Amsi, at a press conference, warned that Gaza would face a “catastrophe” that will effect the majority of the coastal enclave’s […]
Trump Supports Putin’s Russia Policy in Syria
Erin Burnett | (CNN news video) | – – “Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks with CNN’s Erin Burnett on foreign policy issues including Iran, Syria and ISIS.” CNN: “Donald Trump: ‘Let Russia fight ISIS’”