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US Hostility Toward Russia Risks Nuclear War
Stephen Lendman
Bilateral relations are dismal, the worst in decades.
They were deplorable before Trump entered office, greatly deteriorated since his inauguration - an unacceptably dangerous situation, showing no signs of changing.
Surrounding Russia with US military bases, inventing a nonexistent Russian threat, falsely accusing its government of “aggression” and interference in America’s 2016 presidential election, imposing illegal sanctions, seizing its properties, expelling its diplomats, harming RT and Sputnik, along with conducting provocative military exercises near its borders head things toward direct confrontation - risking unthinkable nuclear war.
Connected to the Pentagon, Stars and Stripes publishes stories related to its operations. An earlier article discussed its Russian “deterrence” mission in Lithuania, bordering Russia’s Kaliningrad, close to its heartland. It focused on US forces training for possible confrontation with Moscow. Their mission is part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, involving America and other NATO countries, initiated over false accusations of “Russian aggression” in Ukraine.
Provocative air, sea and ground operations, along with US-led NATO’s permanent presence in Eastern Europe, threaten Russia’s security, the Kremlin forced to respond defensively.
Sergey Lavrov earlier said Washington and its NATO partners “grossly violated (their) political commitments” on European security, creating unacceptable bilateral friction.
US Wants Venezuela’s Cryptocurrency Undermined
Stephen Lendman
Washington unilaterally imposed multiple rounds of sanctions on Venezuela illegally.
They aim to make its economy scream, ordinary Venezuelans harmed most, other countries pressured to observe them or face US harshness.
They’re part of Washington’ diabolical plot to replace Bolivarian social democracy with fascist tyranny - so far unsuccessfully.
In an effort to counter the US scheme and curb high inflation, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced creation of a cryptocurrency on December 3 - called the petro.
It’ll be backed by Venezuelan crude oil reserves, the world’s largest including its heavy oil. In an initial February 15 pre-sale to institutional investors, about 38 million petros are expected to be sold, netting around $1.3 billion, based on today’s price of oil.
Trump Moves Toward Requiring Medicaid Recipients to Work
Stephen Lendman
Medicaid is a jointly administered federal/state program, providing medical care for poor and low-income people.
The Health Insurance Association of America calls Medicaid a “government insurance program for persons of all ages whose income and resources are insufficient to pay for health care.”
Around 75 million Americans qualify. States have broad leeway in determining who’s eligible. They may participate or opt out of the program. None chose to go this route so far.
Under Obamacare, all US citizens and permanent residents with incomes up to $133% of the poverty line qualify for Medicaid - defined as $24,250 for a family of four in the continental US, somewhat higher for Alaska and Hawaii. Healthcare is a fundamental human right. Most nations have some form of universal care, America the only developed one without it.
The world’s richest country denies all its citizens a right millions can’t afford, most others way underinsured.
Medicaid is barebones healthcare at best, woefully inadequate in cases of serious diseases, illnesses or disability.
US Forces to Remain Indefinitely in Syria Illegally
Stephen Lendman
Russia intervened in Syria at the request of its government - to combat US-supported terrorists.
They continue pouring into the country cross-border, replacing others eliminated by Syrian and allied forces, greatly aided by Russian airpower, considerably reduced from its earlier strength.
Last October, Syria’s Defense Ministry reported seizure of large amounts of weapons and munitions made in America and its rogue allied countries.
They included rockets, rifles, machine-guns, surface-to-air missiles, man-portable air-defense system MANPADS, TOW anti-tank missiles, tanks and other heavy weapons.
Trump to Deport Salvadoran Refugees
Stephen Lendman
The US 1990 Immigration Act established a procedure for granting temporary protected status (TPS) to refugees and asylum seekers unable to be safe in their home countries because of armed conflict, extreme violence, an environmental disaster, or other extraordinary conditions.
As of last October, the Homeland Security secretary is authorized to decide which countries are eligible for TPS.
El Salvador is one of 10 qualifying nations, its refugees and asylum seekers granted TPS in 2001, affecting over 260,000 Salvadorans. Their status expires on September 9, 2019, unless renewed.
The country is no fit place to live in. Extreme violence and repression led to increasing numbers of Salvadorans seeking asylum in neighboring countries, including America.
Many thousands of gang members are responsible for one of the hemisphere’s highest annual murder rate.
Gallup: U.S. Well-Being Declines Under Trump, Especially for the Poor
Eric Zuesse
On January 10th, Gallup listed their “Top Well-Being Findings of 2017”, and three findings pertained to the entire U.S. (the others pertained only to sub-populations):
Americans' well-being declines in 2017
U.S. uninsured rate rises
Exchange purchasers rate their health coverage less positively
In 2017, Trump’s first year in office, there was “a reversal of the three-year upward trend” of Americans’ well-being. This time, it went down, instead of continued flat or else went up again. Of course, nothing affects well-being or happiness as much as health does, and the U.S. is perhaps the sickest of all advanced industrialized countries. On 21 February 2017, the Washington Post had bannered “U.S. life expectancy will soon be on par with Mexico’s and the Czech Republic’s” and reported that “Life expectancy at birth will continue to climb substantially for residents of industrialized nations — but not in the United States, where minimal gains will soon put life spans on par with those in Mexico and the Czech Republic, according to an extensive analysis.
