Trumpian populism has not yet taken hold here. Why? Perhaps because this country’s not quite as unequal as others. One good thing about taking a break from work is that it gives you time to let your mind wander from all the pressing concerns of our fast-moving world – the preoccupation with this ‘‘crisis’’ and Continue reading »
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Indonesians have just witnessed a messy, badly produced TV ‘debate’ between the politicians jostling to run the world’s fourth largest democracy facing a national election in less than two months. Just a few weeks ago it seemed Indonesian politics was edging towards modernity by recognising that half the voters are women with different values, needs Continue reading »
After letting net migration blow out to around 518,000 in 2022-23, the Albanese Government has announced it wants to bring net migration down to 375,000 in 23-24 and 250,000 in 24-25 Home Affairs Minister O’Neil insists these are ‘estimates’ rather than ‘targets’ – presumably trying to avoid criticism of the blow out in net migration Continue reading »
More than 100 health, legal, social, community services providers, advocates and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Controlled Organisations have stepped up pressure on the nation’s Attorneys-General to raise the age of criminal responsibility nationally to at least 14 years old, with no exceptions. Their joint statement was released ahead of a meeting of the Continue reading »
Bipartisan support for temporary extra government spending to preserve businesses and jobs through JobKeeper was one of the few positive outcomes from the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognition that the long-term damage caused by short-term economic crises far exceeds the cost of temporary government spending to avoid it underpinned that consensus. It’s worth considering now whether the Continue reading »
The former president’s comments have ignited concerns from critics and scholars who have warned that a second Trump administration threatens democracy – even as his advisers push back on those fears, dismissing them as baseless. Many likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers have no issue with several of Trump’s recent statements, a new Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa Poll has found, and, more often than not, they say the same statements make them more likely to support the former president. Holly Rice, a 57-year-old poll respondent from Cumming, Iowa, said she was backing Trump for his policy agenda, saying “I don’t care what he tweets. It’s a little off the wall, but you know? A lot of them do stuff like that,” Rice said. “At least we know he’s not a polished politician. He reminds me of my father.” June Koelker, a 71-year-old poll respondent from Monticello, Iowa, said Trump’s immigration plans made her more likely to back him, but she answered she was “less likely” to support him for his statement about those who enter illegally “poisoning” the country.
Stay hydrated, get good sleep As we approach the winter solstice, things are not as dark as they seem. More sunlight is on the way. As I noted the other day: I’m assembling mailing lists for the 5th Ed of For The Win right now. Two years ago 40% of Idaho’s counties either had no functioning Democratic committees (or no sign of them on the Net). Today all do. Two years ago an even higher percentage of Iowa’s counties were MIA. Today only 5 [of 99] are. Sure, it’s red Idaho and Iowa, but it’s dramatic progress in two short years. Nobody knows about that. Now you do. Candidate filing closed at noon on Friday in North Carolina and I was thrilled: Chided for absences across more than 25% the General Assembly races in 2022, Friday’s final half-day of election filing for the 2024 cycle brought a resounding end to the fortnight. All 50 Senate districts have a Democratic candidate, and 118 of 120 House of Representatives districts have one. That’s a far cry from nobody in 15 Senate and 29 House races.
The Israeli military continues to act as it did during the Nakba, when it employed torture in a bid to crush the spirit of Palestinian resistance, perceiving the humiliation of Palestinians as an expression of dominance, power, and supremacy.
The post Urinating on Prisoners: Why Humiliation is Functional in Israel’s War on Palestinians appeared first on MintPress News.
From billionaires bankrolling judges’ luxury trips to the politics of Israeli soccer hooligans, here’s a roundup of our reporting from the past week.
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How the Russia hawks have fallen … for Putin Not that long ago the American right was militarist, love-it-or-leave-it, and rabidly anti-Communist/anti-Russia. To a comical “no more than ten to twenty million killed, tops” and “Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran” degree, even. Fight ’em over there so we don’t fight ’em over here. War was good business, good politics, and a resume-builder for aspiring politicans. Americans of all political stripes reflexively pulled for the underdogs facing imperialist aggression (unless we were the imperialists). Then came the BIg Shift. Now righties are fans of authoritarians and dictators. They’ve soured on all-American democracy and have turned fascism-curious. Let Russia have Ukraine, whatevs. It’s been in the making since the 1990s. Susan B.
