CounterCurrents: Tactical Nuclear Weapons In Europe, To Survive, We Must Act Now On Global Warming, Don’t Invest In What Damages Human Rights, Says UN Climate Envoy

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In Solidarity
Binu Mathew
Editor
www.countercurrents.org


Don’t Invest In What Damages Human Rights, Says UN Climate Envoy
By Megan Darby

http://www.countercurrents.org/darby210315.htm

Ban Ki-moon’s special envoy on climate change voiced support for the fossil fuel divestment movement at an event in London on Friday. Mary Robinson, leading climate justice campaigner and former president of Ireland, said it was “very interesting” to see the movement grow in impact. For any fund, “it is almost a due diligence requirement” to consider ending investment in dirty energy companies, she said


Geoengineering May Backfire, Find Scientists
By Countercurrents.org

http://www.countercurrents.org/cc210315.htm

To combat global climate change caused by greenhouse gases, alternative energy sources and other types of environmental recourse actions are needed. There are proposals involving using vertical ocean pipes to move seawater to the surface from the depths in order to reap different potential climate benefits. But a new study from a group of Carnegie scientists determines that these types of pipes could actually increase global warming quite drastically. It is published in Environmental Research Letters


The Messages From Israel’s Election
By Ilan Pappe

http://www.countercurrents.org/pappe210315.htm

The conclusion for the international community should be clear now. Only decolonization of the settler state can lead to reconciliation. And the only way to kick off this decolonization is by employing the same means exercised against the other long-standing settler state of the twentieth century: apartheid South Africa


Russia Under Attack
By Paul Craig Roberts

http://www.countercurrents.org/roberts210315.htm

While Washington works assiduously to undermine the Minsk agreement that German chancellor Merkel and French president Hollande achieved in order to halt the military conflict in Ukraine, Washington has sent Victoria Nuland to Armenia to organize a “color revolution” or coup there, has sent Richard Miles as ambassador to Kyrgyzstan to do the same there, and has sent Pamela Spratlen as ambassador to Uzbekistan to purchase that government’s allegiance away from Russia. The result would be to break up the Collective Security Treaty Organization and present Russia and China with destabilization where they can least afford it


Europe: Old Friendships, Hesitant Alliances
By Gaither Stewart

http://www.countercurrents.org/stewart210315.htm

You can’t ignore the reality that perhaps never before has a fine knowledge of geography been more important than today. It is a geographical fact that Eurasia exists. However any gung ho American neocon policy that aims at American control over that vast area rings like an Earth power claiming control, or aspiring to the control of, say, the planet Uranus. Fortunately, Europe understands the idiocy of neocon belief in America’s invincibility and Exceptionalism … or perhaps Europe is finally beginning to understand


Opposing War With A Smile
By David Swanson

http://www.countercurrents.org/swanson210315.htm

Big changes will be needed in our politics, our economy, our energy use, our culture, and in the stories we tell each other about the world. But these changes can come step-by-step and advance self-aware toward complete replacement of the war system with a peace system. Attempting such a change, which is in some ways well underway already, can hardly be less sensible than the knowing failure of war


The Collapse Of French Intellectual Diversity
By Andre Vltchek

http://www.countercurrents.org/vltchek210315.htm

If you think that France is not as much a police state, as the UK or the US, think twice. Heavily armed military and police are visible at all train stations and many intersections, even at some narrow alleys. Internet providers are openly spying on their costumers. Mass media is self-censoring its reports. The regime’s propaganda is in “top gear”. But the people of France, at least the great majority of them, believe that they live in an ‘open and democratic society.’ If asked, they cannot prove it; they have no arguments. They are simply told that they are free, and so they believe it


The Great GMO Legitimation Crisis
By Colin Todhunter

http://www.countercurrents.org/todhunter210315.htm

Author of ‘Altered Genes, Twisted Truth’ Steven Druker recently talked of how back in the seventies a group of molecular biologists formed part of a scientific elite that sought to allay fears about genetic engineering by putting a positive spin on it. At the same time, critics of this emerging technology were increasingly depicted as being little more than non-scientists who expressed ignorant but well-meaning concerns about science and genetic engineering. This continues today, but the attacks on critics are becoming more vicious


From Basic Income To Social Dividends: Sharing The Value Of Common Resources
By Rajesh Makwana

http://www.countercurrents.org/makwana210315.htm

It’s time to broaden the debate on how to fund a universal basic income by including options for sharing resource rents, which is a model that can be applied internationally to reform unjust economic systems, reduce extreme poverty and protect the global commons


Inequality And The Crisis of Capitalism And Democracy: Part IV
By Jon V Kofas

http://www.countercurrents.org/kofas210315.htm

Solutions to the Income Inequality and Declining Democracy

Pakistan: Transcending The Us Versus Them Paradigm
By Maryam Sakeenah

http://www.countercurrents.org/sakeenah210315.htm

The Christian community of Pakistan never has been, is not and should never be an oppressed minority hated and targeted by Pakistan’s Muslim majority. Those trying to reinforce this idea- whether extreme rightwingers, conservatives or the secular liberals- are utterly wrong. This is a false picture that will fuel more rage and blind hate


