Friday, November 27:

Arthur Shaw: Venezuelan revolutionaries in 2008 have given a dazzling performance "Administration" is a kind of takeover on entities that doesn't necessarily entail expropriation with payment of fair compensation or confiscation without such compensation ... many options are available in an administration ...

Thursday, November 26:

Jim Hightower: Giving Thanks for America's Good Food Movement What better day than Thanksgiving to celebrate our country's food rebels! The growing movement of small farmers, food artisans, local retailers, co-ops, community organizers, restaurateurs, environmentalists, consumers and others. This movement has spread the rich ideas of sustainability, organic, local control and the Common Good from the fringes of our food economy into the mainstream.

Wednesday, November 25:

Thom Hartmann: 80 years ago today (3 comments) 80 years ago today, on October 29th, 1929, Wall Street saw the worst day in its history. The shock of "Black Tuesday" came to an end, but the misery of the Republican Great Depression was just beginning.

Sheila Dean: *Fusion center data consolidation effort failing, Texas seeks public input Since the passage of the PATRIOT Act, data collection has been a part of an ambitious effort to coordinate national security efforts. Many state governments are in the process of developing warehouses for private and public information in centralized digital hubs called fusion centers, over 70 of which have already been established around the country.One fusion center is the North Central Texas Fusion Center (NCTFS).

Noeline Clayfield: CLIMATEGATE & POTENTIAL RELEASE OF FREE ENERGY TECHNOLOGY There has been very little media coverage of the recent release of information hacked from Global Warming Facility CRU, Anglia, UK,which has blown open the fraudulent activities of secret government and corporation promoting global warming and climate change. Now there is the potential release of free energy technology hidden and ignored for the last 100 years.

P. Orin Zack: Short Story: "A Hard Box to Think Outside Of" (13th in a series) If corporations were convicted for their crimes, how much of the economy would survive? If those crimes included bribing public officials with campaign money, how much of the government would survive? Sure, we might eventually end up with something better, but what do we do in the meantime? If the scam of fractional-reserve banking was shut down, how would you buy your groceries? Would there even be groceries? I'm just asking.

David Model: A Tax Increase for What? (2 comments) Two powerful members of Congress called for a war tax to pay for new troops to be deployed in Afghanistan. It is interesting that these two members of Congress are suggesting the unthinkable, a tax increase. When was the last time you heard a member of Congress call for a tax increase for healthcare, poverty, homelessness, veterans? Washington's priorities are defined by the urgency of this tax increase to support a war.

Tuesday, November 24:

Bina Shah: Patient Capital and Power Soft power, hard power, and the power of patient capital - the possibilities vis a vis Pakistan explored in this op-ed piece by Pakistani writer Bina Shah

Rabbi Michael Lerner: Obama's Declining Popularity (13 comments) While Obama is still hailed around the world in almost messianic tones, recent polls indicate his approval rate is below 50% in the U.S. How could a man who aroused so much hope be losing support so dramatically? And what lessons can be learned for politicians all around the world?

George Washington: Instead of Fixing the U.S. Economy or Creating Jobs for AMERICANS, Obama Will Spend The Money in Afghanistan and Iraq The wars are unnecessary, and they are draining resources which could be used to reduce unemployment and help the economy.

Monday, November 23:

P. Orin Zack: Short Story: "Striking the Set Piece" (12th in a series) If corporations could be convicted of their crimes, which ones would you want to bring to justice? Some, such as Blackwater, are obvious choices, because they boldly flaunt the law, or sidestep it by operating in the grey zones between government and private industry. Others are more subtle. They bankroll campaigns and pad pockets, and in return, get legislation either passed or blocked. Don't be hoodwinked by the puppeteers.

David Glenn Cox: What goes around comes around (1 comments) There is only one thought that is important to remember: Anything we are willing to do to some third-world peasant to obtain information, we are just as willing to do to you. The cascading effect is all too clear all throughout history, be it hunting for witches or hunting for Al Qaeda. The Taser weapon was first introduced to the United States as an alternative to deadly force.