U.S. Again Supports Al Qaeda in Syria
Eric Zuesse
According to the most reliable reporter on the war in Syria, who anonymously blogs at his “Moon of Alabama” site, the United States Government and the Turkish Government are again supporting the effort by Al Qaeda in Syria to overthrow Syria’s Government, at least in parts of the country which are currently occupied by U.S.-backed Kurds and/or jihadists.
On January 11th, he headlined “Syria - Erdogan (Again) Switches Sides - Delivers New Supplies For Terrorist Attacks” and reported:
al-Qaeda in Syria, currently labeled HTS, taking part in the "rebel" counterattack. Four days ago HTS published photos of its [Al Qaeda’s Syrian] leader Joulini meeting with his military commanders to assess the situation. [“#BREAKING - Al Qaeda in #Syria '#HTS' convened an emergency meeting of its military council led by #Saudi cleric #Jolani, about sudden defeat in southern #Idlib. Many Syrian opposition forces say the area was 'sold out' to the Syrian government after the Astana talks.”] It looked bad for them. The squabble with other "rebels" increased. Two days ago Jouliani issued a statement that HTS would stop fighting other factions in Idleb to enable all to confront the advancing Syrian government forces. It seems that this was a condition for the renewed Turkish/U.S. support.
The counteroffensive could only proceed because Turkey (again) delivered hundreds of tons of weapons to the jihadis. New supplies of TOW anti-tank missiles, distributed exclusively by the CIA, have also been seen. (Turkey is also again supplying jihadists in Libya. The Greek navy just caught a ship going from Turkey to Libya with 29 containers full of bomb precursors, detonators and other bomb making parts.)
The Grave Threat of Possible Nuclear War
Stephen Lendman
Controlled by Wall Street, war profiteers, other corporate predators, Pentagon hawks and likeminded GOP extremists, businessman Trump transformed himself into a warrior leader - continuing naked aggression begun by Bush/Cheney and Obama, threatening war on North Korea and Iran.
Are Russia and China on his target list per orders from the nation’s deep state? Is nuclear war inevitable?
On the occasion of Sunday’s Oslo, Norway award ceremony, presenting the Nobel Peace Prize to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), I was invited on India’s WION television yesterday.
I and other guests discussed the cutting edge issue of our time, WION asking “Are nuclear weapons dearer than peace?”
We all agreed on the danger these weapons pose. I disagreed with a view expressed that it’s unlikely they’ll be used.
I stressed how America poses a grave danger - the only nation ever to use nuclear weapons, twice gratuitously on Japan after the war in the Pacific was won, its overtures to surrender months earlier turned down by Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman.
Trump threatened North Korea with “fire and fury like the world has never seen.” Nikki Haley said if Pyongyang threatens America or its allies, “we will have no choice but to totally destroy” the country.
GOP Tax Cut Swindle: A $236 Billion Bonanza for Corporate Predators
Stephen Lendman
According to a report prepared for Senate Dems, 15 of America’s largest corporate predators reaped a nearly $4 trillion windfall over the last 30 years.
It came from federal giveaway subsidies, tax credits and bailouts, along with $108 billion in government contracts, many no-bid.
The largest corporate welfare beneficiaries include Apple, Pfizer, Microsoft, GE, IBM, J&J, Merck, Google, ExxonMobil, Procter & Gamble, Citigroup, Chevron, Goldman Sachs, Eli Lilly and Walmart.
The GOP tax cut swindle will give corporate predators another $236 billion over the next decade - at the expense of eroding social justice to partly pay for it, the remainder adding around $2.5 trillion to the deficit and national debt, according to David Stockman, not the $1.5 trillion claimed.
Corporate predators use every devious means possible to evade taxes, including maintaining revenues and profits abroad in low-tax or no-tax havens.
Latin America: The Pendulum Swings to the Right
James Petras
Introduction
Clearly the pendulum has swung to the right in the past few years. Numerous questions arise. What kind of right? How far right? How did they gain power? What is their appeal? How sustainable are the right wing regimes? Who are their international allies and adversaries? Having taken power, how have the rightist regimes performed and by what criteria is success or failure measured?
While the left has been in retreat, they still retain power in some states. Numerous questions arise. What is the nature of the left today? Why have some regimes continued while others have declined or been vanquished? Can the left recover its influence and under what conditions and with what programmatic appeal.
We will proceed by discussing the character and policies of the right and left and their direction. We will conclude by analyzing the dynamics of right and left policies, alignments and future perspectives.
