Spying on Congress, Israel: NSA cheerleaders discover the value of privacy only when their own is violated

Spying on Congress and Israel: NSA Cheerleaders Discover Value of Privacy 

Only When Their Own Is Violated

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/34356-focus-spying-on-congress-and-israel-nsa-cheerleaders-discover-value-of-privacy-only-when-their-own-is-violated

Every US mass shooting in 2015 (with tweets) via @ChrisMurphyCT

Every Mass Shooting in 2015 (with tweets) · ChrisMurphyCT · Storify

https://storify.com/ChrisMurphyCT/year-in-review-every-mass-shooting-in-2015

TPP is a giftwrapped wealth transfer

TPP is a giftwrapped wealth-transfer to China / Boing Boing

http://boingboing.net/2015/12/27/tpp-is-a-giftwrapped-wealth-tr.html

RIP Trapper John. Wayne Rogers testified (unsuccessfully) for maintaining Glass-Steagall

M.A.S.H. star Wayne Rogers dead at age 82

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/mash-star-wayne-rogers-has-died-at-age-82/news-story/2eb631ebb3801e5677459837cbb6c4a4?sv=8666332224b81f2d71f9bcdf42c3799a

Recovery for the too big to jail. Austerity for the too small to matter.

Great Recession (2008-present): Folk exhaust benefits, leave the work force & are no longer counted as unemployed

Steve Keen: Why austerity economics is naive h/t @binhkhe

Professor Steve Keen explains why austerity economics is naive - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au2N07eHa-Q

Unemployment doesn’t go down because folk find work, but because folk exhaust their benefits & are no longer counted

What if 99% of voters in 2016 had a broad smorgasbord of candidates—from the rabid right to the loony left?

Misery and upheaval for the masses in 2015, but guaranteed bailouts for the too big to jail

Ten big 2015 news stories that the corporate media missed, via @TruthOut (#10 is especially poignant)

Ten Big 2015 News Stories Truthout Covered That the Corporate Media Missed

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/34233-ten-news-stories-you-could-only-find-at-truthout-in-2015

Austerity: Sold to the Public Like Snake Oil

The Sneaky Way Austerity Got Sold to the Public Like Snake Oil

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/34221-the-sneaky-way-austerity-got-sold-to-the-public-like-snake-oil

Those demanding free speech limits to fight ISIS pose a greater threat to US than ISIS

Those Demanding Free Speech Limits to Fight ISIS Pose a Greater Threat to US Than ISIS

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/34337-those-demanding-free-speech-limits-to-fight-isis-pose-a-greater-threat-to-us-than-isis

Reuters: Obama's Pentagon is thwarting Obama’s efforts to close Guantánamo by imposing bureaucratic hurdles

"Groundbreaking" Exposé Shows Pentagon Thwarting Obama's Bid to Transfer Guantánamo Prisoners

Democracy Now!

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/12/30/groundbreaking_expose_shows_pentagon_thwarting_obamas

Worst civil liberties abuses of 2015: 3. Tethering gun control to secret terror watch lists

The Worst Civil Liberties Betrayals of 2015

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/34318-the-worst-civil-liberties-betrayals-of-2015

Fear of terrorism has trumped (pun intended) economic inequality and precarity as the electorate's primary concern

FOCUS | Terror Fear Trumps Populist Anger: A Corporate Media Triumph

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/34303-focus-terror-fear-trumps-populist-anger-a-corporate-media-triumph

In a rational world, Saudis would be viewed as a major part of the problem, not part of Bernie’s solution

The Misinformation Mess | Common Dreams | Breaking News & Views for the Progressive Community

http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/12/28/misinformation-mess

Satiric lyrics by @davidcnswanson WarIsACrime.org

Just before passing surveillance expansion, lawmakers partied with pro-CISA lobbyists

Just Before Passing Surveillance Expansion, Lawmakers Partied With Pro-CISA Lobbyists

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/34292-just-before-passing-surveillance-expansion-lawmakers-partied-with-pro-cisa-lobbyists

Chomsky supports BDS but is cautious about some of its tactics @joolsgloves

On Israel-Palestine and BDS: Chomsky Replies | The Nation

http://www.thenation.com/article/israel-palestine-and-bds-chomsky-replies/

"Houston, we have a duopoly problem..." h/t @AuntieImperial

He and Chomsky have nuanced positions: Norman Finkelstein and BDS @joolsgloves

Chomsky’s opposition to BDS is qualified, and there are aspects of its method & goals that he supports @joolsgloves

Chomsky and BDS – Mondoweiss

http://mondoweiss.net/2014/07/chomsky-and-bds

American Graffiti, 2015 edition

Let’s be honest: The only folk whose material situations are affected by the deficit are plutocrats & oligarchs

Plutocrat’s Creed

This is for anyone who thinks we’ve “recovered” from the Great Recession

Talk bubble should say, “We didn’t vote because we couldn’t tell any difference between the corporate candidates.”

