Daily Archives: February 9, 2020

2020-02-09: News Headlines

RT (2020-02-09). 3D printer that could cover burns with ARTIFICIAL SKIN undergoing trials (VIDEO). rt.com A device capable of 'printing' sheets of artificial skin onto burns has performed strongly in recent trials, bringing it one step closer to use in burn clinics. | The handheld 3D skin printer was developed by engineers at the University in Toronto in 2018. The innovative technology passed a major milestone earlier this month, after the team reported promising results following its latest trial of the device on pigs in the journal of 'Biofabrication'. | One researcher on the team described the sci fi-looking tool as a "duct tape dispenser" that uses artificial tissue "tape." | A video posted by the University o…

Gary Olson (2020-02-09). On Class Consciousness and the 2020 Presidential Election. dissidentvoice.org After several weeks of intensive reading and discussion on class, capitalism and socialism in my undergraduate course, The Politics of Labor, we would do following exercise: Standing before the blackboard (google it) I encouraged the students to list existing, objective and determining conditions that might prompt the American working class to seek the abolition of …

Larry Romanoff (2020-02-09). Iran Attack on Two US Bases, The "Evil Empire" Strikes Back. The Casualties? globalresearch.ca After their excessive and macabre display of delight and satisfaction, and even celebration, over the killing of Solemani, the White House was tight-lipped about Iran's almost immediate retaliatory missile attack on two US bases in Iraq, with Donald Trump soon …

Samantha Winslow (2020-02-09). Teacher Strikes Boost Fight for Racial Justice in Schools. zcomm.org L.A. teacher union activists, like their counterparts in Chicago, Seattle, St. Paul, and other cities, are making contract demands to confront segregation, underfunding, and the criminalization of the students they teach…

Yulia Gilich and Tony Boardman (2020-02-09). Santa Cruz Grad Students Extend Wildcat Strike. zcomm.org Protesting low wages in one of the most unaffordable cities in the country, graduate students at the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) went on a wildcat grading strike in December and are now organizing for a full strike…

Natasha Lennard (2020-02-09). Yes, a Progressive President Could Cancel Student Debt on Day One. zcomm.org We are closer than ever to making student debt erasure happen not because of policy wonks at think tanks or Senate offices, but rather because a grassroots movement organized behind an aim and then set about figuring out how to make it a reality…

Ellen Brown (2020-02-09). Mexico's President AMLO Shows How It's Done. dissidentvoice.org While U.S. advocates and local politicians struggle to get their first public banks chartered, Mexico's new president has begun construction on 2,700 branches of a government-owned bank to be completed in 2021, when it will be the largest bank in the country. At a press conference on January 6, he said the neoliberal model had failed; private …

yenisafak (2020-02-09). Azerbaijan: 132 int'l media outlets to cover election. yenisafak.com A total of 132 international media outlets will cover the snap parliamentary election in Azerbaijan, the chairman of Central Election Commission (CEC) said on Saturday.Mazahir Panahov told a news conference in the capital Baku that some 199 representatives of 132 international media outlets from 47 countries will closely monitor the election scheduled for Sunday.He said the latest number of the candidates for the deputy post is at 1,314.Some 305 candidates are related to the political parties, while the rest are independent.He said that almost 92% of candidates have a higher education degree, while almost half of…

sputniknews (2020-02-09). Fellowship of Siberia's Baikal Rings: Cause of Puzzling Ice Circles in World's Biggest Lake Revealed. sputniknews.com There have been diverse theories attempting to crack open the mystery of the so-called "ice rings" in Russia's Lake Baikal, some of which may even reach 7 kilometres in diameter. The most popular concept, focusing on methane outbursts, was eventually disproven due to objective geological reasons.

Shawgi Tell (2020-02-09). Charter Schools Fail to Eradicate the Achievement Gap. dissidentvoice.org Numerous inequalities characterize societies in which the majority produce the wealth but only a handful own it. The so-called "achievement gap" is mainly an expression of the harsh social class divide in society that keeps growing. One of the conceited claims of charter school advocates is that privately-owned-operated non-profit and for-profit charter schools will close …

RT (2020-02-08). Irish election too close to call as 'historic' surge by left-wing nationalist Sinn Fein stuns establishment. rt.com Polls have closed in Ireland's general election and, with no party securing a strong lead, confusion abounds as voters wait to see which parties will agree to do business with each other to form a coalition. | An Ipsos MRBI exit poll published by Ireland's state broadcaster RTE at 10pm shows FG, SF and FF tied with a statistically insignificant (given a margin of error of 1.3 percent) difference of 22.4, 22.3 and 22.2 percent of the vote respectively. | A Sinn Fein surge in the run up to election day looks to have translated into votes at the ballot box, allowing party leader Mary Lou McDonald to head into pos…

teleSUR (2020-02-08). Ontario Teachers Are Strongly United to Defend Public Education. telesurenglish.net Over the last week, Canadian elementary school teachers have intensified their protest against Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford's policies, which seek to cut the number of teachers and increase the number of students per classroom. | RELATED: | Instead, Canadian teachers demand more resources to serve students with special needs, the protection of the preschool education program, and fairer wages. | Despite having br…

Staff (2020-02-08). Government Report Finds Trump's Trade War Is Harmful to Americans' Incomes. truthout.org President Donald Trump's trade war is projected to reduce the average family's real income by $1,277, according to a new report from the The CBO, a nonpartisan congressional research arm, projected that the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration and retaliatory tariffs imposed by countries like China will reduce economic growth while increasing prices to consumers. | "Tariffs are expected to reduce the l…

WSWS (2020-02-08). Australian coronavirus travel ban blocks thousands of Chinese students. wsws.org The blanket ban by the Morrison government affects any foreign national trying to enter Australia from mainland China.

