(2021-01-19). Spraying Cotton in Bolivar County, Mississippi, the Summer Following My First Year of Medical School. jamanetwork.com The John Deere wheels cut hard coming to the turn row that runs along the county line near the evergreen copse in Paradise's south forty acres. In the wake of the tire tread, a dull patch flashes within the white blur beneath me. Exposed bone blooms among lobed leaves of cotton. Five vertebrae lie bleached and unstrung. I idle the machine, lurching to rest as diesel fumes rise in a dirge to these remains at the field's edge. I stand to see better. They are lumbar (without facets for ribs) but unknown. All bones being the same beneath skin. I have seen others, too: a woman's, this past fall. The instructors starte…
(2021-01-19). By "Force and Fraud": Is This the End of the US Democracy Doctrine? dissidentvoice.org 
In an interview with the British newspaper, The Times, in 2015, former US Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, vehemently denied that exporting democracy to Iraq was the main motive behind the US invasion of that Arab country 12 years earlier. Rumsfeld further alleged that "the idea that we could fashion a democracy in Iraq seemed to me …
(2021-01-19). By 'Force and Fraud': Is This the End of the US Democracy Doctrine? counterpunch.org 
In an interview with the British newspaper, The Times, in 2015, former US Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, vehemently denied that exporting democracy to Iraq was the main motive behind the US invasion of that Arab country 12 years earlier. Rumsfeld further alleged that "the idea that we could fashion a democracy in Iraq seemed to
(2021-01-19). By 'Force and Fraud': Is This the End of the US Democracy Doctrine? counterpunch.org In an interview with the British newspaper, The Times, in 2015, former US Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, vehemently denied that exporting democracy to Iraq was the main motive behind the US invasion of that Arab country 12 years earlier. Rumsfeld further alleged that "the idea that we could fashion a democracy in Iraq seemed to
(2021-01-19). Covid-19: Palestinians to receive first batch of Russian vaccine by weekend. middleeasteye.net 
Covid-19: Palestinians to receive first batch of Russian vaccine by weekend | The Palestinian health ministry has approved Sputnik V vaccine for domestic use, making it 'the first country in the Middle East' to do so | Tue, 01/19/2021 – 14: 15 | Palestinian health workers collect random swab samples from people to test for the Covid-19 coronavirus in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on 1…
(2021-01-19). U.S. Rep. Tlaib: "Israel Is a Racist State That Would Deny Palestinians Like My Grandmother a Vaccine" democracynow.org 
Israel has been hailed as having the world's most vaccinated population, but Palestinians are not included. Human Rights Watch and others have called on Israeli authorities to provide COVID-19 vaccines to the more than 4.5 million Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. "Israel is a racist state," responds Congressmember Rashida Talib of Michigan, who is Palestinian American and one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress and says her Palestinian grandmother was denied access to a vaccine. "I hope my colleagues, I hope our country, sees what the Palestinians have been trying to tell us for a…
(2021-01-19). Israeli Navy Attacks Palestinian Fishermen In Gaza. imemc.org 
Israeli navy ships fired, on Tuesday morning, several live rounds at Palestinian fishing boats, in addition to attacking them with water cannons, near the shore of the Sudaniyya sea, northwest of Gaza city. Eyewitnesses said the navy attacked the Palestinian fishing boats less than three nautical miles from the Gaza shore. They added that the …
(2021-01-19). With Russia's Help, China Becomes Plastics Making Power in Pandemic. anti-empire.com 
