{"id":24482,"date":"2019-12-07T23:18:54","date_gmt":"2019-12-08T07:18:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/?p=24482"},"modified":"2019-12-08T01:45:26","modified_gmt":"2019-12-08T09:45:26","slug":"rouge-forum-dispatch-new-decade-new-revos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/rouge-forum-dispatch-new-decade-new-revos\/","title":{"rendered":"Rouge Forum Dispatch: New Decade! New Revos!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>We Say Fight Back!<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Paris shut down by nationwide general strike\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XbDzZXYdp0A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>\u201c<strong>There is nothing more dangerous than to build a society<\/strong> with a large segment of people in that <strong>society<\/strong> who feel that they have no stake in <strong>it<\/strong>; who feel that that have <strong>nothing<\/strong> to lose. People who have stake in <strong>their society<\/strong>, protect that <strong>society<\/strong>, <strong>but<\/strong> when they don&#8217;t have <strong>it<\/strong>, they unconsciously want to destroy <strong>it<\/strong>.\u201d MLK<\/em><\/h1>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Mass strikes and protests in France over pension reform | LIVE\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qE0HBNKoyrw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/04\/french-unions-and-yellow-vests-converge-launch-general-strike\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">French Unions and Yellow Vests Converge, Launch General Strike<\/a><\/h1>\n<p>On the eve of an \u201cunlimited\u201d (open-ended) General Strike called for Dec. 5, more and more unions and protest groups are pledging join it.<\/p>\n<p>Two things are unusual about this strike. The first is that it is open-ended, rather than the usual one-day of ritualistic protest marches, and may be prolonged from day to day by workers\u2019 assemblies. The second is that the Yellow Vests, the self-organized, horizontal, social movement that sprung up spontaneously just over a year ago and is still popular despite severe repression, have decided to converge with the strike, and that the CGT\u2019s Martinez, who had originally spurned the Yellow Vests, immediately welcomed them, making for a heady mix. For the union leaders, who try to control their followers tightly, the Yellow Vests are like a loose canon on the deck of a ship. Who knows what may result?<\/p>\n<p>The nation-wide strike was originally proposed by Philippe Martinez, Secretary General of CGT, France\u2019s largest union federation, in response to the Macron Governments\u2019 proposed neoliberal \u201creform\u201d of the France retirement system. Macron\u2019s reform would essentially gut France\u2019s solidarity-based retirement system.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/04\/french-unions-and-yellow-vests-converge-launch-general-strike\/?fbclid=IwAR2-mDd5FVAHRqgZPsaYxPnIoSlGnRaya4tJd0kZzxeMPVwaq4wgHCOknSI\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/04\/french-unions-and-yellow-vests-converge-launch-general-strike\/?fbclid=IwAR2-mDd5FVAHRqgZPsaYxPnIoSlGnRaya4tJd0kZzxeMPVwaq4wgHCOknSI<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi\" src=\"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/c121566\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/5472x3648+0+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F99%2Fd2%2Ff6fbd33541a594f0df560a119b36%2Faptopix-france-strikes-81586.jpg\" alt=\"Image result for france strike\" width=\"450\" height=\"300\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/06\/the-audacity-of-hypocrisy-2\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">The Audacity of Hypocrisy<\/a><\/h1>\n<p>&#8230;As this election year approaches, we must remember that power, military might and economic control, resides in the capitalist ruling class, no matter which party is in the White House or Congress. There are differences amongst capitalists over to what extent they wish to exert control over the entire world and what tactics to use to control workers, such as racism versus reformism. Right wing isolationists like the Koch brothers and Trumpers promote overt white supremacy and banning immigration as ways to divide and weaken workers.<\/p>\n<p>The liberals talk about justice and equality, while pursuing imperialism abroad, and claim to oppose racism and inequality at home, while actually allowing it to grow. One good current example is Lori Lightfoot, the new black Mayor of Chicago, who talked about many education reforms and then fought the teacher\u2019s union as it struck to demand their implementation. If one wishes to actually remove the profit motive as the driver of production, war and foreign or domestic policy, it is necessary to actually remove the capitalist class from power. They will not go quietly. And between escalating war and climate disaster, the survival of the planet and billions of workers is at stake. But revolution will never be on the ballot.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/06\/the-audacity-of-hypocrisy-2\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/06\/the-audacity-of-hypocrisy-2\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"France paralysed by biggest strike in years - BBC News\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6Mm1M-cdKqU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Redfishstream\/videos\/782282212198270\/?t=6\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.facebook.com\/Redfishstream\/videos\/782282212198270\/?t=6<\/a><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"top\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Harvard Departments Check Grad Student Strike Status, Prompting Union Backlash<\/h1>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi\" src=\"https:\/\/hips.hearstapps.com\/vidthumb\/images\/harvard-university-graduate-students-on-strike-1575414565.png?crop=1.00xw:1.00xh;0,0\" alt=\"Image result for harvard grad strike\" width=\"450\" height=\"253\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Several academic departments across the University emailed graduate student teaching staff asking whether they are participating in the graduate student union\u2019s strike this week, prompting anger among union members.<\/p>\n<p>Harvard Graduate Students Union-United Automobile went on strike Tuesday after more than a year of contract negotiations with the University. Despite the 12 tentative agreements the two parties have reached, differences remain on key contract provisions including compensation, health benefits, and grievance procedure for sexual harassment and discrimiantion complaints.<\/p>\n<p>The memo \u2014 originally sent out to Government department affiliates by Chair Jeffry A. Frieden \u2014 was posted in part on Twitter by union members. Frieden informed graduate students that they are responsible for reporting whether they are working and that those who strike should not expect to be paid. Frieden also reminded faculty that they are \u201cmanagement\u201d and are still responsible for their \u201cinstructional responsibilities.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecrimson.com\/article\/2019\/12\/6\/strike-dept-emails\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.thecrimson.com\/article\/2019\/12\/6\/strike-dept-emails\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"spotlight aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/scontent.fsan1-2.fna.fbcdn.net\/v\/t1.0-9\/78464261_3020210001326929_3117458538142629888_n.jpg?_nc_cat=108&amp;_nc_ohc=qk2dPFqY1BsAQmQ-8SKJwJXTFxIqUeapMh9ygEyr9bCjTCE1S7FkJwUdA&amp;_nc_ht=scontent.fsan1-2.fna&amp;oh=726bb240196914739902cd651bcfc569&amp;oe=5E82B313\" alt=\"No photo description available.\" aria-busy=\"true\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"article-headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Vt. Woman Welcomes Announcement of Impeachment Articles<\/h1>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Ohanian.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-24501\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Ohanian.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"210\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><em>Susan Ohanian<\/em> of Charlotte introduced a motion at her community\u2019s 2017 Town Meeting Day that asked her neighbors to urge Congress to impeach the president (video inside)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A Vermont woman welcomed Thursday&#8217;s news that the U.S. House will move forward with articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, because she has a unique connection to the topic.<\/p>\n<p>In March of 2017, when the president had only been in office a few months, Susan Ohanian formally urged her neighbors at Charlotte&#8217;s annual town meeting to ask Congress to look into removing Trump.<\/p>\n<p>Ohanian&#8217;s argument at the time was that the president&#8217;s business dealings in the U.S. and overseas meant he could profit off the office.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.necn.com\/news\/local\/vt-woman-welcomes-announcement-of-impeachment-articles\/2203047\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.necn.com\/news\/local\/vt-woman-welcomes-announcement-of-impeachment-articles\/2203047\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"s-image aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/711iF9qWykL._AC_UY218_ML3_.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/711iF9qWykL._AC_UY218_ML3_.jpg 1x, https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/711iF9qWykL._AC_UY327_QL65_ML3_.jpg 1.5x, https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/711iF9qWykL._AC_UY436_QL65_ML3_.jpg 2x, https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/711iF9qWykL._AC_UY545_QL65_ML3_.jpg 2.5x, https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/711iF9qWykL._AC_UY654_QL65_ML3_.jpg 3x\" alt=\"Return to the Reich: A Holocaust Refugee\u2019s Secret Mission to Defeat the Nazis\" data-image-index=\"0\" data-image-load=\"\" data-image-latency=\"s-product-image\" data-image-source-density=\"1\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>CSpan&#8211;Eric Lichtblau&#8211;Return to the Reich&#8212;<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.c-span.org\/video\/?465522-1\/return-reich\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.c-span.org\/video\/?465522-1\/return-reich<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-3818d782\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Beacon High School Is Half White. That\u2019s Why Students Walked Out.<\/span><\/h1>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-11cwn6f aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/nyregion\/03beacon\/02beacon-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/nyregion\/03beacon\/02beacon-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/nyregion\/03beacon\/02beacon-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/nyregion\/03beacon\/02beacon-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"&amp;ldquo;As students of one of the most privileged, wealthy schools in the city, we have a lot of power to make a change here,&amp;rdquo; said Amalia Hirschhorn, a Beacon junior.\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\">More than 300 students at the selective public high school, one of New York City\u2019s most prestigious, protested its admissions policies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Naia Timmons, a junior from Harlem, stood surrounded by classmates in the middle of the street outside Beacon High School as hail began to fall.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">She shouted into a bullhorn: \u201cI continue to recognize the privilege I had of escaping the system that many of my friends could not.\u201d Naia identifies as black and white.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Her classmates chanted \u201cEnd Jim Crow\u201d and \u201cEducation is a right, not just for the rich and white.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Roughly 300 students walked out of Beacon on Monday to protest its high-stakes admissions process, which they said has exacerbated segregation in the nation\u2019s largest school system.