Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Some European and American commentators on Russia’s war against Ukraine have covered themselves in shame by implying that because Ukrainians are “European” or “civilized” it is harder to see them hit by artillery and made refugees than it had been with regard to Iraqis or Syrians. While in 2015 Syrians […]
Archives for February 2022
Chekhov’s Pistol: or, Putin’s All-Encompassing Security State
Montreal (Special to Informed Comment) – Anton Chekhov famously advised young playwrights that “If in the first act you have hung a pistol on the wall, then in the following one it should be fired.” For the past twenty years Vladimir Putin—a deeply paranoid megalomaniac who has by now completely isolated himself from his own […]
Joe Manchin’s America: The Resurgence of the Culture-of-Poverty Debate
( Tomdispatch.com ) – As if killing the Child Tax Credit, blocking voting rights, gutting key climate legislation, and refusing living wages wasn’t enough, West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin is now promoting legislation that further punishes the poor and marginalized. Along with Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio, he’s introduced the PIPES Act, which undercuts […]
After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: A New Cold War?
By Jaro Bilocerkowycz | – In a very real sense, the Russian full-scale invasion places Ukraine at the center of a geopolitical struggle reminiscent of the Cold War days when Germany and its capital city Berlin were split in two by a wall dividing Western democracy and Russian communism. In fact, as Ukrainian scholar Yevhen […]
What can we Learn about Ukraine’s Future from Israel’s Campaigns in Lebanon?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – I’ve been thinking about what the Russian invasion and attempted occupation of Ukraine is like in recent history, and one analogy that might be good to think with is Israel in Lebanon. Putin seems to hope that the Ukraine is like Palestine, which the Israelis have successfully kept subdued even […]
Why Putin’s claim to rid Ukraine of Nazis is especially Absurd given its History
By Jeffrey Veidlinger | – Russian President Vladimir Putin justifies his war on Ukraine as a peacekeeping mission, a “denazification” of the country. In his address to the Russian people on Feb. 24, 2022, Putin said the purpose was to “protect people” who had been “subjected to bullying and genocide … for the last eight […]
Is the Gutting of Newspapers by Private Equity Firms the Nail in the Coffin of Democracy?
Profit maximizing in the newspaper industry is corroding the knowledge base that sustains government by the people. ( Inequality.org ) – Has the unthinkable, the Swedish political scientist Bo Rothstein mused earlier this month, now entered the realm of real possibility? Could democracy in the United States be disappearing? Millions of Americans are worrying about […]
UN: Pace of Climate Change too fast for many Plant and Animal Species to Adapt
Shifting seasons, intensifying wildfires and noise pollution are flagged as increasingly urgent environmental issues in a bleak report by the UN Environment Programme. ( China Dialogue ) – The pace of climate change is accelerating too fast for many plant and animal species to adapt, and leading to profound impacts on species’ ability to survive […]
The Republican Party Persecuted US Leftists for tilting to Moscow but Makes Excuses for Putin-Loving Trump
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trump’s fawning admiration of Vladimir Putin is well known, but it has often been brushed off as a quirk. We should have known how dangerous Putin was when he praised Trump as “impressive.” Trump is impressive the way spoiled butter left out too long is, rancid and foul-smelling. Now Trump […]
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