Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Sunday, March 27, 2016
The European Union Is Not a Security Union / Politics / European Union
By: STRATFOR
In the wake of any shocking event, national governments and officials of the European Union invariably call for more cooperation between member states to prevent anything similar happening in the future. The response to the March 22 terrorist attacks in Brussels has been no different.
Following the attacks, the governments of Germany, Italy, France and members of the European Commission demanded a global response to the terrorist threat. The commission's president, Jean-Claude Juncker, even proposed the creation of a "security union" to combat terrorism at the continental level. In a March 24 meeting, ministers at the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council highlighted the need to share information among member states to fight terrorism. But despite the calls for greater cooperation among EU members, the national interests of individual member states will prevail in the long run, limiting the possibility of integration within the bloc on security issues.
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Sunday, March 27, 2016
Making Higher Education Affordable and Accessible to Millions Globally -The New Strategies / Politics / Educating Children
By: Dr_R_M_Mathew
Higher Education, especially Universities, is heading towards a crisis of identity and relevance. For many, universities are just an extension of high or higher secondary schools and hence brought under ‘tertiary’ education. However, till recently, universities were unquestionable and sacramentally holy institutions charged with higher learning. Read full article... Read full article...
Sunday, March 27, 2016
Palmyra, West More Concerned with Rubble in the Desert than Syrian 'Human' Lives, Assad Propaganda / Politics / Syria
By: Nadeem_Walayat
I am increasingly finding the mainstream press reporting on the Syria conflict as completely ridiculous, akin to something out of a third world dictatorships propaganda war. This is most clearly illustrated by the barrage of stories over the past week concerning the Assad regime fighting to save Syria's Palmyra site, which is falling straight into the Assad's monstrous regimes propaganda to appease the sheeple of the west, who apparently forgotten about thousands of barrel bombs and Russian cluster bombs dropped on civilian areas.
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Brussels Terror Attacks, Death of the European Union, BrExit Wake up Call / Politics / European Union
By: Nadeem_Walayat
The Syrian civil war is coming home to roost to a fatally flawed European Union for the fundamental fact every EU nations borders begin with the borderline third world state of Greece, which along with the rest of eastern europe should never have been allowed to join the European Union as this weeks Brussels terror attacks just represent the tip of the ice-berg of full spectrum instability that is the European Union.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Brussels Attacks Tear at the Fabric of the European Union / Politics / European Union
By: STRATFOR
The March 22 terrorist attacks in Brussels come as the European Union is still reeling from the November Paris attacks and scrambling to solve the migrant crisis. More important, they come as nationalist forces are challenging key principles of the Continental bloc, including the free movement of labor and the Schengen Agreement, which eliminated border controls among several member states. The atmosphere of fear and suspicion that is sure to follow will only worsen these social, political and economic crises.
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Monday, March 21, 2016
Budget 2016: Borrowing, Lifetime ISA, House Prices, Economy, Syria, Brexit and Stocks / Politics / UK Tax & Budget
By: Nadeem_Walayat
Budget 2016 and its aftermath has given a window into the politics of the Conservative Party as Britain counts down to the EU Referendum (June 23rd). The plan was supposed to be for George Osborne to play ultra safe in the run up to the vote, but he appears to have been well and truly duped by Ian Duncan Smith (IDS), Britain's welfare minister who apparently whilst in agreement with the proposed benefits cuts before the budget speech that includes £1billion of cuts for the disabled. Instead now, suddenly after 6 years in the job of delivering benefits cuts he apparently has developed a conscious and decided to resign as he cannot go along with the latest series of cuts.
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Even As Russians Withdraw, Their Legacy in Syria Remains / Politics / Russia
By: STRATFOR
As the departure of Russian forces from Syria announced March 14 continues, evidence of construction at Russia's main air base in the country demonstrates Moscow’s intention to maintain a military presence there. Imagery dated March 17 acquired by Stratfor of the Bassel al Assad air base in Latakia province and the naval base at Tartus highlights the ongoing Russian drawdown of its forces in Syria that Moscow contends will be largely completed by March 20.
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Erdogan Repudiates Democracy, Freedom and Rule of Law / Politics / Turkey
By: Stephen_Lendman
Tyrants operate their own way, eliminating whatever interferes with their iron-fisted rule - Erdogan one of the region’s worst, a tinpot despot in a part of the world ruled by dictators.
Anyone supporting freedom fighting Kurds he calls “terrorists” are considered enemies of the state, subject to prosecution, imprisonment or assassination.
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Saturday, March 19, 2016
Delivering Quality Education for All Under the Threats of Islamic Terrorism, Refugee Crisis and Budget Cuts / Politics / Educating Children
By: Dr_R_M_Mathew
New Roles of UNESCO, Internet, Google and FacebookThe humanity is heading towards the unprecedented growth of ignorance and denial of education to millions of children all over the world, including those of the Islamic Terror-ridden Syria, Iraq, Libya, Nigeria and several other African countries. Islamic Terrorism has emerged as the darkest force to deny knowledge and education to its targeted victims, including girls, for, it fears Knowledge, Skills, Education and above all 'Women Empowerment' as the stumbling blocks for establishing its Caliphate or Islamic Republic.
