Truthout Headlines Tuesday 07 December 2010

BREAKING: Nigeria Files Charges Against Cheney in Halliburton Bribery Scheme
Jason Leopold, Truthout: "The former vice president was charged by Nigerian officials Tuesday along with eight other individuals in a bribery scheme involving the construction of a liquefied natural gas facility that took place while Cheney was chief executive of Halliburton. Halliburton and its one-time subsidiary, Kellogg, Brown & Root (KBR), were also charged, according to Nigerian prosecutor Godwin Obla. 'It includes Dick Cheney,' Obla said about the 16-count charge filed in Abuja, Nigeria's capital. 'There are conspiracy charges and giving gratification to public officers. There is also a charge for obstruction of justice.'"
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Selling Out New York City's Public Schools: Mayor Bloomberg, David Steiner and the Politics of Corporate "Leadership"
Henry A. Giroux, Truthout: "What is emerging out of this anti-public model of education is the Wal-Mart approach to schooling, in which students are viewed as a cheap supply of labor, valuable to the extent that they 'help employees get more education and to build a better work force.' Evidence of how this business model, with its all-too-obvious flight from social and moral responsibility works is evident in the recent decision by David Steiner, the recently appointed commissioner of the New York State Department of Education, to name the utterly unqualified Cathleen P. Black, the chairwoman of Hearst Magazines, as the chancellor of New York City's public schools."
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William Rivers Pitt | Thinking About Bobby
William Rivers Pitt, Truthout: "Last week, I kicked President Obama squarely in the teeth for his decision to abdicate the economic argument to the GOP by wasting everyone's time with a freeze of Federal wages, his absurd apology for causing the noxious tenor that has defined the political conversation in America of late, his pathetic willingness to wave the white flag on the issue of Bush's rich-people tax cuts, and worst of all, the revelation that he and his people actively thwarted a genuine search for justice that is most sorely needed: the investigation into war crimes perpetrated by the Bush administration, initiated by the Spanish government before being derailed by the Obama administration."
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WikiLeaks Founder Assange Arrested
Nadia Prupis, Truthout: "WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange turned himself in to police in London on Tuesday and will remain in custody until December 14 unless extradited to Sweden, Sweden's English-language newspaper The Local reports. Assange, who has been on the international radar since exposing hundreds of classified US government documents and simultaneously dodging a manhunt for alleged sex crimes against two Swedish women since August, said he would fight his extradition and the charges facing him."
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Don't Buy Currency Devaluation? It's Been Done Before
Paul Krugman, Krugman & Co.: "Hard-money types tend to take a sort of 'Lives of the Saints' approach to history. They reverently reference certain iconic examples of hyperinflation (Weimar Germany! Zimbabwe!), while remaining utterly ignorant of all examples to the contrary."
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Obama Caves on Bush Tax Cuts
Nadia Prupis, Truthout: "President Obama announced on Monday that he had reached a deal with Republicans to extend tax cuts for all Americans, including the wealthiest two percent - backtracking on one of his most pivotal campaign promises. Calling the deal a 'framework for a bipartisan agreement,' Obama relented in his previous assurances that he would allow Bush tax cuts to end and acceded to Republican opponents."
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Cables Belie Gulf States' Backing for Strikes on Iran
Gareth Porter and Jim Lobe, Inter Press Service: "The notion that [Gulf State] leaders, like Israel, favour a military solution to Iran's nuclear programme has become widely accepted by the news media in the past week.... But a careful reading of all the diplomatic cables reporting the views of Saudi and other Gulf Arab regimes on Iran shows that the Times' account seriously distorted the content - and in the case of the Saudis, ignored the context - of the cables released by Wikileaks."
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Gay Marriage Battle Starts a New Chapter
Mike Ludwig, Truthout: "The legal battle over gay marriage in California continued today in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, prompting the next chapter in what could be the most important civil rights struggle in recent history. The court heard oral arguments on Monday, and its decision could either put the case to rest or set the stage for a historic battle in the US Supreme Court."
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Norman Solomon | A Hollow Bomber Jacket
Norman Solomon, Truthout: "Evidence of the Obama administration's 'moral collapse' is profuse; the pattern is clear, the consequences already terrible. During the weeks and months ahead, progressives will need to engage in fresh strategic discussions. Public candor may be insufficient, but it is necessary."
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Supreme Court Will Act on Immigration Even if Congress Doesn't
Michael Doyle, McClatchy Newspapers: "The court's hour-long oral argument on Wednesday morning addresses one of Arizona's several controversial laws targeting illegal immigration. The law in question requires Arizona employers to determine worker eligibility through an electronic system called E-Verify. The Legal Arizona Workers Act of 2007 also imposes uniquely tough sanctions, which can include stripping the business licenses from employers that knowingly or intentionally hire illegal immigrants. Without a license, businesses shut down."
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Real Family Values: Nine Progressive Policies to Support Our Families
Sarah van Gelder, YES! Magazine: "Every family needs a place to live. When banks use our homes and mortgages to make bets in the global casino, we wind up with predatory lending, financial bubbles, crashes, and foreclosures."
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Tomb of the Unknown Sexual Orientation
Clay Bennett, political cartoon.
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Richard Wolff | Special Comment: Is Obama a Socialist? (Video)

Richard Wolff, Truthout: In this special comment, Professor Richard D. Wolff explains exactly why President Obama is not a socialist.
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