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. […]
Archives for August 2020
‘Dying to fish’: How Israeli piracy destroyed Gaza’s once thriving fishing Industry, a Key Source of Protein
( Middle East Monitor) – On August 16, the Israeli navy declared the Gaza sea a closed military zone. A few days later, a group of Gaza fishermen decided to take their chances by fishing within a mere two or three nautical miles off the Gaza shore. No sooner had they cast their nets, Israeli […]
When is China-Bashing Racist?
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 […]
How Trump brought us 11.1% Unemployment, lost Manufacturing Jobs, worsened Trade Deficits and Kowtowed to China
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 […]
Trump’s Foreign Policy of ‘America First’ often leaves the US on the Sidelines
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 […]
COVID death Tolls are Horrific, but those of Global Heating are much Worse
By Soumya Sarkar | – ( TheThirdPole.net) – Unless the world curbs greenhouse gas emissions significantly, extreme heat could become a major global killer by the end of this century, equalling death rates for all infectious diseases combined, including tuberculosis, HIV and malaria. In the largest international study till now on health and financial impacts […]
Pakistan’s ‘Brotherly’ Ties With Saudi Arabia Hit ‘Rock Bottom’
By Frud Bezhan | – ( RFE/RL) – But the long-standing economic, political, and military ties between the South Asian state and the oil-rich Middle East kingdom have been based less on common values and more on transactions, experts say. Riyadh has provided huge financial support in the form of cheap oil and loans to […]
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
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 […]
“Unsurvivable Storm Surge”: Hurricane Laura Most Powerful to Hit Louisiana in Recorded History, driven by CO2 Emissions
[Hurricane “Laura” became nearly a category 5 with winds at 150 mph or more on Wednesday evening before landfall. A category 5 has winds of 157 mph. Hurricanes are more frequent and more powerful because of the climate emergency driven by humans burning fossil fuels and putting heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere. – ed.] By […]
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