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-02-08). 'Something Big Is Shifting': As Georgetown Announces Fossil Fuel Divestment, Students Across US Demand Their Schools Follow Suit. commondreams.org Student-led anti-fossil fuel campaigns at universities across the country pointed to Georgetown University Friday as the school's board of directors announced it would divest from fossil fuels and redouble its efforts to invest in renewable energy instead. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

C.J. Atkins (2020-02-07). Chinese national describes life inside the coronavirus quarantine zone. peoplesworld.org SINGAPORE—It's been more than two weeks since authorities in the city of Wuhan quarantined 11 million people in an attempt to contain the coronavirus outbreak spreading across China and around the world. Except for a few foreign nationals whose governments have ferried them out on charter flights, the capital of epidemic-hit Hubei province remains, essentially, …

Johanna Ross (2020-02-07). Assange's Case Represents 'Failure of Western Law' — Says UN's Nils Melzer. globalresearch.ca An interview was recently given by UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Nils Melzer, to

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2020-02-07). Who is Behind "Fake News"? Mainstream Media Use Fake Videos and Images. globalresearch.ca The mainstream corporate media is desperate. They want to suppress independent and alternative online media, which they categorize as "fake news". Readers on social media are warned not to go onto certain sites. Our analysis confirms that the mainstream media are routinely involved in distorting the facts and turning realities upside down.

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2020-02-07). Why Nancy Pelosi is "A National Disgrace" globalresearch.ca Nancy Pelosi tears up Trump's State of the Union Address. | "I thought it was a terrible thing," said Trump. "It's illegal what she did. She broke the law." | On one thing I agree with Donald Trump: | Speaker of the House …

teleSUR (2020-02-07). Pope Francis Rejects Tax Cuts for the 'Richest People'. telesurenglish.net Pope Francis criticized the practice of tax cuts for the rich in the name of "investment and development," calling it a "structure of sin" at the seminar set up by the Pontifical Academy for Social Sciences, Thursday. | RELATED: | He lamented the fact that "billions of dollars" end up in "tax haven accounts" instead of funding "healthcare and education," something that in his own words impede "the possibility of the digni…

Jessica Corbett (2020-02-07). Trump's Final Plan to Open Treasured Public Lands in Utah Called 'Sellout' to Big Oil. globalresearch.ca The administration's new managment plans "are the latest in a series of insults… that began when Trump illegally dismantled Bears Ears and Grand Staircase at the behest of corporate interests two years ago." | *** | Tribal and conservation groups on Thursday …

Andrew Korybko (2020-02-07). Expansion of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Tehran Wants to Build "the Golden Ring" globalresearch.ca BRI-led Eurasian integration processes are one of the defining characteristics of contemporary International Relations, and the Golden Ring could eventually become the centerpiece of these efforts if Ambassador Hosseini's W-CPEC+ proposal succeeds, especially if it's done in parallel with N-CPEC+….

John Stanton (2020-02-07). How the World Ends. Personal Reflections On "The Situation Everyone is In" globalresearch.ca I'm writing this letter to myself. I need to talk to someone, even it is only myself. I need to believe that what happened to us was real. | All that I know of the past was learned by word-of-mouth histories …

Steven Sahiounie (2020-02-07). Syria and Turkey Face War as Syrian Arab Army Poised to Take Idlib. globalresearch.ca Tensions between Damascus and Ankara have never been higher over the past nine years. Turkey's

Michael Jansen (2020-02-07). Break-up of Astana Partnership Was Inevitable. The Turkey-Russia Relation in Jeopardy? globalresearch.ca Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has ordered his forces to strike Syrian army positions in retaliation for targeting a Turkish military convoy bound for the Saraqeb in Syria's north-western Idlib province. His forces obeyed on Monday and allegedly struck a …

Larry Romanoff (2020-02-07). Biological Weapons: A Useful and Timely Factual Overview. globalresearch.ca A US Army operating manual from 1956 stated explicitly that biological and chemical warfare were an integral operating portion of US military strategy, were not restricted in any way, and that Congress had given the military "First Strike" authority on their use.

