Before Columbus: How Africans Brought Civilization to America
Global Research – August 10, 2018 – Garikai Chengu
https://www.globalresearch.ca/before-columbus-how-africans-brought-civilization-to-america/5407584
America’s government offices, businesses, and banks all grind to a halt in order to commemorate Columbus Day. In schools up and down the country, little children are taught that a heroic Italian explorer discovered America, and various events and parades are held to celebrate the occasion… One can only wonder how Columbus could have discovered America when people were watching him from America’s shores?… Clearly, Africans helped civilize America well before Europeans “discovered” America, and well before Europeans claim to have civilized Africa. The growing body of evidence is now becoming simply too loud to ignore. It’s about time education policy makers reexamine their school curriculums to adjust for America’s long pre-Columbus history.
Research group that discounted risks of red meat has ties to program partly backed by beef industry
The Washington Post – October 14, 2019 – Laura Reiley
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/10/14/research-group-that-discounted-risks-red-meat-has-ties-program-partly-backed-by-beef-industry/
“Industry funding can pose significant issues that cloud the objectivity of findings,” says David Goldman, chief science adviser for a new documentary called “The Game Changers.” “While it would be unreasonable to suggest that industry-funded research shouldn’t be allowed, it’s absolutely critical that there be full transparency about this funding and any related conflicts of interest.”
Judges Block President Trump’s Immigrant Wealth Test
Time Magazine – October 11, 2019 – Chris Dolmetsch and Edvard Pettersson
https://time.com/5698859/judges-block-repugnant-trump-immigrant-rule/
A new U.S. Department of Homeland Security rule to screen out immigrants deemed at risk of becoming dependent on government benefits was put on hold by judges on both coasts until there’s a final decision on whether the so-called green card wealth test is legal… “Defendants do not articulate why they are changing the public charge definition, why this new definition is needed now, or why the definition set forth in the rule — which has absolutely no support in the history of U.S. Immigration law — is reasonable.”
A father’s grief and the Made in USA bomb dropped in Yemen
The Guardian – October 3, 2019 – Bethan McKernan
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/oct/03/a-fathers-grief-and-the-made-in-usa-bomb-dropped-in-yemen
Raja died on 23 March 2018. But the story of the bomb that is believed to have killed her stretches back decades earlier. Using the serial number and other technical information on the CBU-52 B/B’s outer shell, the Guardian traced the munition from its manufacture in Milan, Tennessee, to Sahar farms, in north Yemen, where it ended a child’s life…. Cluster munitions were invented by the Nazis and had become a standard weapon of war across the world by the 1970s, designed to kill as many people as possible. They usually consist of a hollow shell filled with hundreds of submunitions that disperse over an area as big as several football pitches as it falls through the air. They either explode on impact or are triggered when moved or stepped on, firing hundreds of fragments of metal that travel at the speed of bullets… US-made bombs rain down on north Yemen with almost total impunity.
There Are Some Things More Important Than Money
Reader Supported News – Dan Rather’s Facebook Page – October 15, 2019
https://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/59223-there-are-some-things-more-important-than-money
We see a president who, for a lifetime, has put his own greed above all else, who now seems to be making decisions about the direction of our country by considering his own self-interest and that of his family. He is willing to blow up the world order and trample our democratic norms. And the political class who is profiting from this applauds or remains silent… Greed is not good. Maximizing shareholder value, when shareholders are narrowly defined as investors, is insufficient. We are all shareholders in the health of our cities, countries and the larger world. Measuring value should also include a tally of the needs of workers, children, and those concerned about broader justice of economic and environmental health.
Elijah Cummings Was a Fighter
Reader Supported News – Michael Moore’s Facebook Page – October 17, 2019
https://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/59265-elijah-cummings-was-a-fighter
One of the great members of Congress in my lifetime passed away this morning — Elijah Cummings, Democrat of Maryland. He was a fighter for those who weren’t allowed a seat at the table. A strong, powerful voice for the voiceless. He was always willing to give of his time for me, offer his guidance, tell me what was really going on in ways few others would. When he agreed to be in my film, “Capitalism: A Love Story,” he pulled no punches about the Crash of ‘08 when Congress bailed out the banks and Wall Street but let millions of families lose their savings and be evicted from their homes. He told me it was all a ruse, a giant robbery of the American people… We will all honor him best by carrying on his work with our own passion and an unrelenting commitment to real justice and equality. Rest In peace, my friend. We, though, will not, until your work – our work – is done.
