Don Qaswa (2018-06-12). How is This Legal? counterpunch.org In the U.S. it is possible to secure a list of Superfund sites from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by simply writing to them. I've had my list for awhile, but just the other day I noticed something shocking. West Salem High School is an active Super Fund site located at 1776 Titan Drive in Salem, Oregon. The EPA More

Merula Furtado (2018-06-12). The False Choice Between Jailing Children and Separating Families. truthout.org The Trump administration is giving Congress an ultimatum: overturn legal limits on the incarceration of children and expand family detention, or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will continue to separate families who illegally cross the border. | The administration is asking Congress to roll back protections for migrant children in immigration laws to allow DHS officials to more easily jail and deport them. The changes would also make it more difficult for children to pursue asylum. | Moreover, White House officials are blaming Democrats for an increase in migrants at the border, saying their refusal to spend more on border security has given immigrants fleeing Central America incentives to enter the US without permission. "The current immigration and border crisis … are the exclusive product of loopholes in federal immigration law that Democrats refuse to close," Stephen Miller, the president's…

Jonathan Cook (2018-06-12). Knesset Foils Efforts to End Israeli Apartheid. globalresearch.ca For most of the seven decades after its establishment, Israel went to extraordinary lengths to craft an image of itself as a "light unto the nations". | It claimed to have "made the desert bloom" by planting forests over the razed …

Human Rights Watch (2018-06-12). Time to Get Kids out of Hazardous Workplaces. hrw.org A child walks between bales of tobacco on an auction floor in Harare, Zimbabwe. | © 2017 Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP Photo | Today is the World Day Against Child Labor, and this year's theme highlights the global need to improve the health and safety of young workers and eradicate hazardous child labor. | Worldwide, about 85 million children work in hazardous conditions. The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates a staggering 22,000 children are killed at work every year. Children who work often miss out on an education, and studies show they are less likely to find decent-paying jobs as adults. Human Rights Watch has documented the risks child workers face in agriculture, mining, the apparel industry, and other sectors. | On tobacco farms in Zimbabwe, Indonesia, and the…

Gabe Ortiz, Daily Kos (2018-06-11). Over 30 Senators Introduce Bill to Block DHS from Separating Families at Border — Not a Single Republican Joins. alternet.org Conservatives betray family values yet again. | Thirty-two U. S. senators—all Democrats or independents— have cosponsored legislation from U. S. Senator Dianne Feinstein of California that would block the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from brutally tearing kids from the arms of migrant parents at the U. S. /Mexico border. According to Customs and Border Protection (CBP), more than 650 kids were kidnapped from their parents, many of whom are asylum-seekers, during a two-week period alone last month. "Congress has a moral obligation to take a stand and say that families should not be forcibly separated," Sen. Feinstein said in a press release. "Many of these families are fleeing terrible violence, traveling thousands of miles on foot for the chance to file an asylum claim and save their lives. " Seeking asylum at a U. S. port of entry is a legal act under. . .

splcenter.org (2018-06-11). SPLC statement on Sessions' order to stop granting asylum to most victims of domestic abuse and gang violence. splcenter.org Today's cruel and heartless decision by Attorney General Jeff Sessions — ordering immigration authorities to stop granting asylum to most victims of domestic abuse and gang violence in their home countries — strikes at the heart of longstanding protections guaranteed to asylum seekers, and will condemn tens of thousands of men, women and children to death.

Staff (2018-06-11). Sessions Excludes Domestic, Gang Violence From Asylum Claims. truthdig.com SAN DIEGO — Immigration judges generally cannot consider domestic and gang violence as grounds for asylum, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Monday in a ruling that could affect large numbers of Central Americans who have increasingly turned to the United States for protection. | "Generally, claims by aliens pertaining to domestic violence or gang violence perpetrated by non-government actors will not qualify for asylum," Sessions wrote in 31-page decision. "The mere fact that a country may have problems effectively policing certain crimes — such as domestic violence or gang violence — or that certain populations are more likely to be victims of crime, cannot itself establish an asylum claim." | The widely expected move overruled a Board of Immigration Appeals decision in 2016 that gave asylum status to a woman from El Salvador who fled her husband. Sessions reopened the case for…

