US and UK Military-Intelligence Apparatus Campaigns to Destroy Jeremy Corbyn
Ben Norton | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-09
Days before Britain's historic election, the UK's military-intelligence apparatus is turning to the corporate media and US government-funded NATO cut-outs to smear Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn with evidence-free Russiagate allegations. | *** | The popular socialist leader of Britain's Labour Party, Jeremy …
globalresearch.ca/us-uk-military-intelligence-apparatus-campaigns-destroy-jeremy-corbyn/5697123

Meet the Controversial Actor and Businessman Standing Up Against Egypt's el-Sisi
Robert Fisk | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-09
Mohamed Ali infuriates Field Marshal President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt. His waspish, cruel, outrageously funny, solemnly pedantic videos and social media messages transmitted from his self-exile in Spain, mocking the man who overthrew Egypt's first elected president, even brought demonstrators back on to the streets of Cairo in September. But the 45-year-old actor and…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/09/meet-the-controversial-actor-and-businessman-standing-up-against-egypts-el-sisi/

Police Halt Activist-Led "Toxic Tour" of Corporate Polluters Sponsoring COP25
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-09
In Spain, the country's biggest fossil fuel polluters are also some of the most generous sponsors for this year's U.N. climate talks. On Saturday, we joined activists on a "toxic tour" of Madrid from the Madrid stock exchange to Santander Bank. Activists explained that when Spanish President Pedro Sánchez announced that Spain would host COP25, he went to IBEX 35 — the 35 biggest listed companies in the Spanish stock exchange — offering them a 90% tax break on a $2 million sponsorship.
truthout.org/video/police-halt-activist-led-toxic-tour-of-corporate-polluters-sponsoring-cop25/

Indigenous and Youth Activists Slam Global Leaders for Climate Inaction
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-09
We broadcast from Madrid, Spain, where the 25th United Nations climate conference is in its second week and representatives from almost 200 countries have gathered for the final days of negotiations. The summit — known as COP25, or conference of parties — has so far focused on meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to "well below 2 degrees Celsius," or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. But climate scientists say the talks are failing to produce the drastic measures nec…
truthout.org/video/indigenous-and-youth-activists-slam-global-leaders-for-climate-inaction/

NATO Doesn't Care that Montenegro Is a Haven for Crime and Corruption
Paul Antonopoulos | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-09
There was international jubilation when Montenegro seceded from its union with Serbia in 2006 after a controversial referendum. The Referendum Law prevented Montenegrins living and registered in Serbia from voting in the referendum, ensuring that tens of thousands of Montenegrins, …
globalresearch.ca/nato-doesnt-care-montenegro-haven-crime-corruption/5697156

Banning Russian Athletes? Politicized International Sports Competition Rears Its Ugly Head Again
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-09
Olympism and other major international sports events are all about profiteering, exploiting athletes, scandalous wheeling, dealing, collusion, and bribery, marginalizing the poor, other disenfranchised groups, and affected communities, sticking taxpayers with the bill, and providing nothing in return but hype …
globalresearch.ca/banning-russian-athletes-politicized-international-sports-competition-rears-its-ugly-head-again/5697139

Massive Strike Paralyzing France Erupts on Thursday
Leon Kunstenaar | indybay.org | 2019-12-09
Over 80% of nation's transportation halted as working people strike. Government acknowledges over 800,000 in streets. Strikers claim 1.5 million.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/12/09/18828772.php

This week in history: December 9-15
wsws.org | 2019-12-09
25 years ago: Yeltsin launches First Chechen WarOn December 11, 1994, Russian President Boris Yeltsin ordered troops into Chechnya, a province in the Caucuses that had been part of the Russian Federation but had declared independence in 1991 amidst the breakup of the Soviet Union. By the end of the evening, Russian forces had advanced against several thousand Chechen defenders to the outskirts of the capital, Grozny, population 400,000. Thousands of civilians were killed in the initial week-long artillery and bombing campaign.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/09/twih-d09.html