After giving up on recycling — American recycling that is — China is still in love with the plastics biz. In fact, their companies are becoming dominant in all things plastic, one of the most important supply chains in the world. | In other words, it will be yet another segment in global business that the world will need Chinese companies to get supply. | The pandemic has helped the petrochemicals industry make up for losses in oil and gas demand. Plastics are tied to the fossil fuels industry. Stay-at-home orders throughout the U.S. and Europe has led to more take-out food orders and a lot of that is…
(2021-01-19). After Family Fights to Use 'Experimental' Drug Woman Given 20% Chance by Doctors Speedily Recovers. anti-empire.com 
A judge ordered Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital last week to give a Covid-19 patient an experimental treatment, and her family and attorneys say they believe that saved 80-year-old Judith Smentkiewicz's life. | The drug Ivermectin — a pill sometimes used to treat children with head lice or to rid dogs and cats of worms — is not yet approved by the federal government for use against Covid-19. But Smentkiewicz's son and daughter call it "a miracle drug" in their court papers. | So do her attorneys, Ralph C. Lorigo and Jon F. Minear. | "This lady was on a ventilator, literally on her deathbed, before…
(2021-01-19). Russia Withdraws From Open Skies Treaty After US Departure. anti-empire.com 
In what experts fear could lead to growing mistrust between global powers, Russia on Friday announced that it was leaving the Open Skies Treaty (OST), an accord between over 30 countries that allows participants to fly unarmed reconnaissance flights over any part of their fellow member states. | In November, the United States left the OST first after accusing Russia of violating the pact— allegations that Russia denied. Moscow has now blamed Washington for its own decision of leaving the treaty. | What is the Open Skies Treaty?: | First proposed in 1955 by former US President Dwight Eisenhower as a…
(2021-01-19). Turkey hits Twitter and Pinterest with ad ban for resisting new social media law. middleeasteye.net 
Turkey hits Twitter and Pinterest with ad ban for resisting new social media law | Twitter and Pinterest have yet to assign a legal representative in Turkey, leading ministers to warn of 'digital fascism' | Tue, 01/19/2021 – 11: 29 | Twitter risks having its bandwidth reduced in Turkey, under regulations introduced last year (AFP) | Turkey has imposed an advertisement ban on social media giants Twitter a…
(2021-01-19). Fears in Gulf over WhatsApp data-sharing rule drives spike in use of rival apps. middleeasteye.net 
Fears in Gulf over WhatsApp data-sharing rule drives spike in use of rival apps | With concerns over privacy on WhatsApp, rivals Signal and Telegram are gaining significant numbers of new users in Gulf states, new data shows | Tue, 01/19/2021 – 12: 30 | A woman checks her phone in a Riyadh mall. Will WhatsApp's data-sharing deal with Facebook damage its reputation in the Gulf countries?
(2021-01-19). Qatar blockade ends: BeIN Sports unofficially returns to Saudi Arabia. middleeasteye.net 
Qatar blockade ends: BeIN Sports unofficially returns to Saudi Arabia | Riyadh cafes broadcast banned Doha-based broadcaster, as Qatar expected to drop $1bn piracy lawsuit against Riyadh | Tue, 01/19/2021 – 11: 21 | A woman watches beIN Sports from her home in Riyadh in January 2020, months before a Saudi ban on the broadcaster (AFP/File photo) | Qatar-owned beIN Sports was broadcast in Sa…
(2021-01-19). Israeli Soldiers Shoot Two Palestinians Near Qalqilia. imemc.org 
Israeli soldiers shot, on Tuesday morning, two young Palestinian men near the illegal Annexation Wall, north of the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia. Eyewitnesses said the two young men were among of several workers who were trying to cross through a hole in the annexation wall, seeking work. They added that the two were …
(2021-01-19). Citing famine, UN urges reversal of terrorist designation for Yemen's Houthis; U.S. refuses. mronline.org 
Mark Lowcock of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned that recent labeling of Houthis as a terrorist organization by the U.S. would likely trigger a "famine on a scale we have not seen in 40 years.
