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Articles from non-mainstream as opposed to corporate for profit sources.

Trump, Johnson, and Bolsonaro in the Swamp

Details: Published on Monday, 20 July 2020 03:54; Written by editor

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A Socialist Project e-bulletin ... No. 2149 ... July 20, 2020
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Trump, Johnson, and Bolsonaro in the Swamp:
How is the Pandemic Going for You?

Alfredo Saad-Filho

The spectacular failures of Brazil, the UK, and the USA during the COVID-19 pandemic offer valuable lessons on what must never happen again: the wishing away of the virus, minimising the potential impact of a pandemic on public health and the economy, delaying inevitable lockdowns, the list goes on. The failures also shed a powerful light on the root causes of the devastation.

In summary, the human disaster in our selected countries is unlikely to be compensated for by a shallower economic downturn -- quite the contrary, they are likely to do worse than average -- dismantling the argument that protecting the economy should be a priority and ‘if some pensioners die [as a consequence], too bad’.

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Political Struggle in the Time of Covid

Details: Published on Sunday, 19 July 2020 03:06; Written by editor

LeftStreamed:

Political Struggle in the Time of Covid

The film explores the possibilities for socialist change in the pandemic situation. Emergency economic measures demonstrate for example that the “unaffordable” is actually not and the temporary can be made permanent. This sort of positive possibility is set against what the ruling class will attempt in terms of exacerbating inequality through wealth transfer to the rich and the expansion of police powers and surveillance. It will be a multi-faceted set of battles over which way our future will unfold.

Garry Potter is a film maker and Professor of Sociology at Wilfrid Laurier University. He has made a number of educational films, which are available for purchase at socialtheoryfilms.com. As well as these he has made three free feature length documentary films Whispers of Revolution, Dystopia: What is to be done? and (with Stephen Svenson) Contract Faculty: Injustice in the University. He is also author of the book Dystopia, as well as The Bet: Truth in Science, Literature and Everyday Knowledges and The Philosophy of Social Science: New Perspectives.

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What $16 billion could accomplish

Details: Published on Saturday, 18 July 2020 08:06; Written by editor

Paov,

A report released by Energy Policy Tracker this week revealed that, since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada has committed to handing out 16 billion dollars in public money to fossil fuel companies.1 At a time when thousands across the country are struggling to make ends meet, it’s unacceptable for the government to pour billions into an industry that’s cooking the planet.

We have a once in a generation opportunity to put bold and ambitious recovery plans in place and tackle the climate emergency. It's time to defund harmful institutions, like the fossil fuel industry, and invest that public money into a low-carbon economy that puts the health and needs of people first.

Thanks for signing the petition to demand Minister Bill Morneau join G20 finance ministers to invest in a Just Recovery.

We did some research on what $16 billion could accomplish if it was invested into initiatives that helped us build back better as we come out of the pandemic:

Here’s what $16 billion could accomplish:

$150 million to kickstart 100 Indigenous-led renewable energy projects. Indigenous communities across the country are leading the transition...
Read more: What $16 billion could accomplish

35 billion tonnes of carbon

Details: Published on Saturday, 18 July 2020 05:02; Written by editor

35 billion tonnes of carbon r1 ...

Thank you!

Details: Published on Friday, 17 July 2020 21:04; Written by editor

Dear PAOV,

Thank you for calling on the finance ministers of all the G20 countries to let them know they need to be spending public money on a just, clean future, to benefit the many, not the wealthy few.

If enough of us speak out, we can keep building momentum and chart a path to a genuinely healthier and more equitable future through a just recovery.

Will you help us spread the word about this action?

>> Share the petition on Facebook.

>> Share the petition on Twitter.

Decisions made by rich economies will have a huge effect on the health and well-being of people around the world, particularly on those already on the frontlines of the climate crisis. The recovery cannot be every nation for itself, and this moment must bring the vision of multilateral effort that is required.

This is the start of a journey to build a vision for a new future and let leaders and budget holders know we will not settle for a return to business as usual.

Onwards,

Brett and the 350.org team

350.org is building a global climate movement. You can connect with us on Facebook, follow us on...

Defy the Powerful - Green Party Leadership Candidate, Dimitri Lascaris

Details: Published on Friday, 17 July 2020 19:32; Written by editor

Defy the Powerful - Green Party Leadership Candidate, Dimitri Lascaris r1 ...

Meghan Markle Is Challenging Young Women to Fight the Status Quo

Details: Published on Friday, 17 July 2020 04:38; Written by editor

READ

Meghan Markle Is Challenging Young Women to Fight the Status Quo

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An Economic Recovery for Who?

