Dear Friend,
Scientists now say it is likely that if human activities — such as burning oil, gas and coal along with deforestation — push carbon dioxide to such levels, the Earth’s global average temperature will most likely increase between 4.1 and 8.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 and 4.5 degrees Celsius). The previous and long-standing estimated range of climate sensitivity, as first laid out in a 1979 report, was 2.7 to 8.1 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 to 4.5 Celsius).
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In Solidarity
Binu Mathew
Editor
Countercurrents.org
Scientists finally see Earth’s climate
destiny more clearly
by Countercurrents Collective
These scientists now say it is likely that if human activities — such as burning oil, gas and coal along with deforestation — push carbon dioxide to such levels, the Earth’s global average temperature will most likely increase between 4.1 and 8.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 and 4.5 degrees Celsius). The previous and long-standing estimated range of climate sensitivity, as first laid out in a 1979 report, was 2.7 to 8.1 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 to 4.5 Celsius).
Human-caused carbon emissions islikely to trigger irreversible damage to the planet, according to a comprehensive international study released Wednesday. Researchers studying one of the most important and vexing topics in climate science — how sensitive the Earth’s climate is to a doubling of the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere — found that warming is extremely unlikely to be on the low end of estimates.
These scientists now say it is likely that if human activities — such as burning oil, gas and coal along with deforestation — push carbon dioxide to such levels, the Earth’s global average temperature will most likely increase between 4.1 and 8.1 degrees Fahrenheit (2.3 and 4.5 degrees Celsius). The previous and long-standing estimated range of climate sensitivity, as first laid out in a 1979 report, was 2.7 to 8.1 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 to 4.5 Celsius).
25 scientists have significantly narrowed the bounds on critical factor, known as climate sensitivity. The study is the payoff of decades of advances in climate science, says James Hansen, the famed retired NASA climate scientist who helped craft the first sensitivity range in 1979. “It is an impressive, comprehensive study, and I am not just saying that because I agree with the result. Whoever shepherded this deserves our gratitude.”
The assessment, conducted under the World Climate Research Program (WCRP) and published this week in Reviews of Geophysics, relies on three strands of evidence: trends indicated by contemporary warming, the latest understanding of the feedback effects that can slow or accelerate climate change, and lessons from ancient climates. They support a likely warming range of between 2.6°C and 3.9°C, says Steven Sherwood, one of the study’s lead authors and a climate scientist at the University of New South Wales. “This is the number that really controls how bad global warming is going to be.”
The study dispels uncertainty introduced by the latest climate models. Models have historically been used to estimate sensitivity, beginning in 1979, with the world’s first comprehensive assessment of CO2-driven climate change. That summer, at a meeting in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, led by Jule Charney, scientists produced a paper, known ever since as the Charney report, that predicted between 1.5°C and 4.5°C warming for a CO2 doubling. Those numbers — based in part on a model Hansen had developed — stuck around far longer than anyone imagined: The latest IPCC report, from 2013, gave the same range.
The scientists involved in the research say they have narrowed the range of probable climate outcomes, which reduces the uncertainty that has long plagued public debate about this field.
Their increased confidence about the sensitivity of the climate should ease the job of policymakers and diminish the scope for skepticism but it is far from reassuring for the future of the planet.
Humanity has already emitted enough CO2 to be halfway to the doubling point of 560 parts per million, and many emissions scenarios have the planet reaching that threshold by 2060. The report underscores the risks of that course: It rules out the milder levels of warming sometimes invoked by those who would avoid emissions cuts. “For folks hoping for something better, those hopes are less grounded in reality,” says David Victor, a climate policy researcher at the University of California, San Diego, who was not part of the study.
The WCRP sensitivity estimate is designed to be used by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) when it publishes its next major report in 2021 or 2022. The estimate will also inform projections for sea-level rise, economic damage, and much else.
A clearer picture of those consequences could do much to spur local governments to cut emissions and adapt to warming, says Diana Reckien, a climate-planning expert at the University of Twente. “The decreasing uncertainty could potentially motivate more jurisdictions to act.”
Recent models suggest the range might even go higher. They run hot, some predicting warming of more than 5°C for a CO2 doubling, apparently because of the way they render clouds, especially over the Southern Ocean. Yet these high-end models struggle to accurately recreate the climate of the 20th century, undermining their credibility. Such models play only a supporting role in the new assessment, says Robert Kopp, a climate scientist at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, who was not involved in the effort. “We now have enough independent lines of evidence that we don’t need to use the climate models as their own line.”
The scientists probed individual climate feedbacks. Some of these, like the warming effect of water vapor, are well known. But clouds, which can cool or warm the planet depending on how they reflect sunlight and trap heat, have long been a wild card. In particular, climate scientists want to understand the decks of stratocumulus clouds that form off coastlines. If they grow more extensive in response to warming, as some suspect, they could have a cooling effect.
The scientists looked at records from two past climates — 20,000 years ago, at the peak of the last ice age, and a warm period 3 million years ago, the last time atmospheric CO2 levels were similar to today’s. Recent work suggests climate sensitivity is not a fixed property of the planet, but changes over time. During warm periods, for instance, the absence of ice sheets probably raised sensitivity. Records of ancient temperatures and CO2 levels enabled the team to pin down sensitivities of 2.5°C and 3.2°C for the cold and warm periods, respectively. “It’s really comprehensive,” says Jessica Tierney, a paleoclimatologist at the University of Arizona, who was not part of the report. Even for the coldest climate state, she says, the possibility of a sensitivity below 2°C seems negligible.
Assembling the three lines of evidence was a huge task. But wiring them together for a unified prediction was even tougher, Marvel says. The team used Bayesian statistics to churn through its assembled data, which allowed the researchers to test how their assumptions influence the results. “The real advantage” of Bayesian statistics, Tierney says, is how it allows uncertainties at each stage to feed into a final result. Co-authors often butted heads, Marvel says. “It was such a long and painful process.” The final range represents a 66% confidence interval, matching IPCC’s traditional “likely” range. The WCRP team also calculated a 90% confidence interval, which ranges from 2.3°C to 4.7°C, leaving a slight chance of a warming above 5°C.
Either way, the report has a simple takeaway, Sherwood says: A doubling of CO2 all but guarantees warming of more than 2°C. “Three major lines of evidence are all very difficult to reconcile with the lower end of climate sensitivity.”
In recent years, another uncertainty in the climate future has also narrowed: Global emissions seem unlikely to reach the worst-case scenarios IPCC helped craft 15 years ago, ruling out some forecasts of extreme warming. “We’re light-years ahead of where we were in 1979,” says Reto Knutti, a co-author and climate scientist at ETH Zurich.
Unfortunately, the years of work needed to attain that certainty came with a cost: 4 decades of additional emissions and global warming, unabated.
“The main message is that unfortunately we can’t expect that luck will save us from climate change,” Reto Knutti, professor of climate physics at ETH Zurich’s Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science.
“The good thing is that we’ve somewhat narrowed the range of future long-term warming, the bad thing is that we can no longer hope or claim that the problem will just magically go away.”
“It is moderately good news. It reduces the likelihood of some of the catastrophically high estimates. If we were planning for the worst, the worst has become less likely,” said one of the authors, Zeke Hausfather, of the Energy and Resources Group at University of California Berkeley. “But fundamentally, it means we must do more to limit climate change. We are not anywhere near on track to do that.”
This confluence of sources has allowed scientists to estimate with a 90% level of probability that climate sensitivity is between 2.3C and 4.7C. The most likely level of climate sensitivity has nudged slightly above 3C. Hausfather says a figure below 2C is extremely unlikely. Above 5C remains possible, though the study lowers that likelihood to 10%.
Earlier this year, a handful of climate models, including some of the world’s most advanced, suggested climate sensitivity could be above 5C, prompting alarm.
These high figures were not included in this week’s study, but many climate scientists regard the recent higher numbers as outliers that should not be taken out of the broader context.
A vaccine for COVID-19: So near and yet so far
by Shobha Shukla
With the numbers of those infected with COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) escalating everyday globally we are indeed wading through turbulent waters with no end at sight. Scientists around the world are literally burning the midnight oil,
searching frantically for a treatment to rid the world of this pandemic. It is a race between humans and the virus. And although it is too early to predict anything, their efforts for developing a vaccine have met with some initial successes, with 5 candidate vaccines having entered phase-3 of their clinical trials
With the numbers of those infected with COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) escalating everyday globally we are indeed wading through turbulent waters with no end at sight. Scientists around the world are literally burning the midnight oil, searching frantically for a treatment to rid the world of this pandemic. It is a race between humans and the virus. And although it is too early to predict anything, their efforts for developing a vaccine have met with some initial successes, with 5 candidate vaccines having entered phase-3 of their clinical trials. And as we wait with bated breath for the magic vaccine, a historic moment has already set in with the large scale manufacturing of some of these vaccines already begun, including in India.
Saving human lives has primacy over money
This is an unprecedented move – to start producing large quantities of vaccines irrespective of the final outcome of the trials. It is a calculated risk that philanthropic organisations and some governments are ready to take by giving precedence to saving human lives over losing money (in case the vaccine does not make it to the final milestone). It will ensure timely and large-scale availability of doses in case that particular vaccine is successful.
AZD1222
One such candidate vaccine is AZD1222 that is being developed jointly by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca. The Pune-based Serum Institute of India, the largest vaccine manufacturer in the world, that has entered into a manufacturing partnership with AstraZeneca, has committed to manufacture 1 billion (100 crore) doses of this vaccine and has already commenced production.
