–An examination of China. This is what the rest of the media should be showing.

–Fidel writes about the Georgian conflict in his latest Reflections article.

–Pepe Escobar explains what is really going on in Georgia and South Ossetia.

–István Mészáros. Have a listen to one of the world’s most renowned Marxist theorists talk about the current crisis in the financial markets.

–A look inside the occupation.

–The US has become a State that not only thinks and speaks rhetorically about being above international law, but acts as if it is above international law. How long is the international community going to continue to allow this to happen (and in some cases facilitate it)? We must start to seriously question how much say the US should have over the lives of people around the world — acting as the international police force — when it flaunts every reasonable international human rights law there is.

–Only in Venezuela are people having the real debate of how they want their governing system set-up and run in a democratic way. Real grassroots, local democracy. It is a model for the rest of us.

–In the wake of the new RAND Corporation report calling for “terrorists” to be treated as criminals instead of an army that you fight in a “war”, we will see a change in the phraseology used by the departments in the US in-charge of imperialist strategy. “Multilateralism” is back in vogue.

–News from the ITUC about the current collapse of the WTO talks. The ITUC continues its (rather futile) call for the WTO talks to become focused on helping people over profits.

–A great critique of the new Batman film by Lenin’s Tomb. I realize that this is not a particularly popular view of the film (it is based on the comic book and so bashing the film instead of the comic seems a bit misdirected) but I think that it is a fair analysis. The fascist tendencies of Dent in the movie bothered me all the way through the film and I could not ever feel the sympathy required for the character needed to really get into the films other themes. I actually got bored halfway through and started day dreaming about the economics of ticket prices (also, the obsession with knives in films lately is a bit much). Either-way, this is an interesting rant. Have a read.

–A look at what real change would look like in the US. This is not even a very radical (by world standards) suggestion, but looks to be completely off the table in the US even under Obama.

–Obama’s policies are not good (although, they are different from McCain’s regardless of some of the rhetoric floating around these days). What really should concern people in Canada is his overwhelming support for the imperial project in Afghanistan. The anti-war movement in Canada has been fighting the lies, nonsense, and Islamophobic ignorance that comes out of the right-wing over the war since it started, but with Obama’s fancy propaganda campaign seeping over the boarder around this issue it is going to be even harder to get the facts out. The reality is that our troops are there to protect oil distribution through that country. The fight to “bring democracy” (an Orwellian statement if ever there was one) to the country by force is just the classic imperial nonsense. We must do more to expose the myths around this and work with organisations like RAWA to bring the truth to the Canadian (and American) population. Troops out now!

–A new article from Ian Angus of Climate and Capitalism Blog.

–As was reported yesterday, the International Monetary Fund does not see a rapid conclusion to the finance capital crisis. We all end up paying for it (we not including those that seem to have brought it about).

–Rick Salutin writes about the call for more intel in the fight in Afghanistan. The Rand Corporation also released a new report to change the strategy from the “War on Terror” to “Counter-Terrorism”. Now, I am not sure if this is admitting that the “War on Terror” is the opposite of being against terror (that is the War on Terror is all for it), but it come damn close. The reality is that extremism tends to be a reaction to extremism (not necessarily in action, but certainly in support that leads to most acts) and the way to stop the cycle is to stop imperialism destroying people’s lives. It started as a question of economics, but lately it has turned into what could be mistaken as an ideological battle between two ideologies neither of which the people want.

–The latest attacks on Venezuela from the US government. Apparently, Venezuela has not been “fully cooperating” with the US. I have to say that is not something that the majority of the world would think is a problem.

–Cameron talks about the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation’s Regina Manifesto. The document is still relevant and should still be seen as the progressive past that the NDP should go back to.

–The Independent of London takes a look at the Cameron Tories all this week it an attempt to highlight their policies (what little they have outlined). As Bevan said, if you haven’t got a programme, a bogeyman will do. Apparently, nowadays the NeoLabour Party is the bogeyman.

–Lenin’s Tomb talks about Hitchens’ last book before he went completely off his rocker. It is rather strange watching or reading Hitchens as the stench of his hypocrisy almost overpowers the smell of his drink.

–Fascism continues to march in Italy.

–This may have been posted before, but hey it is good enough to read twice.

–The comparison between Apartheid South Africa and Palestine is made commonly these days. Have a read why.