2019-08-16: News Headlines

Mark Gruenberg (2019-08-16). Weingarten to Walmart: Stop selling guns, or we'll stop shopping there. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON — Having had it up to here with gun-caused carnage, including at the nation's schools, Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten has a blunt message for the nation's biggest retailer, Walmart: Stop selling guns or we'll stop shopping there. That bombshell is just before the end of a letter Weingarten sent August 7 to Walmart …

Shawgi Tell (2019-08-16). Persistent Fraudulent Enrollment in Charter Schools. dissidentvoice.org While privately-operated nonprofit and for-profit charter schools have long engaged in a broad range of fraudulent student enrollment practices, yet another avalanche of news reports on such dishonest practices has recently appeared. There seems to be no end to astonishing news in the unregulated and segregated charter school sector. Controversy, scandal, and charter schools have …

Eds. (2019-08-16). The Trump administration dismantles endangered species protections as sixth mass extinction crisis looms. mronline.org Today, the Trump administration released a final rule dismantling the role of science in informing protections for endangered and threatened wildlife. The Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the protections it has afforded to threatened and endangered species have been based on the best available science and commercial data. | Source

Stuart A. Newman (2019-08-16). The Biotech-Industrial Complex Gets Ready to Define What is Human. counterpunch.org Fabricating part-human-part-nonhuman animals, with features of both, seemed like something out of Greek mythology until the late 20th century. New research then on "geeps," fully developed, viable mixtures of goats and sheep, showed that constructing such "chimeras" was a real possibility. Still, the warning by H.G. Wells, a century before, in his novel "The Island of Dr. Moreau," that scientific experiments like this could go terribly awry, seemed fantastical. But this will soon change. At the end of July, it was reported that the biologist Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte, director of a laboratory at the Salk Insti…

United Nations (2019-08-16). Two years after exodus, Myanmar's 'desperate' Rohingya youth need education, skills: UNICEF. un.org The daily struggle to survive for Myanmar's Rohingya people in one of the world's largest refugee settlements, has caused "overwhelming" despair and jeopardized the hopes of an entire generation, the head of UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), Henrietta Fore, said on Friday.

Stephen Lendman (2019-08-16). US Waging Wars on Multiple Fronts: Cold Wars, Hot Wars, Economic Wars, Propaganda Wars … globalresearch.ca Supported by both hawkish wings of its war party, the US is waging hot wars, cold wars, economic wars, financial wars, trade wars, anti-social justice wars, anti-human rights wars, anti-democracy wars, propaganda wars, sanctions wars, tariffs wars, protest wars, homeland …

Andrew Korybko (2019-08-16). South Yemen Is Already Functionally Independent Even if It's Not Recognized as Such. globalresearch.ca The Southern Transitional Council's liberation of the former South Yemeni capital of Aden from the Saudi-backed Islah Islamists has restored the independence of the Old Cold War-era country. | STC vs. Islah | It was bound to happen sooner than later, but …

Carlo Fanelli (2019-08-16). Austerity without End. Neoliberal Reforms and Labour Rights. globalresearch.ca In 2019, the now 187-member International Labour Organization celebrated its 100th anniversary. As one of the oldest agencies of the United Nations, the ILO used the occasion to renew calls for improved opportunities and working conditions, social protections and collective …

Philip Giraldi (2019-08-16). Punishing the World with Sanctions. Intended to Cause Real Pain. globalresearch.ca Sanctions are economic warfare, pure and simple. As an alternative to a direct military attack on a country that is deemed to be misbehaving they are certainly preferable, but no one should be under any illusions regarding what they actually …

Andrew Korybko (2019-08-16). What Explains Russia and China's Differing Stances towards Kashmir? globalresearch.ca Russia and China, two of the most important Great Powers that are jointly working to accelerate the emergence of the Multipolar World Order, are on totally opposite sides when it comes to Kashmir, with their differing stances being explained by …

Yves Engler (2019-08-16). Media Can't Even Tell the Truth About Canada's Foreign Policy History. globalresearch.ca Media coverage of Canadian foreign policy is uniquely one-sided and biased. It's so bad that few readers, listeners or viewers will have ever seen or heard an honest analysis of this country's past, let alone current role around the world….