Anti-Doping Agency Slaps 4-Year Ban on Russia
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-12-09
The ruling means that its flag and anthem won't appear at next summer's Tokyo Olympics, but its athletes may still be able to compete.
truthdig.com/articles/anti-doping-agency-slaps-4-year-ban-on-russia/

Paranoias of Interference: Russia, Reddit and the British Election
Dr. Binoy Kampmark | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-09
In some ways, it is a very British thing: fair play is expected; the reasonable person with all faculties intact, going about the business of living and voting. Little thought is given to the fact that these assumptions are as …
globalresearch.ca/paranoia-interference-russia-reddit-british-election/5697108

Watchdog Report on Russia Probe Finds No Political Bias
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-12-09
WASHINGTON–The Justice Department's internal watchdog will release a highly anticipated report Monday that is expected to reject President Donald Trump's claims that the Russia investigation was illegitimate and tainted by political bias from FBI leaders. But it is also expected to document errors during the investigation that may animate Trump supporters. | The report, as described by people familiar with its findings, is expected to conclude there was an adequate basis for opening one of the most politically sensitive investigations in FBI history and one that Trump has denounced as a witch hunt. It began…
truthdig.com/articles/watchdog-report-on-russia-probe-finds-no-political-bias/

Luxembourg Pushes for European Recognition of Palestine
IMEMC News & Agencies | imemc.org | 2019-12-09
Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the Europa building in Brussels on Monday, Feb. 26, 2018. European Union foreign ministers meet in Brussels on Monday Feb.
imemc.org/article/luxembourg-pushes-for-european-recognition-of-palestine/

A Beautiful but Deceptive Documentary: "For Sama"
Rick Sterling | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-09
The documentary movie "For Sama" has won a host of awards in Europe and North America. Its producers and protagonists, Syrians Waad Kateab and her husband Dr. Hamza Kateab plus English film-maker Edward Watts, have received gushing praise. And …
globalresearch.ca/beautiful-deceptive-documentary-for-sama/5697085

Israel Threatens to Destroy All Palestinian Structures in Area C
IMEMC News & Agencies | imemc.org | 2019-12-09
Israeli Minister of Defense, Naftali Bennett, has threatened to destroy all Palestinian structures in West Bank areas under complete Israeli control (Area C), including those which were funded by Europeans, under the pretext of unlicensed construction. According to Days of Palestine, Bennett made the threat during a meeting with ambassadors …
imemc.org/article/israel-threatens-to-destroy-all-palestinian-structures-in-area-c/

For Sama: A Beautiful Yet Deceptive Documentary That Betrays Reality in Syria
Rick Sterling | mintpressnews.com | 2019-12-09
The documentary movie "For Sama" has won a host of awards in Europe and North America. Its producers and protagonists, Syrians Waad Kateab and her husband Dr. Hamza Kateab plus English film-maker Edward Watts, have received gushing praise. And the awards will probably keep coming. | Unfortunately, behind the human interest story, the film "For Sama" is little more than propaganda: biased, misleading, and politically partisan. | Hiding Basic Facts about Aleppo: | "For Sama" is a full-length documentary with a moving personal story. It combines…
mintpressnews.com/for-sama-beautiful-deceptive-documentary-reality-syria/263282/

An Australian Tourist, a Bulgarian Prison, and a Recording Session
David Rovics | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-12-09
Bulgaria, it appears, is a captured state. I'll get to that in a minute. I first heard about Jock Palfreeman, an Australian serving a lengthy prison sentence in Bulgaria, through a fellow Australian. The context was a message from my friend Kamala that was straightforward, to the effect of, "would you write a song about …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/12/an-australian-tourist-a-bulgarian-prison-and-a-recording-session/

