the unbalanced evolution of homo sapiens

Democracy Now!   Former British Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and famed linguist and dissident Noam Chomsky joined others earlier this year calling on President Biden to drop charges against Julian Assange. The WikiLeaks founder has been languishing for over four years in the harsh Belmarsh prison in London while appealing extradition to the United States. If he is extradited, tried and convicted, Assange faces up to 175 years in jail for violating the U.S. Espionage Act for publishing documents that exposed U.S. war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Belmarsh Tribunal at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. in January was organized by the Progressive International and the Wau Holland Foundation.   

Amid a national hysteria claiming the popular video-sharing app is a Chinese Trojan Horse, a MintPress News investigation has found dozens of ex-U.S. State Department officials working in key positions at TikTok.     by Alan Macleod Part 4 - Political Theater   TikTok is an immensely influential medium shaping how the world understands itself, particularly for younger generations. A 2021 study found that 31% of people aged between 18 and 24 worldwide had used the app in the past week, with 9% using it as a primary source of news. This is, no doubt, part of the reason U.S. officials are so concerned with it. Last month, TikTok CEO Chew Shou Zi was brought before Congress and challenged on his company’s connections to the People’s Republic of China. Though TikTok is a subsidiary of Chinese firm ByteDance, it insists it operates as an independent entity and that it has never shared any user data with Beijing. Nevertheless, questions persist about the app’s practices and security features.

Thirteen ways of looking at disinformation   by Jacob Siegel   Part 3 - Trump’s Election: “It’s Facebook’s Fault” No one thought Trump was a normal politician. Being an ogre, Trump horrified millions of Americans who felt a personal betrayal in the possibility that he would occupy the same office held by George Washington and Abe Lincoln. Trump also threatened the business interests of the most powerful sectors of society. It was the latter offense, rather than his putative racism or flagrant un-presidentialness, that sent the ruling class into a state of apoplexy. Given his focus in office on lowering the corporate tax rate, it’s easy to forget that Republican officials and the party’s donor class saw Trump as a dangerous radical who threatened their business ties with China, their access to cheap imported labor, and the lucrative business of constant war. But, indeed, that is how they saw him, as reflected in the unprecedented response to Trump’s candidacy recorded by The Wall Street

του system failure   Το αποτέλεσμα των βουλευτικών εκλογών Μαίου εξέπληξε σχεδόν τους πάντες, καθώς κανείς δεν περίμενε μια τέτοια μεγάλη διαφορά μεταξύ ΝΔ και ΣΥΡΙΖΑ. Το αποτέλεσμα βγάζει νόημα μόνο αν παραδεχθούμε ότι έχουμε να κάνουμε με μια κυβέρνηση με καθαρά καθεστωτικά χαρακτηριστικά, που από την επόμενη κιόλας μέρα ανάληψης της εξουσίας επιχείρησε - και απ'ότι φαίνεται το κατάφερε -  να ελέγξει όλους τους κεντρικούς μηχανισμούς και να στήσει αυτό που τα στελέχη της ΝΔ βάφτισαν "επιτελικό κράτος".    Μετά από τέσσερα χρόνια αποτυχιών και σκανδάλων, με την χειρότερη ίσως δεξιά που κυβέρνησε τη χώρα μεταπολιτευτικά, η μιντιακή υπεροπλία του καθεστώτος Μητσοτάκη καράφερε να δημιουργήσει μια εικονική πραγματικότητα δήθεν σταθερότητας και επιτυχιών.  Είναι βέβαιο ότι η εικονική αυτή πραγματικότητα επηρέασε ένα κομμάτι των ψηφοφόρων που δεν βιώνουν άμεσα τις συνέπειες των πολιτικών Μητσοτάκη και είναι εξαιρετικά επιρρεπείς στη μιντιακή προπαγάνδα. Αυτό όμως δεν αρκεί  γι

The Jimmy Dore Show   The notorious Ukrainian “kill list” that identified the Zelensky regime’s opponents like Aaron Maté, Scott Ritter, Roger Waters and even Henry Kissinger has added a new name: Jimmy Dore. The list is ostensibly maintained by an independent group, but an investigation into funding reveals that the Ukrainian government is behind the effort, as well as U.S. and NATO cutouts.  

