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"War against a foreign country only happens when the moneyed classes think they are going to profit from it."

-- George Orwell

News and Opinion

Biden State Department Quietly Grants Boeing an Export License for $735 Million Bomb Sale to Israel

The Biden administration has reportedly granted Boeing an export license for the sale of $735 million in advanced weaponry to the Israeli government, news that came as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday pledged $5.5 million in emergency aid to help Gaza recover from the latest Israeli bombing campaign.

Citing an unnamed congressional staffer, Alex Kane of Jewish Currents reported Tuesday that the U.S. State Department approved the export license on May 21, a necessary step in the planned delivery of Joint Direct Attack Munitions and Small Diameter Bombs to Israel.

As Kane pointed out, the "two kinds of laser-guided munitions... were reportedly used by Israel in the 11-day attack on the Gaza Strip that ended on Friday with a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas." ...

Warning that selling additional weapons to the Israeli government would deepen U.S. complicity in war crimes, a small coalition of progressive lawmakers last week mounted a late bid to block the agreement with so-called resolutions of disapproval.

But neither the House nor Senate resolution—led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), respectively—has received a vote as the Biden administration plows ahead with the sale. The lawmakers say Congress still has a chance to stop the deal before the weapons are delivered.

Jewish Currents reported Tuesday that after being notified of the export license, Sanders "responded by placing a hold on all State Department nominees, blocking Congress from considering them for diplomatic posts."

"After the administration committed to humanitarian aid for the rebuilding of Gaza, Sanders lifted the hold," according to Jewish Currents. ...

"The State Department should immediately revoke approval for this arms sale to, at minimum, allow for proper debate in Congress," Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) told Jewish Currents. "Remember that these are weapons of war and destruction that will be used to kill children, bomb hospitals, homes, and schools—lives literally hang in the balance."

Gaza resistance: beginning of the end for apartheid Israel?

Israeli Police Target Palestinian Journalists at Al Aqsa Mosque

On May 7, as tensions mounted in Jerusalem, a Palestinian photojournalist at Al Aqsa Mosque, in the Old City, trained his video camera on an Israeli police officer. The police had begun their incursions into the site as protests against evictions of Palestinians in East Jerusalem were growing. The Palestinian journalist at Al Aqsa filmed as the police officer yelled a threat — “One more time and I’ll break your cameras — get out!” — then lunged, causing the journalist to drop their camera. In another video, police are seen attacking another Palestinian journalist, even as the reporter is telling them that he has authorization to be at the compound. And last Friday, police beat Ahmad Gharabli, a Palestinian photojournalist with Agence France-Presse, with a baton.

“I arrived to cover the Friday prayers at the mosque, as usual,” said Gharabli, a veteran, award-winning photojournalist. “One police officer started beating me with a baton, even though I had identified myself as a journalist. I kept filming throughout his assault. He beat me with the baton eight times, on my knee and legs. Another officer pressed the barrel of his rifle into my back.” The attack was intense enough that the following day Gharabli underwent a medical exam; there were no fractures, but his legs remain dotted with bruises.

Gharabli and the other journalists are far from alone. While Israeli and international members of the press have also been attacked, Palestinian journalists have been targeted disproportionately: At least 15 journalists have been wounded by Israeli forces since the beginning of May, of whom 13 are Palestinian. Along with other restrictions imposed by Israeli authorities, the attacks, say press advocates, hamper press freedoms in what has become a major flashpoint for violence surrounding Israel’s occupation of Palestine.

Over the past month, as Palestinians continued protesting the imminent expulsion of Palestinian families from Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, police assaults on journalists have increased, according to the Union of Journalists in Israel. ...

“Why are they not letting us do our job?” said Faiz Abu Rmeleh, a Palestinian photographer with the Turkish Anadolu Agency. “We are documenting their actions, and they are afraid of that. In Al Aqsa, police feel emboldened to use more force.” He added, “They do not want any photos to come out. Outside, you can speak with the police chief, but when police are inside Al Aqsa, you cannot talk to anyone. Nothing helps. They are like robots — only shoving and beating.”

Associated Press vows to defend staff against online attacks after Emily Wilder firing

Management at the Associated Press have told staff that they stand behind their decision to fire newly hired reporter Emily Wilder who was targeted by a Republican smear campaign regarding her pro-Palestinian advocacy while a student. However, they also admitted to mishandling the situation and vowed to defend their staff against online attacks.

The AP have stated they fired Wilder for breaching their social media policies while she was an employee, not for her previous activities at college. But they have provided no detail on what those breaches were.

Wilder’s firing has triggered widespread internal unrest at the AP and also external criticism of its actions. At a staff town hall Amanda Barrett, a deputy managing editor, told employees that trust had been lost but that: “The AP will protect you. We will have your back.” ...

Details of the town hall were passed to the Guardian by a source who was able to listen in. Transcripts of the meeting’s chat channel were also provided. Some AP staffers voiced concerns at the town hall that senior staff has not backed them in the past or would not back them in the future when coming in for online attacks.

