Student-Run Collectives Replace Junk Food Franchises on College Campuses

by Barry from Politics of the Plate.

“It’s really about food sovereignty,” he said. “Students having control over the institutions that serve them food.”

Mass protests spread in Middle East as Washington reassures Israel, Arab dictators

by Bill Van Auken from World socialist Web Site. 

The author reports on the spreading liberation of oppressed people in several countries in the Middle East ruled by US favored puppets.

Netanyahu said on Monday that “an earthquake is shaking the Arab world,” and that Israel’s nuclear-armed military is “ready for all eventualities.” He described the Israeli military [sponsored by US taxpayers] as “the foundation of our existence.”

See also the Financial Times [free registration required] report on Bahrain in which they report that "Protesters in Bahrain have taken control of one of the city’s main intersections as police declined to intervene after violence rocked the small kingdom."

See also NY Times report entitled, "Clashes Erupt in Bahrain as Tumult Ripples Across Mideast".

 

Egypt's revolution and Israel: "Bad for the Jews"

by Ilan Pappe from The Electronic Intifada.

This Professor of History and Director of the European Centre for Palestine Studies at the University of Exeter assesses Israeli reaction to the insurrections across the Arab world.

...trust the Israelis not to miss an opportunity to miss peace. They would cry wolf. They would demand, and receive, more funds from the American taxpayer due to the new "developments." They would interfere clandestinely and destructively to undermine any transition to democracy (remember what force and viciousness characterized their reaction to democratization in Palestinian society?), and they would elevate the Islamophobic campaign to new and unprecedented heights.

But who knows, maybe the American taxpayer would not budge this time. 

Carter Harassed with $5 million Suit by Israeli Lawyers

by John V. Walsh from Dissident Voice. 

Zionist "human rights" lawyers are going after Jimmy Carter for stating the obvious--the Israeli practice of apartheid against Palestinians. Israel, the product of a confluence of interests among Zionists and imperialist-minded US and British rulers, is the Empire's well armed outpost in the Middle East guarding its access to cheap oil.

Under the (Egyptian) volcano

by Pepe Escobar from Asia Times Online. 

The author underlines the clash of interests represented by the Egyptian military establishment and its US supporters and the rest of Egypt.

Wisconsin Governor Launches Attack on Public Sector Employees and Unions; Threatens to Deploy National Guard to Quell Labor Protests [14:11m video & script]

segment from Democracy Now broadcast.

Class war is heating up in the US with the current attacks on public employees.

“If Governor Walker pulls this off, if he succeeds in taking away collective bargaining rights from the union, AFSCME, which was founded in Wisconsin back in the 1930s, if he takes down one of the strongest and most effective teachers’ unions, WEAC, in the country, then we really are going to see this sweep across the United States.”

House votes to extend provisions of the PATRIOT Act

by Eric W. Dolan from The Raw Story. 

It didn't pass last week because it was...

...23 votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to pass it under a procedure that allows bills that aren't controversial to pass quickly.

...The measure is now expected to return to the House floor for a regular vote that would require a simple majority to pass. If House members vote then as they did Tuesday, the extension will pass easily.

And today it did.

When the act was first signed into law, Congress put in some "sunset" provisions to quiet the concerns of civil libertarians, but they were ignored by successive extensions. Unfortunately, those concerns proved to be well founded, and a 2008 Justice Department report confirmed that the FBI regularly abused their ability to obtain personal records of Americans without a warrant.

Devastating Freeze in Mexico is Worst Freeze in Over 50 Years--Food Prices to soar

by Sysco Corporation from Food Freedom. 

Once again we find that there is no mention in the article of the possible (probable!) connection to climate change. We continue to see extreme weather, but the havoc it is causing now is only a pale version of events to come. Unless we, the people, change the system that is causing climate instability--capitalism, we will all perish.

All of our growers have invoked the act of god clause on our contracts (force majeure) due to the following release:

The extreme freezing temperatures hit a very broad section of major growing regions in Mexico, from Hermosillo in the north all the way south to Los Mochis and even south of Culiacan. The early reports are still coming in but most are showing losses of crops in the range of 80 to 100%.

Capitalism’s Profit System

by Frank Scott from Dissident Voice. 

After colonialism officially ended, western domination was maintained over former colonies by governments headed by puppets whose regimes were called democratic as long as they remained under the domain of privately controlled markets and adhered to the dictates of Israel [I assume he means in the Middle East]. That minority-dominated system has never been under more pressure as disgusted majorities are crying out “enough is enough”. This global trend may not always be focused on private capital’s anti-democratic control, but that is the core problem which can only be solved by democratic public control of the political economics of all nations. The rise of a previously subjugated population in Egypt heralds a move closer to that solution to humanity’s collective problem.

Sachs Says Democrats, GOP Both `Unrealistic' on Budget [8:15m video]

Jeffrey Sachs on Bloomberg TV. 

