Articles by M

We found 37535 results.


The Change Within: The Obstacles We Face Are Not Just External
Naomi Klein – The Nation, 28 Apr 2014

The climate crisis has such bad timing, confronting it not only requires a new economy but a new way of thinking. This is a story about bad timing.

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When Will the World Act on Myanmar’s Abuses?
Emanuel Stoakes – Al Jazeera, 28 Apr 2014

Most of all, highly credible allegations of crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya minority underline the country’s enduring backwardness on urgent moral issues. The offences continue to this day, perpetrated as a matter of long-standing state policy.

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Happy (Music Video of the Week)
Pharrell Williams – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

Because I’m happy
Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof
Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth
Clap along if you know what happiness is to you
Clap along if you feel like that’s what you wanna do

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Modeling
Dietrich Fischer – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

On a cold winter day, a model arrived at the painter’s apartment blue, almost freezing.

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AFRICOM Goes to War on the Sly
Nick Turse - TomDispatch, 28 Apr 2014

U.S. Officials Talk Candidly (Just Not to Reporters) about bases, winning hearts and minds, and the “War” in Africa.

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Sole US Nuclear Weapons Waste Storage Site Still Closed and Hot
William Boardman - Reader Supported News, 28 Apr 2014

Nobody’s ever tried to fix an underground radiation accident before. More than two months after plutonium and americium leaked from the supposedly leak-proof underground nuclear weapons waste storage facility in New Mexico, the U.S. Department of Energy still does not know what caused the leak almost half a mile underground.

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Persecution of Uganda’s Gays Intensifies as Rights Groups Go Underground
Amy Fallon, IPS – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

In the current climate of homophobia, which activists stress has been “imported” to Uganda via western evangelists, virtually everyone is aware they can use another person’s sexuality to exact revenge.

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TPP Is Right Where We Want It: Going Nowhere
Maira Sutton – Electronic Frontier Foundation, 28 Apr 2014

Despite some reports of movement on some of the most controversial topics during meetings between Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Abe, it seems that the Trans Pacific Partnership is still effectively at a standstill.

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(Français) Entre gouvernance et surveillance, le coeur de NetMundial balance
Antoine Duvauchelle, ZDNet – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

Les Etats regroupés à São Paulo, Brasil devaient se mettre d’accord sur des principes liés à la gouvernance, mais n’avaient visiblement pas prévus l’irruption – pourtant attendue – de la question de la Internet surveillance.

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‘Extreme Levels’ of Monsanto’s Roundup Herbicide Found in Soy Plants
EcoWatch – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

The study, coming out in June’s [2014] issue of Food Chemistry and available online, looked at 31 different soybean plants on Iowa farms and compared the accumulation of pesticides and herbicides on plants in three categories.

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The Road from Abu Ghraib: A Torture Story without a Hero or an Ending
Karen J. Greenberg - TomDispatch, 28 Apr 2014

It’s mind-boggling. Torture is still up for grabs in America. No one questions anymore whether the CIA waterboarded one individual 83 times or another 186 times. The basic facts are no longer in dispute either by those who champion torture or those who, like myself, despise the very idea of it.

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(Português) Uruguai: o país da maconha estatal não presenteia o narcotráfico
Aram Aharonian – Carta Maior, 28 Apr 2014

O Uruguai, um pequeno país que quase não é visto no mapa, é o primeiro país do mundo a legalizar a maconha e a assumir o controle de todo o processo de produção e venda da erva. O governo de José Pepe Mujica recentemente também legalizou o aborto e a Lei do Matrimônio Igualitário, que permite a união de casais homossexuais.

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Japan Launches First Whale Hunt since ICJ Ban
Shingo Ito – The Japan Times, 28 Apr 2014

The nation’s whaling fleet left port Saturday [26 Apr 2014] under tight security for its first hunt since the U.N. top court last month ordered Japan to stop killing whales in the Antarctic.

