(2021-02-05). The Decline and Fall of the American Empire. counterpunch.org 
In 2004, journalist Ron Susskind quoted a Bush White House advisor, reportedly Karl Rove, as boasting, "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality." He dismissed Susskind's assumption that public policy must be rooted in "the reality-based community." "We're history's actors," the advisor told him, "…and you, all of you,
(2021-02-05). The Struggle Inside Senator Mitch McConnell's Brain. counterpunch.org Since 2015, Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell has ruled the Senate with an iron hand, describing himself as "the Guardian of Gridlock." He was Senator "NO," except for confirming over 200 mostly corporatist federal judges. Now comes a new challenge for Mitch McConnell as he leads 49 other Republican Senators, twenty of whom are up
(2021-02-05). 'Wild Things': Frontline activism to save the planet. greenleft.org.au Jim McIlroy and Laurie MacSween review a new documentary on Australia's frontline environmental activists.
(2021-02-04). The Decline and Fall of the American Empire. dissidentvoice.org 
Image: Calvin Shen In 2004, journalist Ron Susskind quoted a Bush White House advisor, reportedly Karl Rove, as boasting, "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality." He dismissed Susskind's assumption that public policy must be rooted in "the reality-based community." "We're history's actors," the advisor told him, "…and you, …
(2021-02-04). What They Said About Lockdowns Before 2020. anti-empire.com 
In 2020, beliefs about how to handle a new virus shifted massively. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, mainstream epidemiology and public health entities doubted — or even rejected — the efficacy of lockdowns and mass quarantines because they were considered ineffective. This all changed in March 2020, when sentiment flipped in support of lockdown measures. Still, there is a vast body of evidence explaining their original stance and why these mandates do not work. |
(2021-02-04). Biden's COVID Guy Says Doubling Face Diapers Could Increase Virus Spread. anti-empire.com 
An infectious disease expert says wearing two face masks may increase the chances of getting infected by COVID-19. | Michael Osterholm, who was a member of the Biden Transition COVID-19 Advisory Board, gave a second opinion after Dr. "When we talk about double masking, remember what we're really talking about is just trying to prevent th…
(2021-02-04). Biden ending US 'support for offensive operations' in Yemen doesn't mean actual end to war, skeptics caution as activists rejoice. rt.com 
While peace activists cheered the news that the US will be ending its support for Saudi-led "offensive operations" in Yemen, that's a far cry from actually ending the six-year war that began with Barack Obama's tacit blessing. | National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan previewed the Yemen announcement ahead of President Joe Biden's major foreign policy speech on Thursday, telling reporters the decision "extends to the types of offensive operations that have perpetuated a civil war in Yemen that has led to a humanitarian crisis," and that it does not apply to US operations against Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsu…
(2021-02-04). Russia's Zircon Missile Relegates Carriers to Bombing Small Poor Countries. anti-empire.com 
Judging by the stream of the news re: latest launch by Admiral Gorshkov of 3M22 Zircon, tests are very successful
(2021-02-04). NATO Supreme Allied Commander Says West Is Concerned With China-Russia Ties. anti-empire.com 
On Wednesday, the top general of NATO Gen. Tod Wolters, who currently serves as the head of US European Command and as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, told reporters that the increased ties between Beijing and Moscow "really does suggest an emergence of a partnership of convenience." | Welters said the partnership seeks to advance the mutual…
(2021-02-04). The Imperial Capital Is Now Occupying Itself. anti-empire.com 
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a national terrorism bulletin yesterday, warning that extremists 'may be emboldened' by the Just consider how extraordinary these measures are. This is the first-ever DHS terrorism bulletin that targets domestic American citizens. The Biden administra…
(2021-02-04). Democrats Announce It Is Safe to Reopen Now That Federal Government Has Tested Negative for Trump. anti-empire.com 
U.S.—Democrat leaders around the country are declaring it is now safe to reopen since the federal government's tests have come back negative for Trump. | "The key indicator we were looking for before we could begin the reopening process was that Trump wasn't president," said Governor Gavin Newsom. "While we are at the worst point yet in this pandemic, it now makes sense to open– even though the science said the exact opposite last year when it was comparably mild. Because now, all the tests are indicating we have tested negative for Trump." | Governor Cuomo agreed, saying that all his key science experts -…
