2021-12-24: News Headlines

Graham Peebles (2021-12-24). Ethiopia: Historic Battle for the Mother of Africa. dissidentvoice.org The outrage felt by Ethiopians at the Western-backed terrorist attack on their country is spreading across the Horn of Africa and parts of the continent more widely. A great movement of solidarity is emerging as Ethiopia's neighbors, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan, Kenya join hands, standing together against terror, imperial interference and mainstream media lies and misinformation. …

WSWS (2021-12-24). An intensive care physician's report to the Global Workers' Inquest into the COVID-19 Pandemic. wsws.org The physician's report clearly shows the ongoing physical and psychological strains for those working in intensive care and why the path to the elimination of COVID-19 can only proceed via the independent mobilisation of the working class.

WSWS (2021-12-24). To oppose government austerity, Sri Lankan workers need to build action committees and fight for socialist policies. wsws.org The critical lesson of this year's strikes and protests is that determination and militancy is not enough. The working class cannot defend its rights without independently mobilising on a socialist program.

WSWS (2021-12-24). SEP holds emergency online meeting to demand immediate freedom for Julian Assange. wsws.org "Assange's salvation has never been the British judiciary. His freedom and defence have always depended on a mass movement of the international working class."

WSWS (2021-12-24). Foxconn forced to close key Indian facility after worker protest over mass food poisoning. wsws.org Hundreds of workers had to be treated for vomiting, diarrhoea and dizziness after eating their evening meal in a company-provided canteen.

WSWS (2021-12-24). A reply to President Biden from California health care workers: "No, the country is not better prepared for COVID than last year!" wsws.org We issue this blunt warning to workers and the general public: The hospital system is worse off now than it was in March 2020. We have been worn to the bone after two years of the pandemic.

WSWS (2021-12-24). California nurse Elizabeth gives testimony for the Global Workers' Inquest into the COVID-19 Pandemic. wsws.org In this interview, Elizabeth speaks on her experiences and those of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

WSWS (2021-12-24). After Sterling Heights Assembly worker and husband die of suspected COVID-19, Stellantis management announces plant will run through Christmas Eve. wsws.org The provocative announcement of Christmas Eve shifts comes at the end of a "critical status" period in the plant, where workers were forced to work for 90 consecutive days to make up for lost production at the plant due to widespread supply chain problems.

WSWS (2021-12-24). UK: Stuart delivery drivers in Sheffield strike into third week, spark action in other cities. wsws.org The potential for a national strike against Stuart is shown by the fact that the action in Sheffield has sparked similar walkouts in other cities. Delivery workers in Huddersfield and Blackpool have taken five days of strike action with workers in Sunderland carrying out a few hours' stoppage to stage a protest.

WSWS (2021-12-24). Currency market turmoil impoverishes millions of Turkish workers. wsws.org The eruption of class battles is inevitable, as government measures in the interest of the financial aristocracy worsen the plight of millions of workers.

WSWS (2021-12-24). Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa. wsws.org Riot police use stun guns against occupation of Kavali Oil plant by Greek workers; Romanian miners hold wildcat strike to demand early retirement and rail workers walk out spontaneously over pay; teachers demonstrate across Iran in 120 cities over wages, conditions and state repression; strike by South African Clover food workers against pay, conditions and job cuts enters second month…

Jeff Schuhrke (2021-12-24). Amazon Warehouse Workers Walk Off the Job in Illinois. zcomm.org Wednesday morning, several dozen Amazon workers at two separate Chicago-area delivery stations staged a walkout to demand raises and safer working conditions…

WSWS (2021-12-24). Workers Struggles: Asia and Australia. wsws.org India: Delhi school teachers suspend online classes over unpaid salaries; Sri Lankan public sector doctors take national walkout; Australia: Rail workers and bus drivers continue industrial action in NSW.

A. Kent MacDougall (2021-12-24). Boring From Within the Bourgeois Press: Part One. mronline.org Eugene V. Debs may be my all-time favorite American and Karl Marx my all-time favorite journalist. But my employer for a decade was The Wall Street Journal, and for another decade it was the Los Angeles Times.

MD Staff (2021-12-24). Minimum corporate taxation- Explainer. moderndiplomacy.eu What did the European Commission propose? The European Commission has proposed a Directive to ensure a global minimum effective tax rate of 15% for large groups operating in the European Union.The proposal delivers on the EU's pledge to move extremely swiftly and be among the first to implement the historic global tax reform agreement reached …

Peoples Dispatch (2021-12-24). Campaign calling for release of Kashmiri activist Khurram Parvez gains momentum. peoplesdispatch.org Following the arrest of activist Khurram Parvez in November, a number of international human rights organizations have launched a solidarity campaign demanding his immediate and unconditional release.