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Secret Plan to Advance Global Internet Censorship – ISPs to Act as “Internet Police”
Roots Action – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

This is a decisive moment: we need to act right now. Join with hundreds of thousands of people all over the world to shine a light on the TPP’s job-killing Internet censorship plan. Let’s send decision-makers and the lobbyists pulling the strings a message they can’t ignore: “Stop the secrecy now.”

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The Grand American Tradition of Violent White Supremacy
Amy Goodman – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

16 Apr 2014 – Another U.S. shooting spree has left bullet-riddled bodies in its wake, and refocused attention on violent, right-wing extremists. A former leader of the Ku Klux Klan is accused of killing three people outside two Jewish community centers in Kansas City. As he was hauled away in a police car, he shouted “Heil Hitler!”

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As We Sweat Government Surveillance, Companies Like Google Collect Our Data
Dan Gillmor – The Guardian, 28 Apr 2014

The depressing news just seems to be getting worse. Google confirmed this week what many people had assumed: even if you’re not a Gmail user, your email to someone who does use their services will be scanned by the all-seeing search and the advertising company’s increasingly smart machines.

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25th IPRA General Conference LAST CALL FOR PAPERS
Nesrin Kenar, IPRA Secretary General – TRANSCEND Media Service, 28 Apr 2014

On the occasion of IPRA’S 50th anniversary – Istanbul, Turkey, August 10-14, 2014 – Uniting for Peace: Building Sustainable Peace through Universal Values – Deadline for Proposals: APRIL 30, 2014.

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The New York Times Wrestles with Israel’s Gag Orders
Haaretz – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

20 Apr 2014 – The New York Times newspaper acknowledged late last week that it complies with court-ordered gag orders when reporting from Israel. Two senior editors at the newspaper say they were unaware of The Times ever agreeing to abide by gag orders in Israel.

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From the Editor’s Desk
Antonio C. S. Rosa – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

TMS is not yet at full force because I am still adjusting to a new laptop with Windows 8 after the other with Windows XP decided to quit on me. A new Portuguese keyboard does not help either. But next week all should be well–hopefully. Thanks for all the supportive messages received during the ‘crisis.’

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Foundations of Mathematics and Set Theory As Viewed From a Historical Viewpoint
Prof. Antonino Drago – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Only by exiting out this metaphysics, mathematics will no more obstruct the conflict resolution; otherwise Leibniz’ dream of “Calculemus!” or other appeal to scientific techniques will exclude the personal engagement for achieving a supportive peace. Only by assuming a pluralist attitude mathematics will contribute to peace.

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Happy Easter? – Christianity, Guilty as Charged!
Andre Vltchek – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Motto: verse from Colossians 3:22: “Slaves, obey your masters.” How primitive and brutal, and how immoral! Almost the entire North and South America, in the era of the arrival of the priests, shuttled to the “New World” by that arch criminal Christopher Columbus (Colon) and his fleet, got ruined, massacred, cheated and contaminated by all sorts of diseases. The Cross – the symbol of Christianity – was always at the front and above all that carnage.

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Peace Education for Genuine Democracy, Good Governance and Nonviolence
Surya Nath Prasad, Ph. D. – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Prof. Prasad has developed his own concept of peace education, which is based on universally inherent five elements, viz. body, vitality, mind, intellect and spirit, in every man and woman without any discrimination.

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Peace Studies Philosopher Johan Galtung Advises Tamils to Tell the Story with a Vision
Tamilnet – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Apr 6, 2014 – Professor Johan Galtung, principal founder of peace and conflict studies: “Tamils should come out with a campaign of vision that doesn’t threaten anyone, especially the Sinhala Buddhists.”

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David Cortright – Peace: A History of Movements and Ideas
Rene Wadlow – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

David Cortright, Director of Policy Studies at Notre Dame’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and an activist especially on nuclear arms issues, has set out a clear and up-to-date history of the ideas and movements that make up the colors on the peace pallet. While the book has been out for some time, I review it now as a first rate overview of peace efforts and ideologies.

