CounterCurrents: Beware of War Propaganda, Warns John Pilger, The Injustice At Standing Rock Is An American Story,

Dear Friend,

CNN reported that a Russian fighter jet and a US military plane flew dangerously close to each other while flying over Syria earlier this month. US Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian, who commands US air operations across the Middle East, characterized the incident as a "near miss." What a miss! The whole world should heave sigh of relief. 

Yes, we are closer than ever, after the cold war, to a nuclear war. These 'near misses' must be an 'Act of God'! Eminent journalist and documentary maker John Pilger concurs with us in his address at the Sheffield Festival of Words. He says "Today, the greatest build-up of American-led forces since World War Two is under way – in the Caucasus and eastern Europe, on the border with Russia, and in Asia and the Pacific, where China is the target." He points his finger at the colluding media in spreading the imperialist propaganda. 

US-backed Islamist rebels, dominated by the Al Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front, launched a counter offensive against Syrian government troops Friday in Aleppo breaking the 10 day self-imposed ceasefire by Russia and Syria. The offensive was preceded by the indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas in government-controlled western Aleppo. Russian General Sergei Rudskoi reported that 43 civilians were killed and 96 wounded in the days prior to the offensive in rocket and mortar attacks.  Vladimin Putin has refused, at least for now, to be drawn into this provocation.He turned down a Russian military request to restart    air strikes in East Aleppo.

In an all out war against the Standing Rock Sioux protesters police arrested 141 people in North Dakota on Thursday. Police moved in with pepper spray and armored tanks on Native American water protectors and other activists who for months have waged resistance against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).

And also more stories from around the world. 

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





Inside The Invisible Government: War, Propaganda, Clinton And Trump
by John Pilger 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/inside-the-invisible-government-war-propaganda-clinton-and-trump/

Today, the invisible government has never been more powerful and less understood. In my career as a journalist and film-maker, I have never known propaganda to insinuate our lives and as it does now and to go unchallenged. Imagine two cities. Both are under siege by the forces of the government of that country. Both cities are occupied by fanatics, who commit terrible atrocities, such as beheading people. But there is a vital difference. In one siege, the government soldiers are described as liberators by Western reporters embedded with them, who enthusiastically report their battles and air strikes. There are front page pictures of these heroic soldiers giving a V-sign for victory. There is scant mention of civilian casualties.





US-Backed Islamist Rebels Launch Offensive In Syria
by Jordan Shilton 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/us-backed-islamist-rebels-launch-offensive-in-syria/

US-backed Islamist rebels, dominated by the Al Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front, launched a counteroffensive against Syrian government troops Friday in Aleppo. The offensive was preceded by the indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas in government-controlled western Aleppo. Russian General Sergei Rudskoi reported that 43 civilians were killed and 96 wounded in the days prior to the offensive in rocket and mortar attacks.






Putin Rejects Russian Military Request To Restart Air Strikes In East Aleppo
by Dr Vivek Kumar Srivastava 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/putin-rejects-russian-military-request-to-restart-air-strikes-in-east-aleppo/

In a military-diplomatic move Russian President Vladimir Putin has not accepted the advice of his military staff that attacks on Aleppo be restarted which have been stopped by the Russian forces





Domestic U.S. Politics Of War With Russia
by Eric Zuesse 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/domestic-u-s-politics-of-war-with-russia/

Nuclear war is the likely outcome if Hillary Clinton becomes elected President of the United States. It would be practically unavoidable, if she is elected. The domestic U.S. politics that are associated with this shocking but clear fact are complex, but are likewise clear: The American public simply don’t know or understand these facts; and the reason they don’t is that these facts are hidden from them





The Injustice At Standing Rock Is An American Story
by Mark Trahant 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/the-injustice-at-standing-rock-is-an-american-story/

This morning, politics is crowded out by injustice. Every preposterous and painful image from North Dakota is another reminder of injustice: The massive military-style police occupation of Standing Rock treaty lands, the rush to protect the frantic construction schedule for the Dakota Access pipeline, and the brutal law enforcement march against people who are fighting for the simple idea that water is life. I’m angry. How shall I say this without ranting? Tell stories.





