International Politics and Economy

TeleSur | – – The western military bloc has been increasing its presence and activity around Russian borders. Polish President Andrzej Duda welcomed on Friday the decision of NATO to station a U.S. battalion in Poland to bolster the eastern flank of the military alliance, increasing troop numbers by up to 4,000. “We are pleased […]

Drones

US Claims 116 Killed in Drone Strikes, Critics Say 1,000

contributors

TeleSur | – – Human rights organizations argue the U.S. government has grossly underestimated the number of civilian deaths caused by drones. The United States government accepted responsibility Friday for inadvertently killing up to 116 civilians in strikes in countries where America is not at war, a major disclosure likely to inflame debate about targeted […]

Featured

Putin’s Winning Hand in Syria, as Turkey Apologizes and Obama Deals

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Vladimir Putin was the skunk at the party in the West after his annexation (or repossession, depending on how you look at it) of Crimea. Europe declared that borders cannot be changed by fiat or troops. The US pressed for heavy sanctions. The Russian intervention in […]

Campaign Finance

K Street is a 1-Party State: DC Corruption is a Feature, not a Bug

contributors

By Thomas Frank | (Tomdispatch.com) | – – Although it’s difficult to remember those days eight years ago when Democrats seemed to represent something idealistic and hopeful and brave, let’s take a moment and try to recall the stand Barack Obama once took against lobbyists. Those were the days when the nation was learning that […]

Dissent

Erdogan loses appeal against German media re: Comedian who Satirized him

contributors

By EurActiv.com with AFP Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan lost a German court battle against a top media boss when his appeal in a bitter row over free speech was thrown out. Erdoğan had sought a court order to stop the Axel Springer media group’s chief Mathias Doepfner from repeating support for a TV satirist […]

Corruption

Why don’t Technocrats think the cure for Iraqi Corruption more Democracy? It is Everywhere Else!

contributors

Usman W. Chohan | (The Conversation) | – – The tragedy of modern Iraq is often studied with a humanitarian, moral, religious, political or military lens, but fiscal perspectives are much harder to come by. In strong democracies, it is almost considered a given that a legislature helps oversee the budget, and its oversight supports […]

African-Americans

Other Acts of Terror get Media Anniversaries, but not White Terrorists like Dylann Roof

contributors

By Bryan van Hulst Miranda | ( TeleSur) | – – A year after Roof was charged over the mass-killing of nine Black people in an African Methodist church, it is worth remembering him for what he was. The domestic act of terror at a historic African-American Church in South Carolina on June 17, 2015, […]

Authoritarianism

The rise and fall of Turkey’s progressive opposition

contributors

By Nick Ashdown | ( OpenDemocracy) | – – Turkey’s pro-Kurdish opposition party, the HDP roared into parliament on the back of a rainbow coalition of alienated progressives and minorities. Now, armed conflict is pulling it back into the messy tangle of Kurdish politics. “It started like a forest fire,” said HDP deputy and honorary president Ertuğrul […]

Campaign Finance

Kochs’ Victory: House of Reps. Votes to Protect Anonymous ‘Dark Money’ Donors

contributors

TeleSur | – – The House of Representatives approved a bill that campaign finance refomers say will open the door to illegal influence on political campaigns. The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to protect the identities of wealthy individuals and others who make anonymous, or “dark money,” donations to politically active nonprofit […]