(2021-02-17). Headlines for February 17, 2021. democracynow.org Severe Winter Storm Kills 23 People, Cuts Power to Millions as Texas Energy System Fails, Storm Creates Havoc for COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout as Biden Seeks Support from Public for Stimulus, NAACP Files Lawsuit Against Trump, Giuliani over Jan. 6 Insurrection, French Assembly Approves Bill Accused of Targeting Muslim Communities, Chad Sending Troops to Sahel, France Will Maintain Military Presence, as Conflict Claims More Lives, Protests Erupt over Spanish Rapper Arrested for Anti-Monarchy Lyrics and Tweets, Biden Directs DHS to Stop Using Word "Alien" to Refer to Immigrants and Asylum Seekers, Biden Received $5 Mil…
(2021-02-17). COVID-19 Has Made Americans Lonelier Than Ever — Here's how AI can Help. realprogressives.org 
"How does that make you feel?" | In the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are missing a sympathetic ear. Would a response like that make you feel heard, less alone, even if it were a machine writing back to you? | The pandemic has contributed to
(2021-02-17). Vulture Funds plan to use the Pandemic to pillage the Global Economy. mronline.org 
Before the pandemic, private equity had amassed $2.5 trillion—more than the GDP of Italy—in 'dry powder,' waiting for distressed assets to plunder. Covid-19 provided them with the perfect opportunity.
(2021-02-17). "David vs. Goliath": Warehouse Workers in Alabama Fight Amazon for the Right to Unionize. democracynow.org 
Amazon workers in Bessemer, Alabama, are continuing to vote on whether to become the first unionized Amazon warehouse in the United States. Their demands include stronger COVID-19 safety measures and relief from impossibly high productivity standards that leave many unable to take bathroom breaks. "We want to be heard. We want to be treated like people and not ignored when we have issues," says Jennifer Bates, a worker at Amazon's BHM1 facility who has been part of the union drive from the beginning. We also speak with Michael Foster, a poultry plant worker, union member and member-organizer with RWDSU. "Amazon h…
(2021-02-17). 'We're not a charity case, we're under occupation'. therealnews.com 
Telling Israel to be a kinder occupying force does nothing to address the structural violence of Israeli occupation, which has been laid bare during the COVID-19 pandemic.
(2021-02-17). Venezuela to Launch Its COVID-19 Vaccination Campaign. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro Wednesday informed his country will start its vaccination campaign with the Russian Sputnik V vaccine this Thursday. | RELATED: | "We will begin immunizing health workers with the 100,000 doses that arrived in the country on Feb. 15," he said, adding that the government will guarantee the health and lives of the people "thanks to cooperation between Russia and Venezuela." | Law enforcemen…
(2021-02-17). Paraguay to Receive First Batch of Sputnik V Vaccines. telesurenglish.net Paraguay's President Mario Abdo on Wednesday thanked Russia's President Vladimir Putin for supplying his country with Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccines. | RELATED: | "I hold an excellent telephone conversation with President Putin. We agreed to push for a shipment schedule for more COVID-19 vaccine batches as soon as possible," Abdo tweeted. | The first 4,000 Sputnik V doses should arrive in this South American country early Friday mo…
(2021-02-17). Teacher Unions: We Want to Reopen Schools as Well, But We Need Vaccines & Resources to Do It Safely. democracynow.org 
As school districts across the U.S. debate how to safely bring children into the classroom, we speak with two leaders of the teachers' union movement on what's at stake as schools reopen. Stacy Davis Gates, executive vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union, says years of underfunding and privatization have left many school districts ill-equipped to meet the needs of students, as well as educators. "It's not just the context of opening schools. It's reopening schools safely with the resources that are necessary to keep people safe," she tells Democracy Now! We also speak with Randi Weingarten, president of th…
(2021-02-17). 'Verbal stumble' or blatant lie? Biden says US had no vaccine when he took office as new admin criticizes Trump's jab rollout. rt.com 
Joe Biden, who was fully vaccinated before his inauguration, has been accused of playing loose with the facts after stating that there was no Covid-19 shot when he entered office. But some insist it was a harmless verbal slip. | Read more | | Speaking with CNN's Anderson Cooper at a town hall event on Tuesday, the US president explained in a rather disjointed way that the United States lacked both vaccines and health workers capable of administering…
(2021-02-17). 'Breathing is optional': Internet groans after NYC requires double-masking inside federal court buildings. rt.com 
Two masks will now be required for those who want to enter a federal court building in Manhattan — but the new Covid-19 guidance has provoked more mockery than applause on social media. | The Southern District of New York
(2021-02-17). Biden promises vaccines available to all Americans by end of July, 'significantly' less social distancing & masks a year from now. rt.com 
President Biden has predicted a "very different circumstance" for the US' Covid-19 outbreak by Christmas, saying some 600 million vaccine doses will be ready by July while noting that he's been advised against 'over-promising.' | Biden waxed optimistic about the ongoing viral outbreak during a CNN town hall event on Tuesday, declaring that "by next Christmas, I think we'll be in a very different circumstance, God willing, than we are today." He said the improvement would be further helped along if an inoculation developed by Johnson & Johnson receives FDA approval, as it is expected to sometime this month. | "
(2021-02-17). COVID infections drop 16% worldwide in one week: WHO. news.un.org In its latest update on the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that although the number of global infections have fallen by 16 per cent in a week — 500,000 fewer cases — regions, including Europe, are still in the grip of the virus whose variants are spreading.
