2019-10-25: News Headlines

RT (2019-10-25). 'It was meant to happen that way,' says driver who saved family from getting MOWED DOWN in viral VIDEO'. rt.com An Arizona woman has told reporters that she doesn't consider herself to be a hero after her car successfully redirected a red-light-running Jeep that was mere seconds away from hitting a family of three on a crosswalk. | The Phoenix Police Department posted dramatic video of the incident earlier this week. | A couple was calmly crossing the road on their way to a grocery store, while pushing a stroller with their 11-month-old son. A speeding SUV ran a red light, and was heading straight for the couple. The vehicle would have likely mowed down the entire family if it wasn't for a Chevrolet Cruze that collided…

Staff (2019-10-25). Esper: U.S. Troops, Armored Vehicles Going to Syria Oil Fields. truthdig.com BRUSSELS — The U.S. will send armored reinforcements into eastern Syria to bolster defenses against a potential move by Islamic State militants on oil fields controlled by U.S.-backed Syrian Kurds, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday. | Esper described the added force as "mechanized," which would likely means it will include tanks and other combat vehicles such as Bradley armored infantry carriers. This would introduce a new dimension to the U.S. military presence, wh…

Julie Hollar (2019-10-25). Fretting About Progressives' 'Electability,' Establishment Dems Are Really Worried About Their Power in the Party. fair.org by Julie Hollar | With Joe Biden struggling as frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, a surging Elizabeth Warren has begun to emerge as the party establishment's new bogeyman—and corporate media are ready and willing to transmit insiders' panicked calls for new "moderate" entrants to the race. | On the same day earlier this week, the Washington Post and the New York Times ran twin articles:…

RT (2019-10-25). Subscription war on 'fake news': WaPo, NYT ousted from White House, federal agencies told to follow lead. rt.com Donald Trump has unleashed an unprecedented attack on the free media (or shown fake news its place) by cancelling White House subscriptions to the WaPo and NYT and telling federal agencies to do the same. | No love is lost between US president and a large part of the American journalistic community. Trump repeatedly derided them as "fake news" and "enemies of the people." He was accused in response of being a man-child and a wannabe dictator. | The president's criticisms were not always without merit, considering how many times the coverage of the Russiagate saga turned out to be inaccurate or even completely…

RT (2019-10-25). Subscription war on 'fake news': WaPo, NYT ousted from White House, federal agencies told to follow lead. rt.com Trump has unleashed an unprecedented attack on the free media (or shown fake news its place) – depending on which side you're on – by cancelling White House subscriptions to the WaPo and NYT, telling federal agencies to do so too.

WSWS (2019-10-25). Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez backs internet censorship. wsws.org At a hearing Wednesday, Ocasio-Cortez demanded that Facebook "fact-check" political statements and "take down lies," endorsing calls by the intelligence agencies for technology companies to censor the internet.

Staff (2019-10-25). The Long Fight to Use Student IDs to Vote in North Carolina. truthout.org When North Carolina's Republican-controlled legislature passed the nation's most suppressive state voting law in 2013, college students were among the most vocal opponents. They viewed it as discriminatory because it required voters to show identification at the polls but excluded student IDs from the acceptable forms. | The law set off a legal and political fight over using student IDs to vote that's finally…

Staff (2019-10-25). Violence Erupts in Northeast Syria After Trump Touts "Ceasefire" truthout.org Violence continued in the Rojava autonomous region in northeast Syria on Thursday, shortly after President Trump pledged that a ceasefire announced by Turkey would likely be "permanent." Russian warplanes raided rural areas while clashes erupted between various factions as Turkish-led forces appeared to push beyond the so-called "safe zone" patrolled by Turkey and Russia near the Turkey-Syria border, according to reports and observers on the ground. | "It doesn't feel like things are cleared up and done wi…

Staff (2019-10-25). "You Won't Take Down Lies or You Will?": AOC Grills Facebook's Zuckerberg on Lies in Political Ads. democracynow.org This week, as Facebook said it will not fact check political ads or hold politicians to its usual content standards, the social media giant's CEO Mark Zuckerberg was grilled for more than five hours by lawmakers on Capitol Hill on the company's policy of allowing politicians to lie in political advertisements, as well as its role in facilitating election interference and housing discrimination. We play highlights from New York Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Ohio Congressmember Joyce Beatty, who asked Zuckerberg about Facebook's record on civil rights, which she called "appalling and disgusting." Bea…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2019-10-25). House Dems Take Aim at 'Trust Fund Babies' With Estate Tax Designed to Combat Obscene Wealth Inequality. commondreams.org California Congressman Jimmy Gomez on Friday introduced legislation in the Democrat-controlled U.S. House that aims to address "our country's rapidly increasing wealth inequality by strengthening the estate tax and ensuring the wealthiest among us pay their fair share." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Mr. Tranzerious Anderson (2019-10-24). 'Forgiveness and mercy' — for whom? workers.org The writer of the following letter is imprisoned in Massachusetts. As the month of October began, an extraordinary event was unfurling in a Texas courtroom. At least that's how the mainstream media was reporting it. However, for people of color and other oppressed individuals, this was a familiar scene. In . . . | Continue reading 'Forgiveness and mercy' — for whom? at Workers.org

