CounterCurrents: Rahul Gandhi Must Undertake A Padyatra Across India

Dear Friend,

While having a beef fry today with rice meals,I was looking around with undue fear. It was in a restaurant in Kerala, who love their beef curry and beef fries. Still I was worried. Yes, fascism has entered the food plates in India. We are living in a Republic of fear.  I can get away from this fear by forsaking beef. It doesn't matter to me. But what about the farmers who have to take their cattle to market? They may be in need of some urgent money. The cattle may be the only thing worth selling. Who will protect them? 

In this context Dr P.S Sahney has written to Rahul Gandhi, the Vice President and de facto leader of the Congress Party, the largest opposition party in India to take up a march across the lenght and breadth of India and stand up for peoples' rights. 

If you don't mind, and if you think the content of this news letter is critical for the dignified living and survival of humanity and other species on earth, please forward it to your friends and spread the word. It's time for humanity to come together as one family! You can subscribe to our news letter here http://www.countercurrents.org/news-letter/. 

In Solidarity

Binu Mathew

Editor

www.countercurrents.org

For May And Trump Storms On The Horizon

by Dr Arshad M Khan 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/for-may-and-trump-storms-on-the-horizon/

If Theresa May has her troubles, so does Donald Trump. James Comey, the F.B.I. Director he fired, has been testifying under oath before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and called him a liar. Lucky for Trump, it is not so easy to remove an elected U.S. president as it is to change a Conservative Party leader in Britain

James Comeys Testimony
by Dr Binoy Kampmark 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/james-comeys-testimony/

The entertainment reality show got another instalment on Thursday with the testimony of former FBI director James Comey before members of the Senate intelligence committee.  The various birds of prey wishing to find smoking carrion were left only partially satisfied.  The Republicans were left confused, and the right wing media felt that Trump had been exonerated. There was something for everyone.

Saudi Arabia Teams Up With Israel In Anti-Qatar Lobbying In The US Congress

by Abdus Sattar Ghazali 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/saudi-arabia-teams-up-with-israel-in-anti-qatar-lobbying-in-the-us-congress/

US proposed  legislation – Palestinian International Terrorism Support Prevention Act of 2017 – threatening to sanction Qatar for its support of the so-called “Palestinian terror” was sponsored by 10 lawmakers who received more than $1m over the last 18 months from lobbyists and groups linked to Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, Al Jazeera reported Friday.

Thomas Robert Malthus, We Need Your Voice Today!

by John Scales Avery 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/thomas-robert-malthus-we-need-your-voice-today/

Thomas Robert Malthus, mathematician and economist, warning voice, we need your voice today!

Practical Love Supreme in Activism

by Richard Oxman 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/practical-love-supreme-in-activism/

A review of a documentary on John Coltrane reminded me that the iconic jazz musician died on the same day that the Newark Riots officially ended. I trust that the reader knows why I’m using italics here; fact is, the trauma of those riots — fifty years old as of 2017 — never went away. Definitely not for me, as I knew colleagues of the two officers who sparked the riots by mercilessly beating a poor black man they had pulled over for trying “to evade arrest over a traffic violation.” Their story. Mayhem followed, its ripples resonating today.

The low-key passing of Manuel Noriega

by Mickey Z 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/the-low-key-passing-of-manuel-noriega/

By the time Manuel Noriega died on May 29, 2017, the “ousted dictator” or “Panamanian strongman” had long since taken up residency in the proverbial dustbin of history. He hadn’t been useful or “trending” for decades and was thus relegated to virtual invisibility. Even those who vaguely remembered him may have already presumed him dead — a pre-Internet relic without a hashtag.

Myth Of Free-Media In India

by Vidya Bhushan Rawat 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/myth-of-free-media-in-india/

Vidya Bhushan Rawat gives an unvarnished take on NDTV raid, media freedom and censorship

State Sponsored Terrorism Against Sikhs In November 1984 & The Role Of Peace Warriors:Lessons For The Indian Army

by Dr P S Sahni 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/state-sponsored-terrorism-against-sikhs-in-november-1984-the-role-of-peace-warriorslessons-for-the-indian-army/

A recent article published in the Countercurrents.org by Lalita Ramdas titled ‘Service Brats, Identity and Nationalism’ raised some crucial issues through the comments by honorable serving/retired army personnel. It is felt that a wider dissemination and debate is necessary into this aspect,since it raises the fundamental issue of whether a citizen of India, Lalita Ramdas, wife of Admiral L. Ramdas (Retd.) has a right to express herself freely on issues of great public and national importance. 