The well indoctrinated interviewers on Bloomberg TV seem to have a hard time comprehending what this professor from Columbia University is telling them, I think it is because he is telling it like it is and it doesn't fit with their indoctrination. I hope the professor has tenure. 

America’s Strategic Repression of the ‘Arab Awakening’

by Andrew Gavin Marshall from Global Research. 

This Canadian reseacher associated with the Centre for Research on Globalization in Quebec provides one of the most comprehensive analyzes of Empire strategies to manage and contain opposition that I have seen. There is so much material in this and related articles that provides one with the conceptual tools to understand contemporary political events. Hence, if one doesn't already have these conceptual tools, it is imperative that you study the article closely.

Having stated the above, I have two problems with this presentation. First, and most importantly, he never mentions capitalism or capitalists in the article. This is a glaring omission. He constantly refers to elites, but fails to mention the system that this segment of the population uses to obtain their wealth and power, and to oppress others. Perhaps this is to avoid directly threatening elite power and having to deal with their attacks.

Second, this paragraph introduces some confusion into his analysis:

Historically, revolutions are never the product of a one-sided development. That is, revolutions predominantly do not come about through the actions of one segment of society, often polarized as either an elite-driven or people-driven revolution, but rather they come about through a complex interaction and balancing of various social groups. The context and conditions for a revolution often do not emerge without the awareness of the upper classes, therefore, the upper social strata always or often seek to mitigate, control, repress, influence or co-opt and control the process of revolution. In this context, we cannot dismiss revolutions simply as a top-down or bottom-up process, but rather a mitigation and interaction between the two approaches.

There is not such thing as an "elite-driven revolution". By definition, elites are in power--how can they revolt against themselves? And likewise, it is confusing to refer to a "top-down" revolutionary process. The latter is called counter-revolution.

The Emerging Counter-Revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt

by Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya from Global Research.

This temporary victory of the people in Egypt and Tunisia will be met with capitalist moves to contain the damage to their system and the people who run it. I will attempt to follow this story and that of the counter-revolution as it unfolds. This article provides the early signs. Currently this observer puts the spotlight on some self-appointed spokespeople identified as "Wise Men" attempting to represent the people in Egypt.

The role that the "Wise Men" play is that of a "manufactured opposition" that will keep the interests behind the Mubarak regime in place and also dilute the real opposition movements in Egypt.

Egyptian military asserts authority as strikes, protests spread

by Andrea Peters from World Socialist Web Site. 

Provides some good coverage of worker activism on behalf of real change in Egypt.

Unrest in the Middle East - Monday 14 February

from the Guardian. 

At least for today, this appears to be a good site for up-to-the-minute reports on the fast developing events in the Middle East and North Africa.

4 degrees Hotter

from Climate Action Centre.

The global ruling classes refuse to give up the system which lays their golden eggs--capitalism. Thus, if we, the people, allow them to keep fouling our atmosphere with their polluting gases, the result as determined by scientific research will be an increase of 4 degrees Celsius in global warming by 2100. This assumes that gas emissions do not increase, a very dubious assumption.  

But let's look at what the effects look like if only 4 degrees occur. David Spratt has summarized the findings from the Climate Action Centre:

     * The world would be warmer than during any part of the period in which modern humans evolved, and the rate of climate change would be faster than any previously experienced by humans. The world's sixth mass extinction would be in full swing. In the oceans, acidification would have rendered many calcium-shelled organisms such as coral and many at the base of the ocean food chain artefacts of history. Ocean ecosystems and food chains would collapse.
    * Half of the world would be uninhabitable. Likely population capacity: under one billion people. Whilst the loss will be exponential and bunch towards the end of the century, on average that is a million human global warming deaths every week, every year for the next 90 years. The security implications need no discussion
    * Paleoclimatology tells us that the last time temperatures were 4C above pre-industrial (during the Oligocene 30 million years ago), there were no large ice-sheets on the planet and sea levels were 65–70 metres higher than today. Whilst ice sheets take time to lose mass, and the rise to 2100 may be only 1–2 metres (or possibly a couple more according to James Hansen), the world would be on the way to 65–70 metres.
    * 3C may be the “tipping point” where global warming could be driven by positive feedbacks, leaving us powerless to intervene as planetary temperatures soared. James Hansen says warming has brought us to the "precipice of a great tipping point”. If we go over the edge, it will be a transition to “a different planet”, an environment far outside the range that has been experienced by humanity. There will be "no return within the lifetime of any generation that can be imagined, and the trip will exterminate a large fraction of species on the planet".

Hold the Celebration: Egypt's Struggle Just Began

by Stephen Lendman from OpEd News. 

The author goes a bit too far with his cynicism regarding the Egyptian uprising and removal of Mubarak. He seems to think that "Washington" is all powerful and can always control events. For example:

Euphoria also characterized most US media reports. Notably, however, unless Washington plans war or wants foreign adversaries denigrated, rarely ever are overseas events covered, especially uprisings against purported allies. Yet, for days, Egypt's was main-featured on television and in print, including unheard of anti-regime views, meaning official Washington supported them against an out-of-favor leader.

