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Proving That 'Activism Works,' Obama Vetoes Keystone XL Bill

Lauren McCauley Common Dreams
May Boeve, Executive Director of 350.org, which spearheaded the fight against the Keystone pipeline, heralded the move as "conclusive proof that activism works. After four years of rallies, marches, sit-ins, and civil disobedience, we’re thrilled to see President Obama take an important first step by vetoing this love letter to Big Oil." A coalition of environmental groups is holding a celebration outside of the White House in Lafayette Park.

Leaked Cables Show Netanyahu’s Iran Bomb Claim Contradicted by Mossad

Seumas Milne, Ewen MacAskill and Clayton Swisher The Guardian
Binyamin Netanyahu’s dramatic declaration to world leaders in 2012 that Iran was about a year away from making a nuclear bomb was contradicted by his own secret service, according to a top-secret Mossad document. It is part of a cache of hundreds of dossiers, files and cables from the world’s major intelligence services – one of the biggest spy leaks in recent times.

The Alternative in Greece

Stathis Kouvelakis Jacobin
So Greece will be receiving the tranche it had initially refused, but on the condition of sticking to the commitments of its predecessors. What we have then is a reaffirmation of the typical German stance of imposing — as a precondition for any agreement and any future disbursement of funding — completion of the “assessment” procedure by the tripartite mechanism (whether this is called “troika” or “institutions”) for supervision of every past and future agreement.

Media Bits and Bytes

portside
Barbie knows your secrets; YouTube transforms news; Press repression in India; Privacy = privilege; Termite radio

Labor Takes Final Stand as Wisconsin Prepares Way for Anti-Union Law

Ned Resnikoff Aljazeera American
“[Right-to-work] is going to bring everybody down,” said Russ Krings, the directing business representative for the Milwaukee union International Association of Machinists District 10, during a press conference with other labor leaders on Monday. “It’s going to affect not only the union families and nonunion families. It’s going to affect all the businesses that we go and spend our money at. This is going to bring the economy down."

Meet Cuban Ebola Fighters: Interview with Félix Báez and Jorge Pérez

Gail Reed, MS MEDICC Review: International Journal of Cuban Health and Medicine
When the Ebola global alarm was sounded by Doctors Without Borders, which, like Cuba, already had health professionals in Africa; Cuba was the country that offered the most assistance once WHO called for nations to step up with funds and, most importantly, human resources. Cuba sent 256 volunteers with significant international emergency experience while Cuba's Dr. Jorge Pérez and others work to prevent Ebola's global spread.

Cuba Through the Looking Glass

David Swanson Let's Try Democracy/Writing by David Swanson
The U.S. government is allowing tourists to bring home $100 worth of rum and cigars. And the U.S. State Department is working on a forthcoming list of products that Cubans can export to the United States. The list will not include numerous life-saving medicines currently unavailable in the United States, and not apparently because the U.S. government believes rum and cigars are better for its people than life-saving medicines. No, the reason is bizarre yet predictable.

The Play “Chavez Ravine”: A Tale of Ongoing Urban Removal

Jimmy Franco, Sr. LatinoPOV.com: A Latino Point of View in Today's World
Culture Clash's play about money, manipulation and red-baiting ending with destruction of a closely-knit LA Latino neighborhood over fifty years ago rings true today as the present economic power of developers and the drive to profitably exploit vulnerable communities within the central city and drastically change their ethnic, class and cultural composition continues to steadily displace the long-time residents of many neighborhoods.

Capital and Main: Investigating Power and Politics

Capital and Main Capital and Main
Capital and Main is a news website reporting on the current economy and our collective efforts to create a new and better one. Monday through Friday you will find original content covering politics, business, labor, jobs, the environment, culture – in other words, the economy and all the myriad areas of contemporary life that it touches.

Campus Action Toolkits: Fund the Future and State of Emergency

United States Student Association United States Student Association
USSA announces Campaign Toolkits are ready for USSA’s big campaigns: Fund The Future and State of Emergency. Toolkits are ready-to-go manuals everything from sample petitions and student government resolutions to tips on planning rallies and meet with legislators. Fund The Future is part of USSA’s efforts to win FREE Higher Education by doubling Pell Grants and increasing student eligibility. State of Emergency seeks to end racial profiling and restore voting rights.