Workers in Greece celebrate May Day with protests

The National Herald, 5/1–Greece’s growing economy hasn’t convinced workers they are benefiting as labor unions and associations representing workers went on the streets of the capital and other cities on Labor Day to demand higher pay and better conditions…It also brought a strike that shut down ferries and public transportation systems…The country’s international lenders…required big pay cuts, tax hikes, slashed pensions, worker firings, selling off state enterprises and taking away workers rights…the rallies were “ for the unions and the world of labour that they represent, May Day is a day of strike, a symbol of recognition of rights and the struggle for improved working conditions. The vision of the Chicago workers for a better and more dignified life remains relevant…

Workers in Turkey protest despite warlike crackdown

BBC, 5/1–Hundreds of people have been arrested in Istanbul, with 50,000 police officers deployed to the city as authorities attempt to crack down on May Day protests. Public transport was shut down to stop people reaching Taksim Square, where demonstrations have been banned since 2013. Footage showed clashes between riot police and protesters with demonstrators chanting as police forcefully moved detainees onto buses…On Wednesday, 100 people were detained for allegedly planning to protest in the square.

Workers fight to protest despite police oppression

Inquirer.net, 5/1–The scheduled protest by various labor and progressive groups pushed through along Recto Avenue in Manila. The event rolled even as about a hundred police established barricades on roads leading to Mendiola Street— the area where the protesters originally planned to stage their Labor Day demonstration…As of 10:30 a.m., thousands of youth activists and student-led groups arrived in Recto Avenue, trying to penetrate the barricade formed by the Manila Police District (MPD). Aside from their call for a wage hike, they repeatedly shouted: “Tabi! Tabi! Dadaan kami! (Move aside! Move aside! We will pass through!)

Bosses’ analysts explain why war is coming

Foreign Affairs, 4/22–It is every president’s nightmare. The Chinese military is massing troops in Fujian Province and an armada offshore, just across the strait from Taiwan. According to U.S. intelligence, this buildup is no mere feint—Beijing is really preparing for war…
Chinese President Xi Jinping has made clear that retaking Taiwan is essential to what his government calls “the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” and Beijing is rapidly expanding its military. It is also just one of many scenarios that would result in a war involving Washington. China is threatening the United States’ treaty allies. Russia is menacing eastern Europe’s NATO members. Iran has accelerated its nuclear program. The odds that the United States might have to fight in a great-power war are higher today than at any point this century.

Israeli-U.S. expansion into Gaza will require more massacres

Al Jazzera, 5/5–Israel’s political and military leaders have approved plans to expand the Gaza offensive and take over aid deliveries to the devastated and starving enclave, according to reports. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Security Cabinet unanimously approved plans to call up reservists and put the Israeli military in charge of food and other vital supplies to the 2.3 million people suffering under its blockade of the Palestinian territory…Israeli officials suggesting that the plans include the “conquest” and occupation of the entire Gaza Strip. The expanded offensive “could go as far as seizing the entire enclave”...

A racist system drives some to embrace racism and kill 

The Guardian, 4/21–The gunman who killed 23 people in a racist attack at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas…Patrick Crusius was automatically sentenced to life in prison without parole for the massacre near the US-Mexico border. The change of plea comes after local prosecutors took the death penalty off the table. The people who were killed ranged in age from a 15-year-old high school athlete to elderly grandparents. They included immigrants, a retired city bus driver, a teacher, tradesmen including a former ironworker, and several Mexican nationals who had crossed the US border on routine shopping trips. Crusius has acknowledged he targeted Hispanics…when he opened fire…