Canada Palestine Association (2020-02-07). Canada, Palestine and the 'Deal of the Century': Four Statements. globalresearch.ca Reject Trump's Plan: Exist, Resist, Return | by Canada Palestine Association | The Trump Administration has just unveiled the details of its "Deal Of The Century." This plan includes, but is not limited to: | Giving legitimacy to illegal Israeli settlements in Palestine. …

Zero Hedge (2020-02-07). Just a Little Sloppy Record-Keeping? The Pentagon's $35 Trillion 'Accounting Black Hole'. globalresearch.ca Over the past two weeks of coronavirus headlines and heightened global anxiety, along with impeachment coverage and after over the Super Bowl weekend Americans huddled in living rooms in blissful oblivion, a story which in more normal times would be …

Patrick Martin (2020-02-07). Democrats Seek to Suppress Sanders Victory in Iowa. globalresearch.ca The effort by the Democratic Party establishment to conceal or suppress reports of Senator Bernie Sanders' victory in the Iowa caucuses reached a new stage Thursday with Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez calling on the Iowa Democratic Party to …

Maurizio Vezzosi (2020-02-07). Italy and the Changing — But Not Waiting — World. globalresearch.ca Recently the French President, Mr. Emmanuel Macron, admitted that NATO should be considered cerebrally dead. Such a statement, although influenced by the search for domestic consent, certainly reflects a deep impatience with European and Atlantic limitations by French intellectuals …

Coery Eiesbnreg (2020-02-07). J31 "Fare Strike" Protest at New York's Grand Central Station. globalresearch.ca Just a few hours before the J31 Fare Strike convened at Grand Central Station, I had the opportunity to speak with Mayor de Blasio as a call-in to the Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC. I alerted the Mayor to the …

Michael Lynk (2020-02-07). Video: "The Deal of the Century", Palestine and International Law: UN Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk. globalresearch.ca Michael Welch's GRTV feature interview with UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in occupied Palestine, Prof. Michael Lynk. | The plan will take us backward. It violates international law. | It is an unilateral arrangement between Israel and the …

Scarlet Kim (2020-02-07). CBP Lied About Iranian-American Detentions, Leaked Memo Suggests. globalresearch.ca Last month, U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Ajamu Baraka (2020-02-07). Venezuela "Embassy Protectors" Will Not be Able to Tell Jury that Coup Leader Juan Guaido Is "Not President", or Mention International Law. globalresearch.ca On February 4, Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell issued a ruling on what the jurors will be allowed to be told in the trial of the Embassy Protectors scheduled to begin on February 11. She granted most of the government's …

WSWS (2020-02-07). UK: Tory health secretary signals ditching Accident and Emergency targets as crisis in NHS worsens. wsws.org Research by the Patient Association found that 5,500 NHS patients died over the past three years due to spending so long on a trolley in overcrowded hospital A&E units.

Renee Parsons (2020-02-07). Election Politics: From Chaos to an Emerging Political Consciousness? globalresearch.ca The disintegration of Iowa's Democratic caucus before the nation's disbelieving eyes could not be a better metaphor for what some are calling the Evolutionary Shift of the Ages. In a nutshell, a shift in the nature of reality is underway …

Simon Watkins (2020-02-07). Iraq Is on the Brink of an Energy Crisis. globalresearch.ca As the deadline for the U.S. to renew its waiver on Iraq importing gas and electricity from Iran approaches later this month, the three key players in this ongoing geopolitical saga have been preparing for all possible outcomes. As always …

Asoka Bandarage (2020-02-07). Neocolonialism and Geopolitical Rivalry in Sri Lanka. globalresearch.ca Sri Lanka's historical narrative has been defined by geopolitical rivalry, external aggression and internal resistance to that aggression. The early historical era experienced successive waves of invasion from South Indian kingdoms. These were followed by European conquest and consecutive rule …

Carey Gillam (2020-02-07). It's Farmer v. Monsanto in Court Fight over Dicamba Herbicide. globalresearch.ca A showdown is underway in the Midwest as the owner of a large Missouri peach farm seeks to hold the former Monsanto Co. accountable for millions of dollars in damage to his crops—losses the farmer claims resulted from a corporate …

Eric Waddell (2020-02-07). World Conquest: The United States' Global Military Crusade (1945- ). globalresearch.ca The first period was characterized by US military intervention in Europe, the second by a concern to confine the Communist bloc and to prevent the emergence of pro-communist regimes elsewhere in the world, and the third, focused on gaining control over the former Soviet republics and the oil-rich Middle East.

Colin Todhunter (2020-02-07). Genetically Modified Bt Cotton: Cultivating Farmer Distress in India. globalresearch.ca Later this month, India's Supreme Court will hold a lengthy hearing on the commercialisation of genetically modified (GM) mustard, which would be the country's first GM food crop. The court has asked the chair of the Technical Expert Committee to …

commondreams (2020-02-07). 'Consistent With a Mass Extinction': New Study Warns Climate Chaos Driving Rapid Decline of Bumblebees. commondreams.org The rising frequency of extremely hot temperatures tied to human-caused global heating is creating "climate chaos" that drives widespread declines of bumblebees, some of the planet's most important pollinators, according to a new study published in the journal Science. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Fight Back (2020-02-07). UW-Parkside SDS lead rally to free Chrystul Kizer, confront DA Graveley. fightbacknews.org Kenosha, WI – Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organized a #FreeChrystul rally at UW-Parkside on February 5 that saw 40 protesters attend. The demonstrators congregated outside the building where District Attorney Mike Graveley, Chrystul Kizer's prosecutor, was teaching his first class of the spring semester, on criminal law. | The group began with chants that echoed across the campus thanks to the excellent acoustics between campus buildings. Coinciding with the start of the class period, speakers from different organizations and backgrounds shared their messages. These included Adelana Akindes, a leader…

