Daily Archives: January 7, 2021

2021-01-07: News Headlines

Frank Scott (2021-01-07). Defund the Pentagon: Refund the People. dissidentvoice.org When profit determines every outcome of social and economic life, the minority politics of lesser evil wins again, and again, and again. — Anonymous The pandemic has heightened public awareness of the injustice of a political economic system that profits private wealth at massive loss to the public good. All talk of change that simply …

Dianne Mathiowetz (2021-01-07). Georgia: Big voter turnout ousts wealthy Republican senators. workers.org Atlanta Jan. 6 — Georgia voters made history on Jan. 5 by voting into the U.S. Senate Rev. Raphael Warnock, the first ever Black senator from Georgia. Warnock is senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, the famed church of Rev. Martin Luther King's family, esteemed for its long . . . |

Rick Baum (2021-01-06). Wealth Inequality Virus Spikes During the Last Days of 2020. counterpunch.org As of December 23, the combined wealth of the ten wealthiest was needed to reach the "magic" sum of one trillion dollars. As of December 31, the combined wealth of the nine wealthiest is now more than a trillion. This change was helped by Warren Buffet's loss for the year shrinking during the last eight days of the year from $4.62 billion to $1.62 billion, and Musk's wealth increasing another $15 billion.

Fight Back (2021-01-06). 14 million Americans' stimulus checks are delayed through TurboTax and H&R Block. fightbacknews.org Tallahassee, FL – If you are like me, you have probably checked your bank account dozens of times throughout the day waiting for the recent round of $600 stimulus checks. | If you are like me, then you have searched online through Google for "stimulus check," "delay" or anything else that can explain the holdup of much needed financial relief. | This second round of stimulus checks is a complete insult to the millions of workers who pay way too much in taxes and yet are constantly disregarded and disrespected by the ruling class. | Just last week, in a stunning position, Donald Trump urged Congress to give Amer…

Robert Freeman (2021-01-06). The Republican party and victimhood as ideology. nationofchange.org They are victims of themselves for having backed decades of Republican economic policies explicitly designed to shift vast amounts of national income and wealth to those who were already the most-wealthy.

The Canary (2021-01-05). Foodbanks at risk of closure due to new coronavirus strain. thecanary.co Independent foodbanks are at risk of closure due to the rapidly spreading coronavirus variant and are calling on the government to provide cash to hungry families to "protect public health". | The Independent Food Aid Network (IFAN) has written to the prime minister calling on him to give struggling families money to reduce food bank reliance over the new year lockdown. | The letter says that distribution of emergency parcels "cannot address worsening poverty" and with the number of infections rising "could well contribute to the spread of Covid-19". | Meanwhile, the need to self-isolate could mean services reduc…

Bauchner H. (2021-01-05). A Medical and Scientific New Year's Wish List. jamanetwork.com The last 4 years have been difficult for science and medicine. The relentless attack by members of the executive and legislative branches of government on science and federal agencies that conduct science has shaken the fundamental pillars of great US institutions such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, and in some regards the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Although the 2020 NIH budget increased to almost $42 billion, more individuals are uninsured, and although health care costs have not increased substantially over the past 4 y…

2021-01-07: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these 'POSTEES' on social media! (Copy the text of the postee below, then paste it on social media and the story images will also appear.)

Defund the Pentagon: Refund the People
Frank Scott | dissidentvoice.org | 2021-01-07
When profit determines every outcome of social and economic life, the minority politics of lesser evil wins again, and again, and again. — Anonymous The pandemic has heightened public awareness of the injustice of a political economic system that profits private wealth at massive loss to the public good. All talk of change that simply …
dissidentvoice.org/2021/01/defund-the-pentagon-refund-the-people/

We Are Living In An Emergency That Requires Urgent Action
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-01-07
Large parts of the world — outside of China and a few other countries — face a runaway virus, which has not been stopped because of criminal incompetence by governments. That these governments in wealthy countries cynically set aside the basic scientific protocols released by the World Health Organisation and by scientific organisations reveals their malicious practice. Anything less than focusing attention to managing the virus by testing, contact tracing, and isolation — and if this does not suffice, then imposing a temporary lockdown — is foolhardy. It is equally distressing that these…
popularresistance.org/we-are-living-in-an-emergency-that-requires-urgent-action/

Georgia: Big voter turnout ousts wealthy Republican senators
Dianne Mathiowetz | workers.org | 2021-01-07
Atlanta Jan. 6 — Georgia voters made history on Jan. 5 by voting into the U.S. Senate Rev. Raphael Warnock, the first ever Black senator from Georgia. Warnock is senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, the famed church of Rev. Martin Luther King's family, esteemed for its long . . . | Continue reading Georgia: Big voter turnout ousts wealthy Republican senators at Workers.org
workers.org/2021/01/53637/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=georgia-big-voter-turnout-ousts-wealthy-republican-senators

Chomsky and Prashad: Three major threats to life on earth that we must address in 2021
Noam Chomsky | peoplesdispatch.org | 2021-01-06
Large parts of the world–outside of China and a few other countries–face a runaway virus, which has not been stopped because of criminal incompetence by governments. That these governments in wealthy countries cynically set aside the basic scientific protocols released by the World Health Organization and by scientific organizations reveals their malicious practice. Anything less than focused attention to managing the virus by testing, contact tracing, and isolation–and if this does not suffice, then…
peoplesdispatch.org/2021/01/06/chomsky-and-prashad-three-major-threats-to-life-on-earth-that-we-must-address-in-2021/