(2021-02-17). Covid-19: Mass medic migration leaves Iran in pandemic panic. middleeasteye.net 
Covid-19: Mass medic migration leaves Iran in pandemic panic | The pandemic has driven Iran's doctors and nurses to foreign countries that offer better financial and workplace incentives, as well as respect for the healthcare profession | Wed, 02/17/2021 – 14: 42 | As Iran struggles with the coronavirus outbreak, many Iranian doctors and nurses have chosen to emigrate for better pay and…
(2021-02-17). For the sake of democracy, kill off the Senate filibuster. peoplesworld.org 
The nation's economic outlook is worsening, and new, more contagious COVID-19 variants worry public health officials. In response, the Democratic-led House and Senate are moving quickly to pass President Joe Biden's American Rescue Plan (ARP) through the process of budget reconciliation. This process requires a simple majority vote in the U.S. Senate. Budget reconciliation is …
(2021-02-17). From electric vehicles to corruption — UAW faces huge challenges. workers.org 
General Motors CEO Mary Barra raised more than a few eyebrows Jan. 28, when she announced GM would have an all-electric product line by 2035. This planned phaseout of fossil fuel-burning vehicles represents a serious departure from four years ago, when GM joined the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers in calling . . . |
(2021-02-17). "Palestine Must be Demilitarized". According to Israel, there is no "Occupation" of The West Bank and Gaza. globalresearch.ca All Global Research articles can be read in 27 languages by activating the "Translate Website" drop down menu on the top banner of our home page (Desktop version). | *** | Soapbox (described on Facebook as Russia state-controlled media) is circulating a …
(2021-02-17). Tyranny by Propaganda Is Tyranny by Force. strategic-culture.org 
By Caitlin JOHNSTONE | As people became more educated and more aware of what's going on in their world, they began to decide that they didn't much like being attacked by the ruler's goon squad whenever they stepped out of line. Because there are a lot more ordinary people than rulers, this forced an end to the practice of rule by overt brute force tyranny in some parts of the world. | So a few things changed. First, we began to see rulers shipping their violent goon squad enforcers overseas. While it is now taboo to openly butcher members of your citizenry who oppose you, it is considered perfectly acceptable to…
(2021-02-17). NATO-Linked Think Tank Proposes Biden Adopt Venezuela-Style 'Regime Change' Policies Towards Belarus. popularresistance.org The Biden administration should be massively boosting its funding to opposition groups in Belarus while increasing sanctions on the country in order to force out the current government, according to a discussion hosted by the highly influential Atlantic Council. | Kayla Popuchet is minoring in Slavic studies as part of her education in Latin American and Eastern European politics at City University of New York. Popuchet, who is also a regular contributor to Anticonquista and a New York City Housing Court Specialist, recently attended an online meeting about Belarus organised by the Atlantic Council, widely regard…
(2021-02-17). Uzbeks remember massacres committed by Armenian group. yenisafak.com Even a century later, memories of the killing of 35,000 civilians by armed Armenian Dashnak group are still fresh in the people's minds in Central Asian nations.Historians have recorded that more than 200 cities and settlements in the Fergana Valley in eastern Uzbekistan were destroyed in 1918."Mostly elderly, women and children were killed in the massacre that began on Feb. 13, 1918, and lasted for three months, by the Dashnaks to destroy the Turkistan Autonomy," said Sohret Barlas, an Uzbek historian, researcher, and writer who has been studying Dashnaks for over past 29 years.The Armenian Revolutionary Federat…
(2021-02-17). Video: Chaos in the Middle East, Turkey and US Pursuing Separate Goals in Northern Iraq. globalresearch.ca All Global Research articles can be read in 27 languages by activating the "Translate Website" drop down menu on the top banner of our home page (Desktop version). | *** | The United States has already started bearing the consequences of the …
(2021-02-17). Whose Rights Matter in Pandemic America? Not Those of Poor Americans, That's For Sure. juancole.com 
By Liz Theoharis | — ( Tomdispatch.com ) — In June 1990, future South African President Nelson Mandela addressed a joint session of Congress only months after being released from 27 years in a South African apartheid prison. He reminded the political leadership of the United States that "to deny people their human rights is …