Criticism of Corporate Media: Ten religion stories that went (mostly) missing in 2015

Ten Religion Stories That Went (Mostly) Missing in 2015 | Religion Dispatches

http://religiondispatches.org/ten-religion-stories-that-went-mostly-missing-in-2015/

Rest In Power, Haskell Wexler: A Life Well Lived

Haskell Wexler Dead at 93

Legendary Cinematographer, Activist Captured the Struggles of Our Times  

Democracy Now!

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/12/28/haskell_wexler_dead_at_93_legendary

Bernie Madoff redux

Greetings from the United States of Fear Mongering

ISIS and the liberal interventionists in the West are like binary stars—always traveling together h/t @lolgop

I beg to differ: Wall St. thrives while Main St. languishes. Consumer purchasing & wages flat for 4 decades

Israel’s US ambassador: all his holiday gifts will be from occupied West Bank & Golan Heights to combat BDS movement

Because Nothing Says 'Happy Holidays' Like Illegal Occupation... | Common Dreams | Breaking News & Views for the Progressive Community

http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/12/23/because-nothing-says-happy-holidays-illegal-occupation

Black men comprise 6% of US population & 40% of unarmed victims of fatal police shootings http://wapo.st/1mcm3Dv MT @garyyounge @roseg

Police fatally shoot nearly 1,000 people in 2016 | The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/2015/12/26/a-year-of-reckoning-police-fatally-shoot-nearly-1000/

All I wanted for the past 7 Christmases is a shut-down Guantanamo torture chamber and return of the base to Cuba :(

Guantánamo Bay lawyers call bluff on Obama's promise to close prison | US news | The Guardian

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/dec/26/guantanamo-bay-close-obama-administration-detainees-laywers

Matt @mTaibbi: The solution to most of our fears is so simple. Stop watching the corporate news

This Christmas, Tune It All Out

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/34243-this-christmas-tune-it-all-out

Unforced errors: Erdogan, a duly-elected leader, is unraveling Turkey. He’s repeating US leaders’ tragic mistakes

Article: Turkey's Weasel Problem | OpEdNews

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Turkey-s-Weasel-Problem-by-Linh-Dinh-151226-647.html

.@MedeaBenjamin: Ten Good Things About the Not-So-Great Year 2015

10 Good Things About the Not-So-Great Year 2015 | The Smirking Chimp

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/node/65319

One-percenters' socialism means that plutocrats can reliably call upon the rest of us to bail them out

The illusions of adulthood often seem more infantile than those of childhood

Extremist theocrats are everywhere, and have an awful lot in common

No need to fear. Good guy-with-a-gun is here

Every person living in the West needs to ask this question of their own government and state

Has Turkey Become a Fascist State?

http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/09/22/has-turkey-become-a-fascist-state/

Whoever devised this hateful meme clearly wants to help no group outside of the 1%

Divide and conquer strategy: use fear and ignorance to distill hatred toward multiple groups at once

In the name of "border security" we've become the United States of Bullying (and cowardice)

Review: Michael Moore's 'Where to Invade Next'

Review: Michael Moore's 'Where to Invade Next' 

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/34248-review-michael-moores-where-to-invade-next

Kathy Kelly, co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence: Breaking Bread in Kabul

Breaking Bread in Kabul

http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/34179-breaking-bread-in-kabul

Fifteen Indigenous Rights Victories That You Didn't Hear About in 2015

Fifteen Indigenous Rights Victories That You Didn't Hear About in 2015

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/34176-fifteen-indigenous-rights-victories-that-you-didn-t-hear-about-in-2015

The Future of An Illusion

All I Want for Xmas is a Ceasefire in Syria

Tell your Senator: Co-Sponsor Sen. Udall's bill, Oppose Sending Troops to Syria 

Just Foreign Policy

http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/Co-Sponsor-Udall-Oppose-Troops-In-Syria

