Friday, November 27, 2015

Friday news in Late November 2015




The protesters in Chicago are letting their voices to be heard. The Chicago cop Jason Van Dyke executed Laquan McDonald. Laquan was only 17 years old. Many of the protesters are protesting Black Friday. The video clearly shows Van Dyke firing 2 shots into McDonald while he moved away from the police and then he fired 14 more shots into McDonald’s body as he lies dying the middle of the road. He was murdered in October 20, 2014 at 10 pm. The cold blooded murder of Laquan was evil. Van Dyke has been charged with first degree murder. Across America, the police have murdered almost 1,200 people during this year alone. People know that Chicago is known for many of its officers using police brutality. At first, the police claimed that there was only one shot not 16. The cops' account was that McDonald was allegedly "acting erratically" and "armed"--with what turned out to be a small pocketknife. The police insisted that McDonald "lunged" at them, and that Van Dyke fired in fear for his life. That’s a lie as the video shows that McDonald was no direct threat to any of the officers. McDonald didn't lung at any officer. That is why the City Council approved a $5 million payout to McDonald’s family just six months after the shooting even before the family had even filed a civil suit. Chicago authorities wanted this case to be placed under the rug, but the truth should never be placed under the rug at all. Back in 2012, protesters against NATO in Chicago were assaulted by the police and entrapment of activists existed on trumped up charges. This is the first time a Chicago police officer has faced criminal charges for a murder committed while on duty in 35 years. But the fact that it happened 400 days after the murder occurred--and just hours before the video was to be revealed--demonstrates that the charge has nothing to do with trying to hold a violent cop accountable and everything to do with public pressure. A number of the groups, including Black Youth Project 100, We Charge Genocide, Fearless Leading by the Youth and others, refused to meet with the mayor. They made it clear that the city is not really transparent. They are accurate to say that the mayor of Chicago has bankrupted public education to fund militarized police occupation and terrorism. Days ago, when protesters were marching in Lake Shore Drive, officers charged the crowd and arrested three activists. Another activist named Malcolm London was arrested. He was charged with felony charges of assaulting an officer. Yet, marchers said that London was whisked away after the police used a smoke bomb. People are in defense of Malcolm London from young activists to teachers. Later, London’s charges were dismissed. Protesters want investments in schools, clinics, libraries, transit, and health care not in police occupation. We want the working class and the poor to have liberation. The cover up of this crime is brutally clear. We want justice.



Turkey shooting down 2 Russian jets has been new developments in the Syrian civil war. Turkey claims that they warned the aircraft multiple times and that the Russian warplanes entered Turkey airspace. Russia claimed that their airplanes didn’t receive a warning from Turkey and the actions were acts of aggression. Lt. General Tom McInerney is an expert on handling threats from fighter jets. He served in NORAD and he’s a Commander of the 11th Air Force in Alaska. He is an expert on many issues.  Yesterday, McInerney told Fox News – much to the surprise of the reporter interviewing him – that assuming the Turkish version of the flight path of the Russian jet is accurate, Russia wasn’t threatening Turkey, and that Turkey’s shoot down of the Russian jet “had to be pre-planned”, as the jet wasn’t in Turkish air space long enough for anything other than a premeditated attack to have brought it down. McInerney is right, especially given that a U.S. official told Reuters that the Russian jet was inside of Syria when it was shot down: “…The United States believes that the Russian jet shot down by Turkey on Tuesday was hit inside Syrian airspace after a brief incursion into Turkish airspace, a U.S. official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity…” This act was so provocative that the Turkish Prime Minister wants to have a personal meeting with Putin in order to end tensions. Even if the SU-24 was in Turkish airspace for a few seconds, that 17 seconds is not long enough for a Turkish pilot to get clearance for such a serious and reckless act as shooting down a Russian military aircraft. If the SU-24 was flying at a normal speed rather than one that would be unable to keep the aircraft aloft, the alleged airspace violation would not have been long enough to be noticed.  A shoot down had to have been pre-arranged.  Either way, Turkey is not completely honest.

