(2019-12-18). US opposes lifting UN sanctions on key Pyongyang exports. rt.com 
The United States opposed on Tuesday a draft resolution proposed by China and Russia that would terminate UN sanctions on key North Korean exports. Washington called the measure "premature," citing Pyongyang's threat to conduct "an escalated provocation," AP reports. | The draft resolution circulated to UN Security Council members would terminate sanctions on North Korean exports including textiles and seafood with the intent of enhancing the livelihood of the civilian population. | It would also lift a ban on North Koreans working overseas and terminate a decision to repatriate all those earning income abroad…
(2019-12-18). Will tourism companies be held accountable over New Zealand volcano disaster? wsws.org An investigation by government regulator WorkSafe into the eruption, which killed more than 16 people, could take a year.
(2019-12-18). Trump makes fascistic appeal in impeachment letter. wsws.org While Trump is seeking to exploit the impeachment to rally a right-wing movement, the Democratic Party is fearful of and hostile to mobilizing mass popular opposition to Trump.
(2019-12-18). Istanbul Photo Awards 2019 exhibition opens at UN. yenisafak.com Anadolu Agency on Tuesday launched an exhibition at United Nations headquarters in New York featuring the works of award-winning photojournalists who competed in the international Istanbul Photo Awards 2019.The event, hosted by high-level Anadolu Agency executives, opened with the attendance of Turkey's UN Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu.Addressing the opening ceremony, Sinirlioglu said: "We are very pleased to see the growing interest that Anadolu Agency's annual photo awards have enjoyed over the years."Some 15,000 people from over 100 countries applied for this year's competition, he called, and congratulated t…
(2019-12-18). Interview with Dominique Walker and Sameerah Karim of Moms4Housing on Move-In Day. indybay.org On November 18, two mothers without shelter, born and raised in Oakland, took possession of a vacant investor-owned property in West Oakland. Here, Dominique Walker and Sameerah Karim speak about the economic hardships of life in today's Oakland and how much this opportunity means to them and their families.
(2019-12-18). At least 12,000 people flee Idlib amid regime, Russian attacks. yenisafak.com Fleeing attacks by the al-Assad regime and its allies, at least 12,000 civilians have been forced to abandon what is supposed to be a cease-fire zone in northwestern Syria and headed for the Turkish border. | Mohamed al-Hallaj, director of the Response Coordinators Team, told Anadolu Agency that the regime, Russia, and Iranian-backed foreign terror groups have struck civilian settlements in the past 24 hours.The southern Marratinnuman district, located east of Idlib city, faced the highest migration rates, and fleeing families are in dire need of items such as shelter, blankets, beds and tents, he added.A total o…
(2019-12-18). Saudi Arabia Reads The Riot Act To Imran Khan. iranian.com The KL Summit 2019 hosted by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur on December 18-21 was originally conceived as a landmark event in the politics of the Muslim world. It still is, albeit on a wet wicket struggling to tackle a nasty googly that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan threw at the …
(2019-12-18). Don't Deny My Patients! 4,000 NUHW CA Kaiser Healthcare Workers Start 5 Day Strike. indybay.org 4,000 NUHW Kaiser mental healthcare workers launched a 5 day unfair labor practice strike to protest the deaths of patients, failure to properly treat patients and also the stress and high turnover of mental healthcare staff…
(2019-12-18). New citizenship law that sparked protests 'has nothing to do' with India's Muslims, says top imam. rt.com 
The leader of the Jama Masjid mosque in New Delhi has called on Muslims to show restraint while protesting against a new citizenship law, since it does not directly affect the country's Muslim citizens. | "To protest is the democratic right of the people of India. No one can stop us from doing it. However, it is important that it is done in control, keeping our emotions in control is the most important part," Syed Ahmed Bukhari said on Tuesday, as quoted by news agency ANI. | Shahi Imam of Delhi's Jama Masjid, Syed Ahmed Bukhari: To protest is the democratic right of the people of India, no one can stop us fro…
(2019-12-18). All is not Lost. zcomm.org (December, 2019) All is not lost. The young still feel the sting Of oppression. Setting aside the quiescent Counsel of terrified time, They rise, singing a defiant rhyme. Women, dragged by the hair, Lead the march of assertion Against the strategy of fear. While the batons of state Sought the men for correction, Read more…
(2019-12-18). Form rank-and-file committees to defend transit workers! wsws.org To defend jobs and living standards, transit workers must build new organizations of struggle to oppose the gang-up of the MTA, the Cuomo administration and the TWU.
