The ouster of the hopelessly corrupt Ali Bongo represents a particularly sharp rebuke of Obama, who groomed the Gabonese autocrat as one of his closest allies on the continent, writes Max Blumenthal.
‘Obama’s Man in Africa’
Category: Commentary
PATRICK LAWRENCE: Bad Faith & Blank Checks
All mainstream journalism is “embedded journalism” now, for the battlefield is everywhere, writes Patrick Lawrence in this excerpt from his new book, Journalists and Their Shadows.
What’s Behind Talk of a Possible Plea Deal for Assange?
Top U.S. officials are speaking at cross purposes when it comes to Julian Assange. What is really going on? asks Joe Lauria.
US LABOR DAY: The Minimum Wage at Age 85
Without any mechanisms to adjust for rising prices, the real value of the federal minimum wage hit a 66-year low in 2023, say the authors. It’s now worth 42 percent less than its highest point in 1968.
What Happened to the UN’s Ability to Mediate?
People living in conflict-ridden countries are increasingly viewing the U.N. as promoting the interests of the West and the powerful, writes Jamal Benomar. This wasn’t always the case.
Digging Africa Deeper into Hunger
International donors are not heeding African farmers’ calls to change course, writes Timothy Wise ahead of the annual African Green Revolution Forum on Sept. 5-8 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Caitlin Johnstone: Mitch McConnell’s Flash of Humanity
Perhaps one day this will happen to the entire empire — the whole thing suddenly vanishing for the lie it always was; its managers left blinking stupidly in the sunlight, their word-magic gone.
The US Problem With China: Beijing Is Better at Capitalism
As it provokes a new Cold War, the U.S. is warning that its corporate and financial interests, which came first after the 1980s Dengist reforms, no longer take precedence, writes Patrick Lawrence.
AS`AD AbuKHALIL: End of an Era in Arab Journalism
Lebanese journalist Talal Salman was renowned in his region, but less known in the West. He was one of the most influential journalists in the Middle East, coming from a pre-Gulf dominated era of Arab journalism.
A ‘Desperate’ Nuland in Africa
A South African official met an unprepared and “desperate” Victoria Nuland, begging for local help rolling back the popular coup in Niger. The recent BRICS conference might give Nuland even more to fret about, reports Anya Parampil.