(2021-12-14). More than half a billion people pushed into extreme poverty due to health care costs. moderndiplomacy.eu New evidence compiled by the World Health Organization and the World Bank shows that the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to halt two decades of global progress towards Universal Health Coverage. The organizations also reveal that more than half a billion people are being pushed or pushed further into extreme poverty because they have to pay …
(2021-12-14). The United States Is Using Nazis In Ukraine To Provoke War With Russia. popularresistance.org If you listen to the corporate media in the United States, you may believe the lies that say Russia is preparing to invade Ukraine. In reality, it is the United States, led by then vice president Joe Biden, that conducted a coup to replace the elected president of Ukraine in 2014 and has been training and arming Nazis to attack the ethnically Russian Donbass Region in eastern Ukraine ever since. There is daily violence against civilians and basic infrastructure. The Biden administration is escalating this aggression and trying to blame Russia with the support of the same corporate media that defended US attacks o…
(2021-12-14). Ukraine Is a Problem Only as Long as the West Makes It One. dissidentvoice.org 
Ukrainian servicemen take part in a drill of the airborne troops taking place in Zhytomyr region on November 21, 2018. (photo: AFP) Since the fall of the Soviet Union thirty years ago, US policy on Ukraine has been an ugly mix of inconsistency, quiet aggression, fear-mongering and stupidity. Now President Biden is recklessly intensifying the …
(2021-12-14). US Shouldn't Be Invited to Summit for Democracy, Let Alone Be its Host. orinocotribune.com 
By Alexander Rubinstein — Dec 8, 2021 | In every one of the countries the United States has intervened in over the past decades, anti-democratic means are almost always used towards anti-democratic ends, all in the name of promoting democracy. | This week, the United States is convening a virtual "Summit for Democracy," the first of its kind in what the State Department hopes to make an annual event. | "The summit will focus on challenges and opportunities facing democracies and will provide a platform for leaders to announce both individual and collective commitments, reforms, and initiatives to defend demo…
(2021-12-14). No action against personnel responsible for killing Afghan civilians in August drone strike, says US defense department. peoplesdispatch.org Several human rights groups have questioned the internal investigation by the Pentagon which called the drone strike inside a residential building in Kabul an "honest mistake". 10 Afghan civilians including seven children, were killed in the US drone strike in August…
(2021-12-14). Headlines for December 14, 2021. democracynow.org Eight Killed by Tornado at Kentucky Factory Whose Workers Were Ordered to Remain on Site, Ice Sheet Holding Back Vast Antarctic Glacier Poised to Collapse Within Five Years, U.K. Reports First Death Linked to Fast-Spreading Omicron Coronavirus Variant, New York City to Require Proof of Vaccination for Kids 5 and Up to Enter Public Spaces, Pentagon Won't Punish Anyone over Kabul Drone Strike That Killed 10 Civilians, Sudanese Police Fire Tear Gas at Protesters Demanding End to Military Rule, Report: Colombian Police Killed at Least 11 People Protesting Police Brutality, Danish Ex-Minister Gets Prison for Illegally…
(2021-12-14). Over a Year After His Election, President Biden's Human Rights Commitments Fail to Meet the Moment. aclu.org Throughout his presidential campaign, then-candidate Joe Biden The United States' meager commitments presented before last week's Summit for Democracy are illustrative. Instead of undertaking new initiatives to protect democracy, advance racial justice, and implement U.S. obligations on human rights, the Biden adm…
(2021-12-14). Absurd Guardian Article Declares China World's Only Imperialist Power. strategic-culture.org 
Another cartoonishly ridiculous anti-China propaganda piece has been published in the western mass media, this time by The Guardian, which at this point could arguably be labeled the single most destructive promulgator of empire propaganda in the western world. It is authored by Simon Tisdall, who could most certainly be labeled the single most destructive promulgator of empire propaganda at The Guardian.