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The protest at Beacon, one of New York City\u2019s most selective public schools, illustrates the widening scope of the push for school integration. It has shifted away from the narrow issue of how few black and Hispanic students are admitted to the city\u2019s eight specialized high schools, <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/18\/nyregion\/black-students-nyc-high-schools.html\">including Stuyvesant\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/a> NYTimes 12\/2\/19<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>The Little Red Schoolhouse<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi\" src=\"https:\/\/si.wsj.net\/public\/resources\/images\/ED-AX961_Melchi_8U_20180928144445.jpg\" alt=\"Image result for sokols hoax\" width=\"450\" height=\"318\" \/><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Seattle schools propose race-centric \u201cethnomathematics\u201d curriculum: <em>NEA&#8217;s posterboy Hagopian builds More reaction<\/em><\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com\/images\/I\/51ZQNhHZH7L._SX325_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg\" alt=\"Image result for sokols hoax\" width=\"251\" height=\"383\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Underlying \u201csocial justice\u201d and race-based initiatives is the explicit acceptance of the capitalist profit system, a failing system that is systematically destroying public education while condemning increasing millions to poverty. The claim of \u201csocial justice\u201d proponents that academic problems stem from racial or cultural insensitivity deliberately refuses to challenge the mantra from Democrats and Republicans that \u201cthere is no money\u201d for education. In fact, it serves the ruling class agenda of blaming educators, and often their skin color, for the problems of their students, rather than lack of funding.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsws.org\/en\/articles\/2019\/12\/06\/ethn-d06.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.wsws.org\/en\/articles\/2019\/12\/06\/ethn-d06.html<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-77a976c2\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">After 10 Years of Hopes and Setbacks, What Happened to the Common Core?<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h1>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Reason Education Sucks\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ILQepXUhJ98?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>It was one of the most ambitious education efforts in United States history. Did it fail? Or does it just need more time to succeed?<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The plan was hatched with high hopes and missionary zeal: For the first time in its history, the United States would come together to create consistent, rigorous education standards and stop letting so many school children fall behind academically.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">More than 40 states signed on to the plan, known as the Common Core State Standards Initiative, after it was rolled out in 2010 by a <em><strong>bipartisan group<\/strong><\/em> of governors, education experts and philanthropists. The education secretary at the time, Arne Duncan, <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2010\/07\/21\/education\/21standards.html\">declared himself<\/a> \u201cecstatic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">American children would read more nonfiction, write better essays and understand key mathematical concepts, instead of just mechanically solving equations.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/06\/us\/common-core.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/06\/us\/common-core.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/917b6e9\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/5100x3400+0+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F7e%2Fae%2F499cc6104c2794ab0797957d9327%2Fla-photos-1staff-474936-la-me-lopez-food-bank-5-ajs.JPG\" alt=\"Los Angeles Regional Food Bank\" width=\"840\" height=\"560\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"ArticlePage-headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">College students don\u2019t have enough money to eat. Their classmates are feeding them<\/h1>\n<p>The window of the food pantry is in an inconspicuous location on the second floor of the student services building at East Los Angeles College, and that\u2019s for the best. Some of the students who come here don\u2019t want the whole campus to know they\u2019re hungry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s really a sensitive topic for some people,\u201d said Anthony Dominguez, a biochemistry major who sometimes works at the pantry and hands out packaged noodles, granola bars, energy drinks and other items.<\/p>\n<p>After I spoke to Dominguez, I watched a student sidle up to the window and show his ID. He was handed a pouch of apple sauce and a granola bar, then walked away.<\/p>\n<p>But he lingered nearby, watched me interview another pantry customer, then approached.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was awkward the first couple of times I came,\u201d he said, asking me to identify him by his initials, J.C.<\/p>\n<p>J.C. told me he lives in a South Los Angeles neighborhood that sees a lot of violence. He said he has lost friends and cousins to murder, and he wants to become a homicide detective to bring killers to justice.<\/p>\n<p>His dad is a janitor and his sister takes care of their ailing mother, a dialysis patient. If there\u2019s food at home he\u2019ll eat there, but there\u2019s not always enough to go around. A counselor told him about the pantry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI just broke down,\u201d he said of his conversation with the counselor. \u201cI told her I was struggling.\u201d\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2019-12-07\/column-hungry-minds-and-empty-stomachs-at-east-l-a-college\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2019-12-07\/column-hungry-minds-and-empty-stomachs-at-east-l-a-college<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h1 class=\"index_storyHeadlineText__2Cb8\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Baltimore County Teacher Quits, Says School is &#8216;Chaos&#8217;<\/h1>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/capitalist-school.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-24504\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/capitalist-school.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"486\" height=\"260\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/capitalist-school.jpg 486w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/capitalist-school-150x80.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 486px) 100vw, 486px\" \/><\/a>Stephanie Robusto came forward to Project Baltimore after receiving a letter from a nine-year-old student at Pleasant Plains Elementary in Towson. The letter read:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDear. Ms. Robusto, I\u2019m so, so upset that every single day you have to deal with this. Every day I think \u2018I know today Ms. Robusto will be mistreated again.\u2019 I bearly (sic) see smiles in this room. It\u2019s just problems. Whenever this happens my lid pops out. I feel like an animal in a cage filled with disrespect. I just want you to be happy with what you are doing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For 10 years, Stephanie Robusto dedicated herself to teaching, but she walked away from her job a few weeks ago.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t want to go back,\u201d she told Project Baltimore. \u201cIt\u2019s like losing a part of yourself. But at the same time, it\u2019s a huge weight lifted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Robusto started working at Pleasant Plains Elementary in September. It was closer to home and to where her daughter goes to school. But her excitement quickly faded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe behavior problems at the school were intense. The kids kind of ran the school,\u201d she said. \u201cFire alarms just being pulled at least twice a week. I was physically assaulted. I was called names. This is stuff that happened on a daily basis.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/foxbaltimore.com\/news\/project-baltimore\/baltimore-county-teacher-quits-says-school-is-chaos?fbclid=IwAR3ssxr24kYsdLwq67qDjoGuNanKGAyCdqrSK1pvysA7RTsBVk9DBOYu3TQ\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">foxbaltimore.com\/news\/project-baltimore\/baltimore-county-teacher-quits-says-school-is-chaos?fbclid=IwAR3ssxr24kYsdLwq67qDjoGuNanKGAyCdqrSK1pvysA7RTsBVk9DBOYu3TQ<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IllusionFactory.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-24513\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IllusionFactory.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"341\" height=\"336\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IllusionFactory.jpg 341w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IllusionFactory-150x148.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 341px) 100vw, 341px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"asset-headline speakable-headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Dramatic Fake changes proposed to Detroit&#8217;s public K-12 schools<\/h1>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\">Dramatic changes have been\u00a0proposed for Detroit&#8217;s public schools\u00a0in an effort to move students to buildings in good physical condition, increase the rigor at some high schools and boost enrollment in the state&#8217;s largest district.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">Nikolai Vitti, superintendent at Detroit Public Schools Community District, is proposing changes that would require students at King\u00a0and Communications and Media Arts high schools to take an exam to be admitted, move the district&#8217;s headquarters out of the Fisher building and shift schools,\u00a0programs and boundary lines to spread resources.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">&#8220;The changes that we have been talking about are not to address our district-wide facility issues,&#8221; Vitti said.\u00a0&#8220;They are a set of recommendations that can move more students to better facilities and can continue to help us increase enrollment district-wide by providing more competitive programming.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Vitti and his staff have been taking their\u00a0ideas and solutions\u00a0to the community in a series of public\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/dpscd203012345678901.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-track-label=\"inline|intext|n\/a\">talks<\/a> that run through Wednesday. District officials are collecting feedback from parents, taxpayers and others from the discussions to take to the school board in the spring.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/news\/education\/2019\/12\/03\/dramatic-changes-proposed-detroits-public-k-12-schools\/2533144001\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.detroitnews.com\/story\/news\/education\/2019\/12\/03\/dramatic-changes-proposed-detroits-public-k-12-schools\/2533144001\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"g-freebird-lazy ll-init ll-loadstarted ll-loaded\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2019\/09\/26\/yearbook\/2ab8017a5a7d82dfad8f738f659b088e3b05fd83\/cover.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2019\/09\/26\/yearbook\/2ab8017a5a7d82dfad8f738f659b088e3b05fd83\/cover.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"heading__step-up-three--4WDO6 heading__serif-heading--2CEp1 heading__heading--hUYqy contentHeader__heading--1JU3M\" style=\"text-align: center;\">The Class of 2000 \u2018Could Have Been Anything\u2019<\/h1>\n<div class=\"topper-summ\" style=\"text-align: center;\">The high school yearbook is a staple of teenage life. But for some, it reflects the devastating toll of the opioid crisis.<\/div>\n<div>\n<p id=\"\" class=\"g-body \">The Minford High School Class of 2000, in rural Minford, Ohio, began its freshman year as a typical class. It had its jocks and its cheerleaders, its slackers and its overachievers.<\/p>\n<p id=\"\" class=\"g-body \">But by the time the group entered its final year, its members said, painkillers were nearly ubiquitous, found in classrooms, school bathrooms and at weekend parties.<\/p>\n<p id=\"\" class=\"g-body \">Over the next decade, Scioto County, which includes Minford, would become ground zero in the state\u2019s fight against opioids. It would <a href=\"https:\/\/cpb-us-w2.wpmucdn.com\/u.osu.edu\/dist\/3\/67698\/files\/2018\/12\/The-Opioid-Crisis_Data-and-Program-Evaluation-Lisa-Roberts-1p3doa9.pdf\">lead Ohio<\/a> with its rates of fatal drug overdoses, drug-related incarcerations and babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome.<\/p>\n<p id=\"\" class=\"g-body \">To understand both the scope and the devastating consequences of what is now a public health crisis, we talked to dozens of members of the Class of 2000. Many opened up to us about struggles with addiction, whether their own or their relatives\u2019.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2019\/12\/02\/us\/opioid-crisis-high-school-teenagers.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2019\/12\/02\/us\/opioid-crisis-high-school-teenagers.