The Jimmy Dore Show   A new Harris-Harvard poll has some shocking results showing Americans are not buying what the mainstream media is selling, whether about Russiagate, the Hunter Biden laptop story or widespread spying from intelligence agencies. According to the poll, a majority of likely voters also rate Joe Biden as too old and mentally unfit for the office of President.

Geopolitical Economy Report   Wars the US waged in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, and Pakistan following September 11, 2001 caused at least 4.5 million deaths and displaced 38 to 60 million people, with 7.6 million children starving today, according to studies by Brown University.

At least two 9/11 hijackers had been recruited into a joint CIA-Saudi intelligence operation that was covered up at the highest level, according to an explosive new court filing. by Kit Klarenberg Part 4 - Quite some coverup   Another of Canestraro’s sources, a former FBI agent who went by “CS-23,” testified that after 9/11, FBI headquarters and its San Diego field office quickly learned of “ Bayoumi’s affiliation with Saudi intelligence and subsequently the existence of the CIA’s operation to recruit ” Hazmi and Mihdhar. However, “ senior FBI officials suppressed investigations ” into these matters. “CS-23” alleged, furthermore, that Bureau agents testifying before the Joint Inquiry into 9/11 “ were instructed not to reveal the full extent of Saudi involvement with Al-Qaeda. ” The US intelligence community would have had every reason to shield Riyadh from scrutiny and consequences for its role in the 9/11 attacks, as it was then one of its closest allies. But the FBI’s eager complicit

by system failure   The last four years with Kyriakos Mitsotakis in charge of Greece could be easily characterized as one of the worst periods in country's history since the fall of military junta in 1974.    From the beginning of his term, Mitsotakis took full control of the National Intelligence Service and the Athens News Agency. This was a first strong sign that his administration was about to be transformed eventually into a regime that would defy fundamental democratic principles.    Shortly after, Mitsotakis started to put his own people in key positions in Greece's national television and radio broadcaster. In this way, he managed to control the entire landscape of Greece's mainstream media as the big private TV stations that belong to the local oligarchs, did everything to bring him in power and fully support him to this day. Mitsotakis and his cabinet had also become the only option for the Brussels-Berlin directorate of the EU, as well as for the US imperialist b

failed evolution   On 11 April 2019, the Ecuadorian government of traitor Lenin Moreno, invited the Metropolitan Police into the Ecuadorian embassy in London, and they arrested Julian Assange . Since then, Assange is kept in Belmarsh high security prison in London, without actual charges.   The real reason world's number one political prisoner is still kept in this high security prison, is because he exposed horrendous war crimes carried out by the US imperialists and their allies.   The ruthless Western imperialist regime wants to punish the No1 real journalist in the world and make him an example for any Whistleblower or real journalist who will attempt to expose its big crimes in the future.   And the Anglo-American axis has now become officially a fascist coalition , framed by the rest of its Western pets. UK's Home Secretary Priti Patel, one of the most ruthless ever, decided to extradite Julian Assange to US. No surprise of course. The only question we had in mind is

Geopolitical Economy Report   To analyze the conflict in Ukraine, political economists Radhika Desai and Michael Hudson are joined by economic geographer Mick Dunford. They discuss the aggressive neoliberal reforms being imposed by the Ukrainian government and Europe's suicidal policies.

Amid a national hysteria claiming the popular video-sharing app is a Chinese Trojan Horse, a MintPress News investigation has found dozens of ex-U.S. State Department officials working in key positions at TikTok.     by Alan Macleod Part 3 - Don’t mess with Project Texas   The influx of State Department officials into TikTok’s upper ranks is a consequence of “Project Texas,” an initiative the company began in 2020 in the hopes of avoiding being banned altogether in the United States. During his time in office, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo led the charge to shut the platform down, frequently labeling it a “ spying app ” and a “ propaganda tool for the Chinese Communist Party. ” It was widely reported that the U.S. government had forced the sale of TikTok to Walmart and then Microsoft. But in late 2020, as Project Texas began, those deals mysteriously fell through, and the rhetoric about the dangers of TikTok from officials evaporated. Project Texas is a $1.5 billion security operation

