2019-12-06: News Headlines

Staff (2019-12-07). Uber Reports Over 3,000 Sexual Assaults on 2018 Rides. truthdig.com SAN FRANCISCO—Uber, as part of a long anticipated safety report, revealed that more than 3,000 sexual assaults were reported during its U.S. rides in 2018. | That figure includes 235 rapes across the company's 1.3 billion rides last year. The ride-hailing company noted that drivers and riders were both attacked and that some assaults occurred between riders. | The Thursday report, which the company hailed as the first of its kind, provides a rare look into the traffic deaths, murders and reported sexual assaults that took place during…

Michael Steven Smith and Heidi Boghosian (2019-12-06). Inside the Organized Crime Syndicate Known as the CIA. dissidentvoice.org Douglas Valentine is an investigator and author with a rare and tenacious approach toward research. His writing results in uniquely incisive and revealing books on the dark side of U.S. intelligence activities and the National Security State. His latest book, The CIA as Organized Crime: How Illegal Operations Corrupt America and the World, draws parallels between CIA operations …

Robert Scheer (2019-12-06). The Plot to Discredit and Destroy Julian Assange. truthdig.com A day after dozens of doctors around the world released a statement about their mounting concerns regarding Julian Assange's health as he's detained in a British prison, Truthdig Editor in Chief Robert Scheer spoke with Tariq Ali, a renowned British journalist and co-editor of a recent collection of essays titled " In Defense of Julian Assange." To Scheer, Ali and the book's many contributors, the case agains…

Norman Solomon (2019-12-06). Of Course John Kerry Endorsed Joe Biden. truthdig.com Both have repeatedly lied about their support for the war in Iraq. Is it any surprise that the one is now backing the other for president?

Alan Macleod (2019-12-06). Study Reveals How UK Intelligence Works with Media to Smear Jeremy Corbyn. mintpressnews.com The United Kingdom goes to the polls December 12 in a pivotal vote that will decide the future of the country. Like in 2017, the Labour Party, under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, is surging towards the ruling Conservative Party in the last weeks of campaigning. But he will not become Prime Minister if the UK's security services have anything to do with it. Corbyn, frequently compared to Bernie Sanders in terms of ideology, spent decades in the political wilderness, a lonely leftist voice among a party embracing neol…

Ed Rampell (2019-12-06). The new Belorussian film 'Debut': Crime and punishment and art therapy. peoplesworld.org Anastasiya Miroshnichenko's well-made, touching documentary Debut provides viewers with a rare glimpse behind the "Iron Curtain." By this I'm not merely referring to the fact that this 80-minute film was shot in Belarus, formerly known as Byelorussia or Belorussia and, like Ukraine, an erstwhile Soviet republic. Rather, more to the point, Debut was largely filmed …

Alan Macleod (2019-12-06). The Faux Generosity of the Super-Wealthy: Why Bill Gates is a Menace to Society. mintpressnews.com If Gates represents a net negative force in world politics, why does he receive such good press? For starters, he makes sizeable donations to a host of mainstream corporate media outlets.

Walden Bello (2019-12-06). How the Battle of Seattle Made the Truth About Globalization True. counterpunch.org The Battle of Seattle in late November 1999 is, for me, memorable in many ways. For one, I still remember being given a good beating by a policewoman when I tried to prevent her buddies from hauling off the irrepressible Medea Benjamin, then the director of Global Exchange, from a sit-in at the entrance to More

Brenda Norrell (2019-12-06). 'No Spiritual Surrender: A Dedication to the Standing Rock Movement' Photos of Resilience. indybay.org Photojournalist Ryan Vizzions photos of Standing Rock Water Protectors in the camps and on the frontlines have appeared around the world. Vizzions' new book chronicles the resilience and resistance of Water Protectors and the militarized police they faced, with forwards by Joye Braun, Cheyenne River Lakota, and Pte San Wastewin, Hunkpapa Lakota.

