CounterCurrents: Punishing The Messenger: Israel’s War On NGOs Takes A Worrying Turn, Biden Meets With Erdogan, Backs Turkish Invasion Of Syria

Dear Friend,

We've been following the Syrian imbroglio closely and the situation remains fluid. The Turkish army launched  a cross-border operation codenamed operation Euphrates Shield against American supported Kurdish militia and ISIS. US Vice President Joe Biden who arrived in Ankara has extended support to the Turkish operation.  The Kurdish militias have  been double-crossed by their US backers. It seems the Turkish aim is two fold 1) two prevent a Kurdish stronghold taking shape inside Syria. (Turkey is already fighting Kurds inside Turkey itself as well as in Iraq border) 2) to create a buffer zone inside Syria which is also a dream US imperialist agenda. 

The Korean peninsula is on the boil. 1) North Korea launched a    submarine missile which breached Japan’s air defense zone. 2) US and South Korea have been involved in the joint annual drill which has irked North Korea. North Korean belligerance has made even its traditional backers, the Chinese, nervous. China, Japan and South Korea met for a trilateral meet and discussed North Korea. Remember, North Korea has as many as 21 nuclear bombs, enough to make us all nervous. 

Today is the 8th anniversary of Kandhamal pogrom, one of the worst violence against Christians in modern India. Yours truly has written an article, "Lessons From Kandhamal." There is  also an interview with renowned film maker K.P Sasi who has completed a documentary on the pogrom “Voices from the Ruins: Kandhamal in Search of Justice”.

Day 48 in Kashmir. Curfew and shut down continues in the valley. Yesterday, one youth was killed in Pulwama. Death toll is 68 now. South Kashmir remains tense. 

And many more stories from around the world. 

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In Solidarity

Binu Mathew
Editor
www.countercurrents.org



Biden Meets With Erdogan, Backs Turkish Invasion Of Syria
by Halil Celik 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/biden-meets-with-erdogan-backs-turkish-invasion-of-syria/

Under the pretext of “strengthening Turkey’s security by clearing terrorist groups from the border and maintaining Syria’s territorial integrity,” the Turkish army launched a major escalation of the war in Syria on Wednesday with a cross-border operation codenamed Euphrates Shield.



Tokyo Trilateral Meet Shows China Is Troubled Of North Korean Adventurism
by Dr Vivek Kumar Srivastava 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/tokyo-trilateral-meet-shows-china-is-troubled-of-north-korean-adventurism/

The developments in Far East since few days are quite complex. Three major developments have taken place. First US and South Korea have been involved in the joint annual drill which North Korea has criticized saying that it is in fact an invasion drill with a clear aim to destroy the country. Second development is launch of the submarine missile by North Korea which breached Japan’s air defense identification zone; alarming the region that North Korea is not ready to stop its misadventures



Lessons From Kandhamal
by Binu Mathew 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/lessons-from-kandhamal/

Today is the 8th anniversary of Kandhamal pogrom. When we look back on one of the worst communal violence against Christian communities in the history of modern India, what lessons can be learnt?




Scorched Visions Of Kandhamal
by P M Jayan 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/scorched-visions-of-kandhamal/

An interview with renowned film maker K.P Sasi who has completed a documentary on the pogrom “Voices from the Ruins: Kandhamal in Search of Justice”




Sajjad Lone And “Chewable” Nationhood!
by Mohammad Ashraf

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/sajjad-lone-and-chewable-nationhood/

The author of the ‘vision document’, “Achievable Nationhood” has modified it to become the “Chewable Nationhood”!