(2021-02-17). "Work Won't Love You Back": Sarah Jaffe on Toxic U.S. Work Culture & the Fight Against Inequality. democracynow.org 
Amid the economic crisis and precarious working conditions for millions of people during the pandemic, we look at a new book by Sarah Jaffe, an independent journalist and author who covers labor and economic justice. "Work Won't Love You Back: How Devotion to Our Jobs Keeps Us Exploited, Exhausted, and Alone" looks at the unsustainable expectations of fulfillment around work and how the "labor of love" myth has contributed to the rise of toxic workplaces. Jaffe says the pandemic has shown that work can always get worse, and that more and more people are pushing back. "It's not just that it's a bad, grinding, slow…
(2021-02-17). Small businesses saved? Biden helped struggling firms 'first & foremost' with female nominee, press sec Psaki says. rt.com 
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki kicked off a wave of criticism after suggesting the Joe Biden administration was helping out struggling companies "first and foremost" by tapping a woman to lead the Small Business Administration. | Psaki was asked what the president intended to do to assist small business during a virtual Q&A on Tuesday, as many independent companies continue to languish under a raft of state-level shutdown policies and other restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic. | "First and foremost, he nominated a woman to lead the Small Business Administration, who formerly worked there," Psaki said…
(2021-02-17). Italy's new premier unveils ambitious reform program. yenisafak.com Italy's prime minister on Wednesday unveiled in parliament his ambitious reform platform that focused on leading the country out of a devastating pandemic and a daunting recession, as his Cabinet faces two key confidence votes.Mario Draghi — a former central banker and highly regarded technocrat — was called in by Italian President Sergio Mattarella this month to solve a chaotic political crisis, which risked plunging Italy into further political uncertainty just as it battles an unprecedented health and economic crisis.Draghi and his new government — born last week after complex negotiations am…
(2021-02-17). Solidarity accelerates with Amazon workers' union drive in Alabama. workers.org 
Solidarity with the struggle of 5,800+ Amazon workers in Bessemer, Ala., to unionize continues to grow, following the heroic lead of this majority-Black workforce fighting for justice on the job. Walking the Powder Plant Road approach to the Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Ala.,where a union drive is underway by the . . . |
(2021-02-17). Incarcerated workers say: 'Solidarity with Amazon workers!'. workers.org 
The following letters from incarcerated workers in the Pennsylvania prison system were sent by email on Feb. 13 and 15 to Joe Piette, a member of the Prisoner Solidarity Committee of Workers World Party. From SCI Frackville As I've advised you before, anything that I can do . . . |
(2021-02-17). Morgan Lewis lawyers — high-paid union-busting thugs. workers.org 
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, bosses hired Pinkerton Agency goon squads to infiltrate unions, break strikes and intimidate workers who were trying to organize. Graphic: supportamazonworkers.org Today's hired union-busting thugs are more likely to be high-paid lawyers tasked with turning labor laws — intended to protect workers . . . |
(2021-02-17). 'Faith in the Masses': Communist Party history gives something to believe in. peoplesworld.org 
Faith in the Masses: Essays Celebrating 100 Years of the Communist Party, USA, edited by Tony Pecinovsky, is an ambitious undertaking—almost as ambitious as the work the book describes. These essays cast a wide net aiming to capture the breadth of the Party's efforts to change society over the last century. The celebration is heartfelt, …
(2021-02-17). 'Indian Country' is excited about the first Native American secretary of the interior — and the promise she has for addressing issues of importance to all Americans. juancole.com 
By Traci Morris | — President Biden's nomination of U.S. Rep. Deb Haaland of New Mexico to lead the Department of the Interior is historic on many levels. Haaland, an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna, was one of the first Native American women elected to Congress, along with U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids of …
(2021-02-17). Texans freeze as fossil-fuel power grid fails, but conservatives blame wind turbines. peoplesworld.org 
