Daily Archives: May 21, 2021

2021-05-21: News Headlines

Sarah K Chynoweth, Monica A Onyango, Meghan C Gallagher, Sara E Casey (2021-05-22). [Correspondence] Women's and children's health in conflict settings: build on existing efforts. thelancet.com We commend the authors of the Lancet Series on Women's and Children's Health in Conflict Settings, particularly their call for greater political commitment to, and prioritisation of, women's and children's health (WCH) in conflict settings. At the same time, we are concerned about some of the claims and conclusions, including (1) a call for the formation of a new international technical advisory group with a mandate to critique and field-test a WCH framework,1 (2) that a priority predefined package of WCH services is not commonly agreed on and implemented in conflict settings,2 and (3) that there is no central re…

Sara Roy (2021-05-21). A Letter to Biden on Gaza. counterpunch.org I am writing to you about Gaza, a place that I have studied and written about for the last 35 years, a place that I consider another home, filled with the kindest and most generous people you will ever meet—have you ever been there? But I am writing not only as a scholar of the region but as a Jew and one whose parents survived Auschwitz.

Phyllis Bennis (2021-05-21). What Is the Biden Administration's Policy Towards Israel? commondreams.org "Beyond helping to end the devastation underway in Gaza, Biden could, in a minute, transform U.S. policy towards Israel and the Palestinians to one that actually reflects the human rights he claims are central to his foreign policy." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/joe_biden_8_2.jpg

Anonymous007 (2021-05-21). Bernie Sanders Introduces Resolution Blocking Weapon Sales To Israel, Is He A Nazi? southfront.org Click to see full-size image | On May 20th, US Senator Bernie Sanders introduced a resolution blocking a $735m US weapons sale to Israel."At a moment when U.S.-made bombs are devastating Gaza, and killing women and children, we cannot simply let another huge arms sale go through without even a Congressional debate," Sanders said. "I believe that the United States must help lead the way to a peaceful and prosperous future for both Israelis and Palestinians. We need to take a hard look at whether the sa…

Not One Nickel, Not One Dime (2021-05-21). 5/19/21 Call Congress to support AOC's Reso to Stop Weapons for Israel. indybay.org Now that we have protested, it is time to call Congress. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez has introduced a resolution to stop the sale of weapons to Israel. See www.commondreams.org/news/2021/05/19/ocasio-cortez-unveils-resolution-block-bidens-735-million-weapons-sale-israel There is no cease fire. Israel continues to bomb Gaza. See www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ex6SdT3N6g

Staff (2021-05-21). "We Want Real Dignity and Freedom": Gazans Welcome Ceasefire But Demand End of Siege & Occupation. democracynow.org In Gaza, thousands of people have taken to the streets to celebrate after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire, ending Israel's 11-day bombardment of the territory. At least 243 Palestinians, including 66 children, were killed in the airstrikes and bombings. Rockets fired from Gaza also killed 12 people in Israel. Raji Sourani, director of the Palestinian Center for Human Rights in Gaza, welcomes the ceasefire but stresses Palestinians demand more than just the end of bombing. "We need [the] end of occupation, end of the blockade, self-determination, independence, dignity and freedom," Sourani says. We also spe…

Staff (2021-05-21). Headlines for May 21, 2021. democracynow.org Israel and Hamas Agree to Gaza Ceasefire After 11 Days of Intense Fighting, U.N. Chief Decries "Hell on Earth" After Israeli Strikes Sever Power, Water and Sewer Lines in Gaza, WTO Chief Pushes European Officials to Drop Opposition to Patent Waiver for COVID Vaccines, New York Launches $5 Million Lottery Incentive to Get Vaccinated , South Korean President to Discuss Denuclearization and Vaccines at White House Meeting, ICE to End Contracts with Two County Jails Where Immigrants Faced Abuses, Salvadoran Officials Exhume Dozens of Women's Bodies on Property of Former Detective, Amnesty Calls for U.S. to Stop Selli…

Fight Back (2021-05-21). Minneapolis to protest the killings of over 200 Palestinians. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – On Saturday, May 22, at 3 p.m. in Bryant Square Park, (3101 Bryant Avenue S) in Minneapolis, protesters will stand in solidarity with Palestine. | Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been under siege for close to 15 years, and again, they are facing a criminal attack from the Israeli government and military. At least 231 Palestinians, including 65 children, have been killed there in the past 11 days, when Israel began its missile bombardment of the Strip. Palestinian health officials say 1700 Palestinians have been wounded. Over 1300 housing units have been completely demolished or severely dam…

Jill Richardson (2021-05-21). The Bigger Picture in Israel/Palestine. counterpunch.org Most of the news stories I see about Israel and Palestine focus on recent events. For example, in the latest violence, 213 Palestinians in Gaza are dead (including 61 children) plus another 16 in the West Bank — compared to about 10 Israelis (including two children). President Biden has "expressed support for a cease-fire" but

Staff (2021-05-21). Jailed at 14, Shot Dead at 17: The Story of Obaida Jawabra's Childhood Under Israeli Occupation. democracynow.org Israeli forces shot and killed Obaida Jawabra, a 17-year-old boy, earlier this week in the al-Arroub refugee camp located near the occupied West Bank city of Hebron. Obaida was shot in the chest, and witnesses say Israeli soldiers blocked an ambulance from reaching the teenager. He was taken to a local hospital by private car and later pronounced dead. Obaida, who was arrested by Israeli soldiers multiple times and featured in a 2019 short film, "Obaida," about Israeli soldiers detaining Palestinian children, is at least the fourth Palestinian teenager shot dead by soldiers in the occupied West Bank this year. Th…

Whitney Webb (2021-05-21). This Biden proposal could make the U.S. a "digital dictatorship" mronline.org A "new" proposal by the Biden administration to create a health-focused federal agency modeled after DARPA is not what it appears to be. Promoted as a way to "end cancer," this resuscitated "health DARPA" conceals a dangerous agenda. | May 21, 2021…

Staff (2021-05-21). Worker Co-ops vs COVID-19. therealnews.com We know that workers have been on the front lines of the pandemic, too often with no real say in the conditions they've had to face and the risks they've had to take. How would a more democratic economy respond to the current crisis?

Ken Silverstein (2021-05-21). Which Side Are You On? The Answer is Clear for Today's Useful Idiots for the Right. counterpunch.org In 2016 and 2020, Bernie Sanders, a self-described Democratic Socialist, was a viable candidate for the presidency of the United States. In a country where the left was systematically persecuted and whose intelligence services systematically persecute it abroad, such a development is significant and without precedent. Recent polls show half of millennials are well disposed

Ben Norton (2021-05-21). Chile shifts left to rewrite Pinochet-era constitution, as Goldman Sachs eyes its copper reserves. thegrayzone.com Ben Norton speaks with Chilean activist and politician Pablo Sepúlveda Allende about the historic May 15/16 elections in which left-wing and independent candidates won two-thirds of the seats for a convention to rewrite the constitution, which dates back to the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Sepúlveda Allende, a grandson of Chile's legendary socialist President Salvador Allende, also discusses Chile's enormous copper reserves, which are some of the largest in the world, and are now being targeted by US corporations, after …

Staff (2021-05-21). Above the Law? Review of Police Killing of Andrew Brown Jr. Demanded After DA Calls It Justified. democracynow.org We speak with Reverend William Barber, co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign and former head of the North Carolina NAACP, who is in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, to call for an expedited independent investigation into the police killing of Andrew Brown Jr., the 42-year-old Black father who was killed there last month by a bullet in the back of his head after seven deputies blocked him in his driveway while serving an arrest warrant. On Tuesday, the Pasquotank County district attorney announced a state investigation had found the officers who shot Brown were justified and will not face criminal charges. Barber…

Staff (2021-05-21). Rev. William Barber Calls for a "Third Reconstruction" to Lift 140 Million People Out of Poverty. democracynow.org Reverend William Barber, co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign and president of Repairers of the Breach, says the United States needs a "Third Reconstruction" aimed at lifting 140 million poor and low-income people out of poverty. Barber worked with Congressmembers Barbara Lee and Pramila Jayapal to unveil a congressional resolution for a Third Reconstruction this week, which includes measures to expand voting rights, implement immigration reform, raise the minimum wage, establish a federal jobs program and more. "There is not a scarcity of resources," says Barber. "What there is is a scarcity of social justice…

Paul Street (2021-05-21). From What to Why on the Trump Proletarian Narrative. counterpunch.org The wrongheaded but ubiquitous notion that the Republican Amerikaner Trump base is the (um, white) "working-class" drawn to "populism" has been disproven in study after study showing that the Trumpenvolk are relatively affluent, not proletarian and poor, and driven by an ugly, mutually reinforcing mixture of racism, sexism, nativism, fundamentalism, and authoritarianism. Those who have

Brenda Norrell (2021-05-21). Unauthorized COVID-19 tests given to Navajos, used in marketing campaign. indybay.org An unauthorized type of COVID-19 tests were given to Navajos and the information wad used in an online marketing campaign. The Navajo Council said the contract, which included services during First Lady Biden's visit, was never approved. Many Navajos are calling for a probe of how virus relief funds were distributed by the Navajo government.