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>The International Hot War of the Rich on the Poor<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"image__img--3bauF\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" sizes=\"(max-width: 32rem) 434px,(max-width: 48rem) 722px,(max-width: 64rem) 948px,(max-width: 80rem) 854px,1032px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=868,578 868w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=434,289 434w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=1444,962 1444w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=722,481 722w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=1896,1264 1896w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=948,632 948w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=1708,1138 1708w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=854,569 854w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=2064,1376 2064w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2019\/11\/191101-RECRUITING-VIDEO-GAMES-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;resize=1032,688 1032w\" alt=\"Military Recruiting Video Games\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"heading__step-up-three--4WDO6 heading__serif-heading--2CEp1 heading__heading--hUYqy contentHeader__heading--1JU3M\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Army Recruitment Today Is Less \u2018Be All You Can Be\u2019 And A Lot More \u2018Call Of Duty\u2019<\/h1>\n<p>The best source of light in this dim, warehouse-sized room in suburban Denver comes from rows of screens. Each panel shows a discrete military action, a fast-paced firefight as camouflaged soldiers swarm a map or special operators securing a target.<\/p>\n<p>One of the figures hunched over a computer in the darkness finally huffs in disappointment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve died like four times in three missions, so [I\u2019m] not going to say [I\u2019m doing] the greatest,\u201d said 17-year-old Gavin Gains.<\/p>\n<p>Even though he wasn&#8217;t dominating the brand new &#8220;Call of Duty: Modern Warfare,&#8221; Gains is exactly what the regional Go Army recruitment office is looking for. For the past three years they\u2019ve only hit about 80 percent of their recruiting goals. Nationally, the Army only attracted 68,000 recruits in 2018. For the fiscal 2020 year the manpower goal is half a million.<\/p>\n<p>The old ways to attract potential recruits aren\u2019t working the way they used to. More modern tactics are called for, like hosting an event at the <a href=\"https:\/\/localhost.gg\/denver\/\">Localhost Arena in Lakewood<\/a> or starting a <a href=\"https:\/\/recruiting.army.mil\/army_esports\/\">professional esports team<\/a>.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cpr.org\/2019\/11\/08\/army-recruitment-today-is-less-be-all-you-can-be-and-a-lot-more-call-of-duty\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.cpr.org\/2019\/11\/08\/army-recruitment-today-is-less-be-all-you-can-be-and-a-lot-more-call-of-duty\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-11cwn6f aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/00dc-IRAN\/merlin_165352932_c67899c3-831f-46c3-812c-9a475f2e63c9-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/00dc-IRAN\/merlin_165352932_c67899c3-831f-46c3-812c-9a475f2e63c9-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/00dc-IRAN\/merlin_165352932_c67899c3-831f-46c3-812c-9a475f2e63c9-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/00dc-IRAN\/merlin_165352932_c67899c3-831f-46c3-812c-9a475f2e63c9-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"American officials said that Iran had capitalized on unrest in Iraq, where protesters demonstrated this week in Basra.\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-5c67213b\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Iran Is Secretly Moving Missiles Into Iraq, U.S. Officials Say<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em><strong>The buildup of a hidden arsenal of short-range missiles is the latest sign that American efforts to deter Iran have largely failed.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Iran has used <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/11\/30\/world\/middleeast\/adel-abdul-mahdi-resigns-iraq.html\">the continuing chaos in Iraq<\/a> to build up a hidden arsenal of short-range ballistic missiles in Iraq, part of a widening effort to try to intimidate the Middle East and assert its power, according to American intelligence and military officials.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The buildup comes as the United States has rebuilt its military presence in the Middle East to counter emerging threats to American interests, including attacks on oil tankers and facilities that intelligence officials have blamed on Iran. Since May, the Trump administration has sent roughly 14,000 additional troops to the region, primarily to staff Navy ships and missile defense systems.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">But new intelligence about Iran\u2019s stockpiling of missiles in Iraq is the latest sign that the Trump administration\u2019s efforts to deter Tehran by increasing the American military presence in the Middle East has largely failed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The missiles pose a threat to American allies and partners in the region, including Israel and Saudi Arabia, and could endanger American troops, the intelligence officials said.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/iran-missiles-iraq.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/iran-missiles-iraq.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/media1.s-nbcnews.com\/j\/newscms\/2019_41\/2756716\/191009-isis-flag-ew-120p_b5fe8264e20ac05c3473e64dde4de436.fit-760w.jpg\" alt=\"Image: ISIS member\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-23703703\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">&#8220;Light at end of tunnel?&#8221; ISIS Is Losing Afghan Territory. That Means Little for Its Victims.<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Offensives against the Islamic State\u2019s Afghan branch have brought it down to several hundred fighters, officials say. But they warn that the group\u2019s cruelty is still a threat.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The Islamic State\u2019s main stronghold in eastern Afghanistan collapsed in recent weeks, according to American and Afghan officials, following years of concerted military offensives from American and Afghan forces and, more recently, the Taliban.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">President Ashraf Ghani recently claimed that the Islamic State, often known as ISIS, had been \u201cobliterated\u201d in Nangarhar Province, the group\u2019s haven in the east. And in an interview in Kabul on Sunday, Gen. Austin S. Miller, the commander of all American and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said the group\u2019s loss of the terrain it stubbornly held for few years would severely restrict their recruitment and planning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">But General Miller also warned that ISIS could remain a threat in Afghanistan even if it does not hold territory, with attention required to track militants on the move and the group\u2019s remaining urban cells.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cIt was instructive in Iraq and Syria \u2014 when you take away big terrain from them, they move into smaller cells and they pop up in strange places,\u201d General Miller said.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/asia\/ISIS-afghanistan-baghdadi.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/asia\/ISIS-afghanistan-baghdadi.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Pentagon Releases Video, Photos Of Raid That Killed ISIS Chief Baghdadi\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4wAPz5vH9fg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline___CuovH f8 f9-m fw3 mb3 mt0 f10-xl founders-cond lh-none\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-test=\"article-hero__headline\">&#8216;betrayal&#8217; of Kurds in Syria<\/h1>\n<div class=\"articleDek dekSummary___GcgCT f4 f5-m f6-l f7-xl publico-hed lh-copy fw3 ls-normal mb3 mb6-m\" style=\"text-align: center;\">&#8220;They are all going to be killed or detained after we betrayed them,&#8221; an ex-CIA officer said. &#8220;Killed with weapons we gave to the Turks.&#8221;<\/div>\n<p class=\"endmarkEnabled\">A sustained Turkish military operation against U.S.-backed Kurdish forces in Syria \u2014 <a class=\" vilynx_listened\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/mideast\/top-kurdish-general-watching-over-isis-prisoners-now-second-priority-n1063496\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">which President Donald Trump appears to have permitted<\/a> \u2014 would vastly increase the threat to Americans from the Islamic State militant group, which remains intent on attacking the West, current and former intelligence officials tell NBC News.<\/p>\n<p class=\"endmarkEnabled\">The immediate concern, officials say, is what will happen with the 12,000 ISIS fighters currently being guarded by <a class=\" vilynx_listened\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/national-security\/chaos-syria-washington-after-trump-call-erdogan-unleashed-turkish-military-n1063516\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the American-backed Kurds<\/a>. The ISIS prisoners are the <a class=\" vilynx_listened\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/national-security\/amid-planned-syria-withdrawal-u-s-scrambling-find-places-send-n955696\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">world&#8217;s largest concentration of terrorists<\/a>. If those fighters are set free, officials fear a replay of what happened in Iraq between 2010 and 2013, when the core group who founded ISIS were released or escaped from detention after U.S. forces left the country.<\/p>\n<p class=\"endmarkEnabled\">Some of the very people who broke out of Iraqi prisons helped turn ISIS into a movement that not only seized territory in Iraq and Syria, but also orchestrated and encouraged terrorist attacks in Europe and the United States.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/national-security\/intel-officials-say-isis-could-regroup-after-u-s-betrayal-n1064306\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/national-security\/intel-officials-say-isis-could-regroup-after-u-s-betrayal-n1064306<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi\" src=\"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/2217fc0\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/1176x807+0+0\/resize\/840x576!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fff%2F17%2F1abbd44e46e1acf5d91348578021%2Farrest-video-snippet-3.2.png\" alt=\"Image result for marines arrested human smuggling\" width=\"450\" height=\"309\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline h1\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Charges dropped in alleged Marine Corps human smuggling and drug rings after arrests ruled unlawful<\/h1>\n<p>Military prosecutors dropped human trafficking and drug charges against most of the two dozen Marines recently arrested in front of their Camp Pendleton battalion, days after a court ruled those arrests were an<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sandiegouniontribune.com\/news\/watchdog\/story\/2019-11-15\/judge-says-mass-arrest-of-marines-accused-of-human-smuggling-drug-offenses-was-unlawful-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> unlawful violation of their right<\/a>s, Marine Corps officials confirmed Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>The Marines&#8217; cases will be dealt with administratively, outside the military court system, according to a 1st Marine Division statement. Many of them will be discharged from the Marines.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Thirteen Marines submitted and have approved pre-trial agreements requesting separation in lieu of courts-martial or waiving administrative separation boards,&#8221; the Marines statement said.<\/p>\n<p>Also six Marines have pleaded guilty at courts-martial, and four still face criminal charges, the statement said. Task and Purpose, 12&#8217;06&#8217;19<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>The International Economic War of the Rich on the Poor<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Food-Coupon-Huck.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-24497\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Food-Coupon-Huck.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"756\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Food-Coupon-Huck.jpg 756w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Food-Coupon-Huck-500x265.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Food-Coupon-Huck-150x79.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 756px) 100vw, 756px\" \/><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"color: #800000;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-78f4d302\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Hundreds of Thousands Are Losing Access to Food Stamps: Food Slavery<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h1>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"spotlight\" src=\"https:\/\/scontent.fsan1-2.fna.fbcdn.net\/v\/t1.0-9\/79000371_10221663125873361_1590115421191667712_n.jpg?_nc_cat=101&amp;_nc_ohc=s_Ul93IotCsAQnZQyIzOTjtN_6nujNIi5BKUOJDselsPiWhJT0IKUYjXg&amp;_nc_ht=scontent.fsan1-2.fna&amp;oh=a76e69402589e553115883a26fb92722&amp;oe=5E690F2E\" alt=\"No photo description available.