Without Encryption, We Will Lose All Privacy. This Is Our New Battleground
The Guardian – October 15, 2019 – Edward Snowden
https://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/59225-without-encryption-we-will-lose-all-privacy-this-is-our-new-battleground
In every country of the world, the security of computers keeps the lights on, the shelves stocked, the dams closed, and transportation running. For more than half a decade, the vulnerability of our computers and computer networks has been ranked the number one risk in the US Intelligence Community’s Worldwide Threat Assessment – that’s higher than terrorism, higher than war. Your bank balance, the local hospital’s equipment, and the 2020 US presidential election, among many, many other things, all depend on computer safety. And yet, in the midst of the greatest computer security crisis in history, the US government, along with the governments of the UK and Australia, is attempting to undermine the only method that currently exists for reliably protecting the world’s information: encryption. Should they succeed in their quest to undermine encryption, our public infrastructure and private lives will be rendered permanently unsafe.
Physicians to Trump: Immigration Detention Centers Must Close
The Hill – October 14, 2019 – Katherine McKenzie, Ranit Mishori and Kate Sugarman
https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/465637-physicians-to-trump-immigration-detention-centers-must-close
Asylum seekers should not be forced to stay in detention centers or camps while awaiting adjudication of their claims. News reports and other testimonies have documented substandard and even terrible conditions: no running water, no soap, no beds, inedible food. Medications have been taken away from those who need them; outbreaks have occurred and the government has decided not to provide vaccines. This is unacceptable. Many advocates have rightfully been fighting to change these conditions. But we are here to say that it is not enough to ask to improve the conditions in the detention centers. We must demand that they be closed altogether, because they are inherently immoral and should not be there in the first place.
The Robots Aren’t Coming for Our Jobs, the Oligarchs Are
The American Prospect – October 16, 2019 – David Dayen
https://prospect.org/economy/the-robots-arent-coming-for-our-jobs-the-oligarchs-are/#
If you look at productivity statistics, you see that it has fallen, almost catastrophically, across the board in the last decade. There is no story about automation that’s consistent with output per hour falling precipitously. It’s literally the reverse of what you would expect… If you are a dominant player in your market, you don’t need to invest in your business to maintain your share of customers. You “build a moat around your business,” as Warren Buffett is fond of saying, and that prevents competitors from crossing. This defeats the automation story by itself. Why would a dominant company invest in retooling equipment if it doesn’t need to? Especially as financial markets and executive compensation are guided by short-term profits, taking the capital expenditure hit to automate doesn’t seem necessary… It’s not a robot story; it’s an oligarch story.
Inside TurboTax’s 20-year fight to stop Americans from filing their taxes for free
Pro Publica – October 17, 2019 – Justin Elliott and Paul Kiel
https://www.propublica.org/article/inside-turbotax-20-year-fight-to-stop-americans-from-filing-their-taxes-for-free
Using lobbying, the revolving door and “dark pattern” customer tricks, Intuit fended off the government’s attempts to make tax filing free and easy, and created its multi-billion-dollar franchise… The success of TurboTax rests on a shaky foundation, one that could collapse overnight if the U.S. government did what most wealthy countries did long ago and made tax filing simple and free for most citizens. For more than 20 years, Intuit has waged a sophisticated, sometimes covert war to prevent the government from doing just that, according to internal company and IRS documents and interviews with insiders.
The Greening of the New Deal
Informed Comment – October 18, 2019 – Steve Fraser
https://www.juancole.com/2019/10/the-greening-deal.html
Like its predecessor, it arrives on the scene at a fateful moment. There is no way to exaggerate the gravity of the Great Depression in its time or the looming prospect of climate catastrophe in ours. The question is: Could the Green New Deal do what the first one did to stave off the worst — or even do more? In this case, facing the reality of a fast-heating planet in a country whose president is Donald J. Trump, looking back is a way of looking forward… Advocates of the Green New Deal talk ominously about the existential threat that global warming poses to civilization. And that threat visibly grows more real with each passing year. The Great Depression, however, was not a threat that was likely to happen soon — or sooner or later. For millions of people across the country it was the all-encompassing reality of the here and now. Think of the difference in the two moments as one between an existential threat and an existential crisis.
How the baby food industry hooks low-income toddlers on sugar, salt and fat
The Washington Post – October 17, 2019 – Laura Reiley
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/10/17/sweet-excess-how-baby-food-industry-hooks-toddlers-sugar-salt-fat/
The amount of funding spent to promote healthy foods, which is mostly via federal nutrition education dollars such as WIC and SNAP-Ed, is dwarfed by food marketing which is mostly for unhealthy and ‘treat’ foods and beverages… I fear we will never make a big dent in diet-related chronic disease until we level this playing field.