Staff (2020-02-07). In Spite of Economic Gains, Wage Growth Is Slowing. truthout.org The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the economy added 225,000 jobs in January. With modest upward revisions to the prior two months' data, this brought the three-month average to 211,000 jobs. While the unemployment rate edged higher to 3.6 percent, the employment-to-population ratio (EPOP) rose 0.2 percentage points to 61.2 percent, a new high for the recovery. The EPOP for prime-age workers (ages 25 to 54) rose by 0.2 percentage points to 80.6 percent, also a high for the recovery. | The January data a…

Staff (2020-02-07). Human Rights Watch: 200 Salvadoran Asylum Seekers Killed, Raped or Tortured After U.S. Deportation. democracynow.org A shocking new report says at least 200 Salvadoran asylum seekers were either killed, raped or tortured after being deported from the United States back to El Salvador. Human Rights Watch found that some 138 people deported to El Salvador were murdered by gang members, police, soldiers, death squads or ex-partners between 2013 and 2019. The report says most of the victims were killed within two years after being deported, by the same perpetrators the asylum seekers had fled from. From Denver, Colorado, we speak to Clara Long, senior researcher for Human Rights Watch. And joining us from El Salvador, we speak to "

splcenter (2020-02-06). SPLC sues Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School safety commission for not allowing students to voice concerns. splcenter.org Kinsey Akers had to take the PSAT but was determined to make her voice heard at a public meeting on school safety that same day.

RT (2020-02-05). Don't be confused by Romney jumping ship — impeachment is about sticking to party lines. rt.com Impeachment supporters earned two more allies in Senators Mitt Romney and Doug Jones, but this process is about sticking to partisan camps when it comes to Donald Trump, not looking for truth. | Romney is the latest conservative hero to the left as he has announced he will vote to impeach the president on one of the two counts against him, abuse of power. Trump has been accused of attempting quid pro quo with Ukraine by withholding federal aid in exchange for an investigation into Joe Biden. | After an "unbiased look at the evidence," Romney says he has no choice but to follow his "conscience." | Since Romney…

splcenter (2020-02-04). Alabama Charter Schools: Principles for Ensuring Equity and Access. splcenter.org

Fight Back (2020-02-03). Kenosha, WI: Students plan rally in support of Chrystul Kizer outside DA Graveley's classroom. fightbacknews.org Kenosha, WI – As the semester approaches, members of the UW-Parkside chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) have been hard at work. Kicking off the new year, SDS is leading a rally in support of the release of Chrystul Kizer, a Milwaukee teenager accused of killing her sex trafficker, Randall Volar III. | Upon learning that Kenosha's district attorney, Michael Graveley, would be teaching a class at their campus, the students of the organization knew they had to act. | "I felt angry knowing that Graveley will be showing his face at Parkside," said Lana Akindes, a member of SDS. "He's proudly vouching f…

Martha Rosenberg (2020-02-02). Why is Animal Research So Seldom in the News? zcomm.org The animal-research industry is a vast, macabre enterprise richly supporting medical centers and individual researchers with almost no transparency or accountability…

2020-02-09: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these 'POSTEES' on social media!

3D printer that could cover burns with ARTIFICIAL SKIN undergoing trials (VIDEO)
rt.com | 2020-02-09
A device capable of 'printing' sheets of artificial skin onto burns has performed strongly in recent trials, bringing it one step closer to use in burn clinics. | The handheld 3D skin printer was developed by engineers at the University in Toronto in 2018. The innovative technology passed a major milestone earlier this month, after the team reported promising results following its latest trial of the device on pigs in the journal of 'Biofabrication'. | One researcher on the team described the sci fi-looking tool as a "duct tape dispenser" that uses artificial tissue "tape." | A video posted by the University o…
rt.com/news/480429-skin-printer-cananda-tests-burns/

Iran Attack on Two US Bases, The "Evil Empire" Strikes Back. The Casualties?
Larry Romanoff | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-09
After their excessive and macabre display of delight and satisfaction, and even celebration, over the killing of Solemani, the White House was tight-lipped about Iran's almost immediate retaliatory missile attack on two US bases in Iraq, with Donald Trump soon …
globalresearch.ca/new-star-wars-trilogy-evil-empire-strikes-back/5702528

Teacher Strikes Boost Fight for Racial Justice in Schools
Samantha Winslow | zcomm.org | 2020-02-09
L.A. teacher union activists, like their counterparts in Chicago, Seattle, St. Paul, and other cities, are making contract demands to confront segregation, underfunding, and the criminalization of the students they teach…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/teacher-strikes-boost-fight-for-racial-justice-in-schools/

Santa Cruz Grad Students Extend Wildcat Strike
Yulia Gilich and Tony Boardman | zcomm.org | 2020-02-09
Protesting low wages in one of the most unaffordable cities in the country, graduate students at the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) went on a wildcat grading strike in December and are now organizing for a full strike…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/santa-cruz-grad-students-extend-wildcat-strike/