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Peace Journalism from the Holy Land Points the Way to BDS
Jake Lynch – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

It calls for journalism to offer backgrounds and contexts of conflict, not just the familiar series of big bangs; a wide range of voices rather than merely a leader on each ‘side’; supply readers and audiences with the means to challenge dominant accounts, and therefore resist propaganda; highlight peace initiatives, however small, which are always underway in any conflict, perhaps in out-of-the-way places; and show images of peace as well as those of war.

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(Português) Brasil: O Desenvolvimento do País Passa pela Equidade de Gênero
Margaret Groff - Gazeta do Povo, 21 Apr 2014

O Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada confessou seu erro: 26%, e não 65% dos brasileiros e brasileiras concordam que mulheres com roupas curtas merecem ser estupradas. Ainda assim, 26%, ou um quarto da população – e isso inclui mulheres, sempre é bom destacar –, têm este pensamento retrógrado, machista, extemporâneo.

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(Italiano) Il Giappone e la comunità mondiale
Johan Galtung – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Svegliati, Giappone. Non c’è bisogno di scegliere fra USA e Cina; sii neutrale, in termini amichevoli con entrambi. Immaginiamo un Giappone trilingue con l’inglese e il cinese, che abbondanza! Accetta l’invito dell’Asia dell’Est e del Nord Est di congiungere le loro famiglie, come la Germania e il Sud Africa hanno congiunte le loro. Diventa Giappone, potenza di pace.

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Answer Offered By Seymour Hersh Gets Little Public Attention
William Boardman ¬– Reader Supported News, 21 Apr 2014

Benghazi Mystery Explained!?! – Report from London links CIA Covert Op with Turkey, Syria

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Multiethnic and Pluralistic States Have to Stay
Debidatta Aurobinda Mahapatra – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Development in Ukraine is a matter of concern as it has implications not only for Ukraine but also for other multiethnic and pluralistic states in the world. I am strongly in favor of multiethnic and pluralistic states.

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Forgiveness is Dysfunctional
Robert J. Burrowes, Ph.D. – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Certain religious traditions, including Christianity, emphasise the importance of forgiveness. I want to explain why forgiveness is misconceived and, therefore, a bad idea. And why there are important psychological reasons for this.

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East-South China Seas, Islands–Solutions?
Johan Galtung, 21 Apr 2014 - TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

A Chinese proverb: better than giving a starving person a fish is teaching her to fish. So, not only solutions but how to solve conflicts.

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Build a Trap to Divert Europe Away From Its Own Destiny
Global Europe Anticipation Bulletin – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Trigger a Cold War to Make It Easier To Annex Europe – The Ukrainian crisis was probably triggered for no other reason than to force the EU to buy US shale gas, to sign the TTIP (without which the former can’t be sold in Europe) and to justify a renewed increase of American-NATO military budgets thanks to the restarting of a Cold War between the West and emerging nations.

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International Peace Research Association at 50
Johan Galtung - TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Known as IPRA, founded in 1964 in London–and this author, 34 at the time, is the only surviving founder. IPRA rotates every two years from one peace research center to the other, and is now in very competent Turkish hands. And what is more natural than having the 50th anniversary for the hub of peace studies in that hub of the world, Istanbul, 10-14 August this year!! Hurry up, register!!!

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Ave Maria (Music Video of the Week)
Andrea Bocelli – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Composer: Gounod

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Negotiators [not really a joke]
Dietrich Fischer – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Albert Einstein compared the disarmament negotiations sponsored by the UN with…

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Real Rwandan Genocide & Brainwashing of the Western Mind
Keith Harmon Snow – Russia Today, 21 Apr 2014

The real coup d’etat has been the brainwashing of the Western mind and psyche, transforming rational discerning individuals into hysterical self-congratulatory humanitarians (sic), unable to separate truth from lie, and certain of their conclusions, no matter how erroneous.

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Now as the Ultimate Cognitive Strange Attractor
Anthony Judge – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

A Continuing Invitation “Down the Rabbit Hole”? Entering a “rabbit hole” has been understood as framing a period of chaos or confusion — appropriate to the current condition of global civilization and the challenge of individual response to it.