First Irish working-class poetry anthology published
Special to People's World | peoplesworld.org | 2019-12-09
Dr. Jenny Farrell teaches modern Irish literature at the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology in Galway, Ireland. She is also associated editor of the British publication, Culture Matters. In the interview below, Dr. Farrell discusses her latest book, The Children of the Nation: An Anthology of Working People's Poetry from Contemporary Ireland. People's World: This is …
peoplesworld.org/article/first-irish-working-class-poetry-anthology-published/

Right-wing hate campaign in Germany against Nobel Prize winner Peter Handke
wsws.org | 2019-12-09
The tirades levelled against Handke resemble the rantings by criminals intent on covering up their own tracks.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/09/hand-d09.html

Finland's Economy Really Is Highly Socialized
Matt Bruenig | peoplespolicyproject.org | 2019-12-09
Over the weekend, Anu Partanen and Trevor Corson published a piece in the New York Times that argues Finland is actually a capitalist paradise. The article is a very familiar one to those who keep track of this debate. It notes that Finland has high taxes and a generous welfare state, but then says that it is otherwise quite capitalist and perhaps even more capitalist than America. | Unlike most people who write this sort of piece, the authors here are not being m…
peoplespolicyproject.org/2019/12/09/finlands-economy-really-is-highly-socialized/

WATCH LIVE: House Democrats Lay Out Their Case for Impeachment of President Donald Trump
Common Dreams staff | commondreams.org | 2019-12-09
"We need to make it clear within those articles that there is a pattern of conduct here, that Ukraine was the most egregious example of the president abusing his office while he was president of the United States," said committee member Rep. Pramila Jayapal. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/screen_shot_2019-12-09_at_8.01.24_am.png …
commondreams.org/news/2019/12/09/watch-live-house-democrats-lay-out-their-case-impeachment-president-donald-trump?cd-origin=rss

DOJ Inspector General Report Finds No Evidence of FBI Conspiracy Against President in Russia Investigation but Reveals 'Structural Problems' With FISA Court
Eoin Higgins, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-12-09
The report addressed allegations of bias and impropriety on behalf of FBI agents investigating connections between the President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign and Russia. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/trump_barr_0.jpg …
commondreams.org/news/2019/12/09/doj-inspector-general-report-finds-no-evidence-fbi-conspiracy-against-president?cd-origin=rss

Real Madrid star Benzema could face criminal trial over 'sextape blackmail' case
rt.com | 2019-12-09
The French Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from Karim Benzema to bury allegations dating back to 2015 regarding the former France international's alleged involvement in a plot to blackmail then-teammate Matthieu Valbuena. | The Real Madrid striker may now face a criminal trial after the dismissal of his appeal aimed at undermining the legality of a blackmail investigation which alleges that Benzema was part of a plot to blackmail Valbuena in relation to a so-called 'sex tape'. | The court determined that the methods of investigation used by authorities were within the legal framework of the law, contradic…
rt.com/sport/475429-karim-benzema-valbuena-blackmail/

Normandy Four agree to 'stabilize' eastern Ukraine in Paris communique (WATCH LIVE)
rt.com | 2019-12-09
The leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine have agreed to implement "ceasefire support measures" for eastern Ukraine and "stabilize" the region by the end of the year. | The four leaders are holding a joint media conference after the so-called Normandy Format negotiations on transition to peace in eastern Ukraine. | Following a meeting in Paris, the leaders said in a joint communique that they agreed to "immediate measures to stabilize the situation in the conflict area in east Ukraine." Previous attempts by the 'Normandy Four' group to simmer down the conflict have achieved mixed results at best.
rt.com/news/475362-normandy-four-media-conference/

'Confidence-building needed': Paris summit can revive Ukrainian peace process, former Austrian FM tells RT
rt.com | 2019-12-09
The Normandy Four talks in Paris can breathe new life into the stalled Ukrainian peace process but only if the leaders focus on trust and not on quick political gains, former Austrian foreign minister, Karin Kneissl, has said. | The talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky kicked off in Paris on Monday. The four leaders sat down to discuss the longstanding conflict in Ukraine for the first time at that highest level in three years. As the world still awaits the summit's results, Kneissl said she…
rt.com/news/475433-austria-kneissl-paris-summit-ukraine/

