#Glenn Greenwald, "Why Brazil Still Matters," The Nation, 4 . 19 - 26, 2021. - "Beyond the sprawling, untapped pre-salt petroleum, Brazil controls the vast majority of the environmental asset, scientists around the world agree is the single most important natural resource, by far, in averting catastrophic climate change: the Amazon rain forest. The Amazon's primary value lies its capacity to absorb carbon dioxide. As a comprehensive Associated Press article about the region explained: 'Currently, the world is emitting around 40 billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year.' "
Brazil's leader, Bolsonaro, "has long railed against the protections accorded to the Indigenous tribes of Brazil, and to the Amazon territory where they have lived for centuries. Along with his defense of all forms of military and police violence, the aggressive exploitation of the Amazon is one of the few core beliefs Bolsonaro has championed consistently throughout his decades as a politician."
Greenwald calls Bolsonaro "far darker and more menacing; indeed, in mentality, disposition, ideology, and ultimate vision, he is more like President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines, or even General Abdel al-Sisi of Egypt."
"In 2018, Bolsonaro's presidential campaign featured a claim that gay men were trying to infiltrate schools, using a fictitious tool he called a 'gay kit,' which he told parents across the country was being used by gay people and their teacher allies to indoctrinate youth and turn their children gay."
"Bolsonaro is a gifted demagogue who succeeded in turning the hatred that elite institutions harbored against him to his own advantage." "As Norm Chomsky has noted on many occasions, popular contempt for elite institutions and political insiders is driving such election results across the democratic world." "As we saw, Republicans were only too eager to withhold bipartisanship from a number of Biden's cabinet appointees who happen to be women of color." "The same party that rushed to confirm a Supreme Court justice after people had already started voting in the 2020 election, now expects Biden to hold off on appointing some new judges for years."
"Securing the courts should be the number one priority for Democrats if they hope to be allowed to win future elections."
#Christie Ahn, Kathleen Richards, and Dr. Terry K. Park, "Evil Empire," The Nation, 4 . 19 - 26, 2021. - "The anti-Asian character of US foreign policy has manifested itself in the wars that have killed millions, torn families apart, and led to massive displacement; in the nuclear tests and chemical weapons storage that resulted in environmental contamination in Okinawa, Guam and the Marshall Islands; in the widespread use of napalm and Agent Orange in Vietnam, Laos and the Koreas; and in the sanctions that subject everyday people to economic, social, and physical harms."
"Of the 3,800 hate incidents reported against Asian Americans last year, almost 70 percent were directed at women. Exoticized and fetishized, Asian American women have borne a dual burden of racism and sexism, viewed on the one hand as submissive and sexually available 'lotus blossoms,' and on the other as manipulative and dangerous 'dragon ladies.' "
#Sanya Mansoor and Andrew R. Chow, "A Breaking Point for Atlanta Asian Businesses," Mother Jones, May + June 2021. - "Asian Americans meeting the public in such service-industry jobs are extra vulnerable to racist mistreatment. Business owners say these dynamics have worsened during the pandemic, as xenophobic language that emphasizes the coronavirus's origins has been spread by those in positions of power."
" 'There was a lot of name calling, calling me an 'Asian bitch,' she [Mylinh Hsia, a businessowner] says." They say: 'Go back where you came from.'
ADDENDUMS:
*According to American University professor David Vine, there are approximately 300 U.S. bases circling China. This military presence increases the risk of a violent clash or even war between two nuclear-armed powers.
*Sen. Lindsey Graham said on April 5 that the surge of migrants at the southern border should be blamed on President Biden for bringing a surge of COVID-19.
*Sen. Graham has also said that H.R.1 "would become a disaster to our elections."
*Trump donors who intended to make a one-time donation to Trump set themselves up for recurring -- in some cases -- weekly donations that were automatically withdrawn from their bank accounts. The pre-checked box was known as a "money box."
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