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The Origins of America’s Warfare State
Jacob G. Hornberger – Future of Freedom, 21 Apr 2014

Given that most Americans living today were born and raised under a massive military establishment, the CIA, and the NSA, a large number of Americans very likely believe that the United States has always had this type of government.

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War and the Visual Language of Flowers: An Antipodean Perspective
Ann Elias – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

For those of us who live in the Antipodes, the Anzac poppy is an emotive symbol and it is the catalyst for this study which looks at the significance and symbolism of floral imagery to the war imagination, and at the incongruity of flowers—which popularly signify innocence and beauty—within military contexts.

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25th IPRA General Conference LAST CALL FOR PAPERS
Nesrin Kenar, IPRA Secretary General – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

On the occasion of IPRA’S 50th anniversary – Istanbul, Turkey, August 10-14, 2014 – Uniting for Peace: Building Sustainable Peace through Universal Values – Deadline for Proposals: APRIL 30, 2014.

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Voices of Ukraine: ‘Kiev, People Are Not Cattle!’
Andre Vltchek – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

The majority of people in this country of around 44 million are concentrated around the enormous industrial and mining centers of Donetsk, Dnepropetrovsk and Krivoi Rog. There is Odessa in the south, and Kharkov, “the second capital,” in the east. People in all those parts of the country mainly speak Russian and they see what has happened in Kiev as an unceremonious coup, orchestrated and supported by the West.

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Controlling the Lens: The Media War Being Fought Over Ukraine between the Western Bloc and Russia
Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya - Global Research, 21 Apr 2014

Governments and major corporations control or, at least, try to manipulate public opinion and discursive processes through mass media communication. They also wage information wars through the use of mass media communication.

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Europe Needs to Be Independent
John Scales Avery – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

Legacies from the First and Second World Wars and the Cold War

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Reconciliation of Hawaiians For and Against Sovereignty
John H. McFadden – TRANSCEND Media Service, 21 Apr 2014

For both sides of the Hawaiian sovereignty issue, the idea of reconciliation with their opponents seems ridiculous and even insulting. After all, both sides are thoroughly convinced they are right and that the other side is, well, poorly motivated, to say the least.

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Chopin Fantasie Impromptu
Serena Wang – TRANSCEND Media Service, 14 Apr 2014

“Dances of the Dolls” -Serena Wang (born Oct 2004), the most conspicuous music prodigy under the direct tutorship of well-known and highly respected piano teacher Professor Dan Zhao Yi.

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Japan and the World Community
Johan Galtung, 14 Apr 2014 - TRANSCEND Media Service, 14 Apr 2014

Wake up, Japan. No need to choose between the USA and China; be neutral, on friendly terms with both. Imagine a trilingual Japan with English and Chinese, what a wealth! Accept the invitation by East Asia and Northeast Asia to join their families, as Germany and South Africa joined theirs. Become Japan, the peace power.

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Message from TMS Editor
Antonio C. S. Rosa, editor – TRANSCEND Media Service, 14 Apr 2014

Dear TMS readers, subscribers and writers, unfortunately my computer crashed out and I was not able to upload the usual selection of materials to this Weekly Digest…

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Ouch!
Dietrich Fischer – TRANSCEND Media Service, 14 Apr 2014

Napoleon came to inspect his troops, and every soldier had to appear before him. They were a little nervous and intimidated.

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Fear & Loathing: Albino Africans Survival in Tanzania
Russia Today – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

People can be so afraid that they’re even willing to kill. They say giving birth to such a “creature” is a curse. Some call them ‘ghosts’ and believe that owning a part of their body will make them rich–all because of the color of their skin. Documentary (26:10)

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What to Celebrate in Rwanda’s Genocide Anniversary
Editorial Board – The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Apr 2014

April 3, 2014 – The 20th anniversary of the Rwanda genocide should focus as much on how the African nation worked toward reconciliation through forgiveness as on the mass slaughter itself.

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America — A Failed State?
Johan Galtung - TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Depends, of course, on the criteria. A state has an inside towards its citizens, and an outside toward the state system. Depends on domestic and foreign policy, in other words. That means it can fail in two ways, by not catering to its citizens and by not coming to terms with other states. Actually the two are closely related as often pointed out.