\" aria-busy=\"true\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>The Agriculture Department gave its final approval to the first of three rules that are ultimately expected to cut more than three million from the food stamp rolls.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The Trump administration, brushing aside tens of thousands of protest letters, <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fns.usda.gov\/snap\/fr-120419\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">gave final approval<\/a> on Wednesday to a rule that will remove nearly 700,000 people from the federal food-stamp program by strictly enforcing federal work requirements.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The rule, which was proposed by the Agriculture Department in February, would press states to carry out work requirements for able-bodied adults without children that governors have routinely been allowed to waive, especially for areas in economic distress. The economy has improved under the Trump administration, the department argued, and assistance to unemployed, able-bodied adults was no longer necessary in a strong job market.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The change is expected to shave nearly $5.5 billion from food stamp spending over five years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cGovernment can be a powerful force for good, but government dependency has never been the American dream,\u201d said Sonny Perdue, the agriculture secretary. \u201cWe need to encourage people by giving them a helping hand but not allowing it to become an indefinitely giving hand.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/food-stamps.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/food-stamps.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"caption-processed shareaholic-media-target-hover-state\" src=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/sites\/default\/files\/users\/user20544\/shadow.jpg\" width=\"724\" height=\"648\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"node__title managed-node-title\" style=\"text-align: center;\">&#8216;Eye-Popping&#8217;: Analysis Shows Top 1% Gained $21 Trillion in Wealth Since 1989 While Bottom Half Lost $900 Billion<\/h1>\n<div class=\"field field--name-field-subtitle field--type-text-long field--label-hidden\">\n<div class=\"field__items\">\n<div class=\"field__item even\">\n<div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">&#8220;The top one percent owns nearly $30 trillion of assets while the bottom half owns less than nothing.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Adding to the <a href=\"http:\/\/gabriel-zucman.eu\/uswealth\/\">mountain of statistical evidence<\/a> showing the severity of U.S. inequality, an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peoplespolicyproject.org\/2019\/06\/14\/top-1-up-21-trillion-bottom-50-down-900-billion\/\">analysis<\/a> published Friday found that the top one percent of Americans gained $21 trillion in wealth since 1989 while the bottom 50 percent lost $900 billion.<\/p>\n<p>Matt Bruenig, founder of the left-wing think tank People&#8217;s Policy Project, broke down the Federal Reserve&#8217;s newly released &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.federalreserve.gov\/releases\/z1\/dataviz\/dfa\/\">Distributive Financial Accounts<\/a>&#8221; data series and found that, overall, &#8220;the top one percent owns nearly $30 trillion of assets while the bottom half owns less than nothing, meaning they have more debts than they have assets.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The growth of wealth inequality over the past 30 years, Bruenig found, is &#8220;eye-popping.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Between 1989 and 2018, the top one percent increased its total net worth by $21 trillion,&#8221; Bruenig wrote. &#8220;The bottom 50 percent actually saw its net worth decrease by $900 billion over the same period.&#8221;\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/news\/2019\/06\/14\/eye-popping-analysis-shows-top-1-gained-21-trillion-wealth-1989-while-bottom-half?utm_campaign=shareaholic&#038;utm_medium=referral&#038;utm_source=facebook&#038;fbclid=IwAR2UokDITKHoXPYpi7bYQNBjM8g-8D-Jv6FRBkaLjl7fytwk2qcvkX4Srk4\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.commondreams.org\/news\/2019\/06\/14\/eye-popping-analysis-shows-top-1-gained-21-trillion-wealth-1989-while-bottom-half?utm_campaign=shareaholic&#038;utm_medium=referral&#038;utm_source=facebook&#038;fbclid=IwAR2UokDITKHoXPYpi7bYQNBjM8g-8D-Jv6FRBkaLjl7fytwk2qcvkX4Srk4<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hemmings.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2017\/08\/1971-Ford-Pinto-02.jpg\" alt=\"Image result for ford pinto\" width=\"450\" height=\"263\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"topper__headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Ford workers break their silence on faulty transmissions: &#8216;Everybody\u00a0knew&#8217;<\/h1>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\">\u00a0<strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><strong>&#8220;Good people tried to make it work. But you can\u2019t violate the laws of physics,&#8221; engineer says of defective transmission.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"dropcap\">They knew the truth and kept quiet.<\/p>\n<p>Their secret wasn\u2019t a secret at all in engineering, product development, research, design or manufacturing within Ford Motor Co., say seven<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>current and former employees who worked to develop and launch the Fiesta and Focus cars that would become known for defective automatic transmissions.<span style=\"color: #800000;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy hands are dirty. I feel horrible,\u201d said an engineer who played a key role in developing the popular compact cars.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou think of the gentleman who stood up for the space shuttle Challenger, saying if they launched that with the ice on it that it\u2019s going to blow up. Well, these kinds of really horrific technical errors seemed to pass right through at Ford on this project,\u201d the engineer said.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.freep.com\/in-depth\/money\/cars\/ford\/2019\/12\/05\/ford-focus-fiesta-dps-6-transmission-problems\/4243091002\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.freep.com\/in-depth\/money\/cars\/ford\/2019\/12\/05\/ford-focus-fiesta-dps-6-transmission-problems\/4243091002\/<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"spacer-50 mobile-spacer-25 hidden-xs hidden-sm\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive imported-news-entry-img\" src=\"https:\/\/images.markets.businessinsider.com\/image\/5de8e1b1fd9db2284131ae92-2400\/rtx4qjw1-1.jpg\" alt=\"trader sad rubs eyes facepalm\" width=\"2500\" height=\"1250\" border=\"0\" \/><\/div>\n<div id=\"htlad-2\" class=\"htl-ad \" data-unit=\"Markets-Insider\/Stocks\/News\" data-sizes=\"0x0:300x50,320x50|960x0:\" data-prebid=\"0x0:Stocks\/News\/300x50,320x50|960x0:\" data-targeting=\"{&quot;region&quot;:&quot;mobile-sticky-lower&quot;}\" data-eager=\"\" data-sticky=\"\" data-sticky-hours=\"0\" data-bidder-params=\"{&quot;appnexus&quot;: {&quot;keywords&quot;:{&quot;region&quot;: [&quot;mobile-sticky-lower&quot;]}}}\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-xs-12 no-padding-left no-padding-right\">\n<div class=\"single-article\">\n<h1 class=\"article-title\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Goldman Sachs says that every one of its private equity clients is preparing for recession<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Goldman Sachs&#8217; private equity clients are not feeling good about the global economy.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>According to the bank&#8217;s chairman of investment banking, &#8220;Every one of our clients is focused on being prepared for a recession.&#8221;<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2019-12-04\/goldman-s-mass-sees-private-equity-firms-girding-for-downturn?srnd=premium-europe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Alison Mass, speaking to Bloomberg TV<\/a>, said that the bank&#8217;s clients are creating checklists so that they could cope if a recession strikes.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Goldman&#8217;s own economists are more bullish on the economy in 2020, seeing a 20% chance of recession. <\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>View Business Insider&#8217;s homepage for more stories.<a href=\"https:\/\/markets.businessinsider.com\/news\/stocks\/goldman-sachs-says-private-equity-clients-are-preparing-for-recession-2019-12-1028740448\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">markets.businessinsider.com\/news\/stocks\/goldman-sachs-says-private-equity-clients-are-preparing-for-recession-2019-12-1028740448<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy-img__image loaded\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.bwbx.io\/images\/users\/iqjWHBFdfxIU\/iRefhwUc5Dxo\/v0\/1200x-1.jpg\" alt=\"undefined\" data-native-src=\"https:\/\/assets.bwbx.io\/images\/users\/iqjWHBFdfxIU\/iRefhwUc5Dxo\/v0\/-1x-1.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"not-quite-full-width-image-lede-text-above__abstract\">\n<h1 class=\"not-quite-full-width-image-lede-text-above__hed\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Kushner\u2019s Felon Father Back at Helm of New York Empire With Two Fellow Inmates<\/h1>\n<div class=\"not-quite-full-width-image-lede-text-above__dek\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>\u201cIt can\u2019t hurt to be doing business with Jared Kushner\u2019s family. It\u2019s a road to the administration.\u201d<\/em><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>It\u2019s hard to find work right out of prison. But Avram Lebor and Richard Goettlich walked from their Alabama penitentiary into top jobs at the real estate company then\u00a0run by Jared Kushner, now President Donald Trump\u2019s son-in-law and senior adviser. The two men, convicted in separate sprawling fraud schemes, were hired several years ago by his father, Charles Kushner, who had been locked up in the same federal prison with them.<\/p>\n<p>As 36-year-old <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/features\/2016-jared-kushner-trump-card\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jared Kushner<\/a> settles into a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2017-01-24\/this-36-year-old-may-be-running-america\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">White House role<\/a> that includes personnel decisions and Middle East peace, the most extensive organizational experience he has to draw from is his lifetime at the closely held family real estate company, where his father is once again deeply involved. It\u2019s a business where, like Trump\u2019s, family and loyalty loom large. Management at Kushner Cos. has been mercurial, its feuds bruising and its political influence considerable. Recent joint ventures and investments expanded by Jared could lead to opportunities for unseen influence. Given the company\u2019s history, ethics lawyers say, such opportunities merit close watching.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/features\/2017-01-27\/jared-kushner-s-felon-father-brought-two-fellow-inmates-into-company?fbclid=IwAR0bjnXNsmX8MGypJiWBXWTIcc_iBT_DCL0Orp_dIxERGB_kuOQNJs5id7w\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.bloomberg.com\/news\/features\/2017-01-27\/jared-kushner-s-felon-father-brought-two-fellow-inmates-into-company?fbclid=IwAR0bjnXNsmX8MGypJiWBXWTIcc_iBT_DCL0Orp_dIxERGB_kuOQNJs5id7w<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/obama-money1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-24489\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/obama-money1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"385\" height=\"375\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/obama-money1.jpg 385w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/obama-money1-150x146.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 385px) 100vw, 385px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"post-headline \" style=\"text-align: center;\">The Obamagogues reportedly just bought a $12 million house on Martha&#8217;s Vineyard. Take a look inside the 7-bedroom waterfront mansion.<\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/vineyardgazette.com\/news\/2019\/12\/04\/president-obama-buys-home-edgartown-great-pond\">Barack and Michelle Obama just dropped $11.75 million on a house<\/a> on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/category\/marthas-vineyard\">Martha&#8217;s Vineyard<\/a> in Massachusetts, Julia Wells reported for the Vineyard Gazette.<\/li>\n<li>The seven-bedroom home is almost 7,000 square feet and sits on 29 waterfront acres, according to the listing.<\/li>\n<li>It comes with an outdoor swimming pool, sun decks and balconies, a boathouse, and private beachfront.<\/li>\n<li>The home&#8217;s asking price was originally $14.85 million.