Rob Kall: China Buys Hummer Brand-- Further Evidence of a Shock Doctrine Assaulted America? (17 comments) Naomi Klein described, in her breaktrhough book, Shock Doctrine, how a nation is attacked, shocked and torn apart, destroying the middle class. It looks like the GM sale of Hummer to a wealthy Chinese investor, probably with the help of Morgan Stanley, is an example of how it's happening in the US.

Sunday, November 22:

Richard Girard: The Social Element of Social Capitalism "Women and children first!" cried the Titanic's Captain as she prepared for her final, fatal plunge. In our modern world, I believe that how we treat children and the opposite sex is a direct reflection of how we react to different and diverse peoples and ideas. There are few if any supporters of the ERA in the KKK; we need to examine the basis for this truth.

Patrick J. O'Donoghue: After a visit to the Ana Soto Socialist farm in Venezuela, I say hell to the begrudgers! (1 comments) One of the myths currently being spun with care and malice abroad by opposition think tanks, such as VenEconomy or Veneconomia is that state companies and expropriated farms are "unproductive, highly political, inefficient and badly administered."

Gustav Wynn: Is Sean Hannity's Political Talk Hampering Our Children's Critical Thinking? (13 comments) The Supreme Court will soon be deciding if McCain-Feingold campaign regulation should allow corporations to fund election propaganda. But we already have this going on every day in talk radio, where the #1 broadcasters in the US are openly partisan and supported by corporate contributors like the Heritage Foundation. Should we allow propaganda over public airwaves and if so, what will this do to our children?

Nancy Tobi: Organized Crime Fighting (1 comments) America's elections are no longer run by public officials. Everyone's heard of Diebold, but who are the people hired by Diebold to really run our elections? In New England, we know at least one of them is a convicted felon - a drug trafficker. We don't know too much about the rest of them, because their identities are kept secret. Is this any way to run a democracy?

Susan Galleymore: The Tea Party as Good Beginning (1 comments) My "left-leaning" friends had persuaded me that "right-leaning" folk are successful at spreading their message because they know they how to tow the party line, how to follow, and how to obey. And that this is unlike those of us on the "left" who march to our own tune, squabble for meager media attention, and splinter off to form smaller and less effective groups when challenges arise.

P. Orin Zack: Short Story: "Foreclosed Future" (part 11 of a series) What if corporations were convicted for their crimes? John Frachetti, whose inflammatory blog posts got him accused of being a terrorist, has been laying low in the FW Diner, a chain that was turned into a haven for activists after the union reframed the CEO's scheme to profit from the company's conviction for theft. But after some unplanned publicity, he's gone back underground. Here's a dispatch from the road.

shamus cooke: Obama's Fraudulent “Job Summit” A new stimulus package must be much larger, and wholly dedicated to creating jobs, not merely “saving” them. The current situation in the U.S. is one of complete social failure; there is immense work that needs to be done — in infrastructure especially — while there exists millions of workers available to do the job. But nothing happens.

Ann Garrison: Planting bio-fuels, in Rwanda, while Rwandans go hungry Rwanda's greatest natural resource is its fertile agricultural land, but most is centralized in the hands of government elites and planted in export crops, coffee, tea, flowers, and soon, bio-fuels----while Rwandans go hungry.

michael payne: China vs. U.S.: economic power vs. military might; which will prevail? (11 comments) Two world powers, with two distinctly different political philosophies, proceed in world affairs on strikingly different courses. China has chosen to flex its economic muscle while America's strategy is based on using military might in pursuing its agenda.

Saturday, November 21:

Grant Lawrence: Would Americans be Pro-Wars if They Had to Pay for Them with Higher Taxes? (11 comments) I wonder if Americans would opt for blood or revert to the greed if they knew their occupations would hit them right in their own wallet right now.

Jason Paz: Justice Delayed is Justice Denied (2 comments) We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action campaign that was "well timed" in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word "Wait!" It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. - Martin Luther King

James Brett: The End of an Era? The portent for our holiday economy is laden with opportunity for even more unemployment, bankruptcies and business failures. Do these in turn portend an end to American consumerism. The answer is not "no"; it is "maybe," and that is good!

George Washington: Is America Finally Starting to Stand Up To Wall Street? (2 comments) ???

Friday, November 27:

Taxing the Speculators by Paul Krugman While a financial transactions tax would not completely prevent any future crisis, it could generate substantial revenue while providing a useful check on reckless short-term speculation. Europe is beginning to do it. But Geithner opposes it. Time for Geithner to go.