Stephen Lendman (2018-06-11). Trade and Protectionism: Is Trump Trying to Destroy the Western Alliance? globalresearch.ca What a glorious idea. The Trumpophobic NYT ignored reality claiming it, referring to the Quebec, Canada G7 summit ending acrimoniously, the US president refusing to sign a concluding statement over trade issues. | Post-WW II, Washington constructed a Western alliance, NATO …

Ruth Hayhurst (2018-06-11). Climate Change Risks of Fracking Outweigh Benefits. globalresearch.ca Featured image: Cuadrilla's Preston New Road fracking site near Blackpool, 1 May 2018. Photo: Ros Wills | The scale of harm from shale gas to health is uncertain, but the danger of exacerbating climate change is not, two professors of public …

Robert Koehler (2018-06-11). The Great Waking Up. counterpunch.org I don't blame all of the planet's ills on the Republican Party, but I find hope in the possibility that it's on the verge of collapse. I'm not talking politics here. I'm talking deep vision of humanity: a sense of who we are and how we impact Planet Earth and all its occupants. A smallness More

Dr. Andrew Glikson (2018-06-11). Crimes Against the Earth. globalresearch.ca "To ignore evil is to become an accomplice" (Martin Luther King) | Humans are of the Earth, physically adapted to its range of climates, gravity, radiation, electro-magnetic field and composition of the atmosphere. Had there ever been a single …

Christopher Ketcham (2018-06-11). Cooking Show Suicides and Other Inanities. counterpunch.org Recent information unearthed by CounterPunch's crack investigative team has revealed that Anthony Bourdain killed himself in the wake of discovering he suffered from a terminal illness brought on by the breakneck pace of his work as an entertainer. The condition, called disassociative camera-subjectivity disorder, or DCSD, widely afflicts people in the rarefied realms of the More

Ed Sadlowski, Jr. (2018-06-11). Edward E. Sadlowski, 79; a champion of labor. peoplesworld.org Edward Eugene "Oilcan" Sadlowski (September 10, 1938 — June 10, 2018) "Oilcan" passed away today June 10, after a hard struggle with Lewy body dementia. He was born in Chicago, IL, on September 10, 1938, across the street from the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (S.W.O.C) Union Hall. He was the son of Edward and Mildred (Sanders) Sadlowski. A great […]…

Democracy Now! (2018-06-11). Headlines for June 11, 2018. democracynow.org Trump and Kim Arrive in Singapore Ahead of Historic Summit, Trump Slams Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau After G7 Summit, Israeli Troops Kill 4 Palestinians & Wound 600 More in Crackdown on Nonviolent Protest, Pentagon: U.S. Special Operations Soldier Alexander Conrad Killed in Somalia, Reports: Dozens Killed in Russian and Syrian Gov't Bombing in Idlib Province, Red Cross Evacuates 71 Staff Members from Yemen, Honduran Asylum Seeker, Separated from His Wife & Child, Dies by Suicide in Texas Jail, Rep. Pramila Jayapal: Separating Immigrant Mothers and Children Is Horrific, Judge Halts Deportation of NYC Delivery Worker Pablo Villavicencio, Pope Francis Warns Oil Company Executives Climate Change Threatens Humanity, India Moves to Ban Single-Use Plastics by 2022, Women March Across United Kingdom to Celebrate 100 Years of Female Suffrage, Philippines: Journalist Dennis Denora Killed in Mindanao, Robert De Niro Slams President at Tony Awards…

RT (2018-06-09). A year of earthquakes in 1 month: Hawaii stricken by 12,000 tremblers since eruption. rt.com An astonishing 12,000 earthquakes have been recorded in Hawaii since the island nation's Kilauea volcano erupted in early May.
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RT (2018-06-08). Trump will stay at G7 for women's rights, but not ecology. rt.com The White House says US President Donald Trump will cut his trip to the G7 summit short, skipping a climate change session while staying for one on women empowerment. Trump is increasingly at odds with the other group members.
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Democracy Now! (2018-06-08). As EPA Scandals Mount, Scott Pruitt Is Radically Reshaping Agency to Aid Polluters and Big Business. democracynow.org Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt is again facing a slew of ethics and spending scandals amid mounting calls for his resignation. On Thursday, The Washington Post reported Pruitt enlisted members of his $3.5 million security detail to pick up his dry cleaning and search for his favorite skin moisturizing lotion, even though federal rules prohibit public officials from receiving gifts from subordinates, including unpaid services. Meanwhile, Pruitt is continuing to radically reshape the EPA. The New York Times reports today the EPA has given the chemical industry a big victory by scaling back the way the federal government determines health and safety risks associated with the most dangerous chemicals on the market. Pruitt has also been accused of radically reshaping the EPA rulemaking process and weakening Obama administration efforts to tighten fuel economy standards. We speak to Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen.

