Daily Archives: January 1, 2021

2021-01-01: News Headlines

Peter Coyote — Terry Bisson (2021-01-01). The Grinnell 14 Go to Washington. counterpunch.org It was autumn in Iowa, it was 1961. It was fifty years ago. The sanitized 1950s, its Men in Grey Flannel Suits, and the Military-Industrial complex President Eisenhower warned about, were the dominant voices. Bob Dylan had just released his first record, and the folk music movement was emerging, but the old order maintained cultural

David Swanson (2021-01-01). Drone Murder Has Been Normalized. counterpunch.org If I search on Google for the words "drones" and "morality" most of the results are from 2012 through 2016. If I search for "drones" and "ethics" I get a bunch of articles from 2017 to 2020. Reading the various websites confirms the obvious hypothesis that (as a rule, with plenty of exceptions) "morality" is

John Laforge (2021-01-01). Court Orders Veterans Affairs Department to Replace Flawed Science in Plutonium Disaster Case. counterpunch.org In a major class action ruling issued December 17, the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in Washington, DC has ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to re-examine how it evaluates disability claims from veterans exposed to deadly alpha radiation during cleanup operations following a disastrous nuclear weapons accident at Palomares, Spain. The

Rod Driver (2021-01-01). Selling Weapons — The Most Corrupt Industry in the World. zcomm.org The US government has the highest military spending in the world, with approximately one-third of the world's military expenditure…

Richard Norton-Taylor (2020-12-31). British diplomats probed Kissinger on possible use of force against Saudis. middleeasteye.net British diplomats probed Kissinger on possible use of force against Saudis | UK government believed Washington had drawn up plans including 'deposing existing regimes' in response to 1973 oil crisis, documents show | Thu, 12/31/2020 – 00: 01 | US secretary of state Henry Kissinger with Saudi Arabia's King Faisal in Riyadh in 1973 (Library of C…

Sheren Khalel (2020-12-30). Pompeo and State Department face legal action over $23bn UAE arms sale. middleeasteye.net Pompeo and State Department face legal action over $23bn UAE arms sale | New York Center for Foreign Policy Affairs claims in lawsuit that massive weapons sale violates US Arms Export Control Act | Wed, 12/30/2020 – 17: 05 | The $23bn arms sale to UAE includes killer drones and American-made F-35 jets (AFP/File photo) | An American NGO has filed a lawsuit against the State Department and its head,…

WSWS (2020-12-30). Boeing's deadly 737 Max resumes US commercial flights. wsws.org Nearly two years after the 737 Max was grounded, not a single corporate executive or federal regulator has gone to jail for his role in the deaths of 346 people.

Ulson Gunnar (2020-12-30). Russia-China Civilian Aviation Production Challenges Boeing-Airbus Dominance. globalresearch.ca For decades US-based Boeing and European aerospace giant, Airbus, have dominated global civilian aviation in what many in the industry describe as a duopoly. But as is the case in so many other industries as of late, China's economic and …

Kenny Stancil, staff writer (2020-12-30). Lame-Duck Trump's "Middle East Arms Bonanza" Continues With Approval of $290 Million Weapons Sale to Saudi Regime. commondreams.org Additional arms deals this week include $4 billion in helicopters to Kuwait, $169 million in military equipment to Egypt, and $65 million in drones and fighter jets to UAE. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/saudi_arms.jpg

Dr. Binoy Kampmark (2020-12-29). The NDAA, Trump and the Military Industrial Complex. globalresearch.ca For decades, the National Defense Authorization Act has been the lifeblood of the US imperium, guaranteeing a flow of money across the military. A better term for such a bill would use the word offence in it, but lawmakers and …

Ralph Nader (2020-12-29). Recidivist Criminal and Constitutional Outlaw Trump Rushes to Pardon Criminal Lawbreakers. counterpunch.org Serial lawbreaker Donald J. Trump is embarking on the most sordid presidential pardon spree in American history. He has already pardoned convicted crooks, thieves, and violent outlaws. Trump's pardon lawyers are frantically assembling more MAGA besotted individuals and groups to be pardoned wholesale. The number may climb into the hundreds. The queue is long. Trump