(2019-12-18). US Senate: Republicans Pass Bill Creating Trump's 'Space Force'. telesurenglish.net The U.S. Senate Tuesday approved to pass a US$738 billion defense policy bill that creates President Donald Trump's "Space Force" and gives federal employees 12 weeks of paid paternity leave. | RELATED: | US Congress Rejects $175m Funding for Middle East 'Deal of the Century' | The Republican-controlled Senate voted 86-8 in favor of th…
(2019-12-18). India is Gradually Leaning Toward a Dangerous Unitarianism. counterpunch.org One of the unfortunate calamities of India's historical past is that today religio-cultural tensions continue to sharpen divisions along communal lines in the country. The Citizenship Amendment Bill and National Register of Citizens of India have increased the impetuousness and insanity that the rhetoric of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), More
(2019-12-18). Severe heatwave set to worsen Australia's bushfire emergency. wsws.org Already exhausted firefighters are preparing to face horror weather conditions this week.
(2019-12-18). Mexico Finds "World's Largest Lithium Deposit" Just Before US Focus & $1.4 Trillion War-Aimed NDAA. thelastamericanvagabond.com Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (12/17/19). As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth …
(2019-12-18). The inorganic body in the early Marx. mronline.org 
The effort to revive and recover critical theory and its intellectual precedents has become more difficult at a time in which 'critique' is regularly denounced as negative, skeptical and anthropocentric. Bruno Latour, for instance, imagines that when we speak about what is 'critical', we have in mind a fully negative project, a practice of debunking […] | Source
(2019-12-18). Boeing's Perilous Bungling Requires New Leadership. counterpunch.org The Boeing executives and marketeers responsible for over-ruling Boeing engineers on the 737 MAX are still in charge of this very troubled aerospace company. Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg and the rubber-stamp Board of Directors, with two trophy ambassadors, are still running Boeing — thirteen months after the deadly 737 MAX crash in Indonesia and nine More
(2019-12-18). Torture exposed in Cobb County Detention Center. workers.org 
By Arielle Robinson Marietta, Ga. Formerly incarcerated people from the Cobb County Adult Detention Center and loved ones of those currently incarcerated spoke out about the horrid conditions at a town hall meeting at Life Church here on Dec. 9. Seven people have died in the jail since last December. . . . | Continue reading Torture exposed in Cobb County Detention Center at Workers.org
(2019-12-18). Not this time: The New England Patriots' NFL dynasty will come to an end this season. rt.com 
The New England Patriots have ruled the NFL for the past decade, but this season has suggested we could be about to see a changing of the guard, and the end of an era of dominance from the Massachusetts franchise. | It has become a right of passage in the NFL. The Patriots win the AFC East title with ease, win one of the top two seeds in the AFC playoffs and then parlay that into yet another Super Bowl appearance. | While they don't always win the Super Bowl, they always put up a good fight and they have managed to win three of their last four appearances in the championship game. | In the past, the combinatio…
(2019-12-18). US rural county jails see a rapid rise in incarceration rates. wsws.org There are an estimated 758,400 people incarcerated in local jails throughout the US, an increase of 1.8 percent from mid-year 2017.