Norman Solomon (2019-12-06). Kerry's Endorsement of Biden Fits: Two Deceptive Supporters of the Iraq War. counterpunch.org On Thursday afternoon, the Washington Post sent out a news alert headlined "John Kerry Endorses Biden in 2020 Race, Saying He Has the Character and Experience to Beat Trump, Confront the Nation's Challenges." Meanwhile, in Iowa, Joe Biden was also touting his experience. "Look," Biden said as he angrily lectured an 83-year-old farmer at a campaign stop, "the reason More

M. G. Piety (2019-12-06). A Lesson From the Danes on Immigration. counterpunch.org Denmark is in the news now because of its purported hostility to immigrants. Brooke Harrington, a sociology professor at Dartmouth, published an op ed in the New York Times on Tuesday about how she was nearly carted off to a Danish prison for giving invited guest lectures to the Danish parliament. Danes had tightened up More

WSWS (2019-12-06). Meeting of Australian teachers passes resolutions in defence of Julian Assange. wsws.org The teachers have taken an important stand which points the way forward for other educators, and for all sections of the working class, in the fight for democratic rights and against the persecution of Assange.

WSWS (2019-12-06). French public sector strikers call to free Julian Assange. wsws.org Strikers denounced the imprisonment of the Australian journalist under appalling conditions in Britain, for having revealed imperialist war crimes in Iraq.

Ben Norton (2019-12-06). Ukrainian Neo-Nazis Flock to the Hong Kong Protest Movement. globalresearch.ca Ukrainian fascists who previously fought in a US-backed neo-Nazi militia joined the anti-China protests in Hong Kong, sharing their tactics and showing off their tattoos. | *** | Neo-Nazis from Ukraine have flown to Hong Kong to participate in the anti-Chinese insurgency, …

Staff (2019-12-06). Why Are Some of the World's Biggest Polluters Sponsoring UN Climate Summit? truthout.org A group of climate activists walked out of a panel at the U.N. climate summit in Madrid on Thursday to protest the presence of Shell, BP and Chevron. Representatives from the oil companies were taking part in an event organized by the International Emissions Trading Association. This comes as the Spanish government is facing criticism for reaching out to Endesa, Spain's biggest corporate greenhouse gas polluter, to sponsor the U.N. climate talks. We speak with Pascoe Sabido, a researcher and campai…

Staff (2019-12-06). Alternative Climate Summit Honors Victims of Corporate Crimes. truthout.org We broadcast from Madrid, Spain, where the United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP25, began Monday and will continue through next week, as environmental leaders from around the world gather to negotiate global solutions to the climate crisis. Activists have converged on Madrid for the conference and are hosting an alternative summit of their own: Cumbre Social por el Clima — the Social Summit for the Climate. The alternative summit has been organized by social justice and environmental gro…

Forrest Hylton (2019-12-06). Bolivia's Coup Government: a Far-Right Horror Show. counterpunch.org Since coming to power on November 12, Bolivia's right-wing coup government, led by interim president Jeanine Añez, has quickly consolidated power and achieved international legitimacy. So far, the Añez government has succeeded in calling elections for 2020; persecuting journalists, political opponents, and human rights activists; and, following two massacres of unarmed, mainly indigenous protesters that More

Linda Pentz Gunter (2019-12-06). Why Do We Punish the Peacemakers? counterpunch.org You're liable to run into trouble if you try to suggest there is a greater threat to planetary survival than climate change. But there is. It's called nuclear war. Granted — and thank goodness — climate change is finally all the rage now. Rage has taken over, and rightly so, especially among the young whose More

DARIN (2019-12-06). Chuck Herrick Peace and Freedom Memorial Park. indybay.org Clearly Indybay media should also topic Anarcho-Geography* as well as Anarcho-Urban Studies**. Berkeley, California. Consider this to be under the topical influence of Urban Direct Action within a their-storical contemplative premise. [*For more on this topic see Prof. Simon Springer.] [**On this topic I would personally field any inquiry.]…

news.un (2019-12-06). UN evaluates progress in improving peacekeeping performance. news.un.org The international community on Friday took stock of action to improve UN peacekeeping in line with a Security Council resolution aimed at enhancing performance at all levels, both at Headquarters in New York and in the field.