Michael T. Klare (2021-05-21). The Good News with Green Energy is the end of Struggles for Oil; the Bad news? Struggle for Lithium. juancole.com (Tomdispatch.com ) — Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels …

José Manuel Blanco Diaz (2021-05-21). CNE Confirms Opening Date of Electoral Registry Ahead of 21N Regional Elections in Venezuela. orinocotribune.com With the approval of one thousand registry locations for the special day, the National Electoral Council (CNE) confirmed the approval of the opening of the Electoral Registry, between June 1 and July 15 of this year. | In this way, the electoral power will consolidate the data, by updating and registering new voters, in preparation for the regional and local elections scheduled for November 21 in Venezuela. | This was reported by the president of the CNE, Pedro Calzadilla, at the end of the board of directors' meeting. They defined the new steps to follow as part of the electoral schedule drawn up by the CNE auth…

Staff (2021-05-21). Biden Wants to Hire 87,000 Additional IRS Agents to Go After Wealthy Tax Dodgers. truthout.org The Biden administration is proposing hiring 87,000 new workers for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), effectively doubling the agency's size, as part of a plan to beef up enforcement efforts and find billions of dollars in tax revenues that go uncollected each year. | Enforcement efforts Th…

Anonymous007 (2021-05-21). "The Putin Pipeline Must Be Stopped": Senators Introduce Bill To Restore Nord Stream 2 Sanctions. southfront.org Fourteen Republican senators have submitted to the US Congress a bill designed to restore sanctions against companies involved in the…

Staff (2021-05-21). Dark Money Groups Are Pouring Untold Millions Into 2021 Redistricting Efforts. truthout.org How congressional districts are drawn can change political outcomes for a decade. But the redistricting process is opaque and open to the influence of a complicated network of " Redistricting is the process of redrawing the maps that decide the makeup of congressional and state districts. In

Derek Royden (2021-05-21). A progressive revival: Cleveland, Preston and municipal social democracy. nationofchange.org One of the progressive left's goals has to be to empower citizens and this is most easily done at the local level.

Pete Dolack (2021-05-21). The Fight for Independent, Non-Corporate Radio Flares Up Again. counterpunch.org Here we go again. Listener democracy at the Pacifica radio network is in deep jeopardy again because the same people who violently shut down WBAI in 2019 and forced an expensive referendum that was soundly defeated in 2020 have forced a second bylaws referendum. Having lost last year's referendum by a 2-to-1 margin — losing

MISH (2021-05-21). Congress Howls as Biden Kills Trump's Sanctions on Russia Gas Pipeline. globalresearch.ca Biden Ends Trump's …

Johanna Kichton (2021-05-21). People's Action Rebukes President Biden's Walkback on Infrastructure. peoplesaction.org Contact: Johanna Kichton, press@peoplesaction.org, 240.206.1145 WASHINGTON, D.C.—People's Action today released the following statement by Climate Justice Campaign Director Kaniela Ing in response to President Biden's surrender to Senate Republicans on his infrastructure bill: "President Biden's bill was already three times too small before this attempt to placate Republicans and their billionaire backers. Republicans don't want …

_____ (2021-05-21). Chile Shifts Left to Rewrite Pinochet-era Constitution. popularresistance.org And today we are going to talk about Chile's elections. This May there were municipal elections and constituent elections, to write a new constitution, because today Chile still has a Pinochet-era constitution, which was written in the time of the military dictatorship, of Augusto Pinochet.

Michael T. Klare (2021-05-21). Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths: the Post-Petroleum Resource Race. counterpunch.org Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels for the generation

Carlos Arellán (2021-05-21). Lula Confirms He Will Run in Brazil's Next Presidential Election. orinocotribune.com Lula finally confirmed that he would compete in an election against Jair Bolsonaro. However, the former president clarified that he would do so under certain conditions: "If I am in the best position to win the presidential elections, and I am in good health, yes, I do not doubt it," he told a French magazine that interviewed him. | According to recent polls, the leader of the Brazilian Workers' Party would defeat the current president in the first and second rounds. | According to Datafolha, in a first vote, Lula would get 44% of the vote, compared to only 23% for Bolsonaro. In the second round, the former presi…

Salih Booker, William D. Hartung (2021-05-21). Israel's Military, Made in the USA. thenation.com Israel's Military, Made in the USA…

Victor Pickard, David Elliot Berman (2021-05-21). Biden's Broadband Plan Is a Good Start—but America Needs Guaranteed Broadband for All. thenation.com Biden's Broadband Plan Is a Good Start—but America Needs Guaranteed Broadband for All…

commondreams (2021-05-21). Largest Federal Employee Union Applauds Biden Push to Remove Fossil Fuel Securities from Retirement Funds. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2021-05-21). CAIR Calls on President Biden to 'Unequivocally Condemn' Israeli Police Again for Storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound, Jeopardizing Cease-Fire. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2021-05-21). Sunrise Movement Responds to Biden's Potential Infrastructure Counteroffer: You are Making a Huge Mistake. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2021-05-21). Greenpeace USA Response to the Biden Administration's Infrastructure Counteroffer. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Hyun Lee (2021-05-21). Biden and Moon Are on a Collision Course with North Korea and China. commondreams.org "Unless they reorient their policies now," writes Hyung Lee of the anti-war group Women Cross DMZ, "the United States and South Korea may squander a crucial opportunity to end Cold War divisions and prevent a nuclear escalation in Asia." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/kamala-harris-president-moon-korea-1300×681.jpg

Eric Posner (2021-05-21). Disempowering the US cartels. indybay.org Technology corporations mostly form oligopolies, if not monopolies. | U.S. President Joe Biden is signaling that his administration wants to crack down on monopolies… Klobuchar's bill aims to boost antitrust action in many ways: it seeks to increase funding for the FTC and the Justice Department's Antitrust Division.

UUSF Humanists, Non-Theists (2021-05-21). Sunday 5/23: Tom Gallagher, A Social Democrats Take on the Biden Administration. indybay.org Join us on Zoom — | us02web.zoom.us/j/87281301611?pwd=NWF6NGd3bUhpSE14NWJLcmpra1ZSUT09 | Meeting ID: 872 8130 1611 | Passcode: 391496 | Dial by your location | +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)…

Staff (2021-05-20). Angela Davis & Noura Erakat on Palestinian Solidarity, Gaza & Israel's Killing of Ahmad Erekat. democracynow.org On Sunday, many Arab, Muslim and Palestinian communities boycotted President Biden's virtual Eid celebration. We play a statement of solidarity from legendary activist and scholar Angela Davis on Sunday for "Eid with Palestine: A Protest of the White House Eid Event." Davis also co-wrote piece for The Nation with our guest Noura Erakat about how Erakat's 26-year-old cousin Ahmad Erekat was shot by Israeli occupation forces after his car appeared to have accidentally crashed into a booth at a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank while he was on the way to pick up his mother and sister on her wedding day. Erakat sa…

Staff (2021-05-20). "It Is Apartheid": Rights Group B'Tselem on How Israel Advances Jewish Supremacy Over Palestinians. democracynow.org As Israel faces international condemnation for its assault on Gaza, we look at growing accusations that Israel is an apartheid state. Hagai El-Ad, executive director of the human rights group B'Tselem, describes the findings of their report that details how Israel is committing "apartheid." Israel's treatment of Palestinians is "not complicated," El-Ad says. "Believe your eyes. Follow your conscience. The reason that it looks like apartheid is simply because it is apartheid." We get response from Israeli journalist Gideon Levy, columnist for the newspaper Haaretz and a member of its editorial board, who wrote a r…

Margaret Kimberley (2021-05-20). Freedom Rider: The Palestine Litmus test. mronline.org President Joe Biden continues to proclaim endless support of apartheid Israel, but millions have decided that defense of Palestinian rights and lives is the only civilized response to barbaric aggression. | May 20, 2021…

Jessica Buxbaum (2021-05-20). American Arms Makers Are Making a Killing Off of Israel's Slaughter in Gaza. mintpressnews.com Major arms and aircraft manufacturers — Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon — are reaping massive profits from Israel's assault on Gaza, and all are expected to see their earnings boom with the quarter-billion-dollar arms deal the Biden administration is trying to push through.

Juan Cole (2021-05-20). With 58K Palestinians Made Homeless in Gaza, AOC and the Squad Resolve to Block Precision Bombs for Israel. juancole.com Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) — The United Nations says that 58,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been made internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the past week and a half during the intensive Israeli bombardment of Gaza. The Gaza Strip, where 2 million Palestinians live, half of them children, is facing a major health crisis. Potable water …

Juan Cole (2021-05-20). Israel targeting residential apartment buildings in Gaza. zcomm.org With 58K Palestinians Made Homeless in Gaza, AOC and the Squad Resolve to Block Precision Bombs for Israel…

Moderator (2021-05-20). Chris Hedges and Noted Palestinian Activist Dr. Sami Al-Arian on the Gaza Crisis. scheerpost.com On this week's "On Contact," Chris Hedges discusses the disputes between the Palestinians and Israelis with Palestinian political activist Dr. Sami Al-Arian. Hedges argues that nearly all the words and phrases used by the Democrats, Republicans and the talking heads on the media to describe the unrest inside Israel and the heaviest Israeli assault against …

Peoples Dispatch (2021-05-20). Opposition mounts to US arms sales to Israel. peoplesdispatch.org Several US congresspersons and rights groups have objected to the Joe Biden government's decision to sell weapons worth USD 735 million to Israel, citing continued violations of human rights in Gaza and other occupied Palestinian territories…

Staff (2021-05-20). Gideon Levy & Noura Erakat on Israel's Gaza Assault, U.S. Complicity and Ending the Occupation. democracynow.org A Palestinian man in a wheelchair, his pregnant wife and 3-year-old daughter are among the latest victims in Israel's ongoing bombing campaign in Gaza, which is now in its 11th day. Israeli airstrikes and shelling have killed at least 231 Palestinians, including 65 children, and health officials say 1,700 Palestinians have been wounded. Over 1,300 housing units have been completely demolished or severely damaged. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has so far rejected calls for a ceasefire, but Hamas officials say a truce could be reached within a day. President Joe Biden's defense of Israel's bombing campa…

Mark Gruenberg (2021-05-20). Under pressure from Squad, Biden finally comes out for Gaza ceasefire. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—Continuing Israeli Air Force attacks on Palestinian-controlled Gaza, in disproportionate retaliation for Hamas rockets fired at Israel, finally drew some concern from Biden after stepped up demands from congressional members of the Squad and others in Congress. In his fourth phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu since the fighting began two weeks ago, Biden …

WSWS (2021-05-20). Netanyahu war on Gaza continues as imperialist powers and Arab states feign ceasefire efforts. wsws.org Netanyahu can maintain his bellicose stance because he knows he has the backing of US President Joe Biden.