While Texans suffer from freezing temperatures and extensive power outages, frozen wind turbines are being used as a ploy to spread skepticism on the reliability of renewable energy. This week, a relentless winter storm pummeled through parts of the southern and central U.S., causing people to crank their electric heating systems. In Texas, the energy demand became too high for …
(2021-02-17). Albuquerque teachers say, 'Until cases decline, keep school online!'. liberationnews.org 
Photo credit: Liberation screenshot of KOAT coverage. On Feb. 3, teachers and students held a protest outside of Albuquerque Public Schools administrative headquarters against the rushed re-opening of schools. They chanted "Save lives, keep the schools closed!" and "Until cases decline, stay online!" Later that day, the APS Board of Education met to vote on …
(2021-02-17). 120 millones de personas cayeron en la pobreza por la pandemia. globalizacion.ca 
Los datos se desprenden de un informe del Banco Mundial, que estima que la cifra crecerá en 2021. El lado B de la pandemia que quiebra una tendencia global de reducción de la pobreza de más de 20 años. La…
(2021-02-17). Texas infrastructure nears collapse, millions without power, water. liberationnews.org 
Four million or more Texans are without power. Outages that were initially called "rolling outages" are now lasting several days. The private non-profit corporation that oversees the electric grid is now admitting that they are "unable to predict" when conditions will stabilize.
(2021-02-17). Essential Inquest Law Updates with Rachel Marcus and Jim Duffy on Law Pod UK. ukhumanrightsblog.com 
The last 12 months have provided fertile ground for many significant judgments concerning inquest law. In Episode 136, Emma-Louise Fenelon speaks to Rachel Marcus and Jim Duffy about the developments practitioners will need to know about. The episode mentions: Rushbrooke v HM Coroner for West London [2020] EWHC 1612 (Admin) R (Maughan) v Senior Coroner …
(2021-02-17). GameStop and Share Markets: Between the bad and the ugly, there is no G. mronline.org 
The recent GameStop story coming out of the U.S. pushed arcane financial dealings into a prominence they rarely enjoy. The public was introduced to weird concepts such as "short selling and short squeezes" and, for a while, they are likely to be part of many Zoom conversations.
(2021-02-17). Trump's right-wing Egyptian allies attack Biden administration and Dems. peoplesworld.org 
Egypt's miserable record on human rights has resulted in two Democrats launching a congressional group to deal with the situation. On Jan. 25, Democratic Reps. Tom Malinowski of New Jersey and Don Beyer of Virginia announced the formation of the "Egypt Human Rights Caucus." Egyptian human rights organizations and activists in the U.S. have responded …
(2021-02-17). 22-year old climate change organizer arrested in India. liberationnews.org 
Disha Ravi is accused of "sedition" for allegedly helping to create a digital "toolkit" to support the farmers' struggle.
(2021-02-17). Big Oil Spent $10 million Lobbying California Officials in 2020. counterpunch.org 
The powerful oil industry lobby in California in 2020 spent less on lobbying in California than it did in 2019, but still managed to defeat legislation it opposed and getting CalGEM, the state's gas and oil regulatory agency, to double the number of new oil production well permits approved in the state. The top four oil industry lobbyist employers — the Western
(2021-02-17). The Iran Deal: Biden and Blinken, Wynken and Blynken. counterpunch.org 
Trump's attack on the Iran Deal was based on his ego, but done in tandem with apartheid-Israel and rogue state Saudi Arabia, whose vile leaders advised him to bomb Iran; he was reportedly on the verge of starting a war (in June 2019 and November 2020) when his more level-headed advisors checked him. (We must always recall that however sickening the Trump years they did not produce another criminal war.) Meantime Trump deeply annoyed the Europeans, such as the Deal's co-signers Germany, Britain and France, by thwarting major investment projects in the Islamic Republic. These included a factory to produce much need…
(2021-02-17). Texas infrastructure nears complete collapse as capitalist neglect meets climate change-driven winter storms. liberationnews.org Four million or more Texans are without power. Outages that were initially called "rolling outages" are now lasting several days. The private non-profit corporation that oversees the electric grid is now admitting that they are "unable to predict" when conditions will stabilize.