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Saturday, March 19, 2016
Syria's Civil War 5 Years On Explained - 450k DEAD! EU Failure Prompting UK BrExit / Politics / Syria
By: Nadeem_Walayat
This week marks the fifth anniversary of Syria's civil war, that started with Arab spring inspired protests in the city of Derra, that within months engulfed the whole nations and which to date has seen over 450k people killed and 4 million externally displaced as pawns in the games of dictators such as Assad, Putin and Erdoğan of Turkey who today succeeded in black mailing europe into giving access to 80 million Turks for Syrian refugees, and then there is the shame of the whole of eastern europe who having flooded the west with 15 million economic migrants in return closed their borders to refuge seeking syrian refugees.
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
George Osborne's EU Referendum Bribes Budget 2016 Full Text / Politics / UK Tax & Budget
By: Submissions
George Osborne full budget statement: Mr Deputy Speaker, Today I report on an economy set to grow faster than any other major advanced economy in the world. I report on a labour market delivering the highest employment in our history. And I report on a deficit down by two thirds, falling each year and – I can confirm today – on course for a budget surplus. The British economy is stronger because we confronted our country’s problems and took the difficult decisions.
The British economy is growing because we didn’t seek short term fixes but pursued a long term economic plan. The British economy is resilient because whatever the challenge, however strong the headwinds, we have held to the course we set out.
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Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Corporatists Mobilize to Prevent TPP Opposition / Politics / TPP
By: BATR
No better example on how the actually world operates can be found than the Corporatist argument that all the opposition to TPP is just wrong. Really ??? Understand that the record of trade agreements have been greatly beneficial to Transnational Corporations. So it is natural that enterprises that seek to crush competition, favor the term FREE, when in reality the practice of conducting commerce on highly structured agreements, eliminates upstarts and squeeze out weak rivals. TPP has finally taken off the mask for all to see.
Monday, March 14, 2016
Climate Change Deniers, Loretta Lynch, and the Government War on Free Speech / Politics / US Politics
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
During her appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week, Attorney General Loretta Lynch admitted that she asked the FBI to examine whether the federal government should take legal action against so-called climate change deniers. Attorney General Lynch is not responding to any criminal acts committed by climate change skeptics. Instead, she is responding to requests from those frustrated that dissenters from the alleged climate change consensuses have successfully blocked attempts to create new government programs to fight climate change.
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Wednesday, March 09, 2016
Humans Are Hard-Wired to Value Some People over Others / Politics / Social Issues
By: MISES
Andrew Syrios writes: One of the most persistent — and fallacious — argument against the libertarian or laissez-faire position is that libertarianism is an “atomistic” and “selfish” philosophy that denies the obvious truth that human beings are a “social species” who long for a strong sense of community.
Wednesday, March 09, 2016
European Migrants Crisis - Be Careful What You Wish For, Angela / Politics / Refugee Crisis
By: Raul_I_Meijer
What is perhaps most remarkable about the deal the EU is trying to seal with Turkey to push back ALL refugees who come to Greece is that the driving force behind it turns out to be Angela Merkel. Reports say that she and temp EU chairman Dutch PM Mark Rutte ‘pushed back’ the entire EU delegation that had been working on the case, including Juncker and Tusk, and came with proposals that go much further than even Brussels had in mind.
Wednesday, March 09, 2016
President Obama Peddling Fiction, Ignoring Fact / Politics / US Politics
By: Peter_Schiff
In his seventh, and final, State of the Union address this January, President Obama, clearly looking to bolster his legacy as the president who vanquished the Great Recession, boldly asserted that "Anyone claiming that America's economy is in decline is peddling fiction." Unfortunately for the President, more and more Americans seem to believe (with an adequate basis in proof) that the fiction is emanating from the White House.
Wednesday, March 02, 2016
Fantasy Ceasefire in Syria / Politics / Syria
By: Stephen_Lendman
I’ve explained many times. Syria is Obama’s war. There’s nothing civil about it. Scoundrel media regurgitated state-sponsored propaganda falsely claims otherwise.
Endless war rages, US policymakers committed to replace its sovereign independence with US-controlled puppet governance - one of history’s greatest crimes toward this end of no consequence.
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Monday, February 29, 2016
First They Came For The iPhones... / Politics / Social Issues
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
The FBI tells us that its demand for a back door into the iPhone is all about fighting terrorism, and that it is essential to break in just this one time to find out more about the San Bernardino attack last December. But the truth is they had long sought a way to break Apple's iPhone encryption and, like 9/11 and the PATRTIOT Act, a mass murder provided just the pretext needed. After all, they say, if we are going to be protected from terrorism we have to give up a little of our privacy and liberty. Never mind that government spying on us has not prevented one terrorist attack.
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Sunday, February 28, 2016
Israel’s War on Palestine Ignored with World Focus on Syria / Politics / Palestine
By: Stephen_Lendman
Sunday, February 28, 2016
Regime Change in Turkey? More Likely Than You Think / Politics / Turkey
By: Mike_Whitney
On Friday, the United States rejected a draft resolution by Russia that was intended to prevent a Turkish invasion of Syria. Moscow had called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to address its growing concern that Turkey is planning to send thousands of ground troops and armored vehicles it has massed on its southern border, into Syria to protect Turkish-backed militants and to block the Kurdish militia, the YPG, from establishing a contiguous state in northern Syria. Moscow’s one-page resolution was a thoroughly-straightforward document aimed at preventing a massive escalation in a conflict that has already claimed the lives of 250, 000 and left the country in ruins.