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U.S. Finalizing Plan to Boost Support for Mercenary Invaders in Syria – Sources
Mark Hosenball and Missy Ryan, Reuters – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

The U.S. government is finalizing a plan to increase training and small-arms shipments for Syrian jihadists, two U.S. security sources said on Friday [4 Apr 2014], as Syrian government troops gain momentum following the collapse of U.S.-backed peace talks.

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(Português) No Limite da Senciência
Sérgio Greif - ANDA Agência de Notícias de Direitos Animais, 7 Apr 2014

De tempos em tempos somos surpreendidos por “novas descobertas científicas” no que diz respeito ao sentimento de dor em animais. Recente estudo da Universidade do Texas demonstrou o que qualquer pessoa que já tenha manipulado ou observado cefalópodes deveria saber: Polvos e lulas são capazes de sentir dor.

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US Efforts to Curb Freedom of Speech on Israel and Palestine are of Grave Concern
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Nobel Peace Laureate – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

I am writing today to express grave concern about a wave of legislative measures in the United States aimed at punishing and intimidating those who speak their conscience and challenge the human rights violations endured by the Palestinian people. Whether used in South Africa, the US South, or India, boycotts have resulted in a transformative change that not only brought freedom and justice to the victims but also peace and reconciliation for the oppressors.

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Edward Snowden and Glenn Greenwald via Video at Amnesty Event
Karl Plume, Reuters - TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

5 Apr 2014 – In Chicago, a crowd of nearly 1,000 packed a hotel ballroom at Amnesty International USA’s annual human rights meeting and gave Greenwald, who dialed in from Brazil, a raucous welcome before Snowden was patched in 15 minutes later from Russia – to a standing ovation.

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US Operates Global Drone War from German Base – Ex-Pilot
Russia Today – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

6 Apr 2014 – “The entire drone war of the US military wouldn’t be possible without Germany,” Brandon Bryant, who resigned in 2011, told NDR television and Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.

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NATO’s Aggression against Russia and the Danger of War in Europe
Chris Marsden and Julie Hyland, WSWS – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

7 Apr 2014 – This was made clear by last week’s NATO foreign ministers summit, which set out plans for the military alliance’s expansion up to Russia’s borders, including extensive war games and the possible stationing of troops within neighbouring states.

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Nonviolent Geopolitics: Law, Politics, and 21st Century Security*
Richard Falk – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

In this short essay, my attempt will be to articulate a conception of a world order premised on nonviolent geopolitics, as well as to consider some obstacles to its realization.

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Big Pharma Abandons New Tuberculosis Drug Research
Fatima Hansia, CorpWatch – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Three major pharmaceutical companies – AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer – have recently delayed or canceled clinical trials for testing tuberculosis drugs in India and South Africa in a trend by Big Pharma to abandon research into diseases that affect poor people.

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Unfulfilled Responsibilities of the Media
John Scales Avery – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

The media are a battleground where reformers struggle for attention, but are defeated with great regularity by the wealth and power of the establishment. This is a tragedy because today there is an urgent need to make public opinion aware of the serious problems facing civilization, and the steps that are needed to solve these problems.

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Exploring the Path towards a Nuclear-free World
Daisaku Ikeda, IPS – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

The work of building a world without nuclear weapons signifies more than just the elimination of these horrific weapons. Rather, it is a process by which the people themselves, through their own efforts, take on the challenge of realising a new era of peace and creative coexistence. This is the necessary precondition for a sustainable global society.

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Human Life’s Price-Tag for General Motors: 10 Bucks
Michael Moore – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

I am opposed to the death penalty, but to every rule there is usually an exception. If their top people crunch the numbers and can show that they will save more money by NOT fixing or replacing the part, then that is what they are going to goddam well do. F*** you, f*** me, and f*** everybody they sent to their deaths.