“This is a big, yet deliverable, assurance for global health as India is already the biggest manufacturer and supplier of more than 60% different kinds of vaccines worldwide. It is vital to ensure that manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccine remains in countries like India so that the world can have access to cheap and affordable prevention against the dreaded virus, without delay by ensuring equitable distribution”, said Dr Ishwar Gilada, senior infectious diseases expert, and Secretary General of Organized Medicine Academic Guild (OMAG). Dr Gilada is also the President of AIDS Society of India, and on the governing council of International AIDS Society (IAS).
India is also likely to participate in phase-3 clinical trial of AZD1222. As per a news report, Serum Institute of India said it will apply for a licence from the Indian regulator to start clinical trials of the vaccine in the country very soon. Dr S Natarajan, President of Organised Medicine Academic Guild (OMAG) and a Padmashree awardee (among the highest civilian honours in the country) hoped that the Indian Government will play a proactive role and expedite clearance to conduct these trials in India. While cautioning that “the results of phase-3 clinical trial will be very important to decide the safety, effectiveness and roll-out of the vaccine for public health use”, he conceded that the initial results of this study give hope and that India should be proud to be a part of this initiative.
The results of the Phase-1/2 trial of AZD1222 published in The Lancet, indicate no early safety concerns and no serious side effects by the vaccine in 1077 trial participants aged 18-55 years. The vaccine produced a dual immune response that lasted till at least 56 days after they were immunised. Not only did it produce antibodies, which are the immune system’s natural response, but it also produced T-cells that directly kill virus infected cells and are said to last much longer in the human body as compared to the protective antibodies.
Large scale Phase-3 clinical trials are currently underway in the UK (8000 participants) and Brazil (5000 participants) and are due to start in USA (30,000 participants), South Africa (2000 participants) as well as in India (10,000 participants).
4 more vaccines entering phase-3: WHO
As per WHO, apart from AZD1222, their are 4 other vaccines (out of the 24 candidate vaccines currently in clinical evaluation stages) that have entered phase-3 clinical trials, after successfully completing phases-1 and 2 (phases 1 and 2 evaluate safety, immunogenicity and efficacy of the vaccine in a small number of trial participants while in phase-3 the safety, immunogenicity and effectiveness of the potential vaccine is tested in a broader population – often multicountry – over a longer period of time).
Three of these are by Chinese companies, and one is being developed by an American firm Moderna Inc in collaboration with the US government’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of National Institutes of Health (NIH).
US-based biotechnology company Moderna, supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is developing a potential coronavirus vaccine candidate mRNA-1273. In fact, Moderna was the first organization to start human trials of mRNA-1273 on March 16, 2020 – 5 days after WHO had termed COVID-19 as a pandemic. The initial phase-1/2 trial has shown promising results. Phase-3 trials are planned to begin this month (in July) on 30,000 participants in USA.
China’s state-run Sinopharm Group Co is working on two COVID-19 vaccines being developed by its subsidiary China National Biotec Group Co. (CNBG). As reported by Bloomberg News, these two experimental vaccines are already being offered to employees of large state-owned companies who intend to travel overseas for work. Administering an investigational vaccine (that is still being evaluated in clinical trials) to people outside of the clinical trial protocol is unusual indeed. China National Biotec Group Co. (CNBG) is aiming to produce 200 million doses of inactivated COVID-19 vaccines a year.
China’s Beijing-based Sinovac Biotech has also announced positive results from its Phase-1/2 clinical trials of its vaccine CoronaVac and will start phase-3 trials on 9,000 healthcare professionals working in COVID-19 specialised facilities in Brazil and on 4,200 healthcare workers of 7 COVID-19 dedicated hospitals in Bangladesh.
An ideal vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoronaVirus-2) should be safe and effective after one or two vaccinations; provide protection for a minimum of 6 months and protect old and young alike, including immunocompromised individuals and those with co-morbidities.
Agrees Dr Ishwar Gilada that while phase-3 clinical trials move ahead for these and other vaccines in the pipeline, it is the duty of all the governments, including the Indian government, to be geared to ensure that scientific breakthroughs translate into public health gains without any unnecessary delays. Whenever a safe and effective vaccine for COVID-19 becomes available for public health use, we must have strong health systems and other regulatory mechanisms already in place to be able to deliver it to those most in need of it globally.
Never before the world has conducted a vaccine research so quickly without compromising safety or scientific integrity. It is important to know if a vaccine is safe, immunogenic and effective in protecting us against coronavirus – and – it is equally important to ensure that everyone of us, especially those more vulnerable, to get it as soon as possible. Dr Anthony S Fauci, Director of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) had said: “What happens is that in the standard way of developing a vaccine, you don’t jump to invest in the next step until you’re pretty sure that the step you’re in is working… Given the fact that we needed to do this as quickly as possible without sacrificing safety or scientific integrity, the federal government partnered with multiple of these companies and said, we’re going to move fast and we’re going to assume we’re going to be successful. And if we are, we’ve saved several months. And if we’re not, the only thing we’ve lost is money. But better lose money than lose lives by delaying the vaccine.”
Shobha Shukla is the founding Managing Editor of CNS (Citizen News Service) and is a noted gender justice advocate. She is a former senior faculty of Loreto Convent College and current Coordinator of Asia Pacific Media Network to end TB & tobacco and prevent NCDs. Follow her on Twitter @shobha1shukla
– Shared under Creative Commons (CC)
Anglo Mainstream Censors List Of 60 Holocaust & Genocide Atrocities
by Dr Gideon Polya
In recent years there has been increasing censorship of Alternative media by the Mainstream. Google is owned by Alphabet, the world’s biggest media organization, and has a bad record of censoring progressive voices. I have just published a 400-page book “US-Imposed Post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide” that contains a List of 60 Holocaust and Genocide atrocities (many UK- or US-imposed). However a Countercurrents article about the book and including this List has
suddenly been rendered “invisible” by Google.
In recent years there has been increasing censorship of Alternative media by the Mainstream. Google is owned by Alphabet, the world’s biggest media organization, and has a bad record of censoring progressive voices. I have just published a 400-page book “US-Imposed Post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide” that contains a List of 60 Holocaust and Genocide atrocities (many UK- or US-imposed). However a Countercurrents article about the book and including this List has suddenly been rendered “invisible” by Google.
As part of a global campaign to publicize my book (“US-Imposed Post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide” by Gideon Polya, Korsgaard Publishing, Germany, 4 June 2020: https://www.amazon.com/US-Imposed-Post-9-Muslim-Holocaust-Genocide/dp/8793987056 ),
I sent details of the book (notably including the Table of Contents) to journalists, politicians, activists and scholars around the world. However after 40 days there was utter Silence from the Mainstream and so I published an article in Countercurrents entitled Gideon Polya, “Racist Mainstream ignores “US-Imposed Post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide””, Countercurrents, 17 July 2020: https://countercurrents.org/2020/07/racist-mainstream-ignores-us-imposed-post-9-11-muslim-holocaust-muslim-genocide/ .
I followed this up by sending the following further letter to thousands of people around the world:
START LETTER. Dear etc,
“US-Imposed Post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide” by Gideon Polya (Korsgaard Publishing, Germany, 4 June 2020) details the 21st century Muslim Holocaust (over 30 million premature deaths from violence or imposed deprivation in 20 countries invaded by the US Alliance since 9/11 ) as well as 60 other variously past or ongoing holocausts and genocides. Thousands in the Mainstream were apprised over 40 days, but the Silence has been Deafening. Evidently black and brown lives don’t matter to the racist Mainstream.
“Deaths from violence and imposed deprivation” are well reported for the WW2 Jewish Holocaust (5-6 million) but are largely ignored for the WW2 European Holocaust of Slavs, Jews and Roma (30 million), the Australia-complicit, UK-imposed WW2 Bengali Holocaust (6-7 million), the WW2 Chinese Holocaust (35-40 million), and ongoing atrocities such as the Australian Aboriginal Genocide (2 million), the Palestinian Genocide (2 million), the Global Avoidable Mortality Holocaust (1,500 million post-1950 deaths from deprivation), the post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust (over 30 million), and the worsening Climate Genocide (in the absence of requisite climate action, 10 billion to die prematurely this century en route to a sustainable human population in 2100 of only 0.5-1.0 billion).
The Epilogue of the book alphabetically lists 60 mostly “forgotten” holocaust and genocide atrocities with deaths from violence and imposed deprivation in brackets in each case. One can envisage monuments detailing all these atrocities being erected in every city in every country in the world. Holocaust ignored yields holocaust repeated. Peace is the only way but silence kills and silence is complicity. Please tell everyone you can (for details see Gideon Polya, “Racist Mainstream ignores “US-Imposed Post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide””, Countercurrents, 17 July 2020: https://countercurrents.org/2020/07/racist-mainstream-ignores-us-imposed-post-9-11-muslim-holocaust-muslim-genocide/ and https://www.amazon.com/US-Imposed-Post-9-Muslim-Holocaust-Genocide/dp/8793987056 ).
Yours sincerely, Dr Gideon Polya, Melbourne, Australia END LETTER
Within a few days, through whatever mechanism, the Google Robot suddenly ceased recognizing the URL (Uniform Resource Locator or web address) of my Countercurrents article. As of 23 July 2020 a Bing Search for “Racist Mainstream ignores “US-Imposed Post-9/11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide”” yielded 16,500 results (with my Countercurrents article #1 on page #1) whereas a Google Search failed to elicit the Countercurrents article per se in 6 results ( although the #1 result was a re-publication of my article in an on-line magazine called JUST: http://www.just-international.org/articles/racist-mainstream-ignores-us-imposed-post-9-11-muslim-holocaust-muslim-genocide/ ). A further Google Search including numerous results omitted in the Initial Search still failed to elicit the Countercurrents article URL per se.
