(2019-09-09). What's the True Unemployment Rate in the US? counterpunch.org 
The real unemployment rate is probably somewhere between 10%-12%. Here's why: the 3.7% is the U-3 rate, per the labor dept. But that's the rate only for full time employed. What the labor dept. calls the U-6 includes what it calls discouraged workers (those who haven't looked for work in the past 4 weeks). Then there's what's called the 'missing labor force'—i.e. those who haven't looked in the past year. They're not calculated in the 3.7% U-3 unemployment rate number either. Why? Because you have to be 'out of work and actively looking for work' to be counted as unemployed and therefore part of the 3.7% ra…
(2019-09-09). The Capitalists Are Afraid. truthdig.com Capitalists seek to maximize profits and reduce the cost of labor. This sums up capitalism at its core. It is defined by these immutable objectives. It is not about democracy. It is not, as has been claimed, about wealth creation for the working class. It has nothing to do with freedom. Those capitalists, especially in corporations, who are not able to increase profits and decrease the cost of labor, through layoffs, cutting wages, destroying unions, offshoring, outsourcing or automating jobs, are replaced. Personal ethics are irrelevant. Capitalists are a…
(2019-09-09). I think we found the most tone deaf, idiotic plan for post-Brexit Ireland yet. thecanary.co 
On Saturday 7 September, DUP MP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson suggested Ireland could join the British Commonwealth. Donaldson made his ridiculous suggestion…
(2019-09-07). "Down with the Rebels Against the Bill of Sale!": Guy Endore's radical reimagining of Haiti and revolution. mronline.org 
The American occupation of Haiti lasted from 1915—34. The U.S. subjected Haitians to the hated forced labor system of the corvée, seized control over Haitian finance, and rewrote the Haitian Constitution at gunpoint, enabling foreign companies to acquire land in the country. The distorting and oppressive impacts of the U.S. occupation have been felt in […] | Source
(2019-09-07). Pope denounces exploitation of Madagascar's unique resources. thecanary.co Pope Francis has denounced the illegal logging and exploitation of Madagascar's unique natural resources as he opened a visit to the Indian Ocean nation. | He pleaded for the government to fight the corruption that is ravaging the island's environment and keeping its people in "inhumane poverty". | Francis urged President Andry Rajoelina to provide Madagascar's people with jobs and alternative sources of income so they are not forced to cut down trees to find fertile soil and engage in contraband and illegal exportation of the island's diverse flora, fauna and mineral resources. | Madagascar is home to 5% of the…
(2019-09-06). Extinction Via Rugged Individualism. counterpunch.org 
I was recently amused by a train of thought on Twitter excoriating Henry David Thoreau for his experiment in self-sufficient living. True, he was on the land of his wealthy neighbor, his mother did his laundry (and brought him old-timey donuts to eat), but it was rugged, dammit. Okay, it was something akin to a More
(2019-09-06). Jobs numbers conceal real unemployment and underemployment rate of 7.2%. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON (PAI)—The U.S. unemployment rate stayed unchanged at 3.7% in August, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. A separate survey said employers created 130,000 new jobs—but 25,000, or almost 20% of them, were temps whom the U.S. Census Bureau hired as it revs up for next year's nationwide decennial headcount. "These are temp jobs, so …
(2019-09-06). 'Shameful': Warren Warns Trump Plan to Privatize Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Would Make Housing Crisis Worse. commondreams.org "The Trump administration wants to make it harder for creditworthy working families—especially families of color—to buy a home and build wealth." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/elizabeth_warren_7.jpg …
(2019-09-04). 'Digital divide' will worsen inequalities, without better global cooperation. un.org Inequality will worsen unless the so-called "digital divide" — the gap between under-connected and highly digitalized countries — is not addressed, warns a new report released on Wednesday by the UN trade body, UNCTAD.
(2019-09-02). The Neoliberal Scam: Public Money for Private Playgrounds. therealnews.com 
TRNN takes an in-depth look at so-called public-private partnerships and how they funnel public money into the pockets of the ultra-wealthy…
(2019-08-29). Taxpayers Have Been Ordered to Pay Over $2 Million For Discriminating Against LGBTQ People. aclu.org Government officials should know that discrimination comes with a cost to taxpayers. | Last week, a federal appeals court ruled that the Commonwealth of Kentucky was liable for $224,000 for the actions of Kim Davis, who refused to do her job and issue marriage licenses (to same-sex or different-sex couples) as county clerk. | While Davis' story made national headlines, her case isn't the only one in the past year where a court case filed by the ACLU has led to a bill for discriminatio…
(2019-08-26). Foreign Correspondent: What is the U.S. Role in the Hong Kong Protests? progressive.org Despite legitimate concern over economic inequality there, the movement has pro-Western elements and has been encouraged by Washington in familiar, odious ways.
(2019-08-15). SPLC publishes Opportunity Costs: Unequal Justice in Alabama's Community Corrections Programs. splcenter.org A new investigative report published today by the Southern Poverty Law Center reveals serious flaws in Alabama's community corrections programs, an otherwise promising system for diverting people from the state's prisons.