CounterCurrents: IS Re-Occupies Palmyra

Dear Friend,

Islamic State has re-occupied Palmyra, one of the cradles of civilization, in Syria. Last time they occupied Palmyra they destroyed many of our cultural heritage. Franklin Lamb reports from Damascus that 4000-5000 IS fighters have moved into the city and the Russians have fled from the city. 

There is a growing movement demanding banks to divest from DAPL.  Sasja Beslik, head of sustainable finance at Nordea, one of the largest banks in Europe, recently traveled to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation on a fact-finding mission.

Seattle city council moved ahead and divested $ 3 billion from Wells Fargo, one of the financiers of DAPL. Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant introduced legislation that would end the city’s contract with Wells Fargo, which handles $3 billion worth of city government business, including employee payroll. It was unanimously approved to go to a full vote in January.

Our  #HumansOfDeMonetisedIndia video series continues. Today fisher folks, left homeless by sea erosion, tells how they are hit by the note ban. http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/humansofdemonetisedindia-why-we-poor-have-to-suffer/

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In Solidarity

Binu Mathew
Editor
www.countercurrents.org




#HumansOfDeMonetisedIndia: Why We Poor Have To Suffer?

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/humansofdemonetisedindia-why-we-poor-have-to-suffer/

The note ban hit poor people the hardest. Victims of sea erosion living in a camp in Valiyathura School tell their plight. For these people who already lost their homes due to sea erosion the note ban was a double blow. Report by Akhil K Prabhakar & Chidhambaram




IS Re-Occupies Palmyra
by Franklin Lamb 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/is-re-occupies-palmyra/

It’s a god-awful situation today in Palmyra.    How much of our priceless cultural heritage will be destroyed during the expanding re-occupation by Islamic State (IS)?





Facebook’s “Fake News” Measures: A Move Toward Censorship
by George Gallanis 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/facebooks-fake-news-measures-a-move-toward-censorship/

On Thursday, the global social media giant Facebook announced new measures it said were designed to limit the spread of “fake news” from hoax web sites. The measures, however, are part of a broader corporate media campaign to clamp down on independent and alternative news organizations.






Trump Played To Anger, But We Don’t Have To Fall For Divide And Conquer
by David Korten 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/trump-played-to-anger-but-we-dont-have-to-fall-for-divide-and-conquer/

The peaceful coming together at Standing Rock and the actions of the forthcoming Trump administration are expressions of two divergent paths to our common future. One is a path of inclusion seeking a future that works for the whole of life. The other is a path of exclusion aimed at securing the fortunes of the few through the sacrifice of the many.





Seattle Takes Steps To Divest $3 Billion From Wells Fargo Over Standing Rock
by Ari Paul 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/seattle-takes-steps-to-divest-3-billion-from-wells-fargo-over-standing-rock/

Over the past few months activists opposed to the Dakota Access pipeline have ramped up pressure on the pipeline company’s financiers, and now the city of Seattle is showing what kind of weight a large municipality can add as it looks at taking $3 billion in city business away from Wells Fargo. Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant introduced legislation that would end the city’s contract with Wells Fargo, which handles $3 billion worth of city government business, including employee payroll. It was unanimously approved to go to a full vote in January.






How Standing Rock’s Divest Campaign Can Stop Future Pipelines
by Colby Devitt 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/how-standing-rocks-divest-campaign-can-stop-future-pipelines/

Sasja Beslik, head of sustainable finance at Nordea, one of the largest banks in Europe, recently traveled to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation on a fact-finding mission. Originally from Bosnia, Beslik has seen his share of war and says that the Oceti Sakowin Camp reminded him of a war zone. Beslik says Nordea’s customers pressured the bank to investigate the situation. “My bank has received hundreds of emails and Facebook messages. It’s like a storm that is pushing the bank in a direction that the bank then needs to act on,” says Beslik. He says activism aimed at banks is common in Europe.






At Standing Rock, No One Goes Hungry: The Kitchen That Serves Traditional Lakota Food And Values
by Michael Running Wolf 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/at-standing-rock-no-one-goes-hungry-the-kitchen-that-serves-traditional-lakota-food-and-values/

The community meal was one of many produced by rough kitchens in the encampments that have grown on the treaty lands of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe. This kitchen is at the largest camp, Oceti Sakowin—recently renamed the All Nations Camp—where the number of people camping there was recently estimated at 10,000.






A Letter To Professor X And Those Others In His Profession Of Economics
by David Anderson 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/a-letter-to-professor-x-and-those-others-in-his-profession-of-economics/

You and those like you need to be thinking and writing and speaking about new economic theory. Physical scientists throughout the world have been describing the ecological problems with great clarity; it is time for economists to offer economic solutions.





Confidence And Courage
by Peter Van Els 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/12/17/confidence-and-courage/

We stand on the edge of the destruction of humanity and our planet, therefore we need Confidence, Courage, Love, Respect, Understanding to comprehend precisely, what human race needs to do in order to achieve real changes for the benefit of all mankind. As long as people do not see this great danger, nothing else matters.