Was Kashmir Plebiscite Forestalled By Pakistan’s Failure To Withdraw Troops?

by Abdul Majid Zargar 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/was-kashmir-plebiscite-forestalled-by-pakistans-failure-to-withdraw-troops/

Almost all Indians, when reminded of the promise of a plebiscite made to people of J&K to ascertain their wishes, blame Pakistan for forestalling holding of one, primarily due to her failure to withdraw forces from the portion occupied by her as prescribed under relevant UN resolution. Many of my fellow countrymen nurse the same opinion. It is, therefore in the fitness of things to extract truth from the debris of files & documents which have since been consigned to dustbins of various archives.

Rahul Gandhi: Please Undertake A Padyatra From Kashmir To Kanyakumari

by Dr P S Sahni 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/rahul-gandhi-undertake-a-padyatra-from-kashmir-to-kanyakumari/

Please come out strongly against this illegal ban on cattle slaughter. Kindly translate your verbal assurances to concrete actions. Undertake a padyatra from Kashmir to Kanyakumari against the illegal, divisive law and uphold the secular value that the Congress professes.

Amit Shah On Gandhi: Is It Freedom Of Speech?

by Debjanee Ganguly 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/amit-shah-on-gandhi-is-it-freedom-of-speech/

Have Shah’s comments on Gandhi kept his dignity intact as a philosopher and political stalwart of the nation. Sarcasm can hardly compete with satire when it comes to refinement or art as tact. But even if sarcasm or mockery falls within the protected forms of free speech then should this comment not face the trial of the legal court, in the very terms Vasant Gurjar’s poem did?

RSS And Conspiracies: Made For Each Other

by Shamsul Islam 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/rss-and-conspiracies-made-for-each-other/

The latest expose has come from Kerala. A leading English daily, The Indian Express wrote: “In what could be a major embarrassment for the BJP, a Yuva Morcha [youth wing of the RSS] leader apparently condemned a petrol bomb attack on the party’s Thiruvananthapuram office on the social media hours before the actual incident took place, triggering speculation that the attack was planned and executed by the saffron party itself.”[i] The Yuva Morcha leader Jayadev Hareendran Nair, a top RSS functionary in Kerala had put out three Facebook posts on Wednesday (June 7 at 8.01 am, 5.01 pm and 6.31 pm) condemning the attack on the BJP office where as the actual ‘attack’ took place between 8.30 pm and 9 pm.

For The Immediate Attention Of Dissident Seasons

by Niranjan TG 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2017/06/11/for-the-immediate-attention-of-dissident-seasons/

Plots for Spring to blossom

have been pre-allotted.

Don’t violate the boundaries

and carpet the roads with blossoms

and call it freedom of expression.

RSN: Jeffrey Toobin | James Comey's Remarkable Story About Donald Trump

It's Live on the HomePage Now: 
Reader Supported News

MOTIVATING A FEW DONATIONS TODAY IS IMPERATIVE - Really need to get the June fundraiser moving. Super important! Hit the donation link and, make RSN strong. / Marc Ash - Founder, Reader Supported News

Sure, I'll make a donation!

---

Jeffrey Toobin | James Comey's Remarkable Story About Donald Trump 
 
Jeffrey Toobin, The New Yorker 
Toobin writes: "President Trump appears to be guilty of obstruction of justice. That's the only rational conclusion to be reached if James Comey's opening statement for his planned testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, on Thursday, is to be believed." 
READ MORE

Comey Testimony Raises New Questions About Jeff Sessions and Russia 
Arnie Seipel, NPR 
Seipel writes: "Former FBI director James Comey may have done more damage to Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday than even President Trump, whom Comey publicly accused of waving him off part of the Russia investigation." 
READ MORE

Trump Wants to Start Charging Stores to Accept Food Stamps 
Ylan Mui, CNBC 
Mui writes: "The White House proposal to overhaul the U.S. food stamp program - and the deep cuts it would make to benefits for the poorest households - has sparked public outrage on both sides of the aisle. But there's another change tucked into the proposal that businesses say caught them off guard - and could wind up costing them more than $2 billion." 
READ MORE

House Votes to Dismantle Key Dodd-Frank Regulations 
Casey Quinlan, ThinkProgress 
Quinlan writes: "The House overwhelmingly voted on Thursday to kill 2010 Dodd-Frank financial regulations." 
READ MORE

