Monthly Archives: March 2021

2021-03-11: News Headlines

John McEvoy (2021-03-11). UN Rebuke of US Sanctions on Venezuela Met with Stunning Silence. globalresearch.ca Alena Douhan (image below), the UN special rapporteur on the negative …

RT (2021-03-11). Texas governor brands Gab 'anti-Semitic platform', company's CEO points out Texas GOP is among its users. rt.com Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott waded into controversy by branding Gab, a minimum-moderation alternative to Twitter, an anti-Semitic platform. The problem is, the Texas GOP joined Gab in late January. | Abbott's attack against Gab came out of the blue. A short video clip posted by the governor's social media account shows him flanked by representatives Phil King and Craig Goldman, sitting against a backdrop of the flags of the US, Israel, and Texas. | @PhilKingTX & @GoldmanCraig's bill to fight anti-Semitism in our communities.

Alex MacDonald (2021-03-11). Iraq: Anger over killing of father of disappeared anti-government activist. middleeasteye.net Iraq: Anger over killing of father of disappeared anti-government activist | Jasb Hattab Aboud had been an outspoken voice in campaigning for his missing activist son | Thu, 03/11/2021 – 08: 18 | A social media picture of Jasb Hattab Aboud (Twitter) | The assassination of the outspoken father of an activist who disappeared during Iraq's 2019 anti-government protests has sparked outrage in the co…

Special to People's World (2021-03-11). Kroger closes grocery stores to avoid COVID hazard pay for workers. peoplesworld.org LOS ANGELES—One of the most profitable corporations in the United States is threatening grocery workers' jobs in response to a new coronavirus-era hazard pay requirement. Reacting to a near-unanimous vote by the Los Angeles City Council requiring large grocery and drug chains to offer their front-line essential workers an additional $5 per hour for the …

RT (2021-03-11). GOP senator ridiculed for taking credit for provision of Covid-19 relief bill he did NOT vote for, says he's 'entirely consistent'. rt.com Republican Senator Roger Wicker has taken heat online after he took credit for championing direct aid to the restaurant industry. The problem is, the assistance is included in a $1.9 trillion Covid-19 package that he opposed. | Wicker has been accused of trying to score political points on the back of the mammoth Covid-19 relief package passed by Congress on Wednesday after a drawn-out debate. The House voted predominantly along party lines, with Democratic Representative Jared Golden of Maine siding with all 210 Republicans to oppose the bill. | Shortly after the legislation was approved, Wicker extolled the…

RT (2021-03-11). 'The dysfunction goes up to Cuomo': Whistleblower says NY gov's order created Covid deathtraps at disabled group homes. rt.com New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is facing even more scrutiny as reports reveal group homes for developmentally disabled individuals were ordered by the state to accept positive Covid-19 patients, possibly leading to thousands of cases. | Of the nearly 35,000 people living in New York's group homes for disabled individuals, 552 have died from Covid-19 since last year and over 6,000 residents and workers have been infected with the virus, according to the New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD). | Many are now pointing to an April 10 directive from the Cuomo administration, which is s…

RT (2021-03-11). Michigan health department hit with lawsuit over its refusal to share nursing home data amid comparisons to Cuomo's cover-up. rt.com A local reporter is suing Michigan's health department after it denied repeat requests for its nursing home data amid the Covid-19 outbreak, piling pressure on the government as lawmakers demand a probe into its pandemic response. | Journalist Charlie LeDuff launched a "Not only does…

RT (2021-03-11). Biden signs 'historic' $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, promises answers to press later. rt.com US President Joe Biden has signed the coronavirus relief bill, clearing the way for some Americans to get a one-time $1,400 check and giving billions to a number of other policy priorities. He left without taking questions. | In a brief photo opportunity at the White House on Thursday afternoon, Biden called the American Rescue Plan a "historic legislation" that is about "rebuilding the backbone of this country," and said it had broad support among all Americans. | He told the reporters gathered at the Oval Office that he will have "a lot more to say" in his address to the nation scheduled for Thursday evening…

RT (2021-03-11). Covid has left Americans stressed, drinking more, sleeping less, and struggling with weight issues, psychologists say. rt.com A year of living through Covid has left many Americans drinking more, struggling with their weight and sleeping less — and parents, key workers, the young, and people of color are feeling the stress more. | The findings are detailed in a survey released on Thursday by the American Psychological Association (APA), which finds that Americans have been through a collective trauma that will adversely affect their physical and mental health for years to come. | The APA reported that 61% of Americans have experienced undesired changes in their weight since the pandemic started, gaining more than 13kg on averag…

Staff (2021-03-11). U.S. & Other Wealthy Nations Block Effort to Waive Vaccine Patent Rights in Blow to Global South. democracynow.org The United States and other wealthy members of the World Trade Organization have blocked a push by dozens of developing countries to waive patent rights in an effort to boost production of COVID-19 vaccines for poor nations. The proposal by South Africa and India was supported by hundreds of civil society organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, Oxfam and Amnesty International. Without the waiver, vaccine production will remain in the hands of only a few pharmaceutical companies. "Millions of us are basically going to have to wait for a vaccine, putting global immunity, as well as regional immunity, part…