(2019-12-18). 'Mind your business': Mixed reaction in India after 19 American universities condemn police amid Citizenship Act protests. rt.com 
Students and faculties from more than a dozen American universities have produced a joint statement decrying police abuses on Indian college campuses. However, not everybody has welcomed the message from abroad. | A collective effort of several top schools, including Harvard, Yale, Columbia and Stanford, the 400 signatories voiced "solidarity" with demonstrators protesting the recently passed Citizenship Amendment Act and slammed police excesses in quelling the unrest. | We express full solidarity with students across universities in India who are peacefully protesting against the recent passing of the unconst…
(2019-12-18). Macron 'will not abandon' pension reforms, but may 'improve' retirement age — Elysee. rt.com 
French President Emmanuel Macron is "willing to improve" some areas of the controversial pension reform plans such as the age of retirement, his office said on Wednesday. | The country has been plagued by mass protests against the proposed reforms for almost a fortnight, with strikes seriously affecting transport in particular. | Wednesday's comments from the president's office are the first signs of Macron conceding ground after he and his government repeatedly refused to accede to union concerns over the sweeping reforms. | The president "will not abandon the project, nor will he distort it, even if he is wi…
(2019-12-18). President of China Media Group: Western Media are 'going too far' in their coverage of Hong Kong. rt.com 
According to a Sino-Italian news app, on December 15, the head of China Media Group, Shen Haixiong, gave an exclusive interview to TGCOM 24, a channel owned by Italy's largest commercial broadcaster, ‚ÄéMediaset S.p.A.‚Äé | When asked whether Chinese and Western media were covering the events in Hong Kong in an unbiased and objective manner, Shen Haixiong replied that some Western broadcasters are "going too far" in their reporting of the situation, clearly favoring one side over the other. | "For example, they don't show you young people picking fights with the police or ot…
(2019-12-18). Impeachment Day: The Yacht Sequoia and the Trump v. Nixon fiasco. indybay.org The Yacht Sequoia Cruise Certificate that has spent many years hanging on the wall of my apartment is dated around 2 months before former disgraced President Richard Nixon resigned from office. Facing imminent impeachment, Nixon resigned from office on August 9th, 1974, barely a few days after his fateful trip into history aboard the Yacht Sequoia on August 5, 1974, where he learned that a Court had ordered him to release the transcript of an incriminating tape recording that revealed he had indeed approved the cover-up of the notorious Watergate-breakin. I enjoy keeping this little piece of history around to rem…
(2019-12-18). Progressives Need a United Front for Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. indybay.org Clear differences and a nonaggression pact…
(2019-12-18). Never Trust a Failing Empire. iranian.com The Washington Post, through documents released through the Freedom of Information Act, has published a long investigation into Afghanistan. Journalists have collected over 400 testimonies from American diplomats, NATO generals and other NATO personnel, that show that reports about Afghanistan were falsified to deceive the public about the real situation on the ground. After the tampering with and …
(2019-12-18). More Americans Facing Murder Charges in Drug Deaths. truthdig.com 
Emma Semler, 24, cried in a Pennsylvania federal courtroom as she waited for the judge to hand down her sentence. | On trial for the death of her friend, 20-year-old Jenny Werstler, she told the judge, "I have extreme remorse. If I could go back and change anything, I would." | Although Semler and Werstler had met in rehab, they often shared drugs. On May 9, 2014, Semler gave Werstler some money, and Werstler bought some heroin from a dealer she knew. Semler got th…
(2019-12-18). A Modest Proposal for Improving Senate Impeachment Trials. counterpunch.org US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) makes no bones about his position on the likely upcoming impeachment trial of US president Donald Trump. "I am trying to give a pretty clear signal I have made up my mind," he tells CNN International's Becky Anderson. "I'm not trying to pretend to be a fair juror here." Well, More