The Kashmir Stalemate: Time To End The Conundrum
by Umar Farooq Veeri  

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/the-kashmir-stalemate-time-to-end-the-conundrum/

The governments have spent tens of billions of rupees on feeding and fighting the conflict rather than on alleviating poverty and improving literacy and health programs for the staggering number of poor in all of India and Pakistan. It was basically &  ultimately the exhumed external forces and greedy mindframe of these two extremely located countries and in part the spread of Islamic Fundamentalism in the Kashmir Valley that were instrumental in bringing about the insurgency of the late 1980s. Since that time, Kashmir has become overrun by these forces, and yet again the voice of Kashmir has become muffled under a global Islamic agenda



Dam Building: Who’s “Backward”- Subsistence Cultures Or Modern “Development”?
by Vinod Raina 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/dam-building-whos-backward-subsistence-cultures-or-modern-development/

Dam proponents see their scientism as self-evidently superior to traditional cultures: Should the adivasis live as they have for centuries, as museum pieces, with their cultures and beliefs intact? they ask. Do they not have a right to progress?




Unwanted Images: The Nauru Incident Reports
by Dr Binoy Kampmark 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/unwanted-images-the-nauru-incident-reports/

Tactics to undermine, discredit and sanitise the hideousness of the camp system are also used with propagandistic dedication.  In the wake of the release of the “Nauru Files” by The Guardian, documenting the assortment of abuses taking place on the island, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection was immediately at hand with desensitising advice.



Punishing The Messenger: Israel’s War On NGOs Takes A Worrying Turn
by Dr Ramzy Baroud 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/punishing-the-messenger-israels-war-on-ngos-takes-a-worrying-turn/

The ‘NGO Law’ is now in effect. It forces NGOs to declare their sources of funding and punishes those who refrain from doing so. It also levies heavy taxes on such funds, even when declared. The European Union, along with the United States Government warned Israel against such laws, but to no avail. The bill is written in too broad a terminology, thus making it possible for the government to target such organizations without appearing vindictive or politically-motivated.




Leftists For Trump
by Thomas C Mountain 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/leftists-for-trump/

I am a leftist for Trump. As an alumni of “Leftists for Bush” and living these past 10 years in the Horn of Africa, I cant help myself. I am irresistibly drawn to “Leftists for Trump”. Of course if I was living in the good old U-S-of A I would be in the streets demonstrating against The Trumpster. But then I would be in the streets marching against Lady Hillary as well.



Dalit Uprising And After: Why Hindutva Would Not Be The Same Again
by Subhash Gatade 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/dalit-uprising-and-after-why-hindutva-would-not-be-the-same-again/

Well known Gujarati poet SahilParmar’s poem ‘When I Was Born’ perhaps reverberates these days in Gujarat when we are witnessing a Dalit Upsurge- a first of its kind at least in that regions history. It will be a talk of folklore for times to come how flogging of dalits in a village in Saurashtra by Hindutva fanatics suddenly erupted into a mass movement of dalits which could catch imagination of the people cutting across different sections of society. An attempt is being made here to understand the dynamics of the movement and its likely impact on the future trajectory of Hindutva.




Racial Profiling Of African Americans In US And Caste Discrimination In India
by Dr Subramani Mani 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/racial-profiling-of-african-americans-in-us-and-caste-discrimination-in-india/

Two of the world’s greatest democracies seem to be in a race for the top spot in the art, science and sport of discrimination and segregation of their own peoples in the 21st century.




VP Singh – The Crusader Of OBCs
by Tata Sivaih 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/vp-singh-the-crusader-of-obcs/

Amongst Greats like Mahatma Jyotirao Phule, Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule, BabaSaheb Ambedakar , Periyar , OBCs should not forget the contribution of another Crusader of Backward classes V.P Singh who gave reservations to Backward classes by implementing the Mandal commission report. 




Remembering B.P Mandal & V.P Singh
by Dr Aurobindo Ghose 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/remembering-b-p-mandal-v-p-singh/

Remembering and celebrating the historical role of Bindeshwari Prasad Mandal, will be incomplete without remembering on this occasion the very Architect of implementation of the Mandal Commission Report almost a decade later in 1989. Vishwanath Pratap Singh,gentleman politician and Prime Minister, who stood his ground for the oppressed and literally sacrificed his Chair !




