The Roundup for June 9, 2015
We head next to Japan.
International Politics
Overall
– It is worth remembering how America became the world’s uni-pole after events in the 20th century and what it holds for the 21st century
– President Barack Obama: Russian President Vladimir Putin should stop impeding Russia’s progress; You do know Western capitalists helped create conditions for his rise, right?
– Moreover, Obama admitted the U.S. does have a “complete strategy” in Iraq
– A former adviser to Sepp Blatter said both Russia and Qatar paid bribes to host the World Cup
Middle East
– Speaking of which, Mosul, now under Islamic State control, no longer looks like a city to liberate soon
– The United Nations will not put Israel on a list of children’s rights violators
– The international recognized prime minister of Yemen said U.N.-sponsored talks aim to re-install him in power
Africa
– A new report from Human Rights Watch found violations committed by the Egyptian military government
Europe
– Juan Cole: “How Turkey’s President Erdogan Damaged AKP Brand”
– Meanwhile, Erdogan said no party in the election received a mandate from the people
Latin America, Caribbean and Canada
– Professor Francois Pierre-Louis and economist Jake Johnston join The Real News to continue their discussion on Haiti. This time they focus on a government report highlighting the failures of USAID in the country
– You can read more about that report and how the Clinton Foundation is tied here
– The civil war in El Salvador did not end. It just became something else
– While Cuba may be open to working with capitalists, it still is hesitant to go all the way
– In Mexico, election saw the ruling party still stay in control despite some setbacks
Surveillance Planet
– Do you know if the NSA is able to transcribe your phone calls? No really, do you because it is hard to tell
– Marcy Wheeler: “DOJ Doesn’t Care What the Text of the Law or the 2nd Circuit Says, Dragnet Edition”
Financial Matters
– Doom and gloom may be the future of the Chinese economy because of, to take a phrase from Keynes, “irrational exuberance”
– Henry A. Giroux: “Flipping the Script: Rethinking Working-Class Resistance”
– HSBC, a bank with no end in terms of scandals, launched an internal investigation into a senior executive
– A new study found some for-profit hospitals can charge up to 10 times the rate Medicare charges for service
– President Obama: The Greek government need to make hard choices to make sure a deal with lenders happens
– The International Monetary Fund recommended labor reforms to reduce unemployment in Spain
Labor’s a-Brewing
– Sarah Jaffe: “Workers Confront Walmart Executives at Star-Studded Company Event”
Politics US
Washington USA
– Donald Rumsfeld, former Secretary of State, admitted it was unrealistic to expect Iraq to become democratic
– Rick Perry, a Republican candidate for president, believes Wall Street should be regulated; Can he name three banks?
– If you want to see how dirty Hillary Clinton can get in foreign policy, then look no further than her role in Honduras after the 2009 coup
– Jason Leopold: “The FBI Discussed an ‘End-Game’ for a US Citizen Killed in a Drone Strike”
– What does the Pentagon think is important to spend money on? Hire a new ad agency to make the military look great of course!
– Figures like Tony Blair and Sen. Lindsey Graham pleaded for a court to go easy on David Petraeus’ sentencing
– A Tea Party strategist actually came up with a good idea on campaign finance reform with a tax credit for Americans who donate
– The Obama administration submitted a report to Congress about human rights abuses in Egypt, yet still recommended sending military aid
Anytown USA
– Gallup: Sixty-four percent of Americans aged 18-29 say they are single and have not married, which is up from 48 percent in 2005
– Dave Zirin: “The People of Oakland Need to Occupy Their Sports Teams”
– Pew: Fifty-seven percent of Americans support favor same-sex marriage
– The officer who fatally shot Walter Scott was indicted for murder by a jury
– An officer, in Texas, who forcibly grabbed a black teen on camera at a pool party is now on leave
– Violent crimes committed by youths reveal the consequences of a system failing to help such juveniles
We Don’t Need No Education
– Michelle Chen: “Budget Cuts, Layoffs, and a $1.5 Billion Campus Remodeling—What’s Wrong With This Picture?”
