World Socialist Web Site

13 December 2008

White House signals aid after auto loan bill stalls in Senate
UAW agrees to more concessions

By Joe Kishore, 13 December 2008

The Bush administration announced Friday that it is open to granting emergency loans to the auto industry. In a press conference, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger made clear his willingness to impose massive concessions on auto workers as part of any agreement.

Senate torture report confirms Bush, top officials guilty of war crimes

By Bill Van Auken, 13 December 2008

A Senate Armed Services Committee report provides official confirmation that the infamous acts of torture at Abu Ghraib, Guantánamo and other detention centers were planned, ordered and orchestrated by the highest ranking officials in the US government.

New protests in Athens, solidarity actions across Europe

By Chris Marsden, 13 December 2008

Thousands took part in an anti-government rally in Athens on Friday, culminating a week of protests that show no signs of abating.

US military prepares for Obama’s expansion of Afghan war

By James Cogan, 13 December 2008

The US military in Afghanistan is preparing for an influx of tens of thousands more American troops during the first months of the Obama presidency.

Washington urges Canada to wage war in Afghanistan beyond 2011

By John Mackay and Keith Jones, 13 December 2008

No credence should be given to the Conservative government’s pledge that Canada will have no more than a token military presence in Afghanistan after 2011, after having twice extended the counterinsurgency mission in the face of massive public opposition.

Canada in the week since the Conservatives’ constitutional coup

By Keith Jones, 13 December 2008

The ramifications of last week’s constitutional coup—in which the unelected and unaccountable governor-general shut down parliament so as to prevent the three parliamentary opposition parties from unseating the right-wing, minority Conservative government of Stephen Harper—have only begun to play out. What is incontestable is that no section of the Canadian elite has opposed what was a flagrant attack on parliamentary norms and democratic rights.

National interests dominate at EU summit in Brussels

By Stefan Steinberg, 13 December 2008

The German chancellor and her finance minister are not prepared to throw their longstanding European strategy overboard at what the government and economic experts admit is only the start of what will be a prolonged and painful recession—even if they alienate Germany's European neighbours.

Nearly 1 billion of world’s people face chronic hunger

By Oliver Richards, 13 December 2008

The number of undernourished people in the world has increased from 923 million in 2007 to 963 million in 2008.

Germany: Opel works council demands planned wage cut be kept secret

By Dietmar Henning, 13 December 2008

A ferocious controversy has broken out between the works council at Opel Bochum and the overall Opel works council at the company’s Rüsselsheim headquarters. Last week, when the Bochum works council chairman, Rainer Einenkel, spoke about the threat of short-time work and wage cuts, the main Opel works council leader, Klaus Franz, reacted furiously.

Thousands of jobs threatened in Swedish auto industry

By Jordan Shilton, 13 December 2008

The threatened demise of Ford and General Motors in the US is being felt internationally, with reports revealing plans to sell off Swedish subsidiaries, Volvo and Saab.

SAG to hold strike vote: the issues facing screen actors

By Ramón Valle, Andrea Peters and David Walsh, 13 December 2008

Members of the Screen Actors Guild face an intransigent foe in the studios and networks. A new political perspective and strategy are necessary.

New in Spanish

Las lecciones de la ocupación de Chicago

Por Joe Kishore, 13 de diciembre del 2008

El miércoles por la noche, luego de cinco días, aproximadamente 250 obreros abandonaron la fábrica Republic Windows and Doors en Chicago Illinois, luego de lograr un acuerdo que cumple con sus principales demandas.

New in French

Emeutes en Grèce après le meurtre d'un jeune de 15 ans par la police

Par Ann Talbot, 13 décembre 2008

Des émeutes ont éclaté dans tout le pays en Grèce après que la police abatte un jeune garçon de 15 ans à Athènes.

New in German

Lehren aus der Betriebsbesetzung in Chicago

Von Joe Kishore, 13. Dezember 2008

Die Besetzung der Glasfabrik Republic Windows and Doors, die am Mittwoch endete, war ein enormer Fortschritt. Es war der erste unabhängige Schritt eines Teils der Arbeiterklasse in den USA gegen die Auswirkungen der Wirtschaftskrise.

Indisch-pakistanische Spannungen nehmen nach den Anschlägen in Mumbai zu

Von Peter Symonds, 13. Dezember 2008

In Indien und dem benachbarten Pakistan werden die politischen Auswirkungen der Terrororanschläge in Mumbai immer deutlicher. Die Spannungen zwischen den beiden Nuklearmächten steigen weiter an.

Nationale Interessen dominieren EU-Gipfel in Brüssel

Von Stefan Steinberg, 13. Dezember 2008

Die deutsche Kanzlerin und ihr Finanzminister sind nicht bereit, diese Strategie in einer Situation über Bord zu werfen, wo – wie Regierung und Wirtschaftsexperten zugeben – eine lang anhaltende und schmerzhafte Rezession erst begonnen hat. Dafür gehen sie sogar das Risiko ein, sich mit den europäischen Nachbarn zu überwerfen.