Abby Seitz (2021-05-20). How Progressives Are Changing the Conversation on Israel-Palestine. progressive.org Politicians like Rashida Tlaib and Bernie Sanders are shifting public opinion in the United States from unconditionally supporting Israel to calling for an end to the occupation.

Staff (2021-05-20). Angela Davis and Noura Erakat Mourn Murdered Palestinians and Demand US Action. truthout.org On Sunday, many Arab, Muslim and Palestinian communities boycotted President Biden's virtual Eid celebration. We play a statement of solidarity from legendary activist and scholar Angela Davis on Sunday for "Eid with Palestine: A Protest of the White House Eid Event." Davis also co-wrote piece for The Nation with our guest Noura Erakat about how Erakat's 26-year-old cousin Ahmad Erekat was shot by Israeli occupation forces after his car appeared to have accidentally crashed into a booth at a c…

_____ (2021-05-20). End To ICE Contracts In Bristol County, Massachusetts. popularresistance.org The FANG Collective is happy to announce that ICE will be cancelling all contracts with Bristol County, Massachusetts. This includes their 287(g) contract which trains deputies to collaborate with ICE and perform immigration agent duties, and their IGSA contract which turned the Bristol County House of Correction into an ICE detention center. | See: Biden administration ends ICE contract with Bristol County Sheriff's Office amid federal probe into alleged excessive force against immigrant detainees | In the summer 2018, FANG launched its Shut Down ICE campaign in Bristol County with a nonviolent direct action tha…

The Associated Press (2021-05-20). US Ends Use of 2 Immigration Jails Accused of Mistreatment. latinorebels.com WASHINGTON (AP) — A detention facility in Georgia where women claim they were subjected to unwanted medical procedures and a Massachusetts jail that has drawn complaints of inhumane conditions will no longer be used to detain immigrants, the Biden administration said Thursday.

Staff (2021-05-20). Targeted by AIPAC Ads, Ilhan Omar Vows, "No Level of Harassment Will Silence Me" truthout.org Congresswoman Ilhan Omar on Wednesday "Given the number of threats of death and violence the congresswoman receives on a near-daily basis, it's not just irresponsible — it's in…

Sonali Kolhatkar (2021-05-20). Why Big Pharma's Arguments Against Patent Waivers Don't Add Up. zcomm.org While President Biden is backing the temporary lifting of COVID-19 vaccine patents, drugmakers are making dire predictions of stifled innovation and eroded public trust. What they really fear is losing profits…

John Bachtell (2021-05-20). GOP role in a conspiracy to kill democracy exposed. peoplesworld.org The GOP and extreme right-wing groups are conspiring against U.S. constitutional democracy in a two-pronged scheme to ram voter suppression laws through state legislatures and block the passage of historic voting rights legislation in Congress. Millions in dark money are fueling this plot, carried out under cover of the "Big Lie" of voter fraud. The …

Staff (2021-05-20). Sanders Pushes Resolution Halting $735 Million in US Military Sales to Israel. truthout.org Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) has drafted a congressional resolution that would disallow the sale of $735 million in precision-guided missiles to Israel. | The draft document by Sanders,

Staff (2021-05-20). Sanders Unveils Bill to Force Pentagon to Pass Audit, Citing "Fraud" and "Waste" truthout.org Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) has introduced a bipartisan bill that would require the Pentagon to pass audits beginning in fiscal year 2022 — or face fines. The Pentagon has never passed an audit. | The bill would impose a

Anonymous007 (2021-05-20). Blinken And Lavrov Agree Dialogue Is Necessary, Despite Fundamental Differences. southfront.org Click to see full-size image | On May 19th, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the highest-profile meeting since Joe Biden became US president. | Blinken said that and said it was "no secret that we have our differences" and that Washington would respond to aggressive acts by Russia, but the world would be safer if the two countries' leaders worked together. | Lavrov, speaking through an interpreter at the opening of the meeting in Reykjavik on the sid…

Editor2 (2021-05-20). Nicaragua: "We are not Anyone's Colony" orinocotribune.com Nicaragua's Sandinista government is calling out blatant U.S. interference as the country prepares to hold its presidential election in six months. | President Daniel Ortega used the opportunity of the 126th anniversary of the birth of national revolutionary hero General Augusto Sandino to rail against U.S. intervention in the country, stating, "The Yankee Ambassador is all over the place selling their candidates as if he were Nicaraguan. He's not Nicaraguan… Don't get involved here Ambassador Yankee. Don't meddle here like you have been up until now." | Following the official state ceremony, Nicaragua's Vice P…

Staff (2021-05-20). Biden Must End Sanctions Against North Korea — and Finally End the Korean War. truthout.org Noam Chomsky

Andy Kroll (2021-05-20). Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths. tomdispatch.com Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels for the generation of electricity. That would be accomplished by "deploying carbon-pollution-free electricity-generating resources," primarily the everlasting power of the wind and sun. With other nations moving in a similar direction, it's tempting to conclude that the days when compe…

Ellen Brown (2021-05-20). How America Went From Mom-and-Pop Capitalism to Techno-Feudalism. dissidentvoice.org The crisis of 2020 has created the greatest wealth gap in history. The middle class, capitalism and democracy are all under threat. What went wrong and what can be done? In a matter of decades, the United States has gone from a largely benign form of capitalism to a neo-feudal form that has created an …

_____ (2021-05-20). What critics of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan get wrong. popularresistance.org Within hours of President Joe Biden's announcement that US forces will leave Afghanistan by September 11, 2021, objections and remonstrations appeared across US media. These protests are nearly all disingenuous, false and specious, and meant to utilize fear to continue a tragic and purposeless war.

teleSUR (2021-05-20). Mexico Is Willing To Accept Respectful Electoral Observation. telesurenglish.net Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) on Thursday confirmed that the June 6 subnational elections are open to international observation, which must respect the country's sovereignty. | RELATED: | The remarks were made in response to requests from opposition parties for electoral observation missions from the Organization of American States (OAS) and the United Nations (UN). | AMLO also urged the U.S. government to s…

teleSUR (2021-05-20). Brazil: Lula to Be Presidential Candidate in 2022 Election. telesurenglish.net In an interview published by Paris Match on Wednesday, the Workers' Party leader Lula da Silva confirmed he wants to be a presidential candidate in Brazil's 2022 election. | RELATED: | "If I am in good health and in the best position to win the elections, yes, I will not hesitate," he replied when asked if he will be a candidate. He also recalled that during his administration (2003-2011), Brazil created strong t…

teleSUR (2021-05-20). Mexico Warns OAS, USAID From Interference in Midterm Elections. telesurenglish.net Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador insisted on Thursday that his country will prevent interference from the Organization of American States (OAS) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in the upcoming midterm elections. | RELATED: | In his morning press briefing at the National Palace, Lopez Obrador repeated that the OAS knows that Mexico is not a colony or a protectorate, Mexico is a fr…

teleSUR (2021-05-20). Syrians Abroad Vote in May 26 Presidential Elections. telesurenglish.net Syrian citizens living abroad will start voting this Thursday in the presidential elections next Wednesday, May 26. | According to the Syrian news agency (Sana) thousands of citizens flocked to the polls established in the embassies in countries such as Lebanon, Australia, India, China, Russia, Spain, Indonesia, Malaysia, Iraq, and United Arab Emirates, among other countries. | RELATED: | Polling centers began…

Andrew J. Bacevich (2021-05-20). Foreign Wars Will Jeopardize Biden's Rescue Plans. thenation.com Foreign Wars Will Jeopardize Biden's Rescue Plans…

Tom Engelhardt (2021-05-20). Tomgram: Michael Klare, Will There Be Resource Wars in a Renewable Future? warisacrime.org This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here. These days in Washington, it's competition with and hostility to China all the way to the bank. The political class in Congress and the Biden White House, as well as the punditariat that goes with them, seem increasingly …

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2021-05-20). 'The First Step of Many': Advocates Welcome Move to Close ICE Lockups at 2 County Jails. commondreams.org "Bristol exemplifies how the system as a whole is fundamentally flawed and we call on the Biden administration to continue to cut detention contracts and shut down facilities for good," urged Silky Shah of the Detention Watch Collective. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/abolish-ice.jpg

Julia Conley, staff writer (2021-05-20). Ahead of Biden Order on Climate Financial Risk, Coalition Says Wall Street Must Finally Be Held to Account. commondreams.org "Plans to make plans in no way matches the urgency of the climate crisis; we need action from regulators now to stop the money pipeline to climate chaos," said a coalition of 160 groups ahead of President Biden's executive order on climate-related financial risks. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/climate_protest_wall_street1300x681.jpg

CounterPunch News Service (2021-05-20). Conservation Organizations Call for Urgent Action to Protect Grizzly Bears. counterpunch.org MISSOULA, MONTANA In letters sent today to federal lawmakers and the Biden administration, numerous conservation organizations are calling for urgent executive and legislative action to bolster grizzly bear recovery, even as western lawmakers and officials seek to remove Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for the threatened species. According to a new report by Dr. David Mattson,

commondreams (2021-05-20). Oil Change International Response to Biden Climate Finance Executive Order. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Andrew Bacevich (2021-05-20). Biden the Bold vs. Joe the Timid. counterpunch.org Is President Biden afflicted with the political equivalent of a split personality? His first several months in office suggest just that possibility. On the home front, the president's inclination is clearly to Go Big. When it comes to America's role in the world, however, Biden largely hews to pre-Trumpian precedent. So far at least, the

The Associated Press (2021-05-20). VP Harris Meets With Guatemalan Justice Leaders Before Visit. latinorebels.com GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris met with a group of leading voices on Guatemala's troubled justice system Wednesday, sending yet another signal to Central American governments that the U.S. government is interested in addressing the region's corruption.

