By Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden, 23 May 2023 (IDN) — Do we, especially our politicians and media, focus more on threats than on opportunities, dwell on loses more than on gains, and learn more from past failures than from successes? When we are children, we are frightened of bogeymen. When we are adults, we often […]
The Military-Industrial Complex Is Triggering US Debt Crisis
By Jeffrey D. Sachs* This article was published in Common Dreams and is being republished with the author’s permission. NEW YORK, 22 May 2023 (IDN) — In the year 2000, the U.S. government debt was $3.5 trillion, equal to 35% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). By 2022, the debt was $24 trillion, equal to […]
China-Strategy: Transatlantic and European Cacophony
Viewpoint by Herbert Wulf This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished with their permission. BONN, Germany, 21 May 2023 (IDN) — The G7 summit of foreign ministers in Japan in mid-April sought to emphasise the need for a unified China policy. However, the diplomatic pronouncements can only gloss over […]
Has Hunter Biden Been Linked to Bangladesh Islamists?
Viewpoint by Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury* DHAKA, Bangladesh, 20 May 2023 (IDN) — US President Joe Biden’s scandalous son Hunter Biden, who has earlier met with State Department official on behalf of Gabriel Popoviciu, a corrupt Romanian real estate tycoon in exchange for US$1 million when Joe Biden was vice president in 2016, seems to […]
The Occupation Is Destroying Israel’s Democracy
Regardless of What Kind of Spin Is Put On By Alon Ben-Meir* NEW YORK, 19 May 2023 (IDN) — My recent article entitled “An Occupying Power Cannot Be a Beacon of Democracy” engendered both criticism and compliments. Given the severity of the Israeli occupation and the need to end it under conditions of peace, I […]
The Speech That Biden Should Give: ‘I’ve Changed My Mind’
By Norman Solomon* SAN FRANCISCO, 18 May 2023 (IDN) — My fellow Americans: I’ve changed my mind. With a heavy heart, I am announcing that I will not seek or accept the Democratic Party’s nomination for president in 2024. The poll numbers indicate that I would be a burden on the party’s national ticket next […]
Making the World More Equal Is a Hard Nut to Crack
By Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden, 16 May 2023 (IDN) — Maybe, after all, there is an argument for saying that the world needs more violence not less if we are to make its societies more equal. This is one conclusion we can derive from Walter Scheidel’s important book, “The Great Leveller”. He starts from what […]
Nuclear Energy: Problem and Solution
By Leonam dos Santos Guimarães Capt. (ret.) Brazilian Navy* Climate change and a third world war are the two main threats looming over humanity today. Nuclear energy is closely linked to these two threats in a paradoxical way: in the first as a solution and in the second as a problem, says the writer. RIO […]
The Climate Emergency and Urgency of System Change
By Dr Asoka Bandarage The writer, a scholar and practitioner, has taught at Yale, Brandeis, Mount Holyoke (where she received tenure), Georgetown, American and other universities, and colleges in the U.S. and abroad. Her latest book, Crisis in Sri Lanka and the World: Colonial and Neoliberal Origins: Ecological and Collective Alternatives will be released by […]
Turkish Voters Must Not Forget Erdogan’s Evil Deeds
By Alon Ben-Meir and Arbana Xharra* NEW YORK, 10 May 2023 (IDN) — Whether or not Erdogan wins the May 14 presidential election, his legacy will be marred by his authoritarianism, corruption, and ruthlessness. The Turkish people have now a historic opportunity to oust him and begin a process of healing the nation under the […]