Hans Stehling (2019-08-16). British Rail: A Mass Transport System Is an Essential Public Service Not a Get-Rich-Quick Scheme for Investors. globalresearch.ca Outdated rolling-stock, primitive or no air-conditioning, poor service, unreliable timetables and sky-high fares make Britain's railways the bad joke of Europe. | As millions of commuters are forced to use a rail system near to collapse, it serves a stark warning …

Zaha Hassan (2019-08-16). Palestine: Dangerous Bill in US Congress to Crush the PLO and the PA. globalresearch.ca A bipartisan US bill currently being considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee puts at stake the ability of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to engage diplomatic and legal channels to support Palestinian national aspirations and to seek accountability through international …

Elijah J. Magnier (2019-08-16). Iran's Dangerous Deterrence Policy: Trading Tankers and Another Partial Withdrawal from the JCPOA. globalresearch.ca The UK acknowledged its first defeat by Iran when it released the Iranian super tanker "Grace 1" captured by 30 Royal Navy commandos in the first week of July in response to a US request, as the Spanish Foreign …

Kioni Dudley (2019-08-16). Statehood Questioned at Hawaii's 60th Anniversary. globalresearch.ca August 16, 2019, marks the 60th Anniversary of Statehood for Hawai'i. It will go little noticed. This article offers new information on illegalities and fraudulence regarding the statehood vote, and why it should not have been accepted by the …

Sarah Abed (2019-08-16). Fewer Banks in African American Neighborhoods Contribute to the U.S. Racial Wealth Gap. globalresearch.ca A new study published by McKinsey & Co on Tuesday found that one of the contributing factors to the U.S. racial wealth gap is the lack of banks in predominantly African American communities. Lack of access to mainstream financial services …

The Canary (2019-08-16). Record numbers find degree places through Clearing. thecanary.co Record numbers of students have found university places through Clearing, figures show. | More than 17,000 applicants have been accepted on to degree courses through the annual process — up 15% on the same point last year. | The proportion of would-be students by-passing the main application system in favour of searching for a course directly through Clearing has hit a new high, with around 4,500 securing their spot this way. | But the overall numbers confirming undergraduate places — through the main application scheme or Clearing — has fallen by 1% compared to the same point last year. | The f…

teleSUR (2019-08-16). Brazil: Supreme Court Judges Sergio Moro's Lack of Impartiality. telesurenglish.net Brazil's Supreme Court (STF) will judge the lack of impartiality of former judge Sergio Moro in conducting trials against former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has remained a political prisoner since April 7, 2018. | RELATED: | Students Strike, Protest Across Brazil as Moro Orders Crackdown | From August 16 to August 22, the STF judges w…

Eric Draitser (2019-08-16). "Bernie is Trump" (and other Corporate Media Bullsh*t). counterpunch.org A dead-end street with a lemonade stand Where is the sky in upside down land? That question is hard if you can't see the stars I'm really not sure, ask me tomorrow — Yasiin Bey, "Education" (featured on the album "Bandana" by Freddie Gibbs) Welcome to Bizarro World where up is down, black is white, More

The Canary (2019-08-15). A-levels 'milestone' hailed as more girls than boys take science. thecanary.co Girls have overtaken boys in A-level science entries for the first time, national figures show.The gender switch was hailed as "a cause for celebration" by scientists as school leaders suggested that an increase in female role models in the subjects may be contributing to the trend.The figures came in national A-level results, published today, which showed that across all subjects, the proportion of A-level entries awarded an A grade or higher has fallen to the lowest level for more than a decade.Students celebrate their A-level results at Roedean School in Brighton (PA)Girls narrowly clawed back the lead from bo…

Maxximilian Seijo (2019-08-15). The Modern Money Movement with Andrés Bernal. mronline.org We are joined by Andrés Bernal, policy advisor to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and doctoral student at the New School for Public Engagement, Division of Policy Management and Environment. We speak with Bernal about his history with political organizing and the critical role he has come to play in the Modern Money movement, including the struggle for […] | Source

teleSUR (2019-08-15). It's Snowing Microscopic Plastic Particles in Arctic: Study. telesurenglish.net Winter is around the corner and with falling snowflakes come microscopic plastic particles, at least that's what scientists say is happening in the Arctic right now in a new study published in the journal Science Advances. | RELATED: | Sherpas Cleaning Up Everest Unearth 11 Tons of Trash, 4 Bodies | Over 10,000 particles of plastic were found per liter of snow in the Arctic, the study conducted by a team of German-Swiss researchers said. | Rubber particles and fibres were also…

Abayomi Azikiwe (2019-08-15). Sudan's "Constitutional Declaration" Leaves Out Key Political Forces. Attempted Military Coups and Regional Intrigue. globalresearch.ca Members of the Sudanese Professional Association (SPA), a leading organization within the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), announced on August 9 that they would have no representatives in the soon to be created transitional government. | This report comes in …

ACLU (2019-08-15). The Challenges of Breastfeeding as a Black Person. aclu.org How our workplaces and healthcare system create barriers to breastfeeding. | The fight to protect individual choices about reproductive care, including breastfeeding, is an ongoing battle. The central lesson of the reproductive justice movement is that choice means little without access. That lesson applies equally to breastfeeding. | Though laws, in the workplace and other contexts, are in place to protect the right to breastfeed, many low-income women and w…