Michael T. Klare (2021-05-20). The Post-Petroleum Resource Race and What to Make of It. commondreams.org "A mere glance at the location of such concentrations suggests that the green-energy transition envisioned by President Biden and other world leaders may encounter severe geopolitical problems, not unlike those generated in the past by reliance on oil." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/renewable_energy.jpg

commondreams (2021-05-20). Stop The Money Pipeline Coalition Issues Statement Ahead of Biden's Executive Order on Climate-Related Financial Risk. commondreams.org ______________________________…

2021-05-22 05:20 | 01:20 EST | 79 | 0 | 40 | 38 | 1

2021-05-21: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these 'POSTEES' on social media! (Copy the text of the postee below, then paste it on social media and the story images will also appear.)

5/19/21 Call Congress to support AOC's Reso to Stop Weapons for Israel
Not One Nickel, Not One Dime | indybay.org | 2021-05-21
Now that we have protested, it is time to call Congress. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez has introduced a resolution to stop the sale of weapons to Israel. See www.commondreams.org/news/2021/05/19/ocasio-cortez-unveils-resolution-block-bidens-735-million-weapons-sale-israel There is no cease fire. Israel continues to bomb Gaza. See www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ex6SdT3N6g
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/19/18842648.php

"We Want Real Dignity and Freedom": Gazans Welcome Ceasefire But Demand End of Siege & Occupation
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-21
In Gaza, thousands of people have taken to the streets to celebrate after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire, ending Israel's 11-day bombardment of the territory. At least 243 Palestinians, including 66 children, were killed in the airstrikes and bombings. Rockets fired from Gaza also killed 12 people in Israel. Raji Sourani, director of the Palestinian Center for Human Rights in Gaza, welcomes the ceasefire but stresses Palestinians demand more than just the end of bombing. "We need [the] end of occupation, end of the blockade, self-determination, independence, dignity and freedom," Sourani says. We also spe…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/21/israeli_hamas_ceasefire_gaza

Headlines for May 21, 2021
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-21
Israel and Hamas Agree to Gaza Ceasefire After 11 Days of Intense Fighting, U.N. Chief Decries "Hell on Earth" After Israeli Strikes Sever Power, Water and Sewer Lines in Gaza, WTO Chief Pushes European Officials to Drop Opposition to Patent Waiver for COVID Vaccines, New York Launches $5 Million Lottery Incentive to Get Vaccinated , South Korean President to Discuss Denuclearization and Vaccines at White House Meeting, ICE to End Contracts with Two County Jails Where Immigrants Faced Abuses, Salvadoran Officials Exhume Dozens of Women's Bodies on Property of Former Detective, Amnesty Calls for U.S. to Stop Selli…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/21/headlines

The Bigger Picture in Israel/Palestine
Jill Richardson | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-21
Most of the news stories I see about Israel and Palestine focus on recent events. For example, in the latest violence, 213 Palestinians in Gaza are dead (including 61 children) plus another 16 in the West Bank — compared to about 10 Israelis (including two children). President Biden has "expressed support for a cease-fire" but…
counterpunch.org/2021/05/21/the-bigger-picture-in-israel-palestine/

Minneapolis to protest the killings of over 200 Palestinians
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2021-05-21
Minneapolis, MN – On Saturday, May 22, at 3 p.m. in Bryant Square Park, (3101 Bryant Avenue S) in Minneapolis, protesters will stand in solidarity with Palestine. | Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been under siege for close to 15 years, and again, they are facing a criminal attack from the Israeli government and military. At least 231 Palestinians, including 65 children, have been killed there in the past 11 days, when Israel began its missile bombardment of the Strip. Palestinian health officials say 1700 Palestinians have been wounded. Over 1300 housing units have been completely demolished or severely dam…
fightbacknews.org/2021/5/21/minneapolis-protest-killings-over-200-palestinians

Minneapolis to protest the killings of over 200 Palestinians
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2021-05-21
Minneapolis, MN – On Saturday, May 22, at 3 p.m. in Bryant Square Park, (3101 Bryant Avenue S) in Minneapolis, protesters will stand in solidarity with Palestine. | Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been under siege for close to 15 years, and again, they are facing a criminal attack from the Israeli government and military. At least 231 Palestinians, including 65 children, have been killed there in the past 11 days, when Israel began its missile bombardment of the Strip. Palestinian health officials say 1700 Palestinians have been wounded. Over 1300 housing units have been completely demolished or severely dam…
www.fightbacknews.org/2021/5/21/minneapolis-protest-killings-over-200-palestinians

A Letter to Biden on Gaza
Sara Roy | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-21
I am writing to you about Gaza, a place that I have studied and written about for the last 35 years, a place that I consider another home, filled with the kindest and most generous people you will ever meet–have you ever been there? But I am writing not only as a scholar of the region but as a Jew and one whose parents survived Auschwitz.
counterpunch.org/2021/05/21/a-letter-to-biden-on-gaza/

What Is the Biden Administration's Policy Towards Israel?
Phyllis Bennis | commondreams.org | 2021-05-21
"Beyond helping to end the devastation underway in Gaza, Biden could, in a minute, transform U.S. policy towards Israel and the Palestinians to one that actually reflects the human rights he claims are central to his foreign policy." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/joe_biden_8_2.jpg
commondreams.org/views/2021/05/21/what-biden-administrations-policy-towards-israel?cd-origin=rss

Bernie Sanders Introduces Resolution Blocking Weapon Sales To Israel, Is He A Nazi?
Anonymous007 | southfront.org | 2021-05-21
Click to see full-size image | On May 20th, US Senator Bernie Sanders introduced a resolution blocking a $735m US weapons sale to Israel."At a moment when U.S.-made bombs are devastating Gaza, and killing women and children, we cannot simply let another huge arms sale go through without even a Congressional debate," Sanders said. "I believe that the United States must help lead the way to a peaceful and prosperous future for both Israelis and Palestinians. We need to take a hard look at whether the sa…
southfront.org/bernie-sanders-introduces-resolution-blocking-weapon-sales-to-israel-is-he-a-nazi/

Jailed at 14, Shot Dead at 17: The Story of Obaida Jawabra's Childhood Under Israeli Occupation
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-21
Israeli forces shot and killed Obaida Jawabra, a 17-year-old boy, earlier this week in the al-Arroub refugee camp located near the occupied West Bank city of Hebron. Obaida was shot in the chest, and witnesses say Israeli soldiers blocked an ambulance from reaching the teenager. He was taken to a local hospital by private car and later pronounced dead. Obaida, who was arrested by Israeli soldiers multiple times and featured in a 2019 short film, "Obaida," about Israeli soldiers detaining Palestinian children, is at least the fourth Palestinian teenager shot dead by soldiers in the occupied West Bank this year. Th…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/21/obaida_jawabra_palestinian_killed_israeli_forces

Chile shifts left to rewrite Pinochet-era constitution, as Goldman Sachs eyes its copper reserves
Ben Norton | thegrayzone.com | 2021-05-21
Ben Norton speaks with Chilean activist and politician Pablo Sepúlveda Allende about the historic May 15/16 elections in which left-wing and independent candidates won two-thirds of the seats for a convention to rewrite the constitution, which dates back to the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Sepúlveda Allende, a grandson of Chile's legendary socialist President Salvador Allende, also discusses Chile's enormous copper reserves, which are some of the largest in the world, and are now being targeted by US corporations, after …
thegrayzone.com/2021/05/20/chile-election-pinochet-constitution-copper/

Which Side Are You On? The Answer is Clear for Today's Useful Idiots for the Right
Ken Silverstein | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-21
In 2016 and 2020, Bernie Sanders, a self-described Democratic Socialist, was a viable candidate for the presidency of the United States. In a country where the left was systematically persecuted and whose intelligence services systematically persecute it abroad, such a development is significant and without precedent. Recent polls show half of millennials are well disposed…
counterpunch.org/2021/05/21/which-side-are-you-on-the-answer-is-clear-for-todays-useful-idiots-for-the-right/

Worker Co-ops vs COVID-19
Staff | therealnews.com | 2021-05-21
We know that workers have been on the front lines of the pandemic, too often with no real say in the conditions they've had to face and the risks they've had to take. How would a more democratic economy respond to the current crisis?
therealnews.com/worker-co-ops-vs-covid-19

This Biden proposal could make the U.S. a "digital dictatorship"
Whitney Webb | mronline.org | 2021-05-21
A "new" proposal by the Biden administration to create a health-focused federal agency modeled after DARPA is not what it appears to be. Promoted as a way to "end cancer," this resuscitated "health DARPA" conceals a dangerous agenda. | May 21, 2021…
mronline.org/2021/05/21/this-biden-proposal-could-make-the-u-s-a-digital-dictatorship/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=this-biden-proposal-could-make-the-u-s-a-digital-dictatorship

Unauthorized COVID-19 tests given to Navajos, used in marketing campaign
Brenda Norrell | indybay.org | 2021-05-21
An unauthorized type of COVID-19 tests were given to Navajos and the information wad used in an online marketing campaign. The Navajo Council said the contract, which included services during First Lady Biden's visit, was never approved. Many Navajos are calling for a probe of how virus relief funds were distributed by the Navajo government.
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/20/18842655.php

From What to Why on the Trump Proletarian Narrative
Paul Street | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-21
The wrongheaded but ubiquitous notion that the Republican Amerikaner Trump base is the (um, white) "working-class" drawn to "populism" has been disproven in study after study showing that the Trumpenvolk are relatively affluent, not proletarian and poor, and driven by an ugly, mutually reinforcing mixture of racism, sexism, nativism, fundamentalism, and authoritarianism. Those who have…
counterpunch.org/2021/05/21/from-what-to-why-on-the-trump-proletarian-narrative/