(2019-12-18). British woman receives world-first cancer therapy. thecanary.co A British woman has become the first in the world to be treated with a revolutionary new therapy which injects a high dose of chemotherapy into cancer cells. | Karen Childs, from north-west London, is taking part in a clinical trial for acoustic cluster therapy to treat cancer that has spread to her liver. | During the therapy, clusters of microdroplets and microbubbles are injected into the patient at the same time as chemotherapy, where they work to enhance its delivery. | Ultrasound scans are used to ensure the clusters "pump" the drug into the tumour, meaning substantially more chemotherapy reaches cancer cel…
(2019-12-18). GPs cutting hours amid rising NHS pressures — report. thecanary.co More than a third of GPs have cut their hours in the last year, with many blaming the demands of the job, according to a new report. | An annual workforce report from the General Medical Council (GMC) found high numbers of GPs at risk of burnout, high levels of dissatisfaction, and more than one in 10 taking time off in the last year due to stress. | The study also found GPs inappropriately referring patients to hospital while stressed out by a high workload, and patients suffering harm due to pressures on the system. | The study found: | — The number of GPs is growing faster than the UK population growth,…
(2019-12-18). WW editorial: Fight for socialism enters new decade. workers.org 
We are coming to the end of another year, another decade. What are the significant events to consider? The U.S. war on Afghanistan, begun in 2001, continued, while the bankruptcy of U.S. imperialism was recently revealed by the Washington Post in "The Afghanistan Papers." This review of internal U.S. government . . . | Continue reading WW editorial: Fight for socialism enters new decade at Workers.org
(2019-12-18). Boris Johnson's Britain. globalresearch.ca Britain is looking drenched at the moment; colours blue and yellow seem to be streaking through the country. The Scottish Nationalists have re-asserted control lost to the Conservatives in 2016. In the rest of the country, seats never touched by …
(2019-12-18). Russia's crude oil output could surpass 12 million bpd by 2035. rt.com 
Russia's crude oil and condensate production could rise to more than 12 million bpd by 2035, if global demand for liquid hydrocarbons continues to grow, Russia's second-largest oil producer, Lukoil, said in a new forecast. | In the report 'Major Trends in the Global Liquid Hydrocarbon Market to 2035,' Lukoil has modeled three different scenarios for Russia's opportunities and challenges in oil production in the long term. | The 'Equal Opportunities' scenario considers that global oil and gas demand will rise and Russia ca…
(2019-12-18). The harsh reality of job growth in America. mronline.org 
There are many reasons for those at the top of the U.S. income distribution to celebrate the performance of the U.S. economy and tout the superiority of current U.S. economic and political institutions and policies. Unfortunately, there is a strong connection between the continuing gains for those at the top and the steadily deteriorating employment […] | Source
(2019-12-18). GM Oshawa auto assembly ends production, eliminating 5,000 jobs. wsws.org The Unifor union suppressed all opposition to the closure of the factory while stoking animosity toward Mexican autoworkers.
(2019-12-18). Blair decries Corbyn's 'terminal ineptitude' as leader of a cult-like, 'glorified protest movement' Labour Party. rt.com 
Tony Blair, the former Labour Party leader and British prime minister from 1997 to 2007, has warned that his party is "marooned on fantasy island" and faces an existential crisis as a result of its shift towards the far left. | Pulling no punches in a speech in central London Wednesday morning, Blair claimed that the rout of Corbyn's Labour Party in last week's UK general election was "no ordinary defeat." | "The takeover of the Labour Party by the far left turned it into a glorified protest movement with cult trimmings, utterly incapable of being a credible government," he said. | "The result has brought sham…
(2019-12-18). Voices from criminal injustice system: 'I am Troy Davis'. workers.org 
New York A sold-out crowd at Rattlesticks Theater in the West Village on Dec. 8 heard readings from the book "I Am Troy Davis," which features the stories of dozens of people whose lives have been cruelly affected by the state and its racist criminal injustice system. "We need to . . . | Continue reading Voices from criminal injustice system: 'I am Troy Davis' at Workers.org
(2019-12-18). Brisbane forum calls for broad support for Assange and Manning. wsws.org The resolution adopted by the forum focussed on the need to take the defence of the WikiLeaks founder out to the working class globally.
