Daily Archives: August 7, 2019

2019-08-07: News Headlines

Yves Engler (2019-08-07). Is Justin Trudeau Pro-Nukes? dissidentvoice.org Justin Trudeau presents himself as "progressive" on foreign affairs. The Liberals claim to have brought Canada "back" after the disastrous Harper Conservatives. But their nuclear weapons policy demonstrates the emptiness of this rhetoric. Reducing the chance nuclear weapons are used again should be a priority for any "progressive" government. But, powerful Canadian allies oppose nuclear …

Nia Harris, Cassandra Stimpson and Ben Freeman (2019-08-07). More Money, Fewer Jobs: the Stubborn Truth About Employment and the Defense Industry. counterpunch.org A Marilyn has once again seduced a president. This time, though, it's not a movie star; it's Marillyn Hewson, the head of Lockheed Martin, the nation's top defense contractor and the largest weapons producer in the world. In the last month, Donald Trump and Hewson have seemed inseparable. They "saved" jobs at a helicopter plant. More

RT (2019-08-07). Trump points to 'no political appetite' for rifle ban, says he's open to better background checks. rt.com US President Donald Trump said there is no broader push for a federal ban on assault weapons at the moment, but there is still "great interest" in new background-check legislation amid the recent mass shootings.

Arabi Souri (2019-08-07). Syrian Security Confiscates Armored Vehicles, Weapons, Captagon, Drugs. globalresearch.ca Syrian security units and Syrian Arab Army units operating in Hama northern countryside, northwest of Syria, and Daraa countryside, south of Syria, had a busy day busting, discovering, and confiscating large stashes of weapons, munition, gears, armored vehicles, illicit drugs …

Mark Gruenberg (2019-08-06). Survivor's story highlights horror of atomic weapons. peoplesworld.org It was early in the morning and 7-year-old second-grader Michiko Kodama was learning her lessons with her classmates when the life she knew — the world she knew — came suddenly to an end. There was a blinding flash of light and an enormous explosion. The school roof fell in, literally. The windows shattered into …

Ted Rall (2019-08-06). Here is Exactly Why Congress Won't Act on Gun Violence, Climate Change, Impeaching Trump or Anything Else. counterpunch.org I'm from Dayton so I'm thinking about this today: Why hasn't Congress done anything to address our national epidemic of mass shootings, namely reviving the assault weapons ban? People—Democrats and not a few Republicans—ask me that all the time. I bet all left-leaning pundits get that question. The answer is simple. But it's not something most people want to More

teleSUR (2019-08-06). Hiroshima Mayor Urges Japan to Sign Nuclear Treaty, PM Refuses. telesurenglish.net Commemorating 74 years Tuesday since the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Hiroshima's mayor, Kazumi Matsui, demanded Japan join the United Nations treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons. | RELATED: | North Korea Tests New Missile in Warning Message to South Korea | "I urge Japan's leaders to manifest the pacifism of t…

United Nations (2019-08-06). 'Cataclysmic events' in Hiroshima, Nagasaki, began 'global push' against nuclear weapons says Guterres, honouring victims. un.org Paying homage to those who perished as the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, as well as the many others whose lives were devastated in the years that followed, UN chief António Guterres on Tuesday underscored their "courage and moral leadership" in reminding the world of "the human cost of nuclear war".

William Gudal (2019-08-06). Rolling Snake Eyes? counterpunch.org The endless blather about previous and potential software fixes to the Boeing 737 Max seems absurd to the point of disbelief. Can any software be expected to save this airplane? Do fliers really believe software is the way to fly an airplane? Boeing, responding to intense competitive pressures in the race to develop new commercial More

Rev. John Dear (2019-08-06). The Ongoing Call for Nuclear Abolition at Los Alamos. commondreams.org The sickness of our widespread gun violence epidemic is connected to the sickness of the nuclear weapons industry, and the numbness and despair among us allow these lethal epidemics to threaten us all. (Photo: John Dear) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/screen_shot_2019-08-06_at_4.09.28_pm.png

Ahmed Abdulkareem (2019-08-02). Prohibiting Maintenance of Tanker Off Yemeni Coast, Saudis Risk Explosion and Environmental Disaster. mintpressnews.com "We are talking about a huge floating tanker that entered service in Yemen 30 years ago, which contains more than one million tons of oil. If an explosion takes place, many countries, including Saudi Arabia, will be hit with an environmental disaster."