Keiser Report | Beggars Can’t Be Choosers

China Calls Partnership With Russia 'Solid as a Rock' After Russia Denies Alliance Against U.S.

China and Russia are growing closer as ties with the United States have deteriorated, raising questions about a potential military alliance between the two superpowers. Despite concerns on the part of America and its allies, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov denied the goal is to mount a joint effort against the United States.

Asked Monday about a potential alliance against the U.S., Lavrov told Argumenty i Fakty (AIF), a Russian newspaper, that Russia and China are "satisfied" with the "current format of cooperation." However, he left the door open for that to change, just as China has.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told reporters on Tuesday that China's partnership with Russia has "grown as solid as a rock." The two nations' adherence to "non-alliance" is part of what has allowed the relationship to withstand "the test of a changing international landscape," according to Zhao, and to become a "stabilizing force" in the modern world.

China also denied plans for a military alliance. Ni Lexiong, a Shanghai-based military expert, told the South China Morning Post it's not advantageous for the two country to make that announcement. "Today, only countries that intend to wage war announce plans for military alliances," Ni said. "You push yourself into a corner when you do that, cutting out any room for negotiation. It's not in China's interests."

Dr. Monica Gandhi on the Origins of COVID-19, Vaccine Equity, the Debate over Masks & More

Joe Biden orders US intelligence to intensify efforts to study Covid’s origins

Joe Biden has ordered the US intelligence community to intensify its efforts to study the origins of coronavirus, adding that it will continue to press for China to participate in a full investigation. The president said he received a report earlier this month with the “most up-to-date analysis of the origins of Covid-19”, but had asked intelligence agencies to “redouble” their efforts to identify a “definitive conclusion” on how the virus was first transmitted in humans.

“I have now asked the intelligence community to redouble their efforts to collect and analyze information that could bring us closer to a definitive conclusion, and to report back to me in 90 days. As part of that report, I have asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required, including specific questions for China,” Biden said in a statement on Wednesday. ...

Much remains unknown about its origins and China has been sensitive about any suggestion it could have done more in the early stages of the pandemic to stop it.

Biden’s request included asking the US intelligence community to explore the unlikely possibility that the origins of the virus trace to Chinese lab. After months of minimizing the possibility as a fringe theory, the Biden administration is responding both to domestic and geopolitical concerns about putting pressure on China to be transparent about the outbreak.

Fact Checkers Take A Beating On Lab Leak Theory

Woman sues employer who fired her for calling police on Black birdwatcher

Amy Cooper, the white woman who falsely told police that Black birdwatcher Christian Cooper had threatened her in New York City’s Central Park, is suing her employer for false dismissal. In a complaint filed on Tuesday night in Manhattan federal court obtained by Reuters, Cooper claims she was fired by her former employer, the financial advisory firm Franklin Templeton, without proper investigation of the incident and accused the company of falsely portraying her as racist.

In the complaint, Cooper said the company’s actions’ “caused her such severe emotional distress that she was suicidal”. She is seeking unspecified damages for race and gender discrimination, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligence, according to Reuters.

On 25 May 2020, Cooper claimed in a call to police that there had been “an African American man threatening my life”, after the birdwatcher advised her that unleashed dogs were not permitted in that area of the park.

Christian Cooper, who is not related to her, posted a video of the interaction on Facebook that has been viewed 45m times. Franklin Templeton fired Amy Cooper the next day, and she was later charged with filing a false police report.

White male minority rule pervades politics across the US, research shows

From county officials and sheriffs to governors and senators, white male minority rule pervades politics in the United States, according to a new report published on Wednesday. White men represent 30% of the population but 62% of officeholders, dominating both chambers of Congress, 42 state legislatures and statewide roles across the nation, the analysis shows.

By contrast, women and people of color constitute 51% and 40% of the US population respectively, but just 31% and 13% of officeholders, according to the research by the Reflective Democracy Campaign, shared exclusively with the Guardian. “I think if we saw these numbers in another country, we would say there is something very wrong with that political system,” said Brenda Choresi Carter, the campaign’s director.

“We would say, ‘how could that possibly be a democratic system with that kind of demographic mismatch?’”

Two factors perpetuate white male control over virtually every lever of US government: the huge advantage enjoyed by incumbents, and the Republican party’s continued focus on mostly white male candidates.

Data Reveals Class POPULISM Is Key To Winning Elections

ExxonMobil and Chevron suffer shareholder rebellions over climate

US oil giants ExxonMobil and Chevron have suffered shareholder rebellions from climate activists and disgruntled institutional investors over their failure to set a strategy for a low-carbon future. Exxon failed to defend its board against a coup launched by dissident hedge fund activists at Engine No. 1 which successfully replaced two Exxon board members with its own candidates to help drive the oil company towards a greener strategy.

