alanjjohnstone
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As mentioned above by Wez, information is hard to come by about the progress of the war. Often it is reading between the lines of either side’s propaganda.
I have no idea if the supposed Russian withdrawal from Kherson is part of a grand plan or not. But within Russia, an open letter from Russian troops has been circulated
Elite Russian regiment used as cannon fodder
https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20221109-why-are-russian-elite-soldiers-serving-in-ukraine-angry
There were about 80,000 foreign students studying in Ukraine at the time of the invasion, many from Africa and Asia, regions where there are fewer anti-Russian sentiments. Yet most followed the exodus to the West.
Why did they not travel to Russia?
Did Russia ever offer an opportunity to continue their studies at Russian universities?
In the second 24-hour strike this year, protesters marched on the Athens parliament, where there were brief clashes, as they called for an end to layoffs and pay cuts in a nation still recovering from a near decade-long debt crisis.
“We’re demanding an appropriate increase in salaries as our wages have been hit radically by such high energy prices and living costs,”
Pre-payment meters
Charities have warned that this practice risks “disconnection by the back door” when households cannot afford to top up their meter. Citizens Advice recently said more people had been unable to top up their prepayment meter in the first nine months of this year than in the whole of the previous three years combined.
Avian Flu Threat
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/nov/09/bird-flu-mutation-h5n1-virus-strains-pandemic
US agriculture officials are being lobbied to make it easier for chicken farmers to use the “cruellest option” for killing birds affected by the continuing bird flu epidemic.
Chasing a Mirage: How Israel Arab Parties Validate Israeli Apartheid
“Regardless of the outcome of the latest Israeli elections, Arab parties will not reap meaningful political benefits, even if they collectively achieve their highest representation ever. The reason is not about the parties themselves, but in Israel’s skewed political system which is predicated on racism and marginalization of non-Jews.”
“Palestinian citizens have always debated among themselves about the pros and cons of taking part in Israeli elections. Some understood that their participation validates the Zionist ideology and Israeli apartheid, while others argued that refraining from participating in the political process denies Palestinians the opportunity to change the system from within.”
Are the Palestinians doomed?
“Chilling to think the Palestinians may be doomed, but active and passive resistance, international protests, UN Declarations, boycotts, divestments, silent sanctions, myriad of articles, sympathetic words, and anger at Israel’s violent repression have not changed the direction of their struggle. Since 1948, the pendulum has swung in one direction, a consistent increase in repression and destruction of the Palestinian community.”
“Mohammad Abbas and his government are in a no win position, constrained by a military that can enforce its will on any Palestine leadership. International agencies have no political or military force, can only assist Palestine and not desist Israel; the Palestine diaspora, fearful of revenge attacks that can invalidate their status, are restrained; and a sympathetic world community protests but cannot get their governments to act. The United States (US) is the major culprit in support of Israel’s deadly activities, and the United Kingdom (UK) and Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) passively support the destruction.”
Stephen Kinnock, the shadow immigration minister, has raised the prospect of a Labour government introducing ID cards to help count how many people there are in Britain and reduce irregular immigration.
I thought Ian Hislop and a one-minute clip from BBC’S Have I Got News for You didn’t require an introduction.
BTW, Hislop’s father is Scottish, his mother, a Channel Islander and he spent much of his childhood following his ex-pat father around the world.
Because of the demographic threat to the Jewish population by the inclusion of more Palestinians and their increased voting power, a simple one-state answer will never be acceptable to Israel.
But there are different options for a federal one-state. Isn’t Belgium an example that could be a template?
I’m sure there are other countries with mixed-ethnic communities that have built-in safeguards and caveats written into their constitutions.
Because the Palestinians are presently not potent enough to exert political influence there is no pressure on Israel to seek an alternative to the present occupation.
As Norman Finkelstein says it is an occupation without cost to Israel. America pays for defence. The EU pays for the civil administration and the PA ensures internal policing.
But several months ago when the unrest and discontent within Israel by its non-Jewish population, there was rapid response by the Israeli government to avert it growing and spreading while several of the extreme zionist parties recognised the seriousness of the risk and reacted to it much like the UDA and UVF in Northern Ireland when Catholics claimed their civil rights.
Even earlier there were Israeli protests in Tel Aviv and other cities centred on the price of scarce housing. Isn’t that one reason many new arrivals to Israel go to the settlements – cheaper housing but still good commuting connections to employment in Israel.
I wonder if Elon Musk the richest man in the world can be described as one of the elite and was not his call for peace talks with actual concrete proposals an example of the Ukraine Fatigue.
He may well be the only one to put his head above the parapet but I am sure there are many other CEOs who seek a swift peace. Of course, I don’t consider Raytheon and the other armament corporations to be included. They do hope for another forever war.
But sooner or later other corporations will be obliged to place their shareholder interests above Ukraine especially if the present sanctions continue to prove an ineffective deterrent.
The USA can as easily withdraw support as they did to their allies in Afghanistan and the Kurds in Syria. Loyalty is not a virtue for US president.