He disregards all the evidence that US ruling circles supported Mubarak until it was clear after a few weeks that he didn't have control of the situation. 

The uprising was totally spontaneous, all the ingredients were in place--economic hardships, fear of police authorities, extreme wealth and poverty, rigged elections, etc. This exists elsewhere in the world and especially in the Middle East. What other places lack is a well organized revolutionary core, the April 6th Youth Movement, which was able to take the social explosion ignited by the events in Tunisia a few weeks before and channeled the energy into a successful overthrow of the Mubarak regime and, at least temporarily, his US sponsored and trained military. Mainstream US media and the ruling class political operatives really didn't know what to make of this uprising. Read this, this, and this.

This confusion and the fact that these events were so huge made it impossible for them to manage the news coverage. You can be sure, now, that they will increasingly try frame the news to fit their interests in containing this popular uprising that threatens the Empire's rule over the Middle East.

On the other hand, Lendman with good reason knows that the revolution is not finished, and this is an important point to remember. It was a popular coup, but one that was brilliantly carried off against a favored US puppet and succeeded. This was no "colored revolution" engineered largely by the CIA as we have seen previously. Whether "Washington" can contain this firestorm of genuine democratic aspirations not only in Egypt, but in the Middle East, is not clear, and they, most of all, know it. They have been profoundly shaken by the events in Egypt.

Is this a ‘Young Turks’ moment all over again?

by William Bowles from his blog. 

I regard Bowles as one of the more astute commentators on world political events, and especially this one in Egypt. 

This article is only slightly dated having been written as Sulieman was handed power, but his observations appear to be on the mark.

For the past thirty years the US has squandered $60 billion supplying Egypt’s military dictatorship and in so doing it has created an military-owned business dynasty that now owns major chunks of the Egyptian economy. It’s a military-political economy, thus the central dilemma is that in order to transform Egyptian society the military-political cabal that rules Egypt has to be overthrown and disowned of its ill-gotten gains. This means taking on the Army. How can it be defanged?

World Social Forum: Declaration of the Social Movements Assembly

from Global Research. 

It appears that the events in the Middle East have had a large influence on this organization.

Capitalism´s destructive force impacts every aspect of life itself, for all the peoples of the world. Yet each day we see new movements rise, struggling to reverse the ravages of colonialism and to achieve well-being and dignity for all. We declare that we, the people, will no longer bear the costs of their crisis and that, within capitalism, there is no escape from this crisis. This only reaffirms the need for us, as social movements, to come together to forge a common strategy to guide our struggles against capitalism.

And even better, they are calling for future anti-capitalist mobilizations:

Inspired by the struggles of the peoples of Tunisia and Egypt, we call for March 20th to be made a day of international solidarity with the uprisings of the Arab and African people, whose every advance supports the struggles of all peoples: the resistance of the Palestinian and Saharian peoples ; European, Asian and African mobilisations against debt and structural adjusment plans ; and all the processes of change underway in Latin America.

We also call for a Global Day of Action Against Capitalism on October 12th, when we express in myriad ways our rejection of a system that is destroying everything in its path.

The leaked campaign to attack WikiLeaks and its supporters [article of the month]

by Glenn Greenwald from Salon.  

This must-read article from a courageous, former constitutional lawyer has so many lessons to give all progressive Americans about how their society is governed and the class war that is becoming more vicious in recent years. There are many valuable links included (I've featured one following this article), many of which I have yet to access. The article and all the links demand our complete attention if we are going understand what we are up against, and then begin to make changes. Let the Egyptians be our inspiration!

...the real issue highlighted by this episode is just how lawless and unrestrained is the unified axis of government and corporate power.  I've written many times about this issue -- the full-scale merger between public and private spheres --  because it's easily one of the most critical yet under-discussed political topics.  Especially (though by no means only) in the worlds of the Surveillance and National Security State, the powers of the state have become largely privatized.  There is very little separation between government power and corporate power.   Those who wield the latter intrinsically wield the former.  The revolving door between the highest levels of government and corporate offices rotates so fast and continuously that it has basically flown off its track and no longer provides even the minimal barrier it once did.  It's not merely that corporate power is unrestrained; it's worse than that:  corporations actively exploit the power of the state to further entrench and enhance their power.

"Law" is something used to restrain ordinary Americans and especially those who oppose this consortium of government and corporate power, but it manifestly does not apply to restrain these elites.

More Fallout From Anonymous

by John Cole from Balloon Juice. 

One thing that even the dim bulbs in the media should understand by now is that there is in fact a class war going on, and it is the rich and powerful who are waging it. Anyone who does anything that empowers the little people or that threatens the wealth and power of the plutocracy must be destroyed.

If you are still not convinced that a class war is underway in the US, read this brief article AND specifically the comments following the article.