– How are the Chinese attempting to stop cheating in the classroom? Use drones
Health, Hunger and Homelessness
– A new report found one in three Americans previously or currently have an alcohol-related problem
– At least 66 labs received anthrax from the Pentagon and that number may grow
The Second Sex
– Jessica Valenti: “Birth control pills should be as easy to buy as condoms”
– A new study found women are under-represented in media; And they should not be like Maureen Dowd because that would be very bad
Planet Earth
– Lord Martin Rees, a professor, joins The Real News to discuss the possibilities of funding renewable energy for the planet
– Developed countries are failing to provide a serious, effective plan to deal with climate change
– Anti-Keystone XL activist say, after the FBI tracked them, they were stopped at borders and placed on a watchlist
– Economist Robert Pollin joins The Real News to explain what a green economy may help Spain after suffering from austerity
Mixed Bag
– Chris Hedges: “Thou Shalt Not Kill”
– A $30 million FIFA-produced movie received $900 this past weekend at the box office
Break Time
– Red Swing [Puffy AmiYumi]
9 Comments
“– A former adviser to Sepp Blatter said both Russia and Qatar paid bribes to host the World Cup”
Right, like no other country (can one say, US/whatever) paid no bribes? Pulease!
others didn’t pay as much
inflation
https://www.emptywheel.net/2015/06/06/american-national-security-types-discover-the-drawbacks-of-bulk-collection/
Regarding Pentagon, advertising, recruiting. . .
Like selling corn flakes no doubt. The buyer should thoroughly read the list of ingredients, as well as the required nutrition disclosures.
So. . . I would not take my grandkids to see a military demonstration team perform, be it at an air show, parachute jump, or whatever. Kids are too impressionable that way, and will come away eyes wide shut with woefully erroneous conclusions, which might stick — propaganda is the idea and purpose, no?
They need to be taught the cold hard facts of history instead.
I think this is a cover story for something else going on. This spy vs. spy CIA vs. NSA feud has something to do with all the hacks. Going off the grid will soon be prima facie evidence of militant activity as every database is consolidated at the NSA. “Papers please” will morph into “RFID card please”.
That story at Truth Dig is fascinating. The infrastructure China has been building is mind blowing and we can’t fix the bridges we already have. Empire: what is it good for anyway? Maybe time to give it away.
Erdogan is a corrupt authoritarian Islamist. If you have seen pictures of the palace which he has built for himself, it easy to see he sees himself more as latter day sultan than president. The only thing he learned from the election in which his party lost its majority is that he needs to be more corrupt, more authoritarian, more anti-democratic, and more anti-secularist.
The NSA is like the Stasi. Even if it stopped functioning tomorrow, it would take decades to sort through everything it has on us. Of course, it would help us get a better picture of its activities if Greenwald and Poitras released the Snowden files, instead of milking them. I can’t help thinking that they and the US government have a tacit understanding: No bulk disclosures, just the occasional article now and then (which will disappear quickly from the public consciousness), and we don’t come after you.
If young people can’t afford a house, can’t afford children, have iffy jobs paying low wages, and maybe throw some debt in there too, what incentive do they have to marry? This ties in with the gentrification of higher education. The University of Chicago was already extremely elitist, but this phenomenon isn’t just happening at the Ivies and the quasi-Ivies but even at second tier state schools. And this ties in with America’s geopolitical decline. The real foundation of our wealth and power is in our people. These have been abused and disinvested in for decades, a couple of generations at the least. Their jobs (and skills) have been sent to China. They are left with crap, uncertain jobs here. They are being priced out of higher education. K through 12 meanwhile is being defunded and privatized. In other words, the basis of our wealth and power is fast eroding. You can see a similar hollowing out of the core of hegemons in history, like the Spanish Empire from 1550-1650 and the British Empire from 1850-1950.
Russia took advantage of an unregulated market