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Kashmir and Art. 370, Pt. I

On the 5th of August 2019 India annexed Jammu and Kashmir by revoking Art. 370 and 35a of India’s Constitution. The move is not without controversy, and it has had almost immediate effects along certain lines. The Kashmir region as a whole is bordered by China, India and Pakistan, all three nuclear powers, with pieces administered by each. The region has been contested for years, since the partition of India in 1947. Kashmir has been called the most dangerous place in the world because of the nuclear status of the nations involved and because the two main belligerents – India and Pakistan – are so volatile. The decision has far-reaching and potentially violent repercussions. Continue reading “Kashmir and Art. 370, Pt. I”

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Kashmir Pt. II: Pakistan

When Art. 370 was revoked by India, the reaction in Pakistan was both swift and expected: It was loudly and roundly condemned. Continuing with our discussion of the troubles in Kashmir, we will begin to parse the partition of India and Pakistan astrologically and why there has been so much animosity at times between the two nations in the next section. But in this one we want to look at the situation for Pakistan. The differences between India and Pakistan from the start lie primarily along religious lines, India being predominantly Hindu and Pakistan predominantly Sunni Muslim. There were other reasons behind the partition as well, which would be shown in the charts. Continue reading “Kashmir Pt. II: Pakistan”

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Kashmir, Pt. III: India

Finally, in this third section we will have a look at what the revocation of Article 370 will mean for India and why they went about it. The move has been called a ‘constitutional slight-of-hand’ and illegal, and on the whole it was the fulfillment of a campaign promise by the ruling party. Naturally, it has wide support among the Indian public, but what about the Kashmiris, who were not consulted? What will be the outcome for them? At this point, that is up in the air, but given India’s past behavior there, the outlook is not favorable for Kashmir. Continue reading “Kashmir, Pt. III: India”

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Salvini: Down but not out

On 20 Aug 2019 the Italian PM Giuseppe Conte resigned his post due to continued infighting between the coalition government and to preempt a confidence vote that had been put forward by Interior Minister Matteo Salvini. Conte went on to give an excoriating indictment of Salvini, accusing him of looking out only for himself and his party. The Italian press and much of the western press has followed in kind, painting Salvini as quite the rogue. President Sergio Mattarella wants the diverse factions in the Italian parliament to move quickly to form government, otherwise Italy faces new elections. The new government looks now to be formed, between the Pd and Five Star parties, with Conte as PM. If so, it will probably mean more austerity for Italy. But is that and the new coalition the right direction for the Italians? Continue reading “Salvini: Down but not out”

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Boris and his gamble

Boris Johnson has just played his hand. Probably at the prompting of his chief advisor, Dominic Cummings, he has asked the Queen to prorogue the UK Parliament. She has obliged, dissolving Parliament for five weeks. I have read many sources who say this is likely to result in a no-deal Brexit, much to the delight of many in England and Wales, much to the shock and disgust of Northern Ireland and Scotland – and some in England and Wales, too. It would appear that the Conservatives have finally gotten what they wanted, which is a clean break with the EU, which will also greatly please Donald Trump. I wouldn’t be so certain it will go that way. As the saying goes, it’s not over until…something about a lady singing. Continue reading “Boris and his gamble”

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Epstein: Is he or isn’t he — and how?

I like good mysteries. They sharpen the analytical skills, point us in different directions of thought, which we like to call “thinking outside the box” and often bring in new areas of study. More than that, however, they are a good measure of our common sense. Such is the current state of affairs with the mysterious ‘death’ of Jeffry Epstein. I put ‘death’ in quotes because we are only told of his demise. We have yet to see a body or an autopsy report. What do we really have, then? Continue reading “Epstein: Is he or isn’t he — and how?”

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The Sirius letter

For those who might have missed it, the Leo letter is now posted on the main site.  It is a look in particular this year at the shifting sands of capitalism and socialism, sure to be dog-whistle words in political contests in the US and UK in the coming year. The topics covered are Brexit, the Italian leadership spill and what it might mean for us here in Italy, Ukraine, Russia and the US (as always), the Hong Kong protests and China, France, Romania, South Korea, Deutsche Bank and more. There is also a brief mention of the Earth in astrology and, of course, an esoteric look at Leo. You can see the entire letter HERE. Enjoy!

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The trials of Deutsche Bank

Following on from our previous article about Boeing and its woes, there is another multinational corporation that is seeing its fair share of troubles as well. This company, however, has the capacity to bring about a crisis that would rival the Great Depression in its effects and bring about the end of the neo-liberal financial order. We refer here to Deutsche Bank. It has also seen its fair share of scandals in past years, too. And now, it is hemorrhaging assets at a rate of a billion dollars a day. Europeans should be especially concerned, but then, no one escapes if Deutsche Bank goes down. Continue reading “The trials of Deutsche Bank”

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Is Boeing going?

The Boeing Corporation has seen better days. After the crashes of two of its bread-and-butter aircraft due to a design fault, it is facing a loss of $2.5 billion a month due to the stoppage of sales and grounding of its entire fleet of 737 MAX aircraft, the type that was involved in the crashes. Almost 350 people died in those crashes. It was avoidable, had proper air safety procedures in the course of manufacturing and testing occurred. It is a story of a lack of oversight, cost-cutting, the rush to produce, and profits over people. It is a story across the spectrum of US industry. Continue reading “Is Boeing going?”