MEE staff (2021-03-11). Covid-19: US, UK and EU's excess vaccines enough for 20 crisis-stricken countries. middleeasteye.net Covid-19: US, UK and EU's excess vaccines enough for 20 crisis-stricken countries | As many as 46 million people aged over 60 in these countries unlikely to be vaccinated this year, a new IRC report says | Thu, 03/11/2021 – 16: 31 | Israel has been accused of "vaccine apartheid" in the occupied Palestinian territories (AFP) | The number of excess Covid-19 vaccines secured by the United States, the United Kingd…

Ramzy Baroud (2021-03-11). Palestinian Elections Under Fire: An Impossible Democracy Dilemma. mintpressnews.com Between the nightly raids and crackdowns by the Israeli military and the political intrigues within the divided Fatah movement, one wonders if the elections, if they take place, will finally allow Palestinians to mount a united front in the struggle against Israeli occupation.

Chuck Collins — Omar Ocampo (2021-03-11). Frist Family Leads Pandemic Profiteer Parade in Health Sector. counterpunch.org Not everyone is suffering during the pandemic. The Frist family of Tennessee are the founders and biggest shareholders of Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), the largest for-profit hospital conglomerate in the U.S. Thomas F. Frist Jr. and his family have seen their personal wealth increase from $7.5 billion on March 18, 2020 to $15.6 billion

Rebecca Gordon (2021-03-11). Rethinking Employment in the Biden-Harris Era. counterpunch.org A year ago, just a few weeks before San Francisco locked itself down for the pandemic, I fell deeply in love with a 50-year-old. The object of my desire was a wooden floor loom in the window of my local thrift shop. Friends knowledgeable on such matters examined photos I took of it and assured

RT (2021-03-11). Disgraced establishment journalists, Big Tech attack independent platform Substack in ever-expanding definition of 'harassment'. rt.com Journalists, academics and even a Google executive have joined in to attack the independent publishing platform Substack, as the battle over 'harassment' of a New York Times reporter quickly escalated into a censorship war. | What began on Tuesday as an online campaign against Fox News host

RT (2021-03-11). Pelosi says Biden's 'humanitarian' approach to migration is based on 'love of children'. rt.com Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California) came to President Joe Biden's defense as a surge of unaccompanied minors have reached the border and the administration has been accused of not being able to handle the situation. | "I trust the Biden administration's policy to be based on humanitarian and love of children rather than political points or red meat for their — for their Republican base," Pelosi said at a Thursday press conference. | Comparing Biden's administration favorably to Trump's when it comes to border policy was a point she hit multiple times, and one that has been echoed by White Hou…

Staff (2021-03-11). Amazon worker in Bessemer: 'We gonna win'. therealnews.com Darryl Richardson, one of the 5,800 warehouse workers at the Amazon fulfillment center in Bessemer, Alabama, talks about working conditions at Amazon, and about the historic union election currently underway.

Workers World Party (2021-03-11). PDF of March 11 issue. workers.org Download the PDF. Release Mumia now! Workers are not robots ALSO: On the picket line Where has all the soil gone? Book ban challenged Support for #BAmazon grows Vaccine racism Buffalo antiwar action They're capitalists, not Neanderthals WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH: Breonna Taylor Khalida Jarrar Warehouse memoir EDITORIALS: The true Amazons . . . |

Staff (2021-03-11). Despite Immigration Pledges, Biden Admin Detains Thousands of Unaccompanied Migrant Children. democracynow.org The Biden administration is struggling to address the flow of migrant children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border without their parents, many fleeing extreme violence, poverty and natural disasters in their home countries of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. News reports show more than 3,500 children were detained at the border in just the first nine days of March, with many being held longer than the legal limit of 72 hours. "We can call it a crisis. We can call it a surge," says Aura Bogado, senior investigative reporter at Reveal. "What we shouldn't call it is a surprise."

Staff (2021-03-11). Cleared of Corruption Charges, Will Lula Challenge Bolsonaro in Brazil's 2022 Presidential Race? democracynow.org Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been cleared to run for office again after a judge annulled all convictions against him. Three years ago, Lula, a former union leader who served as president from 2003 to 2010, had been considered a favorite in the lead-up to the 2018 presidential election until he was jailed and forced out of the race on what many said were trumped-up corruption charges. Lula's jailing helped pave the way for the election of the far-right former military officer Jair Bolsonaro and constitutes "the biggest judicial scandal on Earth," says Valeska Martins, one of Lula's lead…

RT (2021-03-11). Candace Owens backs Piers Morgan, slams 'leftist narcissist' Meghan Markle & questions racism allegations. rt.com Conservative commentator Candace Owens tore into "narcissist" Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, following reports that she had made a formal complaint to ITV after comments Piers Morgan made about her mental health. | During a Wednesday appearance on Fox News with Sean Hannity, Owens claimed Morgan "was all of us when he was dressing down Meghan Markle and calling her out on the blatant lies that she's told." | Owens claimed Markle "can't even keep her story straight" and questioned how the press could take such a toll on the Duchess of Sussex's mental health when she previously claimed not to read it.