10 Days In October
by Richard Oxman 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/10-days-in-october/

The real polls (the ones the Democratic decision-makers have been paying very close attention to of late) have supposedly shown the race to be neck and neck, not the runaway Hillary supporters have howled about ever since the disrespectful Donald did his locker room dance.





Hillary, Trump, Sartre And Existentialism
by Dr Arshad M Khan 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/hillary-trump-sartre-and-existentialism/

In the US, the political system has now disgorged two candidates the citizenry cannot be less enthusiastic about.  Driven by ambition more than a love of the people or a sincere desire to serve, one can be forgiven for wondering if they are just as trapped by their motivations as the public in its two-party myopia.  No authentic leader among the two …





Cyber Warfare: A New Frontier In Foreign Policy
by Dillon Aubin 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/cyber-warfare-a-new-frontier-in-foreign-policy/

Before our leaders start issuing nonchalant threats, we need to lay down some ground rules. A complicated and unexplored concept, cyber warfare leaves a wide spectrum of possibilities and severity. For an extensive period, there must be an international effort to identify these possibilities and design a protocol for acceptable responses. Because in the information age, there is a lot more at stake than a day without Netflix.






Anti War Group Protests Against Harold Koh On U of I Campus
by Hunter McKee 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/anti-war-group-protests-against-harold-koh-on-u-of-i-campus/

Protesters lined up outside the University of Illinois Law School Friday. An anti-war group who expressed their concerns about guest speaker Harold Koh, who they believe is an advocate toward violence. Koh served as a Dean at Yale Law School and spent four years as the 22nd Legal Advisor of the United States.





U.N. Rights Expert Urges Nations Not To Sign ‘Flawed’ CETA Treaty    

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/u-n-rights-expert-urges-nations-not-to-sign-flawed-ceta-treaty/

The trade deal set to be signed by the European Union and Canada is a corporate-driven, fundamentally flawed treaty which should not be signed or ratified without a referendum in each country concerned, a United Nations human rights expert says.




Egyptian Kangaroo Court Confirms 20-Year-Prison Sentence On Morsi
by Abdus Sattar Ghazali 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/egyptian-kangaroo-court-confirms-20-year-prison-sentence-on-morsi/

Amid mounting anger against the US-client government of Field Marshal Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi because of tax rises, soaring food prices, inflation and cuts in state subsidies, a kangaroo court in Cairo has confirmed a 20-year prison sentence against Mohamed Morsi, the first democratically elected President who was deposed by Al-Sisi in July 2013.





No Action On Ongoing Repression Of Myanmar’s Muslims
by Professor M Adil Khan

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/no-action-on-ongoing-repression-of-myanmars-muslims/

In one of its recent reporting the Guardian reports that at the entrance to Thaungtan village in Myanmar’s Irrawaddy Delta a brand-new signasserts, “No Muslims allowed to stay overnight. No Muslims allowed rent houses. No marriage with Muslims.”





Kashmir And India’s Short Tryst With OIC
by Abdul Majid Zargar  

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/kashmir-and-indias-short-tryst-with-oic/

India has yet again denounced Organization of  Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) call to settle Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolution, a stand which the organization has consistently taken and  regularly    renewed . In the past also, India has treated such calls with disdain either by charging  the organization to act at the behest of Pakistan or on the ground of  it’s locus standi in the matter .





Why We Stand In Solidarity With The Kashmiri People’s Demand For The Right To Self-Determination?
by PUDR 

http://www.countercurrents.org/2016/10/29/why-we-stand-in-solidarity-with-the-kashmiri-peoples-demand-for-the-right-to-self-determination/

On 27th October 2016 several organisations in Delhi came together in protest at Jantar Mantar demanding restoration of civil liberties and democratic rights in Kashmir. People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) affirms its solidarity with the people of Kashmir who have been battling a state of siege for over 100 days.