Yes, a Progressive President Could Cancel Student Debt on Day One
Natasha Lennard | zcomm.org | 2020-02-09
We are closer than ever to making student debt erasure happen not because of policy wonks at think tanks or Senate offices, but rather because a grassroots movement organized behind an aim and then set about figuring out how to make it a reality…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/yes-a-progressive-president-could-cancel-student-debt-on-day-one/

On Class Consciousness and the 2020 Presidential Election
Gary Olson | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-02-09
After several weeks of intensive reading and discussion on class, capitalism and socialism in my undergraduate course, The Politics of Labor, we would do following exercise: Standing before the blackboard (google it) I encouraged the students to list existing, objective and determining conditions that might prompt the American working class to seek the abolition of …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/02/on-class-consciousness-and-the-2020-presidential-election/

Mexico's President AMLO Shows How It's Done
Ellen Brown | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-02-09
While U.S. advocates and local politicians struggle to get their first public banks chartered, Mexico's new president has begun construction on 2,700 branches of a government-owned bank to be completed in 2021, when it will be the largest bank in the country. At a press conference on January 6, he said the neoliberal model had failed; private …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/02/mexicos-president-amlo-shows-how-its-done/

Charter Schools Fail to Eradicate the Achievement Gap
Shawgi Tell | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-02-09
Numerous inequalities characterize societies in which the majority produce the wealth but only a handful own it. The so-called "achievement gap" is mainly an expression of the harsh social class divide in society that keeps growing. One of the conceited claims of charter school advocates is that privately-owned-operated non-profit and for-profit charter schools will close …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/02/charter-schools-fail-to-eradicate-the-achievement-gap/

Azerbaijan: 132 int'l media outlets to cover election
yenisafak.com | 2020-02-09
A total of 132 international media outlets will cover the snap parliamentary election in Azerbaijan, the chairman of Central Election Commission (CEC) said on Saturday.Mazahir Panahov told a news conference in the capital Baku that some 199 representatives of 132 international media outlets from 47 countries will closely monitor the election scheduled for Sunday.He said the latest number of the candidates for the deputy post is at 1,314.Some 305 candidates are related to the political parties, while the rest are independent.He said that almost 92% of candidates have a higher education degree, while almost half of…
yenisafak.com/en/world/azerbaijan-132-intl-media-outlets-to-cover-election-3511609

Fellowship of Siberia's Baikal Rings: Cause of Puzzling Ice Circles in World's Biggest Lake Revealed
sputniknews.com | 2020-02-09
There have been diverse theories attempting to crack open the mystery of the so-called "ice rings" in Russia's Lake Baikal, some of which may even reach 7 kilometres in diameter. The most popular concept, focusing on methane outbursts, was eventually disproven due to objective geological reasons.
sputniknews.com/science/202002091078267486-fellowship-of-siberias-baikal-rings-cause-of-puzzling-ice-circles-in-worlds-biggest-lake-revealed/

Ontario Teachers Are Strongly United to Defend Public Education
telesurenglish.net | 2020-02-08
Over the last week, Canadian elementary school teachers have intensified their protest against Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford's policies, which seek to cut the number of teachers and increase the number of students per classroom. | RELATED: | Canada: Court Dismisses Challenge to Trans Mountain Pipeline | Instead, Canadian teachers demand more resources to serve students with special needs, the protection of the preschool education program, and fairer wages. | Despite having br…
telesurenglish.net/news/Ontario-Teachers-Are-Strongly-United-to-Defend-Public-Education-20200208-0001.html

Government Report Finds Trump's Trade War Is Harmful to Americans' Incomes
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-02-08
President Donald Trump's trade war is projected to reduce the average family's real income by $1,277, according to a new report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). | The CBO, a nonpartisan congressional research arm, projected that the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration and retaliatory tariffs imposed by countries like China will reduce economic growth while increasing prices to consumers. | "Tariffs are expected to reduce the l…
truthout.org/articles/government-report-finds-trumps-trade-war-is-harmful-to-americans-incomes/

Australian coronavirus travel ban blocks thousands of Chinese students
wsws.org | 2020-02-08
The blanket ban by the Morrison government affects any foreign national trying to enter Australia from mainland China.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/02/08/trav…

Irish election too close to call as 'historic' surge by left-wing nationalist Sinn Fein stuns establishment
rt.com | 2020-02-08
Polls have closed in Ireland's general election and, with no party securing a strong lead, confusion abounds as voters wait to see which parties will agree to do business with each other to form a coalition. | An Ipsos MRBI exit poll published by Ireland's state broadcaster RTE at 10pm shows FG, SF and FF tied with a statistically insignificant (given a margin of error of 1.3 percent) difference of 22.4, 22.3 and 22.2 percent of the vote respectively. | A Sinn Fein surge in the run up to election day looks to have translated into votes at the ballot box, allowing party leader Mary Lou McDonald to head into pos…
rt.com/news/480414-ireland-general-election/

'Something Big Is Shifting': As Georgetown Announces Fossil Fuel Divestment, Students Across US Demand Their Schools Follow Suit
Julia Conley, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2020-02-08
Student-led anti-fossil fuel campaigns at universities across the country pointed to Georgetown University Friday as the school's board of directors announced it would divest from fossil fuels and redouble its efforts to invest in renewable energy instead. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…
commondreams.org/news/2020/02/08/something-big-shifting-georgetown-announces-fossil-fuel-divestment-students-across?cd-origin=rss

