by Ramin Mazaheri In many ways this fear is justified: communism is a dirty word in the English culture. I recall getting my copy of “International Socialist Review” mailed to me in the United States – it arrived with a brown paper wrapper, the same as pornography. (Please note: American mailing practices for pornography have been gleaned solely from second-hand information, of course, so I may be mistaken on this
by Jimmie Moglia After reading the Saker’s article, I had to walk back and forth for some time, partly to digest its content, and partly to determine why I found it so persuasive. My conclusion, however humble, is that the article is accurate because it tells us very clearly all we need to know on the subject, while leaving the reader to draw his/her conclusion. And I maintain that accurate
by Ramin Mazaheri The historical trend of the euro and its previous incarnations has followed this historical pattern, when we take a leftist view: The Eurozone is dominated by France and Germany; France wants an end to austerity and to promote growth policies bloc-wide; Germany wants more austerity to maintain its dominant financial position; Germany, Washington’s Frankenstein Monster – whose violence stems not from parental and societal rejection but unfeeling
by Pepe Escobar for the Asia Times China’s Belt and Road Initiative – the New Silk Road – will spark the country’s development and turn the dream into reality. Now that President Xi Jinping has been duly elevated to the Chinese Communist Party pantheon in the rarified company of Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory, the world will have plenty of time to digest the meaning of “Xi Jinping
by Ramin Mazaheri In 2013 my bosses in Tehran sent me to Seoul, and I felt quite courageous: just like today, Seoul was about to be ground zero for thermonuclear war. And then – as we all know from the movie – the radioactive blast would awaken a very grumpy Godzilla. I was sent because my bosses weren’t too pleased with my young colleague, who seemed to be more concerned
by Ghassan Kadi Much has been said about the Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman (aka MBS), and most of it, has been in the form of criticism from different analysts and individuals including some members of the Saudi royal family itself. The relatively few voices of support come only from sources close and loyal to him. The famous Saudi blogger who calls himself “Moujtahid” has been taunting the Saudi
by Michael Hudson Socialism a century ago seemed to be the wave of the future. There were various schools of socialism, but the common ideal was to guarantee support for basic needs, and for state ownership to free society from landlords, predatory banking and monopolies. In the West these hopes are now much further away than they seemed in 1917. Land and natural resources, basic infrastructure monopolies, health care and
by Arturo Íñiguez If I say that none of us lives in a democracy, no matter which country we are coming from, I am sure that most Saker readers will agree. But then, if I ask how would a democracy look like, I am doubtful I will get such a unanimous answer. However, in order to bring change by convincing other people to ditch this system and try something else,
by Peter Koenig The tyrant, of course, is Donald Trump. He launched tirade after tirade, and keeps launching them, insult after insult, lies after lies after miserable lies at the Government of Iran – about Iran not fulfilling the conditions of the Nuclear Deal. The typical mass indoctrination of the western world through the presstitute mainstream media. Goebbels might smile in his grave, how well the neolibs or neo-Nazis have
by Ramin Mazaheri To best gauge the stability of the Eurozone today, an appropriate way to start is to reassess how the Eurozone responded to their last crisis. In 2012 the European Sovereign Debt Crisis peaked, and European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi resorted to the same tactics as Mike Ditka, the legendary American football coach for the Chicago Bears. But both promised to do: “Whatever it takes”. Ditka made
by Jimmie Moglia Politicians, much like advertisers, are ever ready to surprise the unawareness of the thoughtless. They must use language, the quintessential political tool, with a tone of deep-felt conviction and an air of solemn sincerity. And no politician, in his electoral language and speeches, could omit a panegyric of democracy and a declaration of his total commitment to it. Some readers may have since long concluded that “democracy”
Saudi Arabia pivots to Russia, the new sheriff in town by Pepe Escobar for the Asia Times What a difference a year – an eternity in geopolitics – makes. No one could see this coming; the ideological matrix of all strands of Salafi-jihadi terror – which Russia fights no holds barred, from ISIS/Daesh to the Caucasus Emirate – beating a path to the Kremlin and about to embrace Russia as
by Ramin Mazaheri So there I was again, flying from San Francisco to New York on the “job creators’ redeye” when I came across another great New York Times article. Long-time readers know that I prefer to only read about Russian meddling, but articles about Chinese meddling take a respectable second place. The article reviews a history book describing the victory of communism in China in 1949, entitled “A Force
by Ramin Mazaheri Part of the problem of criticizing the “pan-European project” is that you have multiple bodies which overlap. And you also have some nations which are part of one, but not another. Or which pay into one body, but abstain from another. A clear analysis is needed of the most important part of the pan-European project: the Eurozone. The Eurozone is the most important because it controls the
[Note by the Saker: for my review of Alex Krainer’s book please click here] “I always say the truth is best even when we find it unpleasant. Any rat in a sewer can lie. It’s how rats are. It’s what makes them rats. But a human doesn’t run and hide in dark places, because he’s something more. Lying is the most personal act of cowardice there is.” ― Nancy
Note by the Saker: today I am posting to completely different views on the events in Catalonia. I do that because I hope that our community has the maturity needed to be exposed to two oppsed views without automatically having to declare one The One And Only Correct Opinion and defame the other with insults, personal attacks and logical fallacies. I personally am not taking sides in this conflict for
Masoud Barzani has overplayed his hand – no regional powers are going to assent to partition of Iraq by Pepe Escobar for the Asia Times Wily clannish capo Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), has announced that “Yes” won Monday’s non-binding independence referendum. Now that index fingers in indelible indigo ink are out of the way, the real battle between the KRG and Baghdad begins. Iraqi Prime
by Ramin Mazaheri I can easily prove the leftist utility of bitcoins by relating one question I commonly hear: “Ramin, can you please take this medicine to my family the next time you visit Iran?” The US produces more than half of all new medicines, but there is an embargo on Iran (and Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, etc.): With bitcoins, Iranians can circumvent these criminal, terroristic restrictions and get medicines which
By Aram Mirzaei 2017-09-26. Last Sunday, the Kurdish regional authority defied the world and went forward with the scheduled independence referendum in Northern Iraq. With the definite result of the referendum not being official yet, there can be little doubt that an overwhelming majority of Kurds have voted Yes to independence. Despite Kurdish leaders announcing that the referendum is non-binding and that it is only the beginning of a negotiation
by Eric Zuesse Did U.S. President Barack Obama create the anti-Russia sanctions in order to weaken the EU in its competition against America? If so, the policy has been a huge success — it has enormously damaged the EU’s economy. But, if Russia was the actual target — as Obama claimed — then it’s been a total flop: It has produced $100 billion loss to the EU, thus far —
