Donald Trump

Southwest Harbor, Maine (Special to Informed Comment) – Centers for Disease Control guidelines on testing in the midst of the Covid19 pandemic have once again become a subject of attention and controversy. CNN summarizes the change: “The CDC, changing its Covid-19 testing guidelines, no longer recommends testing for most people without symptoms, even if they’ve […]

Authoritarianism

Trump’s Postmaster General Should Be Returned to Sender before Democracy Dies

OtherWords

By James E. Varner| – ( Otherwords.org) – President Trump’s postmaster general, Louis DeJoy, recently testified before Congress about major slowdowns in mail delivery under his watch. As a 20-year postal veteran, I had only one reaction: DeJoy needs to be Returned to Sender. DeJoy, a Trump fundraiser who owns millions worth of stock in […]

Donald Trump

Iraqi Shiite Militias 1, Trump 0: US Forced to Reduce its Presence by 1/3

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Iraqis aren’t sure what to make of the report on Friday in the Wall Street Journal that the US military will reduce its troop presence by a third by November. The numbers will fall from 5200 to 3500 this fall. Athir Shar’ in Kitabat suspects that even the withdrawal aims […]

Donald Trump

A Parable for Trump’s America: The Mulla’s Snake and the Village of Nescience

Bahman Fozouni

Sacramento (Special to Informed Comment) – In pre-revolution Iran during the mid-1950s, an elementary school textbook had a parable about an illiterate mullah. He ran the village maktab (religious school) teaching the children how to memorize and recite the holy Koran. Since the villagers were illiterate, their collective nescience made life comfortable for the mullah. […]

China

When is China-Bashing Racist?

Martin Powers

Ann Arbor (Special to Informed Comment) – On the left, there is widespread agreement that Trump’s immigration policies are informed by white supremacist doctrines. His travel ban on Middle Eastern nations was racially charged, not to mention restricting aid to Puerto Ricans ravaged by a hurricane. Combined with the utter absence of sympathy for families […]

Donald Trump

How Trump brought us 11.1% Unemployment, lost Manufacturing Jobs, worsened Trade Deficits and Kowtowed to China

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trump supporters often acknowledge that Trump’s personal style puts them off, but that they like his economic program. They agree that the trade deficit with China is too high and that the US should not let its manufacturing sector dwindle. The problem is that Trump’s rhetoric on those issues, like […]

Donald Trump

Trump’s Foreign Policy of ‘America First’ often leaves the US on the Sidelines

The Conversation

By Klaus W. Larres | – At the Republican National Convention, supporters of President Trump’s reelection bid have celebrated his attempts to build a Mexico border wall, his promise to “bring our troops home” and his pledge to end U.S. “reliance on China.” All are components of the “America First” agenda Trump ran on in […]

Donald Trump

How our TV News is letting Trump get away with Claiming the Pandemic is Behind Us when we have a 9/11 every 3 Days

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Republican National Convention wants the pandemic to be in the past. It isn’t. Cases are up almost 1 percent this week. We still have over 40,000 new cases daily, down from a peak of 70,000 in mid-July. Some of the decline is a result of less testing, connived at […]

African-Americans

Presidents have a long history of condescension, indifference and outright racism towards Black Americans

The Conversation

By Stephen A. Jones qnd Eric Freedman | – The fury over racial injustice that erupted in the wake of George Floyd’s killing has forced Americans to confront their history. That’s unfamiliar territory for most Americans, whose historical knowledge amounts to a vague blend of fact and myth that was only half-learned in high school […]