Details: Published on Friday, 17 July 2020 03:26; Written by editor

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A Socialist Project e-bulletin ... No. 2148 ... July 17, 2020
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An Economic Recovery for Who?
The Ford Omnibus Bill and Post-Pandemic Politics

Bruce Kecskes

In the first week of July, the Ontario government announced the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act (Bill 197). The sweeping omnibus bill changes twenty pieces of existing legislation and introduces several new acts. There has been little discussion in the mainstream media regarding the content of the bill, outside of the talking points provided by the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Steve Clark, and Education Minister Stephen Lecce. According to Clark, the Recovery Act would speed up the process for environmental assessments, address unemployment, create new consumer protections, and attract investors to the province. Lecce has declared that the omnibus contains measures to end school suspension prior to the fourth grade.

Any criticism of the bill that has appeared in the media, insofar as there has been any published criticism at all, has centered around the inclusion of measures which have little to do with COVID-19 or the economy. Such unrelated measures include changes to the Education Act, modifying the appointment process...

You don't want to miss this

Details: Published on Thursday, 16 July 2020 10:38; Written by editor

Ban Street Checks r1

Dear BCCLA Supporter,

The pressure is working.

In just 2 weeks, over 6,500 people have signed the petition calling for an immediate ban on police street checks across BC.

Our collective voices have pushed more municipalities to introduce motions seeking to ban street checks. Today, Victoria City Council approved a motion calling for the Victoria Police Board and Victoria Police Department to prioritize banning the practice.

We’re already seeing an impact, but we can’t stop now. We need to ensure that this illegal and racist police practice is banned across the province.

Can you help us reach 10,000 signatures to demand a province-wide ban of street checks?

More people means more pressure on government officials to take action. Together, we can’t be ignored.

Police street checks are a province-wide issue. Indigenous and Black people, particularly Indigenous women, are overrepresented in street checks data for all eleven municipal police forces in BC.

In Victoria, 9.9% of people street checked between 2007 and 2017 were Indigenous, despite...

Terrifying swarms of locusts

Details: Published on Thursday, 16 July 2020 09:58; Written by editor

Take Action

130 Million People May Face Chronic Hunger

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The Fortress World: After the Pandemic, Which Future?

Details: Published on Thursday, 16 July 2020 03:52; Written by editor

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A Socialist Project e-bulletin ... No. 2147 ... July 16, 2020
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The Fortress World: After the Pandemic, Which Future?

Shalmali Guttal

We were already on the way to variations of Fortress World before COVID-19: right-wing, authoritarian/fascist regimes have been able to capture political power riding on the immiseration, anxieties, and frustration resulting from global capitalism and corporate globalization, while progressive political-societal forces have been unable to unite resistance and create spaces for alternative systems to flourish.

COVID-19 has made visible the stark realities of inequality across the world. Class and social privilege, race/ethnicity, gender, occupation, and age determine who are most vulnerable to the virus and who suffer the worst impacts of the pandemic, including the economic, social, and political ramifications of the measures taken by many governments to contain the disease. While heredity is important, pre-existing health conditions of co-morbidity also exist caused and exacerbated by entrenched inequalities, which determine work conditions and environments, as well as access to good-quality healthcare, diet, and facilities to prevent disease -- e.g., regular water supply, sanitation, housing that allows physical distancing/quarantine, personal protective equipment (PPE), etc.
Read more: The Fortress World: After the Pandemic, Which Future?

16 billion dollars to oil and gas?!

Details: Published on Wednesday, 15 July 2020 13:16; Written by editor

Friends,

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada has committed to hand out 16 billion dollars in public money to oil and gas companies.1 At a time where families and communities are struggling to meet their basic needs, it's unacceptable for our elected officials to line the pockets of fossil fuel billionaires.

There's less than a week until the finance ministers of every G20 country, who control the budgets of the globe’s wealthiest countries, meet to discuss their plans for COVID-19 economic recovery. We need to demand that elected officials give direct support to people first.

That’s why we need to tell Finance Minister Bill Morneau to invest public money for a Just Recovery that puts people first. Take 2 minutes to sign the petition.

Think about what $16 billion could accomplish if it was put towards meeting the needs of thousands of people across the country who are struggling to make ends meet. We need unprecedented action and investment now to tackle systemic racism, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the climate emergency. G20 ministers – including Morneau – want to bring us back to business as usual. But,...

Facebook ad boycott

Details: Published on Wednesday, 15 July 2020 12:32; Written by editor

Hundreds of companies have already dumped Facebook ads until the platform cleans up its hate speech problem, doing critical damage to Facebook's bottom line.

Now we can join too! If millions tell Facebook we're boycotting ads and download an ad blocker, we can create a new wave of pressure and force Facebook's hand. Help stop the hate:

Join the facebook ad boycott

Facebook is reeling as corporate giants — from Coke to Ford to Starbucks — suspend their ads on the platform until it cleans up hate speech.

Ads bring Facebook 99% of its income, so this boycott is hitting where it hurts — and now we can join in, too.

If millions of people say we won’t let Facebook show us any ads until they clean up the hate -- and download a simple, free adblocker -- we can generate a new people-powered media wave and double the pressure on Facebook to act.

We need massive participation for this to work —...

Free Virtual Documentary Screening of Cottagers and Indians - You're Invited!

