There were positives in Barack Obama’s reelection, particularly the rejection of many reactionary Republican policies and offensive tactics, but Obama’s second term may be beset by many of the same failings as the first, writes Lawrence Davidson.
Category: Human Rights
Hopeful Signs in US Election
The U.S. political process still has many flaws, but the voters turned back the most brazen assaults on democracy, from plutocrats trying to buy the election to Republicans seeking to suppress the votes of minorities. Fairness on gay marriage and…
A New Day for Mideast Negotiations
With President Obama’s reelection, prospects for progress in Middle East disputes have brightened but no one expects the resolution of crises in Syria, Iran, Israel, Palestine and elsewhere to be easy. An offhand remark by a Palestinian leader shows how complex…
Democracy on the Ballot
What’s left of American democracy is on the Nov. 6 ballot, with the Republicans hoping that a combination of voter suppression and attack ads bought by billionaires will secure the White House and Congress. Investigative reporter Greg Palast describes the…
The War on Richard Falk
Over the past three decades, Israel has veered away from its founding commitments to justice and built an apartheid-like state that abuses the indigenous Palestinians. That troubling course has been shielded by personal attacks on anyone, like UN official Richard…
Romney/GOP Play Good Cop, Bad Cop
Exclusive: On Nov. 6, the American people will face a choice, not just between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, but whether they will reward the Republican Party for its four years of obstructionism or whether they will demand that the…
Telling Truths about Israel/Palestine
False national narratives play key roles in controlling human behavior, especially when enforced by an aggressive propaganda system that demonizes factual counter-narratives. That has long been the case as Israel minimized its harsh treatment of Palestinians, but the truth has…
The Permanent Counterterror War
After the 9/11 attacks, the United States lurched off in pursuit of an unattainable goal, perfect security for the American people. Along this bloody route, the nation lost sight of a crucial question: what American actions are generating the fury…
Lining Up Romney’s Votes
America’s concentration of wealth at the top has been accompanied by a bolder assertion of political power by the plutocrats, not just in the proliferation of unrestrained Super PACs but also in demanding support for Mitt Romney by employees, note Bill…
Who’s the Real ‘Savage’?
Islamophobes, including some involved in the ugly protests over an Islamic community center in Lower Manhattan, are now taking their case against the “savage” to billboards, urging greater U.S. support for Israel. But this message is designed to justify ethnic…