Above the Law? Review of Police Killing of Andrew Brown Jr. Demanded After DA Calls It Justified
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-21
We speak with Reverend William Barber, co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign and former head of the North Carolina NAACP, who is in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, to call for an expedited independent investigation into the police killing of Andrew Brown Jr., the 42-year-old Black father who was killed there last month by a bullet in the back of his head after seven deputies blocked him in his driveway while serving an arrest warrant. On Tuesday, the Pasquotank County district attorney announced a state investigation had found the officers who shot Brown were justified and will not face criminal charges. Barber…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/21/andrew_brown_jr_police_killing

Rev. William Barber Calls for a "Third Reconstruction" to Lift 140 Million People Out of Poverty
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-21
Reverend William Barber, co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign and president of Repairers of the Breach, says the United States needs a "Third Reconstruction" aimed at lifting 140 million poor and low-income people out of poverty. Barber worked with Congressmembers Barbara Lee and Pramila Jayapal to unveil a congressional resolution for a Third Reconstruction this week, which includes measures to expand voting rights, implement immigration reform, raise the minimum wage, establish a federal jobs program and more. "There is not a scarcity of resources," says Barber. "What there is is a scarcity of social justice…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/21/third_reconstruction_rev_william_barber

[Correspondence] Women's and children's health in conflict settings: build on existing efforts
Sarah K Chynoweth, Monica A Onyango, Meghan C Gallagher, Sara E Casey | thelancet.com | 2021-05-22
We commend the authors of the Lancet Series on Women's and Children's Health in Conflict Settings, particularly their call for greater political commitment to, and prioritisation of, women's and children's health (WCH) in conflict settings. At the same time, we are concerned about some of the claims and conclusions, including (1) a call for the formation of a new international technical advisory group with a mandate to critique and field-test a WCH framework,1 (2) that a priority predefined package of WCH services is not commonly agreed on and implemented in conflict settings,2 and (3) that there is no central re…
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)00932-6/fulltext?rss=yes

"We Want Real Dignity and Freedom": Gazans Welcome Ceasefire But Demand End of Siege & Occupation
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-21
In Gaza, thousands of people have taken to the streets to celebrate after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire, ending Israel's 11-day bombardment of the territory. At least 243 Palestinians, including 66 children, were killed in the airstrikes and bombings. Rockets fired from Gaza also killed 12 people in Israel. Raji Sourani, director of the Palestinian Center for Human Rights in Gaza, welcomes the ceasefire but stresses Palestinians demand more than just the end of bombing. "We need [the] end of occupation, end of the blockade, self-determination, independence, dignity and freedom," Sourani says. We also spe…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/21/israeli_hamas_ceasefire_gaza

Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths: the Post-Petroleum Resource Race
Michael T. Klare | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-21
Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels for the generation…
counterpunch.org/2021/05/21/lithium-cobalt-and-rare-earths-the-post-petroleum-resource-race/

A progressive revival: Cleveland, Preston and municipal social democracy
Derek Royden | nationofchange.org | 2021-05-21
One of the progressive left's goals has to be to empower citizens and this is most easily done at the local level.
nationofchange.org/2021/05/21/a-progressive-revival-cleveland-preston-and-municipal-social-democracy/

Congress Howls as Biden Kills Trump's Sanctions on Russia Gas Pipeline
MISH | globalresearch.ca | 2021-05-21
Biden Ends Trump's …
globalresearch.ca/congress-howls-biden-kills-trump-sanctions-russia-gas-pipeline/5745861

CNE Confirms Opening Date of Electoral Registry Ahead of 21N Regional Elections in Venezuela
José Manuel Blanco Diaz | orinocotribune.com | 2021-05-21
With the approval of one thousand registry locations for the special day, the National Electoral Council (CNE) confirmed the approval of the opening of the Electoral Registry, between June 1 and July 15 of this year. | In this way, the electoral power will consolidate the data, by updating and registering new voters, in preparation for the regional and local elections scheduled for November 21 in Venezuela. | This was reported by the president of the CNE, Pedro Calzadilla, at the end of the board of directors' meeting. They defined the new steps to follow as part of the electoral schedule drawn up by the CNE auth…
orinocotribune.com/cne-confirms-opening-date-of-electoral-registry-ahead-of-21n-regional-elections-in-venezuela/

The Good News with Green Energy is the end of Struggles for Oil; the Bad news? Struggle for Lithium
Michael T. Klare | juancole.com | 2021-05-21
(Tomdispatch.com ) — Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels …
juancole.com/2021/05/struggles-struggle-lithium.html

The Fight for Independent, Non-Corporate Radio Flares Up Again
Pete Dolack | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-21
Here we go again. Listener democracy at the Pacifica radio network is in deep jeopardy again because the same people who violently shut down WBAI in 2019 and forced an expensive referendum that was soundly defeated in 2020 have forced a second bylaws referendum. Having lost last year's referendum by a 2-to-1 margin — losing…
counterpunch.org/2021/05/21/the-fight-for-independent-non-corporate-radio-flares-up-again/

Chile Shifts Left to Rewrite Pinochet-era Constitution
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-05-21
And today we are going to talk about Chile's elections. This May there were municipal elections and constituent elections, to write a new constitution, because today Chile still has a Pinochet-era constitution, which was written in the time of the military dictatorship, of Augusto Pinochet.
popularresistance.org/chile-shifts-left-to-rewrite-pinochet-era-constitution/

Is Biden Ghosting Yemen?
Charles Pierson | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-21
In his first major foreign policy address on February 4, President Joe Biden announced that he was "ending all support for offensive operations in the war in Yemen, including relevant arms sales." Biden's announcement sounded too good to be true. A Saudi Arabian-led coalition has been at war with Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels since 2015.
counterpunch.org/2021/05/21/is-biden-ghosting-yemen-2/

Lula Confirms He Will Run in Brazil's Next Presidential Election
Carlos Arellán | orinocotribune.com | 2021-05-21
Lula finally confirmed that he would compete in an election against Jair Bolsonaro. However, the former president clarified that he would do so under certain conditions: "If I am in the best position to win the presidential elections, and I am in good health, yes, I do not doubt it," he told a French magazine that interviewed him. | According to recent polls, the leader of the Brazilian Workers' Party would defeat the current president in the first and second rounds. | According to Datafolha, in a first vote, Lula would get 44% of the vote, compared to only 23% for Bolsonaro. In the second round, the former presi…
orinocotribune.com/lula-confirms-he-will-run-in-brazils-next-presidential-election/

People's Action Rebukes President Biden's Walkback on Infrastructure
Johanna Kichton | peoplesaction.org | 2021-05-21
Contact: Johanna Kichton, press@peoplesaction.org, 240.206.1145 WASHINGTON, D.C.–People's Action today released the following statement by Climate Justice Campaign Director Kaniela Ing in response to President Biden's surrender to Senate Republicans on his infrastructure bill: "President Biden's bill was already three times too small before this attempt to placate Republicans and their billionaire backers. Republicans don't want …
peoplesaction.org/2021/05/peoples-action-rebukes-president-bidens-walkback-on-infrastructure/

Biden Wants to Hire 87,000 Additional IRS Agents to Go After Wealthy Tax Dodgers
Staff | truthout.org | 2021-05-21
The Biden administration is proposing hiring 87,000 new workers for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), effectively doubling the agency's size, as part of a plan to beef up enforcement efforts and find billions of dollars in tax revenues that go uncollected each year. | Enforcement efforts would primarily target individuals and corporations with higher incomes and profits, the administration has suggested. | Th…
truthout.org/articles/biden-wants-to-hire-87000-additional-irs-agents-to-go-after-wealthy-tax-dodgers/

Dark Money Groups Are Pouring Untold Millions Into 2021 Redistricting Efforts
Staff | truthout.org | 2021-05-21
How congressional districts are drawn can change political outcomes for a decade. But the redistricting process is opaque and open to the influence of a complicated network of " dark money" groups. | Redistricting is the process of redrawing the maps that decide the makeup of congressional and state districts. In 42 states, it is controlled by elected state-level politicians. That means t…
truthout.org/articles/dark-money-groups-are-pouring-untold-millions-into-2021-redistricting-efforts/

Israel's Military, Made in the USA
Salih Booker, William D. Hartung | thenation.com | 2021-05-21
Israel's Military, Made in the USA…
thenation.com/article/world/israel-military-united-states/

Biden's Broadband Plan Is a Good Start–but America Needs Guaranteed Broadband for All
Victor Pickard, David Elliot Berman | thenation.com | 2021-05-21
Biden's Broadband Plan Is a Good Start–but America Needs Guaranteed Broadband for All…
thenation.com/article/politics/broadband-infrastructure-biden/

Biden's Broadband Plan Is a Good Start–but America Needs Guaranteed Broadband for All
Victor Pickard, David Elliot Berman | thenation.com | 2021-05-21
Biden's Broadband Plan Is a Good Start–but America Needs Guaranteed Broadband for All…
thenation.com/article/politics/broadband-infrastructure-biden/

Largest Federal Employee Union Applauds Biden Push to Remove Fossil Fuel Securities from Retirement Funds
commondreams.org | 2021-05-21
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/05/21/largest-federal-employee-union-applauds-biden-push-remove-fossil-fuel-securities?cd-origin=rss

Sunrise Movement Responds to Biden's Potential Infrastructure Counteroffer: You are Making a Huge Mistake
commondreams.org | 2021-05-21
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/05/21/sunrise-movement-responds-bidens-potential-infrastructure-counteroffer-you-are?cd-origin=rss