Why Nancy Pelosi is "A National Disgrace"
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Nancy Pelosi tears up Trump's State of the Union Address. | "I thought it was a terrible thing," said Trump. "It's illegal what she did. She broke the law." | On one thing I agree with Donald Trump: | Speaker of the House …
globalresearch.ca/why-nancy-pelosi-is-a-national-disgrace/5703082

Who is Behind "Fake News"? Mainstream Media Use Fake Videos and Images
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
The mainstream corporate media is desperate. They want to suppress independent and alternative online media, which they categorize as "fake news". Readers on social media are warned not to go onto certain sites. Our analysis confirms that the mainstream media are routinely involved in distorting the facts and turning realities upside down.
globalresearch.ca/who-is-behind-fake-news-mainstream-media-use-fake-videos-and-images/5557580

Pope Francis Rejects Tax Cuts for the 'Richest People'
telesurenglish.net | 2020-02-07
Pope Francis criticized the practice of tax cuts for the rich in the name of "investment and development," calling it a "structure of sin" at the seminar set up by the Pontifical Academy for Social Sciences, Thursday. | RELATED: | Alberto Fernandez and the Pope Analyze Argentina's Situation | He lamented the fact that "billions of dollars" end up in "tax haven accounts" instead of funding "healthcare and education," something that in his own words impede "the possibility of the digni…
telesurenglish.net/news/pope-francis-rejects-tax-cuts-for-the-richest-people-20200207-0012.html

Neocolonialism and Geopolitical Rivalry in Sri Lanka
Asoka Bandarage | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Sri Lanka's historical narrative has been defined by geopolitical rivalry, external aggression and internal resistance to that aggression. The early historical era experienced successive waves of invasion from South Indian kingdoms. These were followed by European conquest and consecutive rule …
globalresearch.ca/neocolonialism-geopolitical-rivalry-sri-lanka/5702766

Biological Weapons: A Useful and Timely Factual Overview
Larry Romanoff | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
A US Army operating manual from 1956 stated explicitly that biological and chemical warfare were an integral operating portion of US military strategy, were not restricted in any way, and that Congress had given the military "First Strike" authority on their use.
globalresearch.ca/biological-weapons-useful-timely-factual-overview/5702842

Genetically Modified Bt Cotton: Cultivating Farmer Distress in India
Colin Todhunter | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Later this month, India's Supreme Court will hold a lengthy hearing on the commercialisation of genetically modified (GM) mustard, which would be the country's first GM food crop. The court has asked the chair of the Technical Expert Committee to …
globalresearch.ca/genetically-modified-bt-cotton-cultivating-farmer-distress-india/5703000

It's Farmer v. Monsanto in Court Fight over Dicamba Herbicide
Carey Gillam | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
A showdown is underway in the Midwest as the owner of a large Missouri peach farm seeks to hold the former Monsanto Co. accountable for millions of dollars in damage to his crops–losses the farmer claims resulted from a corporate …
globalresearch.ca/farmer-monsanto-court-fight-dicamba-herbicide/5703026

Election Politics: From Chaos to an Emerging Political Consciousness?
Renee Parsons | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
The disintegration of Iowa's Democratic caucus before the nation's disbelieving eyes could not be a better metaphor for what some are calling the Evolutionary Shift of the Ages. In a nutshell, a shift in the nature of reality is underway …
globalresearch.ca/emerging-political-consciousness/5702987

UK: Tory health secretary signals ditching Accident and Emergency targets as crisis in NHS worsens
wsws.org | 2020-02-07
Research by the Patient Association found that 5,500 NHS patients died over the past three years due to spending so long on a trolley in overcrowded hospital A&E units.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/02/07/acci…

Break-up of Astana Partnership Was Inevitable. The Turkey-Russia Relation in Jeopardy?
Michael Jansen | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has ordered his forces to strike Syrian army positions in retaliation for targeting a Turkish military convoy bound for the Saraqeb in Syria's north-western Idlib province. His forces obeyed on Monday and allegedly struck a …
globalresearch.ca/break-up-astana-partnership-inevitable/5703037

How the World Ends. Personal Reflections On "The Situation Everyone is In"
John Stanton | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
I'm writing this letter to myself. I need to talk to someone, even it is only myself. I need to believe that what happened to us was real. | All that I know of the past was learned by word-of-mouth histories …
globalresearch.ca/how-world-ends/5702762

Syria and Turkey Face War as Syrian Arab Army Poised to Take Idlib
Steven Sahiounie | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Tensions between Damascus and Ankara have never been higher over the past nine years. Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan threatened on February 5, to declare war on Syria if the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) does not withdraw from the territory liberated …
globalresearch.ca/syria-turkey-face-war-syrian-arab-army-poised-take-idlib/5702988

Trump's Final Plan to Open Treasured Public Lands in Utah Called 'Sellout' to Big Oil
Jessica Corbett | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
The administration's new managment plans "are the latest in a series of insults… that began when Trump illegally dismantled Bears Ears and Grand Staircase at the behest of corporate interests two years ago." | *** | Tribal and conservation groups on Thursday …
globalresearch.ca/trump-final-plan-open-treasured-public-lands-utah-called-sellout-big-oil/5703031