IMEMC News (2019-12-06). Soldiers Seriously Injure A Palestinian Teen Near Hebron. imemc.org Israeli soldiers shot and seriously injured, Friday, a Palestinian teen in Beit Ummar town, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, after the army invaded the town, and attacked Palestinians protesting the invasion. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said its medics provided the essential treatment to the …

news.un (2019-12-06). UN rights chief 'extremely concerned' over deadly crackdown on protesters in Iran. news.un.org In the wake of recent protests in Iran, the top United Nations human rights official expressed alarm on Friday over multiple human rights violations which have reportedly taken place across the country.

teleSUR (2019-12-06). Live Updates: Dominica: Citizens Head to Polling Stations. telesurenglish.net Dominica's polling centers Friday opened their doors to over 70,000 people who will cast their vote in the general elections to decide the new government that will rule over the next five years. | The Dominica Labor Party (DLP) candidate Roosevelt Skerrit and the United Workers' Party (UWP) candidate Lennox Linton appear as top political figures in elections in wh…

teleSUR (2019-12-06). Algeria: Thousands Hold Last Rally Before Presidential Election. telesurenglish.net Thousands marched in different cities of Algeria to demand the presidential election scheduled for Dec. 12 to be canceled. They took to the streets on the 42nd consecutive Friday of protests against the "shadowy" ruling elite, which has been controlling Algeria since its independence in 1962. | RELATED: | Tens of Thousands of Algerians March To Cancel Election | "Down with the military regime!", "We want a civil state and a true transition!" and "No to the elections as long as the maf…

teleSUR (2019-12-06). Chilean Mothers Perform Feminist Dance Act to Protest "Historic Abuse" telesurenglish.net About ten thousands of Chilean senior women took part Wednesday in the "Un violador en tu camino" campaign ("A rapist in your way"), a made-in-Chile dance routine that has spread worldwide as a powerful tool of protest against "historic abuse suffered by women in a patriarchal system." | RELATED: | Chile: Municipalities Call Citizens to Independent Consultation | Organized by the women's group "Las Tesis Senior" at the gates of the National Stadium — located in Santiago's…

Dave Lindorff (2019-12-06). Conviction and Removal Aren't the Issue; It's Impeachment of Trump That is Essential. counterpunch.org A lot of pundit verbiage and Democratic Party internal debate as well is being wasted on the question of whether Trump could be convicted successfully in a Senate currently run by a lickspittle Republican majority afraid of their shadows and devoid of any concern for the fate of Constitutional government. Let's accept that the 20-plus More

Stephen Lendman (2019-12-06). Presidential Pardon for Netanyahu? globalresearch.ca Is a deal in the works for Netanyahu to step down as prime minister in return for a presidential pardon — with the aim of avoiding a third election next year? More on this below. | *** | Netanyahu faces prosecution for …

Ryan Cristián (2019-12-06). The US Is Manufacturing A War With Iran Under Cover Of The Impeachment Distraction. 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 (12/5/19). 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 …

Staff (2019-12-06). Despite Strong Job Growth, Wage Growth Isn't Accelerating. truthout.org The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the economy added 266,000 jobs in November. While this figure is inflated by the return of roughly 50,000 striking GM autoworkers, upward revisions to the prior two months' data brought the three-month average to a solid 205,000. The unemployment rate edged down to 3.5 percent, returning to a 50-year low. | The job growth was widely spread across industries. Manufacturing added 54,000 jobs, somewhat more than the number of returning strikers. It appears that the sector…

WSWS (2019-12-06). SPD youth leader defends Germany's grand coalition government. wsws.org In a long interview with the Rheinische Post, Kàºhnert warned "of the consequences of a hasty exit" from the ruling grand coalition.

Dr. Jacques R. Pauwels (2019-12-06). Fall 1941: Pearl Harbor and The Wars of Corporate America. globalresearch.ca Washington knew a Japanese fleet was on its way to Pearl Harbor, but welcomed the attack since a Japanese aggression would make it possible to "sell" the war to an anti-war American public.