CAIR Calls on President Biden to 'Unequivocally Condemn' Israeli Police Again for Storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound, Jeopardizing Cease-Fire
commondreams.org | 2021-05-21
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/05/21/cair-calls-president-biden-unequivocally-condemn-israeli-police-again-storming?cd-origin=rss

Biden and Moon Are on a Collision Course with North Korea and China
Hyun Lee | commondreams.org | 2021-05-21
"Unless they reorient their policies now," writes Hyung Lee of the anti-war group Women Cross DMZ, "the United States and South Korea may squander a crucial opportunity to end Cold War divisions and prevent a nuclear escalation in Asia." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/kamala-harris-president-moon-korea-1300×681.jpg
commondreams.org/views/2021/05/21/biden-and-moon-are-collision-course-north-korea-and-china?cd-origin=rss

Greenpeace USA Response to the Biden Administration's Infrastructure Counteroffer
commondreams.org | 2021-05-21
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/05/21/greenpeace-usa-response-biden-administrations-infrastructure-counteroffer?cd-origin=rss

"The Putin Pipeline Must Be Stopped": Senators Introduce Bill To Restore Nord Stream 2 Sanctions
Anonymous007 | southfront.org | 2021-05-21
Fourteen Republican senators have submitted to the US Congress a bill designed to restore sanctions against companies involved in the…
southfront.org/the-putin-pipeline-must-be-stopped-senators-introduce-bill-to-restore-nord-stream-2-sanctions/

Disempowering the US cartels
Eric Posner | indybay.org | 2021-05-21
Technology corporations mostly form oligopolies, if not monopolies. | U.S. President Joe Biden is signaling that his administration wants to crack down on monopolies… Klobuchar's bill aims to boost antitrust action in many ways: it seeks to increase funding for the FTC and the Justice Department's Antitrust Division.
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/19/18842645.php

Sunday 5/23: Tom Gallagher, A Social Democrats Take on the Biden Administration
UUSF Humanists, Non-Theists | indybay.org | 2021-05-21
Join us on Zoom — | us02web.zoom.us/j/87281301611?pwd=NWF6NGd3bUhpSE14NWJLcmpra1ZSUT09 | Meeting ID: 872 8130 1611 | Passcode: 391496 | Dial by your location | +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)…
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/19/18842643.php

How Progressives Are Changing the Conversation on Israel-Palestine
Abby Seitz | progressive.org | 2021-05-20
Politicians like Rashida Tlaib and Bernie Sanders are shifting public opinion in the United States from unconditionally supporting Israel to calling for an end to the occupation.
progressive.org/dispatches/progressives-conversation-israel-palestine-seitz-210520/

How Progressives Are Changing the Conversation on Israel-Palestine
Abby Seitz | progressive.org | 2021-05-20
Politicians like Rashida Tlaib and Bernie Sanders are shifting public opinion in the United States from unconditionally supporting Israel to calling for an end to the occupation.
progressive.org/dispatches/progressives-conversation-israel-palestine-seitz-210520/

Angela Davis and Noura Erakat Mourn Murdered Palestinians and Demand US Action
Staff | truthout.org | 2021-05-20
On Sunday, many Arab, Muslim and Palestinian communities boycotted President Biden's virtual Eid celebration. We play a statement of solidarity from legendary activist and scholar Angela Davis on Sunday for "Eid with Palestine: A Protest of the White House Eid Event." Davis also co-wrote piece for The Nation with our guest Noura Erakat about how Erakat's 26-year-old cousin Ahmad Erekat was shot by Israeli occupation forces after his car appeared to have accidentally crashed into a booth at a c…
truthout.org/video/angela-davis-and-noura-erakat-mourn-murdered-palestinians-and-demand-us-action/

Angela Davis & Noura Erakat on Palestinian Solidarity, Gaza & Israel's Killing of Ahmad Erekat
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-20
On Sunday, many Arab, Muslim and Palestinian communities boycotted President Biden's virtual Eid celebration. We play a statement of solidarity from legendary activist and scholar Angela Davis on Sunday for "Eid with Palestine: A Protest of the White House Eid Event." Davis also co-wrote piece for The Nation with our guest Noura Erakat about how Erakat's 26-year-old cousin Ahmad Erekat was shot by Israeli occupation forces after his car appeared to have accidentally crashed into a booth at a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank while he was on the way to pick up his mother and sister on her wedding day. Erakat sa…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/20/palestinian_solidarity_ahmad_erekat

"It Is Apartheid": Rights Group B'Tselem on How Israel Advances Jewish Supremacy Over Palestinians
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-20
As Israel faces international condemnation for its assault on Gaza, we look at growing accusations that Israel is an apartheid state. Hagai El-Ad, executive director of the human rights group B'Tselem, describes the findings of their report that details how Israel is committing "apartheid." Israel's treatment of Palestinians is "not complicated," El-Ad says. "Believe your eyes. Follow your conscience. The reason that it looks like apartheid is simply because it is apartheid." We get response from Israeli journalist Gideon Levy, columnist for the newspaper Haaretz and a member of its editorial board, who wrote a r…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/20/btselem_director_israel_apartheid_palestine

Freedom Rider: The Palestine Litmus test
Margaret Kimberley | mronline.org | 2021-05-20
President Joe Biden continues to proclaim endless support of apartheid Israel, but millions have decided that defense of Palestinian rights and lives is the only civilized response to barbaric aggression. | May 20, 2021…
mronline.org/2021/05/20/freedom-rider-the-palestine-litmus-test/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=freedom-rider-the-palestine-litmus-test

Freedom Rider: The Palestine Litmus test
Margaret Kimberley | mronline.org | 2021-05-20
President Joe Biden continues to proclaim endless support of apartheid Israel, but millions have decided that defense of Palestinian rights and lives is the only civilized response to barbaric aggression. | May 20, 2021…
mronline.org/2021/05/20/freedom-rider-the-palestine-litmus-test/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=freedom-rider-the-palestine-litmus-test

American Arms Makers Are Making a Killing Off of Israel's Slaughter in Gaza
Jessica Buxbaum | mintpressnews.com | 2021-05-20
Major arms and aircraft manufacturers — Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon — are reaping massive profits from Israel's assault on Gaza, and all are expected to see their earnings boom with the quarter-billion-dollar arms deal the Biden administration is trying to push through.
mintpressnews.com/us-weapon-makers-profits-armssales-israel-gaza/277257/

With 58K Palestinians Made Homeless in Gaza, AOC and the Squad Resolve to Block Precision Bombs for Israel
Juan Cole | juancole.com | 2021-05-20
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) — The United Nations says that 58,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been made internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the past week and a half during the intensive Israeli bombardment of Gaza. The Gaza Strip, where 2 million Palestinians live, half of them children, is facing a major health crisis. Potable water …
juancole.com/2021/05/palestinians-homeless-precision.html

American Arms Makers Are Making a Killing Off of Israel's Slaughter in Gaza
Jessica Buxbaum | mintpressnews.com | 2021-05-20
Major arms and aircraft manufacturers — Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon — are reaping massive profits from Israel's assault on Gaza, and all are expected to see their earnings boom with the quarter-billion-dollar arms deal the Biden administration is trying to push through.
mintpressnews.com/us-weapon-makers-profits-armssales-israel-gaza/277257/

With 58K Palestinians Made Homeless in Gaza, AOC and the Squad Resolve to Block Precision Bombs for Israel
Juan Cole | juancole.com | 2021-05-20
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) — The United Nations says that 58,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been made internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the past week and a half during the intensive Israeli bombardment of Gaza. The Gaza Strip, where 2 million Palestinians live, half of them children, is facing a major health crisis. Potable water …
juancole.com/2021/05/palestinians-homeless-precision.html

5/19/21 Call Congress to support AOC's Reso to Stop Weapons for Israel
Not One Nickel, Not One Dime | indybay.org | 2021-05-20
Now that we have protested, it is time to call Congress. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez has introduced a resolution to stop the sale of weapons to Israel. See www.commondreams.org/news/2021/05/19/ocasio-cortez-unveils-resolution-block-bidens-735-million-weapons-sale-israel There is no cease fire. Israel continues to bomb Gaza. See www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ex6SdT3N6g
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/19/18842648.php

Israel Obstructs Provision of Humanitarian Assistance in Gaza
telesurenglish.net | 2021-05-20
The World Health Organization Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Ahmed Al Mandhari denounced that humanitarian organizations cannot easily access the Palestinian territories to offer aid to the wounded and provide basic supplies. | RELATED: | Israel Refuses Ceasefire Despite Biden's Pressure – Hamas | In the West Bank, there have been reports of obstructions to medical equipment, assaults on health workers, confiscation of ambulances, and military raids on health centers. | Al Ma…
telesurenglish.net/news/Israel-Obstructs-Provision-of-Humanitarian-Assistance-in-Gaza-20210520-0005.html

Under pressure from Squad, Biden finally comes out for Gaza ceasefire
Mark Gruenberg | peoplesworld.org | 2021-05-20
WASHINGTON–Continuing Israeli Air Force attacks on Palestinian-controlled Gaza, in disproportionate retaliation for Hamas rockets fired at Israel, finally drew some concern from Biden after stepped up demands from congressional members of the Squad and others in Congress. In his fourth phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu since the fighting began two weeks ago, Biden …
peoplesworld.org/article/the-squad-other-congressional-reps-and-biden-take-on-netanyahu/

Under pressure from Squad, Biden finally comes out for Gaza ceasefire
Mark Gruenberg | peoplesworld.org | 2021-05-20
WASHINGTON–Continuing Israeli Air Force attacks on Palestinian-controlled Gaza, in disproportionate retaliation for Hamas rockets fired at Israel, finally drew some concern from Biden after stepped up demands from congressional members of the Squad and others in Congress. In his fourth phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu since the fighting began two weeks ago, Biden …
peoplesworld.org/article/the-squad-other-congressional-reps-and-biden-take-on-netanyahu/

