During This Economic Crisis, Capitalism’s Three Point Political Program: Austerity, Scapegoat Blacks, Minorities, and ‘Illegal’ Immigrants for Unemployment, and The Iron Heel.
Democracy?: As the Capitalist Robber Barons Steal from the 99%: Only the 1% Voted For Austerity — The 99% Should Decide On Austerity — Not Just The 1% Who Profit From Austerity! Under Austerity, All of the World Will Eventually Be Pauperized, Humbled, and Desecrated Like Greece and Puerto Rico. Socialism Means True Democracy — The 99% Will Rule! — Not the Few!
Supreme Court’s Asylum Ruling Is Incomprehensible The US Supreme Court temporarily approved President Trump’s new asylum rule, which makes it almost impossible for anyone from Central America to gain asylum in the US. The court’s support puts thousands of lives in grave danger and violates US law and international law.
Recall That One Of Bezos’s First Acts As Publisher of The Washington Post Was to Cut His Staff’s Retirement Benefits. —Writer Elon Green
U.S.:
The United States is not a Democracy (A government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly)! Only the 1%, through their ownership of the Republicrats and who profit from war and the war budget, vote for War and the war budget — A policy, which Gore Vidal called a Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace. — The 99% Should Decide On War — Not Just The 1% Who Profit From War! Under a Democracy, The 99% would have the right to vote on the policy of Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace! The United States takes from the poor and gives to the Rich.
Ice Allows Illegal and Profitable U.S. Gun Industry Sales into Mexico: Nearly All Of Mexico’s Gun Violence is Committed With Illegal Firearms Coming From U.S., Officials SayAmerican and Mexican law enforcement officials say nearly all of the gun violence in Mexico is fueled by the illicit import and sale of U.S. firearms. The underground trade of weapons to Mexico is worth hundreds of millions of dollars annually—with American guns used to kill tens of thousands of Mexicans each year. In addition to weapons from the States working better, Mexico cartels view firearms as status symbols, retired DEA agent Jack Riley told The San Diego Union-Tribune: “It is really important to these criminal organizations, who stay in business by the threat of violence and through the use of violence; and the tools that they prefer to do that with are American-made guns.” By Jason LemonSF Officials Offer to Make Electricity Grid Public San Francisco has moved to municipalize Pacific Gas and Electric. In a letter sent to the utility company on Friday, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and City Attorney Dennis Herrera offered to purchase the parts of the utility grid that serve the city and county for $2.5 billion. “This marks the culmination of months of hard work from the City and its advisors on that effort,” Breed and Herrera said in a press release. “Our offer to PG&E is the result of detailed financial analysis conducted by industry experts and encompassing an extensive examination into the company’s assets in San Francisco.” The offer came just days before PG&E released its long-awaited bankruptcy planwhich would put a $8.4 billion cap on payments to wildfire victims who filed claims directly against the company. State officials have considered the offer since January, when PG&E filed for bankruptcy protection after being found liable for the deadliest wildfire in California’s history. The $2.5 billion would come from bonds that San Francisco approved in 2018, and would be paid off by ratepayers through their electric bills. By Steve Horn and Dharna Noor
Highlighting Number of Years Left to Save Earth, Greta Thunberg Joins 11-Minute Die-In Outside White House“We’re seeing entire communities being decimated by the climate crisis. That’s why we strike here today, that’s why we strike here every Friday.” A week ahead of the planned youth-led global climate strikes, 16-year-old environmentalist Greta Thunberg rallied with other young activists outside the White House Friday to protest the Trump administration’s fossil fuel agenda and demand that world leaders take transformative action to avert ecological catastrophe.”We’re seeing natural disasters happening on every corner of the planet,” youth organizer Jerome Foster II told the crowd of dozens of student climate strikers at the protest. “We’re seeing entire communities being decimated by the climate crisis. That’s why we strike here today, that’s why we strike here every Friday.” By Jake Johnson
Environment:
Adding Fuel to the Fire As the World’s Oxygen Burns: The US and Brazil have agreed to promote private-sector development in the Amazon, during a meeting in Washington on Friday. They also pledged a $100m (£80m) biodiversity conservation fund for the Amazon led by the private sector. Brazil’s foreign minister said opening the rainforest to economic development was the only way to protect it. Ernesto Araujo also hit back at criticism of Brazil’s handling of the forest fires. He told reporters in Washington that claims the country is “not able to cope with the challenges” were false.