Self-Sustainability Of Community Radio: Stories From India
by Ashish Singh 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/08/25/self-sustainability-of-community-radio-stories-from-india/

The legalization of setting up a Community Radio Station came after a long and voiced revolution from various grass-root organizations, individuals and communities. Community Radio is not just something which is feeding the people’s mind with few people’s choices, interests and beliefs, its inception goes back to the logic of providing Voice to the Voiceless, 

CounterCurrents: Germany Closes Its Borders To Refugees, Can Jeremy Corbyn Stem The Tide of Neoliberalism And Militarism?

Dear Friend,

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/subscribe.htm. You can also follow us on twitter,http://twitter.com/countercurrents and on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/countercurrents

In Solidarity
Binu Mathew
Editor
www.countercurrents.org


Germany Closes Its Borders To Refugees 
By Peter Schwarz

http://www.countercurrents.org/schwarz150915.htm

Just two weeks after Chancellor Angela Merkel declared Germany was ready to accept refugees and was celebrated internationally for “Germany’s Willkommenskultur (welcoming culture)”, the government has closed the borders for refugees. At a hastily called press conference at which no questions were allowed, Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière announced on Sunday night that Germany was again introducing border controls “in the next minutes”. To this end, he said he had dispatched hundreds of border guards to Bavaria, which shares frontiers with Austria and the Czech Republic. Rail traffic between Germany and Austria had been temporarily suspended on the instructions of the Austrian government, he said


Which Side Are We On? 
By Kathy Kelly

http://www.countercurrents.org/kelly150915.htm

Our young friends have had enough of war, displacement, trauma and hunger. 60 million people, worldwide, now seek refuge, many of them fleeing war and violence. Shameful warlords and war profiteers, such as those who commandeered U.S. wars against Iraq and Afghanistan, destabilize defenseless populations. The wars lead to massive refugee crises. Anyone called upon to support wars or warlords should learn the priorities embraced at the Borderfree Center -- and switch sides


Can Jeremy Corbyn Stem The Tide of Neoliberalism And Militarism? 
By Colin Todhunter

http://www.countercurrents.org/todhunter150915.htm

At 66, Corbyn has tapped into deeply held sentiments that exist across all age groups: that something is fundamentally wrong in Britain and needs addressing. The fact he is appealing to young people suggests Corbyn might not be the final setting of the sun from a bygone era but hopefully the beginning of a dawn


The Real Significance Of Jeremy Corbyn And Bernie Sanders 
By John Spritzler

http://www.countercurrents.org/spritzler150915.htm

Neither Sanders nor Corbyn articulate a vision of HOW to remove the rich from power to have real not fake democracy with no rich and no poor. They don't even advocate removing the rich from power; they only advocate making the rich pay a bit more and ease up on regular people. In other words, they don't identify the Big Problem and how to solve it


Why The Veto Must Be Abolished From The United Nations Security Council 
By Abdul Muheet Chowdhary

http://www.countercurrents.org/chowdhury150915.htm

Technically, the word ‘veto’ does not exist in the Charter of the United Nations. Article 27 (3) of the Charter states that decisions on non-procedural matters shall be ‘made by an affirmative vote of nine members including the concurring votes of the permanent members.’ The key term here is ‘concurring’, which has been translated in common parlance into the veto. Broadly speaking, there are three main reasons why the veto should be abolished: 1) It is an anachronistic and undemocratic privilege 2) Prevents timely and decisive action 3) Limits negotiations and compromise


Obama’s Response To The Refugee Crisis: Regime Change In Syria
By Shamus Cooke

http://www.countercurrents.org/cook150915.htm

One drowned toddler has shifted global politics. The picture demanded action in response to the largest migration crisis since World War II, itself caused by the longest series of wars since WWII. These wars have dragged on and new ones started-- Libya and Syria -- under the Nobel Prize winning U.S. President. Obama could end the refugee crisis by brokering peace in Syria, but instead he’s pushing hard and fast for war. Few U.S. media outlets are reporting about the critical war resolution that the Obama Administration is trying to push through Congress