(2021-12-14). Why poorer nations aren't falling for green-washed imperialism. canadiandimension.com 
Streets in the district of Satkhira, in southern Bangladesh, are flooded after months of heavy rain. Photo by Rafiqur Rahman Raqu/Department for International Development/ Fighting global warming is not just about providing a path to net-zero carbon emissions for all countries. It is also about figuring out how best to meet the energy needs of people across the world while working toward net-zero emissions. If fossil fuels have to be given up, which has now become an urgent need given the current environmental challenges, co…
(2021-12-14). Barbados declares a republic: British imperialism's legacy of slavery and colonialism. wsws.org None of the island's governments have been able to redress British imperialism's legacy of underdevelopment, dependency and above all economic hardship and social inequality.
(2021-12-14). Who is Responsible for the Deteriorating Situation in Lebanon? journal-neo.org 
For many years, Lebanon was considered the safe haven of the Middle East plagued by wars, instability, and colored revolutions. Many have referred to the country as the Middle East's Switzerland, including investments in Lebanon's economy from countries of the region where the political crises were raging. The country's banks were especially valued, prosperous and …
(2021-12-14). Government crisis in Sweden strengthens far-right. wsws.org For the first time, the Swedish parliament voted for a budget drafted by the conservative Moderate Party in collaboration with the far-right Sweden Democrats.
(2021-12-14). Strike Wave in the U.S.? Labor Historian Nelson Lichtenstein on Union Drives & Worker Revolts. democracynow.org 
As unionizing efforts have taken the U.S. by storm, we look at the history of the U.S. labor movement and how unions have acted as a bulwark against corporate power. Worker organizing at Starbucks, Kellogg's and Amazon shows that unions help enforce health and safety measures and protect workers who speak out. "A working-class consciousness ebbs and flows," says Nelson Lichtenstein, director of the Center for the Study of Work, Labor, and Democracy at the University of California, Santa Barbara. "A union is a way of capturing that consciousness and making it the law of the land."
(2021-12-14). Mapping Faultlines: After Biden-Putin summit, what next for Ukraine and the region? peoplesdispatch.org NewsClick's Prabir Purkayastha talks about the recent call between US president Joe Biden and Russian president Vladimir Putin and the emerging situation in Ukraine…
(2021-12-14). Family Policies in the Build Back Better Act Would Reduce Burdens on Families and Provide a Better Buffer to Economic Instability. cepr.net Many US workers could not say exactly when or how much they will be working two weeks from today. As one might imagine, this situation makes it difficult to plan and control one's nonwork life. It also can lead to financial hardship for low- and moderate-income households when they experience a decline in earnings due …
(2021-12-14). Parade of hurting people prods lawmakers to pass Build Back Better. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON—One by one, advocating ending income inequality, strengthening and restoring voting rights, cutting military spending, extending the child care tax credit, raising the minimum wage, and more, a parade of people hurting from exploitation by corporations, the economic elite, and their political allies, took a hand-held microphone in D.C. Monday to campaign for their combined …
(2021-12-14). Amid Tornado Devastation, Sunrise Says 'Call It What It Is: A Climate Disaster'. zcomm.org "We aren't asking, we demand change. Kentucky needs Build Back Better now."
(2021-12-14). Andy Lee Roth and Steve Macek Discuss the Under-Reported Stories of the Year. projectcensored.org Project Censored's new annual volume, "State of the Free Press 2022," has just been released from The Censored Press. It includes the well-known 'Top 25' censored stories of the preceding…
(2021-12-14). Philippine Supreme Court upholds anti-democratic Anti-Terrorism Law. wsws.org The ruling greenlights the full implementation of the draconian law, which targets social unrest and authorizes surveillance, wire-tapping, and arrests without warrant.