Expansion of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Tehran Wants to Build "the Golden Ring"
Andrew Korybko | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
BRI-led Eurasian integration processes are one of the defining characteristics of contemporary International Relations, and the Golden Ring could eventually become the centerpiece of these efforts if Ambassador Hosseini's W-CPEC+ proposal succeeds, especially if it's done in parallel with N-CPEC+….
globalresearch.ca/iranian-ambassador-pakistan-wants-build-golden-ring/5703034

Just a Little Sloppy Record-Keeping? The Pentagon's $35 Trillion 'Accounting Black Hole'
Zero Hedge | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Over the past two weeks of coronavirus headlines and heightened global anxiety, along with impeachment coverage and after over the Super Bowl weekend Americans huddled in living rooms in blissful oblivion, a story which in more normal times would be …
globalresearch.ca/pentagon-35-trillion-accounting-black-hole/5702993

Democrats Seek to Suppress Sanders Victory in Iowa
Patrick Martin | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
The effort by the Democratic Party establishment to conceal or suppress reports of Senator Bernie Sanders' victory in the Iowa caucuses reached a new stage Thursday with Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez calling on the Iowa Democratic Party to …
globalresearch.ca/democrats-seek-suppress-sanders-victory-iowa/5703045

Iraq Is on the Brink of an Energy Crisis
Simon Watkins | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
As the deadline for the U.S. to renew its waiver on Iraq importing gas and electricity from Iran approaches later this month, the three key players in this ongoing geopolitical saga have been preparing for all possible outcomes. As always …
globalresearch.ca/iraq-brink-energy-crisis/5703024

J31 "Fare Strike" Protest at New York's Grand Central Station
Coery Eiesbnreg | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Just a few hours before the J31 Fare Strike convened at Grand Central Station, I had the opportunity to speak with Mayor de Blasio as a call-in to the Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC. I alerted the Mayor to the …
globalresearch.ca/j31-fare-strike-grand-central-station/5703059

Venezuela "Embassy Protectors" Will Not be Able to Tell Jury that Coup Leader Juan Guaido Is "Not President", or Mention International Law
Ajamu Baraka | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
On February 4, Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell issued a ruling on what the jurors will be allowed to be told in the trial of the Embassy Protectors scheduled to begin on February 11. She granted most of the government's …
globalresearch.ca/embassy-protectors-will-not-able-tell-jury-guaido-not-president-or-mention-international-law/5703021

Video: "The Deal of the Century", Palestine and International Law: UN Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk
Michael Lynk | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Michael Welch's GRTV feature interview with UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in occupied Palestine, Prof. Michael Lynk. | The plan will take us backward. It violates international law. | It is an unilateral arrangement between Israel and the …
globalresearch.ca/deal-century-palestine-international-law-un-special-rapporteur-michael-lynk/5703057

CBP Lied About Iranian-American Detentions, Leaked Memo Suggests
Scarlet Kim | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Last month, U.S. Customs and Border Protection adamantly denied that it was detaining U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents of Iranian descent and interrogating them about their religion and political views. The agency also assured the public that it had …
globalresearch.ca/cbp-lied-about-iranian-american-detentions-leaked-memo-suggests/5703043

Canada, Palestine and the 'Deal of the Century': Four Statements
Canada Palestine Association | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Reject Trump's Plan: Exist, Resist, Return | by Canada Palestine Association | The Trump Administration has just unveiled the details of its "Deal Of The Century." This plan includes, but is not limited to: | Giving legitimacy to illegal Israeli settlements in Palestine. | …
globalresearch.ca/canada-palestine-deal-century-four-statements/5702985

Failed Prosecutions: Donald Trump Survives the Senate
Dr. Binoy Kampmark | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
Never undertake a prosecution unless you have good grounds, and prospects, for a solid conviction. In the case against President Donald Trump, there was never a serious prospect that the Senate would cool sufficiently to give the Democrats the …
globalresearch.ca/failed-prosecutions-donald-trump-survives-senate/5703023

World Conquest: The United States' Global Military Crusade (1945- )
Eric Waddell | globalresearch.ca | 2020-02-07
The first period was characterized by US military intervention in Europe, the second by a concern to confine the Communist bloc and to prevent the emergence of pro-communist regimes elsewhere in the world, and the third, focused on gaining control over the former Soviet republics and the oil-rich Middle East.
globalresearch.ca/the-united-states-global-military-crusade-1945/4610

Antarctica Temperatures Trigger Fear of Rapid Ice Melt
Staff | truthdig.com | 2020-02-07
Climate scientists on Friday revealed the latest troubling new observation in Antarctica, illustrating the consequences of the rapid warming of the area brought on by the manmade climate crisis. | As The Guardian reported Friday, researchers stationed at the Esperanza research station at the northern tip of the Antarctic peninsula found that temperatures reached 64.9 ∫ Fahrenheit (18.3 ∫ Celsius)–the highest temperature logged since scientists began recording the continent…
truthdig.com/articles/antarctica-temperatures-trigger-fear-of-rapid-ice-melt/