Khubaka, Michael Harris (2019-12-06). 2019 Sacramento Kwanzaa: A Special Karamu Celebration. indybay.org The notion of "potluck" Kwanzaa in the 21st Century is a challenging local tradition that should not be a salient notion or limiting factor toward embracing Umoja year round and throughout the Kwanzaa season, Matunda ya Kwanza.

Al-Shabaka (2019-12-06). The Systematic Torture of Palestinians in Israeli Detention. imemc.org by Yara Hawari, for Al Shabaka Palestinian Policy Network Since the establishment of Israel in 1948, the Israeli Security Agency has been torturing Palestinians. Al-Shabaka Senior Palestine Policy Fellow Yara Hawari argues that the use of torture in Israeli detention is systematic and legitimized through domestic law, and outlines steps for the …

Brett Wilkins (2019-12-06). The International Criminal Court (ICC) Holds Hearing on Afghanistan War Crimes, Including US Torture. globalresearch.ca The current hearing will examine allegations that US troops and intelligence operatives tortured, raped and abused Afghan prisoners between 2003 and 2004. | *** | The International Criminal Court (ICC) opened a three-day hearing in the The Hague, Netherlands on Wednesday at …

Media Lens (2019-12-06). Reopening Auschwitz — The Conspiracy to Stop Corbyn. globalresearch.ca Thoreau got it right: 'Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.' (Thoreau, 'Walden', Penguin, 1983, p.68) | The same is certainly true of propaganda. We can laugh now at McCarthyite paranoia warning of Soviet tentacles threatening …

Staff (2019-12-06). Trump-Appointed Judges Will Imperil Progressive Change "for as Long as We Live" truthout.org Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell rammed through eight of President Donald Trump's lifetime judicial picks in just three days this week, accelerating the far-right court takeover that one commentator warned is "absolutely going to hamstring efforts to make the U.S. into a responsible, civilized country, for as lo…

Joseph Natoli (2019-12-06). What We Must Do. counterpunch.org The Warming Planet "The United Nations released an exceptionally bleak report today, which warns that, at the current pace of greenhouse gas emissions, global temperatures will rise by as much as 3.9 degrees Celsius (almost 7 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2100." — The United Nations Environment Programme report, Nov. 2019 "Somehow, against all logic, we have adopted a More

Bryan Bowman (2019-12-06). Grace Blakeley: The World Must be Saved from Financialization. indybay.org Even when times are good, the many have been largely excluded from the success enjoyed by the few. Where many see a strong economy today, Grace Blakeley sees not only the early indicators of an inevitable recession, but the "death throes" of an entire economic model that is crumbling before our eyes. She warns of a bleak future but also offers a hopeful alternative vision.

Andy Rowell (2019-12-06). Despite Warmest Decade on Record, We Still Act Like "Addicts Blowing Our Carbon Budget" commondreams.org "Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere hit a record level of 407.8 parts per million in 2018 and continued to rise in 2019. CO2 lasts in the atmosphere for centuries and the ocean for even longer, thus locking in climate change." (Photo: Andrew Hart/flickr/cc) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/fossilfuels_1.jpeg

Matthew Stevenson (2019-12-06). Across the Balkans: From Banja Luka to Sarajevo. counterpunch.org An account of a journey from Croatia to Kosovo, by way of Bosnia-Hercegovina and Serbia, and with a detour into Montenegro. This is part III of a series. Serb war memorial outside the Banja Luka train station. To catch the train from Banja Luka to Sarajevo, I had to ride a bus to the edge More

Jefferson Morley (2019-12-06). Why the Douma Chemical Attack Wasn't a 'Managed Massacre'. counterpunch.org In the long-running nightmare of the Syrian civil war, the attack at Douma was a déjà vu atrocity with big consequences in Washington. On April 7, 2018, a working-class neighborhood in greater Damascus suffered a chemical attack that killed at least 43 people. Six days later, President Trump ordered a cruise missile attack on a More

Khubaka, Michael Harris (2019-12-06). Matunda Ya Kwanza: Our "California Grown" Pan African Celebration of Life. indybay.org In Dr. Maulana Karenga's own words he says, "The origin of Kwanzaa on the African continent are in the agricultural celebrations called the 'first fruits' celebrations and to a lesser degree the full or general harvest celebration. 2019 Sacramento Kwanzaa and California State Capitol Kwanzaa continues our journey toward expanding California Pan African Global Trade and Investment.