(2021-02-04). Warnings of Growing 'Surveillance Empire' as AI Van Cameras Give Amazon 'Roaming Eyes in Every Neighborhood'. commondreams.org "Amazon will have the perfect panopticon in place to sweep up unprecedented amounts of data en masse," says Fight for the Future. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-02-04). Tallahassee demands affordable housing from City Commission. fightbacknews.org Tallahassee, FL – On January 13, activists with the Tallahassee Community Action Committee attended the Tallahassee City Commission's annual retreat. While much of the retreat featured city leaders applauding each other for their great work, there were some moments that touched on the people's concerns regarding affordable housing and redevelopment initiatives on the majority-Black Southside. | After a discussion of the city's efforts to invest in Southside, the newly-elected Democratic Socialists of America-backed commissioner Jack Porter asked for clarification as to why the Southside of Tallahassee has been so…
(2021-02-04). Tallahassee demands affordable housing from City Commission. fightbacknews.org Tallahassee, FL – On January 13, activists with the Tallahassee Community Action Committee attended the Tallahassee City Commission's annual retreat. While much of the retreat featured city leaders applauding each other for their great work, there were some moments that touched on the people's concerns regarding affordable housing and redevelopment initiatives on the majority-Black Southside. | After a discussion of the city's efforts to invest in Southside, the newly-elected Democratic Socialists of America-backed commissioner Jack Porter asked for clarification as to why the Southside of Tallahassee has been so…
(2021-02-04). 'As fake as her tweets'? Police open conspiracy PROBE into Greta Thunberg's 'protest toolkit,' accuse creators of 'WAR ON INDIA'. rt.com 
Police in New Delhi have opened a conspiracy investigation into the creators of a "toolkit" with instructions on how to amplify the farmers' protests in India — a document that has been shared by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg. | Thunberg took to Twitter on Wednesday to share a lengthy document outlining ways for activists to contribute to India's ongoing pro-farmer protests, including stock messages and hashtags to disseminate on social media, as well as advice on organizing rallies. Within hours, the "toolkit" was taken offline by its creators and replaced with a much shorter version, with Thunberg no…
(2021-02-04). Codepink Applauds Biden's Decision to End U.S. Support for the War on Yemen. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2021-02-04). New Bill From Blumenauer, Ocasio-Cortez, and Sanders Demands Biden Declare a National Climate Emergency. commondreams.org The Sunrise Movement's executive director called it "a good sign that our leaders are finally understanding what young people and climate activists have been shouting from the rooftops for years." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-02-04). Bernie Sanders Says Biden Decision on Yemen a Tribute to 'So Many Activists Over the Years'. commondreams.org "Yemen needs food, medicine, and healthcare—not bombs and blockades," said Sanders. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-02-04). Ottawa Should Apologize for Role in Agent Orange Use in Vietnam. dissidentvoice.org 
A French legal battle offers an opportunity to revisit Canada's role in chemical weapons use and whether Ottawa owes something to its Vietnamese victims. On the weekend activists gathered in Paris to support a court case launched by a woman exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam. The group Collectif Vietnam Dioxine is supporting French-Vietnamese woman, …
(2021-02-04). 'A Day Peace Activists… Have Been Waiting For': Biden Vows to Curb US Support for Saudi-Led War on Yemen. commondreams.org "This decision is the result of years of activism from Yemeni Americans and grassroots activists all over the world. Congrats to lovers of peace everywhere who know #YemenCantWait." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-02-03). Jeff Bezos to Quit as CEO, But Amazon's "Predatory Business Model" Will Continue Unless Lawmakers Act. democracynow.org 
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has announced he will step down as CEO and move into a new role as executive chairman later this year, giving up the reins after nearly three decades during which he grew Amazon from an online book retailer into a sprawling business empire and became one of the world's richest people in the process. Andy Jassy, the head of the company's cloud computing division, is set to take over the top job, but Bezos will continue to be the largest Amazon shareholder and remain on the board of directors. The news comes as calls continue to mount for lawmakers to break up Amazon and other tech giants.