C.J. Atkins (2021-03-11). Neoliberalism's in trouble: A Marxist look at the American Rescue Act. peoplesworld.org After more than 40 years of dominating our economic and political life, the extreme free market capitalist ideology of neoliberalism is starting to show some serious cracks. "Trickle down" policies that have for decades shoveled money toward the top at the expense of the bottom are breaking down and giving way to a new willingness …

Alan MacLeod (2021-03-11). NATO video talks 'diversity, respect, embrace' but critics see through the wash job. mronline.org MR Online

Husayn Karimi, Hersch Rothmel (2021-03-11). St. Vincent nurses strike to demand safe staffing in Worcester, Mass. liberationnews.org On March 8, nurses launched an indefinite strike to demand safe staffing and more affordable healthcare at a time when nurse to patient ratios have increased.

John Wojcik (2021-03-11). Biden's Korea deal continues a dangerous U.S. foreign policy. peoplesworld.org Talks between the U.S. and South Korea are not encouraging to peace activists who want to see a new direction in U.S. foreign policy. It is clear that the Biden administration intends to continue keeping large numbers of troops stationed in that country, leaving unchanged a situation that has been going on since the Korean …

Chris Banks, S. Rodrigues (2021-03-11). Lula's right to run for president of Brazil restored in major victory for people's movement. liberationnews.org This week's legal breakthrough is a major step in wresting the country from the grips of Brazil's right wing elites.

Jonah Raskin (2021-03-11). Organic Farmer Bob Cannard Grows Vegetables, Not Marijuana, and He isn't Sorry. counterpunch.org If you want to know a place, get to know and listen to the folks who have been around for a long time, the people who have deep roots in a community, and yes in the soil itself. In Sonoma County there are several prime candidates: Mike Benziger, Phil Coturri and Bob Cannard, all of

Special to People's World (2021-03-11). African-American playwright August Wilson honored on 'forever' stamp. peoplesworld.org The 44th stamp in the Black Heritage series honors playwright August Wilson (April 27, 1945-October 2, 2005), the "the theater's poet of Black America," who brought fresh perspectives and previously unheard voices to the American stage. The stamp features an oil painting of Wilson based on a 2005 photograph. Behind Wilson, a picket fence alludes …

Zandile Bangani (2021-03-11). Wits University protest: 'There was no threat to shoot'. peoplesdispatch.org The killing of Mthokozisi Ntumba by the South African Police Services (SAPS) marred the protest at the University of the Witwatersrand over financial exclusion. Ntumba, who wasn't part of the march, was killed when police shot without warning in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. It is unclear at this point whether they used live rounds or rubber bullets. | Minutes before he was killed, Ntumba had seen his doctor, Tebogo Sedibe, at the Myclinic Jorissen Medical Centre in Braamfontein. Sedibe, who was seeing another patient, did not witness the shooting but heard gunshots. "My assistant came through to ask me to help out…

Prensa Latina (2021-03-11). Displaced persons return home in Latakia, Syria. mronline.org Thousands of people displaced in the last eight years have returned to their towns liberated from terrorism in the coastal region of Latakia province, 337 kilometers north-west of Damascus.

Dan Beeton (2021-03-11). How a Colombian Ex-President Went to Bat for Trump in Florida. cepr.net Latin Americans are used to the US government interfering in their politics. Over the years, the US has helped orchestrate a number of coups throughout the hemisphere, most notoriously the 1954 ouster of Guatemala's Jacobo àÅrbenz, and the 1973 military coup against Chile's Salvador Allende. But there are far more recent examples of meddling, including …

Eds. (2021-03-11). Top Pentagon commander requests astronomical sum of money to prepare for war with China. mronline.org A new U.S. war with China would threaten the world with unthinkable destruction. The danger of such a war cannot be ignored, it must be resisted.

Shabbir Manjee (2021-03-11). Hunger strike against General Iron ends with protests outside Chicago mayor's home. liberationnews.org General Iron currently operates in an affluent Northside neighborhood but has requested a permit from the city of Chicago to move their operations to a predominantly Latino neighborhood on the Southeast Side of Chicago.

Staff (2021-03-11). Lorraine Hansberry and Gwendolyn Brooks: Darlings of the white liberal establishment? therealnews.com On the 62nd anniversary of the Broadway premiere of Lorraine Hansberry's "A Raisin in the Sun," Dr. West and Professor Rose reflect on the Black literary tradition as they focus on the legacies of Lorraine Hansberry and Gwendolyn Brooks as revolutionaries and exemplars who are often misunderstood as the "darlings of the white liberal establishment."

Danny Haiphong (2021-03-11). Anti-Asian racism never stopped being an outgrowth of U.S. imperialism. mronline.org MR Online

Jonah Raskin (2021-03-11). Organic Farmer Bob Cannard Grows Vegetables, Not Marijuana, and He isn't Sorry. counterpunch.org If you want to know a place, get to know and listen to the folks who have been around for a long time, the people who have deep roots in a community, and yes in the soil itself. In Sonoma County there are several prime candidates: Mike Benziger, Phil Coturri and Bob Cannard, all of them men of the soil who collectively grow marijuana, grapes, fruits and vegetables.