pip.hinman (2019-08-02). Fund Newstart not US wars. greenleft.org.au More than 700,000 Australians are struggling to survive on $40 dollars a day while $200 billion is being set aside over the next 10 years for Australia's military, largely to support US wars, according to the Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN). | IPAN spokesperson Shirley Winton said: "In the past five years, government spending on social and community services has been severely cut back while the Australian governments' military spending on supporting US offensive wars and the military-industrial complex has increased exponentially. | "Over 700,000 Australians depend on Newstart unemployment benef…

susan_p (2019-08-01). Rojava Revolution – seven years on. greenleft.org.au July 19 marked the seventh anniversary of northern Syria's Rojava Revolution. On that day in 2012 the nascent People's Protection Units (YPG) took control of the Kurdish-majority city of Kobanê. The outnumbered forces of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad surrendered and were allowed to depart (without their weapons). Other Kurdish cities and towns in the north were soon liberated as well. | From these beginnings, the liberated zone has grown into the General Council of the Self Administration in Northern and Eastern Syria (NES). Together with civic councils in towns liberated from the Islamic State (Manbij, Tabqa,…

Staff (2019-07-31). Warren Backs "No First Use" Nuclear Policy as Buttigieg Calls for Withdrawal from Afghanistan. democracynow.org While most of Tuesday's debate focused on domestic issues, Democratic candidates were briefly asked about nuclear weapons policy and the war in Afghanistan. Senator Elizabeth Warren defended her "no first use" policy on nuclear weapons, despite criticism from Montana Governor Steve Bullock. Meanwhile, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper sparred on whether the U.S. should withdraw from Afghanistan after 18 years of war.

2019-08-07: Social Media Postees

Trump points to 'no political appetite' for rifle ban, says he's open to better background checks
rt.com | 2019-08-07
US President Donald Trump said there is no broader push for a federal ban on assault weapons at the moment, but there is still "great interest" in new background-check legislation amid the recent mass shootings. | …
rt.com/usa/465987-trump-no-rifle-ban/

Is Justin Trudeau Pro-Nukes?
Yves Engler | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-08-07
Justin Trudeau presents himself as "progressive" on foreign affairs. The Liberals claim to have brought Canada "back" after the disastrous Harper Conservatives. But their nuclear weapons policy demonstrates the emptiness of this rhetoric. Reducing the chance nuclear weapons are used again should be a priority for any "progressive" government. But, powerful Canadian allies oppose nuclear …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/08/is-justin-trudeau-pro-nukes/

More Money, Fewer Jobs: the Stubborn Truth About Employment and the Defense Industry
Nia Harris, Cassandra Stimpson and Ben Freeman | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-07
A Marilyn has once again seduced a president. This time, though, it's not a movie star; it's Marillyn Hewson, the head of Lockheed Martin, the nation's top defense contractor and the largest weapons producer in the world. In the last month, Donald Trump and Hewson have seemed inseparable. They "saved" jobs at a helicopter plant.
counterpunch.org/2019/08/07/more-money-fewer-jobs-the-stubborn-truth-about-employment-and-the-defense-industry/

Syrian Security Confiscates Armored Vehicles, Weapons, Captagon, Drugs
Arabi Souri | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-07
Syrian security units and Syrian Arab Army units operating in Hama northern countryside, northwest of Syria, and Daraa countryside, south of Syria, had a busy day busting, discovering, and confiscating large stashes of weapons, munition, gears, armored vehicles, illicit drugs …
globalresearch.ca/syrian-security-confiscates-armored-vehicles-weapons-captagon-drugs/5685732

Here is Exactly Why Congress Won't Act on Gun Violence, Climate Change, Impeaching Trump or Anything Else
Ted Rall | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-06
I'm from Dayton so I'm thinking about this today: Why hasn't Congress done anything to address our national epidemic of mass shootings, namely reviving the assault weapons ban? People–Democrats and not a few Republicans–ask me that all the time. I bet all left-leaning pundits get that question. The answer is simple. But it's not something most people want to…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/06/here-is-exactly-why-congress-wont-act-on-gun-violence-climate-change-impeaching-trump-or-anything-else/

Survivor's story highlights horror of atomic weapons
Mark Gruenberg | peoplesworld.org | 2019-08-06
It was early in the morning and 7-year-old second-grader Michiko Kodama was learning her lessons with her classmates when the life she knew — the world she knew — came suddenly to an end. There was a blinding flash of light and an enormous explosion. The school roof fell in, literally. The windows shattered into …
peoplesworld.org/article/survivors-story-highlights-horror-of-atomic-weapons/