Gideon Levy & Noura Erakat on Israel's Gaza Assault, U.S. Complicity and Ending the Occupation
Staff | democracynow.org | 2021-05-20
A Palestinian man in a wheelchair, his pregnant wife and 3-year-old daughter are among the latest victims in Israel's ongoing bombing campaign in Gaza, which is now in its 11th day. Israeli airstrikes and shelling have killed at least 231 Palestinians, including 65 children, and health officials say 1,700 Palestinians have been wounded. Over 1,300 housing units have been completely demolished or severely damaged. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has so far rejected calls for a ceasefire, but Hamas officials say a truce could be reached within a day. President Joe Biden's defense of Israel's bombing campa…
www.democracynow.org/2021/5/20/us_complicity_israel_assault_gaza

Netanyahu war on Gaza continues as imperialist powers and Arab states feign ceasefire efforts
wsws.org | 2021-05-20
Netanyahu can maintain his bellicose stance because he knows he has the backing of US President Joe Biden.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2021/05/20/isra-m20.html

Chris Hedges: Israel, the Big Lie
Chris Hedges | orinocotribune.com | 2021-05-20
By Chris Hedges — May 19, 2021 | Israel is not exercising "the right to defend itself" in the occupied Palestinian territories. It is carrying out mass murder, aided and abetted by the U.S. | Princeton, New Jersey ( Scheerpost) — Nearly all the words and phrases used by the Democrats, Republicans and the talking heads on the media to describe the unrest inside Israel and the heaviest Israeli assault against the Palestinians since the 2014 attacks on Gaza, which lasted 51 days and killed more than…
orinocotribune.com/chris-hedges-israel-the-big-lie/

Israel targeting residential apartment buildings in Gaza
Juan Cole | zcomm.org | 2021-05-20
With 58K Palestinians Made Homeless in Gaza, AOC and the Squad Resolve to Block Precision Bombs for Israel…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/israel-targeting-residential-apartment-buildings-in-gaza/

Chris Hedges and Noted Palestinian Activist Dr. Sami Al-Arian on the Gaza Crisis
Moderator | scheerpost.com | 2021-05-20
On this week's "On Contact," Chris Hedges discusses the disputes between the Palestinians and Israelis with Palestinian political activist Dr. Sami Al-Arian. Hedges argues that nearly all the words and phrases used by the Democrats, Republicans and the talking heads on the media to describe the unrest inside Israel and the heaviest Israeli assault against …
scheerpost.com/2021/05/20/chris-hedges-and-noted-palestinian-activist-dr-sami-al-arian-on-the-gaza-crisis/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=chris-hedges-and-noted-palestinian-activist-dr-sami-al-arian-on-the-gaza-crisis

Opposition mounts to US arms sales to Israel
Peoples Dispatch | peoplesdispatch.org | 2021-05-20
Several US congresspersons and rights groups have objected to the Joe Biden government's decision to sell weapons worth USD 735 million to Israel, citing continued violations of human rights in Gaza and other occupied Palestinian territories…
peoplesdispatch.org/2021/05/20/opposition-mounts-to-us-arms-sales-to-israel/

End To ICE Contracts In Bristol County, Massachusetts
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-05-20
The FANG Collective is happy to announce that ICE will be cancelling all contracts with Bristol County, Massachusetts. This includes their 287(g) contract which trains deputies to collaborate with ICE and perform immigration agent duties, and their IGSA contract which turned the Bristol County House of Correction into an ICE detention center. | See: Biden administration ends ICE contract with Bristol County Sheriff's Office amid federal probe into alleged excessive force against immigrant detainees | In the summer 2018, FANG launched its Shut Down ICE campaign in Bristol County with a nonviolent direct action tha…
popularresistance.org/fang-announces-end-to-ice-contracts-in-bristol-county-massachusetts/

US Closes 2 Immigration Detention Centers Over Abuse Scandal
telesurenglish.net | 2021-05-20
U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Thursday stopped detaining migrants in two immigration detention centers in Georgia and Massachusetts over complaints of abuses against the inmates. | RELATED: | US: Migrant Deportations Continue Despite Biden's Policies | "We will not tolerate the mistreatment of individuals in civil immigration detention centers," DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said, adding that both centers are under investigation for being overcrowded and having ove…
telesurenglish.net/news/US-Closes-2-Immigration-Detention-Centers-Over-Abuse-Scandal-20210520-0009.html

US Ends Use of 2 Immigration Jails Accused of Mistreatment
The Associated Press | latinorebels.com | 2021-05-20
WASHINGTON (AP) — A detention facility in Georgia where women claim they were subjected to unwanted medical procedures and a Massachusetts jail that has drawn complaints of inhumane conditions will no longer be used to detain immigrants, the Biden administration said Thursday.
latinorebels.com/2021/05/20/usendsuseof2immigrationjails/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=usendsuseof2immigrationjails

Biden Must End Sanctions Against North Korea — and Finally End the Korean War
Staff | truthout.org | 2021-05-20
Noam Chomsky recently argued that the Biden administration's foreign policy remains committed to maintaining U.S. global hegemony through sanctions and nuclear weapons. Nowhere else in the world is this more evident than in the Korean Peninsula, where the U.S. is pressuring its "ally" South Korea into the front lines of a long-simmering confrontation with China, and where a…
truthout.org/articles/biden-must-end-sanctions-against-north-korea-and-finally-end-the-korean-war/

Why Big Pharma's Arguments Against Patent Waivers Don't Add Up
Sonali Kolhatkar | zcomm.org | 2021-05-20
While President Biden is backing the temporary lifting of COVID-19 vaccine patents, drugmakers are making dire predictions of stifled innovation and eroded public trust. What they really fear is losing profits…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/why-big-pharmas-arguments-against-patent-waivers-dont-add-up/

Unauthorized COVID-19 tests given to Navajos, used in marketing campaign
Brenda Norrell | indybay.org | 2021-05-20
An unauthorized type of COVID-19 tests were given to Navajos and the information wad used in an online marketing campaign. The Navajo Council said the contract, which included services during First Lady Biden's visit, was never approved. Many Navajos are calling for a probe of how virus relief funds were distributed by the Navajo government.
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/20/18842655.php

Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths
Andy Kroll | tomdispatch.com | 2021-05-20
Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels for the generation of electricity. That would be accomplished by "deploying carbon-pollution-free electricity-generating resources," primarily the everlasting power of the wind and sun. With other nations moving in a similar direction, it's tempting to conclude that the days when compe…
tomdispatch.com/lithium-cobalt-and-rare-earths/

What critics of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan get wrong
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-05-20
Within hours of President Joe Biden's announcement that US forces will leave Afghanistan by September 11, 2021, objections and remonstrations appeared across US media. These protests are nearly all disingenuous, false and specious, and meant to utilize fear to continue a tragic and purposeless war.
popularresistance.org/what-critics-of-the-us-withdrawal-from-afghanistan-get-wrong/

Syrians Abroad Vote in May 26 Presidential Elections
telesurenglish.net | 2021-05-20
Syrian citizens living abroad will start voting this Thursday in the presidential elections next Wednesday, May 26. | According to the Syrian news agency (Sana) thousands of citizens flocked to the polls established in the embassies in countries such as Lebanon, Australia, India, China, Russia, Spain, Indonesia, Malaysia, Iraq, and United Arab Emirates, among other countries. | RELATED: | Syria: Final Candidates List for Presidential Elections Released | Polling centers began…
telesurenglish.net/news/Syrians-Abroad-Vote-in-May-26-Presidential-Elections-20210520-0020.html

Mexico Is Willing To Accept Respectful Electoral Observation
telesurenglish.net | 2021-05-20
Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) on Thursday confirmed that the June 6 subnational elections are open to international observation, which must respect the country's sovereignty. | RELATED: | Relatives of Missing People in Mexico Demand Justice | The remarks were made in response to requests from opposition parties for electoral observation missions from the Organization of American States (OAS) and the United Nations (UN). | AMLO also urged the U.S. government to s…
telesurenglish.net/news/Mexico-Is-Willing-To-Accept-Respectful-Electoral-Observation–20210520-0012.html

Lithium, Cobalt, And Rare Earths
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-05-20
Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels for the generation of electricity. That would be accomplished by "deploying carbon-pollution-free electricity-generating resources," primarily the everlasting power of the wind and sun. | With other nations moving in a similar direction, it's tempting to conclude that the days when com…
popularresistance.org/lithium-cobalt-and-rare-earths/

Mexico Warns OAS, USAID From Interference in Midterm Elections
telesurenglish.net | 2021-05-20
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador insisted on Thursday that his country will prevent interference from the Organization of American States (OAS) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in the upcoming midterm elections. | RELATED: | Mexico Is Willing To Accept Respectful Electoral Observation | In his morning press briefing at the National Palace, Lopez Obrador repeated that the OAS knows that Mexico is not a colony or a protectorate, Mexico is a fr…
telesurenglish.net/news/Mexico-Warns-OAS-USAID-From-Interference-in-Midterm-Elections-20210520-0022.html

Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-05-20
At present, with wind and solar power accounting for only about 7% of global electricity generation and electric vehicles making up less than 1% of the cars on the road, the production of those minerals is roughly adequate to meet global demand. If, however, the U.S. and other countries really do move toward a green-energy future of the kind envisioned by President Biden, the demand for them will skyrocket and global output will fall far short of anticipated needs.
popularresistance.org/lithium-cobalt-and-rare-earths/

Brazil: Lula to Be Presidential Candidate in 2022 Election
telesurenglish.net | 2021-05-20
In an interview published by Paris Match on Wednesday, the Workers' Party leader Lula da Silva confirmed he wants to be a presidential candidate in Brazil's 2022 election. | RELATED: | Brazil: Poll Shows Lula as Winner of 2022 Presidential Election | "If I am in good health and in the best position to win the elections, yes, I will not hesitate," he replied when asked if he will be a candidate. He also recalled that during his administration (2003-2011), Brazil created strong t…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-Lula-to-Be-Presidential-Candidate-in-2022-Election-20210520-0008.html