Public Hero: Paying For Honesty
By S.G.Vombatkere

http://www.countercurrents.org/vombatkere210315.htm

One hopes that Ravi's death will trigger a wave of honest officials and public-spirited citizens who will support each other in the best interest of the people of our sovereign socialist secular democratic Republic


The Maharashra Beef Ban Is Unconstitutional
By Committee for the Protection of Democratic Rights

http://www.countercurrents.org/cpdr210315.htm

The CPDR holds that the Maharashtra Animal Protection (Amendment) Act, 1995 is not in consonance with Article 48 when this is viewed in conjunction with the fundamental rights of citizens under the Constitution. This Act is not even based on Hindu religious faith. Contrary to Hinduism, which is a conglomerate of beliefs and faiths aimed at achieving spiritual salvation, the ideology of the majority in the Maharashtra Assembly that enacted this law in 1995 is that of Hindutva, which is aimed at attaining political power, and is the Indian variant of Nazism. The Act is aimed at depriving the Other of her livelihood and way of life, which must be condemned by all those who stand for pluralism, secularism and democratic rights


The Dimapur Lynch Mob And Violence Of Hurt Sentiments
By People's Alliance for Democracy and Secularism

http://www.countercurrents.org/pads210315.htm

While community politics creates unbridgeable walls between citizens, the fluidity of opportunities under modernity generates another world outside communities. The man killed by the Naga mob in Dimapur was actually married to a Naga woman. Their girl child, half Naga-half Cachharree Muslim, and hence neither Naga, nor Cachharee Muslim, faces an uncertain future. It depends crucially on the future of democracy in the country whether she spends her life in trauma in the barrenness of no-man’s land between communities, or she grows up to live full life of a citizen without fear, hatred and suspicion


Documenting Hate And Communal Violence Under The Modi Regime
By John Dayal

http://www.countercurrents.org/dayal210315.htm

The 300 days have also seen an assault on democratic structures, the education and knowledge system, Human Rightsorganizations and Rights Defenders and coercive action using the Intelligence Bureau and the systems if the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act and the Passport laws to crack down on NGOs working in areas of empowerment of the marginalized sections of society, including Dalits, Tribals, Fishermen and women, and issues of environment, climate, forests, land and water rights. This report is focused on issues of communally targeted violence and the politics of hate and divisiveness that emanates from a thesis of religious nationalism


Progress Made But Work Remains On Firewalling Health Policy From Tobacco Industry
By Shobha Shukla

http://www.countercurrents.org/shukla210315.htm

Considerable progress has been made in different countries globally in protecting public health policy from tobacco industry interference, but certainly lot more work needs to be done. 2012 World Conference on Tobacco or Health (WCTOH) Declaration called on all governments to establish a national coordinating mechanism of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) which is fully firewalled from the tobacco industry


Nepal Leading Tobacco Control In South Asia: Will It Spiral Domino Effect On Other Nations?
By Bobby Ramakant

http://www.countercurrents.org/ramakant210315.htm

South Asian region has very high levels of tobacco use, and thus not surprisingly, rates of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and other tobacco related illnesses rage high. Nepal is in spotlight in South Asian region by demonstrating high commitment to tobacco control and also acting on the ground! Recognizing Nepal's leadership, the country was awarded the prestigious 'Bloomberg Philanthropies Award for Global Tobacco Control' at the 16th World Conference on Tobacco or Health (WCTOH 2015)

20 March, 2014

Crosscurrents
By Kathy Kelly

http://www.countercurrents.org/kelly200315.htm

By the time I leave Kentucky's federal prison center, where I'm an inmate with a 3 month sentence, the world's 12th-largest city may be without water. Estimates put the water reserve of Sao Paulo, a city of 20 million people, at sixty days. Sporadic outages have already begun, the wealthy are pooling money to receive water in tankers, and government officials are heard discussing weekly five-day shutoffs of the water supply, and the possibility of warning residents to flee


To Survive, We Must Act Now On Global Warming
By Lionel Anet

http://www.countercurrents.org/anet200315.htm

To ensure that our offspring can live through this and next century, we must do what seems impossible. And that’s to have a worldwide united action to stop that dangerous warming. The wealthy 1% is now focused on maximising their wealth;we must showthe unavoidable disaster they will face in pursuing this ridicules goal. They must see their wealth will be useless in the future on our lifeless planet


Tactical Nuclear Weapons In Europe
By The Danish Pugwash Group

http://www.countercurrents.org/pug200315.htm

The danger of nuclear war is very great today, especially because of the Ukraine crisis and the danger of accidents. We would like to suggest that, in exchange for withdrawal of U.S. Nuclear weapons from Europe, the Russian government might be persuaded to eliminate its tactical nuclear weapons directed against Europe