Russia's Putin meets Ukraine's Zelensky for the very 1st time at Paris summit
rt.com | 2019-12-09
The Russian and Ukrainian presidents have come face-to-face for the very first time on the grounds of the Normandy Four summit in Paris, which focuses on the years-long conflict in eastern Ukraine. | The high-profile talks, involving leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine kicked off in Paris on Monday. It's the first meeting since 2016 of the highest-level representatives of the Normandy Four. | Russia's Putin meets Ukraine's Zelensky for the very 1st time at Paris summit t.co/ycNDclErzQ pic.twitter.com/XNUjZJBRBC[mdash…
rt.com/news/475425-putin-meets-ukraine-zelensky-paris/

EU leaders to prolong sanctions against Russia over Ukraine — German FM Maas
rt.com | 2019-12-09
European Union leaders will renew economic sanctions against Russia over Ukraine when they meet for a summit this week, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Monday. | "At the moment, for me there is no reason to change anything in the sanctions policy of the EU towards Russia," AFP quoted the minister as saying in Brussels. | The statement comes as France hosts a four-way summit with Ukraine, Russia and Germany on Monday. The meeting in Paris is the first 'Normandy Format' summit on the conflict in eastern Ukraine in three years. | It seeks to implement accords signed in Minsk in 2015, which call for the…
rt.com/newsline/475420-eu-sanctions-russia-ukraine/

Ukraine, Syria, nukes and… Russiagate? What's all on the table as Lavrov goes to Washington
rt.com | 2019-12-09
While there is little hope that relations between Washington and Moscow will warm up, the fact that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is meeting with his US counterpart Mike Pompeo suggests they haven't frozen over quite yet. | If unnamed diplomatic sources sharing insider information with news agencies are to be believed, Lavrov and Pompeo will discuss Ukraine, Syria, arms control and "other issues" between the US and Russia when they meet on Tuesday. | The last time Lavrov visited Washington, in May 2017, Pompeo was he…
rt.com/news/475441-lavrov-pompeo-washington-meeting/

'Anti-Russia hysteria got chronic': PM Medvedev slams WADA ban on Russian athletes
rt.com | 2019-12-09
WADA's decision to ban Russia from the Olympics and all major sports events for four years is the offshoot of anti-Russia hysteria, PM Dmitry Medvedev has said, calling on the authorities to challenge the decision in court. | The blanket ban on Russian athletes appears to be a continuation of today's geopolitics, gripped by the 'Russia scare' for quite some time, the Prime Minister said Monday. He pointed to the persistent attempts to punish the country and its athletes. | "The fact that such decisions are taken repeatedly — and often in relation to the athletes who have already been punished one way or a…
rt.com/russia/475415-wada-anti-russia-hysteria-medvedev/

'Rodchenkov's data is illegal, how can you take it as authentic?' — Russian Sports Minister
rt.com | 2019-12-09
Russian Sports Minister Pavel Kolobkov has said that comparing data from the Moscow laboratory with information provided by fugitive doctor Grigory Rodchenkov is inherently unreliable. | Speaking at a press conference on Monday, the Russian sports chief underlined that Russia has fully met all the requirements stipulated by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), criticizing the body for using "illegal" data provided by Rodchenkov as evidence. | "Moscow laboratory data was constantly renewed and corrected, this is not a secret," Kolobkov said. | "But I think it's impossible to compare it with data provided by Rod…
rt.com/sport/475417-pavel-kolobkov-wada-russia-ban/