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2021-12-23). TPLF Announces Retreat. What Lies Ahead for Ethiopia? libya360.wordpress.com Elias Amare, editor of Horn of Africa TV, explains the situation in Ethiopia in light of the declaration by the TPLF that they are withdrawing to Tigray. He analyzes the situation over the past few months that led to this moment. The Tigray People's Liberation Front has announced that it will withdraw its forces to…

_____ (2021-12-23). How Public Workers Can Stop The Privatization Of Everything. popularresistance.org Several years ago, Don Cohen, a former central labor council staffer from San Diego, appeared on a panel discussing the privatization threats faced by union members across the country. He and other speakers were addressing a conference of state, county, and municipal workers represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA), a group which did not include any federal employees. When Cohen described propaganda campaigns that proponents of privatization conduct to pave the way for out-sourcing local government or state university jobs, audience members immediately recognized that kind of employer behavior a…

_____ (2021-12-23). Wet'suwet'en Retake Checkpoint A Month After Police Crackdown. popularresistance.org On Saturday, December 19, activists leading the Wet'suwet'en resistance against the Coastal GasLink (CGL) pipeline project declared that they evicted workers of the project from the drill site. This development comes exactly a month after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) violently dismantled a blockade led by the Gidimt'en clan near Camp Coyote and arrested dozens of protesters and even bystanders. | The declaration of reclaiming Camp Coyote was made over a statement released by the Gidimt'en Checkpoint, on Sunday, December 20. "This courageous action took place one month after a wave of militarized raids…

Staff (2021-12-23). "It's a Win for Us": Striking Kellogg's Workers Get Raises, Improved Benefits & Avoid Two-Tier System. democracynow.org In a major victory for labor rights, 1,400 unionized Kellogg's workers have ended their nearly three-month strike across four states after approving a new contract that provides a wage increase and enhanced benefits for all. The prior agreement that Kellogg's tried to bargain only offered wage increases and improved benefits to longtime workers, whereas the new agreement ensures newer workers have a guaranteed option to receive the same improvements. We speak with Kellogg's worker Kevin Bradshaw, who will return to work on Monday alongside his co-workers. "We didn't have any takeaways and no concessions, so I wou…

Steve Topple (2021-12-23). NHS: the year in review — wilful Tory destruction and dire reform. thecanary.co It's been a year of turmoil and trauma for all of us. This has been acutely the case for the NHS and its staff. With the Tory government at the helm, our health service has lurched from government-induced crisis to government-induced crisis. But despite all this, NHS workers have kept saving us as they've fought back against the Tories. | A long, dark winter: | January started the year as it ended up going on: with health workers

Liam Kennedy (2021-12-23). Stuart Delivery strike highlights UK's bogus self-employment problem. zcomm.org By misclassifying workers as 'self-employed' companies can trample over labor rights…

WSWS (2021-12-23). Indian army deployed to break Jammu and Kashmir power workers' strike. wsws.org Workers in India and around the world must take serious warning from the Indian government's rapid deployment of military and para-military forces to suppress an anti-privatization strike by 20,000 power workers in Jammu and Kashmir.

Sharon Zhang (2021-12-23). Kellogg Strike Ends After 11 Weeks as Workers Approve New Contract. zcomm.org About 1,400 workers have been on strike since October 5, sparking boycotts of the cereal company's products as it threatened to permanently replace the striking workers…

WSWS (2021-12-23). B&Q warehouse workers in Worksop, UK to strike indefinitely over pay. wsws.org The fight being waged by workers at Worksop would have already been joined by thousands of workers across the sector if it were not for the actions of the Unite, USDAW and GMB unions.

WSWS (2021-12-23). "They're literally making us sick": Pharmacy workers describe conditions that sparked US walkouts. wsws.org Retail pharmacy workers conducted a nationwide walkout on Monday in the US, organized on social media, to protest worsening work conditions at large retail chains such as CVS, Walgreens and Walmart.

WSWS (2021-12-23). UK Tory government weaponises Christmas against COVID restrictions. wsws.org The government's brutal determination to keep the profits flowing at all costs is meeting widespread opposition. Workers are defying all instructions from the mass murderers in Westminster to just keep on shopping and socialising in pubs, clubs and restaurants. Millions have stopped using public transport, are working from home and are already limiting their contacts with other people.

WSWS (2021-12-23). Google executives dismiss employee demands for pay increases to meet inflation. wsws.org Employees at Google are demanding pay increases for all workers to maintain their living standards while inflation is running at an annual rate of 7 percent and the corporation is making record profits.