Impossible Numbers Certified in NY-23 How can we have a democracy if we cannot know if the vote count is accurate?If election officials cannot know,&if the candidates cannot know,& if the voters cannot know that the official results are true and correct,why even have an election? Vote counting concealed from the public is a crime waiting to happen.Because electronic vote counting is an invisible process,it flies in the face of tradition and case law.

Giving Thanks to the Market | by Anthony Gregory Neglected by most official hosannas sung for those whom we presumably owe our loudest thanks are the greatest public servants of them all. I am talking about the merchants, the farmers and truck drivers, the waiters and waitresses, the storeowners and bag boys. I'm referring to the businessmen and businesswomen, the producers and sellers, the investors, the stockholders and brokers.

Thursday, November 26:

Merck's Vioxx scandal widens: Drug maker knew Vioxx was deadly for years before risk was made public (1 comments) Merck knowingly and maliciously allowed a deadly drug to continue to be sold to patients for years. It's a clear case of profits before patients from a drug company mired in one scandal after another. (Merck is also the maker of Gardasil, the cervical cancer vaccine.)

Wednesday, November 25:

Judge blasts bad bank, erases 525G debt A Long Island couple is home free after an outraged judge gave them an amazing Thanksgiving present -- canceling their debt to ruthless bankers trying to toss them out on the street.

Geithner's Disgrace. - By Eliot Spitzer (Slate) Barofsky's report reads like a case study in failed negotiation. The New York Fed didn't have the backbone to stand up to Wall Street, didn't understand its capacity to protect taxpayers, and didn't appreciate that its responsibility was to taxpayers.

One More Bubble to Go There were actually two debt bubbles. One was driven by Americans borrowing against unsustainable inflation in housing prices. The other was driven by America borrowing against unsustainable inflation in the price of the U.S. dollar. One more bubble is left to pop. When it does, our unique economic cushion -- privileged access to the world's savings -- will deflate.

Tuesday, November 24:

Huffington: Will The Unemployment Disaster Be Obama's Katrina? "At this point you have to wonder what Obama's attachment to Summers and Geithner is."

Watchdog puts no bite on despots, Gerald M. Steinberg and Dan Kosky The president and communications director of NGO Monitor supports the call for reform of Human Rights Watch (HRW) by its founder, Robert Bernstein.

Monday, November 23:

What Ever Happened to That Prosperity the Tax-Cutters Promised? Older households in the bottom and middle income thirds — those over age 50 — have, to be sure, seen their after-inflation net worths increase between 1983 and 2009. But these households have lost at least 22 percent of the wealth they held in 2007. As older families, Bosworth and Smart note, they now “have less time to recover.” That recovery may take some time.

Paul Krugman: The Phantom Menace (2 comments) it's politically difficult for the Obama administration to enact a full-scale second stimulus. Still, he should be trying to push through as much aid to the economy as possible. And remember, Mr. Obama has the bully pulpit; it's his job to persuade America to do what needs to be done.

Sunday, November 22:

Obama's extra-judicial killers Bush authorized the CIA to operate freely and fully in Afghanistan with its own paramilitary teams—and to go after Al Qaeda on a worldwide scale, using lethal covert action to keep the role of the US hidden. As he has now continued other Bush-Cheney legacies, President Obama has permitted the CIA to operate freely and fully, with its dread pilotless Predator drones in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Is There Such a Thing as Agro-Imperialism? (1 comments) Investors who are taking part in the land rush say they are confronting a primal fear, a situation in which food is unavailable at any price. Over the 30 years between the mid-1970s and the middle of this decade, grain supplies soared and prices fell by about half, a steady trend that led many experts to believe that there was no limit to humanity's capacity to feed itself.

Saturday, November 21:

Engineering California's Economic Collapse by Ernest A. Canning As shocking as it may seem, California looming financial meltdown is the intended product of a Republican-led privatization scheme.

Bob Herbert: An American Catastrophe Detroit and its environs are suffering the agonies of the economic damned because of policies, crafted at the highest national and corporate levels, that resulted in the implosion of crucially important components of America's manufacturing base. Those decisions have had a profound effect on the fortunes not just of Detroit, or even Michigan, but the entire U.S. economy.