Reproduced below is the List of 60 Holocausts and Genocides published by Countercurrents in an article thus rendered “invisible” by the Google Robot.
Deaths in holocausts, genocides and famines and deriving from actual violence or from imposed deprivation are given in brackets as follows for the following alphabetically listed atrocities:
1978-1997 Afghan Genocide and Afghan Holocaust (6 million),
2001 onwards Afghan Genocide and Afghan Holocaust (7 million),
15th – 19th century African Holocaust (slave trade; 6 million),
16th century onwards Amerindian Genocide (90 million),
19th century Argentinian Indian Genocide (1 million),
1915-1923 Armenian Genocide (1.5 million),
post-1950 Asian Holocaust due to Australia-complicit US Asian Wars (40 million),
1914-1924 Assyrian Genocide (Syriac Genocide; 0.2-0.3 million),
1788 onwards Australian Aboriginal Genocide and Aboriginal Ethnocide (2 million),
1769-1770, Bengal Famine (10 million),
1942-1945 WW2 Bengali Holocaust, WW2 Bengal Famine and WW2 Indian Holocaust (6-7 million),
1971-1972 Bengali Holocaust and gendercide (3.0 million),
1967-1970, Biafran Genocide (2 million),
1990s Bosnian Genocide (circa 0.1 million),
20th century Brazilian Indigenous Genocide (1 million),
1969-1998 Cambodian Genocide (6.0 million),
19th century Chinese Holocaust (Opium wars and Tai Ping rebellion; 20-100 million),
1937-1945 WW2 Chinese Holocaust (35 million),
1958-1961 Chinese Holocaust of the Great Leap Forward (20-30 million),
19th -20th century Congo Genocide (Belgian Congo) (10 million),
1960 onwards Congolese Genocide and Congolese Holocaust (20 million),
1984-1985 Ethiopian famine (1 million),
1939-1945 WW2 European Holocaust (30 million Slavs, Jews and Roma killed),
1941-1950 German Genocide and German Holocaust (9 million),
Global Avoidable Mortality Holocaust (1,500 million since 1950),
1960-1996, Guatemala Mayan Indian Genocide (1.9 million),
1757-1947 Indian Holocaust from famine and deprivation (1,800 million),
1947 Indian Holocaust due to Partition (1.0 million),
1918-1920 Influenza epidemic (50-100 million),
1917-1919 Iranian Famine (2 million),
1978 onwards Iranian Holocaust and Iranian Genocide (3 million),
2003-2011 21st century Iraqi Genocide and Iraqi Holocaust (2.7 million),
1990-2011 Iraqi Genocide and Iraqi Holocaust (4.6 million),
1914-2011 Iraqi Genocide and Iraqi Holocaust (9 million),
1939-1945 WW2 Jewish Holocaust, Shoa (5-6 million),
1950-1953 Korean Genocide and Korean Holocaust (5.2 million),
1840s Irish Famine (2 million),
1955-1975 Laotian Genocide (1.2 million),
2011 Libyan Genocide (0.2 million),
19th century Maori Genocide in New Zealand (0.2 million),
2000 onwards 21st century Muslim Genocide and Muslim Holocaust (32 million),
1900s Namibian Genocide (0.1 million),
17th – 19th century North American Indian Genocide (up to 18 million),
1916 onwards Palestinian Genocide and Palestinian Holocaust (2.2 million),
1865-1870 Paraguay Genocide (1 million)
1939-1945 WW2 Polish Genocide and Polish Holocaust (6 million),
21st century Rohingya Genocide (circa 0.1 million),
1921-1922 Russian famine, Povolzhye famine (5 million),
1930-1953 Russian Holocaust under Stalin (20 million),
1994 Rwandan Genocide (0.9 million),
1992 onwards Somali Genocide and Somali Holocaust (2.2 million),
19th century South Pacific Genocide via disease (0.1 million),
1930-1953 Soviet Holocaust under Stalin (20 million),
1955-2018 Sudan Genocide and Sudan Holocaust (13 million),
2011 onwards Syrian Genocide (1.0 million),
1990-2018 Tamil Genocide in Sri Lanka (0.2 million),
1975-1999 East Timorese Genocide (0.3 million),
1930s Ukrainian Famine, Holodomor (7 million),
1945-1975 Vietnamese Genocide and Vietnamese Holocaust (15.3 million),
2015 onwards Yemeni Genocide (circa 0.1 million) (my sincere apologies for any absences or underestimates).
Final comments.
Holocaust ignoring and genocide ignoring are far, far worse than repugnant holocaust denying and genocide denying because the latter can at least permit refutation and public discussion. Holocaust ignored yields holocaust repeated. Genocide ignored yields genocide repeated. History ignored yields history repeated. Peace is the only way but silence kills and silence is complicity. Please tell everyone you can. Lest we forget.
Dr Gideon Polya taught science students at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia for 4 decades. He published some 130 works in a 5 decade scientific career, most recently a huge pharmacological reference text “Biochemical Targets of Plant Bioactive Compounds” (CRC Press/Taylor & Francis, New York & London , 2003). He has published “Body Count. Global avoidable mortality since 1950” (G.M. Polya, Melbourne, 2007: http://globalbodycount.blogspot.com/ ); see also his contributions “Australian complicity in Iraq mass mortality” in “Lies, Deep Fries & Statistics” (edited by Robyn Williams, ABC Books, Sydney, 2007: http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/ockhamsrazor/australian-complicity-in-iraq-mass-mortality/3369002#transcript ) and “Ongoing Palestinian Genocide” in “The Plight of the Palestinians (edited by William Cook, Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2010: https://countercurrents.org/polya170612.htm ). He has published a revised and updated 2008 version of his 1998 book “Jane Austen and the Black Hole of British History” (see: http://janeaustenand.blogspot.com/ ) as biofuel-, globalization- and climate-driven global food price increases threaten a greater famine catastrophe than the man-made famine in British-ruled India that killed 6-7 million Indians in the “forgotten” World War 2 Bengal Famine (see recent BBC broadcast involving Dr Polya, Economics Nobel Laureate Professor Amartya Sen and others: http://www.open.edu/openlearn/history-the-arts/history/social-economic-history/listen-the-bengal-famine ; Gideon Polya: https://sites.google.com/site/drgideonpolya/home ; Gideon Polya Writing: https://sites.google.com/site/gideonpolyawriting/ ; Gideon Polya, Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gideon_Polya ). He has recently published Gideon Polya, “US-imposed Post-9-11 Muslim Holocaust & Muslim Genocide”, Korsgaard Publishing, Germany, 2020 (for details see: https://korsgaardpublishing.com/portfolio/23945/ ).When words fail one can say it in pictures – for images of Gideon Polya’s huge paintings for the Planet, Peace, Mother and Child see: http://sites.google.com/site/artforpeaceplanetmotherchild/ and http://www.flickr.com/photos/gideonpolya/ .
The Road: Uprising in West Papua by John Martinkus
by Dr Vacy Vlazna
There are two good reasons to read John Martinkus’ most recent book, The Road: Uprising in West Papua. First reason; as an act of defiant resistance to the censorship on the truth of the 50 years of Indonesia’s brutal occupation of West Papua endorsed by western governments mainly Australia, USA, the UN. Through his own experiences and those of his colleagues such as the death of Mark Worth, Martinkus reveals, the violent and lethal intimidation against journalists that enforces the censorship and hence the impunity for the Indonesian war crimes against generations of West Papuan people.
There are two good reasons to read John Martinkus’ most recent book, The Road: Uprising in West Papua.
First reason; as an act of defiant resistance to the censorship on the truth of the 50 years of Indonesia’s brutal occupation of West Papua endorsed by western governments mainly Australia, USA, the UN. Through his own experiences and those of his colleagues such as the death of Mark Worth, Martinkus reveals, the violent and lethal intimidation against journalists that enforces the censorship and hence the impunity for the Indonesian war crimes against generations of West Papuan people.
Our act of resistance moreover connects us to the intrepid West Papuans who have upheld, despite the the media blackout and international betrayals, their rightful struggle for independence against Indonesia’s relentless terror, cruelty and slaughter detailed by Martinkus.
And so, we, thus morally empowered with the truth, like Martinkus “cannot walk away from the human rights workers, the local activists, the rebels who sacrificed their lives, the unarmed students and ordinary people who faced jail, beatings and bullets simply for marching in the street or attending a funeral or raising a flag.”
Second reason; in this age of an irrelevant and cowering media that spews government propaganda and fake news, we get to encounter a a journalist and war correspondent, with capital ‘I’ Integrity.
Martinkus is and always has been a maverick, a man unto himself and unto the truth; his magnificent raison d’être is his revealing to the world the injustices imposed on truly courageous indigenous men, women and children in East Timor, Acheh, West Papua, Iraq, Afghanistan Sri Lanka, Burma who stood and stand mainly alone against the imminent annihilation of their lives, land and culture.
Former Australian foreign minister and Indonesian apologist, Gareth Evans’s Indonesian mate Ali Alatas referred to East Timor as ‘a pebble in Indonesia’s shoe’. As an Australian, Martinkus can claim kudos for being an irritant in the shoe of America’s useful idiot – the Australian government. In 2004, when Martinkus was kidnapped in Iraq, he was contemptibly attacked by the Australian foreign minister, Alexander Downer;
“I think Foreign Minister Downer is in danger of once again exhibiting his incompetence as Foreign Minister of Australia. Mr Downer apparently has said that this journalist, John Martinkus, had ignored official advice and had travelled to a dangerous part of the city, whereas what we have now is Mr Martinkus the journalist saying that in fact he was outside the only hotel in Baghdad occupied by journalists, and that it was directly across the road from the Australian embassy.” Kevin Rudd
This is the same Alexander Downer who authorised the illegal bugging of Timor Leste’s cabinet room during the negotiations on the gas and oil resources in the Timor Gap.
