In the space of little more than two years, Boris Johnson has wrecked any notion of decency or moral authority in the seat of power. As if illegally proroguing parliament, lying to the Queen and the House of Commons or enabling corruption with VIP lanes for cronies wasn’t bad enough – now we have something even more scandalous as if that was possible. A shadow government of ultra-wealthy donors is shaping public health and economic policy.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe has an observer mission along the line of control between the government and rebel side in south east Ukraine.
It reports that on Friday the number of ceasefire violations around the rebellious Donbas region of Ukraine had again nearly doubled:
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Arguably the best known contemporary proponent of Chinese exceptionalism in the English-language is Martin Jacques, best known for his 2009 bestseller When China Rules the World, a tour-de-force in the repackaging of orientalist tropes for the 21st-century. By framing China as a historically and culturally unique “civilisational-state,” Jacques has spent the past decade or so reinforcing the idea that China is so radically different from most other entities in world history that the only possible way to possibly understand it is through an unabashed cultural relativism. This has lead him to conclude that China’s ability to successfully stamp out successive outbreaks of COVID-19 has been due to its cultural superiority, more specifically its Confucian traditions.
There may be some duplication due to cross-posting and may be updated throughout the day, so please check back. If it gets updated, I usually insert the time on the line above. A lot of cross-posting usually indicates that the article is popular.
Mr Putin’s telephone conversation with President of France Emmanuel Macron
UK revives Cold War-era unit to fight ‘disinformation’
https://www.rt.com/news/550014-uk-new-cell-disinformation/
Another Day Of Still Local War In Eastern Europe
https://southfront.org/another-day-of-still-local-war-in-eastern-europe/
Young Ukrainians – Everyday Fears, Military Propaganda and Chauvinism
https://www.globalresearch.ca/young-ukrainians-everyday-fears-military-propaganda-chauvinism/5771108
Over the years Joe Biden has said a lot of nonsense. This though might top it all.
Biden Says Putin Has Chosen ‘Catastrophic’ War Over Diplomacy
Speaking from the Roosevelt Room in the White House, Mr. Biden said “we have reason to believe the Russian forces are planning to and intend to attack Ukraine in the coming week, in the coming days,” adding that “we believe that they will target Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, a city of 2.8 million innocent people.”
Asked whether he thinks that Mr. Putin is still wavering about whether to invade, Mr. Biden said, “I’m convinced he’s made the decision.” Later, he added that his impression of Mr. Putin’s intentions is based on “a significant intelligence capability.”
President Biden at a virtual summit with China’s President Xi Jinping. [Source: axios.com]Already threatening war with Russia, the White House this month has unveiled a new imperial grand strategy for the Indo-Pacific that raises the prospects of war with China.
The new strategy starts by repeating familiar clichés about America’s supposed humanitarian intentions in Southeast Asia and role in providing the security that “allowed regional democracies to flourish,” while ritualistically condemning Chinese aggression “spanning the entire globe.”
In many comments I’ve seen people calling the Minsk Package of Measures as a ‘dead letter’. Here is a reminder. The very first item is:
1) Ceasefire.
The second item is:
2) Withdrawal of weapons.
Do we really consider that a ‘dead letter’, or the most basic start of ending the war?
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by Eva Bartlett
[I’m not sure how many Canadians visit the NDA but in the off-chance that you’re one of them, this letter is especially for you. But don’t forget that under the guise of the ‘Pandemic’, most of the ‘developed’ countries have passed and are using existing laws to create quasi-fascist states allegedly, in order to protect us. From ourselves? I’ve long said that the Virus is simply the pretext for invoking the last refuge of a capitalist – Fascism. And once more, ably abetted by assorted ‘lefties’ and of course, the ‘Liberals’ B]
Thank you Spencer Latu for writing this letter.
Friends, please consider sharing widely, & if Canadian sending the letter to your respective MP:
Written by Alex Gallant exclusively for SouthFront
The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) reported that, on the evening of February 16th, 189 ceasefire violations were recorded in the Donetsk region, and 402 in the Luhansk region. The shelling from the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) continued on the evening of the 18th in settlements like Zaitseve and Gorlovka.
HAJJAH, YEMEN – Two parallel but very different meetings took place recently — one in search of peace, the other to plan more war. In Oman’s capital, Muscat, an official delegation headed by Ansar Allah, met with Omani and European officials to negotiate de-escalation and humanitarian assistance in Yemen. Meanwhile, the United States and the Saudi-led Coalition held meetings to plan a ground escalation in Sana’a and Hajjah province in Yemen’s southeast to coincide with airstrikes against residential neighborhoods in other cities throughout the north, which have killed and injured dozens of people and caused extensive damage to property and infrastructure.