In 2021, Let's Ring A Global Alarm On Inequality That Everyone Can Hear
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-01-06
Remember that old joke they used to tell — and maybe still do — in luxury retail circles? The customer, precious product in hand, walks over to a haughty sales clerk at a high-end emporium and timidly asks: "How much does this cost." | "If you have to ask," the sales clerk smiles back, "you can't afford it." | How much more unequal have we become in 2020? This question demands that we turn that old joke inside-out: We have to ask because we can't afford not to know. And we can't afford not to know because inequality is killing us. We have to know exactly what we're facing. | And what we're facing, the…
popularresistance.org/in-2021-lets-ring-a-global-alarm-on-inequality-that-everyone-can-hear/

The Republican party and victimhood as ideology
Robert Freeman | nationofchange.org | 2021-01-06
They are victims of themselves for having backed decades of Republican economic policies explicitly designed to shift vast amounts of national income and wealth to those who were already the most-wealthy.
nationofchange.org/2021/01/06/the-republican-party-and-victimhood-as-ideology/

Wealth Inequality Virus Spikes During the Last Days of 2020
Rick Baum | counterpunch.org | 2021-01-06
As of December 23, the combined wealth of the ten wealthiest was needed to reach the "magic" sum of one trillion dollars. As of December 31, the combined wealth of the nine wealthiest is now more than a trillion. This change was helped by Warren Buffet's loss for the year shrinking during the last eight days of the year from $4.62 billion to $1.62 billion, and Musk's wealth increasing another $15 billion.
counterpunch.org/2021/01/06/wealth-inequality-virus-spikes-during-the-last-days-of-2020/

14 million Americans' stimulus checks are delayed through TurboTax and H&R Block
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2021-01-06
Tallahassee, FL – If you are like me, you have probably checked your bank account dozens of times throughout the day waiting for the recent round of $600 stimulus checks. | If you are like me, then you have searched online through Google for "stimulus check," "delay" or anything else that can explain the holdup of much needed financial relief. | This second round of stimulus checks is a complete insult to the millions of workers who pay way too much in taxes and yet are constantly disregarded and disrespected by the ruling class. | Just last week, in a stunning position, Donald Trump urged Congress to give Amer…
www.fightbacknews.org/2021/1/6/14-million-americans-stimulus-checks-are-delayed-through-turbotax-and-hr-block

'We Structure the Market to Create Inequality'
Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting | fair.org | 2021-01-06
Janine Jackson interviewed CEPR's Dean Baker about trickle-down economics for the December 25, 2020, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. CBS ( 12/17/20) | Janine Jackson: A recent rash of headlines announced, à la CBS News, "Fifty Years of Tax Cuts for the Rich Failed to Trickle Down, Economic Study Says." There is, i…
fair.org/home/we-structure-the-market-to-create-inequality/

A tale of two classes
Monica Moorehead | workers.org | 2021-01-06
The second stimulus package finally passed in both houses of Congress Dec. 27, accompanied by much controversy. It woefully fails to provide any meaningful support for the millions of workers and their families teetering on the edge of economic disaster. Dec. 27 protest, Brooklyn, N.Y. The bill was delayed for . . . | Continue reading A tale of two classes at Workers.org
workers.org/2021/01/53608/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-tale-of-two-classes

A tale of two classes
Monica Moorehead | workers.org | 2021-01-06
The second stimulus package finally passed in both houses of Congress Dec. 27, accompanied by much controversy. It woefully fails to provide any meaningful support for the millions of workers and their families teetering on the edge of economic disaster. Dec. 27 protest, Brooklyn, N.Y. WW Photo: Toni Arenstein The . . . | Continue reading A tale of two classes at Workers.org
workers.org/2021/01/53608/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-tale-of-two-classes

Foodbanks at risk of closure due to new coronavirus strain
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2021-01-05
Independent foodbanks are at risk of closure due to the rapidly spreading coronavirus variant and are calling on the government to provide cash to hungry families to "protect public health". | The Independent Food Aid Network (IFAN) has written to the prime minister calling on him to give struggling families money to reduce food bank reliance over the new year lockdown. | The letter says that distribution of emergency parcels "cannot address worsening poverty" and with the number of infections rising "could well contribute to the spread of Covid-19". | Meanwhile, the need to self-isolate could mean services reduc…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2021/01/05/foodbanks-at-risk-of-closure-due-to-new-coronavirus-strain/

Ecuador: Tribunal Hears a Claim Against Electoral Officials
telesurenglish.net | 2021-01-05
Ecuador's Electoral Contentious Tribunal (TCE) Tuesday is set to hold a hearing against members of the National Electoral Council (CNE), whom the Social Justice Movement (SJM) accused of electoral infractions. | RELATED: | Over 52% of Ecuadoreans Fell Into Poverty in 2020 | The lawsuit was filed against CNE President Diana Atamaint and councilors Luis Verdesoto, Enrique Pita, and Jose Cabrera. They were accused of "serious electoral offenses" for not complying with a ruling that granted new…
telesurenglish.net/news/Ecuador-Tribunal-Hears-a-Claim-Against-Electoral-Officials-20210105-0014.html

In 2021, the best way to fight Neofascist Republicans is to fight Neoliberal Democrats
Norman Solomon | nationofchange.org | 2021-01-05
What's imperative for progressives is not to "speak truth to power" but to speak truth about power — and to drastically change an economic system that provides humongous wealth to a very few and worsening misery to the countless many.
nationofchange.org/2021/01/05/in-2021-the-best-way-to-fight-neofascist-republicans-is-to-fight-neoliberal-democrats/

A Medical and Scientific New Year's Wish List
Bauchner H. | jamanetwork.com | 2021-01-05
The last 4 years have been difficult for science and medicine. The relentless attack by members of the executive and legislative branches of government on science and federal agencies that conduct science has shaken the fundamental pillars of great US institutions such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, and in some regards the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Although the 2020 NIH budget increased to almost $42 billion, more individuals are uninsured, and although health care costs have not increased substantially over the past 4 y…
jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2774575