In the thick of the Olympic frenzy, one voice that was systematically excluded from mainstream narratives is that of Brazil's Indigenous Peoples, writes Lewis Evans, who have fought to survive through centuries of dehumanisation, theft and genocide. And now they face a fresh attack as a proposed constitutional change, PEC 215, threatens a new round of indigenous land theft.
… media's limited attention span. A murderous history This is pretty tragic considering Brazil's murderous history. For over five hundred years now … and land theft, not the inevitable arc of history or unfortunate accidents. Troubling …
After over a century of coal ash and colliery waste dumping, the Tyne and Wear coastline is no stranger to industrial pollution. But soon a horrific new technology - underground coal gasification (UCG) - will endanger human health and the environment, backed by unflinching Government support and generous lashings of taxpayers' money.
… environmental disasters in its recent history. Massive unconventional coal resources … from the process. UCG's polluting past history Irrespective of the risks, due to the … - he said nothing about UCG's challenging history of environmental contamination. The …
Post Brexit, get ready for a massive attack on our liberty, especially on the right to protest, writes Paul Mobbs. With the UK likely to secede from the European Convention on Human Rights, prepare for a new empowerment of police to act with impunity against peaceful activists. We must be ready to stand up, with honour and dignity, for our ancient British right to dissent.
… how they could use the law, and our history, as a campaigning tool - as John Bugg … fracking rigs should really look at the history of - or rather, for ordinary people, … - though you won't find that on a school history curriculum! If you go to a protest …
Land theft, agribusiness and violence pose an existential threat to Brazil's Guarani people, writes Lewis Evans. They maintain a powerful resolve to regain their historic lands, and even have the law on their side - but the tribe will need international support to prevail against murderous ranchers and farmers, corrupt politicians and a paralysed legal system.
… will die of malnutrition." A dark and bloody history The Guarani have had to endure a lot … their entire conception of themselves. Their history revolves around it, and it is a …
A company bidding to undertake 'underground coal gasification (UGC) - a notoriously hazardous and polluting process - in the UK has threatened a Scottish clean energy campaigner: shut up or get sued. Paul Mobbs reports ...
… We only have to look at the long, polluted history of this process to see why. How does … part with their cash. A long and dirty history The idea first took off in Soviet …
The UK Government's policy is to frack at all costs, against public opinion and compelling evidence of environmental damage and poor returns, writes Paul Mobbs - a timely reminder that as far as the Government is concerned, it has a God-given right to rule over us, no matter what we think or want.
… Politics Human Rights UK Fracking Law History fracking-protest-bm-cut.jpg The UK … when we look at our oft-overlooked social history, nothing is as impossible as it may … ahead in this process. As exemplified by the history of St. Mary's, the power of the state …
Botswana's war on its indigenous population, the Bushmen of the Kalahari, has reached a new pitch, writes LEWIS EVANS. No longer content to arrest and intimidate them as they engage in subsistence hunting on their own land, the state has begun to shoot them from aircraft. These illegal, genocidal acts must stop!
… of these animals are endangered. A shameful history of state persecution Despite all this …
Fracking is just another step on the fossil fuel treadmill, according to 'Snake Oil' by Richard Heinberg. High costs, diminishing returns and growing pollution will ultimately nail its future. Paul Mobbs urges readers - give a copy to your MP before it's too late!
… first two thirds of 'Snake Oil' described the history of how this transition has taken … how, like the resource booms of American history, the current boom of US shale gas is …
The Kawahiva, an uncontacted tribe in the Amazon rainforest, face extinction unless Brazil's government acts to secure their legal rights to land, security and to remain undisturbed by outsiders, writes Lewis Evans. The decree that would achieve this vital goal has been sitting on the Minister of Justice's desk since 2013. Let's make sure he signs it soon, before it's too late.
… direction that, say, American or Australian history has taken over the past few centuries, … the jungle. We also know that in recent history, as in the colonial past, contact has …
Edelman, the global PR group, has a history of aggressive 'consent engineering' for the fossil fuel industry in North America, writes Paul Mobbs. So what are they doing running 'impartial' UK bodies including a Parliamentary group on unconventional oil and gas, and the 'independent' Task Force on Shale Gas? Are they really US-style 'astroturf' bodies designed to fool us all?
… Edelman, the global PR group, has a history of aggressive 'consent engineering' …
The recently announced Snoopers Charter 2.0 gives the state enormous powers to delve into our lives, writes Paul Mobbs. And all the more so when combined with other data to which the government has access - by simply buying it from commercial providers. If you don't like the idea, it's time to get your systems secure and shrink your digital data trail.
… can still access people's Internet browsing history without a warrant. Though judicial … as well as data about your recent browsing history. The web service companies then slice …
None of the various technofixes on offer alter the fact that humanity has to learn to stop living on the last drops of cheap energy, and to start living within its means
… of the general economy. Throughout its history, up to the Second World War, Britain …
Politicians are forever citing 'terror' as a reason to expand the security state and restrict civil liberties, writes Paul Mobbs. But when it comes to the real threats that face the world - ecological breakdown, climate disruption, resource crises, and an unjust and rapacious world order ... well, that's all 'green crap'. Isn't it?
… in Britain since 2005. Even with Britain's history of terrorism, due to the conflict in …
Economics is much more than the study of money, writes Paul Mobbs. It is a belief system, and in its 'mainstream' incarnation, one that serves a very useful purpose - for those that reap the benefits. But as Brian Davey shows in his insightful new book, it's letting the rest of us down: failing to deliver human wellbeing, while driving ecological calamity.
… through the dominant theories within the history of economics. In its 50 short, …
Massacres like that reported to have taken place recently in the Amazon are sadly neither new nor uncommon. For uncontacted tribal peoples, the colonial era continues, as bandits and extractive industries, abetted by a corrupt government, inflict violence and plunder on them. LEWIS EVANS puts this brutality into context, and examines potential solutions.
… make a quick buck, there is a long and bloody history of genocidal violence against tribal …
The endangered Bengal Tiger and One-horned Rhino desperately need protection, writes Lewis Evans. But in India's Kaziranga National Park, 'fortress conservation' includes a brutal 'shoot on sight' policy that is terrorising local communities, many of them tribal. Indigenous peoples are the natural allies of conservation and need to be engaged in constructive solutions - not shot!
… sensitive border region of India with a history of armed conflict and many tribal …
As Michael Gove gives his first speech as Justice Secretary, promising to update our 'creaking and outdated' courts, Paul Mobbs writes that 'reforms' to date have only deepened the injustice that afflicts poor defendants: penalising the innocent, burdening those who plead 'not guilty' with heavy charges regardless of ability to pay, cutting legal aid, and halving the number of duty solicitors.
… changes been enacted in modern political history. On the specific point I am … figure within modern British political history, John Stuart Mill : "Let not any one …
The UK's insistence on opening up the UK to fracking is symptomatic of a deeper malaise, writes Paul Mobbs. Of course we need a change of government, but more than that, we need a deeper, enduring change of the nation's governance if we are ever to effect the transition to sustainable policies on energy and environment. It's time for the UK to become truly democratic.
… that region. Even without Britain's troubling history in the region, it is difficult to be …
The Environmental Audit Committee today calls for shale fracking in the UK to be 'put on hold', writes Paul Mobbs. But the EAC is missing an even more dangerous technology that the Infrastructure Bill would support - underground coal gasification.
… onshore industry has a generally safe history, with over 200 producing wells and no …