Ed Rampell (2021-03-11). At PAFF: Nate Parker's 'American Skin' plus Angela Davis. peoplesworld.org The undaunted 29th Pan African Film Festival kicked off on the last day of Black History Month and runs through March 14. I am a big fan of the work by actor/director/writer Nate Parker, which powerfully expresses Black consciousness and militancy in movies such as 2012's Red Tails about the heroic Tuskegee Airmen who were …

The Conversation (2021-03-11). City of lost mosques: how Suzhou tells the story of China's Islamic past. juancole.com By Alessandra Cappelletti | — The labyrinth of alleys and lanes in the old city of Suzhou hides a secret: historical fragments of the long history of Islam in China. Regular stories in the international press highlighting the treatment of Muslims in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region tend to obscure the fact that Islam was …

Manuel García, Jr. (2021-03-11). Some Thoughts About My Cuba. counterpunch.org This is a stream-of-consciousness outpouring of my thoughts and memories and learning of Cuba, without any additional research, or "fact checking," because I am sure whatever details I may have "wrong" are inconsequential to the truth of my testimony. And besides, I'm in my "don't give a fuck what you think of me" senior years.

Ramzy Baroud (2021-03-11). Ready to Work with Netanyahu: Mansour Abbas Splinters Arab Vote in Israel. counterpunch.org As Israel readies for its fourth general elections within two years, scheduled for March 23, Israel's Palestinian Arab voters seem to be in a position of power, slated to become the kingmaker in the country's future coalition government. But something peculiar has happened. The Joint List, which has successfully united the Arab vote in Israel in previous elections, suffered a major setback with the split of the United Arab List (Raam) on February 4.

Chauncey K. Robinson (2021-03-11). El proyecto de ley de inmigración de Biden se muestra prometedor. peoplesworld.org El gobierno de Biden ha presentado un nuevo y amplio proyecto de ley de inmigración que contrasta con los cuatro años de ataques de Donald Trump contra los trabajadores indocumentados y sus familias. Muchos ven el nuevo proyecto de ley como un paso audaz hacia una mejor dirección, pero algunos activistas por los derechos de …

RT (2021-03-11). Michigan bill to require trans student athletes to compete under gender 'identified at birth' as 20 states mull similar laws. rt.com A Republican lawmaker in Michigan has unveiled legislation that would require transgender student athletes to play on teams that correspond to their gender as "identified at birth," mirroring bills proposed in 20 other states. | Introduced by GOP state Senator Lana Theis on Wednesday, the "Very simp…

RT (2021-03-11). Feminist author condemned as 'anti-woman' after claiming stay-at-home mothers are bad examples for children. rt.com Author and lawyer Jill Filipovic came under fire online after she seemed to imply that stay-at-home mothers were setting a bad example for their children by not working. | In response to a story published by Slate, featuring a letter from a man who didn't want his wife to become a stay-at-home mother, Filipovic published a long series of Twitter posts supporting the position. | "I would have a really, really hard time being married to a spouse who chose not to work," she wrote, before asking, "What example are you setting when dad works for pay and mom does the care work at home? Lots of reasons not to want to…

RT (2021-03-11). McConnell says Capitol security measures not warranted by any 'serious threats' & remind him of Kabul. rt.com Top GOP Senator Mitch McConnell has likened stepped-up security in the nation's capital to his trip to war-ravaged Afghanistan, arguing the measures are excessive and based on a non-existent threat to lawmakers. | "I'm extremely uncomfortable with the fact that my constituents can't come to the Capitol. With all this razor wire around the complex, it reminds me of my last visit to Kabul," the Kentucky senator told reporters on Wednesday, adding, "I just checked earlier this morning. There are no serious threats against the Capitol." | "I think we are continuing to overreact based on current threat levels… It…

RT (2021-03-11). Judge reinstates third-degree murder charge against Derek Chauvin over George Floyd death. rt.com Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is now facing an additional charge in his trial over the May 25 death of George Floyd, after Judge Peter Cahill reinstated a previously dismissed charge of third-degree murder. | The Hennepin County judge granted prosecutors' request to add the charge on Thursday, giving jurors more options when weighing the potential punishment for Chauvin over Floyd's death. The selection process for the jury will continue on Thursday. Five members have been seated thus far. | Chauvin is also being charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter. Prosecutors argue the former…

RT (2021-03-11). Sharon Osbourne decried as 'racist' after emotional showdown with co-host Sheryl Underwood over Piers Morgan support (VIDEO). rt.com Sharon Osbourne went ballistic after a tacit accusation of racism leveled by a fellow TV co-host. She demanded an explanation of how a personal dislike by a white person directed at a person of color is implied to be about race.