RT (2019-10-24). Pence blasts US corporations for bowing to China — says they should bow to Washington instead. rt.com US corporations "should stand up for American values," but instead they are "wholly owned" by the "authoritarian regime" in China, Vice President Mike Pence said in a speech, singling out Nike and the NBA for criticism. | China has been trying to export its domestic censorship by playing on corporate greed and pressuring corporate America to toe the party line, the VP argued, in a speech on US-China relations on Thursday. As examples, he brought up the basketball league penalizing a manager after comments made in support of protesters in Hong Kong, at which Chinese authorities were offended. | "Some of the NBA…

RT (2019-10-24). Pence blasts US corporations for bowing to China — says they should bow to Washington instead. rt.com US corporations "should stand up for American values," but instead they are "wholly owned" by the "authoritarian regime" in China, Vice President Mike Pence said in a speech, singling out Nike and the NBA for criticism. | China has been trying to export its domestic censorship by playing on corporate greed and pressuring corporate America to toe the party line, the VP argued, in a speech on US-China relations on Thursday. As examples, he brought up the basketball league penalizing a manager after comments made in support of protesters in Hong Kong, at which Chinese authorities were offended. | "Some of the NBA…

teleSUR (2019-10-24). AOC Grills Facebook's Zuckerberg for 'Far-right Dinner Parties'. telesurenglish.net Facebook Inc CEO Mark Zuckerberg was grilled by progressive U.S. lawmakers asking questions on election interference, free speech, hate groups and fake news. | RELATED: | teleSUR English Removed From Facebook for Second Time | "In order for us to make decisions about Libra, I think we need to kind of dig into your past behavior and Facebook's past behavior with respect to our democracy," New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said, before asking Zuckerberg when he had first…

Stephen Lendman (2019-10-24). Tulsi a Russian Asset? Censored by Google and YouTube. globalresearch.ca Time and again, clear evidence proves democracy in America is pure fantasy — how it's been from inception, notably today under its money-controlled system, most politicians bought like toothpaste. | One-party rule with two extremist right wings serves privileged interests exclusively …

Kary Love (2019-10-24). A Soldier or a "Killing Machine"? counterpunch.org "We train our boys to be killing machines, then prosecute them when they kill!" Donald J. Trump tweeted October 12, 2019 regarding the case of Maj. Mathew Golsteyn a former Green Beret who is on trial for killing an unarmed Afghan man in 2010, a killing Golsteyn twice admitted. This statement was made by the More

Keith McHenry (2019-10-24). Mediation Won't End Class War. indybay.org Santa Cruz City Manager Martin Bernal knows who he works for and it isn't the residence of the city. Our city like most in the US is controlled by property speculators and transnational corporations. This is a nationwide deliberate war against those forced to live outside. A war against the poor.

Staff (2019-10-24). Corporate Media Sides With Chile and Ecuador's Oppressors. truthdig.com Working people are rising up against austerity, yet our political press only sees fit to describe the threat they pose to law and order.

Staff (2019-10-24). Corporate Media Side With Chile's and Ecuador's Oppressors. truthdig.com Working people are rising up against austerity, yet our political press only sees fit to describe the threat they pose to law and order.

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2019-10-24). 'We Have to Get This Right': Historic Bill in US House Would Create Specific Protections for Climate Refugees. commondreams.org Rep. Nydia Vel√°zquez on Wednesday introduced historic legislation in the Democrat-controlled House that would establish formal federal protections in the United States for refugees fleeing impacts of the human-caused global climate crisis. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Alan MacLeod (2019-10-24). Media Ignore Unmasking of Twitter Exec as British Psyops Officer – Government penetration and control over media of little interest to those who are subject to it. fair.org by Alan MacLeod Middle East Eye ( 9/30/19) | A recent investigation from independent news outlet Middle East Eye ( 9/30/19) uncovered that a senior Twitter executive is, in fact, an officer in the British Army's 77th Brigade, a unit dedicated to psychological operations (psyops), propaganda and online warfare. Gordon MacMillan, who joined the social media company in 2…

Alan MacLeod (2019-10-24). Media Ignore Unmasking of Twitter Exec as British Psyops Officer – Government penetration and control over media of little interest to those who are subject to it. fair.org Middle East Eye ( 9/30/19) | A recent investigation from independent news outlet Middle East Eye ( 9/30/19) uncovered that a senior Twitter executive is, in fact, an officer in the British Army's 77th Brigade, a unit dedicated to psychological operations (psyops), propaganda and online warfare. Gordon MacMillan, who joined the social media company in 2013, is its hea…

