Tag: The World

Israel

Postscripts on Israel: October 7 Surprise? – CounterPunch.org

Israel claims that the attacks of October 7, 2023, were a surprise. It wants us to believe that a country with one of the world’s most powerful and sophisticated militaries and intelligence agencies had neither expected, nor prepared for these attacks.

This claim is not plausible.

Israel was never SURPRISED the Zionists needed an excuse

The Gazans live in a tiny fishbowl. Indeed, when Israeli jets and drones start bombing Gaza, Israelis have been seen on the surrounding hills with binoculars and picnic baskets reveling in this spectacle in real time.

Misled by a small coterie of ambitious Jewish Zionists who first gathered at Basle, tragically and lamentably, the European Jews whose suffering placed them squarely in the camp of oppressed humanity—the ethnically cleansed, enslaved, and colonized peoples of the world—changed sides and joined the camp of their tormentors.

Source: Postscripts on Israel: October 7 Surprise? – CounterPunch.org

Israel

Gaza After the Deluge

Finally, if there appears little short-term prospect of peace taking root in Gaza’s scorched soil, seeds of hope have sprouted elsewhere, as a solidarity movement of unprecedented size and vigor sprang to Gaza’s defense. In Western Europe and North America, massive demonstrations have mobilized for week after week opposing Israel’s onslaught. Progressive Jews are in the militant vanguard. In the United States and Britain, public opinion backs an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, even as not one major political party endorsed this position. And right in the heart of the political establishment, from the European Union to the US State Department and White House, hundreds of officials have risked their careers to demand an end to complicity in Israel’s war crimes. Gaza has become a symbol for injustice, inequality, and the hypocrisies of power writ large, and around this symbol, the glimmer of a New International can be espied. If the Gaza cataclysm resonates so widely, especially among the young, it might be because, in this age of yawning inequality, hollowed-out democracy, and a futureless future circumscribed by economic stagnation and climate crisis, the global “99 percent” see in Gazans’ plight an extreme version of their own.

Source: Gaza After the Deluge

Australia's Shame

The rest of the world is in disbelief at what the gambling industry has pulled off in Australia. We need real reform | Tim Costello | The Guardian

A person gambles on a poker machine at a pub in Sydney, Australia, September 19, 2022.

 

For decades it seems Australian politics, especially in NSW, has been dominated by three major entities – the two major political parties and the gambling industry.

The state has half of the nation’s pokies and, incredibly, 35% of the world’s pokies in its clubs and pubs. With such ubiquitous accessibility it is no wonder Australia has the greatest gambling losses in the world – 40% greater than the nation that comes second.

Gambling does the most harm to the people and communities of NSW that Labor is supposed to represent

Source: The rest of the world is in disbelief at what the gambling industry has pulled off in Australia. We need real reform | Tim Costello | The Guardian

Future Shock

As Falls Russia, So Falls the World – scheerpost.com

John Feffer examines what it means that North Korea has been driven ever closer to fellow nuclear powers Russia and China.

Sovereignty was once the king’s prerogative; he was, after all, the sovereign. Today’s autocrats, like Vladimir Putin, are more likely to have been voted into office than born into the position like Kim Jong-un. The elections that elevate such autocrats might be questionable (and are likely to become ever more so during their reign), but popular support is an important feature of the new authoritarianism. Putin is currently backed by around 80% of Russians; Orban’s approval rating in Hungary hovers near 60%; and while Donald Trump could likely win again only thanks to voter suppression and increasingly antidemocratic features baked into the American political system, millions of Americans did put Trump in the White House in 2016 and continue to genuinely believe that he’s their savior. Bolsonaro in Brazil, Nayib Bukele in El Salvador, Narendra Modi in India, Kais Saied in Tunisia: they were all elected.

Yes, such leaders are nationalists who often act like populists in promising all sorts of handouts and feel-good nostrums to their supporters. But what makes today’s autocrats particularly dangerous is their exceptionalism, their commitment to the kind of sovereignty that existed before the creation of the United Nations, the earlier League of Nations, or even the Treaty of Westphalia that established the modern interstate system in Europe in 1648. Both Trump and Xi Jinping harken back to a Golden Age all right — of rulers who counted on the unquestioned loyalty of their subjects and exercised a dominion unchallenged except by other monarchs.