Christopher Black (2019-08-15). America's "Hybrid War" against China has Entered a New Phase. globalresearch.ca The hybrid war, being conducted against China by the United States and its gaggle of puppet states from the UK to Canada to Australia, has entered a new phase. | The first stage involved the massive shift of US air and …

Stephen Lendman (2019-08-15). Fake News About Venezuela and the Power of Propaganda. globalresearch.ca Public ignorance and indifference about major issues let US authorities get away with mass murder and much more. | In a June 1950 commencement address, Boston University President Daniel Marsh said: | "If the (television) craze continues…we are destined to have a …

Dr. Andrew Glikson (2019-08-15). The Fading Home of Homo 'Sapiens'. Extreme Weather Events. globalresearch.ca In front of our eyes green forests are blackened by fire, draughts turn grassy planes to brown semi-deserts, fertile fields are flooded by muddy water, white snow and ice melt to pale blue water and clear blue skies turn grey …

Tara Lohan (2019-08-15). Report: 'No Evidence that Fracking Can Operate without Threatening Public Health'. globalresearch.ca In 2010 when I first started writing about hydraulic fracturing — the process of blasting a cocktail of water and chemicals into shale to release trapped hydrocarbons — there were more questions than answers about environmental and public-health threats. That …

Dr. Binoy Kampmark (2019-08-15). Justin Trudeau and the Ethics of Interference. The SNC Lavalin Affair. globalresearch.ca Ethics can be a slippery matter and Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has taken, rather decidedly, the option of adding more grease. His understanding over the ethics, for instance, of interfering in the decision-making process involving an Attorney-General has led …

Emily Apple (2019-08-15). Damning new evidence is yet another reason why selling arms to Saudi Arabia is illegal. thecanary.co New evidence that shows the Saudi-led coalition is breaking humanitarian law in Yemen has been published by the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) and Mwatana for Human Rights (Mwatana). Its research shows that the coalition: has continued to carry out apparently unlawful attacks throughout the course of the conflict, failed to credibly investigate, and whitewashed signif…

South Front (2019-08-15). Video: Syrian Army Reached Khan Shaykhun. globalresearch.ca Government forces are developing their advance in the southern part of the Idlib de-escalation zone. | The Syrian military has deployed a new batch of reinforcements, including battle tanks from the 4th Armoured Division, to the frontline. According to pro-government …

Prof. John McMurtry (2019-08-15). 'Overpopulation': A Cover Story for the Money Cancer System. globalresearch.ca It is not "the rising tide of human numbers" simpliciter that loots, pollutes and destroys the life carrying capacities of the planet. It is what all over-populationists conveniently ignore: | (1) the much still exponentially self-multiplying tides of private money demand …

Connexion (2019-08-15). French Court Rules Against Linky for Health Reasons. globalresearch.ca The tribunal de grande instance (TGI or the civil court) of Tours considered the case of 121 "anti-Linky" complainants, and threw out 108 of the claims. The remaining 13 were accepted, with the court conceding a possible link between their …

Stephen Lendman (2019-08-15). Trump Regime Gutting the Endangered Species Act. globalresearch.ca Richard Nixon was a friend of the earth, Donald Trump its mortal enemy. | Following the 1969 offshore Santa Barbara, CA February oil spill, the largest in US waters to that time, (now third-ranked after the 1989 Exxon Valdez and 2010 …

True Publica (2019-08-15). The Truth About the UK's Special Relationship with Israel. globalresearch.ca Britain does not have a special relationship with the USA. It is, and has been since the end of the World War, a subservient inferior 'partner' doing what it is told. Britain stands next to the schoolyard thug and tries …

Emily Apple (2019-08-15). A 19-year-old explains why she'd rather go to jail than fight in the Israeli army. thecanary.co An Israeli woman has released a video explaining why she's willing to go to prison rather than fight in the army. Maya Bernad-Figenbaum has already spent seven days in a military jail. But she's prepared to go back because: The state actively tries to separate us, [and] does not want connections and linkage between Jewish and Palestinian culture. | Thank you to Israelis of conscience like Maya who would rather serve multiple stints in military jail than be drafted into the Israeli…

