RATIONALITY: “Lawrence Krauss vs. Islamic Apologist – ‘Islam is Nonsense!'” / Lawrence Krauss ☮
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Category Archives: Intellectualism
EDITORIAL: “Laboratories of Democracy” / Real Time with Bill Maher / New Rule / 07.01.2016 / MUST WATCH! ☮
In his editorial New Rule, Bill Maher makes the case that, if Republicans are going to call states the “laboratories of democracy,” they first have to stop replicating failed economic experiments.
SCIENCE – ASTRONOMY: “NASA Spacecraft to Start Orbiting Jupiter, and Collecting Information” / RT America / Manuel Rapal ☮
NASA’s Juno spacecraft is scheduled to rendezvous with the solar system’s largest planet, Jupiter. After five years of travelling in deep space, the craft will soon orbit the planet. RT America’s Manuel Rapalo breaks down some of the most fascinating science at play in the mission.
POLITICAL COMMENTARY: “Amira Hass: Inside the Occupied Territories” / RT America / On Contact with Chris Hedges, and Anya Parampil ☮
In this week’s episode of On Contact, Chris Hedges goes inside Israel and the Occupied Territories with Amira Hass. Hass is the Haaretz Correspondent for the Occupied Territories and author of “Drinking the Sea at Gaza”. RT Correspondent Anya Parampil joins the show with a report on the public manifestations of racism in Israeli society.
POLITICAL COMMENTARY: “Police Prepare for Riots at RNC as US Becomes Increasingly Militarized” / RT America / Anya Parampil, and Sarah Lazare ☮
With the Republican National Convention just around the corner, authorities in Cleveland, Ohio are working with multiple federal agencies to bring in military grade equipment to prepare for potential riots. But while police militarization has already become the new norm in the US, two politicians are pushing for more funding for a counterterrorism program in New York. For more on this, RT America’s Anya Parampil speaks with Sarah Lazare, a staff writer for Alternet.
POLITICAL COMMENTARY: “Why not Prosecute the NY Times?: Chris Hedges on WikiLeaks, Assange” / RT America / Anya Parampil ☮
This week marks the fifth anniversary of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange taking refuge at the Ecuadorian embassy in London, as he remains wanted in Sweden for questioning on alleged sex crimes. Assange’s fear is that extradition to Sweden could lead to extradition to the US, where he could face prosecution for his work with WikiLeaks. For more on this, Chris Hedges, investigative journalist and host of ‘On Contact’ on RT America, joins Anya Parampil.
REASON: “On Religion” / Carl Sagan ☮
Segments about religion from Carl Sagan’s book Pale Blue Dot.
Carl Sagan speaks about the Garden of Eden, and the hunger of knowledge.
POLITICAL COMMENTARY: “Kshama Sawant: How to Counter Establishment Politics” / RT America / On Contact with Chris Hedges ☮
In this week’s episode of On Contact, Chris Hedges explores how to counter establishment politics with Kshama Sawant, the only socialist on the Seattle City Council. RT Correspondent Anya Parampil reports on the obstacles third-party candidates face in trying to enter the race for the White House.
CRITICAL THINKING: “Thinking Without a Box” ☮
INTERVIEW: “Noam Chomsky on the Breakdown of American Society and a World in Transition” / Truthout / C.J. Polychroniou ☮
The US is facing uncertain times. While it remains the only global superpower, it is no longer able to influence events and outcomes to its liking, at least not for the most part. Frustration and worry about the risk of upcoming disasters seem to far outweigh US voters’ hopes for a more rational and just world order. Meanwhile, Noam Chomsky argues, the rise and popularity of Donald Trump is occurring due to the fact that US society is breaking down.
In this exclusive interview with Truthout, Noam Chomsky addresses contemporary developments in both the United States and around the world and challenges prevailing views about class warfare, neoliberalism as the outcome of economic laws, the role of the US as a global power, the status of emerging economies and the power of the Israel Lobby.
CJ Polychroniou: Noam, you have said that the rise of Donald Trump is largely due to the breakdown of American society. What exactly do you mean by this?
Noam Chomsky: The state-corporate programs of the past 35 or so years have had devastating effects on the majority of the population, with stagnation, decline and sharply enhanced inequality being the most direct outcomes. This has created fear and has left people feeling isolated, helpless, victims of powerful forces they can neither understand or influence. The breakdown is not caused by economic laws. They are policies, a kind of class war initiated by the rich and powerful against the working population and the poor. This is what defines the neoliberalism period, not only in the US but in Europe and elsewhere. Trump is appealing to those who sense and experience the breakdown of American society — to deep feelings of anger, fear, frustration, hopelessness, probably among sectors of the population that are seeing an increase in mortality, something unheard of apart from war.
Always Question Authority 