ON MAY 2, 2011, al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden left this world for the next, and the American bipartisan political elite—not to mention the U.S.-Euro war-loving quintet made up of Senators John McCain, Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham, UK prime minister David Cameron and French president Nicolas Sarkozy—leapt off the precipice of simple unreality into the rarefied environs of true …

On a warm spring day, strolling in south London, I heard demanding voices behind me. A police van disgorged a posse of six or more, who waved me aside. They surrounded a young black man who, like me, was ambling along. They appropriated him; they rifled his pockets, looked in his shoes, inspected his teeth. Their thuggery affirmed, they let …

August 19, 2011 "BI" — A former senior analyst at Moody's has gone public with his story of how one of the country's most important rating agencies is corrupted to the core. The analyst, William J. Harrington, worked for Moody's for 11 years, from 1999 until his resignation last year. From 2006 to 2010, Harrington was a Senior Vice President in …

  Bashar al-Assad's shelling of towns and killing of citizens leaves country at risk of imperialist invasion, says author. August 19, 2011 "Al-jazeera" 08/15/08 —  The news this morning that the Syrian navy were shelling the water-front of Latakia – including the Palestinian refugee camp there – shook me to the core. Not just because I lived in that camp last year, on that water-front, …

18 August 2011, Colombo, Sri Lanka – According to a new survey conducted by Social Indicator, the survey research unit of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, Sri Lankans are divided in opinion on the topic of reconciliation – about whether the government has done enough with regard to addressing the root causes of the conflict. Download the top line report here. Download …