Mahler's Prodigal Son

Japan has just had an election and the same old Liberal Democratic Party has been returned to power after an absence of some 3 years.    Unfortunately, with PM Abe in the driver's seat, things may get a tad hairy in the region, not the least because of the ongoing territorial fight with the Chinese.    And then there is the restoration of nuclear power stations to Japan, etc. etc. "East Asia is bracing for an era of tension and confrontation after Japan's general elections returned a hawkish conservative to power. The Liberal Democratic party's resounding victory on Sunday threatens to further impair relations with China if the new prime minister, Shinzo Abe, makes good on promises to take a tough stance in a territorial row. Yesterday's result marked a dramatic comeback for the LDP, three years after it was ousted by the left-of-centre Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), ending its near monopoly on power for five decades. Abe, who is expected to be instal...

This from a president  - none other than good ol' Barrack, with an already appalling record under his belt - who claims to be a liberal.   And who is lawyer, and one-time law teacher, to boot! "In a little noticed filing at week's end, the US government made its first legal response to a challenge made by civil liberties groups about the Obama administration's secretive "Kill List" program by urging a federal court to dismiss the case, arguing that the courts should not interfere with Obama's declared authority that he can kill US citizens without congressional, judicial, or public oversight. The case surrounds the targeted killing of three US citizens in Yemen last year, including Anwar Al-Awlaki, his 16-year-old son Abdulrahman and Samir Khan. The ACLU and the Center for Constitutional Rights, who helped bring the suit on behalf of family members of those killed, said in a joint statement that the essence of the government’s argument was "that ...

We take the internet for granted.     But there are forces out there - both governmental and corporate - who would rather see either of them "control" the internet rather than you and me, the people. In fact there is a conference underway right now where the very issue is a pivotal discussion point. Photo credited to Shutterstock.com/amasterphotographer  "The Government, Corporations or the People -- Who Should Control the Internet? That question rests uneasily at the center of debates this week at the World Conference on International Telecommunications in Dubai. The 12-day wonkfest has brought together representatives from more than 150 U.N. member states to craft global rules for the Internet. And that's where the trouble begins. For many at the conference, the working assumption is that governments should control the digital network. They've reached this conclusion without asking any of the billions of Internet users who might think otherwise. ...

Credited to David Fitzsimmons, Cagle Cartoons, The Arizona Star

Yes, the latest mass shooting in the USA is horrific and terrible in every way.    Obama said some "meaningful action" needs to be taken.   But rest assured the ever-powerful NRA - and its acolytes in Congress and the Senate - will stand in the way of any "meaningful" gun reform. The Atlantic backgrounds the NRA in this piece " Why the NRA Is Still Winning the War on Guns "..... "The National Rifle Association has been able to maintain its reputation as a respectable organization by portraying itself as a defender of the right to own weapons as a crime deterrent — a means to a less violent society. That's the genius behind its little slogan "guns don't kill people, people kill people." But in the wake of the Newtown school shooting — and a year full of gun violence — it's worth remembering that the NRA has been unmistakably advocating for a more violent society, one in which there are more and more scenarios in which there ...

Iraq has slipped off the agenda in the media reporting on the country.     Those who invaded the country would also rather forget about it.    It was a disaster, on every level - from the lie which laid the foundation for the attack on Baghdad (remember the apt description of "Shock and Awe?"), violence to which the country was subjected, the deaths and dislocation of thousands upon thousands and the horrendous cost of it all. Philip Giraldi is the executive director of the Council for the National Interest and a recognized authority on international security and counterterrorism issues. He is a former CIA counter-terrorism specialist and military intelligence officer who served eighteen years overseas in Turkey, Italy, Germany, and Spain. He was Chief of Base in Barcelona from 1989 to 1992 designated as the Agency’s senior officer for Olympic Games support.   Giraldi writes in " Why Remember Iraq " on CounterPunch . "Iraq, correctly l...

What can be said in the wake of the latest shooting tragedy in America?   What sort of nation allows this to continue almost unabated?    Answer?    A nation which pays lip-service to caring for its young - but nothing to protect them. A fervent prayer from one American: "On a daily basis, the news queue is like a litany of horror stories, while those nominally charged with promoting our security do little more than posture before cameras and open new fronts in a war without end. The "mass shooting" has become a dominant motif in the production of social relations, the last refuge of the disaffected and unloved, the final epitaph for a culture that has payed far too little attention to its children and the responsibility to ensure for them a positive future. As a parent, my heart breaks; as a human being, my soul aches. What will it take? In a just world, this episode alone would be enough to jolt us out of our torpor and get us to put down ...