<\/li>\n<li>The former first family has spent summer vacations on Martha&#8217;s Vineyard, which is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/cape-cod-vs-marthas-vineyard-2016-6\">a popular summer destination for the wealthy<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy-image js-queued js-rendered\" src=\"https:\/\/image.businessinsider.com\/5de94bd1fd9db270195f7e94?width=700&amp;format=jpeg&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"obama marthas vineyard\" data-content-type=\"image\/png\" data-srcs=\"{&quot;https:\/\/image.businessinsider.com\/5de94bd1fd9db270195f7e94&quot;:{&quot;contentType&quot;:&quot;image\/png&quot;,&quot;aspectRatioW&quot;:4,&quot;aspectRatioH&quot;:3}}\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h1 class=\"article-title\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>The Emergence of Fascism as a Popular Mass Movement and <\/u><\/strong><strong><u>The War on Reason<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/12\/05\/PNJM\/ecdd50d9-7d42-4baa-b776-b8e644ba2c81-Illustrations_Seton_Hall_Law_Center_for_Policy_and_Research-1.jpg?width=520&amp;height=390&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Image result for seton hall torture\" width=\"264\" height=\"383\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\">How America Tortures (The Seton Hall Study)<\/h1>\n<p>Americans may find it difficult to acknowledge that top officials in the West Wing of the White House and the Office of Legal Counsel of the Department of Justice orchestrated and poorly oversaw a horrific torture program that was responsible for the detention and interrogation of countless detainees. Seventeen years ago, the White House and the Department of Justice created a torture program and, through a series of legal memoranda, attempted to immunize Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agents from criminal liability. The language was formal, legalistic, antiseptic, and euphemistic. That, combined with vague definitions of the techniques, disguised the extent of abuse the memos were approving and\/or permitting. For many years, virtually no attention has been paid to the specific details of the techniques that were used in America\u2019s name and too little investigation has gone into the specific uses that the CIA made of these techniques.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/s3fs-public\/thumbnails\/image\/2019\/12\/06\/19\/illustrations-seton-hall-law-center-for-policy-and-research7.jpg\" alt=\"Image result for seton hall torture\" width=\"296\" height=\"383\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This report presents the specific details of what the torture memos permitted and most importantly, how the techniques were implemented and applied. This report is based on information from many of those who were tortured under the program, including Zayn al-Abidin Muhammad Husayn (Abu Zubaydah), as well as many CIA cables, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Report, and numerous other government documents.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"irc_mi aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/16\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-top\/00dc-torturetechniques-top-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" alt=\"Image result for seton hall torture\" width=\"400\" height=\"249\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The torture memos described the ten techniques that were designed and approved to torture one person, Abu Zubaydah. All ten techniques were used upon him and, while he has not been allowed to speak, some of his descriptions of those experiences were declassified.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/papers.ssrn.com\/sol3\/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3494533\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">papers.ssrn.com\/sol3\/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3494533<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-7e24ca53\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">What the C.I.A.\u2019s Torture Program Looked Like to the Tortured<\/span><\/h1>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1m50asq\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-07\/00dc-torturetechniques-07-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-07\/00dc-torturetechniques-07-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-07\/00dc-torturetechniques-07-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1021w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-07\/00dc-torturetechniques-07-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1021w\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>D<em>rawings done in captivity by the first prisoner known to undergo \u201cenhanced interrogation\u201d portray his account of what happened to him in vivid and disturbing ways.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">One shows the prisoner nude and strapped to a crude gurney, his entire body clenched as he is waterboarded by an unseen interrogator. Another shows him with his wrists cuffed to bars so high above his head he is forced on to his tiptoes, with a long wound stitched on his left leg and a howl emerging from his open mouth. Yet another depicts a captor smacking his head against a wall.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">They are sketches drawn in captivity by the Guant\u00e1namo Bay prisoner known as Abu Zubaydah, self-portraits of the torture he was subjected to during the four years he was held in secret prisons by the C.I.A.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Published here for the first time, they are gritty and highly personal depictions that put flesh, bones and emotion on what until now had sometimes been portrayed in popular culture in sanitized or inaccurate ways: the so-called enhanced interrogations techniques used by the United States in secret overseas prisons during a feverish pursuit of Al Qaeda after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/cia-torture-drawings.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/us\/politics\/cia-torture-drawings.html?action=click&#038;module=Top%20Stories&#038;pgtype=Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1m50asq\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-02\/00dc-torturetechniques-02-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-02\/00dc-torturetechniques-02-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-02\/00dc-torturetechniques-02-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 737w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/11\/26\/us\/politics\/00dc-torturetechniques-02\/00dc-torturetechniques-02-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 737w\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-11cwn6f\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/07\/31\/us\/politics\/31dc-seal\/merlin_157385310_473731a0-2415-4008-b145-7f9039642593-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/07\/31\/us\/politics\/31dc-seal\/merlin_157385310_473731a0-2415-4008-b145-7f9039642593-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/07\/31\/us\/politics\/31dc-seal\/merlin_157385310_473731a0-2415-4008-b145-7f9039642593-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/07\/31\/us\/politics\/31dc-seal\/merlin_157385310_473731a0-2415-4008-b145-7f9039642593-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"Eddie Gallagher celebrated after he was acquitted of murder charges earlier this month.\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"link-7e5fb97d\" class=\"css-1j5ig2m e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Trump Orders Navy to Strip Medals From Prosecutors in War Crimes Trial<\/span><\/h1>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">President Trump intervened Tuesday once again on behalf of a Navy SEAL who was <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/07\/02\/us\/navy-seal-trial-verdict.html\">charged but acquitted of war crimes<\/a> in the death of a captured Islamic State fighter in Iraq, ordering the military to punish the prosecutors who tried the case in the first place.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump angrily lashed out at the Navy for awarding commendations to prosecutors in the murder trial of Edward Gallagher, a former special operations chief, and he publicly instructed Pentagon officials to strip them of the medals. His announcement was a remarkable rebuke by a president of his own Navy leadership.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cThe Prosecutors who lost the case against SEAL Eddie Gallagher (who I released from solitary confinement so he could fight his case properly), were ridiculously given a Navy Achievement Medal,\u201d <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/realDonaldTrump\/status\/1156655361711071232\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter<\/a>. \u201cNot only did they lose the case, they had difficulty with respect to information that may have been obtained from opposing lawyers and for giving immunity in a totally incompetent fashion.\u201d\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/07\/31\/us\/politics\/trump-navy-seal-war-crimes.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/07\/31\/us\/politics\/trump-navy-seal-war-crimes.html<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"articleHero___1ww7q\">\n<h1 class=\"headline___CuovH f8 f9-m fw3 mb3 mt0 f10-xl founders-cond lh-none\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-test=\"article-hero__headline\">West Virginia corrections employees suspended after Nazi salute photo<\/h1>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/media4.s-nbcnews.com\/j\/newscms\/2019_49\/3135861\/191205-conduct-unbecoming-officers-ac-618p_47069b1b514e74206aec7df3ca12ad90.fit-760w.jpg\" alt=\"Image; Basic Training\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"articleDek dekSummary___GcgCT f4 f5-m f6-l f7-xl publico-hed lh-copy fw3 ls-normal mb3 mb6-m\" style=\"text-align: center;\">The photos appeared to show a basic training class make the salute under a sign that read &#8220;Hail Byrd.&#8221;<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"endmarkEnabled\">Officials are investigating a group of West Virginia corrections trainees who were photographed seemingly making a Nazi salute in their uniforms.<\/p>\n<p class=\"endmarkEnabled\">A blurred copy of the photo was provided to NBC News by the state&#8217;s Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety on Thursday. The group, Basic Training Class 18, appeared to be graduating based on dates in the picture&#8217;s caption.<\/p>\n<p class=\"endmarkEnabled\">They&#8217;re seen making the salute under a sign that reads &#8220;Hail Byrd.&#8221; News of the photo was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsaz.com\/content\/news\/Investigation-underway-after-completely-inappropriate-DCR-training-photo-found-565840332.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first reported by NBC affiliate WSAZ. <\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"endmarkEnabled\">West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said in a statement that he ordered the termination of any state employees to be found involved in the photo.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/military\/west-virginia-corrections-employees-suspended-after-nazi-salute-photo-n1096856?cid=sm_npd_nn_fb_ma&#038;fbclid=IwAR1Z6pklan108zcPx0N9nqbNyvXt0oxeh6n9ZtBjyOEgm1OiyniUQ5YvSyc\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nbcnews.com\/news\/military\/west-virginia-corrections-employees-suspended-after-nazi-salute-photo-n1096856?cid=sm_npd_nn_fb_ma&#038;fbclid=IwAR1Z6pklan108zcPx0N9nqbNyvXt0oxeh6n9ZtBjyOEgm1OiyniUQ5YvSyc<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.newyorker.com\/photos\/5ddefa9d2309590009405e68\/master\/w_727,c_limit\/191209_r35554_rd.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"ArticleHeader__hed___GPB7e\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Blood and Soil in Narendra Modi\u2019s India<\/h1>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleHeader__dek___2rbDs\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>The Prime Minister\u2019s Hindu-nationalist government has cast two hundred million Muslims as internal enemies.<\/em><\/h2>\n<p>&#8230;During the dispute over Babri Masjid, Ashis Nandy, a prominent Indian intellectual, began a series of interviews with R.S.S. members. A trained psychologist, he wanted to study the mentality of the rising Hindu nationalists. One of those he met was Narendra Modi, who was then a little-known B.J.P. functionary. Nandy interviewed Modi for several hours, and came away shaken.<\/p>\n<p>His subject, Nandy told me, exhibited all the traits of an authoritarian personality: puritanical rigidity, a constricted emotional life, fear of his own passions, and an enormous ego that protected a gnawing insecurity. During the interview, Modi elaborated a fantastical theory of how India was the target of a global conspiracy, in which every Muslim in the country was likely complicit. \u201cModi was a fascist in every sense,\u201d Nandy said. \u201cI don\u2019t mean this as a term of abuse. It\u2019s a diagnostic category.