GOP role in a conspiracy to kill democracy exposed
John Bachtell | peoplesworld.org | 2021-05-20
The GOP and extreme right-wing groups are conspiring against U.S. constitutional democracy in a two-pronged scheme to ram voter suppression laws through state legislatures and block the passage of historic voting rights legislation in Congress. Millions in dark money are fueling this plot, carried out under cover of the "Big Lie" of voter fraud. The …
peoplesworld.org/article/gop-role-in-a-conspiracy-to-kill-democracy-exposed/

Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths
Andy Kroll | tomdispatch.com | 2021-05-20
Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance on those non-renewable fuels for the generation of electricity. That would be accomplished by "deploying carbon-pollution-free electricity-generating resources," primarily the everlasting power of the wind and sun. With other nations moving in a similar direction, it's tempting to conclude that the days when compe…
tomdispatch.com/lithium-cobalt-and-rare-earths/

How America Went From Mom-and-Pop Capitalism to Techno-Feudalism
Ellen Brown | dissidentvoice.org | 2021-05-20
The crisis of 2020 has created the greatest wealth gap in history. The middle class, capitalism and democracy are all under threat. What went wrong and what can be done? In a matter of decades, the United States has gone from a largely benign form of capitalism to a neo-feudal form that has created an …
dissidentvoice.org/2021/05/how-america-went-from-mom-and-pop-capitalism-to-techno-feudalism/

Sanders Pushes Resolution Halting $735 Million in US Military Sales to Israel
Staff | truthout.org | 2021-05-20
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) has drafted a congressional resolution that would disallow the sale of $735 million in precision-guided missiles to Israel. | The draft document by Sanders, first reported on by The Washington Post, would block the planned sale of Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) and small diameter bombs — both of which…
truthout.org/articles/sanders-pushes-resolution-halting-735-million-in-us-military-sales-to-israel/

Sanders Unveils Bill to Force Pentagon to Pass Audit, Citing "Fraud" and "Waste"
Staff | truthout.org | 2021-05-20
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) has introduced a bipartisan bill that would require the Pentagon to pass audits beginning in fiscal year 2022 — or face fines. The Pentagon has never passed an audit. | The bill would impose a 1 percent fine on any military and Department of Defense agencies that fail to pass their audits. Sanders introduced th…
truthout.org/articles/sanders-unveils-bill-to-force-pentagon-to-pass-audit-citing-fraud-and-waste/

Nicaragua: "We are not Anyone's Colony"
Editor2 | orinocotribune.com | 2021-05-20
Nicaragua's Sandinista government is calling out blatant U.S. interference as the country prepares to hold its presidential election in six months. | President Daniel Ortega used the opportunity of the 126th anniversary of the birth of national revolutionary hero General Augusto Sandino to rail against U.S. intervention in the country, stating, "The Yankee Ambassador is all over the place selling their candidates as if he were Nicaraguan. He's not Nicaraguan… Don't get involved here Ambassador Yankee. Don't meddle here like you have been up until now." | Following the official state ceremony, Nicaragua's Vice P…
orinocotribune.com/nicaragua-we-are-not-anyones-colony/

Nicaragua: "We are not Anyone's Colony"
Editor2 | orinocotribune.com | 2021-05-20
Nicaragua's Sandinista government is calling out blatant U.S. interference as the country prepares to hold its presidential election in six months. | President Daniel Ortega used the opportunity of the 126th anniversary of the birth of national revolutionary hero General Augusto Sandino to rail against U.S. intervention in the country, stating, "The Yankee Ambassador is all over the place selling their candidates as if he were Nicaraguan. He's not Nicaraguan… Don't get involved here Ambassador Yankee. Don't meddle here like you have been up until now." | Following the official state ceremony, Nicaragua's Vice P…
orinocotribune.com/nicaragua-we-are-not-anyones-colony/

Foreign Wars Will Jeopardize Biden's Rescue Plans
Andrew J. Bacevich | thenation.com | 2021-05-20
Foreign Wars Will Jeopardize Biden's Rescue Plans…
thenation.com/article/world/biden-foreign-policy-progressive/

Blinken And Lavrov Agree Dialogue Is Necessary, Despite Fundamental Differences
Anonymous007 | southfront.org | 2021-05-20
Click to see full-size image | On May 19th, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the highest-profile meeting since Joe Biden became US president. | Blinken said that and said it was "no secret that we have our differences" and that Washington would respond to aggressive acts by Russia, but the world would be safer if the two countries' leaders worked together. | Lavrov, speaking through an interpreter at the opening of the meeting in Reykjavik on the sid…
southfront.org/blinken-and-lavrov-agree-dialogue-is-necessary-despite-fundamental-differences/

Disempowering the US cartels
Eric Posner | indybay.org | 2021-05-20
Technology corporations mostly form oligopolies, if not monopolies. | U.S. President Joe Biden is signaling that his administration wants to crack down on monopolies… Klobuchar's bill aims to boost antitrust action in many ways: it seeks to increase funding for the FTC and the Justice Department's Antitrust Division.
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/19/18842645.php

Sunday 5/23: Tom Gallagher, A Social Democrats Take on the Biden Administration
UUSF Humanists, Non-Theists | indybay.org | 2021-05-20
Join us on Zoom — | us02web.zoom.us/j/87281301611?pwd=NWF6NGd3bUhpSE14NWJLcmpra1ZSUT09 | Meeting ID: 872 8130 1611 | Passcode: 391496 | Dial by your location | +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)…
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/05/19/18842643.php

VP Harris Meets With Guatemalan Justice Leaders Before Visit
The Associated Press | latinorebels.com | 2021-05-20
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris met with a group of leading voices on Guatemala's troubled justice system Wednesday, sending yet another signal to Central American governments that the U.S. government is interested in addressing the region's corruption.
latinorebels.com/2021/05/20/harrismeetsguatemalanjusticeleaders/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=harrismeetsguatemalanjusticeleaders

Biden the Bold vs. Joe the Timid
Andrew Bacevich | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-20
Is President Biden afflicted with the political equivalent of a split personality? His first several months in office suggest just that possibility. On the home front, the president's inclination is clearly to Go Big. When it comes to America's role in the world, however, Biden largely hews to pre-Trumpian precedent. So far at least, the…
counterpunch.org/2021/05/20/biden-the-bold-vs-joe-the-timid/

Ahead of Biden Order on Climate Financial Risk, Coalition Says Wall Street Must Finally Be Held to Account
Julia Conley, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2021-05-20
"Plans to make plans in no way matches the urgency of the climate crisis; we need action from regulators now to stop the money pipeline to climate chaos," said a coalition of 160 groups ahead of President Biden's executive order on climate-related financial risks. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/climate_protest_wall_street1300x681.jpg
commondreams.org/news/2021/05/20/ahead-biden-order-climate-financial-risk-coalition-says-wall-street-must-finally-be?cd-origin=rss

Stop The Money Pipeline Coalition Issues Statement Ahead of Biden's Executive Order on Climate-Related Financial Risk
commondreams.org | 2021-05-20
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/05/20/stop-money-pipeline-coalition-issues-statement-ahead-bidens-executive-order?cd-origin=rss

Oil Change International Response to Biden Climate Finance Executive Order
commondreams.org | 2021-05-20
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/05/20/oil-change-international-response-biden-climate-finance-executive-order?cd-origin=rss

Tomgram: Michael Klare, Will There Be Resource Wars in a Renewable Future?
Tom Engelhardt | warisacrime.org | 2021-05-20
This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here. These days in Washington, it's competition with and hostility to China all the way to the bank. The political class in Congress and the Biden White House, as well as the punditariat that goes with them, seem increasingly … Continue reading "Tomgram: Michael Klare, Will There Be Resource Wars in a Renewable Future?"
warisacrime.org/2021/05/20/tomgram-michael-klare-will-there-be-resource-wars-in-a-renewable-future/

The Post-Petroleum Resource Race and What to Make of It
Michael T. Klare | commondreams.org | 2021-05-20
"A mere glance at the location of such concentrations suggests that the green-energy transition envisioned by President Biden and other world leaders may encounter severe geopolitical problems, not unlike those generated in the past by reliance on oil." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/renewable_energy.jpg
commondreams.org/views/2021/05/20/post-petroleum-resource-race-and-what-make-it?cd-origin=rss

Oil Change International Response to Biden Climate Finance Executive Order
commondreams.org | 2021-05-20
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/05/20/oil-change-international-response-biden-climate-finance-executive-order?cd-origin=rss

Conservation Organizations Call for Urgent Action to Protect Grizzly Bears
CounterPunch News Service | counterpunch.org | 2021-05-20
MISSOULA, MONTANA In letters sent today to federal lawmakers and the Biden administration, numerous conservation organizations are calling for urgent executive and legislative action to bolster grizzly bear recovery, even as western lawmakers and officials seek to remove Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for the threatened species. According to a new report by Dr. David Mattson,…
counterpunch.org/2021/05/20/conservation-oorganizations-call-for-urgent-action-to-protect-grizzly-bears/

'The First Step of Many': Advocates Welcome Move to Close ICE Lockups at 2 County Jails
Brett Wilkins, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2021-05-20
"Bristol exemplifies how the system as a whole is fundamentally flawed and we call on the Biden administration to continue to cut detention contracts and shut down facilities for good," urged Silky Shah of the Detention Watch Collective. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/abolish-ice.jpg
commondreams.org/news/2021/05/20/first-step-many-advocates-welcome-move-close-ice-lockups-2-county-jails?cd-origin=rss

2021-05-22 05:19 | 01:19 EST | 396 | 0 | 56 | 42 | 1