Andre Vltchek (2019-10-23). India is Confused: where does it go from here? dissidentvoice.org At J. Nehru University, most students know about China and Russia only from the BBC, Reuters and other Western media outlets. Even those individuals who claim they belong to the left are not immune; influenced mainly by the British propaganda. ***** It has been like this for years: usual confusion, all around India: tough nationalistic, …

Jonathan Cook (2019-10-23). The Democrats Helped Cultivate the Barbarism of ISIS. counterpunch.org There is something profoundly deceitful in the way the Democratic Party and the corporate media are framing Donald Trump's decision to pull troops out of Syria. One does not need to defend Trump's actions or ignore the dangers posed to the Kurds, at least in the short term, by the departure of US forces from More

The Canary (2019-10-23). Trump faces backlash over 'lynching' claim. thecanary.co US President Donald Trump's comparison of the impeachment inquiry being conducted against him to a "lynching" has sparked a heated backlash. | Stirring painful memories of America's racist past, Trump tweeted in regard to the investigation into his dealings with Ukraine: "All Republicans must remember what they are witnessing here — a lynching. But we will WIN!" | The comparison to lynching — a practice once widespread across the southern US in which angry mobs killed thousands of Black people — triggered an outcry from Democratic politicians and from outside Washington, but also some agreement…

Robert Mackey (2019-10-23). Trump Pressed Ukraine's President to Act Out a Fake News Script, Live on CNN. theintercept.com Donald Trump extorted a promise from his Ukrainian counterpart to appear on American television and act out a script prepared for him by Trump's aides.

Staff (2019-10-23). Headlines for October 23, 2019. democracynow.org Taylor Testifies Trump Tied Ukraine Aid to Investigation of Hunter Biden, Trump Tweets Impeachment is a "Lynching," Sparking Widespread Condemnation, Turkey and Russia Reach Agreement on Northern Syria, Protests Erupt in Bolivia Over Allegations of Election Rigging, Chilean President Announces Reforms Aimed to Curb Massive Protests, Boris Johnson Loses Critical Brexit Vote, Canada's New Anti-Immigrant Party Is Crushed in National Elections, UAW Member Dies After Being Struck by Car Near Picket Line, Chicago Teachers Head into Second Week of Strike, New York's Probe of Facebook Backed by 46 Attorneys General, Mexi…

Justin Anderson (2019-10-20). Chinese Censorship of US Media: New Spin on an Old Tactic. fair.org The Chinese government's ability to set the terms of free speech in the US media and entertainment sphere is surely alarming. However, fears of Chinese censorship might be overreported in comparison with the long history in the US of media censorship at the behest of the US military, government agencies and other foreign countries.

Staff (2019-10-17). Rep. Ro Khanna: We Need a Responsible Withdrawal from Syria, Not One Oblivious to Human Life. democracynow.org As hundreds of thousands of civilians face displacement and violence amid Turkey's assault on Kurdish-controlled areas in northern Syria, the House of Representatives voted to condemn Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. support for the Kurds on Wednesday. The measure passed 354 to 60. We speak with Representative Ro Khanna, who says, "We can't just get involved in a place and then walk away and not have some moral responsibility. We have a moral responsibility not just to the Kurds who fought with us against ISIS. We have a moral responsibility to accept Syrian refugees. We have a moral responsibility to help rebui…

Staff (2019-10-17). "Meltdown": Trump Defends Syria Withdrawal as House Votes 354 to 60 to Condemn His Actions. democracynow.org As the displacement of 300,000 civilians over Turkey's assault on Kurdish-controlled areas continues in northern Syria, the House of Representatives voted Wednesday to condemn President Trump's actions. Turkey invaded the region on October 9, shortly after Trump virtually greenlit the Turkey assault by abruptly withdrawing a small number of U.S. troops who were protecting Kurdish areas in northern Syria. Since then, the Kurds have aligned themselves with the Syrian government, and a number of former ISIS fighters who were being held by the Kurds have escaped. We speak with Ozlem Goner, assistant professor of soci…

Christopher Banks (2019-10-07). Murderer Amber Guyger gets a hug from judge and racist media. liberationnews.org The corporate media message (and preference) was clear: Unconditionally offer forgiveness even when it is not premised on meaningful change and lasting justice.

Eoin Higgins, Common Dreams (2019-09-08). New Season of Amazon's Jack Ryan Focused on Venezuela Denounced as 'Over-the-Top and Ridiculous' US Propaganda. venezuelanalysis.com The upcoming season of Amazon's Jack Ryan could have been scripted by John Bolton.