By NOELLE JIANG Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Asia and the Pacific Democratic Space Posted by (Bulatlat.com) The Rice Crisis of 2008 saw rice stocks at their lowest in 30 years and rice prices increase by up to 40 per cent. While agrochemical transnational corporations (TNCs) found the situation the perfect scenario to increase sales of…
Day: August 10, 2009
A Study in Contrasts
A Study in Contrasts, The sea of humanity that accompanied former President Cory Aquino on her journey to her final resting place attests to her popularity – something she was able to earn because though she had her own faults as a leader, in the end she stood by the people in their fight against tyranny. (By Flon Faurillo)
Cebuano Artists Disgusted over Arroyo’s Nat’l Artists
By RITCHE T. SALGADO Culture (Bulatlat.com) The lighting was subdued, the atmosphere somber; in front was a makeshift altar filled with wreaths and candles. A prayer was offered and then one by one, guests gave their eulogy to an accolade that for decades has pushed artists to excel in their discipline. This was the scene…
When “Not Bad” is the New “Good”: Economy on a Scaffold
By MIKE WHITNEY Counterpunch International Posted by Bulatlat We’re making this way too complicated. It’s simple really. The Fed has only one tool at its disposal; to create more money. Typically, the way the Fed adds to the money supply is by lowering interest rates. When the Fed lowers rates below the rate of inflation;…
Coal-Fired Power Plant Contaminates Air in Naga City, Cebu
By RITCHE T. SALGADO (Bulatlat.com) CEBU CITY — Engineer Vic Obando, his wife and three daughters wake up every morning knowing that every second of their life, they are breathing in toxic chemicals that may cause a myriad of illnesses. Coal Ash disposal site. (Contributed photo) Obando, a retired employee of the National Power Corporation,…
Is the US on the Brink of Fascism?
By SARAH ROBINSON Truthout/The Campaign for America’s Future International Posted by Bulatlat There are dangerous currents running through America’s politics and the way we confront them is crucial. All through the dark years of the Bush Administration, progressives watched in horror as Constitutional protections vanished, nativist rhetoric ratcheted up, hate speech turned into intimidation and…
Militarizing the Homeland
By DAHR JAMAIL and JASON COPPOLA Truthout Posted by Bulatlat Award-winning journalist and Associate Editor of the Nation Institute’s tomdispatch.com Nick Turse writes in his book “The Complex: How the Military Invades Our Everyday Lives”: “As a product of the 1980s G.I. Joe generation, I can attest to the seductive power of those three inch…
Fair Trade Shops Undergo Facelift
By RITCHE T. SALGADO (Bulatlat.com) CEBU CITY — Three thousand households from urban poor and rural communities are expected to benefit from the re-conceptualization of the only fair trade shop in Cebu. The People’s Fair Trade Shop along Osmeña Blvd. in Cebu City had gone a major facelift and along with it, Southern Partners and…
Photo of the Week: Not Quite Le Cirque
Not Quite Le Cirque. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her party spent nearly one million pesos on dinner during their recent visit to New York, ordering such items as caviar and expensive wine. In the meantime, poor Filipinos — like this little girl having lunch, or what passes for it, in Isla Puting Bato, a slum area in Manila — have to make do with what they have, which is often not enough. (By Ayi Muallam)