American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Sue the US Government Over Shutdown
Nobel Laureate Explains America's Rigged Economy ; Reporter Quits NBC Citing Network’s Support for Endless War ...and More Picks
A Nobel Laureate Explains America’s Rigged Economy (Gerry)
From Scientific American: “The United States has the highest level of economic inequality of any developed country. Professor Joseph E. Stiglitz, winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Economics, explains why he thinks the American economy is rigged, and what that means for future generation[s].”
Young Inmates Say They Were Shipped Upstate, Held in Isolation and Beaten (Chris)
The author writes, “The young inmates were taken by van from a jail on Rikers Island in New York City to an airfield hours north of the city. There, the abuse started almost immediately, according to a federal lawsuit filed on Friday.”
Brazil’s Bolsonaro Targets Minorities on First Day in Office (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “Newly installed President Jair Bolsonaro targeted Brazil’s indigenous groups, descendants of slaves and the LGBT community with executive orders in the first hours of his administration, moving quickly after a campaign in which the far-right leader said he would radically overhaul many aspects of life in Latin America’s largest nation.”
Reporter Quits NBC Citing Network’s Support for Endless War (Jimmy)
The author writes, “A journalist with NBC has resigned from the network with a statement which highlights the immense resistance that ostensibly liberal mass media outlets have to antiwar narratives, skepticism of US military agendas, and any movement in the opposite direction of endless military expansionism.”
Nuns in India Tell AP of Enduring Abuse in Catholic Church (Reader Luke)
The author writes, “The stories spill out in the sitting rooms of Catholic convents, where portraits of Jesus keep watch and fans spin quietly overhead. They spill out in church meeting halls bathed in fluorescent lights, and over cups of cheap instant coffee in convent kitchens. Always, the stories come haltingly, quietly. Sometimes, the nuns speak at little more than a whisper.”
Fine Particle Air Pollution Is a Public Health Emergency Hiding in Plain Sight (Chris)
The author writes, “Ambient air pollution is the largest environmental health problem in the United States and in the world more generally. Fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 millionths of a meter, known as PM2.5, was the fifth-leading cause of death in the world in 2015, factoring in approximately 4.1 million global deaths annually.”
Burger King Broke Its Promise of Free-Meals-for-Life to Portland Area Customer, Lawsuit Claims (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “Curtis Brooner, 50, is seeking $9,026 — the estimated cost of Brooner eating one $7.89 Whopper meal a week for the next 22 years. According to his lawsuit filed Tuesday in Multnomah County Circuit Court, Brooner was granted a lifetime of free meals after he was trapped in a locked restroom at the 2555 N.E. 238th Drive Burger King for more than an hour on Dec. 15.”
Bring the Troops Home & Stop the Bombing: Medea Benjamin on US Withdrawal From Syria & Afghanistan (Jimmy)
From Democracy Now: “‘We want to challenge Donald Trump … by pointing out that he continues to support the war in Yemen and the repressive Saudi regime,’ Benjamin says. Her recent piece for Salon.com is titled ‘Bring the troops home—but stop the bombing too.’”