Rescued co-pilot from the downed Russian Su-24 jet said there were no visual or radio warnings issued by Turkey. “There were no warnings. Not via the radio, not visually. There was no contact whatsoever. That’s why we were keeping our combat course as usual. You have to understand what the cruising speed of a bomber is compared to an F-16. If they wanted to warn us, they could have shown themselves by heading on a parallel course. But there was nothing. And the rocket hit our tail completely unexpectedly. We didn’t even see it in time to take evasive maneuvers.” Rescued co-pilot Captain Konstantin Murahtin said there was no violation of the Turkish airspace. He also said the crew of the downed Russian bomber jet knew the area of the operation “like the back of their hands.” "Of course, having carried out numerous flights there we knew the region like the backs of our hands. We were conducting our sorties and returning back to base following the predetermined route. I’m a navigator, I know every altitude there. I can guide the aircraft there blindfolded,” co-pilot said. Russia is attacking al-Qaeda related Al Nusrah terrorists in Syria. US/NATO is an ally of Turkey as Turkey is a NATO member. We do know that many EU politicians accused many people from Turkey to have links to ISIS for oil purposes. Turkey has made it clear that they want to attack Kurds in Syria (whom they claim are terrorists) and advance their own agendas. The US imperialists are slick. They know that they are using this event as a way to contain Russia while deal with China (in a way that promotes the pivot of Asia agenda).

During the World War II era, Houston expanded its resources. Houston had about 400,000 people by 1940. The population depended on shipping and oil. World War II had many effects on the city. It expanded dramatically the city’s economic base, because of massive federal spending. There were many entrepreneurs (like George Brown, James Elkins, and James Abercrombie) who landed hundreds of millions of dollars in federal wartime investment in technologically complex facilities. Houston oil companies moved from being mere refineries and became sophisticated producers of petrochemicals. There were synthetic rubber and high octane fuel, which retained their importance after the war. The war moved the natural gas industry from a minor factor to a major energy source. Houston became a major hub when a local firm purchased the federally financed inch pipelines. Other major growth industries included steel, munitions, and shipbuilding. Tens of thousands of new migrants streamed in from rural areas, straining the city's housing supply and the city's ability to provide local transit and schools.  During this time, high paying jobs came to a large number of women, black people, and Mexican Americans for the first time. The African American community became emboldened by their new era of economic growth. So, black people grew civil rights activism. The Smith v. Allwight Supreme Court decision on voting rights was backed and funded by local black people in Houston during this time period. Tonnage fell at the port and five shipping lines ended service when World War II began. By April of 1940, streetcar service was replaced by buses. Robertson Stadium or Houston Public School Stadium was erected from March 1941 to September 1942. Pam Am started air service in 1942too. Ellington Field was reopened during WWII.  The Cruiser Houston was named after the city. It sank after a vicious battle in Java, Indonesia in 1942. August 1942 also saw the new City Manager Government enacted.

The M. D. Anderson Foundation formed the Texas Medical Center in 1945. That same year, the University of Houston separated from HISD and became a private university.  The war expanded aircraft and shipbuilding industries in Texas. Tonnage rose after the end of the war in 1946. In 1946, E. W. Bertner gave away 161 acres of land for the Texas Medical Center. Suburban Houston came into being from 1946 to 1950. Oscar D. Holcombe abandoned a city manager type of government when he took his eighth term in 1946. By the late 1940’s Houston’s banking industry grew into prominence. Many more developments came like:  Foley's department store opened in 1947. The Alley Theatre got its first performance in 1947. Also the same year, voters overwhelmingly rejected a referendum for citywide land-use districts--zoning. Houston formed a large annexation campaign to increase its size. When air conditioning came to the city, it was called the "World's Most Air Conditioned City".  By the end of the 1940’s, Houston became a strong, port driven economy.  By the 1950’s, Texas Medical Center became operational. More wealth came into the region. The Galveston Freeway and the International Terminal at Houston International Airport (nowadays Hobby Airport) were signs of increasing wealth in the area. Millions of dollars were spent to replace aging infrastructure. In 1951, the Texas Children’s Hospital and the Shriner’s Hospital were built. Hospitals had expansions being completed. The first network television of Houston came in July 1, 1952. In those years, the University of Houston celebrated its 25th anniversary. Houston needed more water supplies. They usually relied on ground water, but that caused land subsidence. So, they had had proposals in the Texas Congress to use the Trinity River. Hattie Mae White was elected to the school board in 1959. She was the first African-American to be elected in a major position in Houston in the 20th Century. Starting in 1950, Japanese-Americans as a whole were leaving horticulture and going into business in larger cities, such as Houston.


By Timothy


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