Emma Guy (2021-03-11). BBC attempts to 'modernise' leads to all white news board. thecanary.co As part of our A source at BBC News sent The Canary the image below of the new board as they were concerned with its…

Mike Garrity (2021-03-11). Cattle Grazing is the Real Cause of Aspen Decline in the West. counterpunch.org The Forest Service claims the recently withdrawn Middle Fork Henry's Aspen Enhancement project in Idaho's Caribou National Forest would have promoted the growth of more aspen. But aspen regenerates by putting out shoots, not through seeds, and it's extensively documented that the major cause of aspen decline in the West is cattle browsing and trampling the young aspen,

CP Editor (2021-03-11). Albatross Baby — GospelbeacH. counterpunch.org

Global Research News (2021-03-11). Selected Articles: March 11, 2011: Fukushima: A Nuclear War without a War. globalresearch.ca By

2021-03-10: News Headlines

Paul Dobson (2021-03-10). Venezuela Protests Biden's Extension of Executive Order 13692. zcomm.org The renewal flies in the face of recent recommendations from independent UN experts…

Online News Editor (2021-03-10). Cuba, Venezuela strengthen agri-food ties in face of sanctions. laprensalatina.com Havana, Mar 9 (efe-epa).- Cuba and Venezuela agreed on Tuesday to promote food sovereignty by expanding bilateral cooperation to the field of agri-food, which the governments of the countries say is one of the areas most affected by sanctions imposed by the United States. The agreements were signed within the framework of the XXI Cuba-Venezuela …

Online News Editor (2021-03-10). Venezuelans breathe huge sigh of relief after gaining TPS in US. laprensalatina.com By Ana Malaver Miami, Mar 9 (EFE).- "I'll finally get a good night's sleep," an Uber driver told Efe. "We won't have to leave now," a personal trainer added. Those comments reflect the enormous sense of relief experienced by hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan migrants this week after they became eligible to apply for temporary …

PSL Birmingham, Alabama (2021-03-10). A revolutionary driven by love for the people, Zack Patterson (1987-2021). liberationnews.org Zachary "Zack" A. Patterson, age 33, a three time war veteran, member of the Birmingham Branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, and our newest representative of the local Education Committee, died on Feb. 9, 2021. His life was taken as a result of the mental traumas inflicted on him by the U.S. imperialist …

Dan Corjescu (2021-03-10). Reason, Sociability, and Ethics. dissidentvoice.org Aristotle famously said that man was a social animal: Œ∂·ø∑ŒøŒΩ œÄŒøŒªŒπœÑŒπŒ∫œåŒΩ. He also strongly implied that what distinguished man from all other animals was his rationality. Today this description seems to make more sense than ever. Human beings, contrary to the contract theorists such as Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau, were never lone beings in search …

The Socialist Program (2021-03-10). In the News: The Role of Slave Labor in American Capitalism Before and After the Civil War. liberationnews.org This interview is an episode of The Socialist Program with Brian Becker, a podcast providing news and views about the world for those who want to change it. You can follow the show on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Nicole Roussell, Esther Iverem and Walter Smolarek discuss the …

B. R. Gowani (2021-03-10). Sahir at 100: Raising Socio-Political Awareness Through Poetry. counterpunch.org Sahir was a brilliant poet who devoted his poetry to raise awareness of the common folks to the reality of the prevailing social and political issues. His poignant and often heart wrenching words also echoed the intense love and loss of humans in relationships. His great and undying love for his mother created in him

_____ (2021-03-10). Nazi Healthcare Revived Across the Five Eyes: Killing Useless Eaters and Biden's COVID Relief Bill. strategic-culture.org The individual most responsible for reviving Obamacare and the associated "Independent Payment Advisory Board" of cost-effectiveness "experts" under Joe Biden is the same figure who crafted the original Affordable Care Act in 2009. | "The ill-conceived `love of thy neighbor' has to disappear, especially in relation to inferior or asocial creatures. It is the supreme duty of a national state to grant life and livelihood only to the healthy and hereditarily sound portion of the people in order to secure the maintenance of a hereditarily sound and racially pure folk for all eternity…" | — Dr. Arthur Guett, Na…

Rayhan Uddin (2021-03-10). Khashoggi documentary and Palestinian film nominated for BAFTAs. middleeasteye.net Khashoggi documentary and Palestinian film nominated for BAFTAs | Mauritanian Guantanamo detainee film also recognised, among surprisingly diverse shortlist for British award ceremony | Wed, 03/10/2021 – 14: 02 | Khashoggi murder documentary 'The Dissident', and British-Palestinian film about checkpoints earn BAFTA nominations (The Dissident/The Present) | A documentary about the murder of Saudi journ…

MEE staff (2021-03-10). Israel arrests imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque Ekrima Sabri. middleeasteye.net Israel arrests imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque Ekrima Sabri | Former grand mufti detained as he prepared his Friday sermon, says his wife | Wed, 03/10/2021 – 14: 34 | Ekrima Sabri is the former grand mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine, and the imam of the Al-Aqsa Mosque (Twitter)
| Israeli authorities on Wednesday arrested the imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Shiekh Ekrima Sabri, at his home in occupied East Jerusalem, his fa…

MEE staff (2021-03-10). Yahya Sinwar re-elected as Hamas chief in Gaza. middleeasteye.net Yahya Sinwar re-elected as Hamas chief in Gaza | Sinwar beat four other challengers to lead Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip | Wed, 03/10/2021 – 16: 00 | Yahya Sinwar has run the Gaza Strip since 2017 (AFP) | Yahya Sinwar was re-elected as the leader of Hamas's political wing in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, fending off a challenge from one of the groups' founders, the movement said in a statement. | "Yahya Sin…

Jomo Kwame Sundaram (2021-03-10). Prioritise pandemic relief, recovery: No time for debt buybacks. mronline.org Developing country governments are being wrongly advised to use their modest fiscal resources to pay down accumulated debt instead of strengthening pandemic relief and recovery. Thus, debt phobia risks deepening and extending COVID-19 recessions by prioritizing buybacks.