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Why Did GM Take So Long to Respond to Deadly Defect? Corporate Culture May Hold Answer
Michael A. Fletcher and Steven Mufson – The Washington Post, 7 Apr 2014

It’s relatively cheap and easy to replace the flawed ignition switch that has been blamed for at least 13 deaths, including a fatal June 2013 crash in Quebec newly linked to the defect. Yet General Motors waited more than a decade before recalling 2.6 million Chevrolet Cobalts and other small cars.

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Shocking Court Documents Expose SeaWorld’s Continued Cruelty of Orca Whales
EcoWatch – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

SeaWorld has faced intense criticism since the release of Blackfish, a documentary telling the story of orca whales kept in captivity at SeaWorld theme parks. Now court documents reveal that SeaWorld is pumping these marine animals full of psychotropic drugs.

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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – Why He Died & Why It Matters!
Jim Albertini – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., the apostle of non-violence, was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4, 1968. Few people remember him for his work for economic justice and an end to the U.S. war in Vietnam. Very few people realize that a jury in the wrongful death suit brought by the King family found that Dr. King’s death was “an act of State.”

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A Quarter of Europe’s Bumblebees, Vital to Crops, Face Extinction: Study
Alister Doyle, Reuters – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Almost a quarter of Europe’s bumblebees are at risk of extinction due to loss of habitats and climate change, threatening pollination of crops worth billions of dollars, a study showed on Wednesday [2 Apr 2014].

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Saudi Arabia Declares All Atheists Are Terrorists in New Law to Crack Down on Political Dissidents
Adam Withnall – The Independent, 7 Apr 2014

Saudi Arabia has introduced a series of new laws which define atheists as terrorists, according to a report from Human Rights Watch. The new “terrorism” provisions contain language that prosecutors and judges are already using to prosecute and convict independent activists and peaceful dissidents.

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FIFA Threatens to Expel Israel over Restrictions on Palestinians
The Jerusalem Post – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

According to Inside World Football, FIFA has given Israel until the summer to improve travel and playing conditions for Palestinian soccer players.

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The US-Russia Ukrainian Deal
Pepe Escobar – Asia Times, 7 Apr 2014

4 Apr 2014 – By the time you read this Russia will have invaded Ukraine. Well, that’s what the Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, General Philip Breedlove, is spinning. Breedlove Supreme says the Russians are “ready to go” and could easily take over eastern Ukraine. Western corporate media have already dusted off their Kevlar vests.

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Being neither Dead nor Alive
Anthony Judge – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

How do such questions relate to the ideals of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, as embodied in the US Declaration of Independence? Does the sense of being alive relate to the experience of happiness or rather to some more profound and inexplicable engagement with life?

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Venezuela: A Call for Peace
Nicolás Maduro – International New York Times, 7 Apr 2014

The claims that Venezuela has a deficient democracy and that current protests represent mainstream sentiment are belied by the facts. The antigovernment protests are being carried out by people in the wealthier segments of society who seek to reverse the gains of the democratic process that have benefited the vast majority of the people.

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Egypt in the Rear Mirror (II): Who Are the Not-So-Invisible Powers Behind the Troglodytes?
Baher Kamal - Human Wrongs Watch, 7 Apr 2014

Cairo, 26 March 2014 – “If you cannot win them, join them” seems to be the old British political principle that Washington has been applying to its plans to re-design the Arab region, always under the recurrent public pretext of the “war on terrorism.”

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Brazil Marks 50 Years since US-Backed Coup
Bill Van Auken, WSWS – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Brazil marks the 50th anniversary of the April 1, 1964, military coup that subjected Latin America’s largest country to 21 years of brutal dictatorship. The events were orchestrated by the CIA, the State Department, the Pentagon and the White House under John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.

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Why I Am Not Going to Iraq
Tom Greening – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

I am not going to Iraq
because I might see
a ten year-old girl get her face blown off

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Boycott of Israel Moving to Next Level
The Real News Network – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Apr 2, 2014 – Shir Hever: “BDS movement including large scale divestment by big corporations and approaching the level of government sanctions.”

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Sri Lanka Retaliates Against UN Call for War Crimes Investigation – List Tamil Groups as Terrorists
World News Report – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Chief among them is Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam, which held internationally supervised elections among Tamils around the world to elect over 120 Members of Parliament and is leading a campaign for non-violent and democratic approach to solve Sri Lanka’s ethnic conflict.