(2021-02-17). 'Georgia On My Mind: The Third Reconstruction': Connecticut Black history event planned. peoplesworld.org 
"Georgia on My Mind: The Third Reconstruction," is the theme of a series of scheduled events including a Black History Month Youth March / car caravan, a virtual event, and an arts and writing competition highlighting the 47th People's World African American History Celebration in Connecticut. Register here. NEW HAVEN, Conn.—Co-sponsored with the Young Communist …
(2021-02-17). Execution cruelty hidden by Trump officials to speed up death sentences. peoplesworld.org 
CHICAGO (AP)—Executioners who put 13 inmates to death in the last months of the Trump administration likened the process of dying by lethal injection to falling asleep and called gurneys "beds" and final breaths "snores." But those tranquil accounts are at odds with reports by The Associated Press and other media witnesses of how prisoners' stomachs rolled, …
(2021-02-17). The Iran Deal: Biden and Blinken, Wykan and Blynkin. counterpunch.org Trump's attack on the Iran Deal was based on his ego, but done in tandem with apartheid-Israel and rogue state Saudi Arabia, whose vile leaders advised him to bomb Iran; he was reportedly on the verge of starting a war (in June 2019 and November 2020) when his more level-headed advisors checked him. (We must always recall that however sickening the Trump years they did not produce another criminal war.) Meantime Trump deeply annoyed the Europeans, such as the Deal's co-signers Germany, Britain and France, by thwarting major investment projects in the Islamic Republic. These included a factory to produce much need…
(2021-02-17). Agro-ecology project links peasant production to urban communes in Venezuela. peoplesdispatch.org 
"Only the people can save the people." With this idea in mind, the Pueblo a Pueblo Foundation (People to people, in Spanish) seeks to apply in real life, union and solidarity between the countryside and the city. The project is based on bringing food produced by rural Venezuelan communities to urban communes. The goal is to shut out intermediaries, and ensure the societal division of agricultural production: ensuring that the farmer does not lose his harvest, and that the consumer can have access to a diversified basic food basket at a fair price. | "The Pueblo a Pueblo plan has working on this dimension of agroe…
(2021-02-17). Congressional Budget Office Not Competent to Assess Economics of Minimum Wage. counterpunch.org 
A Congressional Budget Office Report on the Raise the Wage Act of 2021 underpins a February 11 Washington Post editorial headlined, "Democrats Must Listen to the Data."
(2021-02-17). The "Return" of America: Biden's Maiden Foreign Policy Speech. counterpunch.org 
Few could have been slack-jawed at the first significant foreign policy speech of US President Joe Biden. It can easily be filed under the "America is back" label. Back as well, as if the previous administration had been incapable of it, was a promise for that practice unflatteringly called jaw-jaw. "Diplomacy," the President states from
(2021-02-17). Twitch.tv: A new frontier for the Left. dsausa.org 
Will Twitch hold an active role in the next campaign cycle? Will the Left be able to utilize this platform not only for electoral politics, but for direct action too?
(2021-02-17). Columbus OH activists fight closure of park, site of a homeless encampment. liberationnews.org 
The city's decision to close the park without offering alternative plans to house the people who live there exposes the city's failure to care for its most vulnerable residents.
(2021-02-17). THIS is why 'deregulation' is deadly. therealnews.com 
Millions of Texans are struggling to keep warm and survive Winter Storm Uri. Meanwhile, Republicans like Texas Gov. Greg Abbot are rushing to save their own asses, pushing the blame for power grid failures onto anyone but themselves; but they, and years of market-serving conservative governance, caused this mess.
(2021-02-17). Fight for $15: Is Biden trying to sabotage key provision of his own stimulus bill? liberationnews.org 
One of the biggest unanswered questions regarding the stimulus package is whether or not it will include a provision to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour.