The counting of votes in the September 19 Swedish parliamentary elections sent out shock waves.
The far right won its first parliamentary seats, and for the first time in modern Swedish political history, an incumbent non-Social Democrats government has been able to win a national election.
As such, the process of dismantling the Swedish welfare state is set to continue unabated.
The governing right-wing Alliance emerged as the largest bloc, but failed to keep its majority. With 173 seats, it is two seats short of controlling the assembly on its own.
854
When I heard about the strike that was planned by Italian Football players in Serie A league on September 25 and 26 (but has been postponed), I wondered what familiar refrains would be used to attack it.
The inevitable 鈥渕illionaires complaining about their conditions鈥 line was put by Yahoo Sports football blogger Brooks Peck in a September 12 piece.
Peck鈥檚 article mocks the idea that the 鈥渞ights鈥 of 鈥渓avishly paid鈥 players are being violated: 鈥淭his is Cambodian sweatshop type stuff.鈥
Ten years after the United Nations general assembly adopted the Millennium Development Goals, 鈥渢he fulfillment of these goals are under serious threat鈥, Venezuelan ambassador to the United Nations Jorge Valero told the general assembly on September 21.
The goals include cutting world hunger and the number of people living in extreme poverty by half
Bolivian President Evo Morales said they would not be reached unless 鈥渨e put an end to the unjust distribution of wealth鈥. He noted that 40% of the world鈥檚 poorest people own 5% of the wealth, while the richest 20% control 75%.
As if straight out of a Cold War era movie, US corporate media outlets such as the Miami Herald ran headlines on September 18 claiming scientists from Albuquerque 鈥渢ried to sell classified nuclear data to Venezuela鈥. Readers were no doubt shocked to read in the Miami Herald that 鈥渁n elderly maverick scientist who battled the scientific community for decades over laser fusion was indicted Friday in New Mexico, charged with trying to sell classified nuclear weapons data to Venezuela鈥.
The announcement by the Cuban Trade Union Confederation (CTC) on September 13 about plans to reduce the state sector workforce by half a million was greeted by jeering headlines from journalists outside the island.
Cuba is rarely of interest to the corporate press unless they believe there is some crisis to celebrate or that new measures can be interpreted as evidence of a shift from socialism to capitalism.
More than three million people took part in strikes and protests across France on September 23. They were demanding the withdrawal of laws that will dramatically reduce the right of workers to access pensions. The protests, which had been called by a coalition of seven of France鈥檚 union confederations, showed that the passage of the Pension Bill through France鈥檚 lower house of parliament had done nothing to weaken opposition to the attack on pensions.
The 2008 election of Barack Obama appeared to herald a new dawn for 12 million undocumented immigrants, many of them laboring in the US鈥檚 most exhausting and underpaid workplaces.
The president鈥檚 own aunt, 58-year-old Zeituni Onyango, was forced to live 鈥渨ithout papers鈥 in Boston when a judge rejected her original petition for asylum in 2004. So it seemed Obama would be sympathetic to the plight of immigrants at least.
However, mounting evidence indicates life is becoming increasingly miserable for the undocumented population in the US.
Protests against an attempt to stifle student participation in elections for representatives to faculty boards have triggered one of the most important student occupations seen in Central America in recent years.
The occupation, which began in August, has shut down Guatemala鈥檚 sole public university, the University of San Carlos (USC). It has become a direct challenge to the privatising agenda of successive governments and university administrations.
Campaigners for women鈥檚 reproductive rights are gearing up for a day of protest on October 9. A young woman and her partner from Cairns face charges under Queensland鈥檚 19th century criminal code for procuring an abortion. The trial date is set for October 12. A National Day of Action (NDA) will be marked by protests around the country, demanding that all charges against the couple be dropped.
The NDA is the initiative of three organisations: the Pro-Choice Action Collective in Brisbane, the Women鈥檚 Abortion Action Campaign in Sydney and Radical Women in Melbourne.
鈥淚 want to make films with a social purpose鈥, Newcastle-based film maker and activist Simon Cunich told 麻豆传媒 Weekly. 鈥淚 think every one has got a responsibility to persuade people and to inspire activism.鈥
Cunich, a member of Socialist Alliance, is completing a certificate in Screen and Media.
Newcastle is the largest exporter of coal in the world and Cunich said this 鈥渆nvironmental destruction鈥 has led to a hub of activism in opposition.
The statement below was released on September 24 by the International Action Centre,
* * *
We denounce the Federal Bureau of Investigation harassment of anti-war and solidarity activists in several states across the country.
The FBI began turning over six houses in Chicago and Minneapolis this morning, September 24, 2010, at 8am. The FBI handed subpoenas to testify before a federal grand jury to about a dozen activists in Illinois, Minnesota, and Michigan.
The heading at the top of the Emily鈥檚 List website says: 鈥淲hen women support women, women win.鈥 But not all women will be winners from Emily鈥檚 List.
If you鈥檙e an ALP candidate, the list wants you to win. It offers publicity, financial support, and networking to get you elected. Since it was set up in 1996, the political network dedicated to advancing progressive female candidates has donated $600,000 to election campaigns.
- Previous page
- Page 2
- Next page