Democrats Still Can’t Level With Voters About the U.S. Empire
The Intercept – October 16, 2019 – Jon Schwarz
https://theintercept.com/2019/10/16/what-i-learned-from-the-debate-democrats-still-cant-level-with-voters-about-the-american-empire/
In reality, of course, the U.S. has — like all powerful countries throughout history — continually betrayed allies whenever necessary. We’ve previously betrayed the Kurds alone seven times. This particular betrayal was inevitable, although a more competent president could have kept it smaller and quieter… Look, the U.S. is the center of the most powerful empire that’s ever existed. We’re not in the Mideast for moral reasons, like protecting the Kurds, so you can forget about that. We’re there to keep the oil flowing (even though any Mideast government will happily sell their oil to anyone buying), to get whatever profits we can for U.S. corporations and to make sure our Saudi friends recycle their profits back into the American economy.
Our Republic Is Under Attack From the President
The New York Times – October 19, 2019 – William H. McRaven, retired Navy admiral, former commander of the United States Special Operations Command.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/17/opinion/trump-mcraven-syria-military.html
If we don’t care about our values, if we don’t care about duty and honor, if we don’t help the weak and stand up against oppression and injustice — what will happen to the Kurds, the Iraqis, the Afghans, the Syrians, the Rohingyas, the South Sudanese and the millions of people under the boot of tyranny or left abandoned by their failing states? If our promises are meaningless, how will our allies ever trust us? If we can’t have faith in our nation’s principles, why would the men and women of this nation join the military? And if they don’t join, who will protect us? If we are not the champions of the good and the right, then who will follow us? And if no one follows us — where will the world end up? President Trump seems to believe that these qualities are unimportant or show weakness. He is wrong.
Big victory for voting rights: Federal court blocks Florida Republicans’ modern-day poll tax
The Daily Kos – October 18, 2019 – Stephen Wolf
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/10/18/1893478/-Big-victory-for-voting-rights-Federal-court-blocks-Florida-Republicans-modern-day-poll-tax
In a major victory for voting rights, a federal district court has issued a preliminary injunction blocking most of Florida Republicans’ modern-day poll tax that they passed earlier this year. That measure sought to deny voting rights to citizens with felony convictions after voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2018 to end lifetime disenfranchisement. Even for citizens who had served out all prison, parole, or probation sentences, the GOP’s poll tax denied them the right to vote if they still owed any court-related fines or fees, costs that are often used in a predatory fashion to fund the court system itself.
We Need a New Capitalism
Portside – The New York Times – October 18, 2019 – Marc Benioff, Salesforce CEO and co-founder
https://www.portside.org/2019-10-18/salesforce-ceo-we-need-new-capitalism
It’s time for a new capitalism — a more fair, equal and sustainable capitalism that actually works for everyone and where businesses, including tech companies, don’t just take from society but truly give back and have a positive impact. What might a new capitalism look like? First, business leaders need to embrace a broader vision of their responsibilities by looking beyond shareholder return and also measuring their stakeholder return. This requires that they focus not only on their shareholders, but also on all of their stakeholders — their employees, customers, communities and the planet… When we finally start focusing on stakeholder value as well as shareholder value, our companies will be more successful, our communities will be more equal, our societies will be more just and our planet will be healthier.
The Key to Saving Family Farms Is in the Soil
Yes! Magazine – October 18, 2019 – David R. Montgomery
https://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/soil-farm-health-rural-community-20191018
Would it sound too good to be true if I was to say that there was a simple, profitable and underused agricultural method to help feed everybody, cool the planet, and revitalize rural America? I used to think so, until I started visiting farmers who are restoring fertility to their land, stashing a lot of carbon in their soil, and returning healthy profitability to family farms. Now I’ve come to see how restoring soil health would prove as good for farmers and rural economies as it would for the environment… Regenerative agriculture is not just about restoring the life of the soil. By making smaller farms profitable once again, it could bring more people back to the land and thereby boost the economy in small towns across America.
The Sustainable Future Town of Your Imagination
Yes! Magazine – October 15, 2019 – Rob Hopkins
https://www.yesmagazine.org/new-economy/book-sustainable-future-town-20191015
This excerpt is from Rob Hopkins’s new book “From What Is to What If: Unleashing the Power of Imagination to Create the Future We Want”