Middle East Monitor (2018-06-07). Trump Requested Saudi Oil Support Before Iran Nuclear Decision — Sources. iranian.com A day before US President Donald Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal, one of his senior officials phoned Saudi Arabia to ask the world's largest oil exporter to help keep prices stable if the decision disrupted supply. Riyadh, Tehran's arch rival, has long been a close Washington ally, but direct pressure on a member of Organization […]

Paul Dobson (2018-06-07). Maduro & Workers Push to Stimulate Venezuela's Oil Industry amid Collapsing Production. venezuelanalysis.com It is alleged that PDVSA does not possess sufficient stocks to fulfill its June export orders.

RT (2018-06-07). 'Catastrophic disaster': Aircraft hack only matter of time, US agencies warn. rt.com It is "only a matter of time" until a commercial aircraft is hacked, the Department of Homeland Security and other US government agencies have warned. Most planes lack cybersecurity protections to prevent such a hack.
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Human Rights Watch (2018-06-07). Vietnam: Withdraw Problematic Cyber Security Law. hrw.org Deputies attend the opening ceremony of the National Assembly's autumn session in Hanoi, Vietnam October 23, 2017. | © 2017 Reuters | (New York) — Vietnam should revise its overly broad and vague draft cyber security law to bring it into compliance with international legal standards before it goes before the legislature, Human Rights Watch said today. Vietnam's National Assembly is scheduled to vote on the draft of this highly criticized law on June 12, 2018. | The government and the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam have a long record of punishing political and social dissent under the rationale of protecting national security. The draft law, in turn, gives the authorities wide discretion to determine when expression must be censored as "illegal." Vietnam's national laws lack meaningful protections for privacy and the provisions in…

Human Rights Watch (2018-06-06). EU: Data Protection Rules Advance Privacy. hrw.org (Brussels, June 6, 2018) — The new European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will enhance privacy and should spur other countries to improve protection of people's personal information, Human Rights Watch said in a question and answer document released today. The document summarizes key portions of the EU law and discusses what comes next. | "In the digital age, so much of what we do generates data that can reveal intimate details of our lives, thoughts, and beliefs," said Cynthia Wong, senior internet researcher at Human Rights Watch. "The GDPR is hardly perfect, but it strengthens protections for privacy in the EU and shows that strong safeguards for data are both possible and good for human rights." | As of May 25, 2018, the new rules are legally binding across the EU's 28 Member States. The law, agreed…

Democracy Now! (2018-06-04). "A Source of Positivity All the Time": Remembering Palestinian Medic Razan al-Najjar, Killed by IDF. democracynow.org Witnesses say Israeli soldiers shot dead 21-year-old Palestinian medic Razan al-Najjar as she ran toward the border fence to provide medical aid to a wounded protester. Since nonviolent protests began at the end of March, Israeli soldiers have killed at least 119 people, including 14 children. More than 13,000 have been wounded. "It was clear to everybody that she was a paramedic, that that was murder. I mean, that was a crime committed before cameras," said Dr. Medhat Abbas, director of Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in the Gaza Strip. We also speak with Najjar's cousin, Dalia al-Najjar, who says the response of the international community to the Gaza crisis has been "really disappointing," and notes the U.S. vetoed a draft U.N. resolution urging the protection of Palestinians on Friday, the same day Najjar was killed. "It's a shameful side that the United States decided to take."