Paradoxically, criticism of Martinkus by base Australian and Indonesian politicians enhances his credibility and journalistic soundness.
Other books by John Martinkus: A Dirty Little War ( East Timor) Travels in American Iraq, Indonesia’s Secret War in Aceh.
Dr. Vacy Vlazna is Coordinator of Justice for Palestine Matters and editor of a volume of Palestinian poetry, I remember my name. She was Human Rights Advisor to the GAM team in the second round of the Acheh peace talks, Helsinki, February 2005 then withdrew on principle. Vacy was convenor of Australia East Timor Association and coordinator of the East Timor Justice Lobby as well as serving in East Timor with UNAMET and UNTAET from 1999-2001.
Why Palestinian-Israeli Prisoners Exchange Deal Could Happen Soon?
by Dr Ramzy Baroud
For the first time since the Israeli war on Gaza in 2014, the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is signaling its willingness to engage in negotiations regarding the release of the bodies of two Israeli soldiers believed to be held by resistance groups in Gaza. But will another prisoner exchange similar to that of October 2011 follow anytime soon?
For the first time since the Israeli war on Gaza in 2014, the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is signaling its willingness to engage in negotiations regarding the release of the bodies of two Israeli soldiers believed to be held by resistance groups in Gaza. But will another prisoner exchange similar to that of October 2011 follow anytime soon?
On July 9, Palestinian and Israeli media reported on an Israeli government communication sent to the Palestinian group, Hamas, through an intermediary. It included an Israeli offer to swap the bodies of Palestinians held in Israel in exchange for the bodies of the two soldiers, Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin.
Alternatively, Israel is offering the release of some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons, so long as they have “no blood on their hands”, an Israeli reference to Palestinian prisoners who have not taken part in direct attacks that may have led to the killing of Israeli occupation soldiers or armed illegal Jewish settlers.
Hamas and others quickly dismissed the Israeli proposal as a non-starter for a serious negotiation. The Palestinian group had already indicated that it will not negotiate any prisoner exchange deal with Israel until the latter releases scores of Palestinian prisoners who were re-arrested in the months and years following the 2011 exchange.
What was then termed by Israel as the ‘Gilad Shalit deal’, saw the release of 1,027 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for securing the release of an Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, who was captured by Palestinian fighters near the Gaza-Israel fence in 2006.
However, even while Palestinians were still celebrating the return of hundreds of their loved ones, Israel began re-arresting many of the newly-released prisoners under various pretenses, rendering the entire exercise futile.
Moreover, Israel began quickly replenishing its prisons with new arrivals, from various Palestinian factions, genders, and age groups.
In the 2011 exchange, Israel also refused to release senior Palestinian political figures from Fatah, Hamas, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), the Islamic Jihad and other groups. This decision had derailed negotiations for months, and was understood as Israel’s way of wanting to hold on to many prominent Palestinian figures as bargaining chips for future negotiations.
These figures include Fatah’s most popular leader, Marwan Barghouti, PFLP leader Ahmad Sa’adat, among others.
In 2014, Israel also re-arrested Nael Barghouti, from his home in Kobar, near Ramallah, making him the longest-held Palestinian prisoner in Israeli prisons. Barghouti is a particularly important bargaining chip for Israel.
It must be said that the reason that Israel is quite generous in these prisoner exchanges is not due, as some claim, to the notion that Israel values the life of its citizens to the extent that it is willing to exchange them with a disproportionately large number of Palestinians.
If that logic was correct, why does Israel then transfer its own citizens, including children, to dangerous and highly-militarized illegal West Bank Jewish settlements?
If Israel truly values the lives of its citizens, it would have, long ago, dismantled the illegal settlements and tried, in earnest, to reach a just peace agreement with the Palestinian leadership.
Instead, Israeli leaders, who often trigger wars for their own political benefits, as Netanyahu has done repeatedly in the past, use prisoner exchanges also as a means to garner positive political capital and favorable media coverage.
Netanyahu, whose image has been significantly tarnished due to his ongoing corruption investigation and trial, is laboring to distract from his own personal woes by diverting attention elsewhere. Now that his illegal annexation of West Bank land scheme has been postponed, he is in desperate need of another battle that would present him as some kind of hero in the eyes of Israelis, especially his right-wing constituency.
Aside from the bodies of the two soldiers, two Israelis, Avram Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who had allegedly crossed the fence into Gaza by mistake, are also held in the Strip. Future TV footage of two coffins, draped by Israeli flags, along with two other Israelis being set free, would certainly prove to be a huge boost for the embattled Israeli leader.
Palestinian groups in Gaza understand this well. They also know that an opportunity of this nature might not present itself again for years. Therefore, they are keen to ensure a future prisoner exchange satisfies three major points: first, the release of all re-arrested prisoners since 2011; second, the release of as many Palestinians as possible out of the over 5,000 currently held in Israeli prisons; and, finally, the release of top Palestinian prisoners representing the various PLO and Islamic factions.
The latter point, in particular, is quite significant, because the traditional rivals, Hamas and Fatah, have been actively pursuing a politically united front in the face of the imminent Israeli annexation of nearly 30% of the West Bank. The release of top Fatah leaders, such as Marwan Barghouti, for example, shall have immense positive impact on Palestinian public mood, especially among Fatah supporters, boosting the unity talks like never before.
Israel, of course, will do its utmost to prevent Palestinians from unifying their political ranks but, considering the fact that Palestinians are holding four Israelis in Gaza, the cards are not entirely in Netanyahu’s hands.
This is not to suggest that Palestinian groups are not feeling the pressure as well. The families of thousands of imprisoned Palestinians are desperate for some good news regarding their loved ones, especially as health conditions among prisoners are deteriorating due to the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
On July 9, Saadi al-Gharably died at Kaplan medical center, due to what Palestinian prisoners advocacy groups describe as ‘medical neglect’. Later, prisoner Kamal Abu Wa’ar, a cancer patient from the Jenin area, was tested positive for COVID-19 disease.
Various signs indicate that a prisoner exchange between Israel and Palestinian groups is drawing near. The question is, will Netanyahu unleash his winning political card now, or will he wait till later, when he needs it most?
– Ramzy Baroud is a journalist and the Editor of The Palestine Chronicle. He is the author of five books. His latest is “These Chains Will Be Broken: Palestinian Stories of Struggle and Defiance in Israeli Prisons” (Clarity Press, Atlanta). Dr. Baroud is a Non-resident Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Islam and Global Affairs (CIGA), Istanbul Zaim University (IZU). His website is www.ramzybaroud.net
That Damn Camouflage Again!!
by Philip A Farruggio
To watch those Ninja agents in Portland this past weekend swinging their batons and spraying the pepper, with their killer guns by their side, paints a terrible portrait of Amerika. Where is the outrage by most of this nation?
If you watch old footage of WW2 US Army commanders, like Marshall, Eisenhower and even George Patton, they wore regular dress uniforms when not in the midst of combat. Camouflage was worn only in areas of combat, never back at the base or domestically. So, what happened that camouflage has become the ‘ In ‘ garment for this empire’s military? Do you remember when we illegally ( and immorally ) attacked and then occupied Iraq? This writer remembers, quite vividly, when they held press conferences at one of the command headquarters after the slaughter. There stood one of our generals at the podium answering reporters’ questions… in camouflage! Probably the safest place in all of occupied Iraq, and this clown is head to toe in camouflage! Then, a few years down the ‘ rabbit hole road of illegal occupation’ one recalls the time that the new president, Obama, called for Col. McChrystal to see him ASAP. Obama was aboard the presidential jet parked in an airfield in Denver when McChrystal arrived… in camouflage!! Imagine if during WW2 FDR requested to see a general ASAP. No way in hell the general would be in camouflage. No way!
So, we know that the use of camouflage ( I refuse to use the current common moniker of ‘ Camo’) is strictly for a show of power. Seeing an armed US federal agent in camouflage patrolling the streets must cause some consternation. Yes? Factor that in with those Ninja helmets and the Swat Team boots, and you have all the makings of a POLICE STATE! After 9/11 they pulled that same crap with our military guarding the airports… in camouflage. The message, and not very subliminally, was that we were ‘ At war’. With whom we were at war they never mentioned other than ‘ Terrorism’. I guess that made our nation, when we occupied the Middle East, as having our own ‘ Terrorists’ there in force. That is exactly how the civilians in those countries saw ( and still see ) us. This sickness has got to stop folks, and soon!
To watch those Ninja agents in Portland this past weekend swinging their batons and spraying the pepper, with their killer guns by their side, paints a terrible portrait of Amerika. Where is the outrage by most of this nation? Too many of us remain apathetic, and let’s be totally candid here, because it’s just those ‘ Crazy Niggas and Nigga lovin whitebreads’ who are being beaten and abducted into those black as coal vehicles. Pretty soon we may see our president and his top administration minions wearing the camouflage. Why not? As the helicopter gunner, mowing down innocent Vietnamese civilians in the film ‘ Full Metal Jacket’ put it so succinctly: ” Isn’t war great!!?”
Philip A Farruggio is a contributing editor for The Greanville Post. He is also frequently posted on Global Research, Nation of Change, Countercurrents.org, and Off Guardian sites. He is the son and grandson of Brooklyn NYC longshoremen and a graduate of Brooklyn College, class of 1974. Since the 2000 election debacle Philip has written over 400 columns on the Military Industrial Empire and other facets of life in an upside down America. He is also host of the ‘ It’s the Empire… Stupid ‘ radio show, co produced by Chuck Gregory. Philip can be reached at paf1222@bellsouth.net.