Gallup Poll (December 2007): Clinton Maintains Large Lead Over Obama Nationally

Bernie Sanders Will Become President, Despite Rigged Debate Schedules, 

Skewed Polls, and Clinton's 'Inevitability' | H. A. Goodman

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/h-a-goodman/bernie-sanders-will-become-president_b_8780730.html

Christmas: A Story About a Middle Eastern Family Seeking Refuge

I Wish You a Merry Christmas—Even Though I'm a Nonbeliever 

Common Dreams | Breaking News & Views for the Progressive Community

http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/12/24/i-wish-you-merry-christmas-even-though-im-nonbeliever

Christmas Plea to World From Abdullah Kurdi, Father of Drowned Syrian Child (Aylan): Open Your Doors

http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/12/24/christmas-plea-world-father-drowned-syrian-child-open-your-doors

Bernie Sanders Tells Chicago 'Rahm Should Resign'

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/34232-bernie-sanders-tells-chicago-rahm-should-resign

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is the new Karl Rove

Karl Rove, Debbie Wasserman Shultz & Feeling The Bern | OpEdNews

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Karl-Rove-Debbie-Wasserma-by-James-and-Jean-Ant-Bernie-Goldberg_Fire_Leader_Politics-151223-676.html

Jeremy Corbin Christmas Message

Jeremy Corbyn's Mirror Christmas message: 

Christmas is the essence of socialism with solidarity for all - Jeremy Corbyn - Mirror Online

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/jeremy-corbyns-mirror-christmas-message-7042672

I read "Christ Climbed Down" (http://t.co/K8bBUhrSnw) by Lawrence Ferlinghetti every Christmas

Merry Christmas 2015: When human rights mattered more than capitalism. Now that's a Christmas miracle!

Guns don't kill Christmas; The NRA kills Christmas

Merry Christmas 2015: Live Simply So That Others May Simply Live

Merry Christmas, Made In Palestine

Merry Liberation Christmas To All!

Merry Christmas 2015

Jimmy Carter on the “dictatorship” in Venezuela (2012):

#ExposeTheTPP #FlushTheTPP #StopTheTPP

Available as a handy wallet card and also a refrigerator magnet

What’s standing between the one-percenters and the pitchforks? Fair taxation

Searching in futility for a unicorn (“moderate opposition”) to fight both Assad and IS in Syria

Searching in futility for a unicorn (“moderate opposition”) to fight both Assad and IS in Syria

US would need to admit 4 million refugees in 2015 for proportion equal to Germany. (We’re 3.9 million short)

Germany, Refugee Nation - The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/22/opinion/germany-refugee-nation.html?&moduleDetail=section-news-3&action=click&contentCollection=Opinion®ion=Footer&module=MoreInSection&version=WhatsNext&contentID=WhatsNext&pgtype=article

Wir schaffen das (We can do this): Roughly one million refugees arrive in Germany this year

Germany, Refugee Nation - The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/22/opinion/germany-refugee-nation.html?&moduleDetail=section-news-3&action=click&contentCollection=Opinion®ion=Footer&module=MoreInSection&version=WhatsNext&contentID=WhatsNext&pgtype=article

Sorrows of former empire

One holocaust was more than enough

You know you're in trouble when "late Friday" and "signed into law" appear in the same sentence

FOCUS: Congress Passes, Obama Signs CISA Internet Surveillance Law

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/34197-congress-passes-obama-signs-cisa-internet-surveillance-law

Corporate media will reliably self-censor any & all critiques of US militarism, surveillance and entrapment

CBS Edits Out Criticisms of US Policy From Frank Luntz Focus Group With Muslim Americans

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/34194-cbs-edits-out-criticisms-of-us-policy-from-frank-luntz-focus-group-with-muslim-americans

People Power puts heat in the street. It's the only thing our elected civil servants notice besides money

The world's leaders continue to fiddle as Mother Earth burns. What good is a non-binding agreement?

We can't afford not to invest in the post-carbon economy. The Green Deal cannot wait

Who needs another reason to turn off the corporate media once & for all (including MSDNC)?

Greetings from lefty twitter

Oh, our adult illusions are more infantile than the childhood ones

US hubris: We're against Assad, and we're against the half dozen groups trying to oust Assad

#SayHerName Sandra Bland

In other words, keep your trap shut if you want a ticket to the coronation

Historical amnesia in the USA