Thirteen ways of looking at disinformation   by Jacob Siegel   Part 2 - Russophobia Returns, Unexpectedly: The Origins of Contemporary “Disinformation” The foundations of the current information war were laid in response to a sequence of events that took place in 2014. First Russia tried to suppress the U.S.-backed Euromaidan movement in Ukraine; a few months later Russia invaded Crimea; and several months after that the Islamic State captured the city of Mosul in northern Iraq and declared it the capital of a new caliphate. In three separate conflicts, an enemy or rival power of the United States was seen to have successfully used not just military might but also social media messaging campaigns designed to confuse and demoralize its enemies—a combination known as “hybrid warfare.” These conflicts convinced U.S. and NATO security officials that the power of social media to shape public perceptions had evolved to the point where it could decide the outcome of modern wars—outcomes that

globinfo freexchange   Πάρτε μια μόνο ιδέα για το τι θα σήμαινε μια δεύτερη τετραετία Μητσοτάκη:   - Καθεστώς σκληρότερο και πιο αδίστακτο. - Περαιτέρω υποβάθμιση δημοκρατικών θεσμών. - Ρουσφέτι, κατασπάραξη δημοσίου χρήματος από μπλε τρωκτικά, νέα αύξηση δημοσίου χρέους. - Διάλυση δημόσιας υγείας, παιδείας. - Ιδιωτικοποίηση νερού, εκτόξευση τιμών και υποβάθμιση υπηρεσιών και ποιότητας νερού.    - Βόλεμα γαλάζιων παιδιών σε προνομιακές θέσεις στο δημόσιο με ταυτόχρονες απολύσεις & διάλυση υπηρεσιών σε ακριτική επαρχία.    - Διάλυση κοινωνικού κράτους.   - Επέκταση καρτέλ πέρα από τρόφιμα, καύσιμα, ενέργεια.  - Σφαγή μικρομεσαίων επιχειρήσεων από την επέκταση των καρτέλ.   - Εξάπλωση της εργασιακής ζούγκλας με μισθούς πείνας λόγω καρτέλ.  - Πληθωρισμός στα ύψη λόγω αισχροκέρδειας των καρτέλ.   - Περαιτέρω συρρίκνωση του μέσου εισοδήματος λόγω εκτόξευσης τιμών από αισχροκέρδεια καρτέλ. - Μεγάλη μαύρη τρύπα στο ασφαλιστικό από το χρηματιστηριακό τζογάρισμα των γαλάζιων golden boys. 

Moment Of Clarity with Lee Camp    

Geopolitical Economy Report   US politicians are scapegoating China and Mexico for the deadly opioid crisis, but it was actually caused by large pharmaceutical corporations like Purdue Pharma, owned by the billionaire Sackler family, which made huge profits by lying about highly addictive drugs such as OxyContin and flooding poor states with painkillers.  

globinfo freexchange   Όπως είχαμε γράψει ήδη από τον Δεκέμβριο του 21, οι ολιγάρχες ξέρουν καλά ότι ο Μητσοτάκης δεν πρόκειται να πετύχει ξανά αυτοδυναμία σε επόμενες εκλογές, όποτε και αν γίνουν αυτές. Γι'αυτό και ετοιμάζονται για το Plan B, που είναι μια νέα συγκυβέρνηση ΝΔ-ΚΙΝΑΛ.  Τα σχέδια όμως χάλασαν, αφού η αποκάλυψη του μεγάλου σκανδάλου των υποκλοπών, με αρχι-υποκλοπέα τον Μητσοτάκη και έναν εκ των παρακολουθούμενων, τον Ανδρουλάκη, έκαψε το χαρτί συγκυβέρνησης ΝΔ-ΚΙΝΑΛ τουλάχιστον με τα σημερινά δεδομένα. Παρόλο που είναι βέβαιο ότι διάφοροι βαρόνοι-μνηστήρες της ηγετικής καρέκλας στη ΝΔ επιθυμούν διακαώς να ξεφορτωθούν τον Μητσοτάκη (και για τον λόγο ότι δεν θέλουν να τους συμπαρασύρει σε μια πιθανή εκλογική συντριβή), ο Μητσοτάκης κατάφερε να επιβιώσει ακόμα και μετά από δύο προτάσεις μομφής εναντίον του. Και αυτό γιατί πιθανόν να τους απειλεί με αποκάλυψη βρόμικων υποθέσεων που προέκυψαν από τις παρακολουθήσεις. Τώρα όμως οι μπλε βαρόνοι σε συνεργασία με τους ολιγάρ

