Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The International Energy Agency just issued a report concluding that wind and solar are growing rapidly, unlike beleaguered fossil fuels, and that in only five years they will be generating a third of the world’s electricity, overtaking coal. They will overtake natural gas sooner, in 2023. Coal is the dirtiest […]
Georgia’s Embattled Sen. Perdue Protects own Beach-Front Mansion from Climate Emergency, while voting to Burn more Fossil Fuels
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Republican Senator David Perdue of Georgia, facing a run-off against Jon Ossof, has an opulent six-room beach-front mansion that has been protected with newly built, pricey jetties and sea walls against sea level rise, storm surges and coastal erosion. Why, it is as if Perdue thinks the climate emergency is […]
In Reward for Israeli ties, Trump to sell F-35 Stealth Bomber to Emirates despite its killing of Civilians in Yemen, Libya
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Yemeni news site Maarib Press headlines the news that Trump’s secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, announced that he is authorizing the sale of $23 billion worth of F-35 Stealth fighter jets and other super-sophisticated weapons to the United Arab Emirates. The United Arab Emirates, a small federation of seven […]
Pompeo’s touting of “Second Trump Administration” craters State Department’s Credibility on Democracy Promotion
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Nicole Gaouette, Jennifer Hansler and Kylie Atwood at CNN report that secretary of state Mike Pompeo insisted there would be a smooth transition to a second Trump term. The statement, which appears to have been sardonic rather than in earnest, disgusted a lot of people, especially ambassadors. If it was […]
Trump fires Mark “Yesper” Esper as SecDef; Was it over Afghanistan withdrawal?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Barbara Starr, Ryan Browne and Nicole Gaouette at CNN report on the firing of secretary of defense Mark Esper on Twitter by Trump. Esper appears to have adopted a relatively mild demeanor with Trump for the past 18 months, though he was known gingerly to disagree with the president on […]
Could Trump go to Jail for Payoff to Porn Star Stormy Daniels?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The New York County (or Manhattan) District Attorney, Cyrus Vance, Jr., has been scrutinizing Donald Trump’s illegalities for some years now, but appears to have been reluctant to lodge charges while Trump was president. The Barr Department of Justice maintains that a sitting president cannot be indicted, though such a […]
Informed Comment Annual Fundraiser – Support Independent Journalism
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – We need your help! Informed Comment is almost unique in focusing on US foreign policy and Middle East affairs from a progressive perspective, in addition to providing crucial information on the climate emergency and progressive social policy. We carry original reporting, and curate the best of […]
Trump’s Scapegoats, African-Americans and Muslim-Americans, defended the Blue Wall and Elected Biden
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trump notoriously said “I think Islam hates us,” and slapped a Muslim visa ban on a number of countries, which he later expanded. The ban cut families off from loved ones in Yemen, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria. Joe Biden pledged to end the ban on “Day one” of his presidency. […]
Trump’s Falsehoods about Election Fraud give Aid and Comfort to Russia, ISIL Extremists
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trump’s meltdown on Thursday evening in which he alleged a vast Democratic conspiracy to stuff ballot boxes and steal an election he believed himself to have won, along with the gun-toting, menacing MAGA crowds gathering outside vote-counting facilities, have embarrassed America before the world. Worse, they have given hope to […]