Authoritarianism

By Mehmet Ugur | ( OpenDemocracy.net) | – – Let us stop pretending otherwise: Turkey is now under a dictatorial regime established step by step under the gaze of, and with tacit support from western governments and institutions. Kurdish and democratic forces within the country are paying a heavy price, not only because of the […]

Authoritarianism

Save America from Trump to fix America, or, Did your Mother Drop you on Your Head?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – When I trained as a lifeguard they warned us that you have to be very careful how you approach a drowning victim flailing around. They will be so happy to be rescued that they will grab you and pin your arms and freeze up, and then […]

Authoritarianism

N. Dakota Judge Laughs Riot Charges against Amy Goodman out of Court

contributors

TeleSur | – – A state prosecutor had sought to charge Goodman with participating in a “riot” for filming an attack on protesters. A North Dakota judge has dismissed the “riot” charges against Amy Goodman for covering the Dakota Access pipeline protests, Democracy Now! confirmed Monday. “This is a complete vindication of my right as […]

Authoritarianism

Partial Police? Uniformed Texas Officers Wear Trump Hats

contributors

By TeleSur | – – A dozen police officers face “benign” discipline after they appeared with Donald Trump while sporting his “Make America Great Again” caps in uniform. More than a dozen San Antonio police officers in uniform wore U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” hats during his stop in Texas […]

Authoritarianism

“This Parrot is no More”: The 2016 Presidential Election did not Take Place

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) The French sociologist and philosopher Jean Baudrillard wrote a book in 1991 entitled The Gulf War did not Take Place . In the same way, the 2016 presidential election did not take place. Baudrillard did not mean to say, of course, that no war was prosecuted by the US […]

Authoritarianism

Endangering the Planet: Populist New Right opposes Climate Action as much as Immigration

contributors

By Michael T. Klare | ( Tomdispatch.com | – – In a year of record-setting heat on a blistered globe, with fast-warming oceans, fast-melting ice caps, and fast-rising sea levels, ratification of the December 2015 Paris climate summit agreement — already endorsed by most nations — should be a complete no-brainer. That it isn’t tells […]

Authoritarianism

Massive Brain Drain from Turkey begins in wake of Failed Coup, Crackdowns

contributors

By Ibrahim Sirkeci | (The Conversation) | – – On July 15, a group within the Turkish military staged a coup. It failed. But since then, the Turkish government has restricted rights and freedoms of its people. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has stepped up the pressure on Fethullah Gulen and his supporters. Gulen, a […]

Authoritarianism

Why Turkey wants to silence its academics

contributors

By Fatma Müge Göçek | (The Conversation) | – – After the July 15 coup attempt in Turkey, one of the first actions of the Turkish state and government was to purge thousands of academics and deans from office. In a crackdown that rapidly spread across civil and military services, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan […]

Authoritarianism

Purge of teachers and academics bulldozes through Turkish education

contributors

By Moritz Pieper | (The Conversation) | – – As news of the attempted military coup in Turkey unfolded, I was in Pennsylvania. Travelling in the US, I had coincidentally found myself in the home state of Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, who Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has singled out as the mastermind of the […]