At least two 9/11 hijackers had been recruited into a joint CIA-Saudi intelligence operation that was covered up at the highest level, according to an explosive new court filing. by Kit Klarenberg Part 3 - A most ‘unusual’ CIA unit   Alec Station’s formal remit was to track bin Laden, “ collect intelligence on him, run operations against him, disrupt his finances, and warn policymakers about his activities and intentions. ” These activities would naturally entail enlisting informants within Al Qaeda. Nonetheless, as several high level sources told Canestraro, it was extremely “unusual” for such an entity to be involved in gathering intelligence and recruiting assets. The US-based unit was run by CIA analysts, who do not typically manage human assets. Legally, that work is the exclusive preserve of case officers “ trained in covert operations ” and based overseas. “CS-10”, a CIA case officer within Alec Station, concurred with the proposition that Hazmi and Mihdhar enjoyed a relationshi

The Grayzone Jeremy Loffredo reports from Paris for The Grayzone , covering the national uprising against French President Emmanuel Macron's plans to impose neoliberal austerity measures through unpopular pension reforms. Hear from the protest rank-and-file as they describe repression at the hands of militarized police, arbitrary jailing, and their fight against the billionaire president's aggressive rollback of economic rights.  

The Jimmy Dore Show   For more than a decade Syria under President Bashar al-Assad has been ostracized by most other Arab nations and excluded from the Arab League. But now that’s changed and Syria has been invited to re-join — a move that has left the United States apoplectic. But it seems that other member states don’t much care what the U.S. wants as they demonstrate an increasing willingness to thumb their noses at the globe’s declining superpower.  

Geopolitical Economy Report   Economist Michael Hudson responds to the misleading arguments against de-dollarization that New York Times columnist Paul Krugman made, as part of an attempt to defend US hegemony and the dollar system. 

Amid a national hysteria claiming the popular video-sharing app is a Chinese Trojan Horse, a MintPress News investigation has found dozens of ex-U.S. State Department officials working in key positions at TikTok.     by Alan Macleod Part 2 - State Department-affiliated media   For quite some time, TikTok has been recruiting former State Department officials to run its operations. The company’s head of data public policy for Europe, for example, is Jade Nester. Before being recruited for that influential role, Nester was a senior official in Washington, serving for four years as the State Department’s director of Internet public policy. Mariola Janik, meanwhile, left a long and fruitful career in the government to work for TikTok. Starting out at the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, Janik became a career diplomat in the State Department before moving to the Department of Homeland Security. In September, however, she left the government to immediately take up the position of TikTok’

Thirteen ways of looking at disinformation   by Jacob Siegel   Part 1 - Prologue: The Information War  In 1950, Sen. Joseph McCarthy claimed that he had proof of a communist spy ring operating inside the government. Overnight, the explosive accusations blew up in the national press, but the details kept changing. Initially, McCarthy said he had a list with the names of 205 communists in the State Department; the next day he revised it to 57. Since he kept the list a secret, the inconsistencies were beside the point. The point was the power of the accusation, which made McCarthy’s name synonymous with the politics of the era. For more than half a century, McCarthyism stood as a defining chapter in the worldview of American liberals: a warning about the dangerous allure of blacklists, witch hunts, and demagogues. Until 2017, that is, when another list of alleged Russian agents roiled the American press and political class. A new outfit called Hamilton 68 claimed to have discovered hundre