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U.S. Economic Hegemony: Consolidation and Deepening of the Pacific Alliance Trade Bloc
By Dana Gabriel
In a short period of time, the Pacific Alliance has emerged as one of the leading economic integration projects in Latin America. It aims to succeed where others have failed by creating a gateway to Asian markets and building a Pacific-rim trade deal. The U.S. and Canada are both pursuing deeper ties with the group and have been granted observer status. This is part of efforts to revive and expand their presence in Latin America. In some areas of integration, the Pacific Alliance has surpassed NAFTA. By merging the two together, it could be used to fill the void left by the collapse of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).
The Pacific Alliance was officially launched by Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru in June 2012. Its objectives include to construct, “an area of profound market-driven economic integration that will contribute to the free movement of goods, services, capital and persons.” The group also seeks to, “become a platform for economic and commercial integration as well as political coordination with global outreach, particularly towards the Asia Pacific.”
Trayvon and the Matrix
The Trayvon Martin affair was one of the most important media events in recent memory. The major networks spent endless hours of prime time discussing it, but what made the episode so exceptional was who benefited from the incredible amount of coverage.
At the heart of the story were two young men who both made poor decisions- one died, and the other almost wound up in prison for life. But is this so exceptional in America?
In fact, it’s all to common. Data from 2008 shows that more than four minors (under 18 years) were murdered a day in the US- four Trayvons a day. Was it the racial aspect of the case that was so exceptional? Yes, but not for the obvious reasons. More than 80% of interracial violent crimes are black on white, which would make one think it more likely that a black on white crime would galvanize the nation, but that wasn’t the case.
“ … None So Blind….”
'Phillip Farruggio'
I am writing this to not only all the city council members throughout the towns of my county of Volusia, Florida, but to you, its citizens out there. Look around you. See that, since 2006, the fine and important library system of our county has had its budget cut by nearly 33 %! All of the services: firefighting, policing, hospital care, education… everything we need more of is going down, not up! City and County governments think that the best, most viable solution is to privatize more and more. They think that this will help ease the pain of fiscal shortfalls. Oh yes, why not just sell the library system off to big corporations and our firefighting and policing too? Go and watch the great 1975 film Rollerball and see how a corporate owned and dominated world might look.
Egypt’s Painful Birth Pangs
By Dr. Elias Akleh
The evacuation of the deposed pro-Morsi Islamist Muslim Brotherhood camps from Rabi’a al-Adawiya and al-Nahda squares had revealed, clearly and without any ambiguity, that these camps have not been peaceful sit-ins, rather terrorist military occupations; pre-meditatedly planned, financed, armed and orchestrated by the Global Council of Muslim Brotherhood during their last July 7th meeting in Turkey.
Broadcasts of many Egyptian TV channels of the evacuation events, including videos taken by police helicopters, showed those Islamist Muslim Brotherhood (MB) terrorists using all kinds of weapons against the police forces. These weapons included advanced steel-penetrating sniping rifles, whose bullets had penetrated anti-bullets vests worn by police personnel. The videos also showed these terrorists setting fire to their own tents using Molotov bombs. They have also burnt the mosque in an attempt to destroy any incriminating evidence such as weapon, documents, communication systems, and murdered and tortured bodies of local residents, who tried to disobey and oppose MB leaders of the camps. Large cache of automatic weapons, Molotov bombs, gas canisters, bullets, TNT explosives and white weapons were discovered in these two camps.
Highly Respected Conservative Embraces Article V Convention Option
Joel S. Hirschhorn
No matter what else he has done, what conservative radio host and author Mark Levin does in his new book The Liberty Amendments has made him a hero for me. For many years I have been writing articles on the wisdom of using something in the US Constitution that I believe offers the only constitutional path to urgently needed reforms of the political system. I also co-founded the national nonpartisan group Friends of the Article V Convention. Mark Levin has become the most notable, highly visible person to also come out loudly, advocating the first time use of the Article V convention option.
Israel Behind Egypt's Coup?
by Stephen Lendman
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan blames Israel for ousting Morsi. It wouldn't surprise. He claims he has proof. More on that below.
He's the last one to point fingers. He rules repressively. He's more despot than democrat.
Civil and human rights abuses during his tenure are commonplace. Wealth and power interests alone matter. Popular needs go begging. Authoritarian neoliberalism defines policy. Police state violence targets dissenters. Thousands are arrested. Terrorism and other false charges follow. So do convictions. Victims face harsh imprisonment. For some it's longterm.
Police State Terror in Egypt
by Stephen Lendman
Proracted conflict continues. Reports suggest Egypt's Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) plans to declare the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) a terrorist organization.
On August 19, Russia Today (RT) said Egypt's draft constitution may prohibit religious parties from engaging in political activities. Word is expected by Wednesday.
Interim President Adly Mansour created a ten-member commission. It includes six pro-government judges and four constitutional law professors. They're tasked with proposing constitutional amendments.
A second pro-regime committee comprised of 50 public figures will review proposed amendments. They have 60 days to decide they're ready for a national referendum.
Obama's War on Yemen
by Stephen Lendman
Iraq war rules of engagement (ROE) were explicit. They ordered killing every military-aged Iraqi on sight. Afghanistan policy is similar.
Drone wars reflect it. Baseless suspicion leaves innocent civilians vulnerable. Point and click death awaits them. There's no place to hide.
Obama's waging drone war on Yemen. He's done so throughout his tenure. It's largely under the radar. Hundreds have been indiscriminately killed. Media scoundrels virtually ignore it. Predator drones are instruments of state terror. They sanitize killing on the cheap. Remote warriors work far from battlefields. Studies show most targets are innocent civilians.
The Illusion of Israeli/Palestinian Peaceful Conflict Resolution
by Stephen Lendman
Peace talks are more pretense than real. They've been that way for decades. Initiatives were always stillborn. They reflect the greatest diplomatic scam of all time.
It's no different now. Peaceful conflict resolution's a convenient illusion. It's guaranteed. Chances for success are ZERO. Smart money knows but won't say.
Yehuda Bauer is Hebrew University Avraham Harman Institute of Contemporary Jewry Professor Emeritus. A previous article discussed him.
He's a holocaust scholar. He studied genocide for decades. He prioritizes ways to stop it. What does "Never again" mean, he asks? It's an "empty slogan." It belies the fact that holocausts repeat.
Not Too Big to Jail: Why Eliot Spitzer Is Wall Street’s Worst Nightmare
by Ellen Brown
Before Eliot Spitzer’s infamous resignation as governor of New York in March 2008, he was one of our fiercest champions against Wall Street corruption, in a state that had some of the toughest legislation for controlling the banks. It may not be a coincidence that the revelation of his indiscretions with a high-priced call girl came less than a month after he published a bold editorial in the Washington Post titled “Predatory Lenders’ Partner in Crime: How the Bush Administration Stopped the States from Stepping in to Help Consumers.” The editorial exposed the collusion between the Treasury, the Federal Reserve and Wall Street in deregulating the banks in the guise of regulating them, by taking regulatory power away from the states. It was an issue of the federal government versus the states, with the Feds representing the banks and the states representing consumers.
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