 Thursday 10 February 2011 Mubarak Refuses to Step Down Anthony Shadid and David D. Kirpatrick, The New York Times News Service: "President Hosni Mubarak told the Egyptian people Thursday that he would delegate more authority to his vice president, Omar Suleiman, but that he would not resign his post, contradicting earlier reports that he would step aside and surprising hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered to hail his departure from the political scene. In a nationally televised address following a tumultuous day of political rumors and conflicting reports, Mr. Mubarak said he would 'admit mistakes' and honor the sacrifices of young people killed in the three-week uprising, but that he would continue to 'shoulder my responsibilities' until September, and did not give a firm indication that he would cede political power." Read the Article Egypt Protests: Watch for the Demands Robert Naiman, Truthout: "Four key demands have been constantly lifted up by protesters and opposition parties, which are essential for a credible transition to democracy: ending the arbitrary detention and harassment of journalists, human rights activists and peaceful demonstrators and freeing those who have been detained; ending the state of emergency; allowing free electoral competition in elections; and restoring full judicial supervision of elections.... Without these reforms, any 'orderly transition' in Egypt is likely to be a transition not to democracy, but a transition to dictatorship under a different face." Read the Article The Palestine Papers, or How Everything You Thought You Knew About the Peace Process Was Wrong Max Ajl, Truthout: "Common wisdom is that the 20-year-old peace process has been edging toward a two-state solution, based on a formula that half the world can recite verbatim: borders following the pre-1967-war armistice line with minor and mutual adjustments, a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem and a land bridge between Gaza and the West Bank, with refugees either repatriated or given adequate compensation." Read the Article Why Bradley Manning Is a Patriot, Not a Criminal: An Opening Statement for the Defense of Private Manning Chase Madar, TomDispatch: "Bradley Manning, a 23-year-old from Crescent, Oklahoma, enlisted in the U.S. military in 2007 to give something back to his country and, he hoped, the world. For the past seven months, Army Private First Class Manning has been held in solitary confinement in the Marine Corps brig in Quantico, Virginia. Twenty-five thousand other Americans are also in prolonged solitary confinement, but the conditions of Manning's pre-trial detention have been sufficiently brutal for the United Nation's Special Rapporteur on Torture to announce an investigation." Read the Article John Pilger | The Revolt in Egypt Is Coming Home John Pilger, Truthout: "The uprising in Egypt is our theater of the possible. It is what people across the world have struggled for and their thought controllers have feared. Western commentators invariably misuse the words 'we' and 'us' to speak on behalf of those with power who see the rest of humanity as useful or expendable. The 'we' and 'us' are universal now. Tunisia came first, but the spectacle always promised to be Egyptian." Read the Article Jordan Feels a Jolt Mona Alami, Inter Press Service: "The wave of political protests that has struck parts of the Middle East and North Africa over the past few weeks has also affected the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The protest movement here, initiated in the wake of the Tunisian Jasmine revolution, underscores the population's demand for political reform. A movement of discontent over rising prices kicked off early in January in the city of Theiban, south of Amman. Some 200 demonstrators demanded that the government take greater control over prices and initiate more anti- corruption efforts. The movement gained momentum with protests erupting in Karak and Irbid." Read the Article House Republicans Battle Turmoil in Their Ranks Carl Hulse, The New York Times News Service: "Under pressure to make deeper spending cuts and blindsided by embarrassing floor defeats, House Republican leaders are quickly discovering the limits of control over their ideologically driven and independent-minded new majority. For the second consecutive day, House Republicans on Wednesday lost a floor vote due to a mini-revolt, this time over a plan to demand a repayment from the United Nations." Read the Article News in Brief: HuffPost Bloggers Threaten Boycott Over AOL Merger, and More ... Bloggers and writers for the Huffington Post feel betrayed by HuffPost founder Arianna Huffington's decision to sell her left-leaning news site to AOL; Republicans in Congress are promoting bold plans to curtail the Environmental Protection Agency's expanded power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions; Republicans launched a new effort to defund Planned Parenthood this week; in the past week, the number of Americans filing for state unemployment benefits fell 36,000 from the previous week. Read the Article Egypt Demonstrates for Democracy; Americans Contemplate PATRIOT Act Extension Shahid Buttar, Truthout: "In spite of our own interests, Americans and the US government are supplying the boots that rest on the necks of citizens of Egypt and dictatorships around the world. Meanwhile, we remain silent as the impending reauthorization of the PATRIOT Act threatens to speed the momentum of repression in our own country." Read the Article Hungry Gazans Feed Egyptian Troops Mohammed Omer, Inter Press Service: "Mustapha Suleiman, 27, from J Block east of the Rafah crossing with Egypt, crosses through gaps in the iron fence on the border carrying bread, water, meat cans and a handful of vegetables for Egyptian soldiers stationed on the other side. 'Whatever you offer on Saturday you will receive on Sunday,' Suleiman says. 'I am ready to help with what I have, for all the work they do.' Egyptian troops have run short of essential supplies, caught up in clashes involving Bedouin groups. Serious clashes have erupted between riot police and Bedouin groups over the past two weeks." Read the Article Paul Krugman | To Get Back on Track, Grow That Economy Paul Krugman, Krugman & Co.: "Advanced countries' economies still have plenty of room to grow, yet some economists have been arguing lately that global growth is hitting supply-side limits, and that not much can be done through policy to fix it. The argument has arisen because high unemployment and low inflation prevail in advanced economies, while the rest of the world is facing accelerating inflation, together with rising commodity prices." Read the Article Time to Divest From the War Machine; Drones First? Nick Mottern, Truthout: "On January 12, 2011, the investment world thrilled to the announcement that ITT Corporation, one of the top ten US military contractors, will disengage from its 'defense' business as part of a planned split into three new companies. The move points to ITT as a possible canary in the coal mine for military contractors, and a signal to those of us who want to stop our current wars that the time is right to mount a divestment campaign on the war industry." Read the Article Click here for more Truthout articles
While the right wing claims that American capitalism leads the world, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is about to be acquired by new owners in Germany. That's right, long the symbol of the so-called "free market," the likely sale symbolizes that Wall Street is no longer the center of the financial universe. As of February 9, a New York Times article predicts, "A merger would potentially let customers trade stocks in New York, options tied to those shares in Paris and derivatives linked to them in Frankfurt." The NYSE has long offered a favorite photo opportunity for US politicians and presidents, who would ring the famous opening bell of the market, symbolizing their support of the American "free enterprise system." But it looks like, in the near future, the financial transactions of the global elite will officially be disbursed more and more around the world. The right-wing nostalgia for the financial might of America that characterized the post-WWII generation is becoming increasingly exposed as a mirage. The national boundaries of investment are being made ever more negligible by an international marketplace that owes no allegiance to any individual nation. The NYSE, which was founded in 1792, will no longer be owned by Americans. This single act won't stop the Tea Party from sipping on its cup of delusions, but at some point the reality will set in. America's financial destiny is inextricably intertwined with that of the world. Mark Karlin Obama Says History Unfolding in Egypt WikiLeaks: Egyptian "Torturers" Trained by FBI Obama and Bush Killing Public Education Softly With Their Songs and Slogans Let Them Breathe Carcinogens: Gingrich Calls for Eliminating EPA Arizona Sen. Jon "Right Wing" Kyl (R) Announces His Retirement Afghan Proposal Would Clamp Down on Women's Shelters Obama Promotes Plan for Near Universal Wireless Click here for more BuzzFlash headlines | ||||
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