Rebecca Gordon (2021-03-10). Can Biden-Harris make a Counter-Revolution against Reaganism and Restore Dignity to Work? juancole.com ( Tomdispatch.com ) — A year ago, just a few weeks before San Francisco locked itself down for the pandemic, I fell deeply in love with a 50-year-old. The object of my desire was a wooden floor loom in the window of my local thrift shop. Friends knowledgeable on such matters examined photos I took …

Derek Ford (2021-03-10). "Coronacare Hawai'i" continues despite private security team's harassment. liberationnews.org Coronacare is a mutual aid network organizing to address the unmet needs of their community, whose conditions have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Their efforts this past year have focused on delivering food and household supplies to thousands of community members, including expecting mothers, elders, immunocompromised people, and other working families across the entire …

Eds. (2021-03-10). On Covid and the plague of Capital. mronline.org Industrial agriculture, habitat destruction, global commodity chains and the travel network have set up this perfect storm of conditions, not just for COVID, but also for future pandemics.

Ariel Bentes (2021-03-10). Abandoned by governments, Indigenous people create their own health post in Manaus. peoplesworld.org Manaus, Brazil (Feb. 26, updated March 4) — With the public health system collapsing and the oxygen crisis, Amazonas has had more than 290,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the second and worst wave of the pandemic. The crisis has dramatically affected the inhabitants of Park of Tribes, located in the urban zone of Manaus, …

Staff (2021-03-10). Brazil: Lula strikes back. therealnews.com In a huge win for the left and for democracy, Brazil's Supreme Court has annulled corruption convictions against former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, making it possible for Lula to challenge Jair Bolsonaro for the presidency in the next election.

RT (2021-03-10). Senate confirms Merrick Garland, once snubbed for Supreme Court, as Biden's attorney general. rt.com Merrick Garland, a federal judge whose nomination for the US Supreme Court was blocked by Republicans in 2016, was easily confirmed as President Joe Biden's attorney general in a 70-30 Senate vote. | Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), who led the effort to ignore President Barack Obama's nomination of Garland following the February 2016 death of Justice Antonin Scalia, was one of the votes in favor of confirming him as the new head of the Justice Department on Wednesday. | "I'm voting to confirm Judge Garland because of his long reputation as a straight shooter and a legal expert," McConnell said…

Staff (2021-03-10). Too Radical for Harvard? Cornel West on Failed Fight for Tenure, Biden's First 50 Days & More. democracynow.org The prominent scholar and activist Cornel West has announced he is leaving Harvard Divinity School after he was denied consideration for tenure, and will rejoin the faculty of Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where he started his teaching career more than 40 years ago. West had left Harvard once before in 2002 and returned to a nontenured position at Harvard in 2017. The news about the denial of West's request for tenure has led to an outpouring of support and incited conversation about diversity in academia. "There's too much Harvard dishonesty, too much Harvard hypocrisy, in terms of mistreating too…

Staff (2021-03-10). "A Big Deal": Bill McKibben on Rutgers Fossil Fuel Divestment & the Future of Climate Justice. democracynow.org Rutgers University has voted to begin divesting from fossil fuels, following a campaign by the student-organized Endowment Justice Collective that grew out of the Global Climate Strike in 2019. The organizing efforts led to a referendum vote in 2020 in which 90% of students supported divestment. About 5% of Rutgers's $1.6 billion endowment is invested in fossil fuels, and under the terms of the agreement, it will now cease new fossil fuel investment and divest from passive index funds with fossil fuel investments. It said it also plans to invest in renewable energy and energy efficiency and that the school's inve…

Staff (2021-03-10). In Rejection of Austerity, Democrats Push Forward Landmark $1.9 Trillion Relief Package. democracynow.org As President Joe Biden prepares to sign the sweeping $1.9 trillion COVID relief package into law, we speak with economist Stephanie Kelton, author of "The Deficit Myth," about how the bill could help cut child poverty in half and provide a historic economic boost to the poorest people in the United States. "This is a piece of legislation that recognizes the immense pain that exists all across this country, and it delivers help," says Kelton, a professor at Stony Brook University and former adviser to Bernie Sanders.

Jason Tschantre (2021-03-10). Detroit workers rally in support of Amazon unionization efforts. liberationnews.org In addition to their support for the Alabama Amazon workers, the protesters called attention to unsafe working conditions inside Detroit Whole Foods, where 24 workers contracted COVID-19 in late February.

