Economy

The evidence of income inequality just keeps mounting. According to “Working for the Few,” a recent briefing paper from Oxfam, “In the US, the wealthiest one percent captured 95 percent of post-financial crisis growth since 2009, while the bottom…

Dissent

The Limits of ‘Protest Tourism’ in the Israeli-Occupied West Bank

Juan Cole

(By “Jill Saunders”) “Jill Saunders”, a pseudonym, frequently attends the weekly demonstrations in the Palestinian village of Nabi Saleh. In this reflective piece, “Jill” questions the very idea of ‘protest tourism’ in the West Bank. The wind from the open window blows dusty air across my face as our minibus winds down the roads from […]

Economy

High Inequality Results in More US Deaths than Tobacco, Car Crashes and Guns Combined

Juan Cole

In 2009, the British Medical Journal (BMJ) published a study that revealed what seems to be a shocking truth: those who live in societies with a higher level of income inequality are at a greater risk for premature death. Here in the United States,…

Dissent

The New 1% isn’t just the Rich, it is the Spoiled Oligarch Heirs (Krugman)

Juan Cole

Bill Moyers interviews Paul Krugman Blurb: ” Capital in the Twenty-First Century by Thomas Piketty, a 42-year-old who teaches at the Paris School of Economics, shows that two-thirds of America’s increase in income inequality over the past four decades is the result of steep raises given to the country’s highest earners. This week, Bill talks […]

Africa

Kenya’s Green Economy will Generate $45 Billion by 2030, Build Climate Resilience and Boost Food Security

Juan Cole

(UNEP) Nairobi, April 2014 – Kenya’s transition to a green economy could produce major economic benefits – equivalent to an estimated USD 45 billion by 2030 – as well as greater food security, a cleaner environment and higher productivity of natural resources, according to a new study launched Tuesday by the Government of Kenya and […]

Economy

9 Maps that Show How The GOP is Destroying Southern States

Juan Cole

Whenever we need a perfect example of Americans who have no clue what is in their best interest, we need only look to the south. Yes, there are some great people there–and no, not everyone is ignorant. However, red state voters regularly eschew logic…

Economy

Who Rules America Today? – Domhoff

Juan Cole

Talk by G. William Domhoff: Who Rules America Today? h/t G. William Domhoff

Economy

8 Plutocrats out-earned 3.6 mn Working Poor & 7 Other Headlines You won’t see in MSM

Juan Cole

(By Paul Buchheit) The following are all relevant, fact-based issues, the "hard news" stories that the media has a responsibility to report. But the business-oriented press generally avoids them. 1. U.S. Wealth Up $34 Trillion Since Recession. 93% of You Got Almost None of It. That's an average of $100,000 for every American. But the […]

Climate Change

Tutu: Climate Crisis Demands we Boycott Big Oil just as we Boycotted Apartheid

Juan Cole

(By Jon Queally) Nobel laureate says ‘people of conscience’ must break ties with oil and gas companies that are destroying planet’s future. Archbishop of South Africa and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Desmond Tutu is saying their is no longer any excuse for not doing everything humanly possible to fight climate change and called on Thursday […]