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Netanyahu Defends New Illegal Settlements In Jerusalem & Golan Heights As Tensions Build
A wall surrounding Israel's illegal settlements near Jerusalem. (Flickr / Paolo Cuttitta)
November 14, 2015
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Netanyahu Defends New Illegal Settlements In Jerusalem & Golan Heights As Tensions Build

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

While also calling for the construction of over 2,000 new Jewish-only homes on occupied Palestinian land, Israel’s prime minister recently denied that tensions between Israel and Palestine are mounting as a result of the growth of illegal settlements.

Israel approved about 2,200 new homes in Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank at an Oct. 21 planning meeting, according to documents first obtained by Haaretz, with a goal of completing construction by 2030. The meeting occurred during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent trip to Washington, where he met with President Barack Obama, and International Business Times noted: “Commentators have highlighted the Israeli government made a similar move in 2010 when it announced the construction of 1,600 new settlement units just as US Vice President Joe Biden was arriving in Jerusalem.”

The approval also comes as Israel renews its controversial practice of demolishing Palestinian homes. The practice, like the settlements themselves, are widely condemned by governments and human rights organizations as a form of illegal collective punishment against an oppressed population.

Read moreNetanyahu Defends New Illegal Settlements In Jerusalem & Golan Heights As Tensions Build
Over $1 Trillion Spent Since Nixon Began The War On Drugs
Richard Nixon's presidential portrait. December 24, 1971. (Wikimedia Commons / White House)
November 12, 2015
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Over $1 Trillion Spent Since Nixon Began The War On Drugs

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

The “war on drugs” costs Americans a staggering amount of money every year that it persists. Despite the billions they receive, federal, state and local law enforcement have a proven inability to stem the flow of drugs on the nation’s streets.

Since Richard Nixon declared a war on drugs in June 1971, the cost of that “war” had soared to over $1 trillion by 2010. Over $51 billion is spent annually to fight the drug war in the United States, according to Drug Policy Alliance, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting more humane drug policies.

It’s also taken a massive toll on human lives. In 2013, at least 2.2 million people were incarcerated in the U.S., withsome estimates reaching 2.4 million, making the U.S. home to the world’s largest prison population. A vast number of those prisoners are victims of the war on drugs, reported Alejandro Crawford in U.S. News and World Report in March:

Read moreOver $1 Trillion Spent Since Nixon Began The War On Drugs
Army Vet Faces Felony For Helping Other Veterans Treat PTSD With Cannabis (Updated)
Sean Kiernan turned to cannabis treatment after an almost fatal struggle with PTSD.
November 11, 2015
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Army Vet Faces Felony For Helping Other Veterans Treat PTSD With Cannabis (Updated)

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Even though more states are legalizing medical marijuana, and federal officials have claimed that the prosecution of pot smokers is no longer a priority, the “war on drugs” continues to destroy the lives of Americans suffering from dire medical conditions.

Sean Kiernan is a U.S. Army veteran from Rancho Santa Fe, California, who, along with his wife, pleaded guilty earlier this year to felony charges related to growing marijuana for other veterans.

Kiernan attempted suicide in 2011, nearly becoming part of a horrifying statistic: Although the figure is disputed, some estimates suggest that an average of 22 veterans commit suicide each day. Still struggling two years later, Kiernan was involuntarily committed by officials at a Veterans Affairs hospital, an experience which he says led him to embrace the benefits of cannabis over pharmaceutical drugs.

Read moreArmy Vet Faces Felony For Helping Other Veterans Treat PTSD With Cannabis (Updated)
Midwest Campus Activists Vow To Keep Struggling For Palestine Despite Threats
The Minnesota chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, along with other pro-peace groups, demonstrate on the University of Minnesota campus. (Photo: SJP MN Facebook)
November 3, 2015
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Midwest Campus Activists Vow To Keep Struggling For Palestine Despite Threats

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

As tensions increase in the West Bank and Gaza, activists for Palestine on American college campuses are also facing threats of violence and oppression.

Students for Justice in Palestine, a group with chapters on college campuses throughout North America, opposes the oppression of Palestinians. Last month, as Muslims throughout the Midwest faced increasing violence, three chapters received disturbing threats after publicly expressing their support for the cause.

In early October, when a video went viral that showed Fadi Alon, a Palestinian teen, being hunted and killed by Israeli settlers, the SJP chapter at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities took to their Facebook page to express solidarity with the slain youth. (MintPress News founder and editor-in-chief Mnar Muhawesh serves as an advisor to SJP UMN chapter.)

Read moreMidwest Campus Activists Vow To Keep Struggling For Palestine Despite Threats
MSNBC Opts To Apologize After Airing Map Of Disappearing Palestine
A map showing Palestine's disappearing territory since the beginning of Israeli occupation. (MSNBC screenshot)
October 26, 2015
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MSNBC Opts To Apologize After Airing Map Of Disappearing Palestine

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Earlier this month, MSNBC aired a well-known, but controversial graphic that illustrates how Israel has taken over Palestine as the occupation of the region has grown over time.

The graphic, which appeared during an Oct. 15 discussion between MSNBC anchor Kate Snow and Martin Fletcher, a Middle East correspondent, shows a series of four maps dating from 1946 to the present that depict the loss of Palestinian territory to Israel.

During the segment, Fletcher discussed the ways that Israel’s provocative behavior at Al-Aqsa Mosque is a major trigger for the latest violence in Gaza and the West Bank, then Snow introduced the graphic as it appeared on screen, saying: “What does that show you, Martin, that the area Palestinians are living, has it grown increasingly smaller?”

Read moreMSNBC Opts To Apologize After Airing Map Of Disappearing Palestine
Mainstream Media Focuses On Israeli Deaths While Ignoring Israeli Violence
Palestine 2009. Israel's Wall in Bethlehem, West Bank with graffiti which reads "Free Palestine." (Flickr / Montecruz Photo)
October 23, 2015
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Mainstream Media Focuses On Israeli Deaths While Ignoring Israeli Violence

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Despite widespread criticism over the ways Israel has provoked the latest wave of violence engulfing the West Bank and Gaza, the media in the West mostly focuses on attacks by Palestinians on Israeli settlers and soldiers, ignoring the context that led to the current tensions.

Electronic Intifada, a site that advocates for Palestinian freedom, noted that a prominent BBC radio programon Monday attempted to imply that all of the dead in recent violence were Israelis:

Read moreMainstream Media Focuses On Israeli Deaths While Ignoring Israeli Violence