Why go organic?
by Zeenat Khan
The organic products are grown without any “synthetic fertilisers, pesticides,
herbicides, fungicides, hormones or antibiotics.” If one can avoid products devoid of such harmful things in order to maintain a healthy body — isn’t the extra price worth it? That answer would usually shut people up. Organic farming also plays a great role in protecting the environment.
An assortment of organically grown produce lay out at a Farmer’s Market
Prior to this pandemic summer, every year from May to November — there was something magical about waking up on Sunday mornings. I could walk three blocks from my house to the open space under large Walnut trees near the Hospital to get a week’s worth of organic fruits and vegetables from the Farmers Market. After that, winter would set in and the outside market wrapped up until next spring. For the next five months, I would buy from either the supermarket’s organic section or the organic market called the Roots in my neighbourhood. We have been buying organic produce for over ten plus years now. Many people used to ask me why I pay thrice the amount to buy locally grown organic vegetables instead of the imported variety that are grown conventionally which often comes from Mexico and other South American countries.
My answer has always been simple: The organic products are grown without any “synthetic fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, hormones or antibiotics.” If one can avoid products devoid of such harmful things in order to maintain a healthy body — isn’t the extra price worth it? That answer would usually shut people up. Organic farming also plays a great role in protecting the environment. “The organic market has expanded substantially to include grains, meat, dairy, and even processed foods, in addition to produce. It has also spilled over to the foodservice industry where it is common to see “organic” on a menu. And, it’s not just limited to food items; nonfood products including alcohol, textiles and personal care products can also be organic. It’s clear there’s great opportunity to be had in taking advantage of the demand for organic products.”
From environmentally conscientious everyday citizens to heads of states such as Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh have been campaigning for organic farming for a few years now. She regularly emphasizes to the farmers about the importance of growing organic products. Organic produce has become a global phenomenon with a great global demand. I have listened to some of her speeches where she had encouraged the people in the agricultural sector to consider this global trend as a means to increase export. She believes Bangladesh could immensely benefit from organic farming as the organic produce cost higher, therefore, adding to the country’s total remittance. She urged its youth community to take up this opportunity as a means of employment. “A special demand for organic foods has been created across the globe. Bangladesh could exploit this opportunity as the prices of organic foods are much higher than the foods produced through chemical fertilisers, and the youth force could voluntarily take initiative to this end,” she said a few years back. Since the pandemic hit Bangladesh it could not keep up with the food supply chain flow as the farmers and growers cannot keep on supplying to the city dwellers because of ban on transportation and other risk factors. From day one since the coronavirus showed its ugly face in Bangladesh, PM Hasina has been telling people not to fear food shortage. She has been urging through her media briefings for people to utilize every piece of unattended land by growing vegetables in order to avoid hunger. If there is no supply of fresh vegetables then “grow it yourself,” is what she told her country people. Good advice as a lot of people in the city lives in high-rises and has access to a roof where they can have veggie gardens. But it is the poor people who are starving as they cannot earn their daily wages because of lockdown and social distancing. Nor do they own a piece of land to grow veggies.
Another environmentally conscientious and champion of organic farming was former US First Lady Michelle Obama while she had lived in the White House. She had an exceptional educational background and a very successful law career before entering the White House. Many thought like Hillary Clinton, Michelle will also be guiding the president in every decision that he takes. But to everyone’s surprise, she opted for more of a traditional role of an American First Lady by doing things out of the limelight.
With a few seedlings in her hand, one spring morning in 2009 Michelle Obama had started her little organic garden on the back lawn of the White House. Since then the conversation never stopped. From 1,100 square feet, the garden had grown over the years and it supplied fresh produce to the White House kitchen. About one third of the harvest was donated to a local organization called Meriam’s Kitchen that helps homeless people in the Washington DC area.
As an avid campaigner of childhood obesity prevention, Michelle Obama also used her garden as an educational tool. Every spring, she opened up her garden for the city schoolchildren who never had a vegetable garden before. They came to help her to plant vegetables, fruits and herbs. They also got a lesson on healthy eating as many city kids are on the brink of obesity due to lack of playgrounds in Washington DC. In low-income neighborhoods there are hardly any motivations to grow vegetables as people have so many other problems.
Michelle Obama became a celebrity gardener who was gracing the cover pages of magazines like Better Homes and Gardens. Obama wrote an in-depth piece about how she became a gardener, for a publication called Mother Earth News. Inspired by her, many city folks since then have been planting vegetables in terracotta pots in their balconies, porches or in small patches behind their city homes as space is sparse. Other than Mrs. Obama, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt had her own garden called the World War II victory garden where vegetables grew and supplied the White House kitchen. Health conscious people now have started to play a vital role about what each family eats. The health enthusiast suburban communities are more and more growing their own food in their back yards and other vacant patches as well.
In Maryland, agriculture plays a dominant role in earning a livelihood. About 350,000 people were working in agricultural sector in some capacity before the coronavirus came to town. According to a 2014 census, some 12,300 farms and over 7,500 acres are certified as organic in Maryland.
The benefits of organic products: What is really driving the organic food market? The first and foremost benefit is that going organic will protect us against cancer that is often triggered by the pesticides that seep into our fruits and vegetables. Organic purity, without a doubt reduces health risks as it has been proven to be a deterrent to many diseases. Most plants produce something called Flavonoids which protects the plants against several diseases and as a result, we become the direct beneficiary as it is high in antioxidants. Research shows that insecticides and herbicides interfere with the production of these protective compounds, thus exposing us to numerous harmful illnesses. Antioxidants play a major role in keeping our body healthy.
Antioxidants are a combination of minerals, vitamins and other nutrients. According to the 2005 State of Science Review (SSR) by the Organic Center, “antioxidant levels are about 30 percent higher in organic food than chemically-grown foods produced under the same conditions. Most antioxidants are found in the peels of fruits and vegetables, but many people cut away the peel of conventionally grown produce to reduce their exposure to pesticides. Since it is safer to eat the skin of an organic fruit or vegetable, you get the maximum amount of antioxidants from your produce when you buy organic.” Organic products are rich in Vitamin E, C and Beta-Carotene which help fight cancer cells and prevent other diseases.
Nearly a two-decade old study revealed, today’s conventionally grown, non-organic fruits and vegetables have about half the vitamin content of their 1963 counterparts. Organically grown food is more nutritious than food produced using synthetic chemicals, as shown by a study published in the Journal of Applied Nutrition. “On average, organically grown food is 63 percent higher in calcium, 73 percent higher in iron and 118 percent higher in magnesium, while being 29 percent lower in mercury.” By using only organic products, we can almost eliminate chemicals in our diet. Moreover, those food products those are free of dangerous chemicals and pesticides taste better.
“It’s not just their own health that consumers are thinking about. People who are unhappy with the treatment of animals but are not ready to turn to veganism eat organic meat and dairy as an alternative. Regulations regarding organic status extend to how animals are raised. They cannot be given synthetic hormones or antibiotics, and must be fed organic feed. After all, if you don’t want to eat GMOs, do you want your food to eat GMOs either?” Organic products address environmental, animal welfare and health concerns by encompassing hormones and antibiotics given to animals. Animals are also given safe, clean living and enough roaming areas when they venture outside. Genetically modified organisms and synthetic fertilizers used in crops, and sustainability practices for the environment are issues for the consumers. We have seen an increase in popularity of going all organic in the recent years, and the organic market benefits in each of these cases. “What’s more, the market doesn’t show signs of slowing. Consumers of organic products are skewing young, and there’s an uptick when women become pregnant or a family has young children. Those demographics get larger each year, as is the opportunity for more companies to get on board and have a piece of the organic pie.”
Many people often think that eating healthy means cutting out only junk food from their diet. But healthy eating is more than that – the focus should be whether we are getting the most in nutritional value from our fruits and vegetables. In weighing the benefits of organic food in many health journals, the experts have shown that now they have a better understanding of how disease and environmental toxins are interlinked. They have proven that exposure to chemical fertilisers and pesticides through food greatly affect our health. “Some pesticides have been shown to disrupt the human endocrine system (which regulates our hormones), while others have been linked to breast cancer, uterine cancer and asthma.”
“The general population is becoming more aware of what goes into their bodies, and the information about what’s going into their bodies is more readily available via documentaries and the ease of research on the internet. “Super-Size Me” made waves in the early 2000s, but many lesser known documentaries and educational films or series have become widely available. These films cover animal welfare, the food industry’s impact on the environment, and ingredients and chemicals in food products. They may not be on the big screen at a local theater near you, but they are making an impact on those who watch them.”
People who are sceptics should know that the organic food and vegetables that are grown here do adhere to international standards and is USDA (agriculture department) certified. Organic farming is planet friendly because fertilisers, pollutants and chemicals cannot seep into ground water and there is no risk of water contamination. Organic farmers only use homemade composts composed from organic matters and straws as opposed to any kind of fertilisers and pesticides that are used for plants to enhance rapid growth.
Organic farming also helps the local farmers by getting rid of the middle men, thus revitalizing the local economy and creating a sustainable livelihood for them. By using traditional knowledge, the farmers can grow environmentally friendly products without using a lot of capital to do that. Throughout the world, the small farmers can hugely benefit by producing organic products which they can sell at a higher price because of the care that go into it. Such small scale farming can help reduce poverty drastically in the developing countries. In the USA, local harvests in abundance are sold in super markets and farmer’s markets, thus providing a valuable service in bringing communities together.