What If UNICEF’s Djokovic-Novak Said Survivors of US Bombings 
Deserve Justice And The Guilty Punished? 
By Jay Janson

http://www.countercurrents.org/janson150915.htm

What a bombshell when MLK called his government the greatest purveyor of violence in the world! Author believes if world famous celebrities would feel a roll model’s responsibility to set a good example and call for the prosecution of Americans for bombing tens of millions in their own beloved countries, there would be a world reaction of appreciation, relief and personal shame for having remained silent for so my years


Has Aylan Kurdi Died In Vain? 
By Taj Hashmi

http://www.countercurrents.org/hashmi150915.htm

Although hundreds of nameless refugees from Africa and Middle East have perished in the Mediterranean in the last one-year, the world will never forget the image of the three-year old, cute and well-dressed Aylan Kurdi in a red shirt and blue pants, whose body was lying facedown in the sand of Bodrum in Turkey. He died last week along with his mother and five-year old brother. Everybody seems to have said everything possible on this tragic death. Don’t we have anything new to add to the story? Of course, we have


From Academia To Hackademia: Hamid Dabashi As Native Informer 
By N. Wahid Azal

http://www.countercurrents.org/azal150915.htm

Halfway through his 11 September 2015 Al Jazeera op-ed, Dabashi asserts: “There is one glaring case of a Muslim country that is heavily involved in Syria but has yet to accept a single Syrian refugee, and that is the Islamic Republic of Iran… not a single refugee has been admitted to Iran. Why not?” Contrary to Dabashi's categorical claim, the truth of the matter is that Iran has in fact accepted Syrian refugees –- and since 2011


Where Farmers Are Committing Suicides, Women Are scripting Success Stories 
By Moin Qazi

http://www.countercurrents.org/qazi150915.htm

While handling microfinance operations in Vidarbha for several institutions I could observe an excellent credit culture among poor women who have pooled their resources and talents to form Self Help Groups. In remote crannies , poor women are pooling their talents and resources to build a new synergy of collective empowerment to transform their lives. These small clusters or collectives of women are known as Self-Help Groups


The Story of Pategaon : May Be A Story of Every Indian Village
By Sarosh Ali

http://www.countercurrents.org/ali150915.htm

These eddies keep sucking life out of the place. Hopefully, they still have not crossed the point of no return. Of-course there are technological advances. There are motorbikes and TV sets and mobile phones. The ground is higher than before. The juggernaut of subsistence, however, is still crushing them hard. The quality of all of life's aspects has deteriorated. The food is not as nutritious as before. Water, a very down-to-earth thing till a few years ago, has been turned into a economic commodity. It's not just health but the overall quality of life that has gone down


Why This Inaction on Kandhamal? Brinda Karat Asks Naveen Patnaik 
In A Strongly Worded Letter
By Countercurrents.org

http://www.countercurrents.org/cc150915.htm

Brinda Karat, former Member of Parliament and Polit Bureau member of Communist Party of India – Marxist (CPI-M) has sent a strongly worded letter to Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister Odisha, asking why he ignores the plight of the victims of anti-Christian communal violence in Kandhamal. In her letter, Brinda Karat asks why he has refused a hearing to the victims of the violence, even when the President of India gave them a patient hearing. She also raises the issue of total failure of the criminal justice system in relation to the Kandhamal violence


Institutionalizing The Politics of Discord 
By Ghulam Mohammad Khan

http://www.countercurrents.org/khan150915.htm

Banning the sale of beef and annihilating the intellectual and rationalistic voices (interpreting them as dissent by a strange logic) one by one clears the xenophobic intentions of the government. In a country like India, where people speak hundreds of different languages, follow as many beliefs, and live in as many diverse socio-cultural settings, administering the system in accordance with a specific religion, culture or belief would not only jeopardize the functioning of the system, but also incite what James Davison Hunter calls ‘culture wars’ in the public sphere


The Dimensions of Veterans' Disillusionment And Ire 
By S.G.Vombatkere

http://www.countercurrents.org/vombatkere150915.htm

Government of India (GoI) finally announced its version of One-Rank-One-Pension (OROP) for military Veterans. This was welcomed only in part by the Veterans, because there were important sticking points which were not included or inadequately included in the announcement. Fortunately, the Veterans who were on fast-unto-death were persuaded to end their fast, but the Veterans' resolve to remain on protest until outstanding points were settled to their satisfaction, resulted in planning a “Sainik Ekta Rally” on 12th September at Jantar Mantar