(2021-01-19). Israeli Settlement Expansion Condemned by PA, EU and Numerous Countries. imemc.org 
In response to Israel's announcement that they have approved an additional 780 colonial settlement units, a number of countries have issued statements condemning the move. They include the UK, Egypt, Ireland, Jordan, the European Union (EU) and the Palestinian Authority (PA). A spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, stated that it is clear …
(2021-01-19). Army Abducts A Palestinian Child Near Hebron. imemc.org 
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Monday at night, the al-Fawwar refugee camp, south of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and abducted a Palestinian child. Media sources said several army jeeps invaded the refugee camp before the soldiers stormed and searched homes. They added that the soldiers interrogated several Palestinians while inspecting their ID cards, …
(2021-01-19). Army Issues Demolition Orders Targeting Eight Homes, And A Shed, Near Nablus. imemc.org 
Several Israeli army jeeps invaded, on Monday at dawn, Douma village, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, before handing orders for the demolition of eight homes, and one shed. Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian Authority official who monitors Israel's illegal colonialist activities in northern West Bank, said the soldiers surrounded the village, before …
(2021-01-19). The Jewish supremacist state (A comment on B'Tselem's 'apartheid regime' designation for Israel). mronline.org 
During the past two decades, many respected individuals and organizations designated the regime Israel has established in the occupied Palestinian territory—the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza—as a form of apartheid.
(2021-01-19). PPS "Israel Detains at Least 15 Palestinians" imemc.org 
Israeli soldiers detained fifteen Palestinians, on Monday morning, in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) has reported. In the occupied city of East Jerusalem, soldiers detained four young men, two from al-'Isawiya and two from al-Tur neighborhoods, searching civilian's homes, with dogs. In the East Jerusalem area, the army detained two young …
(2021-01-19). Líder palestino advierte sobre política de expansionismo israelí. peoplesworld.org 
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(2021-01-19). Israeli Soldiers Abduct Two Siblings In Jenin, Two In Nablus. imemc.org 
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Tuesday at dawn, Kafr Ra'ey village, south of Jenin, and Salem village, east of Nablus, in the northern parts of the occupied West Bank, searched homes and abducted four siblings. Montaser Sammour, the head of the Jenin office of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), said the soldiers abducted Bilal Nabil Thiab, …
(2021-01-19). Video: Democracy in Deep Space: US Space Force to Get Nuclear Reactors. globalresearch.ca US President Donald Trump can be considered guilty of many things, but he can't be considered guilty of not attempting to preserve the fruits of his labor. | This can be seen in the maximum pressure campaign against Iran, his endless …
(2021-01-19). Respected Israeli Rights Group B'Tselem declares Israel an Apartheid State. zcomm.org Apartheid is one of the listed "crimes against humanity" along with enslavement, torture, war rape, and forcible deportation. A crime against humanity is the systematic and continuous commission of war crimes…
(2021-01-19). US Makes Aggressive Opening Move on Russian Chessboard. globalresearch.ca A regime change project in Russia was launched on Sunday with the return of political activist Alexei Navalny to Moscow. It was a highly symbolic event — except that Navalny was travelling by an aeroplane from Germany and not in …
(2021-01-19). Why Did Alexei Navalny Return to the Same Country that He Claimed Tried to Kill Him? globalresearch.ca Russian anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny inexplicably decided to return to the same country that he claimed had unsuccessfully tried to kill him, curiously timing his trip to coincide with the immediate run-up to Biden's inauguration in what some suspect is …
(2021-01-19). China Health Experts Call for Suspension of COVID Vaccines as Norway Investigates 33 Deaths, Germany Probes 10 Deaths. globalresearch.ca Norway upped the number of deaths under investigation, from 23 last week to 33, while in Germany, health officials said they are investigating 10 deaths that occurred among elderly patients who received the COVID vaccine. | *** | China health experts say …
(2021-01-19). UN agencies supporting mammoth India COVID-19 vaccine rollout. news.un.org India has begun what is the world's biggest COVID vaccination campaign so far, deploying hundreds of thousands of health workers, with the training and support of the UN World Health Organization (WHO).
(2021-01-19). About Suffering: A Massacre of the Innocents in Yemen. commondreams.org The United Nations estimates the war has already caused 233,000 deaths, including 131,000 deaths from indirect causes such as lack of food, health services and infrastructure. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/bruegel_the_elder_massacre_of_the_innocents_1.jpg …
(2021-01-19). Goodbye Sheldon Adelson. thealtworld.com The malignant toad is dead | Casino magnate and Israeli patriot multi-billionaire Sheldon Adelson, one of the world's richest men, died in Las Vegas on January 11th at age 87. He had been suffering from cancer and has been buried at the
(2021-01-19). Ukraine begs Europe for coronavirus vaccine. wsws.org While still providing military backing to the Kiev government in its ongoing civil war with Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, US and European imperialism have refused to provide even minimal vaccine assistance to the poorest country in Europe.