Raul Diego (2021-03-10). Digital Health Pass: IBM and Moderna Hook Up to Capitalize on COVID Reset. mintpressnews.com Using what have already become clichéd industry buzzwords like "transparency," "trust," and even "privacy," IBM's Digital Health Pass marketing describes the mass tracking app as a "smart way to return to society" that allows people to "return to the activities and things they love."

Leila Rafei (2021-03-10). Meet the Activists Fighting to Free People from LA Jails. aclu.org Over the last year, the criminal legal system's many injustices dominated mainstream discourse as people took to the streets to grieve and protest the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor by police, and COVID-19 took a devastating toll on people in jails and prisons. These events galvanized many people into action — in the streets, at statehouses, and online — inspiring them to join activists who have challenged the criminal legal system's disproportionate and often tragic impact on communities of color.
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| One of the organizations at the forefront of this movement is the Youth Justic…

Staff (2021-03-10). Mumia has COVID-19, supporters demand his release. therealnews.com Mumia Abu-Jamal has been in prison since 1982. Already plagued by health issues, including hepatitis C, Mumia was diagnosed with COVID-19 last week, and supporters are demanding he be released.

RT (2021-03-10). 'Borat' star Sacha Baron Cohen gets called out as satire-blind comedian after demanding Facebook censor Bill Gates-vaccine joke. rt.com Sacha Baron Cohen, an actor known for satirical comedy, apparently couldn't spot the satire in an image portraying Bill Gates as a sinister vaccine conspirator and blasted Facebook for failing to censor the joke. | "Mark Zuckerberg, how do you sleep at night?" the "Borat" creator asked Tuesday on Twitter. "This is on Facebook's Instagram right now. Your algorithms are still recommending lies about Covid and vaccines. How many people have to die before you act?" | Mark Zuckerberg, how do you sleep at night? | This is on Facebook's Instagram right now. | Your algorithms are STILL recommending lies about Covid an…

Binoy Kampmark (2021-03-10). COVID-19 Vaccines, Access and the Intellectual Property Wars. counterpunch.org By now, anybody speaking about vaccine equality and equity of access must surely be coming across as slightly deranged. In the field of COVID-19, traditional proprietorial instincts remain. Add to this the disparity in terms of manufacture, bureaucracy and the nasty flavour of politics, and we would all be entitled to long draughts of cynicism.

MEE staff (2021-03-10). Israel's Netanyahu set to visit UAE on Thursday. middleeasteye.net Israel's Netanyahu set to visit UAE on Thursday | Trip marks first visit by Israeli prime minister since signing of a normalisation deal with the United Arab Emirates in September | Wed, 03/10/2021 – 14: 42 | Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a visit to a health centre in the Arab-Israeli village of Abu Ghosh near Jerusalem, as an Israeli citizen receives the Covid-19 vaccine (AFP) | Israeli Prime Minister Benj…

Betsey Piette (2021-03-10). Mumia has COVID-19 — the only treatment is his freedom! workers.org Word has come that Pennsylvania political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal has tested positive for COVID-19. Supporters learned of the diagnosis March 3, as they were gathered in front of the office of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner to call for Abu-Jamal's release and that of all incarcerated people over 50, who . . . |

Global Research News (2021-03-10). Selected Articles: The Collapse of Trust in Public Health. globalresearch.ca By Corporate news sources are reporting that Austria has suspended their roll-out of the experiment…

Jerry Goldberg (2021-03-10). Amazon pays little in taxes, makes record profits. liberationnews.org The union drive of Bessemer, Alabama, Amazon workers has shed the light on the oppressive, unsafe working conditions and low wages for Amazon workers at its warehouses, fulfillment centers and Whole Foods markets.

Prensa Latina (2021-03-10). Lula afirmó ser víctima de mayor mentira jurídica en Brasil. peoplesworld.org Brasilia, 10 mar (Prensa Latina) El expresidente Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva afirmó hoy que resultó víctima de la mayor mentira jurídica en 500 años de historia de Brasil, en su primer pronunciamiento tras la anulación de sus condenas. 'Sé que fui víctima de la mayor mentira jurídica contada en 500 años de historia (de …

Editor (2021-03-10). Migrant deaths: Who's the REAL culprit? workers.org It didn't have to happen. But, tragically, it did. And most likely, it may not be the last time. On March 2, 12 people were killed instantly when the SUV they traveled in was hit broadside by a tractor-trailer truck on a California highway. The accident happened on the outskirts . . . |

Eds. (2021-03-10). 100 days of revolt, & still raring to go. mronline.org As the farmers' protest against farm laws enters the summer season, they brave high temperatures and the paucity of basic necessities…

Kenneth Surin (2021-03-10). The Future of Gerrymandering in Virginia. counterpunch.org Indexes, such as the Democracy Index published by The Economist's Intelligence Unit, have to be taken with a grain of salt— one suspects that neoliberal western countries get a somewhat easier ride from The Economist. In any event, the Democracy Index is fraught with anomalies. In the 2020 Index, the US is ranked 25thout of

W. T. Whitney, Jr. (2021-03-10). Recurring political crisis in Haiti connects with U.S. racism. mronline.org Haiti faces serious political crisis. The country has experienced great political difficulties ever since gaining independent nationhood in 1804. Impaired governance stems in large measure from U.S. meddling over many years. We examine the current crisis and the basis for U.S. zeal to curtail Haiti's future.

