(2020-08-26). COVID-19 Changed Work in Germany. counterpunch.org 
Germany is generally known as a high-tech country producing machinery and cars. But a few decades ago, Germany passed the 50% mark, entering the service industry. The 50% mark indicated that more than half of Germany's wealth now comes from the service industry and no longer from making machines like Porsches and Volkswagens. By 2020,
(2020-08-26). Sanders' Inadequate Pandemic Wealth Tax Proposal. counterpunch.org 
Humanity is obviously in the middle of a grave crisis that "socialist" Bernie Sanders understands. In a column recently published in the Guardian with the title "The Pandemic is helping the rich get even richer. It's time to tax their obscene wealth," he characterizes the current conditions as, "an extraordinary moment in American history: a
(2020-08-26). Organizing Call: After The DNC And RNC — We Can't Breathe! popularresistance.org The Democratic and Republican Conventions are not confronting the crises of our times – the economic collapse, COVID pandemic, lack of access to healthcare, inequality, racism, the cost of education, and never-ending wars and more. | No matter which corporate-funded party wins the election, the people must rule from below. | The national uprising against police violence and the hundreds of wildcat strikes and rent strikes are a few examples among many that show once again that the only way to challenge this racist, militarized system is with the explosive power of people making demands and shutting the system dow…
(2020-08-26). Another day and another report dumbs down the root causes of education inequality. thecanary.co A
(2020-08-25). Governments need to boost economies with large fiscal stimulus. peoplesdispatch.org The world economy is currently facing an acute shortage in demand due to the lockdown imposed to contain the spread of COVID-19. Most of the economies are projected to register a negative growth rate and unemployment rates are set to skyrocket. This would further reduce the aggregate demand, pushing economies into a vicious trap of decline in demand leading to lower profits and investment, which in turn would further curtail growth and aggravate unemployment. Rising unemployment and falling wages would further depress the levels of demand in the economy. To get out of this vicious cycle, economies require a big p…
(2020-08-25). The Triumph of Monopoly Capitalism is Hurting American Workers' Life Expectancy. zcomm.org Monopoly power and concentrated wealth do immense harm to the bottom third of the wealth spectrum…
(2020-08-25). Despite COVID-19, French billionaires have tripled their wealth since 2010. wsws.org The accumulation of obscene levels of wealth by a small financial aristocracy is the product of decades of austerity imposed by governments of various political colors.
(2020-08-25). Germany Begins A Universal-Basic-Income Trial For Three Years. popularresistance.org Germany is about to become the latest country to trial a universal basic income, starting a three-year study of how it affects the economy and recipients' well-being. | As part of the study, 120 people will receive ‚Ǩ1,200, or about $1,430, each month for three years — an amount just above Germany's poverty line — and researchers will compare their experiences with another group of 1,380 people who will not receive the payments. | The study, conducted by the German Institute for Economic Research, has been funded by 140,000 private donations. | All participants will be asked to compl…
(2020-08-25). Koch Academic Influence Returns To Massachusetts With New Tufts University Think Tank. popularresistance.org When a new Massachusetts think tank housed at Tufts University launched earlier this year, Boston-based media described it as a "CBO-like center" (referring to the Congressional Budget Office) that would offer an "independent analysis" of proposed state policy and legislation. | But one of the main funders of this think tank, called the Center for State Policy Analysis, is a program tied financially to the petrochemical billionaire Koch family. This apparent Koch-linked funding raises questions about just how independent the center's policy analyses may be. Initial funding for this think tank, as CommonWealth rep…
(2020-08-25). Scholars of Poverty and Inequality Face Their Own Racial Reckoning. thenation.com Nicole Sussner Rodgers, Deadric T. Williams Scholars of Poverty and Inequality Face Their Own Racial Reckoning…
(2020-08-24). Inequality Increases Mortality From COVID-19 in Mexico. telesurenglish.net Mexico's Undersecretary for Health Prevention and Promotion Hugo Lopez-Gatell said that high mortality from COVID-19 is explained by such factors as social inequality, poor nutrition, limited health capacity, and corruption. | RELATED: | "The mortality rate of a country depends a lot on its social reality, and our society's structural inequality has grown exponentially over the past 40 years," Lopez-Gatell sai…
(2020-08-24). The Monopoly on Racial Wealth. progressive.org An excerpt from radio host Thom Hartmann's new book looks at why white guys have it made.
(2020-08-24). Make Corporate Landlords Pay the Bills During the Pandemic. zcomm.org With fortunes inflated by corporate welfare, wealthy real estate owners can afford to cancel housing-related expenses and debts for millions of struggling American families.
(2020-08-24). Iran trade with CIS hits over $3.3 bn last year. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 24 (MNA) —The value of Iran's foreign trade with the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in 2019 hit more than $3, 298, 61,946 Billion.
(2020-08-24). Republicans and Democrats Clash for Funds of Wealthy Indian Americans, Professor Says. sputniknews.com New Delhi (Sputnik): After the Democratic National Convention ended with former vice-president Joe Biden formally accepting the nomination last week, the Republican Convention began on 24 August, with Donald Trump again leading the GOP charge. The 2020 elections are seeing a strong presence of Indian-Americans.
(2020-08-24). Progressive Group Projects Photos of Jobless Workers Onto Hotel Near RNC. truthout.org On the eve of the 2020 Republican National Convention, a progressive advocacy group representing 15,000 unemployed workers on Sunday projected onto a Charlotte, North Carolina hotel the photos and stories of jobless workers struggling to meet basic needs after the GOP allowed the $600-per-week unemployment benefit
(2020-08-24). Black Workers Face Higher Joblessness, But Are Less Likely to Get Unemployment. truthout.org Record numbers of Americans are receiving unemployment insurance during the pandemic. That's because of the enormous scale of jobs lost — but also because Congress greatly expanded the number of workers eligible for benefits. For the first time, thanks to the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, part-timers, independent contractors and gig workers qualify for unemployment payments. Black workers are overrepresented in these nontraditional positions, which in the past has contribut…
(2020-08-24). The Triumph of Monopoly Capitalism is Hurting American Workers' Life Expectancy. commondreams.org "Monopoly power and concentrated wealth do immense harm to the bottom third of the wealth spectrum," writes Buell. (Cartoon: Khalil Bendib/OtherWords) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/where-billionaires-come-from-cartoon_0.jpg …
(2020-08-24). It Is Time for a One-Time Pandemic Wealth Tax on Billionaires' Windfall Gains. commondreams.org People participate in a "March on Billionaires" event on July 17, 2020 in New York City. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/marchonbillionaires.jpg …
(2020-08-23). If Trump Had Followed Vietnam's Lead on COVID, US Would Have Fewer Than 100 Dead. zcomm.org 35 percent of the entire U.S. labor force filed unemployment claims between March and August.
(2020-08-23). Obscene Pandemic Profiteering: Largest Consolidation of Wealth in American History. globalresearch.ca According to the Institute for Policy Studies: "Since March 18, the beginning of the pandemic," the 12 richest Americans "have seen their combined wealth increase $283 billion, an increase of almost 40 percent." | Those 12 people primarily benefited from the …
(2020-08-23). Voter Suppression Has Haunted The United States Since It Was Founded. popularresistance.org In 1787, the Founding Fathers wrestled over how to address suffrage in the U.S. Constitution. At the time, voting was restricted to wealthy white landowners. The framers debated whether it should be extended to commoners who had joined arms with them in the American Revolution, but who might overrule their interests. Ultimately, the question was punted to the states in Article I, Section 4, of the Constitution, which declares: "The times, places and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law ma…