Author: FASHIONISLANDBLOG

Amid the growing call for President Barack Obama to end the leasing of federal lands for fossil fuel development, a new report published Monday exposes the energy corporations profiting most from this public pillaging. The report (pdf), put forth by the Rainforest Action Network, compiles the top federal leaseholders—dubbed the “Filthy 15″—in each of three…

A social justice organization has accused the European Commission of “putting lipstick on a pig” with its plan for a new court system for a pending EU-US trade deal the group says still affords “corporations frightening new powers at the expense of our national democracies.” The proposed system, the Investment Court System, would replace the…

Twin explosions outside Ankara’s main train station on Saturday morning killed at least 86 people and wounded up to 190 in an attack targeting a peace rally in Turkey’s capital city. The peace rally and march was organized by unions, NGO’s and  the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP)  to protest against the conflict between the…

Journalist, author, and leading voice on anti-black racism in America, Ta-Nehisi Coates, was revealed Tuesday to be one of 24 recipients of the 2015 MacArthur Genius awards. “Writing without shallow polemic and in a measured style, Coates addresses complex and challenging issues such as racial identity, systemic racial bias, and urban policing,” declared the foundation….

Activists identifying themselves as the “conscience” of one of the United Kingdom’s most prominent climate change skeptics on Monday shut down operations at an open-cast coal mine—the country’s largest—which happens to be situated on land owned by the notorious climate-denier and aristocrat, Conservative Viscount Matt Ridley. Beginning at dawn, “four protesters climbed down into the…

From civil rights groups to lawmakers to Hollywood A-listers, members of the public are furious that the popular comedy program Saturday Night Live (SNL) has invited 2016 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump—whose rhetoric demonizing immigrants has reportedly inspired hate crimes—to host its November 7th show. Organizations including the Hispanic Federation and the League of United…

Despite promises to stop spying on U.S. allies, new reporting on Tuesday revealed that the National Security Agency (NSA) under President Barack Obama continued to surveil friendly heads of state, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The exclusive investigation by the Wall Street Journal revealed that Obama ramped up the surveillance of top Israeli officials…

Reps. Pete Sessions (R-Texas) and Ron KindRonald (Ron) James KindCoronavirus culture war over reopening economy hits Capitol Hill How the GOP hopes to overcome steep odds in House battle The Hill’s Campaign Report: 200 days to Election Day 2020 MORE (D-Wis.) are both prime targets for their opponents, with each seen as a potential takedown…

European ministers, gathered in Brussels on Friday one week after the Paris attacks, vowed to tighten external border controls, backing France’s call for a fundamental revision of the so-called Schengen deal to allow the “systematic” controlling of EU citizens at borders. The 26-nation, passport-free Schengen zone—which European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker dubbed a “unique symbol…

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders retained a previously established lead and became the hands-down winner of the readers’ choice for TIME’s “Person of the Year,” the magazine announced on Monday, beating out all his political rivals in the U.S. as well as notable individiuals from around the world by receiving nearly twice the support of the runner-up. The…