'Consistent With a Mass Extinction': New Study Warns Climate Chaos Driving Rapid Decline of Bumblebees
commondreams.org | 2020-02-07
The rising frequency of extremely hot temperatures tied to human-caused global heating is creating "climate chaos" that drives widespread declines of bumblebees, some of the planet's most important pollinators, according to a new study published in the journal Science. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…
commondreams.org/news/2020/02/07/consistent-mass-extinction-new-study-warns-climate-chaos-driving-rapid-decline?cd-origin=rss

UW-Parkside SDS lead rally to free Chrystul Kizer, confront DA Graveley
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-02-07
Kenosha, WI – Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organized a #FreeChrystul rally at UW-Parkside on February 5 that saw 40 protesters attend. The demonstrators congregated outside the building where District Attorney Mike Graveley, Chrystul Kizer's prosecutor, was teaching his first class of the spring semester, on criminal law. | The group began with chants that echoed across the campus thanks to the excellent acoustics between campus buildings. Coinciding with the start of the class period, speakers from different organizations and backgrounds shared their messages. These included Adelana Akindes, a leader…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/2/7/uw-parksi…

Chinese national describes life inside the coronavirus quarantine zone
C.J. Atkins | peoplesworld.org | 2020-02-07
SINGAPORE–It's been more than two weeks since authorities in the city of Wuhan quarantined 11 million people in an attempt to contain the coronavirus outbreak spreading across China and around the world. Except for a few foreign nationals whose governments have ferried them out on charter flights, the capital of epidemic-hit Hubei province remains, essentially, …
peoplesworld.org/article/chinese-national-describes-life-inside-the-coronavirus-quarantine-zone/

In Spite of Economic Gains, Wage Growth Is Slowing
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-02-07
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the economy added 225,000 jobs in January. With modest upward revisions to the prior two months' data, this brought the three-month average to 211,000 jobs. While the unemployment rate edged higher to 3.6 percent, the employment-to-population ratio (EPOP) rose 0.2 percentage points to 61.2 percent, a new high for the recovery. The EPOP for prime-age workers (ages 25 to 54) rose by 0.2 percentage points to 80.6 percent, also a high for the recovery. | The January data a…
truthout.org/articles/in-spite-of-economic-gains-wage-growth-is-slowing/

Human Rights Watch: 200 Salvadoran Asylum Seekers Killed, Raped or Tortured After U.S. Deportation
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-02-07
A shocking new report says at least 200 Salvadoran asylum seekers were either killed, raped or tortured after being deported from the United States back to El Salvador. Human Rights Watch found that some 138 people deported to El Salvador were murdered by gang members, police, soldiers, death squads or ex-partners between 2013 and 2019. The report says most of the victims were killed within two years after being deported, by the same perpetrators the asylum seekers had fled from. From Denver, Colorado, we speak to Clara Long, senior researcher for Human Rights Watch. And joining us from El Salvador, we speak to "
www.democracynow.org/2020/2/7/hrw_report…

SPLC sues Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School safety commission for not allowing students to voice concerns
splcenter.org | 2020-02-06
Kinsey Akers had to take the PSAT but was determined to make her voice heard at a public meeting on school safety that same day.
splcenter.org/news/2020/02/06/splc-sues-marjory-stoneman-douglas-high-school-safety-commission-not-allowing-students

Alabama Charter Schools: Principles for Ensuring Equity and Access
splcenter.org | 2020-02-04
splcenter.org/20200205/alabama-charter-schools-principles-ensuring-equity-and-access

Kenosha, WI: Students plan rally in support of Chrystul Kizer outside DA Graveley's classroom
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-02-03
Kenosha, WI – As the semester approaches, members of the UW-Parkside chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) have been hard at work. Kicking off the new year, SDS is leading a rally in support of the release of Chrystul Kizer, a Milwaukee teenager accused of killing her sex trafficker, Randall Volar III. | Upon learning that Kenosha's district attorney, Michael Graveley, would be teaching a class at their campus, the students of the organization knew they had to act. | "I felt angry knowing that Graveley will be showing his face at Parkside," said Lana Akindes, a member of SDS. "He's proudly vouching f…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/2/3/kenosha-w…

Why is Animal Research So Seldom in the News?
Martha Rosenberg | zcomm.org | 2020-02-02
The animal-research industry is a vast, macabre enterprise richly supporting medical centers and individual researchers with almost no transparency or accountability…
zcomm.org/zmagazine/why-is-animal-research-so-seldom-in-the-news/

"Coded Bias": New Film Looks at Fight Against Racial Bias in Facial Recognition & AI Technology
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-01-30
A new documentary looks at the dangers of artificial intelligence and its increasing omnipresence in daily life, as new research shows that it often reflects racist biases. Earlier this month, Cambridge, Massachusetts, became the latest major city to ban facial recognition technology, joining a growing number of cities, including San Francisco, to ban the artificial intelligence, citing flawed technology and racial and gender bias. A recent study also found that facial recognition identified African-American and Asian faces incorrectly 10 to 100 times more than white faces. The film "Coded Bias" begins with Joy B…
www.democracynow.org/2020/1/30/coded_bia…