Source: As Falls Russia, So Falls the World – scheerpost.com

UK

The Queen has left her mark around the world. But not all see it as something to be celebrated

Not so Tanzania or Rhodesia it was a German Colony

From the very beginning, Queen Elizabeth II’s reign was deeply connected to Britain’s global empire and the long and bloody processes of decolonisation.

Indeed, she became Queen while on a royal visit to Kenya in 1952. After she left, the colony descended into one of the worst conflicts of the British colonial period. Declaring a state of emergency in October 1952, the British would go on to kill tens of thousands of Kenyans before it was over.

Source: The Queen has left her mark around the world. But not all see it as something to be celebrated

Australia's Shame

Net Zero Transition: China, world leave Australia behind on climate – Michael West

Climate wars. Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Image: Alex Anstey

The latest Coalition climate catastrophe, Senator Matt Canavan declaring national net zero policy “dead,” rings alarm bells for what’s ahead if the Morrison government is returned to office. Meanwhile, our new rival in the Pacific region, China, is seizing the mantle of climate leadership. Blair Palese reports on Australia’s greatest failure as a nation.

Source: Net Zero Transition: China, world leave Australia behind on climate – Michael West

Politics

Politics isn’t super-appealing to women in Australia right now. Is it different elsewhere? – ABC News

A composite shows close-up portraits of Fiame Naomi Mata'afa, Kaja Kallas, Najla Bouden and Magdalena Andersson

In fact, with less than a third of Lower House seats filled by women, Australia is currently ranked 56th in the world when it comes to female representation in parliament, according to figures from the Inter-Parliamentary Union. So what’s holding Australia back while women elsewhere are seemingly smashing through glass ceilings to hold top office?

Source: Politics isn’t super-appealing to women in Australia right now. Is it different elsewhere? – ABC News

Climate Change

Climate change clock ticks as the EU and China work on a Clean Energy Strategy – » The Australian Independent Media Network

While the rest of the planet is making an effort to fall into line and agree on the existential disaster facing it. Scott Morrison remains the last man standing in denial marketing. He sounds more  the voice of the Tobacco Industry rather than the leader of the world’s biggest polluter per head of population and an apologist for it. Like Trump he’s all for seemingly telling Australia he’s going to make “some of us great” and fuck the rest including the world. “We are going to do it the IPA/Murdoch/NLP way”

However, with the European Union recently not ratifying a Comprehensive Economic agreement with China, buying into mostly US driven human rights accusations on China, which in my research hold little evidence, with conflicting claims, is putting humanity at a great risk in hampering a joint strategy in tackling climate change. Geopolitical finger-pointing with agendas never helps humanity. However, a cooperative approach does. The climate change clock is ticking close to an irreversible point for humanity and the European Union must decide.

Source: Climate change clock ticks as the EU and China work on a Clean Energy Strategy – » The Australian Independent Media Network

Australia

Zoe Daniel: How Australia squandered its world-leading pandemic position

Scott Morrison and Zoe Daniel

Australia was in a world-leading position on managing COVID last year and squandered it.

And now continues to do so with small-minded, inward-looking debate while the world moves forward.

Fortress Australia is not just physical, in the form of all but closed borders, but mental and emotional, as we and our leaders choose to reinvent processes and debate that have already been had elsewhere.

Instead of taking advantage of international advances and knowledge that may allow us to accelerate towards normality, we choose to argue among ourselves.

Source: Zoe Daniel: How Australia squandered its world-leading pandemic position

Australia

Covid Australia vaccine rollout tracker: total number of people and per cent vaccinated, daily vaccine doses and rate of progress | Australia news | The Guardian
Covid-19 in Australia

Active cases *

increasing
decreasing
NSW 2562 QLD 42 WA 16
VIC 205 NT 7 SA 25
TAS 0 ACT 0

Vaccinations

14.1% fully vaccinated
17.8% only one dose
37/38 ranked in OECD

How does Australia’s coronavirus vaccine rollout and schedule compare with other countries, when will Australia be fully vaccinated and when will you be eligible to get your dose? We bring together the latest numbers on daily new Covid-19 cases, as well as stats and live data on total vaccination figures in Victoria, NSW, Queensland and other states Follow our Covid live blog for the latest updates Restrictions: NSW; Vic; Qld; SA; border restrictions Hotspots: NSW map; Vic list; Qld; SA Get our free news app; try our weekend edition app; get our morning email briefing