Meanwhile, a majority of Chevron shareholders rebelled against the company’s board by voting 61% in favour of an activist proposal from – Dutch campaign group Follow This – to force the group to cut its carbon emissions. Mark van Baal, who founded Follow This, said Wednesday’s shareholder revolts mark an investor “paradigm shift” and a “victory in the fight against climate change”. ... “Institutional investors understand that no investment is safe in a global economy wracked by devastating climate change,” Van Baal said.

The activist win against Chevron was the third successful insurrection coordinated by Follow This against the boards of US oil companies after it forced through votes to cut emissions at ConocoPhillips and Phillips 66 earlier this month. Exxon was forced to adjourn its annual shareholder meeting for an hour in a bid to stave off the rebellion by Engine No.1 which may claim a further two board seats once the preliminary results are finalised. Exxon said the vote was too close to call late on Wednesday.

Shell ordered to go further with carbon emissions cuts in landmark Dutch case

Airships for city hops could cut flying’s CO2 emissions by 90%

For those fancying a trip from Liverpool to Belfast or Barcelona to the Balearic Islands but concerned about the carbon footprint of aeroplane travel, a small Bedford-based company is promising a surprising solution: commercial airships. Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV), which has developed a new environmentally friendly airship 84 years after the Hindenburg disaster, on Wednesday named a string of routes it hoped to serve from 2025. ...

HAV, which has in the past attracted funding from Peter Hambro, a founder of Russian gold-miner Petropavlovsk, and Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson, said its aircraft was “ideally suited to inter-city mobility applications like Liverpool to Belfast and Seattle to Vancouver, which Airlander can service with a tiny fraction of the emissions of current air options”.

Tom Grundy, HAV’s chief executive, who compares the Airlander to a “fast ferry”, said: “This isn’t a luxury product it’s a practical solution to challenges posed by the climate crisis.”

He said that 47% of regional aeroplane flights connect cities that are less than 230 miles (370km) apart, and emit a huge about of carbon dioxide doing so. “We’ve got aircraft designed to travel very long distances going very short distances, when there is actually a better solution,” Grundy said. “How much longer will we expect to have the luxury of travelling these short distances with such a big carbon footprint?”

Grundy said the hybrid-electric Airlander 10 could make the same connections with 10% of the carbon footprint from 2025, and with even smaller emissions in the future when the airships were expected to be all-electric powered. “It’s an early and quick win for the climate,” he said. “Especially when you use this to get over an obstacle like water or hills.”

California could launch the west coast’s first commercial offshore windfarms

California has taken a major step towards launching the first commercial offshore wind energy program on the west coast, a project that would open the state’s waters to hundreds of floating turbines and could eventually power 1.6m homes.

The state announced an agreement with the US government on Tuesday that would open federal waters off California’s central and northern coasts to new windfarms, and put the state and the country in a better position to meet ambitious climate targets.

“California, as we all know, has a world class offshore wind resource, and it can play a major role in helping to accelerate California’s and the nation’s transition to clean energy,” said Gina McCarthy, the White House’s national climate adviser.

The new projects, if approved and built, would provide a major expansion of offshore wind power in the US. Currently, there are just two working offshore windfarms – off Block Island in Rhode Island and off Virginia – but more than two dozen others are in development.

The announcement is part of Joe Biden’s plan to create 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030. California separately set a goal to produce all electricity by 2045 through renewable energy resources and zero-carbon generating facilities. The plan includes floating 380 windmills across a nearly 400 sq-mile (1,035 sq km) expanse of roughly 250,000 acres north-west of Morro Bay.

Also of Interest

Here are some articles of interest, some which defied fair-use abstraction.

Did Jordan’s closest allies plot to unseat its king?

How a fascist party brought into Israel’s parliament by Netanyahu helped him start the war he wanted

US planned nuclear attack on Chinese cities in 1958 Taiwan crisis

The US Empire Is A Self-Reinforcing Trauma Factory

This Week in Neo-Soviet News... In which a leading American paper quietly excises an inconvenient historical detail

Roman Protasevich - Arrested In Belarus - Is A Western Government Financed Neo-Nazi

Amazon workers are rising up around the world to say: enough

Will There Be Resource Wars in a Renewable Future?

How a ranger stumbled upon one of the largest fossil finds in California history

Hot tub health kick: why a long bath is almost as good for you as a long run

Jimmy Dore: Mark Ruffalo Caves To Israel On Palestine

Krystal Ball: How Wall St Is DESTROYING Housing Like It Destroyed The World

A Little Night Music

Robert Ward - Hot Stuff

Robert Ward & The Ohio Untouchables - Your Love Is Real

Robert Ward - My Love Is Strictly Reserved For You

Robert Ward - I Found A Love

Robert Ward - Something For Nothing

Robert Ward - I Will Fear No Evil

Robert Ward - Workout

Robert Ward - I'm Gonna Cry a River

Robert Ward - Soul Stroll

Robert Ward - Black Bottom