Only one percent of US cropland is organic and organic farming is slower, harder and labour-intensive but these farmers are committed to supporting practices that respects our planet. We should remember that the organic producers use cultivation practices that keep the nearby waterbodies free of contaminants. There is minimum loss of top soil and valuable nutrients.
Organic farming also creates harmony with nature by producing nutritious food that nourish our body and help the environment in the process. This method of farming has added to the holistic approach to food consumption and people are paying more attention to their wellness and way of life. To have a healthy body and to preserve the earth, it is a no brainer why so many are opting for organic produce now-a-days.
No emotion is comparable while holding a fresh and a delicious tomato or a pumpkin that has been freshly cut from a vine or a patch. It is a very satisfying sensation knowing that the farmer in jeans overall himself has grown the fresh variety and the sugar free blackberry jam that I often used to get for 8 bucks was made by his wife in their kitchen without using any preservatives.
Over the years, I have come to respect nature and food which contain natural ingredients. Hence, adding the extra 30 dollars to my weekly supply of organic fruits and vegetables that were not exposed to harmful agricultural chemicals is worth the extra amount. Eating conventionally grown fruits and vegetables will only increase my risks of getting an incurable disease. When we sit down to eat, I know that by buying organic products, we are living less toxically.
Regrettably, the vegetables that I have been getting for the last 4 months through online orders, I really cannot say with utmost certainty whether the person in the grocery store is actually putting the organic fruits & veggies in my shopping bag while filling the order. With milk & eggs I know that they are organic as it is clear from the packaging. Now most produce in my grocery bags as we clean and put them away, I do not always see the certified organic label or mini stickers attached to the fruits & veggies. This has attributed to a growing concern and causing me some agitation instead of a cause for celebration at every lunch and dinner time since the pandemic started. Tonight, we are away from home for a couple of days at the Timeshare beach house and just about ready to cook the veggies and lentils for supper that I brought from home. But for some reason I am unable to feel excitement. Typically, on such a perfect summer evening after a much needed rain, we used to join a couple of close friends at the small Italian restaurant Ricciuti’s in my neighborhood for dinner. The restaurant only uses locally grown organic produce. An average fruit and vegetable platter costs $18 or more. By using only organic products, the restaurant is supporting the small farmers in the area and we are supporting a local business. It’s a win-win for everyone but not anymore. The pandemic took that pleasure away from us to serve the community. The restaurant is not operational this summer, and it shows a front window display sign that reads: “This restaurant is closed until further notice.”
Zeenat Khan writes from Dewey Beach, Delaware, United States
A few explanations on Bhabani Shankar Nayak’s article on crime, justice and capitalism
by Farooque Chowdhury
Countercurrents has posted an article – “Crime, Justice and Capitalism” – by Mister Bhabani Shankar Nayak (Coventry University, UK) on July 12, 2020, which deserves a few explanations.
Contempt case against Prashant Bhushan is a violation of the basic democratic spirit
Press Release
Janhastakshep takes serious note of the news
of the contempt of the court case initiated by the Supreme Court against the well-known lawyer and human rights activist Prashant Bhushan for his comments on twitter. This unfortunate news is a matter of serious concern to any democratic minded person.
Can we talk less?
by Dr Prem Singh
It is a well-known truth about civilization that a person deeply immersed in philosophy, spirituality, religion, science, art, literature, other diverse disciplines of study, or even in independent study etc. is prone to less verbal articulations i.e. he talks less. Taking the concept of Gandhi, it can also be considered true about politics.
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It is a well-known truth about civilization that a person deeply immersed in philosophy, spirituality, religion, science, art, literature, other diverse disciplines of study, or even in independent study etc. is prone to less verbal articulations i.e. he talks less. Taking the concept of Gandhi, it can also be considered true about politics. (India’s Independence Movement was also brilliant in the sense that its active leadership in various streams always expressed themselves with utter discretion and weighed their words before uttering them so as to preserve and maintain a level and dignity of debate.) In addition to this a person who has experienced life in depth and detail, even if he/she lacks a scholarly foundation, happened to be least interested in mere talking. Whatever be the subject or context, it is considered important to have essence and honesty in the talk(Baat). It can be said that essence and honesty are the soul of the talk. Therefore,there is hardly any other word more expressive than the talk in the language.
However, the truth of civilization is also that there has been no shortage of people in every phase of history who indulge in superficial talks only. Many expressions such as baaten banana, baaten chhonkna, baaten chatkana, baaton ki khana, baation kebatashe phodna, baation se pet bharna, baaton ke pul banana confirm this fact. Such people are called verbose (vachaal), lair (labar) etc. in civil language and bakku, bakwadi, batolebaaz, baatfarosh, gappi, gadanki, gapodi, laffaz, hanknewala, fenknewala etc. in the pastoral language. There are also some vulgar expressions about them in both civil and pastoral societies. Despite the habit of putting a foot in every case, such people are not taken seriously in discussions. Civilization has made this forestalling/interdiction arrangement in its defense.
There is no natural defect in such people. Their weakness is only human. Due to multiple socio-psychological reasons, such people consider hollowness as virtue. Acharya Narendra Dev has called culture the cultivation of the mind (Chitt). If there is proper and continuous weeding of the mind, it remains green. That is, culture thrives. The people who always engage in superficial talks consume the essence of life in quenching the thirst of the tongue, and, therefore, the cultivation of the mind remains dry. A tongue unrelated to the mind is always eager to speak anything knowing no boundaries. They keep engaged in verbosity with complete ‘loyalty’. Such people become expert in making every occasion an event. Because eventism becomes a means of filling the hollow. They start competing with themselves that the more events they perform, the more their ‘greatness’ will emerge. In this way, they create their own world of ‘great civilization’ and ‘great culture’. The psychologists could conduct a research whether it is a kind of revenge by such people who have been excluded from the discourse of civilization?
Until before the modern era, it was impossible for those who indulge in empty talks to reach the center of civilization-discourse. Sayings like ‘Thotha Chana Baje Ghana‘, ‘Adhajal Gagri Chhalkat Jaay‘ show that the wisdom of identifying even the bearers of half-knowledge in society also worked equally. Scholarship could not be met with succession or publicity. Even if a ‘king of talks’ (Baaton Ka Badshah) came to the top of power due to the succession, the public did not approve of him despite being a victim of his whims. If this was the situation about kings, then the strict criterion for scholars can be understood.
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In the modern era, due to democracy, with the claim on political power, the claim on the power of knowledge also became public. The importance of the art of speech increased in the struggle for political power in democratic systems. Some exaggeration is associated with speech. But mere rhetoric does not last long. The hallmark of true statesmanship is considered to be restrained and meaningful speech. If the matter is restrained and meaningful, true statesmanship is recognized even when the art of speech is weak. Despite this criterion, speakers serving untruths, superstitions and hatred have become popular. If at any stage of public life, the untruth, superstition and hatred spread by a leader and his organization gets acceptance in the society, then it is not the responsibility of that leader and organization alone. Even if the leader and organization have their own patents of untruth, superstition and hatred, the society in which untruth, superstition and hatred are accepted, is shared by all. In other words, untruth, superstition and hatred are accepted in the society at large only when the leadership (both political and intellectual) that claim to be torch-bearer of truth, logic and love, has made adulteration or deceit in their talks/words for a long time on a large scale.
There may be a role of immediate vested interests behind the popularity of a leader/organization that spreads untruth, superstition and hatred, but it is a secondary role. For example, behind the sudden ‘rise’ of Narendra Modi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the role of vested interests, i.e. Ambani-Adani, is secondary; the leading role is that of the progressive and secular leadership, who in direct violation of the Indian Constitution, put the empire of Ambani-Adani on the chest of the toiling but poor/helpless people. It may be noted that the RSS and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have not played much of a role in annihilating the nationwide agitation against the New Economic Policies; the real role is that of the progressive and secular leadership.
To pursue the discussion a little more, we can see that not only the RSS/Jana Sangh have consistently opposed the Indian Constitution since the time of Independence, but the communists have done the same. For the communist leadership even today, the participation in the Indian constitution and its multi-party parliamentary democracy is not a natural situation. The character, medium, infrastructure of system of education, which makes the society educated and aware, has not done by the RSS/BJP. The system of unequal and multi-layered education is not the responsibility of the RSS/BJP. It is not the work of the RSS/ BJP to impose English in place of Indian languages as a medium of education and governance. At present, the presence of private schools/institutes/colleges/ universities in the country at large scale have also not been established due to RSS/BJP alone. The RSS/BJP saffronize education. Misdeeds of saffronization can be undone if a secular government comes. Privatization-commercialization of education is the real problem. This list of theoretical and policy topics can be quite long. Apart from theoretical and policy matters, the progressive and secular leadership has not played an impartial role in matters related to the function of various government institutions.
The voice of anti-fascism of this camp proves to be hollow, because the Hindu-nation of RSS/BJP gets molded in the thief-market (Chor Bazar) of secularism. Taking the recent example, one can see that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won the recent Delhi Assembly elections by setting the ‘right’ ratio of neo-liberalism and communalism against BJP. The progressive and secular camp put all their strength in getting the votes of Muslims outright in favor of AAP discarding the share of Congress and other secular parties. The Muslims got riots and the court cases along with jail terms. Kapil Sharma, who is repeatedly said to be the main accused of instigating riots in north-east Delhi, was an AAP MLA in the last assembly and joined the BJP just before the election. But not a single secular journalist or activist mentions this truth. If not for the outbreak of the corona epidemic, the atmosphere of Delhi would have been made ‘holy’ by the incense discourse of ‘Sundar Kand‘ with Hawan, courtesy Delhi Government.