Key EPA Water Protection Rule Denounced as ‘Callous’ and ‘Immoral’ Giveaway to Big Polluters Environmental and public health advocates blasted the Trump administration Thursday for finalizing its rollback of an Obama-era regulation designed to curb the pollution of waterways nationwide. “Fifty years after the Cuyahoga River fire that inspired the Clean Water Act, President Trump’s administration wants to turn back the clock to the days of poisoned flammable water,” declared Abigail Dillen, president of the non-profit legal group Earthjustice. “This is shameful and dangerous.” Bu Environmental and public health advocates blasted the Trump administration Thursday for finalizing its rollback of an Obama-era regulation designed to curb the pollution of waterways nationwide. By Jessica Corbett,
All financial institutions with lending, underwriting or investments in companies operating in the Brazilian Amazon should commit to a No Deforestation policy. Such a policy should include, but not necessarily be limited to, the following commitments from the signatory financial institutions:
Require agribusiness companies that are recipients of loans/underwriting/investment to map of all suppliers
Require agribusiness companies that are recipients of loans/underwriting/investment report any
investigations, indictments or fines issued for deforestation and/or land grabbing.
Monitor agribusiness companies operating in sensitive ecosystems like the Amazon rainforest for any
[In the case of equity investors, the policy should include:] If shareholder resolutions are presented that
support greater transparency in and respect for human rights, forest protection, and/or compliance with the
Paris Climate Accord, the institution must vote in favor of the resolution.
If companies in are unable or unwilling to cooperate with these requirements, or a company is found to have violated the standard, the financial institution should cease its financial relationship with the company as soon as legally possible.
Recommendations to importing companies:
All European and North American importing companies identified in this report should conduct their own due diligence into the problematic supply chain connections outlined here;
Findings conclusively link supply chains to commodities exported by Brazilian companies identified in this report, importing companies should exclude them from supply chains for future imports and seek alternative suppliers;
Importing companies should rigorously implement Zero Deforestation policies to ensure that all high risk commodities are free of any deforestation or conversion of natural ecological systems;
Companies importing timber should employ due diligence measures to ensure that timber is cut legally and in a manner that does not degrade or fragment forests, nor violate human rights, and recognize that Brazil’s licensing system is not sufficient to ensure legality;
Importing companies should implement commodity traceability standards to the point of origin and utilize transparent monitoring systems;
Importing companies should make their internal due diligence findings, traceability standards, and communications with Brazilian suppliers transparent and available to the public.
Civil Rights/Black Liberation:
Labor:
In ‘Disgusting’ Move, Jeff Bezos Abruptly Cuts Health Benefits for Nearly 2,000 Part-Time Whole Foods Workers“I am in shock. I’ve worked here 15 years. This is why I keep the job—because of my benefits.” Amazon founder Jeff Bezos on Thursday cut benefits for part-time workers at his grocery chain Whole Foods, drawing criticism from the left for a move that could leave thousands of people without health insurance. “Jeff Bezos is the richest man in the world,” Boston-based activist Jonathan Cohn saidon Twitter. “This is disgusting.” By Eoin Higgins
Stronger Than Expected Nominal August Retail Sales Gain of 0.36% Was Not Meaningful
Mixed Real Earnings Held on Track for a Third-Quarter Annual Decline
Falling Gasoline Prices Depressed August CPI-U to a Gain of 0.05% in the Month, 1.75% Year-to-Year, While Also “Boosting” August 2019 PPI by 0.1% in the Month, 1.8% Year-to-Year
After Three Years of Gains, 2018 U.S. Real Median Household Income Was Stagnant
Extreme Income Variance Held in Place, Which Tends to Lead Financial and Economic Crashes
August Labor Conditions Deteriorated Sharply, in Line With the Unfolding New Recession (Flash Update No. 7)
World:
U.K. Court Rules Johnson’s Suspension of Parliament UnlawfulA Scottish court dealt another blow to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Brexit plans Wednesday, ruling that his decision to suspend Parliament less than two months before the U.K. is due to leave the European Union was an unlawful attempt to avoid democratic scrutiny. The government immediately said it would appeal, as the political opposition demanded Johnson reverse the suspension and recall lawmakers to Parliament. With Brexit due in 50 days, the court ruling deepened Britain’s political deadlock. Johnson insists the country must leave the EU on Oct. 31, with or without a divorce deal to smooth the way. But many lawmakers fear a no-deal Brexit would be economically devastating, and are determined to stop him. By Jill Lawless
Italy: Conte 2.0 is no worker-friendly government! The Italian government crisis during the summer holidays has been settled with the birth of a new government, composed of the 5-Stars Movement (M5S) and the Democratic Party (PD). This represents a complete upending of the situation, sparked by the decision of former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, Matteo Salvini, to break from the former coalition.Russia: Imt-Supported Candidate Wins Seat in Moscow CouncilElections to the Moscow City Duma (city council), despite the typical vote manipulation and skullduggery, inflicted a crushing defeat on United Russia in comparison with previous contests. The opposition received almost half of the seats in the city Duma, while some districts were taken by United Russia, thanks to bureaucratic measures and the actions of pseudo-communist wreckers. It was only due to these underhanded methods that the government was able to maintain a controlling stake in the local Duma. By Oleg BulaevWe Are witnessing the Era of Naked 1% Rule — The Age of Constitutional Coups The contemporary global neofascistic right has become adept at seizing power through legal and parliamentary coups that do not involve military units dramatically taking over government headquarters and radio and television and rounding up opponents. Turkey’s Elective Dictatorship In 2017, in the wake of a failed military putsch the previous year, Turkey’s prime minister Recep Erdogan held what the British journalist Patrick Cockburn rightly calls “a blatantly rigged referendum which marginalized parliament and gave him dictatorial powers.” By Paul Street
Palestinians Are ‘Illegal Aliens’ in West Bank, Israel Tells Top Court State admits effort to ‘halt the growth’ in number of Gazans leaving the coastal enclave and ‘prevent their settling’ in Palestinian Authority-controlled West Bank Israel is working to block Palestinians from the Gaza Strip from settling in the Palestinian enclaves in the West Bank.By Amira Hass
Health, Education, and Welfare:
The government of the United States can pass laws in a few days to spend tens of trillions of dollars for war and the bailout of Wall Street and the bankers. Yet, those who ‘govern’, pass universal healthcare for themselves, but they cannot spend even one trillion dollars for universal health for those who are ‘governed’! This is what is considered, by the powers the to be, a democracy and part of the democratic way. — Roland Sheppard, Let The People Vote on Healthcare!
SF Officials Offer to Make Electricity Grid Public San Francisco has moved to municipalize Pacific Gas and Electric. In a letter sent to the utility company on Friday, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and City Attorney Dennis Herrera offered to purchase the parts of the utility grid that serve the city and county for $2.5 billion. “This marks the culmination of months of hard work from the City and its advisors on that effort,” Breed and Herrera said in a press release. “Our offer to PG&E is the result of detailed financial analysis conducted by industry experts and encompassing an extensive examination into the company’s assets in San Francisco.” The offer came just days before PG&E released its long-awaited bankruptcy planwhich would put a $8.4 billion cap on payments to wildfire victims who filed claims directly against the company. State officials have considered the offer since January, when PG&E filed for bankruptcy protection after being found liable for the deadliest wildfire in California’s history. The $2.5 billion would come from bonds that San Francisco approved in 2018, and would be paid off by ratepayers through their electric bills. By Steve Horn and Dharna Noor
Recommendations To Financial Institutions:
Bernie Sanders Says in Last Night’s Debate that Richest 3 Americans Own More Wealth than Bottom 160 Million Americans. It’s Actually Worse than That. Bernie Sanders Says in Last Night’s Debate that Richest 3 Americans Own More Wealth than Bottom 160 Million Americans. It’s Actually Worse than That. By Pam Martens and Russ Martens
Shadow Government Statistics Daily Update (September 13th to 16th)
We Are witnessing the Era of Naked 1% Rule —