(2021-01-19). Remembering Commander Yesenia. peoplesdispatch.org On the 9th anniversary of the killing of Yesenia, an Afro-Colombian woman and commander of the National Liberation Army, Commander Pablo Beltrán shared his reflections about her struggle and her story, one that is shared by many Colombians who are victims of state and paramilitary violence. | December 20 marked the ninth anniversary of the physical disappearance of Commander Yesenia, an unforgettable revolutionary fighter from the SerraniÃÅa de San Lucas, where the Central Cordillera ends, stopped by the union of the great Magdalena and Cauca Rivers. | "You don't know how difficult it is to move f…
(2021-01-19). Canada Knew About The Plan To Assassinate Gen. Soleimani Before It Happened. popularresistance.org Canada's former top military commander says that the U.S. gave Canada a heads-up on its plan to kill top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, according to his interview with the Globe and Mail this past week. | General Jonathan Vance recently retired from his position as Canada's Chief of Defence Staff, but left with some key information about Gen. Soleimani's assassination. | In his interview, the Globe and Mail reports him saying that the Pentagon alerted Ottawa on its plans to kill Gen. Soleimani so that it could put in "force protection measures" in case of Iranian counterstrikes. | However, right after the assa…
(2021-01-19). Israel: 'Halt and reverse' new settlement construction — UN chief. news.un.org Israel's decision to advance plans for some 800 new settlement units, most of which are located deep inside the occupied West Bank, has sparked the concern of UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
(2021-01-19). America's First Revolution Is Happening Now. thealtworld.com Hear me out and you will understand the title. | There is a difference between a rebellion and a revolution. A rebellion is what occurred in the thirteen colonies in the late 18th century. A revolution is what occurred in Russia in 1917. | A rebellion occurred in the colonies, because the subjects of the king in the colonies were treated differently constitutionally and in law from subjects of the king in England. The colonists had no representation in Parliament and no voice in how they were ruled. | The rebellion resulted in political independence but not in a change in the belief system. The colonists held to…
(2021-01-19). Friday 2/12: Welcome the Year of the Ox with Oakland Asian Cultural Center! indybay.org Virtual Event on YouTube Live…
(2021-01-19). False Accusations Used Once More Against President Assad of Syria. globalresearch.ca
(2021-01-19). B'Tselem head defies ban, addresses students. peoplesdispatch.org Education minister had announced a ban on members of organizations that called "Israel false and derogatory names." The ban came shortly after human rights group B'Tselem termed Israel an apartheid state…
(2021-01-19). The war on the Yemeni people has entered a new stage. peoplesdispatch.org The designation of Ansar Allah, referred to as the Houthis, as a foreign terrorist organization takes effect today. Unless Biden administration reverses its predecessor's step, the people of Yemen may have to endure even more suffering…
(2021-01-19). Indian Farmers on the Frontline Against Global Capitalism. dissidentvoice.org In a short video on the empirediaries.com YouTube channel, a protesting farmer camped near Delhi says that during lockdown and times of crisis farmers are treated like "gods", but when they ask for their rights, they are smeared and labelled as "terrorists". He, along with thousands of other farmers, are mobilising against three important pieces …
(2021-01-19). End Of New START & Future Of International Arms Control Regime: Implications For South Asia. oneworld.press Any plan to include China into a bilateral or multilateral strategic arms control regime will have to carefully manage the quagmire that is the South Asian strategic stability.