(2021-02-03). A Coup in Burma: Did Military Seize Power to Avoid ICC Prosecution for Rohingya Genocide? democracynow.org 
We speak with a Burmese dissident about the military coup underway in Burma as de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been arrested. The coup unfolded hours before lawmakers were to take their seats in the opening of parliament, following a November election in which Aung San Suu Kyi's party won over 80% of the contested seats in the Burmese parliament and the military made unsubstantiated claims of fraud. Hundreds of lawmakers, activists and human rights defenders have also been detained since the coup, and telecommunications have been cut in parts of Burma, which the military calls Myanmar. "The military decided…
(2021-02-03). Biden-Kerry international climate politricks. mronline.org 
Is U.S. President Joe Biden's January 27 Executive Order to address 'climate crisis' as good as many activists claim, enough to reverse earlier scepticism?>
(2021-02-03). Russian Strike Jet Flies Low Past US Destroyer in the Black Sea. anti-empire.com 
A Russian warplane conducted a low pass near the USS Donald Cook on Sunday in the Black Sea, where the Navy has dispatched three ships for exercises. | The Sukhoi Su-24 fighter-bomber screeched past the U.S. destroyer while it was operating in international waters, the U.S. Navy's 6th Fleet said in a statement. | The Navy said it operates in the Black Sea to reassure allies in the region and "ensure security and stability." | USS Donald Cook is operating alongside the destroyer USS Porter and USNS Laramie, which is refueling the warships during operations. | Refueling at sea is fundamental for the Navy, but doing…
(2021-02-03). How the Gulf War Sparked China's Military Revolution. anti-empire.com 
Monday marks the 30th anniversary of Operation Desert Storm, when American-led coalition forces invaded With the technology and firepower on show during the conflict — precision bombing, satellite guidance, missile interception, air-to-surface strike to eliminat…
(2021-02-03). What Does It Mean for a Virus to Become 'Endemic?'. anti-empire.com 
We already forgot we flattened the curve to allow hospital capacity to increase. The supposed purpose of the lockdowns was not to stop the virus but merely to better ration medical resources. | We already overlooked the common sense espoused by the We already missed the opportunity vaccines offered for us to rehabilitate social interaction and the economy. | And now, if we fail to recognize when Covid becomes 'endemic' and move on, society will be stuck in lockdown until 2023. | Even if you lock down society for two weeks (or two months) [md…
(2021-02-03). The Struggle Inside Senator Mitch McConnell's Brain. commondreams.org Allowing the Trumpian half of his brain to overpower his judgment and vote to acquit Dangerous Donald would spell disaster for the Republican Party (assuming the Democratic Party doesn't go to sleep as it did after Obama's win in 2008). | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-02-03). After Most US Troops Pull Out of Somalia, Some Reenter for Training. anti-empire.com 
Editor's note: It appears the Pentagon never even fully withdrew as Trump had told them to, but kept some behind with an eye to Biden. |
| The U.S. military on Sunday held its first training engagement in Somalia after the recent drawdown of most American troops stationed there, Africa Command announced Monday. | "Our first engagement back into Somalia so quickly after the repositioning shows we remain committed to our Somali and regional partners and support their fight against violent extremism," U.S.
(2021-02-03). Macron: AstraZeneca Vaccine Seems 'Quasi-Ineffective' for Over-65s. anti-empire.com 
French President Emmanual Macron said Friday the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine appeared to be "quasi-ineffective" on people older than 65 — just hours before the EU's drugs regulator "The real problem on AstraZeneca is that it doesn't work the way we were expecting it to," Macron told a group of reporters, including POLITICO, in Paris. "We're waiting for the EMA [European Medicines Agency] results, but today everything points to thinking it is quasi-ineffective on pe…
(2021-02-03). Huawei Struggles in Smartphone Market as Sanctions Bite, Apple Profits. anti-empire.com 
Chinese telecom giant Huawei saw a substantial drop in both smartphone shipments and market share in China market in 2020, following a tough year of US government's strangle on semiconductors supply, allowing US rival Apple to rise to fill up the void. | Under the US' relentless assault, Huawei saw a drop in market share in China from 38.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 to 25.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020, the only one of the top five smartphone makers in China whose share declined, an International Data Corp (IDC) report showed on Tuesday. | Industry experts said that Huawei's rare market share…
(2021-02-03). France, Sweden, Poland, Germany, France: Oxford/AstraZeneca Vaccine Not for Elderly. anti-empire.com 
The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine should be prioritized for people younger than 65, according to recommendations by government advisory bodies in France and Sweden on Tuesday, while Poland set its threshold at 60. | "Currently available data for people aged 65 and over are limited by a small sample size and don't allow for a conclusion on the safety and the efficacy of the [AstraZeneca] vaccine for this population," the French national authority for health (HAS) said. "The [AstraZeneca] vaccine is therefore recommended preferentially for health professionals under 65 and people under 65." | The three countries join…