_____ (2021-12-23). Pharmacy Workers Describe Conditions That Sparked US Walkouts. popularresistance.org Retail pharmacy workers conducted a nationwide walkout on Monday in the US, organized on social media, to protest worsening work conditions at large retail chains such as CVS, Walgreens and Walmart. As the hyper-infectious Omicron variant continues to spread throughout the country, this much overlooked section of the health care industry is making its own demands for better working conditions, including patient safety, and an overdue increase in wages. | One pharmacist who requested to remain anonymous told the WSWS, "We work 12 hour shifts without technicians, we have no breaks and no lunch break as the drive-th…

WSWS (2021-12-23). As Omicron spreads, German intensive care workers warn of already intolerable working conditions. wsws.org An incendiary letter from intensive care nurses at a university clinic in Hamburg gives voice to the frustration and dissatisfaction widespread among nursing staff throughout Germany.

Richard S. Dunn (2021-12-23). Capitalism Contributed to Factory Workers Deaths in Kentucky and Illinois. covertactionmagazine.com The weekend of December 10-11, 2021, saw a reported 30 tornadoes hitting several states from Arkansas to Illinois; as of …

Danny Haiphong (2021-12-23). What are the Fundamental Differences Between Capitalist and Socialist Democracy? orinocotribune.com By Danny Haiphong — Dec 20, 2021 | Staying true to the theme of democracy, this article is an amended speech that analyzes the differences between Capitalist vs. Socialist democracies and advocates a defense of the latter. | The United States hosted a "Summit for Democracy" on December 9th and 10th in an obvious attempt to legitimize its unipolar and hegemonic claim of leadership over the so-called "rules-based international order." While on the surface this appeared to be an unproductive move on the part of the world hegemon, it aligned well with the U.S. strategy of cloaking its aggressive and exploitative…

Dr.Nadia Helmy (2021-12-23). The American deal with the popular decline in support of political Islam after Arab Spring revolutions. moderndiplomacy.eu Before answering this question, it is necessary to understand (the Brotherhood's grand strategy), which is based on the role of the international organization of the Muslim Brotherhood inside the United States of America, in Europe and around the world, through a strategy based on (the Brotherhood's penetration into the United States of America with its …

Special to People's World (2021-12-23). Art Perlo, 'Gentle Giant,' 1947-2021. peoplesworld.org Art Perlo, lifelong Communist beloved for his stalwart dedication, modesty, wit, and wisdom, passed away on Dec. 18 after a year-long battle with bladder cancer. He served as Ward 24 Co-Chair in New Haven, Conn., and executive board member of the Yale Unions Retirees Association. Ward 24 Alder Evette Hamilton called him a "gentle giant" …

Dr. Paul Craig Roberts (2021-12-23). Will Russia Learn In Time Before War Is Upon Us? globalresearch.ca For the first time ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Kremlin has put its foot down. No NATO for Ukraine and Georgia. Period. | As I predicted would happen, the Kremlin's acceptance over many years of insults and …

In Defense of Liberation! (2021-12-23). Democrats are NOT your friends! anchor.fm In this episode I discuss the duopoly between Republicans and Democrats and how the continued "fumbling" by the Democrats is not unintentional. They have direct interests and reasons as to why they continue to do things only for themselves. Stay well you all, and get organizing!

_____ (2021-12-23). Who Actually Owns Corporations, Anyway? popularresistance.org According to elementary students of economics and Wall Street financiers alike, the answer to this question is as simple as it is intuitive: the shareholders. The standard narrative goes like this: a share is a "piece of a company." Accordingly, the holders of those shares are the company's collective owners. Shareholder ownership explains why an army of retail investors coordinating trades on Reddit could claim they "owned a piece" of the struggling video game retailer GameStop and why Warren Buffet is as certain he "owns" companies as varied as GEICO and Dairy Queen as less wealthy Americans are certain they ow…

teleSUR (2021-12-23). Acteal Massacre Victims Demand Justice from The Mexican State. telesurenglish.net Twenty-four years after the killing of 45 Tzotziles Indigenous people carried out by paramilitaries, relatives and survivors of the attack marched to demand jail time for the intellectual and material authors of this tragedy. | RELATED: | With songs, prayers, crosses, incense, and candles, the Acteal Bees (Las Abejas de Acteal), a Christian and anti-neoliberal organization, remembered the dead in a collective tomb where the bodie…