Details: Published on Wednesday, 18 November 2020 13:22; Written by editor

Challenges and Openings for the Free Transit Movement in Toronto

Details: Published on Wednesday, 15 July 2020 01:48; Written by editor

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A Socialist Project e-bulletin ... No. 2146 ... July 15, 2020
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Challenges and Openings for the Free Transit Movement in Toronto

Herman Rosenfeld

Toronto is Canada’s largest city, with a population of 2.7 million (and over 6 million in the Greater Toronto Area). The public transit system is the third largest in North America, after New York City and Mexico City. It is made up of four subway lines, 11 streetcar routes; and over 140 bus routes. The city transit system is run by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), which is responsible to the Toronto city government. There are also public transit stops for the regional system, called GO, which, in turn, is managed by the regional transit authority Metrolinx, which is responsible to the province of Ontario. Suburban regions and municipalities have their own operators. Compared to them, as well as GO, the TTC carries by far the most passengers.

While massively used, the Toronto transit system is chronically underfunded, both absolutely, and in comparison, with other transit systems. The subsidy per rider was approximately $1.07 in 2019, up from the traditional levels, but...

Canada + online hate

Details: Published on Tuesday, 14 July 2020 06:26; Written by editor

Researchers have just identified a vast army of far-right internet trolls -- in Canada! Now experts are calling for a new law to force social media bosses to clamp down on hate. If we turn this into a national story Justin Trudeau will have to pay attention. Add your name:

Sign the petition

Researchers have just identified a vast army of far-right internet trolls -- in Canada! They turned up more than 6000 social media accounts and pages pumping violent and racist propaganda to millions worldwide.

This stuff has deadly consequences -- like the man, inspired by these messages, who allegedly walked into a Toronto massage parlour and brutally murdered 24-year-old Ashley Arzaga with a machete.

But there’s a way Canada can clean up this mess. The UK has just drafted a tough new law that would force social media bosses to protect users from harmful content, and experts are urging the Canadian government to adopt it too.

If we can turn this into...

The Fiscal Deficit, Modern Monetary Theory and Progressive Economic Policy

Details: Published on Tuesday, 14 July 2020 02:56; Written by editor

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A Socialist Project e-bulletin ... No. 2145 ... July 14, 2020
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The Fiscal Deficit, Modern Monetary Theory and Progressive Economic Policy

Andrew Jackson

Modern Monetary Theory or MMT has crept in from the academic margins to become an influential doctrine in progressive policy circles in the United States. Both Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders drew on the ideas of MMT to shape their ambitious public spending platforms. MMT has been cited as one way to fund a Green New Deal, in combination with progressive tax reform.

It is safe to say that most Canadian progressives are not debating the finer points of monetary and fiscal policy. However it is useful to critically consider some of the most important pros and cons of MMT, based on the new book by a leading US advocate, Stephanie Kelton. (The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People’s Economy. New York: Public Affairs, 2020.) In a nutshell, MMT puts forward a powerful critique of mainstream macro-economic policy but discounts the need for truly radical change if the economy is to be regulated and managed for the...

Cuba in the Last Stretch of the Pandemic

Details: Published on Sunday, 12 July 2020 00:12; Written by editor

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A Socialist Project e-bulletin ... No. 2144 ... July 12, 2020
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Cuba in the Last Stretch of the Pandemic

The following article by Fernando Ravsberg appeared in the Salvadorian digital daily news site ContraPunto on June 24. The translation from the Spanish, which includes a few explanatory additions, is by The Bullet.

It is worth mentioning some of the significant developments that have occurred in the two weeks since Ravsberg’s article appeared.

Cuba’s efforts against the virus continue to show remarkable results. July 7 marked the 11th consecutive day without a single death attributable to Covid-19. As of that date, the country had seen only 2,399 confirmed cases of infection by the virus, and of these, 2,242 of those infected have recovered. The death toll is only 86.

Significantly, given the experience of wealthy countries in North America and Western Europe, not a single Cuban health worker, whether a doctor or a floor cleaner, has succumbed to the virus.

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Mohawk Uprising 30th Anniversary

Details: Published on Saturday, 11 July 2020 05:56; Written by editor

Mohawk Uprising 30th Anniversary r1 Hi Paov Today marks the 30th anniversary of the 1990 Kanehsatà:ke and Kahnawake Siege where the Kanien’kehá:ka Nation were denied the fundamental human rights without any just recourse. 30 Years Later, the Rotinonhseshá:ka are still fighting the same issues of Canada, Quebec and Oka colluding to commit land fraud under the auspices of development based on institutionalized racism.
On July 11th , 1990 at 5:15 a.m., it was 13 women who faced off against the paramilitary SWAT team of the SQ, the Montreal urban police and the Canadian Army. We honour those women today and all those who fought on the Front lines of the Battle for the Pines. Rolling Blockade and Broadcast Happening Now! ...

So youre telling me theres a chance

Details: Published on Saturday, 11 July 2020 05:02; Written by editor

So you’re telling me there’s a chance r1 ...

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