The Washington Establishment Suffers a Serious Defeat Glenn Greenwald: Something quite amazing happened yesterday in Congress: the House Finance Committee -- in a truly bipartisan and even trans-ideological vote -- defied the banking industry, the Federal Reserve, the Democratic leadership, and mainstream Beltway opinion in order to pass an amendment, sponsored by GOP Rep. Ron Paul and Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson, mandating a genuine and probing audit of the Fed.

Friday, November 27:

OilGuy: Solar Energy Showing Promising Signs After Years of Disappointment (1 comments) After years of over promising and under delivering, the solar Industry is finally starting to show some interesting developments which have the potential to make solar power as cheap as fossil fuel on a cost-per-watt basis within five years. We take a look at some of the latest technical and product developments in the Solar Industry and the companies behind them.

Dollar at a 14-Year Low Versus the Yen The dollar tumbled to a 14-year low against the yen on Thursday, reinforcing concern in Tokyo that America's already-strapped consumers would buy even fewer Japanese cars and gadgets.

Nuclear Energy: Safe, Clean and Efficient – Leave Chernobyl in the Past As oil prices continue to hover in the high $70's and many market commentators express their beliefs that cheap oil is a thing of the past, we find ourselves looking at the Alternative energy options and if any are a near/mid term replacement for fossil fuels. Solar, Wind and Biofuels have promised so much in the past but really aren't delivering and will not do so for some time. Nuclear Energy is the only alternative that

David Fiderer: Rewriting History to Blame Tim Geithner: An Incomplete Story of the AIG Bailout (1 comments) Placing the blame on Geithner for problems with the AIG bailout suits those who want to oversimplify the problem, and deflect away culpability from the Bush Administration.

Bailed-Out AIG Forcing Poor to Choose Between Running Water and Food Thanks to AIG, some of the poorest residents of rural Kentucky learned you can always be made poorer by corporate villains.

UnitedHealth, Health Net Merger to be Discussed Today The state medical society, American Medical Association and several other consumer advocacy groups are raising concerns about the proposed deal, including that it will lead to further consolidation in the Connecticut market, creating an "anticompetitive effect."

Big Oil – A Look at The World's Most Powerful Companies (1 comments) A detailed look at the largest Oil Companies, how they operate and who the major players in the field are. The Oil Companies take a lot of Flak, but are they as bad as you think? Companies like ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP and Royal Dutch Shell now produce only 10% of the world's oil and gas and hold a mere 3% of its reserves. Big Oil's primary “Movers & Shakers” according to “The Financial Times,” are:

New Techniques Oil Companies are Using in Drilling for Oil Can New technology divert a potential Oil Crisis? We take a look at the latest technology and techniques being used by Oil Companies in the field of Oil Drilling. With our dwindling supply of fossil fuels, oil drillers are finding themselves in great demand and as their techniques become more sophisticated Oil Fields are lasting longer and producing more of the black stuff.

Thursday, November 26:

Dubai fails to stem market drop on debt fears Dubai's debt problems shook European banking shares on Thursday despite the emirate's efforts to minimise the impact of a debt restructuring plan at two of its biggest companies that raised fears of default. Wednesday's announcement sent the cost of insuring Dubai's debt against default soaring and bond prices tumbling.

Call it Ecocide: Babies With No Heads, 2 Heads or Monstrous Deformities (4 comments) Young women in Fallujah, the doctors wrote, "are terrified of having children because of the increasing number of babies born grotesquely deformed, with no heads, two heads, a single eye in their foreheads, scaly bodies or missing limbs." What might be causing this nightmare? The most likely factors are chemical or radiation poisoning

Wednesday, November 25:

Larry Gross: West Hollywood: City Built on Rent Control Celebrates 25th Anniversary (1 comments) Twenty-five years ago members of the Coalition for Economic Survival (CES) rejoiced after a 7-year campaign to secure tenants' rights and preserve affordable housing in the then 1.9 square mile LA County unincorporated area of West Hollywood.

James Fox: Bank Foreclosure Prevention Program by Citi Up by 20 Percent The bank foreclosure prevention program of CitiMortgage has been improving significantly. CEO Sanjiv Das also said that the bank has started implementing principal reduction for some deserving borrowers.