CounterCurrents: UN Assessment: Global Destruction Of Mother Earth On Fast Track, India Records Highest Temperature Ever As Drought Drives Despair, U.S. NPR & OSCE Smear Campaign: Russia Bombs Syria To Force Refugees Into Europe! , Britain’s Defence Secretary Michael Fallon: Cheerleader For US Aggression, Pushing The World To The Nuclear Brink,

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

India Records Highest Temperature Ever As Drought Drives Despair
By Countercurrents.org

http://www.countercurrents.org/cc210516.htm

India recorded its hottest day since records began on Thursday amid a scorching heatwave. The city of Phalodi in Rajasthan state recorded 51 degrees Celsius (123.8 degrees F) beating the nation's previous record of 50.6 Celsius set in 1956


UN Assessment: Global Destruction Of Mother Earth On Fast Track 
By Andrea Germanos

http://www.countercurrents.org/germanos210516.htm

Published Thursday, Global Environmental Outlook from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) involved the expertise of more than 1,200 scientists and over 160 governments, and exposes through reports on each of the world's six regions that the rate of environmental deterioration is occurring faster than previously thought—and can only be halted with swift action


Outgoing Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon Says Extremists Have Taken Over Israel 
By Dr. Ludwig Watzal

http://www.countercurrents.org/watzal210516.htm

Israel's defense minister Moshe Ya'alon was replaced by one of the most extreme politicians in Israel: Avigdor Liberman. The rift between Ya'alon and Netanyahu seems irreconcilable. Right from the start, Ya'alon supported the IDF prosecutors who charged Elor Azaray with the murder that caused an outcry in Israel. A right-wing crowd proclaimed Azaray "King of Israel". Netanyahu distanced himself from Ya'alon. Azaray executed a helpless heavily wounded Palestinian in cold blood at point-blank range. The other incident that made Netanyahu furious was Ya'alon's defense of deputy of the chief of general staff Yair Golan for his courageous speech in which he mentioned similarities between the rise of fascism in the 1930s in Germany and Israel. Ya'alon encouraged his generals to speak out on moral issues


Brahmins Attack Kancha Ilaiah , A Dalit Writer, Activist And Philosopher 
By P Victor Vijay Kumar

http://www.countercurrents.org/kumar210516.htm

The entire intellectual and progressive sections of India are taken aback when he was fiercely came under attack by Brahmin organistions for his remarks on Brahminism and Hindutva. He has been voicing several high level concerns which are controversial statements for main stream media. There has been a threatening climate surrounding him. Brahmins and their lobby are resorting to all possible vulgar steps to cut down his voice in all undemocratic ways possible. He holds a clear high level over view of casteism in India and the roots of Brahmincal conscience prevailing here. Through Countercurrents, the writer of this article urges every democrat to stand by Ilaiah and ensure there wont be any continuing incidents of Kalburgi, Dhabolkar , Pansare etc.


Education: Strangely Like Gulag 
By Suprabha Seshan

http://www.countercurrents.org/seshan210516.htm

The subsidiary thesis of this essay is that modern education serves a version of Gulag, by forcing our young to suffer unspeakable conditions at an early age, by compelling them to do school work and home work for a greater part of their day. By sustaining this over long periods, at the most crucial time in their vulnerable years, it breaks them, to refashion them into a pliable workforce. By the end of schooling, the young are yoked, through fear and the promise of salvation if they succeed. If they fail, as indeed most do, they are consigned to lesser destinies. This arduous entrainment, under enforced routine and vigilance, is essential for the great global workplace, and can only happen with various forms of rewards, promises, threats, violence and incarceration


U.S. NPR & OSCE Smear Campaign: Russia Bombs Syria To Force Refugees Into Europe! 
By Eric Zuesse

http://www.countercurrents.org/zuesse210516.htm

NATO is coming out more and more explicitly in favor of war against Russia. Lots of propaganda will need to be part of the buildup toward that. These people (Renee Montagne and Lamberto Zannier) are doing what they are paid to do