(2021-02-03). Activists Push to Ban Fracking. zcomm.org "We do not know what our future holds right now. But we do know that any further fossil fuel extraction will only further perpetuate this"
(2021-02-02). Regime Journalists Mobilize to Ban Competition. And Your Free Speech. anti-empire.com 
"Like many of the other proponents of controlled speech mentioned here, Bazelon's writing has a detectable winking quality to it: Don't worry, dear reader, YOU'RE not the one who's going to be censored. THEY are. In fact, the censorship, so-called, won't even be that bad. You'll hardly notice it." | "One thing that people might not immediately recognize when they hear scary-sounding words like "censorship" is that the act of controlling other people's speech can be gratifying, a psychic net-positive for those who dream of a purified information space."The new enemy is no longer "disinformation" but "misinformatio…
(2021-02-02). Facility for 'Quarantine Objectors' in Germany Ready for Inmates. anti-empire.com 
Machine translated from German | Today is the official start, but so far the rooms have not been used. Until Friday afternoon it was not foreseeable that the districts would already make use of the accommodation, said a spokeswoman for the district assembly. In the building on the grounds of the Moltsfelde juvenile detention center in Neumàºnster, there is space for up to six quarantine objectors. The cells are each twelve square meters in size and the facility is closed from the outside. The operator is the Segeberg district and makes them available to the other districts and independent cities. | Housi…
(2021-02-02). China's New Aircraft Carrier Killer Is World's Largest Air-Launched Missile. anti-empire.com 
Navies are racing to develop hypersonic missiles which may change the pace of naval warfare. Russia will deploy the Zircon hypersonic missile aboard warships and submarines. The US Navy has started down the path of the common hypersonic glide body (c-HGB) for its destroyers. Meanwhile China's latest hypersonic weapon is something completely different; it is air launched. | The massive new missile, labelled CH-AS-X-13, is probably the largest air-launched missile in the world. | The missile was first reported by Ankit Panda, the Stanton Senior Fellow at the Nuclear Policy Program, Carnegie Endowment for Internatio…
(2021-02-02). Scientists Predict Humans Will Simply Be Giant Rolling Balls of Masks by 2024. anti-empire.com 
Experts are now predicting that humans will make a giant evolutionary leap forward in the next few years, moving from walking around on two legs to rolling around in a giant ball of masks, thanks to ever-evolving mask guidelines. | "At the current rate of mask growth, humans will evolve to just be rolling around in a giant ball of them within three years," said evolutionary biologist Bob Carson III. "As the mask arms race accelerates, we're already seeing humans wearing three, four, five, six, even seven masks. Projecting that rate out, assuming logarithmic growth — let's see, carry the one… yep. We're all…
(2021-02-02). Bill Gates Has a New $1bn Yacht That Shows He Is Morally Superior to You Because It's Hydrogen-Powered. anti-empire.com 
Editor's note: A $1bn yacht might be the ultimate symbol of excess, conspicuous consumption, and waste. But make it "hydrogen-powered" and suddenly it's a symbol of virtue, or so the bottom-feeding press would have you believe (see an exhibit below if you can stomach it). | And at all that Gates did not even earn his fortune (that he is now using to help keep you in lockdown), but is a tax parasite owing all his ill-begotten wealth to a state-granted monopoly patent. These were rightfully abolished centuries ago, but for some reason when it comes to the bogus concept of "intellectual property" a "patent" can stil…
(2021-02-02). On Inauguration Day, Police Nationwide Went After Left-Wing Protesters. truthout.org 
The storming of the U.S. Capitol by armed far right activists shifted the political climate for much of the U.S., despite the fact that anti-fascist activists and researchers had been warning for years that this type of response was imminent. While the tone and behavior of the far right had escalated since the election — a result of Donald Trump's failure to win a second term and his explosive conspiracy theories — the events on January 6 showed that the risks were not just street-level…
(2021-02-02). Biden urged to publicly support rights of citizens to boycott Israel. middleeasteye.net 
Biden urged to publicly support rights of citizens to boycott Israel | Human Rights Watch calls on Biden administration to renounce Trump-era policy that labelled BDS movement as antisemitic | Tue, 02/02/2021 – 16: 47 | The BDS movement was founded in 2005 and modelled after a similar campaign credited with ending apartheid in South Africa (AFP/File photo) | A leading human rights group has called on US Presid…
(2021-02-02). Tampa activists rally against police brutality and Gov. DeSantis' anti-protest bill. fightbacknews.org Tampa, FL – On January 30, the Tampa Bay Community Action Committee (TBCAC), alongside other local organizations and around two dozen people gathered near city hall to demand that state legislators reject HB1, the repressive bill being proposed by Governor Ron DeSantis. | William Blake, a member of TBCAC, said, "This bill is a huge attack on those fighting for police accountability in Florida. It would legalize running over a protester, something we've seen many times in Tampa, as well as giving felonies to those exercising basic constitutional rights." The bill, which was proposed during the uprisings of the sum…