International Politics and Economy

By Phyllis Richardson | – ( Otherwords.org ) – Last November, despite a global pandemic, voter intimidation, and an unprecedented disinformation campaign, a record number of Americans cast a ballot in the 2020 election. Expanded voting by mail, no-excuse absentee voting, curbside voting, and early voting made the ballot box more accessible. But now, Republican […]

Corruption

Could Dominion and Smartmatic take down Fox News for Libel and Reckless Disregard for the Truth?

The Conversation

By Nancy Costello | – Free speech advocates have long believed that suing a news organization threatens free speech. Democracy needs a press to be free to report, without fear or favor, the facts as it sees them. But recent legal actions against news organizations indicate that the First Amendment provides sufficient free speech protection, […]

Democracy

Ten years after the Arab Spring, Libya has another chance for peace

The Conversation

By Brian McQuinn | – Ten years ago, the United Nation’s no-fly zone over Libya marked the beginning of the Libyan revolution and the West’s bombing campaign. I spent much of the war embedded with the fighters in Misrata, Libya’s third-largest city, studying the insurgency. The fighting stopped with the death of Col. Moammar Gadhafi, […]

Peace

In honor of St.Patrick at Lough Derg: In search of Tolerance and Kindness

contributors

By Hugh Curran | – (Special to Informed Comment) – St.Patrick’s Purgatory at Lough Derg was first written about in the 11th century as one of the most rigorous pilgrimages in Europe. Our small family went there for a three-day retreat and given only bread and water while having to walk in bare feet throughout […]

Democracy

Sudan’s Progressive, Secular Revolutionary Government faces Food Riots and Ethnic Violence

The Conversation

By Andrew E. Yaw Tchie | – Sudan’s political transition is in a precarious phase. Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s government is facing a wide variety of challenges, including protests over the price of goods and commodities, and a resurgence of violence in the country’s Darfur region. If the situation continues to unravel, the country could […]

Drones

Not Targeted or Bloodless: Why We Need an International Convention on Drones

Conn M. Hallinan

( Foreign Policy in Focus) – In the aftermath of the recent war between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, drone warfare is being touted as the latest breakthrough in military technology, a “magic bullet” that makes armored vehicles obsolete, defeats sophisticated anti-aircraft systems, and routs entrenched infantry. While there is some truth in […]

Democracy

Why Tunisians are still out on the streets — a decade after the Arab Spring

The Conversation

By Saerom Han, Andrea Teti, and Pamela Abbott | – It has been 10 years since nation-wide protests in Tunisia led to the ousting of Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and his regime. Ben Ali led Tunisia for 23 years. Tunisia’s “Dignity Revolution” marked the first time a long-standing Arab autocrat was removed […]

Elections

Will this month’s Israeli election end the Netanyahu era?

Middle East Monitor

By Ali Abu Hableh | – ( Middle East Monitor) – Due to right-wing domination, Israelis find themselves approaching the General Election this month with little real electoral choice. The various right-wing parties reflect the fragmentation on the right and the minor differences between them in terms of government priorities. Only Haredi Jews appear to […]

Arms Sales

Failing Upward: Pentagon’s more and more Expensive Boondoggles (that don’t even work)

William J. Astore

( Tomdispatch.com) – Cancel culture is a common, almost viral, term in political and social discourse these days. Basically, somebody expresses views considered to be outrageous or vile or racist or otherwise insensitive and inappropriate. In response, that person is “canceled,” perhaps losing a job or otherwise sidelined and silenced. In being deplatformed by Twitter, […]