Review of Disaster Preparedness and Climate Change in Cuba: Adaptation and Management, edited by Emily J. Kirk, Isabel Story, & Anna Clayfield Don Fitz The September 2021 Scientific American included a description by the editors of the deplorable state of disaster relief in the US. They traced the root cause of problems with relief programs as their “focus on … [Read more...] about Cuba Prepares for Disaster
Focus on Pages
The "Focus On" section provides in-depth information and opinion on many facets of sustainability. (Although these topics may appear quite distinct and separate, it’s important to remember that they are interconnected and interdependent in multiple ways — in general, the 4 basic principles of ecology apply to all complex systems.)
When you select a Focus On… topic, the system will select all the articles and posts in that category with the most recent pages at the top, just under a brief introduction to the topic. (Many articles appear in multiple categories.)
Background & detail information is organized into the main categories listed in the left sidebar.
Government
Don’t Forget George W. Bush Was A War Criminal
Philip Reiss I begin with William Blum’s pertinent observation: “How Bush and his junta succeeded in deflecting America’s anger from bin Laden to Saddam Hussein is one of the great public relations conjuring tricks of history.” Informed people know Saddam Hussein didn't plan or facilitate the September 11, 2001 attacks on Manhattan›s Twin Towers and the Pentagon building in … [Read more...] about Don’t Forget George W. Bush Was A War Criminal
CODE RED!!
Raymond Nat Turner Calling all street heat shoe leather legislatorsCalling all pavement policymakers bored by the bigtop: clean coal clowns; fossil fools; net zero acrobats; carbonjugglers...Bored by greasy-thumbed grifters and jingoistgangsters; Bored by junk metal-chested generals disguisedas donkeys inside elephants Tethered to tits on Wall Street’sbull... Blocking! … [Read more...] about CODE RED!!
Escalating the War in Ukraine Means a Global Race to Catastrophe
Faramarz Farbod “Ukrainians,” in the words of Ben Wallace, the British Defense Secretary, “are fighting for their very lives and they are fighting for our freedoms.” “Ukraine’s success,” the White House stated, “is central to the global struggle between democracy and autocracy.” The Russian invasion of Ukraine was “unprovoked” and proves that Putin is intent on brutally … [Read more...] about Escalating the War in Ukraine Means a Global Race to Catastrophe
The Costs of (Another) War: When We Could Be Fighting Climate Change
Andrea Mazzarino What do a six-year-old in the United States and an 85-year-old in Russia have in common besides being on opposite sides of a war? They’re both feeling the strain of a warming planet. “Is the earth going to get so hot that we can’t survive?” my young son asked me last summer as we plodded through the woods behind our Maryland home. I wasn’t certain, … [Read more...] about The Costs of (Another) War: When We Could Be Fighting Climate Change
Navigating our Humanity: Four Lessons from Ukraine
Ilan Pappé USA Today reported that a photo that went viral about a high-rise in the Ukraine being hit by Russian bombing turned out to be a high-rise from the Gaza Strip, demolished by the Israeli Air Force in May 2021. A few days before that, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister complained to the Israeli ambassador in Kiev that “you’re treating us like Gaza”; he was furious that … [Read more...] about Navigating our Humanity: Four Lessons from Ukraine
Western rush to ban everything Russian, from cats to Dostoevsky, smacks of totalitarianism
Joseph Massad Western Russophobic hysteria is now in full force. German political culture, heir of the most totalitarian system the world has ever known, has led to the recent firing of a Russian orchestra conductor who refused to condemn Moscow’s military actions in Ukraine, and Russian opera singer Anna Netrebko. As a German Jewish activist friend recently told me, this … [Read more...] about Western rush to ban everything Russian, from cats to Dostoevsky, smacks of totalitarianism
Learning the Wrong Lessons from Ukraine
David Swanson Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons and was attacked. Therefore, every country should have nuclear weapons. NATO didn’t add Ukraine, which was attacked. Therefore, every country or at least lots of them should be added to NATO. Russia has a bad government. Therefore, it should be overthrown. These lessons are popular, logical – even unquestionable … [Read more...] about Learning the Wrong Lessons from Ukraine
Notes from the Editor
The war in Ukraine has taken much of the attention of the media. The saturation coverage displays subservience to state power and omits many important aspects of the current crisis. This double issue of Left Turn features many pieces offering alternative perspectives and correcting for the media’s omissions. Additionally, the media are ignoring the other ongoing war against the … [Read more...] about Notes from the Editor
In Praise of “Whataboutism”
Margaret Kimberley Winter/Spring 2022 The word “whataboutism” is used to silence and insult opponents ofU.S. imperialism. It should be embraced as a means of revealing what is too often kept hidden. Anyone who speaks out against imperialism, capitalism, or racism with concrete examples of the terrible harm they do, can expect to be charged with the dreaded term … [Read more...] about In Praise of “Whataboutism”