Russia Proposes Joint Strikes In Syria, Will US Listen? 
By Dr. Vivek Kumar Srivastava

http://www.countercurrents.org/srivastava210516.htm

Russia has proposed to USA that it should come together with it for joint strikes in Syria to attack the rebels but the idea does not seem to be of much liking to the USA. USA on the other hand believes that this is proposed by Russia to elevate its standing in the global politics and this may harm the US interests


Britain’s Defence Secretary Michael Fallon: Cheerleader For US Aggression,
Pushing The World To The Nuclear Brink
By Colin Todhunter

http://www.countercurrents.org/todhunter210516.htm

With a £12 billion saving on cuts to the welfare budget, this statement by Fallon was attempting to justify a £12 billion increase to the military budget to help pay for eight BAE warships, nine Boeing maritime patrol crafts, surveillance drones and Lockheed Martin jets. That’s £12 billion of taxpayer money diverted from helping fellow Brits most in need into the pockets of rich armaments manufacturers. Fear mongering and swindling are convenient bedfellows in the neoliberal dystopia. Keeping “our country safe” is part of Fallon’s wider rhetoric about containing ‘Russian aggression’


Obscured American: Michael The Philly Jesus 
By Linh Dinh

http://www.countercurrents.org/dinh210516.htm

Today, the Black Israelites had an unwelcome guest, and that’s Michael Grant, better known as Philly Jesus. Twenty-nine-years-old, Michael has become a fixture around this area. As he pranced and smiled in front the Black Israelites, a old black woman screamed, “Cut that shit out! You ain’t Jesus! Hey people, he got arrested last week! Jesus doesn’t get arrested!” The old woman forgot that Jesus was arrested. I mean, that was the denouement of his earthly visit


Tales From Secular India: Unity In Diversity Remains Impregnable Fort 
By Syed Ali Mujtaba

http://www.countercurrents.org/mujtaba210516.htm

A true story of bonding of India beyond caste and religion


Handwara Killings: Regrettable, General Hooda? 
By Seema Kazi

http://www.countercurrents.org/kazi210516.htm

Dear General Hooda, Now that the truth of abuse by soldiers under your command in Handwara has been publicly affirmed by the victim herself, your moral authority and that of the institution you represent is well and truly in shreds. Your institution’s attempt to employ the police as handmaiden-in-crime in order to redeem the Army’s deeply tainted and sullied-with-blood reputation in Kashmir is as condemnable as it is disgraceful. Deceit, duplicity and forced detention were the weapons your institution chose to employ to mask and bury the truth in Handwara


Make The Senate Report On CIA Torture Public To Avoid
“Mistaken” Destruction: The Special Rapporteur On Torture
By Nilantha Ilangamuwa

http://www.countercurrents.org/ilangamuwa210516.htm

It is time to make the Senate report on the CIA torture public so no one has to worry about mistakes, in an exclusive interview with the Just Asia (premier weekly video news bulletin on the human rights situation) the Special Rapporteur on Torture, Professor Juan E. Méndez said while responding to the most recent news about the only copy which obtained by the CIA office “has” mistakenly” been destroyed


Florence Foster Jenkins: The Appeal Of The Bad 
By Dr. Binoy Kampmark

http://www.countercurrents.org/kampmark210516.htm

She was a self-deluding Kardashian before her time: frenetically busy socialite, promoter of self and causes, and then, when it came down to it, a celebrity for celebrity’s sake. It could not be any other way. Florence Foster Jenkins may be one of history’s worse singers, but such an assessment is only useful as a comparative point, the critic’s barb on the level of music. To understand her as a phenomenon would be a quite different matter. With that comes humanity

Six Pygmy Hogs Released In Bornadi Wildlife Sanctuary Of Udalguri 
By Shajid Khan

http://www.countercurrents.org/khan210516.htm

In an effort for conservation of Pygmy Hog in its natural habitat six babyPygmy Hogs(2-3 years old) that include 3 male and 3 female were released inBornadi Wildlife sanctuary of Udalguri district of Assam on Saturday. The Pygmy Hogs were captive breeded in state capital Guwahati