(2023-01-05). Communist replies to BBC budget tips: 'Get out and see the real world.'. thecommunists.org The following letter was sent by one of our members to the BBC in response to yet another patronising and delusional piece on 'budgeting'. ***** There is what you describe as a 'cost of living' crisis, and there is a real crisis — a crisis of capitalism. A crisis that will not be going away. …
(2023-01-05). Socialism Is Not a Utopian Ideal, but an Achievable Necessity. dissidentvoice.org 
Philip Guston (Canada), Gladiators, 1940. In May 2021, the executive director of UN Women, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, and the UN high representative for disarmament affairs, Izumi Nakamitsu, wrote an article urging governments to cut excessive military spending in favour of increasing spending on social and economic development. Their wise words were not heard at all. To …
(2023-01-05). Rockets Hit Another U.S.-Base In Northeastern Syria. southfront.org 
Illustrative image. (Credit: U.S. Army) | Early on January 5, an indirect fire attack targeted the United States-led coalition's Green Village base in Syria's northeastern region, according to Sputnik. | The Russian news agency said that a salvo of rockets hit the base, which is located within al-Omar oil fields in the southeastern countryside of Deir Ezzor. Several smoke columns were seen rising from the base. However, no casualties were reported. | After the attack, U.S. fighter jets and drones were spotted over…
(2023-01-04). Britain's National Health Service faced with deliberate collapse. wsws.org COVID policies backed by all the major parties of allowing tens of thousands of people to die unnecessary deaths and countless more to suffer prolonged ill health—rather than taking measures impacting on profits—were only the sharpest expression of a growing hostility to health spending seen as an intolerable drain on British capitalism, to be reduced as quickly as possible.
(2023-01-04). Marx, the 'Metabolic Rift' and Capitalism's Assault on Nature. socialistproject.ca 
In recent years millions of young and working-class people have engaged in protests against the climate and ecological crisis as devastating wildfires, heat waves, droughts, hurricanes and floods have increased in regularity and intensity around the world. "System change, not climate change!" has become the main slogan, reflecting a sense that we need a fundamental transformation of society to avoid catastrophe. | It is no surprise that this has emerged alongside a renewed interest in the ideas of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, and their critique of capitalism. They argued that capitalism was based on exploit…
(2023-01-04). Saturday 1/7: Election 2022: What Does It Mean for the Socialist Left? indybay.org
(2023-01-04). The First US Onslaught To 'Weaken' Post-Cold War Russia. popularresistance.org The first post-cold war assault on Russia by the West began in the early 1990s well before the expansion of NATO. It took the form of a U.S.-induced economic depression in Russia that was deeper and more disastrous than the Great Depression that devastated the U.S. in the 1930s. And it came at a time when Russians were naively talking of a "Common European Home" and a common European security structure that would include Russia. The magnitude of this economic catastrophe was spelled out tersely in a recent essay by Paul Krugman who wondered whether many Americans are aware of the enormous disaster it was for Russ…
(2023-01-04). Preview: What to Expect in the December Jobs Report. cepr.net The November jobs numbers came in stronger than most economists had expected. There is considerable evidence from regional Fed surveys, unemployment insurance claims, and elsewhere that the labor market is weakening. Nonetheless, the payroll data has been showing strong job growth through the fall. The big question is whether evidence of labor market weakening will …
(2023-01-04). Russian Army Received First Batch Of Upgraded Ka-52M Recon & Attack Helicopters. southfront.org 
File image. | The Russian military has received the first batch of Ka-52M reconnaissance and attack helicopters, TASS reported on January 4, citing a source in the Russian military industrial complex. | The unnamed source told the Russian news agency that around ten helicopters have been already supplied to the military and more will be delivered later this year."The first Ka-52M [helicopters] have already been turned over to Russian troops. Deliveries of upgraded helicopters will also cont…
(2023-01-04). BlackRock logo to be added to Ukrainian flag. mronline.org 
Kyiv has announced the addition of a fifth corporate logo to the Ukrainian flag following news that BlackRock will be playing a crucial role in the reconstruction of the nation. The world's largest investment management firm will join Raytheon Technologies, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, and McDonald's upon the now-omnipresent blue and yellow flag.
(2023-01-04). Envisioning a World Without Nuclear Weapons. globalresearch.ca
(2023-01-04). Germany's Green FM: Send more weapons for war in Ukraine. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Deutsche WelleJanuary 4, 2023 Ukraine updates: Baerbock urges more weapons to Kyiv German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Wednesday said Russian President Vladimir Putin had nothing on his mind but to destroy the neighboring country of Ukraine. *** She said Putin's stance was the reason why it was "important to keep up the delivery of …