Former CIA Director Brennan lied to Congress about Steele Dossier, IG report reveals
rt.com | 2019-12-09
A dossier of salacious anti-Trump gossip was used to pad out the intelligence community report on supposed Russian election interference, and CIA Director John Brennan may have misled Congress about it, a new report reveals. | According to the Justice Department Inspector General's report into the FBI's surveillance of the Trump campaign, the information contained in the now-infamous 'Steele Dossier' was used to inform the Obama administration's Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) on Russia's "Activities and Inte…
rt.com/usa/475443-brennan-lied-to-congress/

WADA's Russia doping ban 'part of 'New Cold War' & robs clean athletes of glory'
rt.com | 2019-12-09
Russia's ban from global sports is a punishment rife with politics, analysts told RT. Worse still, political decisions can punish clean athletes, who will be denied the honor of competing for their country. | The World Anti-Doping Agency handed down the ban on Monday, after Russia was alleged to have manipulated data in a Moscow anti-doping laboratory. WADA voted to suspend Russia from all major sporting events for four years in response, meaning the Russian flag will not fly at the next two Olympic Games as well as the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, should Russia qualify. | Clean athletes, however, will be able to…
rt.com/news/475432-wada-ban-new-cold-war/

Reality's dawning on US media that Venezuela coup failed & Maduro's stronger — what next, ask Russia to 'ease him out'?
rt.com | 2019-12-09
Almost a year on from the Trump administration's failed bid to oust Venezuela's socialist leader, the media is scrambling to make sense of where it all went wrong — and finally admitting that Nicolas Maduro is going nowhere. | When the "virtually unknown" US-backed opposition figure Juan Guaido declared himself "interim president" in January, he won instant support from Washington's global allies as the "legitimate" leader of Venezuela. Western media was soon consumed with a sense…
rt.com/news/475434-venezuela-maduro-wsj-media/

Putin 'happy' with results of Paris summit & one-to-one with Ukraine's Zelensky
rt.com | 2019-12-09
In a brief comment to media, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was "happy" with how the Normandy Four summit in Paris and his first one-to-one meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky went. | Putin made the comment after talking with Zelensky, and that bilateral meeting started after longer roundtable talks with the French and German leaders. The four leaders will now convene over dinner, widely considered to be part of the talks, before making a joint statement to the media. | The Paris…
rt.com/newsline/475437-putin-happy-normandy-summit/

Runner BANNED FOR LIFE for slapping female reporter's backside live on TV (VIDEO)
rt.com | 2019-12-09
A runner has received a permanent ban from the Savannah Sports Council after he was captured on camera slapping a female reporter's rear-end during a race, after which he was slammed for his "violating" actions. | The runner, later identified as Georgia native Tommy Callaway, was broadcast on television smacking the reporter's butt as he ran by WSAV-TV's Alex Bozarjian who was reporting live from the scene during a 5K race. As the runner made his getaway it was clear that Bozarjian didn't appreciate the unwanted attention. | She later described her emotions. "You violated, objectified, and embarrassed me," she…
rt.com/sport/475414-marathon-runner-banned-slap/

DUP accuses Boris Johnson of breaking his word on union commitment
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2019-12-09
Boris Johnson has been accused of breaking his word over his commitment to protect the union between Great Britain and the north of Ireland by the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party.As the prime minister faced fresh questions over trade within the UK after Brexit, Arlene Foster said government officials had told her there would need to be checks.Asked on BBC Radio 4's Today programme about the sense of some in the unionist community that Johnson's deal was a "betrayal", she said: "I think it is right for the leadership of unionism in Northern Ireland to try to work with the prime minister of the day to get t…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2019/12/09/dup-accuses-boris-johnson-of-breaking-his-word-on-union-commitment/