Tuesday, November 24:

Govt's Own U6 Number Shows Unemployment Rate Near 20% (2 comments) Interestingly, the money masters are struggling to create another bubble to give an illusion of growth. But the long term trend is continued disaster capitalism.

Atlantic Yards Project in Brooklyn Clears Legal Hurdle By CHARLES V. BAGLI Published: November 25, 2009 The last major obstacle to a groundbreaking for a $4.9 billion development fell after a ruling by New York's highest court.

Danny Schechter: Will Christmas Save US? Can "Black Friday Rescue The Economy? Will Christmas Shopping and Black Friday Bail Out the ailing American Economy asks News Dissector Danny Schechter

Blackwater's Secret War in Pakistan Revealed A former senior executive at Blackwater confirmed the military intelligence source's claim that the company is working in Pakistan for the CIA and JSOC, the premier counterterrorism and covert operations force within the military. He said that Blackwater is also working for the Pakistani government on a subcontract firm that puts US Blackwater operatives on the ground with Pakistani forces

Monday, November 23:

OilGuy: Distorted IEA Oil Reserve Figures Create Biofuel Opportunities In "White Gold" Region of Central Asia Did the EIA deliberately put out distorted key Oil projections under intense pressure from the Bush Administration. What does this mean for the Oil Industry and what opportunities does it create, especially in the Biofuels arena.

Pakistan's Battle with Taliban Militants Expands North Pakistan's Army says that while the South Waziristan offensive has taken out the country's largest Taliban sanctuary, militants falling back into Orakzai could become the military's next focus, Bloomberg reports. (Click here for a map of Pakistan that includes Orakzai, Peshawar, and South Waziristan.)

Wave of Debt Payments Facing U.S. Government The surge in borrowing over the last year or two is widely judged to have been a necessary response to the financial crisis and the deep recession, and there is still a raging debate over how aggressively to bring down deficits over the next few years. But there is little doubt that the United States' long-term budget crisis is becoming too big to postpone.

Sunday, November 22:

Martha Rosenberg: Cash for Clunkers-like Ag Program is Domestic Dumping Funded by American Recovery and Reinvestment Act revenues, its Meat the Need proposal would increase the amount that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients receive in food assistance if they use it for animal products. Recipients would either get a separate electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card or earmarked vouchers.

Forced labour and rape, the new face of slavery in America Figures from the State Department reveal that 17,500 people are trafficked into the US every year against their will or under false pretences, mainly to be used for sex or forced labour.Human trafficking–forcing someone against their will to work for no reward–has been dubbed modern slavery. At the Dayton conference, it was discussed as a growing social problem, not in some far-off land, but among the cornfields of Ohio.

The Cornucopia Institute: Food Manufacturers and Organic Industry Lobbyists Circle the Wagons Two powerful lobby groups in the food industry, The Grocery Manufacturers of America and the Organic Trade Association, recently intervened as friends of the court in a federal consumer class-action lawsuit accusing the nation's largest supplier of private-label organic milk of consumer fraud.

Saturday, November 21:

Landrieu, a Holdout, Will Support Democrats' Health Bill Senator Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana, one of two last hold-outs, announced on Saturday afternoon that she would vote in favor of bringing the bill to the floor for weeks of full debate.

China mine explosion kills 42, traps 66 Lax safety standards and strong demand for resources have made China's mines the deadliest in the world, despite a government drive to clamp down on the tiny, unsafe operations where most accidents occur.

Companies Selling More Debt to Buy Stock, do Deals Companies are bombarding the bond market with debt sales this month, pushing issuance above $40 billion, as they take advantage of low rates to build acquisition war chests, prepare to buy back stock and build up cash to finance growth.

The War on Soy: Why the 'Miracle Food' May Be a Health Risk and Environmental Nightmare (1 comments) It's not that all soy is bad; in fact, eating it in small doses can be quite healthy, if it's fermented. But when it's not, that's where the problems begin. Soy is a legume, which contains high amounts of phytic acid. Phytic acid binds to minerals (like calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc), interfering with the body's ability to absorb them (which is usually a bad thing). Soy is also known to contain "antinutrients,"

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