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British Aid for Myanmar Ethnic Cleansing
Maung Zarni – Asia Times, 7 Apr 2014

Britain, the largest donor country and former colonizer of Myanmar, is effectively aiding and abetting the unfolding “ethnic cleansing” of Muslim Rohingya by helping to finance the country’s controversial 2014 national census.

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Climate Science’s Dire Warning: Humans Are Baking the Planet
Amy Goodman - Truthdig, 7 Apr 2014

The IPCC, over 1,800 scientists from around the world, collects, analyzes and synthesizes the best, solid science on climate and related fields. The prognosis is not good. Evidence is mounting that we will experience more extreme weather events, including hurricanes and droughts, mass extinctions and severe food shortages globally.

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Happy 80th Birthday, Jane Goodall: The Beloved Primatologist on Science, Religion, and Our Human Responsibilities
Maria Popova, Brain Pickings – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Legendary British primatologist Jane Goodall (b. April 3, 1934) is celebrated not only as humanity’s greatest expert on chimpanzees but also as a remarkable mind that bridges the rigor of science with the sensitivity of spirituality.

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Secret Weapon
Dietrich Fischer – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

One day Satan challenged Heaven to a baseball game. Peter took a quick look at the rosters and accepted.

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‘Cuban Twitter’ Heads to Hearings in Congress
Jack Gillum, Desmond Butler and Alberto Arce, Associated Press - TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

4 Apr 2014 – The head of the U.S. government agency that secretly created a “Cuban Twitter” communications network designed to undermine the communist government in Cuba is expected to testify next week before a senator who thinks the whole idea was “dumb, dumb, dumb.”

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The Struggle for Humanity
Robert J. Burrowes, Ph.D. – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Insanity is widely understood to refer to a state of mind that prevents normal perception, behaviour or social interaction; it describes someone who is considered to be seriously mentally ill. And this is an accurate description of the global elite and those who serve it whether they be in political, business, legal, psychiatric, corporate media, academic or other circles.

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Leak the CIA Report: It’s the Only Way to Know the Whole Truth about Torture
Trevor Timm – The Guardian, 7 Apr 2014

Unless, of course, you think spies redacting 6,300 pages of their own sins is transparency. Look how much leaks told us this week.

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George Hewitt – Discordant Neighbours: A Reassessment of the Georgian-Abkhazian and Georgian-South-Ossetian Conflicts
Rene Wadlow – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Creating new types of political association takes time, goodwill and a willingness to compromise, to do with “less than the best”. Unfortunately, the years of Soviet rule did not create these traits in the leadership of the republics now become independent, nor within the ethnic-based regions within the new republics as we see currently in Ukraine.

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Hungarian Dance No.5 (Music Video of the Week)
David Garrett – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Composition: Johannes Brahms. David Garrett: Violin

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Peace Pilgrimage to Syria and Iran
The Peace People – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Peace People, N. Ireland delegation Ms. Ann Patterson and Nobel Peace Laureate, Mairead Maguire will join an International delegation visiting Iran and Syria from 4th – 16th April, 2014.

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Prison of the Past: A Reporter Revisits His ‘Shameful’ Coverage of Rwanda
Bartholomäus Grill – Der Spiegel, 7 Apr 2014

Twenty years ago on April 6, the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda began. At the time, many Western reporters played it down as “ethnic warfare,” including Bartholomäus Grill, now a correspondent for SPIEGEL. He looks back with shame.

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Peace Education in Boston
Daniel Horgan – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

That’s what life, and peace education looks like in Boston. It also serves as a stark reminder that the citizens, teachers, and students of any nation are often far removed from the militarism and violence that their federal governments promote in their foreign (and/or domestic) policies.

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(Italiano) Stati Uniti d’America — Uno stato fallito?
Johan Galtung – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Dipende, ovviamente, dai criteri. Uno stato ha una politica interna verso i propri cittadini, e una esterna verso il sistema statuale. Dipende dalla politica interna ed estera, in altre parole. Questo vuol dire che può fallire in due modi, col non occuparsi dei propri cittadini e col non venire a patti con altri stati. Effettivamente i due aspetti sono strettamente correlati come sovente è stato fatto notare.