(2019-12-18). Getting away with murder: 'clash' as media euphemism for 'massacre'. mronline.org After deposing Evo Morales in a U.S.-backed coup November 11, Bolivia's military selected Jeanine Añez as president. Añez immediately signed a decree pre-exonerating security forces of all crimes during their "re-establishment of order," understood by all sides as a license to kill. Those same forces have now conducted massacres of Morales supporters near the cities […] | Source
(2019-12-18). Italy's Football League Apologizes for Anti-Racism Ape Campaign. telesurenglish.net Italy's Serie A chief apologized Tuesday for the ape artwork used for its supposedly anti-racism campaign after it was widely criticized since its official release the day before. | RELATED: | Bulgarian Soccer Chief Quits Over Racist Chants, PM Condemns | The imagery by artist Simone Fugazzotto featured three apes with different color eyes and detailing. | "We realized it was inappropriate," the league's chief executive Luigi De Siervo said in a statement on Tuesday. | Racism ha…
(2019-12-18). Strike Debt Bay Area Economics Reading Group: "Limits." indybay.org Omni Commons (check whiteboard near entrance for internal directions) | 4799 Shattuck Ave, Oakland, CA…
(2019-12-18). Turkey's education spending goes up in 2018. yenisafak.com Turkey's education expenditures increased nearly 22% year-on-year in 2018, the country's statistical authority announced on Wednesday.The country spent 214.6 billion Turkish liras ($44.5 billion) last year, up from 176.5 billion Turkish liras ($48.3 billion) in 2017, the Turkish Statistical Institute said.The figure rose most for pre-primary education by 27.3% and upper secondary education with 24.3% during the same period.The share of education spending on Turkey's GDP stood at 5.8% in 2018, compared to 5.7% a year earlier.Public sources financed 72.9% of the education expenditure in Turkey last year. The larges…
(2019-12-18). US Army XVIII Airborne Corp posts sympathetic portrayal of Nazi war criminal on Facebook. wsws.org The publication of a glowing portrayal of Nazi war criminal Joachim Peiper by the Army's XVIII Airborne Corp's Facebook page exposes a constituency within the military for fascism.
(2019-12-18). Colombia's senate suspends controversial tax reform debate, citing 'procedural error'. colombiareports.com 
While in the middle of a debate over a broadly rejected tax reform, Colombia's senate president adjourned the session on Tuesday claiming a "procedural error" had been made. The senate…
(2019-12-18). Large Pro-Impeachment Rally Held in Clovis, CA. indybay.org Around 350 demonstrators turned out for a pro-impeachment rally in Clovis, adjacent to Fresno. It was one of over 600 demonstrations nationwide that were organized by MoveOn.org.
(2019-12-18). Algerians say: 'The system' has a new president, but he's not ours. workers.org 
"The system" is what Algerians call the shadowy, highly corrupt group of Army officers, high-ranking politicians and businesspeople running their country. In February the news hit that Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the then-current president who had had a disabling stroke in 2013, was going to run for a fifth term as president. . . . | Continue reading Algerians say: 'The system' has a new president, but he's not ours at Workers.org
(2019-12-18). Where Did Labour Go Wrong? zcomm.org Despite these electoral setbacks, Corbyn's achievement has been massive…
(2019-12-18). Chelsea Manning must not be forgotten! wsws.org Yesterday, the whistleblower celebrated her 32nd birthday in a prison cell.
(2019-12-18). Impeachment (and removal): Good for public health. nationofchange.org We need to save American lives now. The best remedy would be to annul an illegitimate election. At the very least, impeach.
(2019-12-18). Afghanistan War — The Crime of the Century. globalresearch.ca "We were devoid of a fundamental understanding of Afghanistan. We didn't know what we were doing." So said Gen. Douglas Lute, who oversaw the US war on Afghanistan under Presidents Bush and Obama. Eighteen years into the longest war …