Democracy Now! (2018-05-31). Headlines for May 31, 2018. democracynow.org Pompeo Meets North Korea's Ex-Spy Chief in NYC, In Victory for Big Banks, Federal Reserve Votes to Loosen Volcker Rule, Report: U.S. Killed 50 Taliban Leaders in Helmand Province, Russian Journalist Admits Faking His Own Death, Trump Makes No Comment on Roseanne's Racist Tweets But Criticizes ABC for Not Apologizing to Him, Cable News Largely Ignores Deaths of 4,645 in Puerto Rico to Focus on Roseanne, Civil Rights Groups Urge DHS to Release Secret "Race Paper" Memo, Theology Student Studying Daniel Berrigan's Life Arrested for Protesting White Supremacist in Charlottesville, EPA Taps Chemical Industry Lawyer to Oversee Superfund Sites, Illinois Ratifies Equal Rights Amendment, Harvey Weinstein Indicted on Rape Charges in New York, 13-Year-Old Student Questions White House Inaction on School Shootings, Republican Congresswoman Says Pornography Is a "Root Cause" of School Shootings, Standing Rock Water Protector Sentenced to Three Years in Prison, U.N.: Mexican Security Forces Likely Involved in Recent Disappearances, Mexican Journalist Héctor González Killed in Tamaulipas, Report: U.S.-Backed Salvadoran Police Forces Involved in Extrajudicial Killings, Brazilian Oil Workers Stage Strike to Protest Plans to Privatize Petrobras, Florida Jury Awards Four Cents to Family of African-American Man Shot by Sheriff's Deputy…

Democracy Now! (2018-05-31). Indigenous Activist: Trudeau's Purchase of Kinder Morgan Pipeline Is "Huge Step Backward" for Canada. democracynow.org Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced that the Canadian government will purchase Kinder Morgan's highly contested Trans Mountain pipeline, vowing to commit taxpayer money to expanding the pipeline despite widespread indigenous-led protests and a slew of lawsuits. If built, the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion will triple the amount of oil flowing from Alberta's tar sands to the coast of British Columbia. The Canadian government purchased the pipeline for 4.5 billion Canadian dollars—around 3.5 billion American dollars. The decision has sparked widespread condemnation from First Nations and environmental activists, who say that expanding the pipeline will increase pollution in Alberta's tar sands region, endanger indigenous communities and increase greenhouse gas emissions. We go to Edmonton, Canada, where we speak with Eriel Deranger, executive director of Indigenous Climate Action. She is a member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation.

Democracy Now! (2018-05-30). Headlines for May 30, 2018. democracynow.org Study: Hurricane Maria Deaths 70 Times Higher Than Official Count, Israel Launches Airstrikes in Gaza, Blocks Flotilla Seeking to Break Blockade, Poor People's Campaign: Hundreds Arrested Across U.S. in Nonviolent Protests, NYT: Trump Ordered Sessions to Un-Recuse Himself from Russia Investigation, GOP House Oversight Chair Says FBI "Acted Properly" Using Trump Campaign Informant, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens to Resign Amid Sexual Misconduct & Corruption Scandal, ABC Cancels "Roseanne" Amid Outcry over Roseanne Barr's Racist Tweets, Arkansas Left with One Clinic for Medication Abortions as Supreme Court OKs Anti-Choice Law, French Police Evict 1,000 Migrants as Macron Welcomes Malian "Spiderman" Rescuer to Élysée Palace, Hungary: Offering Food, Water, Legal Advice to Migrants to Become Criminal Offense, Russian Journalist Arkady Babchenko Admits Faking His Own Death | , Justice Dept. Approves $66B Takeover of Monsanto by German Pharma Giant Bayer, Canada to Buy, Expand Trans Mountain Tar Sands Oil Pipeline, New Mexico: Trans Woman Seeking Asylum in U.S. Dies in ICE Custody…

Cira Pascual Marquina (2018-05-22). Venezuela Slams New US Sanctions as Washington Hints at Oil Embargo. venezuelanalysis.com The latest measures fly in the face of international concern about the living conditions of Venezuelans.

Paul Dobson (2018-05-09). ConocoPhillips Moves to Seize Venezuelan Oil Assets as PDVSA Maneuvers to Safeguard Tankers. venezuelanalysis.com In response to the threat, PDVSA has allegedly ordered its fleet of tankers stationed in the Caribbean to return to Venezuelan waters.

Paul Dobson (2018-05-07). Venezuela: Zulia Governor Blames Illegal Crypto Mining for Continuing Regional Power Shortages. venezuelanalysis.com Sabotage, lack of maintenance, and climate change have also been offered to explain the crippling blackouts.