Eugene Puryear (2021-03-10). Stimulus and struggle: Congress short-changes the working class. liberationnews.org The amended version of the Biden administration's stimulus plan was passed by the House of Representatives today, the last step before it goes to the president's desk to be signed into law. It took over two months to approve the bill which, by any measure, does not meet the scale of the grave economic and …

Ted Kelly (2021-03-10). Could depletion of fertile soil trigger a bigger U.S. food crisis? workers.org U.S. farmland in the Midwest has lost over one-third of the soil necessary to sustain crop production, according to scientists at University of Massachusetts, Amherst. The study concluded that fertile soil has been destroyed — not as a result of natural wind and water erosion, but by a century of . . . |

John Wojcik (2021-03-10). Portugal's Communists know how to party—and how to govern. peoplesworld.org When I was 19 and went to the Woodstock music festival in upstate New York, I thought I was at the ultimate festival—there had never been anything like it and never would be again, I was sure. Three years ago, however, I attended what had to be the greatest Communist festival in the world, the …

MEE staff (2021-03-10). Yahya Sinwar re-elected as Hamas chief in Gaza. middleeasteye.net Yahya Sinwar re-elected as Hamas chief in Gaza | Sinwar beat four other challengers to lead Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip | Wed, 03/10/2021 – 16: 00 | Yahya Sinwar (right) has run the Gaza Strip since 2017 (AFP) | Yahya Sinwar was re-elected as the leader of Hamas's political wing in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, fending off a challenge from one of the groups' founders, the movement said in a statement. | "Y…

Monica Moorehead (2021-03-10). One year after her death — Remembering Breonna Taylor. workers.org At first, few people knew of the heinous crime carried out by three white Louisville, Ky., police officers responsible for the murder of a 26-year-old African American emergency medical technician, Breonna Taylor, on March 13, 2020. Breonna Taylor was honored with a 7,000-square-foot mural in Annapolis, Md. Taylor . . . |

Ian Angus (2021-03-10). Intensive fishing and the birth of capitalism, Part 2. mronline.org While treasure fleets carried silver to Spain, far more ships were carrying men, fish and whale oil across the North Atlantic.

Greta Anderson (2021-03-10). Wolves Will be Wolves, So Let's Manage the Humans. counterpunch.org Let's start with some facts: 1) The majority of New Mexicans want to see Mexican wolves recovered. 2) Public lands livestock are a leading source of conflict for the wolf recovery program. 3) Livestock on public lands displace native wildlife through competition for food and driving them out of preferred habitats. 4) Public lands livestock

Dean Baker (2021-03-10). The Environment Versus How Many Jobs? counterpunch.org The Washington Post had an article on concerns among unions about job loss due to various measures from the Biden administration to promote clean energy. The article noted concerns that Biden's agenda may lead to the loss of good-paying jobs in the fossil fuel sector. It would have been helpful to point out how many

Deirdre Griswold (2021-03-10). Remembrances of a warehouse order picker. workers.org Think 1956. That's 65 years ago — the year this writer dropped out of college and took a full-time job in a warehouse to get a more important education: learning what it was to be a worker. Warehouse pickers. In these intervening years, millionaires have gone on to . . . |

Eds. (2021-03-10). Report: U.S. preparing cyberattack against Russia over SolarWinds hack. mronline.org Sources told The New York Times that the first major actions are expected sometime in the next three weeks.

Monica Moorehead (2021-03-10). One year after her death — Remembering Breonna Taylor. workers.org At first, few people knew of the heinous crime carried out by three white Louisville, Ky., police officers responsible for the murder of a 26-year-old African American emergency medical technician, Breonna Taylor, on March 13, 2020. Breonna Taylor was honored with a 7,000-square-foot mural in Annapolis, Md. Taylor was shot . . . |

Deirdre Griswold (2021-03-10). Remembrances of a warehouse order picker. workers.org Think 1956. That's 65 years ago — the year this writer dropped out of college and took a full-time job in a warehouse to get a more important education: learning what it was to be a worker. Warehouse pickers. In these intervening years, millionaires have gone on to become multimillionaires . . . |

Staff (2021-03-10). Bloody Sunday in the Philippines: 9 dead, 6 arrested in crackdown on activists. therealnews.com The killings came two days after President Rodrigo Duterte ordered police and soldiers to kill communist insurgents in all encounters.

Michael Berkowitz (2021-03-10). 'Blinding of Isaac Woodard': 1946 racist police violence case gets fresh attention. peoplesworld.org Writer-director Jamila Ephron's new PBS film The Blinding of Isaac Woodard shows how great consequences can be ignited by smaller acts. In this case, the small act was one of a history of cruel injustices. The consequence was a sea change in public opinion and a movement which shaped the future of a country. On …