Mexico
Hezbollah link to Zapatistas? Not!
An Israeli press account plays a cynical game of connect-the-dots to link Hezbollah and the Zetas to the Zapatista rebels in Chiapas. Don't believe the hype.
Author: Bill Weinberg
Oceania
Kali Yuga in Australia
Nuclear disaster was narrowly averted in Sydney when one of the wildfires sweeping New South Wales threatened an atomic research station near the city.
East Asia
Radiation cover-up at Fukushima exposed
Japan’s Environment Ministry is investigating claims that clean-up contractors at Fukushima have illegally dumped contaminated materials in rivers and open areas.
Watching the Shadows
Chuck Hagel: revenge of the paleocons?
Leftists are ironically rallying around Chuck Hagel as Obama's apparent pick for Secretary of Defense—a conservative Republican who is wary of the neocons but close to Big Oil.
North America
Abraham Lincoln’s Dakota massacre recalled
At a ceremony in Minnesota, Dakota Indians and their supporters commemorated the 150th anniversary of the largest mass execution in US history—ordered by President Lincoln.
New York City
WHY WE FIGHT
From AP, Dec. 19: Truck Causes NY Traffic Pileup; 1 Dead, 33 HurtA tractor-trailer smashed into several vehicles on a major highway on Wednesday afternoon, setting off a chain reaction of fiery crashes, killing one person and injuring 33 others,… Read moreWHY WE FIGHT
North America
Conspiracy vultures descend on Newtown
Paranoid conspiracy theories proliferate about the Newtown massacre, adding to the noise of pro- and anti-gun control voices that all distract us from the fundamental questions.
Mexico
Mexico bans Maya ceremony at ancestral temples
Tourists are flocking to Mexico for the “end of the Maya calendar,” but Maya elders protest that they are barred from performing ceremonies at the archeological sites.
Planet Watch
King crabs invade Antarctica: no joke
Grist notes a Dec. 12 report on Nature: Cold temperatures have kept crabs out of Antarctic seas for 30 million years. But warm water from the ocean depths is now intruding onto the continental shelf, and seems to be changing… Read moreKing crabs invade Antarctica: no joke
Planet Watch
National Intelligence Council predicts global climate disaster —again
The US National Intelligence Council issued a report, "Global Trends 2030: Potential Worlds," that emphasizes the rise of China and the risk of catastrophic climate change.
East Asia
East China Sea edging towards war…
Chinese and Japanese aircraft had a near-confrontation over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands on the very day that China officially commemorated the 1937 Rape of Nanking.
Central Asia
China: Han-Tibetan solidarity emerging
Human rights lawyer Xu Zhiyong, who defends Chinese peasants struggling to keep their lands, proclaims his support for the Tibetans and calls for Han solidarity with their cause.