(2021-12-14). "No Rules": A Border Patrol Unit Worked with the FBI to Investigate Journalists. Is It Still Running? democracynow.org 
A shocking exposé reveals how a secretive Customs and Border Protection division investigated as many as 20 journalists and their contacts by using government databases intended to track terrorists. Those investigated include the Pulitzer Prize-winning Associated Press reporter Martha Mendoza, along with others at The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. We speak to Jana Winter, the investigative correspondent who broke the story at Yahoo News, who says it's unclear if the surveillance program was discontinued. "These were career officials who are still running this secretive unit with…
(2021-12-14). UK Claims China Is About to Use Its Digital Yuan for Surveillance. globalresearch.ca To receive Global Research's Daily Newsletter (selected articles), Visit …
(2021-12-14). Culture wars: identity politics and the fight against surveillance capitalism. zcomm.org For some, it's a left-wing adoption of neoliberalism. For others, it's authoritarian. But it's really just about equality…
(2021-12-14). Fuel leak at Pearl Harbor military base contaminates drinking water on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. wsws.org The Board of Water Supply for Honolulu closed down Oahu's largest water source on December 2 after the Navy reported in a virtual town hall meeting that it found "a likely source of the contamination."
(2021-12-14). Israel kills two in West Bank. electronicintifada.net Deadliest year for Palestinian children since 2014.
(2021-12-14). Video: How Israeli bombing poisoned Gaza's water. electronicintifada.net Destruction of warehouses released toxic chemicals into environment.
(2021-12-14). A Christmas Truce Would Come in Very Handy Right About Now. davidswanson.org By David Swanson, World BEYOND War, December 14, 20 Ya gotta love how the U.S. media annually freaks out about a "war on Christmas" by which it means something completely unrelated to any wars, while the U.S. military always has several actual wars going on Christmas, the same as every other day. Perhaps especially on …
(2021-12-14). Elizabeth Samet Thinks She Already Found the Good War. davidswanson.org If you were to read reviews of Elizabeth Samet's book, Looking for the Good War — such as the one in the New York Times or the other one in the New York Times — a little too quickly, you might find yourself reading her book and hoping for a reasoned argument against the supposed …
(2021-12-14). Understanding the Historical Moment We're in Takes Practical Action! anchor.fm In this episode I go into a discussion about the political, social, and economic placement we as working class people seem to find ourselves in today, not simply in the US but in some sense around the world. We are all hurting in a very similar way, added onto by our own individual struggles or difficulties we might face because of the color of our skin, our gender, our ability or willingness to be taken advantage of, etc. We are all suffering very difficult situations which none of us can take on alone, but if we want to do something about these things, we can't just pick up a gun and go, we'll be killed, or mos…
(2021-12-14). Over 100 feared dead as recovery efforts continue following massive tornado outbreak across the US Midwest and South. wsws.org Workers at the candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky which was destroyed by a tornado Friday night were told they would be fired if they left the facility in response to warnings made hours before the storm hit.
(2021-12-14). Workers Struggles: The Americas. wsws.org Some 400 Teamsters members at Republic Services in Southern California are on the picket lines as Fred Meyer workers in the Pacific Northwest are threatening strike and daycare workers across Quebec, Canada ended their walkout with a contract ratification.
(2021-12-14). The New York Times' crude attempt to pit Detroit parents against educators as pandemic rages. wsws.org The New York Times published an article last week under the headline, "Schools are closing classrooms on Fridays. Parents are furious."
(2021-12-14). Support the Turkish health care workers' strike movement! wsws.org This strike movement, amid a raging pandemic, is internationally significant and deserves support from all sections of the working class.
(2021-12-14). As COVID-19 surges, France's Révolution Permanente attacks public health measures. wsws.org By opposing necessary health measures, the pseudo-left Révolution Permanente website aligns itself with the policies of Emmanuel Macron's government.
(2021-12-14). Quebec authorities left long-term care residents to die in pandemic's first wave. wsws.org A report from the Quebec Ombudsman demonstrates that the province's CAQ government abandoned vulnerable seniors and lied to the public as COVID-19 ripped through nursing homes between March and June 2020.
(2021-12-14). Soaring social inequality under New Zealand Labour government. wsws.org Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jim Bolger warned recently that society is increasingly divided between the poor and the "obscenely rich," and that historically inequality was "the root cause of revolution."
(2021-12-14). Another Minnesota teenager dead from COVID-19. wsws.org Another death in a young person aged 15—19 from COVID-19 in Minnesota marks the second in less than a one-week period.
