The long expected Russian offensive in Ukraine has begun.
The Ukrainian army, egged on by its U.S. controllers, had put most of its resource into the static defense of the Bakhmut (Artyomovsk) – Soledar sector of the eastern front. An insane number of Ukrainian brigades, though many partially depleted, were concentrated on that 50 kilometer long front. This left other sectors nearly empty of Ukrainian troops.
The 50th anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade decision is both a bitter reminder of the cruelty of the current right wing-dominated Supreme Court, and a moment to recommit ourselves to the fight for abortion rights. The right wing is moving aggressively to shred women’s rights, but they are opposed by the vast majority and they can be defeated with fierce resistance. The mass sentiment in defense of abortion rights has already defeated the far-right in state referenda in “blue” and “red” states alike, but to win back and extend this right requires continuous grassroots organizing and a return to powerful, large-scale mobilizations.
US president Joe Biden in his classic 1967 Corvette Stingray sports car, a wedding gift from his father, that is in the eye of the raging storm over classified documents found in his garage (File photo)The probability of the scandal over Top Secret documents dating back to the Barack Obama presidency blowing up on the face of the then vice-president — and incumbent president — Joe Biden is rather low.
A Hard-Edged Rock: Waging Economic Warfare on Humanity
https://dissidentvoice.org/2023/01/a-hard-edged-rock-waging-economic-warfare-on-humanity/
When Putin Finally Gave Up On The West
https://orientalreview.org/2023/01/21/when-putin-finally-gave-up-on-the-west/
Please, Get Them Back To The 6th Grade.
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2023/01/please-get-them-back-to-6th-grade.html
Not only has PC David Carrick pleaded guilty to 49 charges, including 24 counts of rape against 12 women over an 18-year period, but FOI requests have revealed that more than 150 Met police officers are currently on restricted duties and under investigation over allegations of racism and sexual misconduct. Cases of police racism and sexism – and the way they are dealt with – are so often linked, as reflected in this week’s calendar of racism and resistance. (Yet another case involving a racist, antisemitic and misogynistic police WhatsApp group chat is noted.) The criminal justice section of the calendar also focuses on the excessive use of force against black people, highlighting the case of Godrick Osei, who suffered from depression and drug addiction and died in July 2021 after being arrested and restrained in a cupboard during a mental health crisis at a care home in Truro, Cornwall.
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Maruja Mallo (Spain), La Verbena (‘The Fair’), 1927.Dear friends,
Greetings from the desk of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research.
On 8 January, large crowds of people dressed in colours of the Brazilian flag descended on the country’s capital, Brasília. They invaded federal buildings, including the Congress, Supreme Court, and presidential palace, and vandalised public property. The attack, carried out by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro, came as no surprise, since the rioters had been planning ‘weekend demonstrations’ on social media for days. When Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (known as Lula) was formally sworn in as Brazil’s new president one week prior, on 1 January, there was no such melee; it appears that the vandals were waiting until the city was quiet and Lula was out of town. For all its bluster, the attack was an act of extreme cowardice.
Elon Musk has announced that he is helping to smuggle hundreds of Starlink satellite communications devices into Iran. The South African-born billionaire made the admission on December 26, replying to a tweet lauding female Iranian protesters for refusing to cover their hair. “Approaching 100 Starlinks active in Iran”, he tweeted, clearly implying a political motivation to his work.
Star Dust for Capitalism’s Money-Making Geoengineering!
https://dissidentvoice.org/2023/01/star-dust-for-capitalisms-money-making-geoengineering/
What IS “Ukraine Model”?
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2023/01/what-is-ukraine-model.html
Russian News-media are More Honest than U.S.-and-Allied Media
https://dissidentvoice.org/2023/01/russian-news-media-are-more-honest-than-u-s-and-allied-media/
What It Means for Hunger to Burn Through the Pentagon’s Ranks
https://strategic-culture.org/news/2023/01/15/what-it-means-for-hunger-to-burn-through-pentagons-ranks/
Since the beginning of 2023, Israeli settlers have already attacked Palestinians and attempted landgrabs 1,290 times according to the Insan Center for Democracy and Rights.
2022 was the most dangerous year for Palestinians in the West Bank in almost two decades and the Zionist settlers are accelerating their provocative violence in 2023.
Minister, leader, activist and PhD Martin Luther King, Jr. was born January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Known for his use of civil disobedience and non-violent protests to combat racial segregation and discrimination in the United States, without his leadership our country would not have made the progress that it has.
Today we honor his life with this 1964 performance of “Freedom Day” by the Max Roach Quintet with Abbey Lincoln on vocals.
About T-90M, Again.
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2023/01/about-t-90m-again.html
Ukraine Open Thread 2023-13
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2023/01/ukraine-open-thread-2023-13.html
Ukraine’s & Russia’s Defense Ministers Agree (But NATO
Disagrees): War in Ukraine is Between NATO & Russia, NOT Ukraine
& Russia
https://orientalreview.org/2023/01/13/ukraines-russias-defense-ministers-agree-but-nato-disagrees-war-in-ukraine-is-between-nato-russia-not-ukraine-russia/
Caitlin Johnstone
The US empire’s proxy war in Ukraine has had many jaw-dropping instances of imperialist sociopathy, propagandistic audacity and brazen journalistic malpractice that we’ve discussed in this space many times, but one of the most cringeworthy and degrading aspects of the globe-spanning narrative control campaign surrounding this war has been the way the nation’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has been turned into an ever-present corporate mascot for the most aggressive ad campaign ever devised. The way the most powerful institutions in the western world have been throwing their puppet in everyone’s face to sell the empire’s proxy warfare puts Ronald McDonald to shame.
Gerald Horne: promoting British empire apologia to divert radicals into the Democratic Party
https://seeyouin2020.blogspot.com/2023/01/gerald-horne-promoting-british-empire.html
2023 Outlook For Ukraine
https://popularresistance.org/2023-outlook-for-ukraine/
My, My, My…
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2023/01/my-my-my.html
Spiridonov Yuri Vasilyevich (Sakha), Landlord of the Moma Mountains, 2006.Dear friends,
Greetings from the desk of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research.
In 1996, the eight countries on the Arctic rim – Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States – formed the Arctic Council, a journey that began in 1989 when Finland approached the other countries to hold a discussion about the Arctic environment. The Finnish initiative led to the Rovaniemi Declaration (1991), which established the council’s precursor, the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy.
Brazil’s president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva returns to power as left-leaning leaders are in control of six of the region’s seven largest economiesThe tragicomic “insurrection” in Brasilia on Sunday was destined to meet a sudden death. The universal condemnation and, in particular, the brusqueness with which the Biden Administration distanced itself from the protestors, sealed their fate. Certainly, this revolt is no “civil war,” although it is difficult to make predictions about new protests in the country.
Register for Privacy Camp 2023 here (our workshop is in-person attendance only). For more information on Privacy Camp, see the website.
In June 2022 EU policing agency Europol received substantial new powers. Legal changes mean the agency can now process data on entirely innocent people, more easily receive and transmit personal data from non-EU states, and is responsible for developing algorithms and other new technologies for police forces across the EU.
Soledar has fallen to Russian troops. Bakhmut (Artymovsk) will follow soon.
This constitutes the breach of Ukraine’s second defense line within the Donetzk and Lysichansk oblasts. I will discuss those lines with the maps below.
The New Dark Age 