Jon Schwarz (2019-12-06). The Supreme Court Case That Made Michael Bloomberg's Campaign Possible — and Doomed Kamala Harris. theintercept.com Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris of California suspended her presidential campaign on Tuesday. Why? Because, she said, she did not "have the financial resources we need to continue. I'm not a billionaire. I can't fund my own campaign." | Meanwhile, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who definitely is a billionaire, has spent at least $57 million of his own money since he jumped into the race on Novem…

teleSUR (2019-12-06). Iran Denounced Letters to UN as 'Desperate Falsehood'. telesurenglish.net Iran has said it is determined to proceed with its ballistic missile program, as it rejected as a "desperate falsehood" the letter from the United Kingdom, Germany, and France to the United Nations Security Council, accusing Tehran of developing missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads. | RELATED: | US Military Finishes Pullback From Northeast Syria | The three Europeans ambassadors called on UN Secretary-General (UNSG) Antonio Guterres to inform in his next report that Iran's missi…

Matthew Hoh (2019-12-06). Authorizations for Madness; The Effects and Consequences of Congress' Endless Permissions for War. counterpunch.org I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can…Its brutality, its futility, its stupidity. — Dwight Eisenhower. For the first time in decades, passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) has been delayed due to disagreements between Democrats and Republicans. The disagreements at the center of the delay in Congress are, as usual, partisan in nature: funding for the President's border wall More

Tyler Durden (2019-12-06). Hillary Casually Drops 'Russian Asset' Smear on Bernie Sanders in New Interview. theantimedia.com Are we just going to ignore that Hillary Clinton, today, just implied that Bernie Sanders is also a Russian asset?>

Staff (2019-12-06). We Must Overcome Our Atomization to Beat Back Neoliberal Fascism. truthout.org This week in the United States, the impeachment hearings made clear that President Trump abused his office and committed a crime against the Constitution. Not only did he attempt to pressure the Ukrainian government into investigating his presidential political rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in exchange for military aid, Trump also used the power of his administration to pressure loyal followers, such as Rudy Giuliani (his personal lawyer) to claim that Ukraine, not Russia, had intervened in th…

Monika Zgustova (2019-12-06). Chernobyl, Lies and Messianism in Russia. counterpunch.org "How much are these lies going to cost?" asks the nuclear physicist Legasov, as played by Jared Harris in the American series Chernobyl. This HBO series, broadcast a few months ago and based partly on Svetlana Alexievich's book Voices from Chernobyl, reveals how the Soviet state tried to cover up the lethal explosion of the More

Staff (2019-12-06). Harvard Grad Workers Are Striking Over Medical Debt and Sexual Harassment. truthout.org Graduate students at the wealthiest university in the world said they are foregoing dental care, facing thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket medical costs and struggling to get by on salaries as low as $18,000 in Boston, one of the most expensive cities in the U.S. | The unionized graduate workers at Harvard University went on strike Tuesday after more than a year of trying to negotiate a contract. On the picket line at Harvard's medical campus on Wednesday, Tessa Green, a biophysics Ph.D. stud…

Staff (2019-12-06). Fastest-Growing DC Lobbying Firms Benefit From Trump Ties. truthout.org For many well-connected Washington lobbying firms, business is booming after President Donald Trump's 2016 election. | At least 22 lobbying firms saw revenue more than double in the Trump era compared to the previous three years, with many signing high-dollar contracts with big-name clients, an OpenSecrets analysis found. | The reasons for the revenue spikes vary. Some lobbying firms simply received a bigger check from exist…