Latin America

After the Attempted Coup in Washington, Americans should rethink overthrowing other peoples’ Governments

Greenville, SC (Special to Informed Comment) – Now that the disastrous Trump presidency is over, there is much hope placed in Joseph Biden. But it may be misplaced if the American people do not reckon with themselves. We all hated the images from the Washington Capitol a few days ago, and we heard words like […]

Brazil

How the son of a Lebanese Migrant and Street Sweeper became Brazil’s first Muslim Federal Judge

Middle East Monitor

By Eman Abusidu | – ( Middle East Monitor ) – Ali Mazloum is one of millions of migrants whose story illustrates the determination and success of so many Lebanese refugees. When his father Mohammed arrived in Brazil in 1950, he could never have known that his son would one day become a federal judge. […]

Donald Trump

Iran sends Oil, Gas Flotilla to Venezuela; will Trump attack it to Sabotage Biden?

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Bloomberg reports that a flotilla of ten Iranian vessels is heading for Venezuela. They have turned off their shipboard Automatic Identification System, or AIS, so that US signals intelligence cannot find them easily. The ships typically go around the Cape of Good Hope and then head northwest to Caracas. Will […]

Crime

Wagging the Dog: As Trump and Iran square off on Venezuela Oil Shipments, will US Go full Pirate of the Gulf?

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trita Parsi writing at Responsible Statecraft wonders if the Trump administration is planning to widen its piracy against Iranian vessels on the high seas as part of an October surprise. Trump had four Iranian oil tankers seized in August, alleging that they were heading for Venezuela. The problem? There is […]

Brazil

Not a Hoax After All: Macho Coronavirus Denialists Donald Trump and Brazil’s Bolsonaro were Exposed at Mar-a-Lago

Tori Avila

Sao Paulo (Special to Informed Comment) – Last weekend, President Donald Trump met with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for a private dinner in Mar-a-Lago, his personal residence in Palm Beach, Florida. It turns out to have been less a state dinner and more a disease vector. Ironically, both leaders had stubbornly refused to acknowledge the […]

Climate Crisis

The Contribution of Indigenous People to Fighting Climate Change is Hanging by a Thread in Bolivia

The Conversation

By Iokiñe Rodríguez and Mirna Inturias | – Earth’s forests oxygenate the atmosphere and store vast quantities of planet-warming carbon dioxide (CO₂). But research suggests that the health of these vast ecosystems in large part depends on the work of indigenous people. Indigenous territories and protected areas cover 52% of the Amazon forest and store […]

Brazil

Soleimani’s Killing is a Global Event: Brazil’s Politicians, Oil Markets Shaken by Mideast Instability

Tori Avila

Sao Paulo (Special to Informed Comment) – Recently, after the American military action that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Bagdad, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said that “Brazil supports any action against terrorism around the world, and so should the entire international community”, and also that “the country has absolutely no intentions to take advantage […]

Brazil

Statistic of the decade: The massive deforestation of the Amazon

The Conversation

By Liberty Vittert | – This year, I was on the judging panel for the Royal Statistical Society’s International Statistic of the Decade. Much like Oxford English Dictionary’s “Word of the Year” competition, the international statistic is meant to capture the zeitgeist of this decade. The judging panel accepted nominations from the statistical community and […]

Brazil

Beef and Oil: Are Brazil’s Bolsonaro and Saudi’s MBS a Match Made in Heaven?

Tori Avila

By Vitoria Avila Fioravanti | – Sao Paulo (Special to Informed Comment) – Beef, oil and veiling and a murdered journalist have catapulted the burgeoning relationship between Brazil and the controversial Kingdom of Saudi Arabia into the headlines for the first time this fall, though the two countries have had formal diplomatic relations since 1968. […]