Jon Queally, staff writer (2019-08-15). WATCH: Key to Defeating Trump, Sanders Tells Cardi B, Is Young People Voting in Massive Numbers. commondreams.org Musician and 2020 candidate discuss criminal justice reform, socialism, the demand for a $15 minimum wage, cancelling burdensome student debt, and Medicare for All | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Global Research (2019-08-15). America's "War on Terrorism" and The Globalization of Poverty: Michel Chossudovsky. globalresearch.ca SPECIAL: 30$ for America's "War on Terrorism" + Globalization of Poverty: | Two Books by Michel Chossudovsky | Click here to buy! | America's War on Terrorism | To understand the complex web of deceit aimed at luring the American people and the rest …

teleSUR (2019-08-15). 'Mexico Must Investigate All ‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚ÄãDisappearance Cases:' Ex-UN Rapporteur. telesurenglish.net Mexico should be investigating all the disappeared and not focus only on the case of the 43 missing Ayotzinapa students who went missing in 2014, said Rainer Huhle, a former member of the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED). | RELATED: | Mexico Urges US to Designate El Paso Shooting an Act of Terrorism | "I fear that the day the 43 are found, the many other cases will be forgotten," Huhle said during a conference held in Mexico City Thursday. | The forme…

Martin Hart-Landsberg (2019-08-15). What the New Deal can teach us about winning a Green New Deal: Part II—Movement building. mronline.org The multifaceted crisis we face today is significantly different from the crisis activists faced in the first years of the Great Depression. But there is no question that, much like then, we will need to build a powerful, mass-movement for change if we hope to harness state power to advance a Green New Deal. | Source

The Canary (2019-08-14). Restricting climate strikes to one day a year 'not acceptable', say pupils. thecanary.co Pupils have hit out at proposals to limit climate change protests to just one day a year.Thousands of children descended on the Scottish Parliament building in March and May as part of a wider movement in which action was planned in more than 100 towns and cities across the UK.Edinburgh City Council's education committee is to discuss the issue on Friday, with more action planned by the Scottish Youth Climate Strike (SYCS) group on September 20 and 27 as part of more global action. | Despite the local authority being one of the first to allow pupils to miss school with parental permission so they could protest, p…

Staff (2019-08-14). Brazil's Student Movement Mobilizes to Oppose Bolsonaro's Education Privatization. therealnews.com Students rallied and marched in 207 municipalities of Brazil, to declare their opposition to right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro's education reform that would privatize much of Brazil's higher education. Mike Fox reports…

RT (2019-08-14). Peak PC logic: To shield students from 'offensive' image, activists opt to censor anti-racist mural. rt.com Who would ever have thought it would be liberal students and activists leading the charge to have an anti-racism mural removed from public view at an institute of education?

United Nations (2019-08-14). Gender equality, education and the environment at the forefront of new SDG Advocate campaigns. un.org Back in May, six innovative public figures joined the battle to push the world towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Each of the new official SDG Advocates committed themselves to pursue the 17 goals on behalf of "peace, prosperity, people, planet, and partnerships." | As we inch closer to the SDG Summit in September, UN News caught up with some of them.

Michelle Chen (2019-08-14). 'We Were Treated Like Dirt': A Visa Program Exploits Student Workers. thenation.com 'We Were Treated Like Dirt': A Visa Program Exploits Student Workers…

Gunar Olsen (2019-08-13). Fordham's Students for Justice in Palestine Did More Than Win Club Status. thenation.com Fordham's Students for Justice in Palestine Did More Than Win Club Status…

Staff (2019-08-13). Ibram X. Kendi: IQ Tests, SAT Scores and Other "Intelligence" Tests Propagate Racism. democracynow.org Author and professor Ibram X. Kendi joins us to discuss his new book, "How to Be an Antiracist." He talks about the racist development of intelligence tests that blatantly discriminate against people of color under a veneer of scientific objectivity. "Even when we talk about antiracism, when most people think of who needs to be an antiracist, they think of Southerners. They think of people who voted for Trump," says Kendi. "They don't think of people who are advocating for the maintenance of these tests, which are denying access to some of the best schools in New York City to black and Latino kids."

Sharon Lerner (2019-08-12). Industry Cites 3M Research on Cancer Patients Exposed to PFOA to Claim the Chemical Isn't So Bad. theintercept.com The 3M-funded study is at odds with extensive scientific literature based on large populations of people who had been exposed to PFAS for years.

Staff (2019-08-11). Student Debt Reform, or Student Debt Forgiveness? What The Candidates' Plans Mean. therealnews.com Students leaving college with their hard-earned degrees also have a significant and growing amount of debt. Which Democratic candidate's plan is the most effective at addressing this growing problem?

United Nations (2019-08-11). FROM THE FIELD: 'Eco-warriors' fight climate change in South Africa. un.org Schools in South Africa have been designating students as "eco-warriors" as part of an initiative supported by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), to drive environmental and climate change awareness amongst the young and old in their communities.