Archive | April, 2011

  • Lebanon: Thousands Demonstrate for Abolition of Sect-based Electoral System

    Thousands of Lebanese took to the streets on Sunday to demand the abolition of the sect-based electoral system in Lebanon, according to which the key political offices are apportioned among religious communities. The demonstrators, starting from the national museum in Beirut, marched to the parliament.  They demanded the overturning of the sect-based system and democratic […]

  • Whither Syria?

      Flynt Leverett, a professor of international affairs at Penn State and a senior fellow at the New America Foundation, is the author of Inheriting Syria: Bashar’s Trial by Fire.  Andrew Tabler, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, is the author of the forthcoming book In the Lion’s Den: An Eyewitness […]

  • Mid-East Upheaval: What the Empire Sees

      The US left and progressives have been preoccupied about what we can do to impact events in the Mid-East, particularly obsessing about what we can do to counter US intervention.  In general, it is good to want to act, not just talk or analyze, in a crisis situation. However, despite the valiant and necessary […]

  • Ohio House Bill 153: “Charter Universities” and Increasing Teaching Loads

      Testimony of Sara Kaminski, Executive Director,Ohio Conference of the American Association of University Professors,before the House Finance Subcommittee on Higher Education, 7 April 2011 Chairman Gardner, Ranking Member Garland, and distinguished members of the Higher Education Subcommittee: my name is Sara Kaminski, and I am the Executive Director of the Ohio Conference of the […]

  • On the Result of the Icesave Referendum

      The Icelandic nation has now delivered its verdict and shouldered unequivocally the responsibility it is granted by the Constitution.  The turnout was high by Western standards, and this, together with the extensive and thorough debate in the run-up to the referendum, shows clearly how important the issue was to the nation. The people have […]

  • Socialist and/or Feminist?

    This year, 8 March marked a century of the celebration of International Women’s Day.  But aside from a few publications and websites of women’s movements, this event went largely unremarked in the mainstream press, and also in the public consciousness. The idea of International Women’s Day was born in the socialist movement in the first […]

  • On the Acquittal of Terrorist Luis Posada Carriles

      In the afternoon of April 8, 2011, the farce that had begun thirteen weeks ago in El Paso, Texas, came to an end when terrorist Luis Posada Carriles was acquitted of all the charges pressed against him during a migration trial. To all those who have been following the sinister history behind this terrorist […]

  • Current PEs Make Risk-Free Rate of Return on Public Pensions Highly Unlikely

    Debate over public pension funds continues unabated across the nation.  Some have argued that states should assume a risk-free rate of return on pension fund assets, which makes funding shortfalls appear considerably larger.  A new calculator from the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) demonstrates that such a low rate of return is extremely […]

  • Collective Bargaining — Essential to Democracy

    Recent events in Wisconsin have highlighted the necessity of collective bargaining.  The governor of Wisconsin notwithstanding, collective bargaining is recognized internationally in numerous conventions, constitutions, and courts as a human right. Legal Background Our Constitution addresses the right of collective bargaining.  The Thirteenth Amendment provides that “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment […]

  • I ♡ NATO

    “Fortunately, they are our ‘allies.’” Victor Nieto is a cartoonist in Venezuela.  His cartoons frequently appear in Aporrea and Rebelión.  This cartoon was first published in his blog on 7 April 2011; it is reproduced here for non-profit educational purposes.  Translation by Yoshie Furuhashi (@yoshiefuruhashi | yoshie.furuhashi [at] gmail.com).  Cf. Alan J. Kuperman, “5 Things […]

  • British Peace Delegation Departs for Libya

      Roshan Muhammed Salih: Angered by the NATO bombing of Libya, this delegation made up of British academics, lawyers, and journalists set off from London’s Heathrow Airport on a peace mission to Tripoli.  Their intention is to emphasize that the Western intervention isn’t altruistic and has made the situation there worse. Dave Roberts: It’s really […]

  • Japan’s Nuclear Power Plant Workers, Exposed to Radiation, Hidden from Sight

      隠された被爆労働:日本の原発労働者 Kenji Higuchi (樋口健二) is a photographer in Japan, acclaimed for his work of documenting the effects of industrial pollution and the exploitation of nuclear power plant workers.  This documentary film was released by Channel 4 (UK) in 1995.  Cf. Tim Shorrock, “Japan’s Nuclear Nightmare (Part One)” (18 March 2011); Tim Shorrock, “Japan’s Nuclear […]

  • Egypt: This Battle Is Far from Over

    It has finally sunk in that the Egyptian military are not on the side of the people.  Egyptians are up against a military apparatus that is maintaining the status quo “system.”  In other words, we are confronting a global neo-liberal regime whereby the Egyptian government would follow the instructions of the powerful: protect Israel, obey […]

  • Ohio: Rally to Kick Off the Referendum Campaign to Repeal Senate Bill 5

    Saturday, April 9thNoon — 3:00 PMOhio Statehouse Broad St. at High St. Columbus (function() { var scribd = document.createElement(“script”); scribd.type = “text/javascript”; scribd.async = true; scribd.src = “http://www.scribd.com/javascripts/embed_code/inject.js”; var s = document.getElementsByTagName(“script”)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(scribd, s); })(); For more information, call 614-224-8271 or visit <www.weareohio.com>. var idcomments_acct = ‘c90a61ed51fd7b64001f1361a7a71191’; var idcomments_post_id; var idcomments_post_url; | Print

  • Address to the “We Are Ohio” Rally to Kick Off the Referendum Campaign to Repeal Senate Bill 5

      I find it no coincidence that we gather on the week following the commemoration of the 43rd anniversary of the assassination of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was meeting to speak on behalf of garbage workers who sought the ability to collectively bargain.  They wanted, like you, […]

  • Taking Over the West

    Hi, my name is Sukant Chandan.  I’m 32 years old.  I was born in Chandigarh in North India, in Punjab, in April 1978.  I always say, teasingly to my parents, they brought me here, in the winter of 1981 without my consent, at the age of three and a half. . . .  I remember […]

  • 100 Imams Call on Muslims to Rally for Peace and Jobs, against Wars and Terrorism, on April 9, 2011

      We, 100 Imams from the Muslim community in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, stand together to thank our neighbors who have defended the Muslim community against Islamaphobia.  Our neighbors have stood in opposition to Congressman Peter King’s hearings and against the efforts of the extremists to criminalize the practice of Islam in America. […]

  • The U.S. Government Response to the Nuclear Power Plant Incident in Japan

    Testimony at a hearing entitled “The U.S. Government Response to the Nuclear Power Plant Incident in Japan,” held by the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the U.S. House of Representatives, 6 April 2011 Summary The crisis underway at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has revealed serious nuclear safety shortcomings […]

  • Egypt, Iran, and the Middle East’s Evolving Balance of Power

    The full extent of the ramifications of the extraordinary developments in Egypt since the beginning of this year — for Egypt itself, for the Middle East, and for the world — will not be clear for some time.  At this juncture, though, it seems virtually certain that post-Mubarak Egypt will have a much more balanced […]

  • Gilbert Achcar’s Defense of Humanitarian Intervention

    Gilbert Achcar defends the recently “UN-authorized” imperialist intervention in Libya on the ground that general principles may require exceptions in concrete cases.  “Every general rule admits of exceptions.  This includes the general rule that UN-authorized military interventions by imperialist powers are purely reactionary ones, and can never achieve a humanitarian or positive purpose.”1  This kind […]