The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
Liepollo Pheko -
Social inclusion is one of those catchall terms that evokes various meanings and conjures up varied visions depending on context. In recent weeks, two things have struck me on the issue of social inclusion. The first is a trip to the United States (US) Social Forum in Detroit. The second was the recent FIFA Soccer World Cup and attendant euphoria.
It was altogether appropriate that the US Social Forum took place in the belly of the proverbial beast bringing together a plethora of American...
A satirical take on the Obama presidency, but also an advertisement for what appears to be an actual product: The Obama Bumper Sticker Removal Kit.
President Barack Obama has not followed through on his towering rhetoric of change for ordinary Americans. And while this product may have its origins in conservative America, at least one left leaning American commentator feels that it "might sadly have a market among disaffected progressives."
In Washington, the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) has made a deal with broker-dealer, Goldman Sachs, who will pay a fine of US$550 million to settle a fraud charge brought against the firm. The SEC brought charges against Goldman for secretly betting against its own clients in the US housing crash of 2008. Goldman entered into the settlement without admitting or denying the SEC’s allegations.
Paul Jay of the Real News Network talks to Gerald Epstein, professor of economics and...
Democracy Now -
28 June marked the one-year anniversary of the military coup that overthrew the democratically elected President Manuel Zelaya. A year later, the coup’s repressive legacy continues, with ongoing reports of killings, disappearances, torture and impunity. Democracy Now speaks with Gerardo Torres, a member of the National Front of Popular Resistance in Honduras for an update of developments under the Porfiro Lobo administration in Honduras.
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AMY GOODMAN: We turn now to Honduras. Today...
Saif Shahin -
America's failure to talk peace is undercutting its influence in the Middle East. It has cleared the way for proactive nations like Turkey and Qatar, who want a quieter neighborhood to push their economic growth, to step in and broker deals such as the recent Iranian nuclear fuel swap and the Lebanese accord of 2008. Continued U.S. intransigence may lead them to try and sort out issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well.
The United States chooses to be unconvinced by the...
Leonard Gentle -
Quietly, but inexorably, the world is changing. In the past three months a number of events have occurred, which, in and of themselves may go nowhere, but indicate the emergence of tectonic shifts that will change the world as we have known it for much of the 20th century.
These changes may not necessarily be for everyone’s good, they may even portend more frightening developments, but if we don’t know about them we’ll only experience their effects like the...
