Thank you for posting this! My newspaper makes me ill because it is SO obvious now how censored and slanted the news is in America. I am so grateful for blogs like yours with intelligent discussion of international events.

A couple of weeks ago Crimea and Sevastopol almost unanimously voted to re-join Russia. The Crimeans said: we had been unappreciated guests, now we are returning home after a long voyage. The information coming to the surface now shows that if Crimea stayed as part of Ukraine, it would have become a huge NATO/US military base. I seriously doubt that the people of the Crimea would have stood for that, but if such a thing did happen, it would have meant WWIII as Russia would never allow it. From this perspective it’s especially clear why NATO, USA and EU were so shocked that Russia decisively accepted Crimea back. They already considered it theirs.

The city of Sevastopol is the prized possession. This is one of the best harbors in the world. But the entire Crimea is of huge strategic importance – first and foremost, if you want to attack Russia…

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Conversation With James Risen: Can Journalists Protect Their National Security Sources?

Dina Rasor, Truthout: The New York Times reporter James Risen is in a waiting game with the Department of Justice and the Supreme Court, and the fate of a journalist’s right to protect sources lies in the balance.

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El Salvador’s Election: Not Like the Old Days

John Lamperti, Truthout: The election of the FMLN’s Salvador Sánchez Cerén to El Salvador’s presidency in a clean election with a minimum of outside interference represents a victory. Prior to the civil war, the electoral system in El Salvador was blatantly corrupt; for many years the military candidate always won.

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Wolves of Wall Street: Financialization and American Inequality

Colin Gordon, Dissent: The recent spike in American inequality, and the gains rapidly accruing to those at the upper end of the income distribution ladder, are driven in large part by “financialization” – the growing scale and profitability of the financial sector relative to the rest of the economy, and the shrinking regulation of its rules and returns.

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The DOJ Wants to Hack Your Webcam

Dan Massoglia, Truthout: Rules for when the government can hack your computer are headed for a dramatic and troubling expansion as federal hacking is of rising interest in domestic policing.

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Gender Equity for Rural Haitian Women

Beverly Bell, Other Worlds: Haitian activist Kettly Alexandre of the Peasant Movement of Papay Women’s Committee speaks to advances made over 40 years for women’s rights, equity and an end to violence.

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Big Data’s Big Image Problem

Joseph Jerome, Truthout: There is little question that big data has developed an image problem. This image has only worsened as one headline after another has detailed how NSA and other intelligence agencies use it for massive surveillance on American citizens.

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Protecting the Right’s Stranglehold Over Union Elections

John Logan, Truthout: Last week, the National Labor Relations Board held hearings to allow public comment on its new election rules. Antiunion organizations and consultants dominated the proceedings, and their testimony revealed the right-wing wants to make it as difficult as possible for workers to choose a union.

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The Flat-Earth Society Has Arisen Again

The Daily Take, The Thom Hartmann Program: Geocentrism was disproven 500 years ago, and the only people who still believe in it are fringe nuts and religious fundamentalists. However, denying climate change is about as mainstream as it gets – and for Republicans it’s the default position.

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Republicans Say No to CDC Gun Violence Research

Lois Beckett, ProPublica: Georgia Republican Rep. Jack Kingston, who is up for re-election, has said he will oppose any efforts to fund gun violence research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Jury Verdict: Nearly $3 Million in Texas Fracking Nuisance Case

Brendan DeMelle, DeSmogBlog: A Texas jury awarded $2.925 million to plaintiffs Bob and Lisa Parr, who sued a fracking company for intentionally causing a nuisance on the their property, which impacted their health and ruined their drinking water.

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BuzzFlash

Advertising Revenue, Not Enlightenment, Is the Goal of Sunday Morning DC Pundit Shows

Mark Karlin, BuzzFlash at Truthout: The Sunday morning news programs play a key role in creating a DC conventional wisdom consensus. In reality, however, the gabfest of effete pundits is nothing more than filler between advertising.

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United States Taxpayers Are Subsidizing Walmart

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The Supreme Court Gives Police New Power to Rely on Anonymous Tips

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The United States’ Middle Class Is No Longer the World’s Richest

Read the Article at The New York Times

Massive New Fraud Cover-Up: How Banks Are Pillaging Homes – While the Government Watches

Read the Article at Salon

FBI “Intentionally and Unlawfully” Used No Fly List to Recruit Muslims as Informers

Read the Article at RT News

Ten Ways the War on Drugs Violates the United States’ Constitution