Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Saturday, December 08, 2007
Iran Nuclear Intelligence; Now Off the Hook or On the Hook? / Politics / Iran
By: Anwaar_Hussain
The bolt from the blue called the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Iran, which was released on Monday the 3rd of December, reported “with high confidence that in fall 2003, Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program ‘because of international pressure'.”
The NIE, in reality, is a final acknowledgement, and a sort of culmination, of a long trail of track-2 diplomacy and intel gathering that the US State department and intelligence agencies have been conducting, and misconducting, with their Iranian counterparts for some time now.
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Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Kasparov Cries - Putin is the New Stalin / Politics / Russia
By: Mike_Whitney
Garry Kasparov should give up politics and do what he does best; stand-up comedy.Watching Kasparov traipse around Moscow with his basket of sour grapes and his entourage of western media-stooges is like watching "Mr. Bean's Excellent Kremlin Adventure"---a particularly lame performance in a dismal B-rated burlesque. It's painful to watch.
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Monday, December 03, 2007
United Russia Victory – Putin Determined to Protect Russias Resources / Politics / Russia
By: Ian_Brockwell
At the time of writing this article the parliamentary elections in Russia were still some hours away, but it is most likely that “United Russia” will win by a landslide (probably receiving in excess of 63 percent of the votes).
President Putin, who heads the United Russia list of candidates, has been accused of abusing his authority and taking an unfair advantage by obtaining more exposure on the state channels, and breaking up opposition rallies.
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Sunday, December 02, 2007
Putin's Party to Win Russian Election with a Landslide / Politics / Russia
By: Mike_Whitney
Is Vladimir Putin the Worlds Most Popular Leader?
On Sunday, Russians will vote in their country's parliamentary elections. The results are a foregone conclusion. Putin's party, United Russia, is expected to win in a landslide. The only question is whether the margin of victory will exceed 70%. If it does, then Putin will continue to be the most powerful player in Russian politics even after he steps down from office next year.
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Friday, November 30, 2007
Afghanistan - A Crude Oil War Of Revenge / Politics / Energy Resources
By: Mike_Whitney
The United States is on its way to losing the war in Afghanistan. The eventual defeat will be political not military. Public sentiment is shifting in Europe. The people have had enough. They want to get out. When European troops withdrawal from Afghanistan; NATO will gradually unravel and the Transatlantic Alliance will collapse. That will be a disaster for America. The US will again be isolated by two great oceans. But not by choice. America's days as an empire will be over.Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Labour Market Economics Sank the Howard Government / Politics / Austrailia
By: Gerard_Jackson
Although it is probably correct to point to rising interest rates and Howard?s admission that he would resign if re-elected as contributing to his defeat, it is still very likely that an autopsy will reveal that the principle cause of the Liberal Government?s demise was its grotesque mishandling of labour market reform. Trying to explain to Liberal politicians what was needed to successfully sell the benefits of free labour markets was an impossible task.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, November 26, 2007
Russian "Elected” Government and Dictatorship, What's the difference? / Politics / Russia
By: Ian_Brockwell
Garry Kasparov, the former world chess champion, was arrested by Russian authorities on Saturday for helping to lead an unsanctioned procession of at least 1,500 people (against Russian President Vladimir Putin), he was sentenced to five days in prison.Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Coup D'Etat Rumblings in Venezuela / Politics / Venezuela
By: Stephen_Lendman
The Bush administration tried and failed three prior times to oust Hugo Chavez since its first aborted two-day coup attempt in April, 2002. Through FOIA requests, lawyer, activist and author Eva Golinger uncovered top secret CIA documents of US involvement that included an intricate financing scheme involving the quasi-governmental agency, National Endowment of Democracy (NED), and US Agency for International Development (USAID). The documents also showed the White House, State Department and National Security Agency had full knowledge of the scheme, had to have approved it, and there's little doubt of CIA involvement as it's always part of this kind of dirty business. What's worrying now is what went on then may be happening again in what looks like a prelude to a fourth made-in-Washington attempt to oust the Venezuelan leader that must be monitored closely as events develop.Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Pentagon Iraq War Cover-up - Actual US Casualties Over 15,000! / Politics / Iraq War
By: Mike_Whitney
The Pentagon has been concealing the true number of American casualties in the Iraq War. The real number exceeds 15,000 and CBS News can prove it.
CBS's Investigative Unit wanted to do a report on the number of suicides in the military and “submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the Department of Defense”. After 4 months they received a document which showed--that between 1995 and 2007--there were 2,200 suicides among “active duty” soldiers.
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Monday, November 19, 2007
Ron Paul on the True Cost of US Government Tax and Spending / Politics / US Politics
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
Congressman Charlie Rangel recently unveiled a tax plan that Republicans estimate would raise taxes by $3.5 trillion over 10 years. Democrats questioned the math.