Hiroshima Mayor Urges Japan to Sign Nuclear Treaty, PM Refuses
telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-06
Commemorating 74 years Tuesday since the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Hiroshima's mayor, Kazumi Matsui, demanded Japan join the United Nations treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons. | RELATED: | North Korea Tests New Missile in Warning Message to South Korea | "I urge Japan's leaders to manifest the pacifism of t…
telesurenglish.net/news/Hiroshima-Mayor-Urges-Japan-to-Sign-Nuclear-Treaty-PM-Refuses-20190806-0027.html

Hiroshima and the New Arms Race—No Winners
Robert Dodge | commondreams.org | 2019-08-06
Nuclear war and climate change are the two existential threats we face today. (Photo: US Department of Defense) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/nuclearweapons.jpeg
commondreams.org/views/2019/08/06/hiroshima-and-new-arms-race-no-winners?cd-origin=rss

'Cataclysmic events' in Hiroshima, Nagasaki, began 'global push' against nuclear weapons says Guterres, honouring victims
United Nations | un.org | 2019-08-06
Paying homage to those who perished as the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, as well as the many others whose lives were devastated in the years that followed, UN chief António Guterres on Tuesday underscored their "courage and moral leadership" in reminding the world of "the human cost of nuclear war".
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/08/1043781

The Ongoing Call for Nuclear Abolition at Los Alamos
Rev. John Dear | commondreams.org | 2019-08-06
The sickness of our widespread gun violence epidemic is connected to the sickness of the nuclear weapons industry, and the numbness and despair among us allow these lethal epidemics to threaten us all. (Photo: John Dear) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/screen_shot_2019-08-06_at_4.09.28_pm.png
commondreams.org/views/2019/08/06/ongoing-call-nuclear-abolition-los-alamos?cd-origin=rss

Rolling Snake Eyes?
William Gudal | counterpunch.org | 2019-08-06
The endless blather about previous and potential software fixes to the Boeing 737 Max seems absurd to the point of disbelief. Can any software be expected to save this airplane? Do fliers really believe software is the way to fly an airplane? Boeing, responding to intense competitive pressures in the race to develop new commercial…
counterpunch.org/2019/08/06/rolling-snake-eyes/

Prohibiting Maintenance of Tanker Off Yemeni Coast, Saudis Risk Explosion and Environmental Disaster
Ahmed Abdulkareem | mintpressnews.com | 2019-08-02
mintpressnews.com/maintenance-fso-safer-tanker-yemen-saudi-arabia-oil-spill/261112/

Fund Newstart not US wars
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2019-08-02
More than 700,000 Australians are struggling to survive on $40 dollars a day while $200 billion is being set aside over the next 10 years for Australia's military, largely to support US wars, according to the Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN). | IPAN spokesperson Shirley Winton said: "In the past five years, government spending on social and community services has been severely cut back while the Australian governments' military spending on supporting US offensive wars and the military-industrial complex has increased exponentially. | "Over 700,000 Australians depend on Newstart unemployment benef…
greenleft.org.au/content/fund-newstart-not-us-wars

Rojava Revolution – seven years on
susan_p | greenleft.org.au | 2019-08-01
July 19 marked the seventh anniversary of northern Syria's Rojava Revolution. On that day in 2012 the nascent People's Protection Units (YPG) took control of the Kurdish-majority city of Kobanê. The outnumbered forces of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad surrendered and were allowed to depart (without their weapons). Other Kurdish cities and towns in the north were soon liberated as well. | From these beginnings, the liberated zone has grown into the General Council of the Self Administration in Northern and Eastern Syria (NES). Together with civic councils in towns liberated from the Islamic State (Manbij, Tabqa,…
greenleft.org.au/content/rojava-revolution-seven-years

Warren Backs "No First Use" Nuclear Policy as Buttigieg Calls for Withdrawal from Afghanistan
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-07-31
While most of Tuesday's debate focused on domestic issues, Democratic candidates were briefly asked about nuclear weapons policy and the war in Afghanistan. Senator Elizabeth Warren defended her "no first use" policy on nuclear weapons, despite criticism from Montana Governor Steve Bullock. Meanwhile, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper sparred on whether the U.S. should withdraw from Afghanistan after 18 years of war.
www.democracynow.org/2019/7/31/cnn_debate_foreign_policy_mehdi_hasan