Police Halt Activist-Led "Toxic Tour" of Spain's "Dirtiest" Corporate Polluters Sponsoring COP25
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-09
In Spain, the country's biggest fossil fuel polluters are also some of the most generous sponsors for this year's U.N. climate talks. On Saturday, we joined activists on a "toxic tour" of Madrid from the Madrid stock exchange to Santander Bank. Activists explained that when Spanish President Pedro Sánchez announced that Spain would host COP25, he went to IBEX 35 — the 35 biggest listed companies in the Spanish stock exchange — offering them a 90% tax break on a $2 million sponsorship. Advocates say that these same companies "have deep and dirty links to the fossil fuel industry." But midway through, t…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/9/toxic_tour_of_spains_dirtiest_corporate

At Major March in Madrid, Indigenous & Youth Activists Slam Global Leaders for Climate Inaction
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-09
We broadcast from Madrid, Spain, where the 25th United Nations climate conference is in its second week and representatives from almost 200 countries have gathered for the final days of negotiations. The summit — known as COP25, or conference of parties — has so far focused on meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to "well below 2 degrees Celsius," or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. But climate scientists say the talks are failing to produce the drastic measures necessary to address the climate crisis. Since the Paris Agreement four years ago, greenhouse gas emissions have risen by…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/9/madrid_climate_march_cop25

A Troubled Family: NATO turns 70
Binoy Kampmark | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-12-08
Summit anniversaries are not usually this abysmally interesting. While those paying visits to Watford, England on the occasion of the seventieth anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation are supposedly signatories to the same agreement, a casual glance would have suggested otherwise. This was a show of some bickering. France, never the most comfortable member, …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/12/a-troubled-family-nato-turns-70/

Freedom for All of Cyprus
Klaudia Kerekes | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-12-07
The Union of Cypriots is one of the prominent organizations that is fighting against the Turkish occupation of Cyprus and struggles for a united Cyprus. It also took the world's attention with its strong image and messages lately. Today, you can hear its name when the Cyprus subject opens, anywhere, despite the fact that the …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/12/freedom-for-all-of-cyprus/

Ukraine: Three-year-old boy killed in attempted political assassination by the far right
wsws.org | 2019-12-07
The killing of a three-year-old demonstrates that far-right forces in Ukraine are being given free rein to carry out targeted political assassinations.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/12/07/ukra-d06.html

Even Hunter Biden Admits His Work in Ukraine Was a Mistake. Why Can't His Father Say That?
Robert Mackey | theintercept.com | 2019-12-07
Biden's bizarre claim that "no one has said my son did anything wrong" in Ukraine reveals an inability to accept that legal behavior can also be unethical.
theintercept.com/2019/12/07/joe-biden-iowa-voter-hunter-damn-liar/

French Unions and Yellow Vests Converge: December 5 General Strike
Richard Greeman | dissidentvoice.org | 2019-12-06
MONTPELLIER, France — On the eve of an "unlimited" (open-ended) General Strike called for today, more and more unions and protest groups are pledging join in. Two things are unusual about this strike. The first is that it is open-ended, rather than the usual one-day ritualistic protest marches, and it may be prolonged from day …
dissidentvoice.org/2019/12/french-unions-and-yellow-vests-converge-december-5-general-strike/

With People in the Streets Worldwide, Media Focus Uniquely on Hong Kong
Alan MacLeod | fair.org | 2019-12-06
Unlike protests against US client states, the Hong Kong demonstrations were frequently given the approving "pro-democracy" label (CNN, 8/30/19). | 2019 may be remembered as the year of the protest, as demonstrations are engulfing the world. From the Yellow Vests in France to demonstrations in Lebanon, Gaza, Chile, Ecuador and Haiti, sustained movements all over the planet have taken to the street demanding change. Yet US corporate media have been disproportionately interested in only one: the Hong Kong protests.
fair.org/home/with-people-in-the-streets-worldwide-media-focus-uniquely-on-hong-kong/

Hillary Casually Drops 'Russian Asset' Smear on Bernie Sanders in New Interview
Tyler Durden | theantimedia.com | 2019-12-06
Are we just going to ignore that Hillary Clinton, today, just implied that Bernie Sanders is also a Russian asset?>…
theantimedia.com/hillary-russian-asset-smear-bernie-sanders/