Jury Awards $6.7M to Inmate Raped by Guard in Milwaukee County Jail, Shackled During Childbirth
John Diedrich, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 
Diedrich writes: "A federal jury Wednesday awarded $6.7 million to a woman who was raped repeatedly by a guard when she was being held in the Milwaukee County Jail four years ago." 
READ MORE

The Movement in Corbyn's Wake 
Jacobin 
Excerpt: "Jeremy Corbyn proves you can run a traditional left campaign and energize young people. The future is ours." 
READ MORE

Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Receives Prestigious Award + $1 Million Investment to Transition Away From Fossil Fuels 
Wallace Global Fund 
Excerpt: "The Wallace Global Fund awarded the inaugural Henry A. Wallace Award and a $250,000 prize to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe for its unyielding courage in the fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline, and its dedication to transitioning to renewable energy. In addition to the $250,000 prize, the tribe will receive up to a $1 million investment from the Wallace Global Fund to support its transition toward fossil fuel independence." 
READ MORE

---

Contribute to RSN

Become a Fan of RSN on Facebook and Twitter

MASSterList: Bombshells away | One word, one person | Sanctuary showdown

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE!

Subscribe  Archives

By Jay Fitzgerald and Keith Regan 06/09/2017 Bombshells away | One word, one person | Sanctuary showdown

Happening Today Immigration bill press conference Sen. Jamie Eldridge, Rep. Juana Matias, Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, and others hold a pre-committee media availability over legislation that would bar state and local police from aiding Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials on certain immigration matters, Room 437, 9:30 a.m. Safe Communities Act hearing Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security holds a hearing on the ‘Safe Communities Act’ that bans use of state resources to support federal immigration laws, Rooms A1 and A2, 10 a.m. Cabinet meeting Gov. Charlie Baker holds a meeting with members of his cabinet and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, Room 360, 10 a.m. Safe Communities Act vigil Greater Boston Health and Law Immigrant Solidarity Network holds a vigil for health professionals in support of the Safe Communities Act, State House steps, 12 p.m. Gold Award ceremony Treasurer Deborah Goldberg provides congratulatory remarks at the Girl Scouts' Gold Award Ceremony, Great Hall, 2 p.m. Asian American Civic Association gala Gov. Baker and Auditor Suzanne Bump attend the Asian American Civic Association 50th Anniversary Celebration, Park Plaza, 50 Park Plaza, Boston, 6 p.m. Today's News

Bombshells away So much for yesterday’s James Comey hearing being a dud. There were no true smoking guns per se revealed yesterday, as the Globe’s Joan Vennochi and the New York Times’David Brooks rightly note. But that doesn’t mean there wasn’t a lot of damning and damaging testimony by the former FBI chief, they add The Globe’s Jacklyn Reiss has a fun best-quotes story from the hearing, while her Globe colleagues – James Pindell andMichael Cohen – have their own hearing highlights pieces. One more from a Globie: Scot Lehigh thinks Comey absolutely mauled President Trump. Then again, this is a two-newspaper town, and the Herald’s Howie Carr says Comey’s testimony merely proved he’s a hero in his own mind. The Herald’s Joe Battenfeld says Comey is covered in the same mud he was slinging. The Herald’s Kimberly Atkins notes that Trump wasn’t the only one damaged by Comey’s blunt testimony: Hillary Clinton, former AG Loretta Lynch and current AG Jeff Sessions also got dinged. Finally, WGBH’s Peter Kadzis has a good piece comparing today’s Russian-connections scandal and Watergate and says yesterday’s hearing proved, if anything, that some sort of crime was committed, as it relates to Russia.

Rosenberg on freezing income-tax rate: ‘I don't see that happening’ Senate President Stan Rosenberg has thrown cold water on the idea floating around the State House of freezing the state’s income tax rate at its current rate, rather than letting it decrease as scheduled by law, in order to help balance the state budget, reports Colin Young at SHNS (pay wall). Meanwhile, Gov. Baker, trying to plug a more than $400 million budget gap in the current state budget, yesterday said that there may be “hundreds of millions of dollars” that won’t be spent by state agencies by the end of this fiscal year and that those funds could be used to fill budget holes, reports SHNS’s Katie Lannan and Andy Metzger (pay wall). Rosenberg said he’s “looking forward” to seeing how that mini-miracle budget trick pans out.