\u201d\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/magazine\/2019\/12\/09\/blood-and-soil-in-narendra-modis-india\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.newyorker.com\/magazine\/2019\/12\/09\/blood-and-soil-in-narendra-modis-india<\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"asset-headline speakable-headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">U.S. official: Saudi who attacked naval base hosted mass shooting watch party<\/h1>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\">The Saudi student who fatally shot three people at a U.S. naval base in Florida hosted a dinner party earlier in the week where he and three others watched videos of mass shootings, a U.S. official told The Associated Press on Saturday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">One of the three students who attended the dinner party videotaped outside the building while the shooting was taking place at Naval Air Station Pensacola on Friday, said the U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity after being briefed by federal authorities. Two other Saudi students watched from a car, the official said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The official said 10 Saudi students were being held on the base Saturday while several others were unaccounted for.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/news\/nation\/2019\/12\/06\/pensacola-florida-naval-air-station-shooting\/40771745\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.detroitnews.com\/story\/news\/nation\/2019\/12\/06\/pensacola-florida-naval-air-station-shooting\/40771745\/<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"Microsite-title-hero\" data-reactid=\"125\">\n<div class=\"Microsite-title-hero-image\" data-reactid=\"126\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"Deathrow-BG--frame4\" src=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/static\/deathrow\/4.jpg\" data-reactid=\"130\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Microsite-title-content\" data-reactid=\"131\">\n<div class=\"Microsite-title-content-block\" data-reactid=\"132\">\n<div class=\"Microsite-title-content-block-wrapper\" data-reactid=\"133\">\n<h1 class=\"Microsite-title-content-name\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-reactid=\"134\">The Condemned<\/h1>\n<div class=\"Microsite-title-content-description\" data-reactid=\"135\">\n<p>Forty-three years after the Supreme Court reversed course and reinstated the death penalty, reliable data on the individuals sent to death row is maddeningly difficult to obtain. The Intercept set out to compile a comprehensive dataset on everyone sentenced to die in active death penalty jurisdictions since 1976. Our findings show that capital punishment remains as \u201carbitrary and capricious\u201d as ever.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/series\/the-condemned\/?utm_source=The+Intercept+Newsletter&#038;utm_campaign=5bafedf00c-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_12_07&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_term=0_e00a5122d3-5bafedf00c-128828597\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">theintercept.com\/series\/the-condemned\/?utm_source=The+Intercept+Newsletter&#038;utm_campaign=5bafedf00c-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_12_07&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_term=0_e00a5122d3-5bafedf00c-128828597<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-691f96d2\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Watch 4 Decades of Inequality Drive American Cities Apart <\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>The biggest metropolitan areas are now the most unequal.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">In 1980, highly paid workers in Binghamton, N.Y., earned about four and a half times what low-wage workers there did. The gap between them, in a region full of I.B.M. executives and manufacturing jobs, was about the same as the gap between the workers near the top and the bottom in metro New York.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Since then, the two regions have diverged. I.B.M. shed jobs in Binghamton. Other manufacturing disappeared, too. High-paying work in the new knowledge economy concentrated in New York, and so did well-educated workers. As a result, by one measure, wage inequality today is much higher in New York than it is in Binghamton.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/02\/upshot\/wealth-poverty-divide-american-cities.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/02\/upshot\/wealth-poverty-divide-american-cities.html<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>Solidarity for Never<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/12\/04\/PDTN\/cc161257-3454-4f26-854d-10621a9f25be-dtncent02-782hd0i9ljlr5jon4qt_layout.jpg?crop=225,306,x46,y69&amp;width=180&amp;height=240&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Joe Ashton\" width=\"180\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/12\/04\/PDTN\/cc161257-3454-4f26-854d-10621a9f25be-dtncent02-782hd0i9ljlr5jon4qt_layout.jpg?crop=225,306,x46,y69\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/12\/04\/PDTN\/cc161257-3454-4f26-854d-10621a9f25be-dtncent02-782hd0i9ljlr5jon4qt_layout.jpg?crop=225,306,x46,y69\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"asset-headline speakable-headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Ex-UAW VP Ashton pleads guilty to wire fraud, money laundering<\/h1>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\">\u00a0Retired United Auto Workers Vice President Joe Ashton pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to crimes connected with a years-long bribery and kickback scandal within the country&#8217;s largest union.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">Ashton entered guilty pleas to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The government&#8217;s recommended sentence is 30-37 months. The crimes carry a maximum penalty of up to 20 years and 10 years, respectively. Both have maximum fines up to $250,000.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Sentencing is scheduled for March 3&#8230;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Ashton is the 11th person\u00a0convicted of a crime connected to an ongoing federal investigation into the union, and the highest-ranking UAW officer convicted in the corruption scandal.\u00a0The investigation has charged 12 other people and implicated the past two presidents in financial corruption schemes and raised the possibility that the union would submit to federal monitoring.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Ashton, who retired from the UAW in 2014, was appointed as the union&#8217;s representative on the board of General Motors Co.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">He was charged three months after The Detroit News identified him as the unnamed union official accused in a federal criminal complaint of demanding $550,000 in kickbacks and bribes from vendors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">In return, a list of vendors that included Ashton&#8217;s personal chiropractor\u00a0received contracts to produce more than $15.8 million worth of union-branded trinkets, including backpacks, jackets and commemorative watches.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The criminal case ends a period of prolonged uncertainty for Ashton, and leaves former UAW presidents Gary Jones and Dennis Williams as two big targets of the federal investigation. They are accused in court documents of participating in a conspiracy that embezzled more than $1.5 million from the union. Neither has been charged.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/business\/autos\/2019\/12\/04\/uaw-scandal-joe-ashton-convicted\/2608221001\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.detroitnews.com\/story\/business\/autos\/2019\/12\/04\/uaw-scandal-joe-ashton-convicted\/2608221001\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-prod.autonews.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/width_792\/public\/zzzzUAWfire1.jpg\" alt=\"UAW fire\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Above, mysterious fire at UAW destroyed lots of records&#8230;.<a href=\"https:\/\/www.autonews.com\/manufacturing\/uaw-headquarters-staff-relocated-after-fire\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.autonews.com\/manufacturing\/uaw-headquarters-staff-relocated-after-fire<\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"asset-headline speakable-headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Federal oversight of UAW an option, top prosecutor says (RG says, Destroy the UAW&#8211;seize Solidarity House)<a class=\"inline-share-btn inline-share-btn-twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https%3A\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/business\/autos\/2019\/12\/02\/racketeering-lawsuit-an-option-to-take-control-of-uaw-prosecutor-says\/4308210002\/&amp;text=Federal%20oversight%20of%20UAW%20an%20option%2C%20top%20prosecutor%20says&amp;via=detroitnews\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-share-method=\"twitter\" data-uotrack=\"InlineShareTwitterLink\" data-popup-width=\"550\" data-popup-height=\"450\" data-popup=\"\"><span class=\"inline-share-btn-label inline-share-btn-label-twitter\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\"><em>Detroit<\/em> \u2014 Federal oversight\u00a0of the United Auto Workers is an option once government investigators determine\u00a0the depths of corruption within one of the nation\u2019s largest and most powerful unions, U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider told The Detroit News.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">In a rare interview about the years-long UAW scandal, Schneider said government oversight of the UAW is a possible solution to reforming a union plagued by what his team of prosecutors has called\u00a0a culture of corruption among senior leadership. Prosecutors could seize control by filing a\u00a0civil racketeering lawsuit, a move that could cost the union\u00a0tens of millions of dollars, impose prolonged federal oversight\u00a0and involve replacing labor leaders.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Schneider also revealed his displeasure with the UAW\u2019s lack of cooperation, disclosed that a four-year investigation is perhaps only halfway completed, and said he was unimpressed with reform efforts announced in mid-November by acting UAW President Rory Gamble. His comments marked the first time Schneider has addressed the possibility of imposing federal oversight of the UAW, a move the government made 30 years ago in settling a racketeering lawsuit against the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThat shouldn\u2019t be taken off the table,\u201d Schneider told The News\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/business\/autos\/2019\/12\/02\/racketeering-lawsuit-an-option-to-take-control-of-uaw-prosecutor-says\/4308210002\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.detroitnews.com\/story\/business\/autos\/2019\/12\/02\/racketeering-lawsuit-an-option-to-take-control-of-uaw-prosecutor-says\/4308210002\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>Spy versus Spy<br \/>\n<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-11cwn6f\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/05\/nyregion\/05sleeper-print\/04sleeper1-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/05\/nyregion\/05sleeper-print\/04sleeper1-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/05\/nyregion\/05sleeper-print\/04sleeper1-jumbo-v2.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/05\/nyregion\/05sleeper-print\/04sleeper1-superJumbo-v2.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w\" alt=\"Ali Kourani moved to the United States in 2003 and became a citizen in 2009.\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-4a8629b4\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">A Sleeper Agent Wanted to Cooperate. He Just Got 40 Years in Prison.<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\">A man from Lebanon believed he would get leniency for providing information to the F.B.I. Instead, he was arrested on terrorism charges.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">He was a Lebanese immigrant named Ali Kourani, and he told the F.B.I. that he was a sleeper agent for a terrorist organization. He said he was scouting targets in New York City for possible attacks, including airports and government offices, while leading a second life as a telephone salesman and family man.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The plan, he told agents, was for him to become a suicide bomber.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Over a series of five meetings, Mr. Kourani believed he was<a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/10\/15\/nyregion\/fbi-ali-kourani-hezbollah.html\"> offering this and other information to the F.B.I.<\/a> in exchange for leniency from the United States government and protection for his family.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">But instead, the F.B.I. arrested him in June 2017 and charged him with eight counts related to terrorism. In May, a Manhattan jury convicted Mr. Kourani on all charges \u2014 largely as a result of what he had told the agents.