_____ (2021-12-23). New US Embargo on Cambodia Over Friendship with China. journal-neo.org The United States continues a process of targeting and isolating nations around the globe increasingly choosing to do business with Beijing rather than Washington. The most recent of these is the Southeast Asia nation of Cambodia. For years Cambodia has incrementally pivoted from once serving US foreign policy objectives in the region, to striking a …

Thomas Klikauer (2021-12-23). Naked @ Work — the Neoliberal Workplace. zcomm.org Capitalism's relentless drive to growth based on global environmental exploitation has not just transformed the entire planet but is about to destroy planet earth…

Staff (2021-12-23). Tea Party Redux: How the Koch Network Funds and Fuels the Anti-Lockdown Movement. democracynow.org A new report titled "How The Koch Network Hijacked The War On COVID" reveals how a right-wing network linked to billionaire Charles Koch has played a key role in fighting public health measures during the pandemic, including mask and vaccine mandates, contact tracing and lockdowns. The groups include the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), the American Institute for Economic Research (AIER), Donors Trust, the Hoover Institution and Hillsdale College. We speak about the contents of the report with co-author Walker Bragman, who says the right-wing network's attack on public health is designed to "maintain…

WSWS (2021-12-23). New Zealand government will not immediately lock down if Omicron appears in community. wsws.org While the Labour Party-led government claims it wants to keep Omicron out of the community, the cabinet has not put measures in place to prevent its rapid spread.

Peoples Dispatch (2021-12-23). UK blocks Venezuela from accessing its international reserves. peoplesdispatch.org Britain's Supreme Court passed a ruling to continue blocking Venezuela from accessing 31 tons of Venezuelan gold valued at USD 2 billion. This gold is deposited at the Bank of England. The case went to court because the Bank has refused to release the gold reserves to the Bolivarian government stating that it recognizes the opposition activist Juan Guaidó as a legitimate authority.

Peoples Dispatch (2021-12-23). Fatal accidents reveal unsafe conditions in Pakistan's coal mines. peoplesdispatch.org As deadly accidents continue in various coal mines in Pakistan, senior representatives of IndustriALL Global have asked the Pakistani ambassador at Geneva to take immediate steps to ensure that Pakistan ratifies and implements ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines…

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2021-12-23). Libya: National Committee for Human Rights Warns of the Political and Humanitarian Consequences of Aborting Elections. libya360.wordpress.com Demonstrations in Libya protest…

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2021-12-23). Libya: Protests Mark the Postponement of Elections Amidst Threats of Deepening Chaos. libya360.wordpress.com Participants in the Friday of Salvation demand the overthrow of the existing political bodies A group of activists called on citizens to participate in a demonstration entitled "Friday of Salvation" in Tibesti Square in the city of Benghazi. Participants demand the overthrow of all political bodies currently in place, with parliament's work limited to legislative…

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2021-12-23). The Need for a Multidimensional Democracy. libya360.wordpress.com Javier Tolcachier Celebrating and reflecting are two actions that do not usually go hand in hand. Celebration implies an achievement, even if it is only the satisfaction of something well done, while reflection usually accompanies failure or error. Much more so in political terms, since it is not the euphoria of triumph but defeat that…

Newsroom (2021-12-23). WHO: Blanket COVID-19 vaccine booster programmes could prolong the pandemic. moderndiplomacy.eu Blanket COVID-19 vaccine booster programmes could prolong the pandemic and increase inequity, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Wednesday. "No country can boost its way out of the pandemic," said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, speaking in Geneva during his final press briefing for the year. "And boosters cannot be seen …

Staff (2021-12-23). No One Is Safe Until Everyone Is Safe: Oxfam on Vaccine Equity & Taking On Moderna. democracynow.org Oxfam America has accused Moderna of misleading its investors about an ongoing dispute over whether it needs to share vaccine patent rights with the U.S. government. Oxfam filed a shareholders complaint against Moderna with the Securities and Exchange Commission over the company's resistance to recognizing the role played by three scientists with the National Institutes of Health in developing the vaccine. We speak with Robbie Silverman, senior corporate advocacy manager at Oxfam America, who says the federal government owns a right to license the vaccine to manufacturers. "It is simply not sufficient just to vac…

Amy Goodman (2021-12-23). Oxfam Takes On Moderna in Fight for Vaccine Equity. truthout.org Oxfam America has accused Moderna of misleading its investors about an ongoing dispute over whether it needs to share vaccine patent rights with the U.S. government. Oxfam filed a shareholders complaint against Moderna with the Securities and Exchange Commission over the company's resistance to recognizing the role played by three scientists with the National Institutes of Health in developing the vaccine. We speak with Robbie Silverman, senior corporate advocacy manager at Oxfam America, who says the federal government…

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