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There may be some duplication due to cross-posting and may be updated throughout the day, so please check back. If it gets updated, I usually insert the time on the line above. A lot of cross-posting usually indicates that the article is popular.
Even Though The Neocons And Neoliberals Are Drooling For War In Ukraine, Putin Never Intended A War
Russia Is Pressing For More Concessions While Donbas Heats Up
Global Research Weekender: Whose Fault Is the Ukrainian Crisis? Provoking a Third World War?
https://www.globalresearch.ca/global-research-weekender-whose-fault-ukrainian-crisis-wwiii-imminent/5771121
There may be some duplication due to cross-posting and may be updated throughout the day, so please check back. If it gets updated, I usually insert the time on the line above. A lot of cross-posting usually indicates that the article is popular.
Russia Begins Preparing for Refugees From Donbass
https://consortiumnews.com/2022/02/18/russia-begins-preparing-for-refugees-from-donbass/
Before Making Conclusions…
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2022/02/before-making-conclusions.html
Truths and lies about pledges made to Russia
https://www.schweizer-standpunkt.ch/news-detailansicht-en-international/truths-and-lies-about-pledges-made-to-russia.html
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz gesturing at a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin , Moscow, February 15, 2022The upshot of the Russian response, transmitted to Washington on Thursday, regarding security guarantees may look as if the stalemate is heading toward a war. Moscow has rejected the US’ call for ‘de-escalation’ by pointing out that the Russian troops are deployed on Russian territories; it also rejects the threat of sanctions, which it says is a contrived attempt to “exert pressure and devalue Russia’s proposals on security guarantees.”
Terrell Starr and Black Support of Imperialism
Black Agenda Report’s analysis of the US instigated crisis in Ukraine makes clear that imperialism is the source of turmoil in that country. The US role in heightening tensions must be exposed and the servants of US empire must be exposed as well.
DOCUMENT: Articles of Pacification with the Maroons of Trelawny Town, Concluded March the First, 1738
The history of the Maroons of Jamaica’s Cockpit Country is a story of the difficulties of Black sovereignty and autonomy in an imperial world.
Divide and rule, the cultivation of tribalism, is an insurance policy against successful dissent and the threat of revolution.
OTTAWA – If you were Canada’s prime minister, what would you be prepared to do to enforce Covid restrictions on large swaths of your population? No one need ask that question any longer. Now we know the answer.
Ecosocialist Bookshelf is a monthly Climate & Capitalism feature, hosted by Ian Angus. Books described here may be reviewed at length in future. Inclusion of a book does not imply endorsement, or that C&C agrees with everything (or even anything!) these books say.
By EJ Curtin
Experienced foreign policy analysts such as Ray McGovern, Scott Ritter, and Pepe Escobar, while agreeing that the Biden administration is clearly guilty of provoking Russia over Ukraine, are divided over whether it will lead to war. All agree that Russia has no intention of invading Ukraine and that it is clearly justified in demanding safe borders by insisting U.S./NATO withdraw troops and missiles from the countries surrounding it, stop NATO’s “open door” policy, stop putting nuclear weapons in Europe, etc.
By Pepe Escobar, posted with the author’s permission and widely cross-posted
Moscow has not deviated for a moment from its Sun Tzu approach – while detailing all demands and all red lines many times over.
The Dem combo remote-controlling the senile President of the United States by earpiece/teleprompter was never accused of being the brightest bulbs in the room – any room.
That explains why one of their own, Nancy Pelosi, on ABC News, gave the whole Russian “invasion” game away two – or three – days, depending on their math, before the “canceled” non-event.
By Richard Falk
[Prefatory Note: The following interview conducted by Daniel Falcone appeared in COUNTERPUNCH in February 11, 2022. Small modifications have been made. While the Report significantly strengthened the civil society consensus to the effect that Israel is guilty of the continuing crime of apartheid, it has not [had an] overt impact in governmental policy circles in the West nor even within UN settings–a classic example of the primacy of geopolitics when [it] collides with normative imperatives.]
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(Brian Berletic – NEO) – The European Union unveiled what it is touting as an “alternative” to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Called the “Global Gateway,” the EU claims it will deliver better alternatives consisting of “high standards, good governance, and transparency,” in a rollout almost indistinguishable from the vague and poorly received US “Build Back Better World” (B3W) proposal.
The New Dark Age 