The new Belorussian film 'Debut': Crime and punishment and art therapy
Ed Rampell | peoplesworld.org | 2019-12-06
Anastasiya Miroshnichenko's well-made, touching documentary Debut provides viewers with a rare glimpse behind the "Iron Curtain." By this I'm not merely referring to the fact that this 80-minute film was shot in Belarus, formerly known as Byelorussia or Belorussia and, like Ukraine, an erstwhile Soviet republic. Rather, more to the point, Debut was largely filmed …
peoplesworld.org/article/the-new-belorussian-film-debut-crime-and-punishment-and-art-therapy/

Study Reveals How UK Intelligence Works with Media to Smear Jeremy Corbyn
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2019-12-06
The United Kingdom goes to the polls December 12 in a pivotal vote that will decide the future of the country. Like in 2017, the Labour Party, under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, is surging towards the ruling Conservative Party in the last weeks of campaigning. But he will not become Prime Minister if the UK's security services have anything to do with it. Corbyn, frequently compared to Bernie Sanders in terms of ideology, spent decades in the political wilderness, a lonely leftist voice among a party embracing neol…
mintpressnews.com/new-study-reveals-uk-intelligence-smear-campaign-against-jeremy-corbyn/263231/

That's a bit rich: Biden says paycheck doesn't matter, jobs are 'about dignity'
rt.com | 2019-12-06
Democrat hopeful Joe Biden says jobs aren't just about money, but his words rang hollow for critics who shot back with reminders about low wages and the former vice president's son getting a cushy gig at a Ukrainian oil company. | Biden's latest pitch to voters promised to bring "dignity" back to the working middle class. | "A job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It's about dignity. It's about being able to look your kid in the eye and say everything is going to be okay — and mean it. Too many people today can't do that," Biden tweeted on Friday. | A job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It's about…
rt.com/usa/475247-biden-paycheck-job-ukraine/

Why Are Some of Spain's Biggest Polluters Sponsoring U.N. Climate Summit?
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-06
A group of climate activists walked out of a panel at the U.N. climate summit in Madrid on Thursday to protest the presence of Shell, BP and Chevron. Representatives from the oil companies were taking part in an event organized by the International Emissions Trading Association. This comes as the Spanish government is facing criticism for reaching out to Endesa, Spain's biggest corporate greenhouse gas polluter, to sponsor the U.N. climate talks. We speak with Pascoe Sabido, a researcher and campaigner for the Corporate Europe Observatory, who has been organizing toxic tours of Madrid to expose the corporations a…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/6/big_polluters_sponsoring_cop25_climate_summit

COP25: Alternative Climate Summit Honors Those "Suffering the Crimes of Transnational Corporations"
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-06
We broadcast from Madrid, Spain, where the United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP25, began Monday and will continue through next week, as environmental leaders from around the world gather to negotiate global solutions to the climate crisis. Activists have converged on Madrid for the conference and are hosting an alternative summit of their own: Cumbre Social por el Clima — the Social Summit for the Climate. The alternative summit has been organized by social justice and environmental groups to draw attention to the ongoing political repression in Chile, corporate influence on the climate su…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/6/cop25_alternative_climate_summit_honors_those

"It's Our Future": Meet the Youth Activists Behind Fridays for Future Movements in Uganda and Chile
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-06
In Spain, the 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has arrived in Madrid to take part in today's strike as well as a major march set for 6 p.m. local time. Greta began the climate strike movement last year when she started skipping school every Friday to stand in front of the Swedish parliament, demanding action to prevent catastrophic climate change. Her protest spread, quickly going global. We speak with two youth climate strikers: Hilda Flavia Nakabuye is the founder of Fridays for Future Uganda and Angela Valenzuela is a coordinator with Fridays for Future in Chile, where this year's U.N. clima…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/6/fridays_for_future_movements_uganda_chile