Silver Linings For Muslim Women In India 
By Moin Qazi

http://www.countercurrents.org/qazi150915A.htm

Women working against the talaq law received good news: a government committee set up in 2013 to look into women’s status recommended that the government should outlaw it.In a similar development a woman won a major law suit for provision of maintenance after divorce. In a landmark ruling, the Kerala High Court, the highest provincial court in India, ordered a man to pay his former wife Rs 3.6 lakh compensation for her medical expenses, despite divorcing her 12 years ago. Similarly the court held she was entitled to maintenance expenses for 10 years


Questioning A Legal Practice In Bangladesh 
By Nava Thakuria

http://www.countercurrents.org/thakuria150915.htm

Should a responsible judge of the Highest Court in a democratic country meet the family members of a condemned criminal even as the trial continues? Can the interaction between them ultimately influence the verdict over the case? Finally should the mainstream media comment on such issues, which might create confusion among the people about the credibility of the legal system? These and many more similar questions are lately being asked, raised and debated in Bangladesh, a secular Parliamentary democracy of South Asia, following a recent judgment from it’s Highest Court convicting two editors of an influential Bengali daily for contempt of court for a critical commentary over the ongoing war crime trials


Moneypurr: Who Will Bell The Cat? 
By Dennis Misao

http://www.countercurrents.org/misao150915.htm

In this cat and mouse game, volleys of allegations, counter-allegations, clarifications and counter- clarifications were exchanged as if there was nothing else to do. No choice of word, adjective or expletive was spared. No theory was left unattended - from the theory of the evolution of cats, to the theory of the origin of mice. Even the internet shut down in sheer distress. The mighty Indian Galactic Federation looked at the unfolding drama in stoic silence


Law or Lawlessness of The Land? How Banks Have Been 
Exploiting Home Loan Borrowers 
By Professor P Radhakrishnan

http://www.countercurrents.org/radhakrishnan150915.htm

The manner in which banks hoodwink customers to take home loans while, at the same time, creating provisions to escape responsibility of accidental damages to the mortgaged property by forcing the borrowers to go for insurance cover at their own cost and keeping the policies in bank's custody failing which the banks themselves taking policies and debiting the premium amounts to the borrowers' home loan accounts is a new exploitative trend without any legal basis, an unfair trade practice which needs to be stopped

CounterCurrents: Large Portion of Israeli Settlers In Palestine Are US Citizens, Nazis Riot Again In Kiev To Force Resuming War, U.S. Publicly Splits v. EU On Ukraine War

Dear Friend,

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 herehttp://www.countercurrents.org/subscribe.htm. You can also follow us on twitter, http://twitter.com/countercurrents and on Facebook,http://www.facebook.com/countercurrents

In Solidarity
Binu Mathew
Editor
www.countercurrents.org


`No More Violence, Want Peace And Justice!’ Say People Of Kandhamal
By Kandhamal Nyaya Shanti O Sadbhabana Samaj

http://www.countercurrents.org/kns010915.htm

Marking the completion of seven years of communal violence in Kandhamal, Odisha, more than 5,000 Adivasi Christians and Dalit Christians gathered at Raikia, Kandamal upholding the need for Justice, Peace and Harmony. Thousands of people marched from Beradakia Chowk to Raikia College Chowk, covering a distance of one and half kilomenters, shouting slogans `We Want Peace, Not Violence’, `Stop Atrocities on Minorities and Women’, `In the Name of Religion and Caste Do Not Divide People’, `We Demand Appropriate Compensation’. The rally was organised by Kandhamal Nyaya Shanti O Sadbhabana Samaj, the organisation of victims and survivors of Kandhamal communal violence


