COMMON DREAMS: Week in Review: More US Bombs for Israel Called 'Obscene'

 

Saturday, March 30, 2024 ■ The Week in Review 'Obscene': Biden Quietly OKs More 2,000-Pound Bombs, Warplanes for Israel "Arming a war criminal makes you a war criminal," one critic admonished the U.S. president. By Brett Wilkins • Mar 29, 2024 Former US Lawmaker Finally Enjoys Social Policies He Fought for—In Europe "I saw and felt what it's like to live in a community where everyone can go to the doctor. Where children aren't massacred by gun violence. It changes everything." By Jessica Corbett • Mar 28, 2024 'The Bible Exposes Grifters': Trump Rebuked as Christian Nationalist 'Con Man' "All those legal fees are apparently really making Donald Trump's pockets hurt because his latest commercial venture, after selling sneakers and cologne, is as a Bible salesman," said one critic. By Brett Wilkins • Mar 28, 2024 State Department Spokesman Urged to Resign Over 'Despicable' Attack on UN Expert One critic described Matthew Miller's attack on United Nations special rapporteur Francesca Albanese as a "Trumpian smearing of a principled human rights expert." By Jake Johnson • Mar 28, 2024 House Democrat Calls GOP Budget a 'Blueprint for a Dystopian Hellscape' Rep. Don Beyer warns the plan "would see unbridled benefits flowing to a wealthy and well-connected few while tens of millions of Americans lose healthcare, housing, retirement security, and food security." By Jessica Corbett • Mar 27, 2024 excerpt: As Republicans on Wednesday set their sights on a key seat opening up in the U.S. House of Representatives, the chamber's senior Democrat on the congressional Joint Economic Committee put out a blistering takedown of a top GOP budget proposal for the next fiscal year. Congressman Don Beyer (D-Va.) took aim at the 180-page "Fiscal Sanity to Save America" plan released last week by the Republican Study Committee (RSC)—which includes about 80% of GOP House members—following proposals from Democratic President Joe Biden and House Budget Committee Chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas). "The Republican Study Committee budget is a blueprint for a dystopian hellscape," he warned. "The vision offered by this group, which counts 4 in 5 House Republicans as members, would see unbridled benefits flowing to a wealthy and well-connected few while tens of millions of Americans lose healthcare, housing, retirement security, and food security." RSC proposals to "dramatically weaken healthcare," Beyer noted, include turning Medicare into a voucher plan and rolling back Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provisions that cut costs for seniors; repealing tax subsidies for the Affordable Care Act and the law's protections for people with preexisting conditions; and transforming Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program into block grants to states. Democratic Insider Rips 'Shocking' US Claim That Israel Is Following International Law "There is no time to spare in pulling back from this outrageous assertion by the State Department," said Center for American Progress president Patrick Gaspard. By Jake Johnson • Mar 27, 2024 New Video Details Billionaire Trump Donors Bankrolling RFK Jr.'s Run "Kennedy's donors know that he'll never step foot in the White House, but that was never their goal. Their goal is to ensure that Trump does." By Brett Wilkins • Mar 27, 2024 Cori Bush Demands Repeal of 'Zombie Statute' Weaponized by Anti-Abortion Zealots "The Comstock Act must be repealed," said the Missouri Democrat. By Jake Johnson • Mar 27, 2024 Container Ship That Destroyed Baltimore Bridge Has Troubled History The Maersk-chartered MV Dali—which lost propulsion just before the collision—not only was involved in a previous crash, but was also briefly detained last year over problems with its propulsion system. By Brett Wilkins • Mar 26, 2024 The mega-container ship that lost propulsion before toppling Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in a Tuesday morning collision was involved in a previous crash, and was cited last year for propulsion-related problems. Newsweek reported that the Maersk Line Limited-chartered MV Dali—which crashed into the Interstate 695 Patapsco River crossing just before 1:30 am, causing the span to collapse and sending a construction crew into the water—collided with a wall in the harbor at Antwerp, Belgium in 2016. The accident, which was reported by Vessel Finder and other outlets at the time, was attributed to errors made by the ship's master and pilot. The 9-year-old Dali was also detained by port officials in San Antonio, Chile last June after inspectors discovered a problem related to the vessel's "propulsion and auxiliary machinery," according to The Washington Post, which cited records from the intergovernmental shipping regulator Tokyo MOU. The ship's owner, Grace Ocean Private Ltd., and operator, Synergy Marine, "have been sued at least four times in U.S. federal court on allegations of negligence and other claims tied to worker injuries on other ships owned and operated by the Singapore-based companies," according toThe Associated Press. Maersk was also sanctioned last year by the U.S. Labor Department for allegedly stopping employees from reporting safety concerns, documents published by The Lever revealed. According to a July 14, 2023 Labor Department letter to Maersk  regarding an Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation, the Danish company "suspended and then terminated" a worker "in retaliation for reporting unsafe conditions and contacting the U.S. Coast Guard." The fired employee "engaged in numerous protected activities" including reporting a leak and the need for repairs to a ship's cargo hold bilge system, alcohol use aboard the vessel by crew members, and inoperable equipment including an emergency fire pump and lifeboat block and releasing gear. The search for six construction workers who were on the bridge when it collapsed into the river was suspended until Wednesday, according toThe Associated Press. The workers are presumed dead by their employer, Brawner Builders. Local media reported that multiple vehicles plunged into the river and that two workers—one of whom was briefly hospitalized—were rescued from the water. 'Out-of-Touch Billionaire' Larry Fink Blasted for Calling 65 a 'Crazy' Retirement Age "I love how rich people are treated as sources of great wisdom when they obviously don't know their ass from their elbow," said one economist. By Jake Johnson • Mar 26, 2024 VIEW ALL NEWS JOIN THE MOVEMENT As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. JOIN WITH US TODAY ■ Opinion Ady Barkan’s Legacy: Reclaiming Medicare From For-Profit Corporations Ady recognized that so-called “Medicare Advantage” plans threaten our cherished public benefit. By Carmen Rhodes • Mar 28, 2024 Intel Brags of $152 Billion in Stock Buybacks Over Last 35 Years. So Why Does It Need an $8 Billion Subsidy? What’s to stop the chip-making giant from shoveling taxpayer grants into more stock buybacks? By Les Leopold • Mar 27, 2024 UN Security Council's Gaza Cease-Fire Resolution Is Not Enough—But It's a Start Despite weaknesses and false U.S. claims that the resolution is nonbinding, it demands an end to the bombing and a massive influx of humanitarian aid. And that means the possibility of saving lives. By Phyllis Bennis • Mar 25, 2024 Dead Planet Walking: From Trump's Blood Bath to War World III If you thought what was once proudly dubbed "the American Century" couldn't get any worse, you clearly haven't been paying attention. By Tom Engelhardt • Mar 25, 2024 Which Side Are ‘We the People’ on—Democracy or Fascism? The MAGA movement has now shown us who they really are, and we should believe them. By Rick Steiner • Mar 24, 2024 As Predicted, Trump's 2017 Corporate Tax Cuts Benefited Rich Executives, Not Workers Let the research show that what so many economic and policy experts warned at the time has now been confirmed. By Chuck Marr,Samantha Jacoby,George Fenton • Mar 23, 2024 VIEW ALL OPINION Call 207.775.0488 to donate by phone or mail a check to: Common Dreams · PO Box 443 · Portland, ME 04112-0443 · USA Common Dreams is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Your contribution is tax-deductible. EIN: 20-3368194