Big changes at Medicaid? If this works, it's a big long-term deal, arguably more important than anything that lawmakers are now mulling to stabilize the state's perennially unstable budget. From Jessica Bartlett at the BBJ: "Massachusetts has chosen 18 health care organizations to participate in a massive Medicaid restructuring aimed at changing the way providers are reimbursed and creating new programs to care for patients on a budget." BBJ

‘Here are tips on how to successfully cultivate your own cannabis’ The times they are a-changin’ when a mainstream newspaper site, in this case MassLive.com, has a feature on how best to grow pot in your home. ... MassLive

Travesty: Hilltop Steak House site to be redeveloped into luxury apartments One saving grace of AvalonBay Communities Inc.’s purchase of the old Hilltop Steak House in Saugus, with plans to turn the site into luxury apartments, is that the firm plans to incorporate the restaurant's landmark cactus sign into development designs, as the BBJ’s David Harris reports. Here’s a BBJ slideshow of the old Hilltop Steak House. BBJ

Brockton socks away cash for education lawsuit This is getting serious. The city of Brockton’s 2018 budget sets aside $100,000 to hire outside lawyers in the event it joins with other cities—think Worcester—to sue the state over the way it distributes education funding, Marc Larocque of the Enterprise reports. “Relief must come from the state,” the mayor says.  Enterprise

Showdown today over ‘sanctuary state’ legislation Proponents and opponents of making Massachusetts a ‘sanctuary state’ are gearing up for a major fight today, as the Safe Communities Act goes before the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security, according to an AP report at the New York Times. This legislation shouldn’t be confused with a similar bill that House Democrats recently retreated from amid fears it would be perceived as a ‘sanctuary state’ endorsement, as the Herald’s Jack Encarnacao notes. NYT

One word may doom pregnant-worker protection bill The inclusion of just one word – “knowingly” – in a compromise bill may put in jeopardy the entire pregnant-worker protection legislation that was passed by the House earlier this session and now awaits a vote in the Senate, the Globe’s Frank Phillips reports (and explains).  Boston Globe

Meanwhile, a radio ad campaign aimed at just one person Forty-nine other states, Gov. Charlie Baker and a majority of lawmakers on Beacon Hill favor a bill that would allow optometrists to treat glaucoma and other eye conditions. But the optometrists are now spending $25,000 on radio ads to convince just one lawmaker to relent in his opposition: House Majority Leader Ron Mariano, the Globe’s Frank Phillips also reports. Boston Globe

Next chore for Elizabeth Warren: Defending Dodd-Frank As the nation’s attention was riveted yesterday on former FBI director James Comey’s testimony on Capitol Hill, the Republican-controlled U.S. House quietly voted to weaken the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill – and weaken as well U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s cherished Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The Washington Post reports progressives are already gearing up for a major fight in the Senate. Washington Post

Scott Brown confirmed as ambassador to N.Z. – with Elizabeth Warren’s help Speaking of Warren, partisanship was most definitely set aside yesterday, at least locally, when former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, a Republican, was easily confirmed to be the next ambassador to New Zealand, with Warren, who defeated Brown for the Senate seat in 2012, and U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, both Democrats, voting in favor. WBUR

SJC tosses defamation suit against former Gov. Patrick Without addressing former Gov. Deval Patrick’s executive-privilege defense, the Supreme Judicial Court yesterday threw out a much-watched defamation suit against Patrick, saying the plaintiff failed to prove Patrick’s statements about the fired chair of the Sex Offender Registry Board were made with “actual malice,” reports Stephanie Ebbert at the Globe. Boston Globe

Crosby: Thoroughbred horse racing has not crossed the finish line yet Stephen Crosby, the chairman of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, has written a letter to Beacon Hill lawmakers saying the horse-racing industry can be saved in Massachusetts, but it’s not going to happen if lawmakers raid the state’s horse-racing fund and don’t consolidate regulatory powers with the commission. Bruce Mohl at CommonWealth has more. CommonWealth

Fear not: Corrections employees won’t go payless From Colin Young at SHNS: “The Senate will temporarily relent in its pursuit of a report on Department of Correction spending and pass a budget bill Thursday to ensure the department can avoid payless paydays for its employees. On Boston Herald Radio, Senate President Stanley Rosenberg, asked about a News Service report that department funds will run out on Sunday, said the Senate has committed to getting the supplemental budget to Gov. Charlie Baker's desk by the end of the week.” SHNS (pay wall)

Going local: Faneuil Hall Marketplace launches latest effort to win back locals Under new ownership, Faneuil Hall Marketplace is once again trying to woo local shoppers and diners who have long been turned off by the tourist-trap “stigma” of the tourist-trap mecca, reports the Globe's Tim Logan. While they’re at it, the owners may also want to step up efforts to rid the marketplace of the “Fake Monk Mafia” trawling for dollars, reports Universal Hub.