Source: Covid Australia vaccine rollout tracker: total number of people and per cent vaccinated, daily vaccine doses and rate of progress | Australia news | The Guardian

Uncategorized

Trump Is Gone (For Now), But Right-Wing Populism Is Still a Global Curse | Washington Monthly

Trump was not the only rightwing populist on the world stage. A combination of unregulated social media disinformation, backlashes against modernism, efforts to retain undue privilege by domestic ethnic majorities at the expense of disadvantaged minorities, and the elevation advantage-taking con artists have all contributed to the a disturbing global alliance of incompetent authoritarians. Nations as diverse as Brazil, Hungary, India, Russia, Turkey, Poland, Israel, the United Kingdom and the Philippines have all empowered far-right leaders, most with clownish conservative temperaments and a habit of doing more to troll the orthodoxy of international decency than to serve their own people.

Source: Trump Is Gone (For Now), But Right-Wing Populism Is Still a Global Curse | Washington Monthly

Climate

When You Reduce Emissions By Preferring Your Own Milkshake! – » The Australian Independent Media Network

Whether this is true or not, I think we can all agree that it’s an amazing achievement by an Australian PM to have almost achieved the remarkable accomplishment of announcing a target for 2050. With the current rate of progress we may actually have one before the year itself!

Source: When You Reduce Emissions By Preferring Your Own Milkshake! – » The Australian Independent Media Network

Scott Morrison

The world running out of patience with our excuses on climate change

US President Joe Biden.

Morrison’s overly dependant narrow focus is fast catching up with him.

If the Prime Minister thought 2021 was about to get a little easier, he should think again. At US President Joe Biden’s Climate Leaders Summit to be held next week, Australia will come under unprecedented pressure to join global efforts to stop global warming. So far though, the Prime Minister looks to be turning up to the summit empty-handed.

Source: The world running out of patience with our excuses on climate change

Informed Comment

We Are All Living in Rupert Murdoch’s World

We Are All Living in Rupert Murdoch’s World
SAVE THE ABC

The right-wing media baron Rupert Murdoch turns 90 today. His news empire has been instrumental in reshaping the world in the image cast by conservative elites. The need to build a robust and democratic alternative media has never been more urgent.

We Are All Living in Rupert Murdoch’s World
Coronavirus, Uncategorized

Coronavirus: Which countries have confirmed cases? | News | Al Jazeera

'We need food': Tunisians struggle under coronavirus lockdown

United States – 503,594 cases, 19,701 deaths

Spain – 161,852 cases, 16,353 deaths

Italy – 147,577 cases, 19,468 deaths

France – 125,942 cases, 13,216 deaths

Germany – 122,855 cases, 2,736 deaths

China – 83,014 cases, 3,343 deaths

The total includes 44 cases in Macau and 765 cases – four deaths – in Hong Kong.

United Kingdom – 79,841 cases, 9,891 deaths

Iran – 70,029 cases, 4,357 deaths

Turkey – 47,029 cases, 1,006 deaths

Belgium – 28,018 cases, 3,346 deaths

Switzerland – 24,900 cases, 1,015 deaths

Netherlands – 24,565 cases, 2,652 deaths

via Coronavirus: Which countries have confirmed cases? | News | Al Jazeera

Donald Trump

Is America Poised to Become the Most Dangerous Country on Earth? | The Nation

For decades, Washington had a habit of using the Central Intelligence Agency to deep-six governments of the people, by the people, and for the people that weren’t to its taste and replacing them with governments of the [take your choice: military junta, shah, autocrat, dictator] across the planet.

Source: Is America Poised to Become the Most Dangerous Country on Earth? | The Nation

Donald Trump

‘Congratulations’ vs ‘shock’: Politicians react to US election results — RT News

Politicians all over the world are reacting as Donald Trump has become president-elect of the United States. Some are congratulating him, while others are in shock.

Source: ‘Congratulations’ vs ‘shock’: Politicians react to US election results — RT News

Economics

The economic threat facing the world is bigger than Brexit | Voices | The Independent

swiss-francs-income.jpg

The week will be dominated by politics, not economics, which will make it harder to hear the messages coming through about the future of our economy, and indeed that of the wider world. But if you are looking into the UK from the outside, there is one particularly troubling thing to look for. That is what is happening to long-term interest rates.

Source: The economic threat facing the world is bigger than Brexit | Voices | The Independent