(2021-12-14). José Antonio Kast: Chile's left paves the way for a fascist. wsws.org The political descendants of the forces that bore responsibility for straitjacketing the working class ahead of the September 11, 1973 coup are today playing the same role.
(2021-12-14). South Dakota teachers scramble at "Dash for Cash" in desperate attempt to fund their classrooms. wsws.org Workers across the US have reacted in horror to a stage-managed competition for teachers to win a few hundred dollars for their classrooms.
(2021-12-14). Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows referred for criminal contempt of Congress in January 6 probe. wsws.org The report by the House Select Committee recommending the contempt charges reveals that Meadows was in close contact with the Pentagon throughout January 5-6 and expected the military to intervene on the side of Trump's coup plans.
(2021-12-14). Columbia student workers begin sixth week on strike, defying university's strikebreaking threats. wsws.org Columbia's threats not to rehire striking workers raises the urgency for student workers to expand their strike.
(2021-12-14). An interview with veteran Australian actor, director John Bell: Eliminating Shakespeare is "like having a part of your brain removed" wsws.org Bell is one of Australia's most illustrious theatre personalities. He founded the Bell Shakespeare theatre company in 1990.
(2021-12-14). Austria ends partial lockdown. wsws.org On Sunday, the limited lockdown, which had brought about a slight reduction in the number of infections after less than three weeks, was ended in almost all provinces by the Austrian government.
(2021-12-14). Decolonizing the holiday: A way forward on Thanksgiving? peoplesworld.org 
EDITOR'S NOTE: Though Thanksgiving is now passed, People's World thinks it important to bring the following commentary article to our readers from Albert Bender, a regular PW correspondent. After speaking at a Native event this year on the "holiday," he penned the following reflections. The Thanksgiving holiday, or as it also called by many "Thanks-taking" …
(2021-12-14). A new transport agenda to carry Asia and the Pacific towards sustainable development. moderndiplomacy.eu Transport ministers from across Asia and the Pacific are meeting this week to consider a potentially transformational agenda for how people and goods are moved around the region and across the globe. Pre-COVID-19 transport connectivity weaknesses in the Asia-Pacific region became even more apparent during the pandemic: landlocked developing countries, least developed countries and small …
(2021-12-14). Canadian Tire Fire #23: Gidimt'en Calls for Week of Action, Defund the Ottawa Police, Encampment Solidarity Updates. itsgoingdown.org photo: @RisingTideTor As CGL attempts to move forward with their work on the Yintah, inching ever closer to drilling under Wedzin Kwa, Gidimt'en Checkpoint has called for a week of actions starting December 20th. They're calling for specific attention to be paid to investors such as RBC, which has already been the target of a…
(2021-12-14). ACT-UP and Win: a riveting account of NYC activism during the AIDS crisis. mronline.org 
Sarah Schulman's recently released political history shines light on AIDS activism that often goes unrecognized.
(2021-12-14). 'Good People': Some are better than you think, others a whole lot worse. peoplesworld.org 
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — An abyss divides the worlds of Southie—South Boston's Lower End, home of generations of working-class whites, many of Irish background, with its adjacent Black communities—and the toney residential suburb of Chestnut Hill. That insuperable class divide is a microcosm of America in 2009, in the wake of the wreckage of George …
(2021-12-14). 11-year-old sexually assaulted at school, mother fights for justice: 'How am I gonna trust them to teach my son?'. liberationnews.org 
"If they're not educated on it, how am I gonna trust them to teach my son the difference?"
(2021-12-14). UAW members vote strongly in favor of 'One worker, one vote' referendum. liberationnews.org 
In voting results announced on December 2, members of the United Auto Workers overwhelmingly voted to change the union's method of choosing its top leadership…
(2021-12-14). El monopolio corporativo dificulta económicamente a las trabajadoras. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON: øPor qué los trabajadores no pueden salir adelante? Económicamente, eso es. Los salarios medios de la amplia clase media estadounidense han estado prácticamente estancados durante al menos 40 años, ajustados a la inflación, incluso cuando la productividad se ha adelantado al galope. La mediana del 20% inferior de hecho se ha reducido. Mientras tanto, …