(2020-12-23). US COVID relief package: Too little, too late. peoplesdispatch.org After much wrangling, the US Congress managed to pass the a COVID-19 relief package. However, it offers only a pittance at a time when large sections of the population are facing an unprecedented economic crisis…
(2020-12-23). US Airports Are Portals for Disease Spread. Venezuela Shows Another Way. truthout.org I recently traveled to Venezuela to be an observer for its National Assembly election and was struck by a stark difference between the ways Venezuela and the United States are handling the COVID-19 pandemic. | My experience at the airport in Caracas, Venezuela, gave me a taste of what a coordinated public health approach looks like in practice, compared to the disjointed politicized approach in the United States. Airports in the United States are currently serving as uncontrolled portals of disease…
(2020-12-23). Colombia's President shows his disdain for democracy and Venezuelans. peoplesdispatch.org On December 8, a Conviasa flight prepared to take off from Caracas, Venezuela, for Mexico City. It planned to carry 200 election observers and journalists who came to Venezuela from a range of countries to monitor the National Assembly elections that were held on December 6. The plane sat on the tarmac, luggage on board, with the passengers ready to board—at which point, the delay began. Hours went by. The airline had previously filed a flight plan, which included using Colombian airspace; now, hours before the flight was to take off, the government of Colombia denied the aircraft the right of transit (a…
(2020-12-23). Imperial Intent: Destroying India's Farm Sector. dissidentvoice.org Agriculture in India is at a crossroads. Indeed, given that over 60 per cent of the country's 1.3-billion-plus population still make a living from agriculture (directly or indirectly), what is at stake is the future of India. Unscrupulous interests are intent on destroying India's indigenous agri-food sector and recasting it in their own image. Farmers …
(2020-12-23). US Attack: Treasury Department Imposes New Sanctions on Cuba and Nicaragua. globalresearch.ca The US imposed sanctions on three Cuban entities and three Nicaraguan citizens, the US Treasury Department reported today. | The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Treasury Department sanctioned the Cuban companies Grupo de Administración Empresarial, Financiera Cimex and Kave …
(2020-12-23). The Cuban Medical Brigade Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. dissidentvoice.org Lawrence B. Wilkerson, retired US Army Colonel and former chief of staff to US Secretary of State Colin Powell, has nominated the Cuban Medical Brigade Henry Reeve for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize. Wilkerson is also a Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Government and Public Policy at William and Mary College. Wilkerson's interest in Cuba's medical …
(2020-12-23). 'Scuba Santa' a festive surprise for Kuala Lumpur aquarium visitors. laprensalatina.com A "Scuba Santa" entertained the crowds while swimming with the underwater residents at Aquaria KLCC aquarium in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. To the delight of visiting children, who watched him through the glass and took photos, Scuba Santa fed rays and turtles and floated with the fish to celebrate the Christmas …
(2020-12-22). Venezuela Receives Chinese Medical Supplies To Fight COVID-19. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodriguez on Tuesday welcomed the arrival of medical supplies donated by China to support the fight against the pandemic. | RELATED: | After pointing out that it was the ninth shipment sent by Chinese authorities, she recalled that over 274 tons of equipment, medical inputs, and medicines have been received so far this year. | Rodriguez also mentioned that Venezuela is nowadays a victim of U.S. bl…
(2020-12-22). Safe to assume new Covid-19 mutation 'is already here': Ireland's PM announces shutdown of pubs and restaurants amid new fears. rt.com 
Ireland will bring in new measures on December 24 amid a new strain of coronavirus, which is likely already circulating among the population, Prime Minister Micheal Martin said on Tuesday. | From 3pm on Christmas Eve all restaurants, gastro pubs and hairdressers will be forced to close, while gyms and non-essential shops are allowed to remain open, although January sales are not permitted. | The measures will take effect less than a month after Ireland emerged from its previous lockdown and will remain in place until January 12. | A travel ban with the UK has been extended until December 31, after a new more v…
(2020-12-22). No right to read: Profiteering corporations creep into prison libraries. peoplesworld.org 
When thinking about what incarcerated people need, perhaps a library is not the first thing that comes to mind. However, the population within prison walls is typically one that reads more than those on the outside. As a public librarian, I've long been keenly aware of the positive role prison libraries play in the lives …
(2020-12-21). Trump Enacts Sweeping New Sanctions on China, Iran, Venezuela. Biden Promises More To Come. mintpressnews.com The new sanctions come even as an estimated 100,000 people have been killed by American sanctions in Venezuela alone as vital medical equipment and lifesaving drugs have been blocked from entering the country.
(2020-12-21). Political Science and the Fate of the Wolverine. counterpunch.org 
On December 14, 2020, 24 organizations and one individual (me) filed two different lawsuits to challenge the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) decision not to list the wolverine as a threatened Distinct Population Segment (DPS) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The plaintiffs are arguing the FWS decision was capricious and arbitrary. The wolverine,
(2020-12-21). Ex-UK Ambassador On Syria And Propaganda. popularresistance.org Former UK ambassador to Syria Peter Ford on how the US and its allies continue to wage war on Syria via sadistic sanctions, an illegal US military occupation, the OPCW cover-up, and media propaganda that masks the brutality. | Syria and its allies prevented regime change, but the US and its allies are continuing to squeeze Syria's population with crippling sanctions on all aspects of civilian life and a US military occupation in Syria's northeast breadbasket. Peter Ford, the former UK Ambassador to Syria, analyzes the state of the Syria proxy war and the ongoing propaganda campaign to whitewash it.
