By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Buzzfeed has published the unverified allegations by a former MI6 analyst with good Russian contacts, contained in a two-page hitherto secret annex to the US intelligence community’s report on Russian hacking and interference in the 2016 election. These two pages have circulated in Washington for months. […]
Archives for January 2017
A Living Wage & a Right to Live: Resisting a government of Generals and Billionaires
San Francisco ( Tomdispatch.com ) – Many of the folks I know are getting ready to play serious defense in 2017, and they’re not wrong. Before we take up our three-point stance on the national line of scrimmage, however, maybe we should ask ourselves not only what we’re fighting against, but what we’re fighting for. […]
As Trump guns for Iran Deal, can its Reformists survive death of Hashemi-Rafsanjani?
By Farhang Jahanpour | (Informed Comment) | – – Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani’s death on Sunday January 8 in Tehran at the age of 82 marks the end of an era in Iran’s post-revolutionary history. After the death of Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, in 1989, Hashemi-Rafsanjani’s death will have the most significant […]
Understanding Islam means understanding its and our Multiculturalism
Kishwar Rizvi | (The Conversation) | – – There has been much misinformation about Islam. Reports in Western media tend to perpetuate stereotypes that Islam is a violent religion and Muslim women are oppressed. Popular films like “American Sniper” reduce places like Iraq to dusty war zones, devoid of any culture or history. Fears and […]
Obama’s Farewell Address: Racial Discrimination a Challenge Ahead
NBC | (Video Report) | – – “As President Barack Obama’s time in office comes to a close, he delivers his Farewell Address from Chicago.” President Barack Obama’s Farewell Address (Full Speech) | NBC News Full Transcript Everybody have a seat. My fellow Americans, Michelle and I have been so touched by all the well-wishes […]
Welcome to Psychopathocracy
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – We are now on the brink of a new form of government, undreamed of by Aristotle, who spoke of monarchy, aristocracy and democracy. We are headed to a psychopathocracy, which has something in common with the degraded form of classical regime types that Aristotle warned against (he thought monarchy can […]
Turkish President Erdogan Sees Better Ties with US Under Trump
TeleSur | – – “I believe we will accelerate dialogue when Mr. Trump takes office,” Erdogan said. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday he believed relations with Washington would improve under President-elect Donald Trump and that the two NATO allies would reach an easier consensus on regional issues. Ties between the United States and […]
Exxon’s Rex Tillerson and the rise of Big Oil in American politics
Brian C. Black | (The Conversation) | – – “How Big Oil Bought the White House and Tried to Steal the Country” is the subtitle of a book that tells the story of a presidential election in which a candidate allowed money from big oil companies to help him win office and then rewarded them […]
‘Onward Christian Zionists’: Trump, Israel and the Inauguration
Shalom Goldman | (Informed Comment) | – – While US support for Israel has never been stronger (witness the 38 billion dollar aid package signed by the president in December) the perception among many in the US and Israel is that the Obama administration has been inimical to Israel’s best interests, and that the Trump […]