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15 Plants to Help Save Bees
EcoWatch – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

With spring upon us, it’s a perfect time to think about what we can plant to help save the bees. Here’s a list of 15 plants to consider if you’d like to help.

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The End of the Capitalist Era, and What Comes Next
Jeremy Rifkin - Reader Supported News, 7 Apr 2014

The capitalist era is passing… not quickly, but inevitably. A new economic paradigm — the Collaborative Commons — is rising in its wake. We are already witnessing the emergence of a hybrid economy, part capitalist market and part Collaborative Commons. The two economic systems often work in tandem and sometimes compete.

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W.H. Auden: (1907-1973) Poet of the Age of Anxiety
Rene Wadlow – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

Wystan Hugh Auden, is appreciated as a bridge builder by two separate groups of poetry readers. Each group celebrates half of his poetic life and rather tries to forget about the other half, seeing one part of his life as the perfect image of the modern poet who then lost his way.

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Don’t Count on It – Myanmar’s Course Is Leading in the Wrong Direction
Banyan – The Economist, 7 Apr 2014

The trouble is that the census uses an eccentric list of 135 recognised nationalities, inherited from the British colonialists and incorporated into a 1982 citizenship law. Of its many inaccurate or debatable features, the most egregious is the exclusion of a group known as the Rohingyas—of whom Myanmar has about 1million.

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YOU Can Stop the Slow Burning Genocide of Myanmar’s Rohingya and Muslims!
Maung Zarni – TRANSCEND Media Service, 7 Apr 2014

One of the legacies of the 50 years of military rule and societal isolation (from the world) is multifold: ultra-conservative versions of various faiths, particularly Buddhism, thrive there; the high level of public ignorance is matched only by the extremely low level of critical popular thoughts.

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How Australia’s “Media Watch” Lost its Teeth, Backing the War on Syria
Prof. Tim Anderson – Global Research, 7 Apr 2014

A turn to reactionary politics is nowhere more clearly seen than in a formerly independent voice moving away from criticism of the high and mighty towards attacks on little people. Australia’s public broadcaster Media Watch bought into the propaganda war on Syria.

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BRICS Countries Oppose Ban on Putin Attending G20 Summit
Times of India – TRANSCEND Media Service, 31 Mar 2014

25 Mar 2014 – Brazil, India, China and South Africa today opposed any restrictions on participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G-20 summit in Australia later this year in the wake of Russia annexing Crimea from Ukraine.

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International Court of Justice Upholds Australia’s Bid to Ban Japanese Whaling in Antarctica
Andrew Darby – The Sydney Morning Herald, 31 Mar 2014

31 Mar 2014 – The International Court of Justice president Peter Tomka said the court concluded the scientific permits granted by Japan for its whaling program were not scientific research as defined under International Whaling Commission rules. The ICJ’s judgements are binding and cannot be appealed.

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Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report: ‘No One Will Be Untouched by Climate Change’
Danielle Demetriou in Yokohama – The Telegraph, 31 Mar 2014

Flooding, storm surges, droughts and heatwaves are among key risks of global warming. The warnings were published by the IPCC Working Group II report on Monday [31 Mar 2014], which was compiled by more than 300 authors from 70 countries and thousands of global experts.

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Sniper
Tom Greening – TRANSCEND Media Service, 31 Mar 2014

One man, one gun, one shot, one corpse.
That is how Ernie Pyle died on Okinawa,
caught in the crosshairs….
and how many others
in how many wars?

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Does the Academy Matter?
Foreign Policy – TRANSCEND Media Service, 31 Mar 2014

Do policymakers listen? Should you get a Ph.D.? And where are all the women? In mid-February, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof kicked over an ivy-covered hornet’s nest when he complained that too many professors sequester themselves in the ivory tower amid “a culture that glorifies arcane unintelligibility while disdaining impact and audience.”

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