Don’t Trade Real Liberty for Phony Security
By , May 31, 2022
Authoritarian politicians wasted no time using the recent shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas, to justify new infringements on liberty. Just days after the Buffalo shooting, the US House of Representatives passed a law creating new domestic terrorism offices in the FBI, the Justice Department, and the Department of Homeland Security.
FDA Authorizes Pfizer Boosters for Kids 5 to 11
By , May 31, 2022
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration amended its emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 shot to allow a booster dose for children ages 5 to 11. The FDA’s “evaluation of safety” for the booster dose in young children was based on a study of only about 400 children, and no meeting was held with the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee.
Pressure Builds on Biden to Investigate Israel over Abu Akleh Killing
By , May 31, 2022
Had Shireen been killed by the military of any other country, a thorough, transparent, and honest investigation would be virtually automatic. She was a Palestinian citizen of the United States. Yet, as we have seen in the past, the odds are against the U.S. undertaking an investigation let alone carrying one out that is independent and impartial.
A World at War? Biden Lashes Out Against “Enemies” as Our Country Declines
By , May 31, 2022
So the United States of America has been a country, like its best friend Israel, that seems to be perpetually at war…so what else is new? What’s new is that under President Joe Biden there has been zero diplomacy and almost reflexive reliance on wielding the “big stick.” To quote another bon mot from one of my favorite authors Raymond Chandler, creator of private eye Philip Marlowe, “…when in doubt, have two guys come through the door with guns.”
By , May 31, 2022
The news mentioned in this episode is the exclusion of the Russian violinist Lidia Kocharian and two other Russian violinists from the 41st International Violin Competition organized by the Rodolfo Lipizer Music School of Gorizia. This decision was officially communicated to the violinist with these words: “following the European provisions deriving from the Russia-Ukraine war and following the example of other competitions in various disciplines”.
Pakistan’s Russian Wheat Import Deal: Business As Usual or Something Different this Time?
By , May 31, 2022
The new government’s latest deal with Russia could muddle the narrative from their opponents that they came to power to punish the former premier for his ties with that country, which is why it can’t be described as business as usual even if the terms are the same or very similar to the ones that had been agreed to in the past and not close to the 20% discount that Imran Khan was reportedly negotiating.
Global Food Security: Is America Illegally Importing Syrian Wheat, Smuggled Out of a War Zone
By , May 31, 2022
Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzia, said on May 25 that US importers are significantly increasing their purchases of Syrian wheat, continuing the country’s strategy of maximizing imports from regions in crisis and conflict, such as Syria and Ukraine.
US Would be Maintaining Biolabs in Indonesia
By , May 31, 2022
For decades, a laboratory of the NAMRU-2 (Naval Medical Research Unit Two) project operated in Jakarta. This Navy military research program is dedicated to operating biomedical activities in several countries on the Asian continent and worked in Indonesia between 1970 and 2009, when it was finally closed after the country’s government declared the existence of this type of unit as a threat to national sovereignty.
If We Are to Survive We Must Learn to Ask the Right Questions
By , May 31, 2022
The phenomena of impertinence requires a polite, somewhat formal society in which privacy, self-control, and respect for others are requirements. Gentlemen don’t read other gentlemen’s mail. Tell that to the NSA, CIA, FBI, Google, and all corporations who spy on Internet usage.
By , May 31, 2022
On Memorial Day, America remembers and honors those who died while serving in the military. It is altogether fitting and proper to ask: for what did they die? Do the rationales offered by the military and government officials who decide when and how the US will go to war, and embraced by the public, particularly those who lose loved ones, stand up to scrutiny and analysis?