The RSS had been pursuing the lie of Hindu-nation since 1925, but the people of India neither supported it during the freedom movement nor after independence. There was no question of holding a Shakha in the countryside. The political arm of the RSS, the Jan Sangh/BJP, had to follow constitutional values and provisions/processes while taking part in political affairs. This situation remained at least till the Vajpayee-era of BJP. Nowadays it is feared that Modi will change the Constitution. It may be that by the end of his innings or at the beginning of the next innings, Modi may remove the word secularism from the Constitution saying that Hindu is by nature secular and that that word was later added by the Indira Gandhi government in the Preamble of the Constitution. But even with this word, Modi’s BJP can continue to run the country on the lines of Hindu-nation. Like the word Socialism mentioned in the Constitution’s Preamble and despite the socialist ideology rooted in its basic spirit, the country was put on the path of capitalism in 1991. Under this decision, when the right of equality was permanently taken away from the majority of the citizens of the country, they were left as mere Hindus and Muslims. This is to say that constitutional ‘socialism, secularism and democracy’ is a complete package. By sacrificing one, the other cannot be saved. Narendra Modi’s fierce communalism is a by-product of the radical and shabby capitalism that runs in the country.
However, one reason for the sudden reputation of untruth, superstition and hatred in the society also leads to mediocre or below mediocre leadership in combat. The present situation of India is crystal clear in this aspect. The competition here is between the supporters of neo-liberalism, including the hidden (Prachhann) neo-liberalists. The leadership that opposes neo-liberalism is excluded from the competition, because it does not meet the basic condition of competition (playing within the realm of neo-liberalism). In the neo-liberalist realm, the mediocrity of active political and intellectual competitors is not hidden from anyone. This situation shows that India’s political and intellectual leadership has become progressively mediocre in the face of the current challenge. For a detailed discussion on this predicament, Kishan Patnaik’s book ‘Vikalpheen Nahin Hai Duniya’ (The world is not without alternatives) can be seen. Some examples of this phenomena can also be seen at the world level. One of the secondary reasons behind the popularity of Donald Trump (America), Putin (Russia), Erdogan (Turkey), etc. is also the presence of mediocre leadership in their competition. In America, Bernie Sanders was defeated by Hillary Clinton in his own party during the last presidential elections, and this time by Joe Biden. One of the complex reasons for the rise of Hitler and Mussolini was that Churchill, Stalin, and Roosevelt were not leaders of big stature. Gandhi’s stature in colonial India was much higher than them. Rather, Gandhi, the Statesman of humanity, had changed the concept of Statesmanship in politics.
(3)
Some immediate event would provide the basis for the sudden jump of untruth, superstition and hatred in public life. Let’s think about it a little. During the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) era, the work of establishing the roots of neo-imperialism under Manmohan Singh was going on silently, without much talking. Some outspoken civil society activists were successful in seeking some concessions for the poor India which was badly affected due to neo-liberal policies. It was in order to provide a human face to the reforms. That period can be called as the Silent-Era (Chuppa-Yug) of the descendance of neo-imperialism in India. Before it, the phase of Atal Bihari Vajpayee was also almost silent. During his reign, the sovereignty of the country was being sacrificed through various ordinances one after another without debate in the Parliament. By that time, a committed movement was active against mortgaging the sovereignty of the country. The nature of that movement, which was held in different parts of the country and on different issues, was scattered/retail in nature. It was expected that this retail movement would soon be politically integrated and would restore the independence, sovereignty and self reliance of the country by breaking the growing neo-imperialist clutches. Strong questions were raised on undemocratic decisions of the Vajpayee government. On raising the question, Vajpayee used to chuckle and say, ‘No Mai Ka Lal can buy India!’ The RSS who used to utter parrot-like utterances about patriotism and swadeshi used to keep silence on the neo-imperialist slavery being imposed through ordinances.
Actually, Vajpayee had said that in 1991 when the New Economic Policies were implemented, the Congress has taken up their (RSS-BJP’s) work (implementing capitalist economy). One can note that the interest of,otherwise speech-loving, Vajpayee suddenly increased those days in contemplation (Chintan). Most of the intellectuals of the country had already remained silent since 1991. As Kishan Patnaik has said, English-speaking/writing people in India are intellectuals. These intellectuals are still not ready to believe that the country has come under the grip of neo-imperialism by violating the values of the struggle for independence and the Constitution; the primary reason for which is the New Economic Policies implemented in 1991. Three decades later, it is needless to say that in 1991 the India which was described as being grappling with the economic crisis was actually the rich India strengthened under the model of mixed economy. Otherwise, what difference would the decrease or increase of foreign exchange reserves have made for most of the Indian people who dug wells every day? The motives and direction of the reforms were clear: to transform the rich India of that time into the Corporate India (Nigam Bharat). During the corona period, the whole world has seen what the plight of poor in India have been in the making and running of this Corporation India.
From the womb of long Chuppa-Yug dedicated to the reception of neo-imperialism, there was a sudden explosion of a Noisy-Era (Shor Machao Yug) in the form of anti-corruption movement. Famous personalities of the country got desperate to give a speech on the stage at Jantar-Mantar and Ramlila Maidan. Overnight, Jantar Mantar and Ramlila Maidanswere erected throughout the country in large numbers in order to accommodate such people. Citizens of Corporate India in Delhi held ‘Prabhat Pheri’ from India Gate to Connaught Place with the children. The RSS supported the movement with the corporate houses. The media took up the movement hands-on in united manner. There was a flood of talks all around the country. Even such talks that can neither be picked up nor be placed (uthai jaayen na dhari jaayen)! Kiran Bedi, one of the pillars of the movement, declared Anna Hazare as the big (Bada) and Arvind Kejriwal as the small (Chhota) Gandhi, announced that Baba Ramdev and Shri Shri Ravi Shankar are two fakirs who have come out to do good (Kalyan) for the country. The excitement and rapture soared so much that it was not limited to anti-corruption, and reached the second and third revolution. The formation of the new party of the common man was announced overnight for ‘revolution’.The progressive and secular intellectual camp of the country united with the party and its leader, and in the name of the common man, began to talk garrulously for the sake of tongue movement. A senior and eminent journalist said, ‘Aam Aadmi Party has been born from the ashes of the anti-corruption movement,and now we do not have to look back.’ It was such an unforeseen festival of talks that the ‘last man’ of Gandhi disappeared and that the professionals/officers/businessmen spread across the country and abroad were established as common people. In this whole process, the self-claimed epitomes of honesty and simplicity left no stone unturned in defaming the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as dishonest. Whereas none other than the second Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri led an honest and simplistic life like him. Manmohan Singh was also honest about New Economic Policies. He never campaigned that he was going to bring good days (Achchhe Din) for the farmers/labourers/unemployed etc. He kept the challenge open – to save the country from economic crisis, if anyone has any other option than the New Economic Policies, should come forth.
The ‘first man’ of the movement particularly praised the Gujarat model’s mentor Narendra Modi. Humble Modi wrote a letter of gratitude, and instructed to be careful of enemies. Narendra Modi happened to be a king of talks (Baaton Ka Badshah) even before, but was restricted to Gujarat itself. Since the chess-board of empty talks was laid at the national level there was no stopping him. The atmosphere and field were ready before he started throwing hollow talks. (If the base created by the anti-corruption movement was not there, Narendra Modi would eventually have lived out his life Gujarat itself, and the next Prime Minister of the country would have been LK Advani or a leader of the third force.) Modi by handing himself over to the corporate houses, defeated Advani in the arena of the party’s candidature for the post of Prime Minister, and took a firm position in the field. The Congress, talking about the human face of reforms, was no longer of use for the task of corporate houses. On the other hand, corporate gave a pat to Kejriwal as well. At this cricial juncture look at the condition of the progressive and secular camp, the leader of an immediately formed party was introduced as Modi’s rebuttal. They started telling the public that Kejriwal’s ratings are going higher than Modi even abroad! Kejriwal embraced the title of little Modi (Chhota Modi) by offering a double victory gift to Modi in Benaras with the help of progressive and secular camp.
This little detail has been given to remind how ‘truthful’ and ‘logical’ talks the progressive and secular camp were engaging in before Modi came to the national stage. Till date, not a single one has expressed a word of regret. There could only be two reasons for this: either these people think that the public cannot catch their deception; or, being supremely knowledgeable, it is their birth right to deceive the public. Since then, no one knows how much water has flowed into the Ganges as Modi decorates the market of talks. His opposing camp sometimes ridicules, sometimes inflicts sarcasm, sometimes makes jokes, sometimes makes slogans, sometimes makes cartoons, sometimes shouts and writes articles on Modi’s anti-democracy fascist tactics. In this duet (Jugalbandi), the pace of the making of Corporate India increases rapidly.
(4)
During the review of the anti-corruption movement, I had written that if the writings of the leaders of the freedom struggle were not forthcoming, then the coming generations would have understood the selling the resources and labour of the country to the corporate houses and multinational companies as the only great work to be done by leaders with a fanfare of verbosity. The corona epidemic could have been an opportunity to come out of the disease of talks. But very soon it became known that untruth, superstition and hatred were going ahead and epidemic was lagging behind. Even after the passing of 6 months, there are as many talks as mouths about all aspects related to the corona epidemic in the country. Amid the epidemic, there was a border dispute with China in the Ladakh region. TwentyIndian soldiers were killed in the clash. Under the Modi-style of politics, border disputes and martyrdom of soldiers once again became an unmistakable opportunity for speech.