Now, the Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee have released a report on the total costs of the military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan , including "hidden costs" such as interest on the money we're borrowing, and long term healthcare for vets. The bill comes to $3.5 trillion. Republicans are, of course, questioning the math on this item.
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Sunday, November 18, 2007
The Grand Delusion of Electing the Democrats in 2008 / Politics / US Politics
By: Joel_S_Hirschhorn
With an endless, futile and costly Iraq war, a stinking economy and most Americans seeing the country on the wrong track, the greatest national group delusion is that electing Democrats in 2008 is what the country needs.Keith Olbermann was praised when he called the Bush presidency a criminal conspiracy. That missed the larger truth. The whole two-party political system is a criminal conspiracy hiding behind illusion induced delusion.
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Sunday, November 18, 2007
Regime Change in Pakistan - Princess Bhutto's Return / Politics / Pakistan
By: Mike_Whitney
It doesn't take a genius to figure out why the crooked Princess Ferragamo--Benazir Bhutto—has returned to Pakistan . Bhutto's been traipsing all over Washington trying to garner support from think-tank heavies and establishment powerbrokers to help her stage a political come-back in Islamabad. She even hired a high-powered public relations firm to polish her image so the media wouldn't focus too much attention on her past transgressions. Allegations of money laundering and corruption have haunted Bhutto ever since she was driven from office in 1996. Last month, General Musharraf cut a deal with Bhutto which freed her from the prospect of criminal prosecution and allowed her to return home. The arrangement ignored the judicial system entirely. The $1.5 billion that she and her husband allegedly “received in a variety of criminal enterprises” has simply disappeared down the memory hole. Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
US in Economic and Political Crisis - Time For Plan B? / Politics / US Politics
By: Richard_C_Cook
Strange events are taking place in the U.S.
By August 2007, a lot of very smart people were reading the tea leaves, convinced that the upper echelons of the U.S. government had their own hidden reasons for forecasting an event even more heinous than the attacks of September 11, 2001. President George W. Bush, Vice President Richard Cheney, and Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff had been hinting that another 9/11 could be coming.
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Sunday, November 11, 2007
Yellowstone “Supervolcano” Eruption Soon? / Politics / Climate Change
By: Ian_Brockwell
According to the National Geographic, the Yellowstone caldera has been rising at a rate of approximately 3 inches every year since the middle of 2004, three times faster than any previous measurements.Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Fast Moving Events in Pakistan - Emergency Law, the Second Coup by Musharraf / Politics / Pakistan
By: Stephen_Lendman
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan was established in August,1947 when its majority Muslim population separated from British-controlled India and became a sovereign state. Since then, the country has been plagued by wars, political instability, and a series of military coups as it continues stumbling unsuccessfully toward democracy. Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Ben Bernanke Gets a Lesson on Inflation From Ron Paul / Politics / Inflation
By: Mario_Innecco
Representative and Republican Presidential candidate Ron Paul questioning Federal Reserve Board chairman Ben Bernanke about the debasement of the dollar at the JEC in Congress on November 8th, 2007 Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
MACRO MUSINGS: Argentina's New Peronist President, US to Follow? - Tres Mujeres / Politics / Argentina
By: Justice_Litle
Nothing is built on stone. All is built on sand, but we must build as if the sand were stone.
– Jorge Luis Borges, Argentine writer
CRISTINA! CRISTINA! CRISTINA! the headlines chanted. On October 28th, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner became Argentina's newly elected President. She did so with the blessing of her husband, Nestor Kirchner… who also happens to be Argentina's outgoing President.
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Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Most Would Pay Higher Energy Bills To Address Climate Change, Suggests Global Poll / Politics / Climate Change
By: BBC
Most people say they are ready to make personal sacrifices, including paying more for their energy, to help address climate change, according to a BBC World Service poll of 22,000 people in 21 countries.Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, November 01, 2007
United States Plans For War With Iran - Analysis of Geopolitical Risks / Politics / Iran
By: John_Mauldin
This week in our Special Outside the Box, George Friedman of Stratfor addresses what many believe to be the looming war with Iran, the potential wars' strategic futility, the underlying geopolitical implications, and the inherent threats that abound on account of Iran's defensive measures and offensive capabilities; the latter consisting of terrorist organizations that can harm US interests, be they domestic or foreign. Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, October 29, 2007
The Bank of the South: An Alternative to IMF and World Bank Dominance / Politics / Global Financial System
By: Stephen_Lendman
In July, 2004, the IMF and World Bank commemorated the 60th anniversary of their founding at Bretton Woods, NH to provide a financial framework of assistance for the postwar world after the expected defeat of Germany and Japan. With breathtaking hypocrisy, an October, 2004 Development Committee Communique stated: "As we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Bretton Woods Institutions....we recommit ourselves to supporting efforts by developing countries to pursue sustainable growth, sound macroeconomic policies, debt sustainability, open trade, job creation, poverty reduction and good governance." Phew.Read full article... Read full article...