19 August marks an ignominious anniversary: the 70th anniversary of the coup against Mohammed Mossadegh and the snuffing out of Iranian democracy. Popularly remembered largely as a CIA-led operation, the plot to oust Mossadegh was as British as it was American; while the United States has long acknowledged culpability, Whitehall remains resistant to do likewise. […]
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The Pentagon refuses to call the overthrow of Niger’s president a coup — a move that could affect military assistance and a U.S. drone base.
The post When Is a Coup Not a Coup? When the U.S. Says So. appeared first on The Intercept.
Yesterday’s Financial Times reports that the Labour Party is preparing a major rollback on workers’ rights. This is significant news – after years of abandoned pledges under Keir Starmer’s leadership, employment rights was the last bastion of transformative policy in the party programme. Now it appears that too might be sacrificed. I was a political […]
Yesterday’s Financial Times reports that the Labour Party is preparing a major rollback on workers’ rights. This is significant news – after years of abandoned pledges under Keir Starmer’s leadership, employment rights was the last bastion of transformative policy in the party programme. Now it appears that too might be sacrificed. I was a political […]
The whiplash-inducing back and forth of the most viral true-crime case in recent memory might owe to disputes between local- and state-level officials.
The post “Serial” Podcast’s Adnan Syed Might Go Back to Prison Because of Toxic Maryland Politics appeared first on The Intercept.
This summer, violent mobs associated with the US-backed Tigray People’s Liberation Front assaulted Eritrean festivals across the US and Europe. Western media is now spinning the targeted mob violence as legitimate protest against Eritrea’s government. For 40 years, Eritrean Festivals have been held around the world to sustain the diaspora community’s connections to their homeland and to one another. But this year, a violent, well-coordinated international campaign of sabotage left festival goers badly injured and property damaged. Major Western media […]
The post Western media glorifies TPLF mob violence against Eritrean festivals first appeared on The Grayzone.
The post Western media glorifies TPLF mob violence against Eritrean festivals appeared first on The Grayzone.
Baby sloth! The team at Roger Williams Park Zoo is elated to announce the birth of a baby sloth! The adorable newborn is born to mom Fiona and dad Westley and is currently resting comfortably while staying close to mom. The incredible staff of zookeepers and veterinarians are maintaining a watchful eye over the mother and baby, ensuring their well-being as they bond behind the scenes. With the assistance of the mother’s affection, daily monitoring, and supplemental feeding from the keepers, the little one is steadily growing and gaining strength. This birth holds great significance for the Zoo and the global sloth population. The Zoo is an active participant in the Linne’s Two-Toed Sloth Species Survival Plan, which prioritizes breeding to guarantee the survival of the species. The young sloth is yet to be named, but more updates will be coming soon, so stay tuned!
In a post-trip state, psychedelic researchers are finding, real healing begins.
The post Our Minds Remain Open When the LSD Wears Off appeared first on Nautilus.
Biden has always had a stutter and sometimes sounded garbled even when he was young. But this is something else. It isn’t just slurred and garbled, it’s completely incoherent. (Not to mention that he’s going full-on Flock of Seagulls with the hair.)
Researchers are rediscovering the forgotten legacy of a pioneering Black scientist who conducted trailblazing research on the cognitive traits of bees, spiders, and more.
The post Charles Henry Turner’s Insights Into Animal Behavior Were a Century Ahead of Their Time appeared first on Nautilus.
The dystopian future of modern America Does Elon Musk know that his precious Republicans are waging a war against electric cars? They are… Electric vehicle drivers in Texas have started to get some bad news in the mail. Starting in September, they’ll have to pay the state an extra $200 each year to register their climate-friendly cars and trucks. And if they want to buy a new EV, that will cost $400 upfront. State lawmakers imposed the new fee on EVs this spring to replace gasoline taxes lost to the switch to battery-powered vehicles. Supporters say it ensures every driver pays their fair share. But the fee is nearly double what an average driver would pay in taxes at the pump, according to consumer advocates. Those moves have some EV advocates fuming — and will create new barriers to one of President Joe Biden’s signature climate policies. Unchanged since 1991, Texas’ gas tax is one of the cheapest in the country. Now, its new EV fees are among the most expensive. That’s no accident, experts and advocates say.
Official documents reviewed by MintPress show that the government of Taiwan is attempting to drum up anti-China hostility, intimidate American politicians and is even working with the FBI to spy on Chinese Americans.
The post Documents Show Taiwan Working With FBI to Prosecute Chinese Americans, Intimidate US Politicians appeared first on MintPress News.
Matt Gaetz puts it right out there Impeachment is on the way because it’s an election year and Republicans want to harm Joe Biden with a massive smear. They aren’t trying to hide it. Representative Matt Gaetz has finally said the quiet part out loud: Republicans don’t have enough evidence to impeach and convict Joe Biden. They just want to make him look bad enough that he loses the 2024 election. Republicans have insisted for months that Biden is guilty of corruption and influence peddling overseas, despite producing no actual evidence. Many in the GOP, including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, are starting to suggest opening an impeachment inquiry into Biden so that they can access more information and witnesses that will supposedly lead them to the truth. But Gaetz said that Republicans should go straight to impeachment proceedings, not just an inquiry. “The purpose of that impeachment, from my standpoint, is not to force a vote that loses,” he said during a Twitter Space on Monday night.
Since the Labor government endorsed Scott Morrison’s AUKUS Defence Policy, many former Labor leaders, diplomats and academics have questioned whether there has been adequate assessment of the many risks associated with this secret deal that has not been formally assessed for its impact on Australians. Open Letter to all ALP members at the ALP National Continue reading »
By entering the AUKUS Partnership in 2021, Australia has undertaken to co-operate with the United States and the United Kingdom, two nuclear-weapon states, with objectives that include acquiring nuclear-powered submarines that would be armed with conventional weapons. This has the potential to weaken both the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), by setting a Continue reading »
For the first time since the US achieved global domination economically and militarily after WWII, the military industrial complex and Biden administration fear the rise of China. They have decided that it must be crushed. The US, NATO and its compliant states have whipped up a frenzy of fear and loathing for the Chinese. This Continue reading »
Pearls and Irritations is a unique source of independent comment and analysis. Readers know that they will learn more and have a better and different understanding of important policy issues than is available from the mass media. It is therefore gratifying that readership has grown tenfold over the last six years, with monthly ‘views’ now Continue reading »
Along with a new scheme for first home buyer assistance, Federally-led rental reform is now on the PM’s agenda. But this week’s National Cabinet and Party Conference housing announcements need to be integrated into a coherent and ambitious long-term strategy. Anthony Albanese has signalled backing for ‘harmonising’ tenants’ rights, country-wide, importantly including enhanced security of Continue reading »
Beyond rent controls: can we have a market where tenants are treated with respect?; Reconstructing Australia’s economy from the wreckage left by the Coalition; and, Vale Mary-Louise McLaws, a voice of reason when reason was in short supply. Read on for the Weekly Roundup of links to articles, reports, podcasts and other media on current Continue reading »
There’s a lot of controversy over what China is doing in the South China Sea, but there seems to be very little in the way of perspective. The recent “water attack” on Philippines vessels was not a hostile act by a military nation, it was a Chinese Coastguard ship deterring another nation from building on Continue reading »
US Secretary of State Tony Blinken tweeted in celebration of Pakistan’s preparations for “free and fair elections” on Wednesday, a week after it was revealed that the US pressured Pakistan to oust its popular democratically elected prime minister Imran Khan last year. “Congratulations to new Pakistan Interim Prime Minister @anwaar_kakar,” tweeted Blinken. “As Pakistan prepares Continue reading »