Economy

( Foreign Policy in Focus) – Germany faces a major crisis. The German birth rate is considerably below what’s needed to replace the population. German seniors, meanwhile, are living longer and drawing more on state resources for their pensions and health care. There are basically two ways out of this demographic crisis. First of all, […]

Employment

Congress needs to pass Labor Laws Protecting Union Drives and right to Strike

OtherWords

By Rebekah Entralgo | – ( Otherwords.org) – Following one of the most high-profile union votes in history, workers at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama ultimately rejected efforts to form a union. But for labor advocates, this fight is far from over. “The Amazon workers who voted for a union in Bessemer are already […]

Democratic Party

The Real Morning in America: ~2/3s are Optimistic under Biden: majorities want Gov’t to fix the Economy and blame GOP for Obstruction

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – A new ABC News/ Ipsos poll finds that 64% of Americans are optimistic about the next twelve months. It is the first time we have felt that way about ourselves since before George W. Bush crashed the economy by deregulating everything. “Morning in America” was the slogan of the minor […]

Epidemics

Pfizer and Big Pharma need to waive Patents on Covid-19 Vaccine to Save the World

John Buell

Southwest Harbor, Maine (Special to Informed Comment) – It is a familiar story. A Pharma giant sells life- saving vaccine , which costs no more than 7 dollars a dose, to most nations at almost 20 dollars per shot. Knowing that unseemly profits in the midst of a global pandemic may elicit outrage and perhaps […]

Inequality

Just how Bold is Biden’s Plan to Pay for Infrastructure by Making Rich Pay their Fair Share?

Sam Pizzigati

( Inequality.org) – President Joe Biden has made no secret of his admiration for Franklin D. Roosevelt. He’s even given a painted portrait of FDR the most prominent place of honor in the White House Oval Office. A bit more significantly, Biden has just announced the most ambitious gameplan — since FDR’s New Deal — […]

Investment

Don’t Let Wall Street Get Rich Speculating on our Water

Jim Hightower

( Otherwords.org ) – Shameless speculators are trying to privatize and commoditize the water all humans need to live. By Jim Hightower | April 28, 2021 Oh great — here comes a new stealth attack on the fragile, life-sustaining natural resources of Planet Earth. This latest assault by Wall Street alchemists would redefine one of […]

African-Americans

Systemic Racism won’t End with One Trial, But Biden-Harris can enlist Government in addressing Economic Inequality at its Root

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – African-Americans face aggressive policing in part because, on average, they lack resources. Household wealth allows a family to donate to political campaigns, to ensure a good education for their children, and to join influential civic clubs and organizations. The Center for American Progress reports that in 2019, before the distortions […]

Feminism

Blocked from Civil Dissent, Women in Saudi Arabia are turning to business as ‘quiet’ Feminist activism

The Conversation

By Sophie Alkhaled | – Prominent Saudi women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul was released from prison on February 10 2021 after 1,001 days in custody. Al-Hathloul, a leading campaigner for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, had been sentenced to five years and eight months in prison in 2018 for pushing a foreign agenda and using […]

Employment

For Workers struggling to Unionize at Amazon, it is a Matter of Life and Death

John Buell

Southwest Harbor, Maine (Special to Informed Comment) – That unions lost the battle to organize Amazon’s Bessemer, Alabama plant should and did come as no surprise. The workers were up against one of the world’s most affluent and powerful corporations. Yet despite the 2 to 1 loss, the organization effort did help to reveal Amazon’s […]