(2021-01-19). Can Biden's $15/ hr Minimum Wage begin restoring Working Class trust? juancole.com Southwest Harbor, Maine (Special to Informed Comment) — Watch CNN almost any time lately and one is inundated with scenes of the lethal riots in the Capitol. And in an era when every man or woman is their own video journalist new and often terrifying footage is released on a continuing basis. Along with footage …
(2021-01-18). Palestine Refugees Are Forced to the Back of the COVID Vaccine Line. truthout.org 
As the world races to vaccinate against COVID-19, Israel has been touted for having one of the fastest response rates. The country has, as of January 1, 2021, already vaccinated 10 percent of its 9 million citizens and predicts another 2 million will be vaccinated by the end of the month. While these are laudable statistics, Palestinians living in the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and in the Gaza Strip have been explicitly excluded, including health care workers on the front lines of the COVID-…
(2021-01-18). Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a Fierce Critic of US Foreign Policy. truthout.org 
Today is the federal holiday that honors Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He was born January 15, 1929. He was assassinated April 4, 1968, at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. He was just 39 years old. While Dr. King is primarily remembered as a civil rights leader, he also championed the cause of the poor and organized the Poor People's Campaign to address issues of economic justice. Dr. King was also a fierce critic of U.S. foreign policy and the Vietnam War. We play his "Beyond Vietnam" spe…
(2021-01-18). MLK Day Special: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in His Own Words. democracynow.org 
Today is the federal holiday that honors Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He was born January 15, 1929. He was assassinated April 4, 1968, at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. He was just 39 years old. While Dr. King is primarily remembered as a civil rights leader, he also championed the cause of the poor and organized the Poor People's Campaign to address issues of economic justice. Dr. King was also a fierce critic of U.S. foreign policy and the Vietnam War. We play his "Beyond Vietnam" speech, which he delivered at New York City's Riverside Church on April 4, 1967, as well as his last speech, "I've Been to…
(2021-01-18). With 2.3% Growth, China the Only Major Economy That Expanded in 2020. anti-empire.com 
Editor's note: Albeit to be fair part of that is the result of a
| China's GDP grew 2.3% in 2020 as the world's second-largest economy managed a steady recovery from the fallout of its Covid-19 outbreak a year ago, The annual growth rate was the lowest since 1976, when th…
(2021-01-18). Covid-19: The two weeks that led to Lebanon's virus disaster. middleeasteye.net 
Covid-19: The two weeks that led to Lebanon's virus disaster | A series of decisions taken by the Lebanese government are being blamed for the soaring rate of infections | Mon, 01/18/2021 – 08: 59 | Empty roads in Beirut, as Lebanon tightened lockdown and introduced a 24-hour curfew to curb the spread of coronavirus, 14 January 2021 | In April, when much of the world was struggling to cont…
(2021-01-18). Saudi executions at record low as five convicted as minors still on death row. middleeasteye.net 
Saudi executions at record low as five convicted as minors still on death row | Rights groups fear that five people convicted as juveniles could still face the death penalty despite changes in law
| Mon, 01/18/2021 – 12: 06 | Supporters in Greece protesting the execution of prominent Saudi Shiite cleric and activist Nimr al-Nimr during a demonstration near Saudi Arabia's embassy i…
(2021-01-18). Covid-19: Jordan becomes first country in the world to vaccinate refugees. middleeasteye.net 
Covid-19: Jordan becomes first country in the world to vaccinate refugees | Amman has vaccinated more than 100 refugees and made the drug free for anyone living there, including asylum seekers | Mon, 01/18/2021 – 16: 57 | Nearly 100 refugees have been inoculated since Jordan launched its national vaccination programme (AFP) | Jordan has become the first country in the world to administer t…
(2021-01-18). Israel bans schools from hosting rights groups critical of occupation. middleeasteye.net 
Israel bans schools from hosting rights groups critical of occupation | The announcement came after Likud complained about the director of rights group B'Tselem who was scheduled to give a talk at a school in Haifa | Mon, 01/18/2021 – 14: 48 | Despite the order on Sunday, the director of B'Tselem, Hagai El-Ad, gave a scheduled lecture to students in the Hebrew Reali School in Haifa (AFP) | Israel's Education M…