Nazis Riot Again In Kiev To Force Resuming War 
By Eric Zuesse

http://www.countercurrents.org/zuesse010915A.htm

On Monday, August 31st, racist fascists (nazis) who hate Russians rioted in front of Ukraine’s parliament building to demand resumption of the unlimited bombing campaign against the breakaway former Ukrainian region, Donbass, which had voted 90%+ for the neutralist Ukrainian President, Viktor Yanukovych, whose government these nazis had helped the U.S. to overthrow in February 2014


U.S. Publicly Splits v. EU On Ukraine War 
By Eric Zuesse

http://www.countercurrents.org/zuesse010915.htm

There now is open disagreement between three Western leaders regarding how to move forward with regard to Ukraine: Barack Obama of the United States, versus Francois Hollande of France, and Angela Merkel of Germany. On Friday, August 29th, this split became public concerning whether the Minsk II accords for ending the Ukrainian civil war should remain in force. Obama supports the view of Ukrainian President, Petro Poroshenko, to violate the Minsk II accords, which would end it; the same day, Hollande and Merkel agreed with Russia's President Vladimir Putin, that the Minsk II agreement needs to be implemented in full


Assassination Of M.M. Kalburgi : The Ugly Face Of Juggernaut Jingoism 
By Ghulam Mohammad Khan

http://www.countercurrents.org/khan020915.htm

The murder of the renowned Kannada scholar, rationalist and epigraphist M.M. Kalburgi, yet again comes as a strong warning to all those who would rationally wish to venture beyond a hegemonic religio-political culture of the state. Kalburgi was just a rationalist; being a rationalist in a post-modern world of endless epistemological fluidity, is by no means a crime or dissent. What really does a particular dominant political faction of Indian society want its citizens to be; a ceaselessly submissive and unproductive generation or a credulous mob that we see in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, to be always spurred and driven and deceived by so called emotional political orgies?


CPDR Condemns Killing of Dr Malleshappa Kalburgi 
By Dr Anand Teltumbde

http://www.countercurrents.org/teltumbde020915.htm

We are yet to come out from the shock of the assassinations of Dr. Narendra Dabholkar and Com. Govind Pansare in 2013 and 2014 respectively, the Hindutva zealots have gunned down one more rationalist and renowned scholar in Dr Malleshappa Kalburgi, this time in neighboring Karnataka


Afghan Girl, Sakina, Buries Toy Gun And Says… 
By Dr Hakim

http://www.countercurrents.org/hakim010915.htm

10 year old Sakina, an Afghan street kid, had this to say, “I don’t like to be in a world of war. I like to be in a world of peace.” On 27th August 2015, Sakina and Inam, with fellow Afghan street kids and the Afghan Peace Volunteers, held a mock funeral for weapons and celebrated the establishment of a green space in Kabul


Large Portion of Israeli Settlers In Palestine Are US Citizens 
By Robert Barsocchini

http://www.countercurrents.org/barsocchini010915.htm

Native journalist Zebula Hebert told me that, in the Israeli colonization of Palestine, he sees “the United States’ genocide against American Indians. Gaza and the West Bank are two big reservations…” A new study out of Oxford University further reveals that this statement is more literal than symbolic, finding that 15% of Israeli settlers illegally living in Palestine are US citizens


Smearing New Zealand Decency With Palestinian Blood And Tears 
By Dr Vacy Vlazna

http://www.countercurrents.org/vlazna010915.htm

On its New Zealand Now website, the New Zealand (NZ) government truthfully describes the welcoming characteristics of New Zealand as “Open spaces, open hearts, open minds. That’s New Zealand and its people in a nutshell”: a people with “in-built expectations of ‘fair play’, integrity, honesty and trust.” who live in one of “the world’s most peaceful, least corrupt countries”. And yet..and yet..the NZ government via its New Zealand Super Fund (NZSF) has deviously exploited the trust of its citizens and besmeared their good reputation with the blood and suffering of innocent Palestinians