A pot-sweetener for weed-host towns? Lawmakers are considering sweetening the pot to convince more communities to keep their borders open to recreational marijuana shops as they race to revamp the ballot initiative passed in November, Chris Villani of the Herald reports. A slew of communities—mostly well-heeled, suburban types—have passed moratoriums on pot shops in the months since the ballot question passed.  Boston Herald

Gavel thief steals chairman’s thunder in Attleboro Police in Attleboro are hard on the trail of a man who they say was caught by video walking into the city council chamber and swiping the chairman’s gavel late last month, a theft that forced the council’s chairman to bring a rubber mallet from home to help keep order. George Rhodes of the Sun-Chronicle has all the gavel-to-no-gavel coverage.  Sun Chronicle

Reminder: The election cycle never ends It’s always campaign season somewhere and with less than three weeks to go, it’s crunch time in the 4th Middlesex Senate district, where the three Democrats vying for the right to replace the late Sen. Ken Donnelly debated Thursday night. Rick Sobey of the Lowell Sun reports the debate was civil, with the three hopefuls agreeing on most of the major issues. No Republicans have declared, so the June 27th primary will essentially decide who’s the next state senator.  Lowell Sun

A call to arms to oppose the Weymouth natural-gas compressor Tim Cronin, who’s only a senior at Stonehill College, has written an impressive blog post at the Climate Action Business Association calling on people to support state Sen. Patrick O’Connor’s bill that attempts to block a proposed natural-gas compressor station in Weymouth and to support carbon pricing.   CABAUS

'Reclaiming history in New Orleans’ This isn’t about a local topic, but it is written by a local writer, Rick Holmes, the former opinion-page editor at the MetroWest Daily News, whose op-ed pages shined under Holmes’ watch. The reason we’re running his column about a Robert E. Lee statue in New Orleans is because: A.) It’s an interesting topic about the changing South and B.) It’s just really well written. See what you think. MetroWest Dailey News

Sunday public affairs TV Keller at Large, WBZ-TV Channel 4, 8:30 a.m. Guest: Massachusetts Democratic Party chair Gus Bickford, who discusses the 2018 races and the Democratic party in general, with host Jon Keller. This Week in Business, NECN, 10 a.m. Shirley Leung of the Boston Globe and Doug Banks of the Boston Business Journal talk about the Massachusetts budget shortfall, the Comey hearing, the Boston Globe’s ‘Trump Bump,’ the state’s Fortune 500 companies and other business issues.   CEO Corner, NECN, 10:30 a.m., Lupoli Companies CEO Sal Lupoli talks about his development projects in Gateway cities and his other business, Sal’s Pizza. On The Record, WCVB-TV Channel 5, 11 a.m. This week’s guest: Attorney General Maura Healey, who talks with anchor Ed Harding and co-anchor Janet Wu. CityLine, WCVB-TV Channel 5, 12 p.m. With host Karen Holmes Taylor, this week’s focus: ‘Branding,’ how political, non-profit and business officials are working together to fight racism and Boston’s image as a racist city.

*************
*************

Today's Headlines Metro Faneuil Hall Marketplace tries to draw more locals - Boston Globe Four now certified for mayor’s ballot - Dorchester Reporter GrubHub to acquire Boston-based Foodler - Boston Business Journal Massachusetts Legislators advance driver cellphone ban - Boston Herald Southbridge teachers union head faults state leadership - Telegram & Gazette Fatherhood award established in Paul Cellucci’s name - MetroWest Daily News Keating spars with Homeland Security over worker visas - Cape Cod Times Gavel stolen in Attleboro council chamber caper - Sun-Chronicle Fear and loathing on Haverhill school vote - CommonWealth Magazine Springfield-Boston rail is now a ‘pivotal time,’ Sen. Eric Lesser says - MassLive Lawmakers hear pitch for automatic voter registration - WGBH Nation ‘Lordy, I hope there are tapes’: Highlights of James Comey’s testimony - NPR Trump hearings launch Kamala Harris - Politico What was behind those befuddling McCain questions? - New York Times

To view more events or post an event listing on Beacon Hill Town Square, please visit events.massterlist.com. Beacon Hill Town Square