An FOI request has revealed that the data of people who are referred to Prevent is being shared more widely than previously known, including with airports, ports and immigration services. Data is also being re-used after cases have been marked ‘no further action’. ORG uncovered this information when the Met police sent a poorly-redacted response […]
Year-end roundup time…here’s a few more recommended 2023 Blu-ray reissues for your creel: Dance Craze (BFI; Region ‘B’ locked) – In the book Reggae International, a collection of essays compiled by Stephen Davis and Peter Simon, sub-culturalist Dick Hebdige writes about the UK’s short-lived yet highly influential “2-tone” movement of the early 1980s: Behind the fusion of rock and reggae lay the hope that the humour, wit, and style of working-class kids from Britain’s black and white communities could find a common voice in 2-tone; that a new, hybrid cultural identity could emerge along with the new music. The larger message was usually left implicit. There was nothing solemn or evangelical about 2-tone. It offered an alternative to the well-intentioned polemics of the more highly educated punk groups, who tended to top the bill at many of the Rock Against Racism gigs.
One of Obama’s most significant foreign policy achievements was his move toward normalizing relations with Cuba. Trump and Biden have torn that up.
The post In a Major Snub to Obama, Biden Is Sticking With Trump When It Comes to Cuba Policy appeared first on The Intercept.
Another round of Hitler talk for the fascist faithful And some concrete plans to make it happen: Lovin’ those dictators: New promises: Bold predictions: Sure. Remember this? It was November 2, 2020 Not that his followers, enablers and henchmen care of course. It’s just Trump, playing his greatest hits and nothing matters except owning the libs. Dementia: And then there’s just sheer fun for the folks: He hasn’t gotten any better over the years. He’s gotten worse. Oh well, Happy Hollandaise folks. Let’s take a break, shall we?
He has a novel (final) solution for Social Security funding Asked in New Hampshire whether he plans to raise the retirement age he had some great news. It isn’t going broke after all! “What I don’t think people are acknowledging the way they should is that life expectancy in this country is declining. And so, you know, we used to think it was just gonna keep going up. I mean, it’s been a pretty steep decline. So I don’t see how you raise it if life expectancy is declining.” What a relief, huh? The old people are dying early! Whew! DeSantis said that the decrease in lifespans isn’t “just from COVID,” but is “from a lot of other things,” including “deaths of despair, overdoses” and “other things, that have happened that I think the government hasn’t been willing to really be honest about.” Apparently, he didn’t express any particular concern about this decrease. He clearly sees it as a big plus, saving him from having to support raising the retirement age. He’s here to tell you the truth which the government refuses to do! We’re all gonna be dead soon!
The Australian government has declined a US request to send an Australian warship to the Red Sea. A taskforce of ten countries will patrol the area to protect commercial tankers against Houthi attacks.
The post US requests Australian warship to protect Israeli shipping in Red Sea first appeared on Solidarity Online.
Stephen Miller is only 38 years old. He sounds like somebody’s crotchety old grandfather there, living in some pre-1960s world. I suppose he’s speaking to the aging Fox boomer audience but I hate to tell him, purple and pink hair and piercings and tattoos have been around for decades now. We’ve been hearing an awful lot about appropriate dress and proper decorum from Republicans lately. But seriously, don’t you think they should take a look in the mirror? How about whatever this is? Let’s just say that the left doesn’t have a monopoly on wild hairdos and garish fashion. And those Fox News boomers need to take an extra dose of their Prevagen. This is from 1972: Miller’s idea seems to be that liberals and progressives are out of step with mainstream America but that requires a very creative definition of mainstream. Here’s how the dictionary defines it: having, reflecting, or being compatible with the prevailing attitudes and values of a society or group To put this into political terms, all you have to do is look at the popular vote counts since 2016 to see where the mainstream of America really is. Not that this is anything new.
It was only a matter of time I confess I didn’t see this coming. And I should have. Of course the normalization of the narcissistic imbecile Donald Trump would lead inexorably to a Nixon revival on the right. After all, how can you hold him responsible for his crimes if everything Trump has done is perfectly above board? Politico reports: In late August, Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy took a break from his typical campaign events to make a pit stop at an unusual venue for mainstream Republicans: The Richard Nixon Presidential Library. Speaking before a packed house, Ramaswamy was slated to deliver a speech on foreign policy. But his opening remarks served the more provocative purpose of challenging Nixon’s much-maligned status in the annals of conservative history. “He is by and away the most underappreciated president of our modern history in this country — probably in all of American history,” said Ramaswamy, without a hint of irony. Ramaswamy’s homage to America’s most disgraced ex-president perplexed some liberal commentators, for whom Nixon remains the ultimate symbol of conservative criminality.