Though their messages are somewhat different, I was struck by the similarities by the passionate pleas put out this week by comedian Russell Brand and former Green Party Presidential nominee Jill Stein. Take a look at both:
Continue reading Russell Brand and Jill Stein take to the intertubes to incite critical thoughtrevolution
Continue reading U.S. allies escalate violent repression against pro-democracy protestsAt least two people have been killed and more than 300 injured after Yemen security forces stormed a protest site where thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators have been camped out for weeks, demanding the ouster of the country’s leader.
In a pre-dawn raid on Saturday, police are said to have used tear gas and hot water mixed with gas to disperse the demonstrators.
Meanwhile, a teenage boy was killed in separate clashes between security forces and protesters in the city of Mukala.
Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from the capital Sanaa, said that the situation remains tense, and that the opposition is accusing the government of committing crimes against the protesters.
“They also say the raid will speed up the revolution, and that president Ali Abdullah Saleh must go now before [he] faces the wrath of the people,” he said.
Also on Saturday, at least three students were injured when security forces opened fire at protesters in the city of Taiz, where residents had gathered to demand that Saleh be put on trial.
The clashes come after tens of thousands of protesters marched on the streets of the capital on Friday, drawing record crowds in a continuing push to demand the ouster of Saleh, who has been in power since 1978.
According to the latest update from the Earth Policy Institute, Why World Food Prices May Keep Climbing, author Lester Brown points out:
In February, world food prices reached the highest level on record. Soaring food prices are already a source of spreading hunger and political unrest, and it appears likely that they will climb further in the months ahead.
As a result of an extraordinarily tight grain situation, this year’s harvest will be one of the most closely watched in years. Last year, the world produced 2,180 million tons of grain. It consumed 2,240 million tons, a consumption excess that was made possible by drawing down stocks by 60 million tons. (See data.) To avoid repeating last year’s shortfall and to cover this year’s estimated 40-million-ton growth in demand, this year’s world grain harvest needs to increase by at least 100 million tons. Yet that would only maintain the current precarious balance between supply and demand.
Of course, this graph explains part of the democracy revolt in the Middle East.
Continue reading World food prices to continue to climb?