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">On Tuesday, in federal court in Manhattan, Mr. Kourani was sentenced to 40 years in prison, less than the life sentence prosecutors had sought but more than his lawyer said he deserved.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/nyregion\/new-york-terrorist-hezbollah.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/04\/nyregion\/new-york-terrorist-hezbollah.html<\/a><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"leading-header\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Suspicious: A Biography of Master Spy Richard Sorge<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"expanded-article-image img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/portside.org\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/large\/public\/field\/image\/Richard_Sorge_GDR_stamp.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"615\" height=\"485\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"teaser\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Unlike Kim Philby, Cold War-era Soviet master spy Richard Sorge is not yet the subject of multiple novels, profiles and transatlantic espionage dramas. He, his exploits and his tragic end at the hands of Japanese militarism should be better known.<\/div>\n<div>The skills of the three top Soviet spies of the 20th century \u2013 Richard Sorge, Leopold Trepper and Ignace Poretsky\/Reiss (better known as Ludwik) \u2013 remain unmatched. Sorge has always attracted particular attention. Ian Fleming called him the \u2018most formidable spy in history\u2019; other admirers included John le Carr\u00e9, Tom Clancy and General MacArthur. Owen Matthews \u2013 whose new biography of Sorge is the fifth to appear in English \u2013 is well qualified to write this book: his Ukrainian maternal grandfather was Boris Bibikov, a factory worker in Kharkov who became head of the Communist Party\u2019s regional committee and was killed during the purges. Bibikov was a supporter of Sergei Kirov, a party boss in Leningrad who although a loyal enough Stalinist was alarmed by the excesses of collectivisation and keen to allow some of the discarded oppositionists to rejoin the party. At the Congress of Victors in 1934, when Stalin claimed the success of collectivisation and the triumph of his own faction, Kirov obtained the highest number of votes in the elections to the Central Committee. Mysteriously, he was assassinated in December that year. Bibikov\u2019s turn came in October 1937. He was arrested and forced to confess to his sins, which in his case included membership of a non-existent clandestine \u2018anti-Soviet rightist-Trotskyite\u2019 organisation. He was executed three months later.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/portside.org\/2019-11-28\/suspicious-biography-master-spy-richard-sorge\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">portside.org\/2019-11-28\/suspicious-biography-master-spy-richard-sorge<\/a><\/div>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/portside.org\/sites\/default\/files\/inline-images\/Sorge_bookcover.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-entity-type=\"file\" data-entity-uuid=\"7a30121d-cf75-4412-989a-602399f71567\" \/><\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>The Magical Mystery Tour<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ifd0yVPW9Rs\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ifd0yVPW9Rs<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-59e20ce2\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Portrait of London Bridge Killer, in His Own Words<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\">The extremist behind last week\u2019s London Bridge attack wrote letters to the authorities from jail, claiming that he was on a \u201cnew path\u201d and was \u201clearning to become a good Muslim.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cI have learnt that many of my past beliefs came from my misinterpretations of Islam,\u201d the young man wrote to his probation officers. \u201cThere were many gaps in my knowledge but now I am on new path and am learning to become a good Muslim. I would like a chance to prove to you that I will not cause harm to nobody in our society.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Last Friday, the man who wrote those words, 28-year-old Usman Khan, traveled unsupervised from his probation hostel in England\u2019s West Midlands to London, <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/11\/29\/world\/europe\/london-bridge-shooting.html\">where he carried out a deadly terrorist attack<\/a> after having participated in a conference on prison rehabilitation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">A week after the attack, questions remain about why he was allowed to travel by himself to the conference and, more broadly, about Britain\u2019s rehabilitation system and the process of releasing convicted terrorists back into society.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">On Sunday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that 74 people who had been jailed for terrorism offenses and released early would have their license conditions reviewed, and he vowed that serious offenders would no longer obtain early release\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/05\/world\/europe\/london-bridge-attack-extremist.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/05\/world\/europe\/london-bridge-attack-extremist.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"standard-article-image\" src=\"https:\/\/thenypost.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/12\/acton-bowen-70.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=618&amp;h=410&amp;crop=1\" sizes=\"(max-width: 639px) 100vw, 618px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thenypost.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/12\/acton-bowen-70.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=300&amp;h=200&amp;crop=1 300w, https:\/\/thenypost.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/12\/acton-bowen-70.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=618&amp;h=410&amp;crop=1 618w, https:\/\/thenypost.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/12\/acton-bowen-70.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=600&amp;h=400&amp;crop=1 600w, https:\/\/thenypost.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/12\/acton-bowen-70.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1236&amp;h=820&amp;crop=1 1236w\" alt=\"Acton Bowen\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"postid-14758854\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Ex-Alabama youth evangelist pleads guilty to 28 sex crimes<\/h1>\n<p>A prominent former Alabama youth evangelist pleaded guilty on Monday to sexually abusing six boys between the ages of 12 and 16, according to reports.<\/p>\n<p>Acton Bowen, the 39-year-old founder of Acton Bowen Outreach Ministries, pleaded guilty to a total of 28 criminal counts in both Jefferson and Etowah counties after the young victims told investigators they were sexually abused in myriad ways by the Alabama native, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.al.com\/news\/2019\/12\/alabama-evangelist-acton-bowen-pleads-guilty-to-28-sex-crimes.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">AL.com reports<\/a>.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2019\/12\/02\/ex-alabama-youth-evangelist-pleads-guilty-to-28-sex-crimes\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">nypost.com\/2019\/12\/02\/ex-alabama-youth-evangelist-pleads-guilty-to-28-sex-crimes\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>The Best and Worst Things in the History of the World<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-11cwn6f\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew1\/merlin_155873760_fadccfeb-8089-4cf5-8e61-ec5f720f76f9-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew1\/merlin_155873760_fadccfeb-8089-4cf5-8e61-ec5f720f76f9-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew1\/merlin_155873760_fadccfeb-8089-4cf5-8e61-ec5f720f76f9-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew1\/merlin_155873760_fadccfeb-8089-4cf5-8e61-ec5f720f76f9-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"President Trump, Melania Trump and Prince Andrew, left,\u00a0during a tour of Westminster Abbey in London in June.\u00a0\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-ls6wgr ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-12b60ba6\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Depraved Ruling Elites File: \u2018I Don\u2019t Know Prince Andrew,\u2019 Trump Says. Photos Say Otherwise. <\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\">Speaking to reporters in London, President Trump denied knowing Prince Andrew, despite having been photographed with him on several occasions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">President Trump denied on Tuesday that he knew Prince Andrew, the son of Queen Elizabeth II who has become entangled in sexual abuse accusations against the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cI don\u2019t know him, no,\u201d the president told reporters gathered in London for the NATO summit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">But photographs show they have met several times over the past 20 years, and as recently as June when the prince, known formally as the Duke of York, hosted a breakfast meeting for Mr. Trump during his state visit to Britain. Those photos were posted on the prince\u2019s Twitter account.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump also toured Westminster Abbey in London with the prince, and they were photographed <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettyimages.co.uk\/detail\/news-photo\/president-donald-trump-and-melania-trump-accompanied-by-news-photo\/1191657114?adppopup=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">laughing together<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1m50asq\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew\/merlin_155874408_5be335b8-bf2b-44c0-a2a7-ceb5ec1bef5a-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew\/merlin_155874408_5be335b8-bf2b-44c0-a2a7-ceb5ec1bef5a-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew\/merlin_155874408_5be335b8-bf2b-44c0-a2a7-ceb5ec1bef5a-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/03trumpandrew\/merlin_155874408_5be335b8-bf2b-44c0-a2a7-ceb5ec1bef5a-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"Mr. Trump with Prince Andrew in June.\u00a0\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Earlier photos also show Mr. Trump together with the prince, the queen\u2019s third child.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump and his then-girlfriend, Melania Knauss \u2014 now the first lady \u2014 were seen with the prince at least twice in 2000: once <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"http:\/\/davidmcgough.com\/photos.php?photo=3721&amp;origin=%2Fphotos.php%3Fstart%3D2289\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">at the opening of Hudson Hotel in New York<\/a> and, more intimately, <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/royal-family\/2019\/06\/01\/prince-andrew-called-exert-golf-diplomacy-trump-state-visit\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">at Mr. Trump\u2019s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/europe\/donald-trump-prince-andrew.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/03\/world\/europe\/donald-trump-prince-andrew.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/TRump-Epstein-andres.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-24510\" src=\"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/TRump-Epstein-andres.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"750\" height=\"927\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/TRump-Epstein-andres.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/TRump-Epstein-andres-405x500.jpg 405w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/TRump-Epstein-andres-500x618.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/TRump-Epstein-andres-121x150.jpg 121w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"c-story-header__headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\">The hopeless hunt for Ghislaine Maxwell<\/h1>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">The whereabouts of 57-year-old socialite Ghislaine Maxwell &#8211; the woman at the heart of the sex allegations against Prince Andrew &#8211; remains a complete mystery.<\/p>\n<p>It has been another uncomfortable week for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rnz.co.nz\/news\/national\/403769\/prince-andrew-to-step-down-from-public-duties\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Prince Andrew<\/a> with further revelations of his socialising with the disgraced and deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein, more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rnz.co.nz\/news\/world\/404721\/prince-andrew-must-testify-says-epstein-accusers-lawyer\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">calls for the Prince to go to the US and testify<\/a> in sex trafficking cases being heard against Epstein, and a <a href=\"http:\/\/%C2%A0https:\/\/www.rnz.co.nz\/news\/world\/404684\/prince-andrew-accuser-asks-public-to-stand-beside-her%C2%A0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BBC Panorama interview with Virginia Giuffre<\/a>, who&#8217;s alleged she was procured, persuaded by Ms Maxwell to have sex with Prince Andrew.