_____ (2023-01-06). Socialism Is Not a Utopian Ideal, but an Achievable Necessity. popularresistance.org 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 cut money for war and to increase money for social development, they wrote, is 'not a utopian ideal, but an achievable necessity'. That phrase — not a utopian ideal, but an achievable necessity — is essential. It describes the project of socialism almost perfectly. | Our institu…

Suds, Snacks,, Socialism Forum Committee (2023-01-06). Saturday 1/7: Election 2022: What Does It Mean for the Socialist Left? indybay.org

Vijay Prashad (2023-01-06). Socialism is not a Utopian ideal, but an achievable necessity: The First Newsletter (2023). mronline.org 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.

Editor (2023-01-05). Marx, the 'Metabolic Rift' and Capitalism's Assault on Nature. mronline.org Marx's theory that capitalism created a "metabolic rift" between human society and nature has re-emerged as an indispensable tool for understanding the climate crisis we face today.

JANET (2023-01-05). Buffalo 'bomb cyclone' exposes failure of capitalism. iacenter.org By Ryan Lockwood December 29, 2022 Buffalo, New York Buffalo is reeling from its worst snowstorm in a generation. From Dec. 23-25, Western New York state was ravaged by a "bomb cyclone," which brought hurricane-force winds, subzero wind chills and over 50 inches of snowfall to the region. But Winter Storm Elliot is as much a social disaster as it is a weather one. Abandoned cars block a road following winter storm in Buffalo, New York, Dec. 27. At the time of this writing, at least 40 people in the Buffalo area have died due to the storm, a majority of them people of color. This surpasses the death toll of the in…

Owen Schalk (2023-01-05). "If there is to be a livable future, it will be a future offline" mronline.org Jonathan Crary's new book excoriates the digital world of late capitalism.

Stephen Millies (2023-01-05). Capitalism's War on Railroad Workers Continues Under President Whose Support For Unions Rings Hollow. covertactionmagazine.com The U.S. Congress imposed a labor agreement on 115,000 railroad workers on December 1, disregarding the vote from four unions to reject it. That is how little real democracy there is in the United States. The millionaires' club on Capitol Hill could not even support giving sick days to railroaders chained to round-the-clock work schedules. Why …

thecommunists (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. …

Staff (2023-01-05). Groundwork's Michael Mitchell Previews Final Jobs Report of 2022. commondreams.org Ahead of tomorrow's December Jobs Report, Groundwork's Director of Policy and Research Michael Mitchell released the following statement, cautioning that additional rate hikes will bring more pain to workers and push our economy into a Fed-manufactured recession: "As workers and families are struggling with higher prices, Chair Powell is hell-bent on bringing down wages and …

Peoples Dispatch (2023-01-05). Russia announced Christmas ceasefire, US anti-war activists urge others to follow suit. peoplesdispatch.org After Putin ordered troops to observe a ceasefire over Orthodox Christmas, US anti-war organization CODEPINK insists that the US and Ukraine also declare a Christmas truce…

Anonymous669 (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…

Anonymous669 (2023-01-05). Russian Lancet Drones Take Out More Ukrainian Military Equipment (Videos). southfront.org ZALA Lancet attack drone. © Marina Lystseva/TASS | On January 4 and 5, Russian sources shared videos documenting three recent strikes with Lancet loitering munitions on equipment of Kiev forces in the special military operation zone in Ukraine. | The strikes destroyed an American-made AN/TPQ-48 counter-battery radar installed on the rooftop of a public building, a Ukrainian-made Kozak-2 armored vehicle that was carrying ammunition and a modified SUV similar to the ones usually used by Ukrainian…

Dave DeCamp (2023-01-05). US to Send Ukraine Bradley Fighting Vehicles in Nearly $3 Billion Arms Package. news.antiwar.com The US is going to send Ukraine Bradley Fighting Vehicles for the first time in a new weapons package worth nearly $3 billion, US officials told The Associated Press on Thursday. The officials said the $2.85 billion aid package will be formally announced on Friday, and it will mark the single largest arms package for …

news.un (2023-01-05). Syria: Chemical weapons pose unacceptable threat, and are a 'danger to us all'. news.un.org Any use of chemical weapons anywhere is simply "unacceptable", the deputy head of the UN Disarmament Affairs office (UNODA) told the Security Council on Thursday, briefing on efforts to eliminate the scourge from the battlefields and towns of Syria.

thecommunists (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. …

Vijay Prashad (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 …

Anonymous669 (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…

WSWS (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.

Chris Stewart (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…

Suds, Snacks,, Socialism Forum Committee (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…

manager (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 …

Anonymous669 (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…

Caitlin A. Johnstone (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.

H. Patricia Hynes (2023-01-04). Envisioning a World Without Nuclear Weapons. globalresearch.ca

Rick Rozoff (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 …