Archive | February, 2011

  • Libya: A Matter of Time

    Carlos Latuff is a Brazilian cartoonist.  Cf. Assistant Secretary of State Philip J. Crowley, Daily Press Briefing (Washington, DC, 22 February 2011); Security Council Press Statement on Libya (SC/10180-AFR/2120, 22 February 2011); Chris Arsenault, “Libya’s Revolt Scares Oil Traders” (Al Jazeera, 22 February 2011); “Gaddafi Loses More Libyan Cities” (Al Jazeera, 23 February 2011); Interview […]

  • What Would NATO Do?

    “I’ve also asked my administration to prepare the full range of options that we have to respond to this crisis.” — Barack Obama, “On the Turmoil in Libya,” 23 February 2011 Ben Ali Mubarak Gaddafi NATO Eneko Las Heras, born in Caracas in 1963, is a cartoonist based in Spain.  The cartoon above was first […]

  • Just Say No — No More Cuts for Workers

    There should be two lasting lessons to emerge from the heroic labor-led protests in Wisconsin. First, working people — with our many allies, students, seniors, women’s organizations, and more — are inspired and ready to fight. Second, we need to send a clear and unequivocal message to the right-wing politicians and those in the media […]

  • The Mother of Mohamed Bouazizi Speaks to the Mothers of the Libyan Martyrs

    The family of Mohamed Bouazizi, the young Tunisian from Sidi Bouzid whose act of self-immolation triggered the Tunisian Revolution, has a message for the families in Libya who have lost their loved ones to the violent repression of protesters.  Bouazizi, a 26-year-old street vendor, set himself on fire on 17 December 2010 after police abused […]

  • Bahrain: Army Officers Join Protesters

      Joining the protest was a small group of army officers, conscious that the military firing on protesters contributed to the death toll of seven.  “We decided that our job is to protect people, not to beat them up.  Weapons that have been used against the people are weapons of shame.  These weapons should be […]

  • Protest against Gaddafi in Istanbul

    The IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation, as well as several other NGOs, held a protest against the Gaddafi dictatorship on 21 February 2011, condemning the Libyan head of state for giving orders to fire on civilian protesters, and expressing support for the Libyan resistance.  The protesters gathered in Taksim Square and marched on to the Libyan […]

  • Egyptians Rally in Support of the Libyan Uprising

    Hundreds of Egyptians gathered at the Libyan Embassy in Cairo to show their support for the Libyan uprising and to demand that Muammar al-Gaddafi step down. This video was released by Ahram Online on 21 February 2011. | Print

  • Speak Out against Imperialist Intervention in Libya

    . . . In December of 1951, Libya became the first African country to attain its independence after World War II, during which its territory was the scene of significant battles between German and British troops, bringing fame to Generals Erwin Rommel and Bernard. L. Montgomery. Total desert covers 95% of its territory.  Technology made […]

  • House Prices Continue Sharp Decline

    The Case-Shiller 20-City index fell sharply again in December, dropping a full percentage point from its November level.  This is the third consecutive month that it has fallen by at least 1.0 percent.  It is now down by 4.3 percent from its peak in July.  Nineteen of the 20 cities had a drop in prices.  […]

  • From Egyptian Workers to American Workers: “We Stand with You as You Stood with Us”

      Kamal Abbas is General Coordinator of the Centre for Trade Unions and Workers Services, an umbrella advocacy organization for independent unions in Egypt.  The CTUWS suffered repeated harassment and attack by the Mubarak regime and played a leading role in its overthrow.  Abbas, who witnessed friends killed by the regime during the 1989 Helwan […]

  • The Plan is to Occupy Libya

    The nature of a capitalist system depends upon the institutional framework that supports and shapes it. Oil has become the principal wealth in the hands of the great Yankee transnationals; through this energy source they had an instrument that considerably expanded their political power in the world. It was their main weapon when they decided […]

  • Corporations to Government: Give Us More, Tax Us Less

    Nothing better shows corporate control over the government than Washington’s basic response to the current economic crisis.  First we had “the rescue” and then “the recovery.”  Trillions in public money flowed to the biggest US banks, insurance companies, etc.  That “bailed” them out (suggestion of criminality?) while we waited for benefits to “trickle down” to […]

  • Calling All Workers and Retirees

    Workers, retirees, unionists, and activists of all stripes and sizes are responding to calls to protest at state capitals in Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, and elsewhere. In Michigan, where I live, Governor Snyder wants to raise taxes on workers, poor people, and retirees so he can give businesses a tax break of 1.8 billion dollars.  This […]

  • Madison Is Our Cairo

    With the Koch Brothers footing his campaign, Scott Walker assumed the governorship of Wisconsin on January 7, 2011.  Walker’s first action as Governor was obeisance to the corporate class that put him in office: he gave $140 million in tax breaks to businesses, including WalMart, and then screamed “budget crisis!”  This move allowed him to […]

  • Join Reverend Jesse Jackson in Ohio: Columbus Clergy, Elected Officials, Union and Community Leaders to Rally for All Workers, Our Schools and Our Community

    Wednesday, February 23, 11 AM at the Teamsters building, 555 East Rich St. Downtown Columbus, Ohio 43215 For more information: 614-441-9145 or <brian@progressohio.org>.  Visit <progressohio.org> and <www.teamster.org/content/ohio-right-work-less>.  See, also, “Ohio: Statehouse Mobilization against SB 5 and Kasich’s Anti-Worker Agenda” (about the 22 February 2011 rally against SB 5). var idcomments_acct = ‘c90a61ed51fd7b64001f1361a7a71191’; var idcomments_post_id; var […]

  • Hezbollah Statement on the “Crimes Committed by the Gaddafi Regime” in Libya

    Hezbollah lashed out Monday at the “crimes committed by the Gaddafi regime” in Libya.

  • Egypt: Independent Trade Unionists’ Declaration

    Cairo, 19 February 2011 Revolution — Freedom — Social Justice Demands of the Workers in the Revolution O heroes of the 25 January revolution!  We, workers and trade unionists from different workplaces which have seen strikes, occupations, and demonstrations by hundreds of thousands of workers across Egypt during the current period, feel it is right […]

  • Bahrain: The Revolutionary Camp Stands Firm

      Bahraini man in the revolutionary camp: “Zine El Abidine down, Mubarak down, Al Khalifa down, down, down.” James Bays: “Can the king make political concessions, or is it too late?” Bahraini woman in the revolutionary camp: “It’s too late.  Too late now.  Now the people, they — you can hear them — they want […]

  • Bahrain: Teachers on Strike

      “When the General Strike was announced yesterday, I didn’t give it much heed. . . .  Teachers, some of them at least, heeded that call. I noticed a few gathering with their Bahraini flags and a couple of hastily written placards standing in front of their school’s gate near where I live.  I approached […]

  • Ohio Is at War

    Statehouse Mobilization against SB 5 and Kasich’s Anti-Worker Agenda Date: Tuesday, February 22, 2011 Time: 1 PM Location: Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol Square, Columbus, OHClick here for more info. From the vantage point of the pancaked fields of Illinois, it is easy to wax nostalgic about Ohio’s rolling hills.  I spent four years there as […]