<\/p>\n<p>Ms Maxwell was constantly at Jeffrey Epstein&#8217;s side and had allegedly found young women for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rnz.co.nz\/news\/world\/403953\/us-attorney-general-blames-screw-ups-for-epstein-s-death\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Epstein<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Among this past week&#8217;s claims is that in 2015 Prince Andrew emailed her seeking information on Virginia Giuffre, Virginia Roberts, as she was then.<\/p>\n<p>The world&#8217;s media sleuths are trying to find Ms Maxwell, so far without success.<\/p>\n<p>One of them is Mark Edmonds, a regular writer for publications like <em>Tatler<\/em>, the <em>Sunday Times<\/em> and the <em>Financial Times<\/em>.<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rnz.co.nz\/national\/programmes\/sunday\/audio\/2018725922\/the-hopeless-hunt-for-ghislaine-maxwell\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.rnz.co.nz\/national\/programmes\/sunday\/audio\/2018725922\/the-hopeless-hunt-for-ghislaine-maxwell<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"max-width-full horizontal-center vertical-center carousel-image\" src=\"https:\/\/i.etsystatic.com\/20268527\/r\/il\/045038\/2111252086\/il_794xN.2111252086_rwx1.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i.etsystatic.com\/20268527\/r\/il\/045038\/2111252086\/il_794xN.2111252086_rwx1.jpg 1x, https:\/\/i.etsystatic.com\/20268527\/r\/il\/045038\/2111252086\/il_1588xN.2111252086_rwx1.jpg 2x\" alt=\"This Ornament Didn't Hang Itself Epstein Funny image 0\" data-carousel-first-image=\"\" data-original-image-width=\"700\" data-src-zoom-image=\"https:\/\/i.etsystatic.com\/20268527\/r\/il\/045038\/2111252086\/il_fullxfull.2111252086_rwx1.jpg\" data-index=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1vkm6nb ehdk2mb0\">\n<h1 id=\"link-171865b\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"balancedHeadline\">Prince Andrew\u2019s Accuser Takes Her Case to the BBC<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"article-summary\" class=\"css-1ifw933 e1wiw3jv0\" style=\"text-align: center;\">For the first time, Virginia Roberts Giuffre told a British television audience about a trip she took to London in 2001, during which, she says, she was ordered to have sex with Prince Andrew.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-11cwn6f aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/02andrew3\/02andrew3-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/02andrew3\/02andrew3-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/02andrew3\/02andrew3-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/02andrew3\/02andrew3-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"Virginia Roberts Giuffre during an interview with the BBC on Monday.\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Virginia Roberts Giuffre recalled a whirlwind trip to London with her employer, the financier Jeffrey Epstein, when she was 17. It began at a townhouse where Prince Andrew was talking about his ex-wife, the Duchess of York. It moved on to a club, where she said she and the prince danced, and he sweated profusely. And it ended when, she said, she was ordered to have sex with him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cIt was disgusting,\u201d Ms. Giuffre said in an interview broadcast Monday by the BBC. \u201cI sat there in bed and felt horrified and ashamed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cI had just been abused by a member of the royal family,\u201d she continued. \u201cThese powerful people were my chains.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/europe\/prince-andrews-Virginia-Roberts-Giuffre-bbc.html\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/02\/world\/europe\/prince-andrews-Virginia-Roberts-Giuffre-bbc.html<\/a><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"link-78f4d302\" class=\"css-1s4ffep e1h9rw200\">Spotify: Best of the Stones<\/h1>\n<p><iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Rolling Stones Best Of\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/playlist\/06m5HzAGIkYyLsDdNpWoCp?si=0Lg9-yP5THeLbr6FaGPbDg&#038;fbclid=IwAR2Ik3-_0Pd-vfsegs0ctPWIyi0DZQ_aUtDxaOrCZpd50W82e8jFDSgSV6Q&#038;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"card-title seo-header mt-1 mb-0\" style=\"text-align: center;\">LeDuff In Detroit: Dan Gilbert&#8217;s Hudson&#8217;s Hole, Forgery-Gate, Murder of 3-year-old Detroit boy<\/h1>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"article_photo_item aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/dd-res.s3.amazonaws.com\/photos\/ewscripps.brightspotcdn_39398.jpg\" width=\"250px\" data-id=\"39398\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Jurors remain out in a Detroit murder trial in the death of a 3-year-old who was on his way to see Elmo.<\/p>\n<p>Little Christian Miller was struck dead by a bullet last January on the Southfield Freeway while in his carseat on the way to &#8220;Sesame Street Live&#8221; at the Fox Theater.<\/p>\n<p>It is alleged that Derrick Durham Jr., annoyed by the driving of the boy&#8217;s aunt, shot into the car, killing the toddler.<\/p>\n<p>The case made national headlines, but no media member has attended the trial. So much for \u201cWorking for You.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waiting in the Wayne County Court hallway, Joanna Hunter, a cousin of the victim, struck up small talk.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat do you think of the Kid Rock video,\u201d asked Hunter, a 39-year-old black woman. \u201cI watched it twice. It didn&#8217;t really sound racist to me. I think it was a way for Ilitch to kick his restaurant out of Little Caesar&#8217;s Arena. I heard the food here was terrible,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou want to know what is racist,\u201d she added. \u201cIlitch being able to pull money out of the city&#8217;s schools to build that arena and make himself richer.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.deadlinedetroit.com\/articles\/23867\/leduff_dan_gilbert_s_hudson_s_hole_forgery-gate_murder_of_3-year-old_detroit_boy?fbclid=IwAR2kujhrCfaO7UicTYp1ujH3jUSrryd4MOgvlX0fWaJgzU31rTCmFLyZ6dU\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.deadlinedetroit.com\/articles\/23867\/leduff_dan_gilbert_s_hudson_s_hole_forgery-gate_murder_of_3-year-old_detroit_boy?fbclid=IwAR2kujhrCfaO7UicTYp1ujH3jUSrryd4MOgvlX0fWaJgzU31rTCmFLyZ6dU<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong><u>So Long<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-117338\" src=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/wp-content\/dropzone\/2019\/12\/8974C07F-D3CD-401F-AD18-0514D1B83574.png\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/wp-content\/dropzone\/2019\/12\/8974C07F-D3CD-401F-AD18-0514D1B83574.png 510w, https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/wp-content\/dropzone\/2019\/12\/8974C07F-D3CD-401F-AD18-0514D1B83574-300x217.png 300w, https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/wp-content\/dropzone\/2019\/12\/8974C07F-D3CD-401F-AD18-0514D1B83574-768x555.png 768w\" alt=\"\" width=\"560\" height=\"404\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-117338\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/04\/rip-fred-hampton-a-black-visionary-assassinated-by-the-fbi\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">RIP Fred Hampton: a Black Visionary Assassinated by the FBI<\/a><\/h1>\n<p>Fifty years ago this week, a squad of Chicago police officers killed Black Panther leaders Fred Hampton and Mark Clark in a pre-dawn raid on the apartment where they were sleeping. In the decades since, a revealing body of evidence has emerged showing that Hampton was the victim of a political assassination, sanctioned at the highest levels of the U.S. government.<\/p>\n<p>The story matters today, but not because the FBI still engages in assassination. The Bureau targets so-called <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2017\/10\/06\/the-fbi-has-identified-a-new-domestic-terrorist-threat-and-its-black-identity-extremists\/\">\u201cBlack Identity Extremists\u201d<\/a> on flimsy grounds, but there\u2019s no evidence that it has killed any of them. Indeed, FBI director Christopher Wray says new agents are required to study COINTELPRO precisely to learn what not to do.<\/p>\n<p>What Wray prefers not to tell his employees or the public is that one of his predecessors, J. Edgar Hoover, instigated the murder of a promising African-American political leader, and got away with it. Hampton\u2019s murder was a textbook example of how U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies robbed the country of hope and peaceful change and were never held accountable.\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/04\/rip-fred-hampton-a-black-visionary-assassinated-by-the-fbi\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.counterpunch.org\/2019\/12\/04\/rip-fred-hampton-a-black-visionary-assassinated-by-the-fbi\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=VBU4j-HU4wQ\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">www.youtube.com\/watch?v=VBU4j-HU4wQ<\/a><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"entry-title\" style=\"text-align: center;\">The Warning in Gary Webb\u2019s Death<\/h1>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6293 aligncenter\" title=\"garywebb-article\" src=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/garywebb-article.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"296\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6293\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>From the Archive:<\/strong> Modern U.S. history is more complete because journalist Gary Webb had the courage to revive the dark story of the Reagan administration\u2019s protection of Nicaraguan Contra cocaine traffickers in the 1980s. But Webb ultimately paid a terrible price, as Robert Parry reports.<\/p>\n<p>By Robert Parry (Originally published Dec. 9, 2011)<\/p>\n<p>Every year since investigative journalist Gary Webb took his own life in 2004, I have marked the anniversary of that sad event by recalling the debt that American history owes to Webb for his brave reporting, which revived the Contra-cocaine scandal in 1996 and forced important admissions out of the Central Intelligence Agency two years later.<\/p>\n<p>But Webb\u2019s suicide on the evening of Dec. 9, 2004, was also a tragic end for one man whose livelihood and reputation were destroyed by a phalanx of major newspapers the <em>New York Times<\/em>, the <em>Washington Post<\/em> and the <em>Los Angeles Times<\/em> serving as protectors of a corrupt power structure rather than as sources of honest information.<\/p>\n<p>In reviewing the story again this year, I was struck by how Webb\u2019s Contra-cocaine experience was, in many ways, a precursor to the subsequent tragedy of the Iraq War.<\/p>\n<p>In the 1980s, the CIA\u2019s analytical division was already showing signs of politicization, especially regarding President Ronald Reagan\u2019s beloved Contras and their war against Nicaragua\u2019s Sandinista government and the U.S. press corps was already bending to the propaganda pressures of a right-wing Republican administration.<\/p>\n<p>Looking back at CIA cables from the early-to-mid-1980s, you can already see the bias dripping from the analytical reports. Any drug accusation against the leftist Sandinistas was accepted without skepticism and usually with strong exaggeration, while the opposite occurred with evidence of Contra cocaine smuggling; then there was endless quibbling and smearing of sources.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/2012\/12\/09\/the-warning-in-gary-webbs-death-2\/?fbclid=IwAR2cashiAIpiblpFa5Qbw81023XTTJydqjSaa51KorUwWCfAopHjWZbU1ZA\" class=\"autohyperlink\" target=\"_blank\">consortiumnews.com\/2012\/12\/09\/the-warning-in-gary-webbs-death-2\/?fbclid=IwAR2cashiAIpiblpFa5Qbw81023XTTJydqjSaa51KorUwWCfAopHjWZbU1ZA<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We Say Fight Back! \u201cThere is nothing more dangerous than to build a society with a large segment of people in that society who feel that they have no stake in it; who feel that that have nothing to lose. People who have stake in their society, protect that society, but when they don&#8217;t have [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24482","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24482","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24482"}],"version-history":[{"count":34,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24482\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24522,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24482\/revisions\/24522"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24482"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24482"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24482"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}