January 1, 2020
By Mustafa Salim and Liz Shy
Baghdad - The siege by supporters (click here) of an Iranian-backed militia at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad ended Wednesday after the militia ordered them to withdraw, bringing relief to the diplomats trapped inside and averting a potential showdown between the United States and Iran.
Supporters of the Kataib Hezbollah militia who had spent the night camped outside the embassy dismantled their tents and marched out of the area, saying they would instead continue to press for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq in the nation’s parliament.
“Yay! We burned them!” they chanted as they headed away from the embassy, a reference to the fires set by the demonstrators that burned two embassy reception areas Tuesday.
The retreat signaled an end to a crisis in which thousands of angry militia supporters attempted to storm the embassy Tuesday, protesting the deaths of 25 militia members in U.S. airstrikes Sunday. Those strikes were conducted in retaliation for the death of a U.S. contractor in a rocket attack the U.S. military blamed on Kataib Hezbollah....
There are hints of real peace talks in Afghanistan.
January 1, 2020
By Pamela Constable
Kabul - For three miraculous days in June 2018, (click here) the Afghan war came to a halt. Under a brief cease-fire agreement, Taliban fighters appeared in towns and cities, mingling with civilians and uniformed troops, praying in community mosques and getting a taste of peace.
The fighting quickly resumed, and in the 18 months since, thousands more Afghan civilians and security forces have been killed, as well as over 40 American troops. Peace talks between Taliban and U.S. officials dragged on for a year and were abruptly canceled in September by President Trump.
But suddenly, in the past week, rumors of a possible new truce have flooded the news, striking a rare spark of hope among the war-weary citizenry. International media outlets have reported that a cease-fire is imminent, citing unnamed sources after Taliban leaders held several meetings in Pakistan....
Senator Susan Collins has stated she wants to hear from witnesses at the Impeachment hearing. (click here)
There is a variety of law reforms coming into view in 2020, from legalizing marijuana as a recreational substance much the same as alcohol to protections for government contract workers to eliminating cash bail for certain crimes and enforcing "Red Flag" laws. (click here)
There is some talk about the death of "Medicare for All" in 2020. (click here) The insurance companies are scared. They are now paying attention to Seniors as they never have before. That might turn out to be good thing, but, the fact is it is strongly a BELATED thing. These programs should have existed a long time ago and sincere caring for Americans should have been Wall Street Business' Number One Priority.
I think it may be too late for Wall Street to completely end Medicare for All. The destructive power of Wall Street is playing out in large measure when it comes to the health and well being of Americans. Fifty-something White American Men are dying at larger numbers than their peers in other First World countries, vaping has killed many Americans some in their teen years, but, the mean age is 51, then there is the Millenials that have made their own economy and it works for them, HOWEVER, it comes with a high price of prolonged stress, depression and anxiety. These are all failures of Wall Street companies that see only profits and consider lawsuits and human losses as part of their operating expenses.
The facts are plain when it comes to Wall Street, the USA desperately needs CEOs focused on strong ethics and moral company policies that value human life and the environment in which it lives above their profits.
December 31, 2019
By Justin Calma
Science teachers and students (click here) will push the crystal button to make the ball drop
Times Square revelers will ring in the New Year to a theme of existential crisis tonight. Science teachers and students taking on the climate crisis will push the crystal button to trigger the ball drop in Times Square. Organizers of the annual New Year’s Eve celebration in New York City choose a theme each year based on the biggest issues in the news, and this year that theme is climate change.
[You’d] have to have a soul of Styrofoam not to be moved by the passion of young people demanding that we do better, and ‘listen to the science’ to start solving the problem,” Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance, said in a press release. He added that “you’d have to have your head buried” in sand not to be alarmed by 2019’s environmental catastrophes....
Ten years to end this insanity.