Postcard From The End of America: Champ Ali In Camden 
By Linh Dinh

http://www.countercurrents.org/dinh010915.htm

Camden’s most famous resident ever is Walt Whitman, and in 1888, our egalitarian bard opined to Horace Traubel, “The nigger, like the Injun, will be eliminated: it is the law of races, history, what-not: always so far inexorable—always to be. Someone proves that a superior grade of rats comes and then all the minor rats are cleared out.” Quite a few people can be categorized as minor rats these days, and they are certainly at the mercy of the superior rats. Unable to reach or even identify these superior rats, billions of minor rats are left to fight over scraps of garbage and tear each other apart. This carnage will only get much worse


Life Has Become A Combined Self-Sustaining Economic System Energised By Sunlight 
By Lionel Anet

http://www.countercurrents.org/anet010915.htm

We need a non-competitive educational system to suit a cooperative economic system for a fruitful life, to live as a part of nature. We can do it, because we have to, to survive


Cointelpro And The Assassination of Tupac Shakur 
By Thomas C. Mountain

http://www.countercurrents.org/mountain020915.htm

Tupac Shakur was assassinated, the US government had to be involved at the highest levels and we should add Tupac Shakur’s name to the long, bloody list of those murdered by the FBI and its minions in law enforcement


The Misinterpretation: Microfinance, NGOs 
And Neoliberalism In Bangladesh [Part 1] 
By Farooque Chowdhury

http://www.countercurrents.org/chowdhury020915.htm

Bangladesh, the country with geostrategic importance in the current imperialist chess board, is rich with experiences of microcredit/microfinance and non-governmental organizations. So-called neoliberalism’s onslaught also has “enriched” the mainly alluvial land. The issues – microcredit/microfinance, non-governmental organizations, neoliberalism – require debate as sometimes misinterpretations and/or confusing statements/observations are made on the issues


What Is The Role of NGOs In Society? 
By Jon Kofas

http://www.countercurrents.org/kofas020915.htm

The president of Liberia recently warned that although NGOs had financial and moral integrity problems, they were challenging the state's sovereignty on the same grounds. That so many NGOs have become everything from soft pressure or lobbying groups for governments and business, that others are in the business of spying that modern technology has made easier, or that they have sinister goals of undermining the public good in order to serve narrow interests is a distortion of the historical purpose of NGOs


The Right To Information Act: Ten Years of Transparency or A Decade of Ambiguity 
By Shalu Nigam

http://www.countercurrents.org/nigam010915.htm

RTI is a powerful mechanism for citizens to demand transparency in governance and therefore any attempt to dilute the law cannot be tolerated and this is possible when citizens initiate a movement to `Occupy Information’ before `Right to Information’ becomes `Obstruction to Information’. The need is to encounter the weapon of secrecy used by the dictatorial regime. It is essential to promote openness and transparency as tools to true democracy


India Census 2011: Where Are The Atheists? 
By Subhash Gatade

http://www.countercurrents.org/gatade010915.htm

The consternation witnessed around release of religious figures in Census 2011 has rather overshadowed an interesting fact which has emerged through this mammoth exercise. It tells us that India has 2.87 million people who have no faith in any religion, which is around 0.24 per cent of our population. Definitely it includes not only atheists, rationalists but all those people who do not believe in any faith but some ‘unknown’ force


One Day Strike: Again Tokenism?
By IFTU (Sarwahara)

http://www.countercurrents.org/iftu01915.htm

Against the massive assault on the interest of working class, one day nationwide general strike called on 2nd September by Central Trade Unions (CITU, INTUC, HMS BMS and others)


Muslims Must Combat The Extremist Cancer 
By Fethullah Gulen

http://www.countercurrents.org/gulen020915.htm

As the group that calls itself Islamic State, known as ISIS, continues to produce carnage in the Middle East, Muslims must confront the totalitarian ideology that animates it and other terrorist groups. Every terrorist act carried out in the name of Islam profoundly affects all Muslims, alienating them from fellow citizens and deepening the misperceptions about their faith’s ethos


Environmental/Ethical/Spiritual Costs Of Northern California’s Wine Industry 
By Shepherd Bliss

http://www.countercurrents.org/bliss010915.htm

I have been contemplating why the growing struggle by rural residents against the expanding, industrial wine industry in Sonoma and Napa counties, Northern California, has touched my heart and soul so deeply