Sunday Round-Up May 5, 2013

This is the weekly selection of news and opinion from sources outside the US mainstream media. Today we look at views and news on income inequality, bees and pesticides, the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and the Israeli campaign to get the United States to bomb Syria.  Special thanks to Le Monde Diplomatique, Mother Jones, The Guardian, and Haaretz.

In a May 1 article in Le Monde Diplomatique, Serge Halimi writes of the growing worldwide social and economic inequality.  He quotes Francis Fukyama: “Inequality per se has never been a big problem in American political culture, which emphasises equality of opportunity rather than of outcomes...But the system remains legitimate only as long as people believe that by working hard and doing their best, they and their children have a fair shot at getting ahead, and that the wealthy got there playing by the rules”. Halimi's analysis of the current economic situation (for example: "The 63,000 people — 18,000 in Asia, 17,000 in the US and 14,000 in Europe — who have a fortune of over $100m collectively own $39,900bn.") leads him to conclude that "All over the world this age-old faith, whose effect can be calming or anaesthetising, is evaporating." And the impact on democracy is telling.  In the US, Congress often does not enact laws that the majority want because of the influence of and pressure from well-funded lobbyists. "We must make our choice. We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have both.” ( Louis Brandeis, US Supreme Court Justice from 1916 to 1939)

In MotherJones, Tom Philpott reports on the European Commission's April 29 vote "to place a two-year moratorium on most uses of neonicotinoid pesticides, which are a widely used class of chemicals suspected of contributing to a severe global decline in honeybee health...In the wake of Europe's decisive action, the US Environmental Protection Agency dithered."

 

 

In Friday's Guardian, Ian Black reports on the attempt by a group of European leaders to break the impasse in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Elements of the appeal include recognizing the following: The Madrid and Oslo agreements "are moribund. Solutions based on the West Bank but excluding the Gaza Strip while perpetuating the split between the PLO and Hamas, will not work. The EU...must have a more equal role alongside the US. The Palestinian territories are under occupation. A 'peace process' that maintains and finances the status quo must end." One of the signatories Sir Jeremy Greenstock notes, "Whatever his rhetoric Barack Obama has not done anything significantly different from George Bush on this issue. We wanted to say with emphasis: 'It's time for a fresh start.' "

With Saturday's news that Israel launched an airstrike into Syria [see article in Huffington Post], this item from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz appears timely. Gideon Levy warns that Israel's "fear campaign calling upon Obama to bomb Syria has one real goal in mind. It's not helping Syria's civilians. It's a strike on Iran." Let's hope Obama is smart enough to ignore the Israeli advice and not get tricked into another war in the Middle East.