The current power-establishment would very much like to continue this trend, so that its power and this unjust system can be perpetuated. According to the testimony of history, the system based on untruth, superstition and hatred is dashed sooner or later. This can happen soon, provided less talks are made at least by the anti-Modi camp. This is no easy task. If there are less talks, the progressive and secular leadership will be able to understand that constitutional values are not its primary concern. Its primary concern is with itself. It has created its own world of anti-fascism, and keeps busy in the enterprise of saving this world. In this world it remains convinced that it can never be wrong. On one side is Modi’s world, on the other side is the world of progressives and seculars. Corporate India gets strengthened in the collision of these two worlds. Today Modi’s pan is heavy, so the pan of untruth, superstition and hatred in Corporate India is heavy. Tomorrow, the pan of the Constitution could be heavy, then the pan of truth, logic and love will become heavy in India. The RSS/BJP may also have a role. If there are some people who do not consider this situation right for the society and the country, they should start talking.
(The writer teaches Hindi at Delhi University)
FSDR – The Ghost of FRDI: Rescuing failed banks at whose cost?
by S G Vombatkere
In 2019, media reported that Government was preparing to table a new legislation, the Financial Sector Development &
Regulation (Resolution) Bill. Reportedly FSDR is meant to rescue banks, among other financial sector institutions, from collapse. It replaces the Financial Regulation and Deposit Insurance Bill, 2017 (FRDI hereafter), which was withdrawn in 2018 following public outcry against a “bail-in” provision, which small depositors did not trust.
Home Minister Et Al Made Provocative, Threatening Speeches: Statutory Body’s Report On Delhi Violence
Co-Written by Dr. P. S. Sahni & Shobha Aggarwal
The DMC Report indicts the Delhi Police for being either complicit (against the Muslims) or being mute spectators to the violence unleashed on the minority community.
(Un)Authorized Way of Capturing Banks By the Government
by Tanya Singla
July 19, 2020 marked the
51st anniversary of the Banking Companies (Acquisition and Transfer of Undertakings) Ordinance, 1969.
Neoliberalism and the Indian Educational Apparatus
by Yanis Iqbal
Taking cognizance of the fact that the Indian educational apparatus subcutaneously injects neoliberalism in the Indian populace will go a long way in building such a politics of inclusion. As the Indian people discern that the current education subjugates them, they will start carving a beautiful and ethical education which truly serves the oppressed people.
Hinduism and Hindutva
by Sufyan Khan
More than 80% public are educated in New Delhi but knowledge is zero or they don’t want to understand. They understand them who teach them different types of ideologies not real politics. “Play Politics But With Humanity.”
Mehmood Gami
by Imran Yousuf
Mehmood Gami, the 19th century Sufi poet of Kashmir, born at Dooru Shahabad in 1765 A.D and passed away in 1855 A.D. Shahabad, then called Ver Pargana (Verinag), is one of the ancient villages of valley Kashmir.
33 Prisoners and 10 Staff of Odisha Jail Test Positive For COVID-19
by Jan Adhikar Manch
33 under trial prisoners and 10 staff of Berhampur Circle Jail, District Ganjam have tested Covid-19 positive. Hence, we draw your attention to the condition of prisoners housed in various jails across the state and demand quick remedial measures.
King Joe and the Round Table: Biden’s America in a Multipolar World
Co-Written by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J S Davies
In an article in Foreign Affairs in March titled,
“Why America Must Lead Again,” Joe Biden claimed that “the world doesn’t organize itself,” and promised to “put the U.S. back at the head of the table” among the nations of the world. But the premise that the world can only organize itself under the direction of the United States and Biden’s ambition to restore the U.S. to such a dominant position at this moment in history are out of touch with global reality.
US In A Downward Spiral
by Haider Abbas
The US Presidential election by November 2020 is slowly-slowly gaining momentum and Donald Trump and Joseph Biden are into a gruelling battle for the coveted rank. US all over has been hit by the anti-racism riots in the wake of US black citizen George Floyd killing on May 25, 2020 1 and internet is all too splashed with mobs in US running amok, burning public installations and throwing life out of gear, while ‘I can’t breathe’ , the last words of
Goerge Floyd, have become the new political metaphor all across the world.
The US Presidential election by November 2020 is slowly-slowly gaining momentum and Donald Trump and Joseph Biden are into a gruelling battle for the coveted rank. US all over has been hit by the anti-racism riots in the wake of US black citizen George Floyd killing on May 25, 2020 1 and internet is all too splashed with mobs in US running amok, burning public installations and throwing life out of gear, while ‘I can’t breathe’ , the last words of Goerge Floyd, have become the new political metaphor all across the world. The events of the whole of last seventy years, have proven more than right that US is a white-supremacist oligarchy which has unleashed only death-and-destruction abroad and it is only now when fire and smoke smoldering on its streets has been seen. Don’t forget the Los Angeles riots of 1992 2 which had taken place almost on a similar issue. Nothing has changed in the last 25 years in America.
No wonder, this racism being inside the bone-marrow of US ruling elite, as what it has done to its non-white Hispanics and native-Americans, has just added more to the ‘yellow-peril’ , a narrative Trump wants to perpetuate in wake of COVID-19 spread against China and Asian-Americans, and which obviously, will further lead to making American more worse-off, in the wake of ‘Trump racists policies against China’ as this is what Professor Ken Moak, who has taught economic theory, public policy and globalisation at university level for 33 years, has recently written 3. China is now to be the best election-issue for US to fight the elections, and therefore, both ‘Trump and Biden are trying to outdo each other on tough on China’ 4. In the same report, published in ClickonDetroit.Com it becomes clear that China has become the center-stage of American polity as with regards to ‘ Coronavirus spread throughout the US, a Pew Research Center poll in March 2020 found Americans with increasingly negative views of China, with 66% saying they had an unfavorable opinion. That was the most negative rating since the question was first asked in 2005. The same poll found 62% of Americans calling China’s power and influence a major threat to the U.S., compared with 48% two years ago’ . Trump is also accusing Biden son Hunter of business ties with China.
Election time is actually a Report-Card time, and it would be worthy to make a small recall as to how Trump has been able to make America Great Again (sic) as an article published in Forbes on July 19, 2020 suggests that US continues to retreat from global stage as China-Iran forges 25 year-deal 5, this deal which is initially declared as a 400 billion USD with Iran is obviously going to spell a downward trend for US particularly in the Middle-East as its immediate effect, this is perhaps the second biggest beating Trump has had since it bowed out of WHO on July 7, 2020, putting an end to its 72 years of old membership 6 , though Biden has said that US would stay in WHO if he wins and that the exit won’t take effect until July the next year. Trump in a televised address on April 14, 2020 had instructed to put an end to the 450$ million US aid per annum to World Health Organisation (WHO) and within a matter of a ten-days time, on April 23, China announced an additional funding to WHO by 30 million USD 7 . The two-giants are locked into practically everything since at least the beginning of 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out and has taken the world by its death toll.
In the last four years of Trump, US image as a global power has taken to the worst downfall, as US acronym as a world-sole-super-power just does not tend to hold-sway any more in the world politics. It remained locked in a twenty-year war with a rag-tag army of Afghan Taliban along with 40 of its allies and in the end had to sit across with the same people against whom the war was raged, and in its wake US and allies lost around 3000 of their soldiers, wounded more than 20,660 8 and lost USD 975 billion 9 for no purpose. As strong parallel comes recalling as it was the Deccan expedition of Aurengzeb Alamgir for 17 years, which ultimately led to the downfall of the Mughal empire and today US too perhaps stands on the same juncture. One study, however, which has almost got missed from the pubic gaze is that around 5,00,000 US military men who have at sometime served in Iraq or Afghanistan have been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder! 10 An entire generation in US has been ruined by such a fruitless war and the US public wants an answer to it.
As a natural consequence US under Trump had to start to vacate and it accordingly started to wane from global platforms as Trump, much to his election promise, firstly withdrew from Trans-Pacific-Partnership on Jan 24, 2017 11 something which was a brainchild of Obama who had stitched together a trade-agreement with Japan, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Mexico, in order to box China, covering around 40% of the world economy but Trump finished it with a stroke of his pen. Then, Trump went ahead to kill the Obama formulised Nuclear-Deal with Iran on May 9, 2018 12 which has started an untamed race to nuclear-power in the whole of Middle East. Thereafter, came his threat to withdraw from North American Free Trade Agreement on December 2, 2018. 13 What followed next was November 5, 2019, when Trump withdrew from the Paris Climate Accord 14 and also in its wake ceded to China to lead, as all the signatories of the accord condemned the reckless failure of US leadership, particularly as climate is the most significant crisis facing the humanity today. The year 2019 drew for a close when Trump announced his withdrawal from NATO on December 4, 2019 15 , a move considered nightmarish for its most pivotal ally Israel. 16 US therefore is forced to acknowledge its diminishing clout in the world with the advent of the rise of China as ‘China has replaced US as locomotive of global economy’ is what is the headline of an article by John Kemp, which is quite very self explanatory, published in reuters. 17
The last four years of Trump are a stark example as to how US has abandoned its trade-deals but India however, is sticking to its policies towards US, as on July 22, 2020, commerce minister Piyish Goyal has informed that US and India are close to inking a ‘quick’ trade deal on preferential trade 18 on 50 to 100 goods and services , whereas, there have already been reports that Trump had been engaged in a ‘ mini trade-war with India’ 19 and India too had announced retaliatory tariffs against the US. 20 Finally, India which is facing one of the worst economic crisis, in the wake of COVID-19 spread , along with belligerent China staking claims inside India’s territory, how would it like to achieve the penultimate goal of becoming a 5 trillion economy? Or it is just another Jumla?
The writer is former UP State Information Commissioner. He is also a lawyer based in Lucknow.
References:
5- forbes.com/sites/suzytaherian/2020/07/19/us-continues-retreat-from-global-stage-as-china-iran-forge-25-year-deal/#54cdf3d55a4a
11 bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-38721056
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