“China’s Manhattan Project” is such an odd way to put it. It’s like the only frame of reference for building a great innovation for the US is the fucking Atom Bomb 70 years ago. China already had “China’s Manhattan Project”, it was the Two Bombs, One Satellite program in 1964.

At least seems we’re finally moved from the daily “China will collapse tomorrow” to daily “China just got on the same page”. Can’t wait for China to flood the consumer and industrial computer part market and reduce the absurd artificial prices we have to pay outside the Global North.

I don’t think he’ll be sent back. The supreme court is effectively a representative for a large fraction the bourgeoisie and they’ve already ruled against the Bolsonaro mafia. Other sectors (specially banking and agribusiness) have already infiltrated the Lula admin to the core. Even the interventionist military is unchanged. So the fascistic faction has been rendered unnecessary.

I think Lula has learned very well that, rather than confronting the right, he’ll personally profit much more by aligning with it. That way he neuters the threat of the far right to him personally and his party, while throwing the whole country under the bus.

Update: the motion for his dismissal was defeated due to not getting a strict majority (257 votes), but he will still be suspended for 6 months. The key point is he will still be eligible for election next year.

An additional bit from the same session in which this happened. There was also going to be a vote for the dismissal of four congresspeople, three of them being Bolsonaro-aligned coup plotters who fled the country, and one of them an actual socialist congressman, Glauber Braga, for spurious reasons.

Shortly before the vote on this bill, he occupied the chair of the presidency in protest and was forcibly removed. Afterwards press and assistants were also violently removed from the plenary by the police and transmissions were cut. So this vote was literally made under press blackout. Can’t find an English source, but maybe auto translation works with this one.

Lula could literally veto and refuse to sanction this law, but he won’t even talk about it unless absolutely pushed to. Workers Party ain’t even demsoc anymore, they’re just a redwashed liberal party.

We don’t know yet. A couple weeks ago there was a similar move that passed a constitutional amendment (PEC) of effectively complete judicial immunity for parlamentarians, but it immediately triggered protests with hundreds of thousands on the streets nationwide. After that the PEC was unanimously rejected by a Senate commission before even going to the vote. It was a massive win for the left.

We just had really great spontaneous protests against violence against women (“feminicídio” in Portuguese) last Sunday again, and there’s plans for other protests this next Sunday. It’s possible that the same method will work again, but we won’t know until next week.

But regarding fascism or revolution, I think neither are a full option. This looks like the last gasp of the desperate Bolsonaro faction, and revolutionary forces are still too weak to play anything but defence right now. I think the only faction coming out of this on top is the institutional centrist Lula administration.

I’ll try to keep people updated with English sources.

Can’t wait to see AOC vote against this.

I think it’s fair, long range missiles are the “diplomatic weapon”. Give long range missiles to Sweden and also Cuba, Venezuela, the Sahel States, Colombia, Mexico, Bolivia and any other small country that feels threatened by a military superpower. That’ll ensure no more wars. \s

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Can’t have New Labour without war crimes, and Starter knows it.

[Defense Secretary John] Healey issued the warning as he made the case for increased defense spending a week before the government releases its new budget. Even though Prime Minister Keir Starmer has pledged big military spending increases in light of threats from Russia, China and Iran, the government is facing tough tradeoffs as it eyes tax increases and spending cuts to close a multi-billion-pound shortfall in its finances.

More austerity to feed the war machine.

Actually it’s not torture, it’s Enhanced Interrogation Techniques. Totally different so it’s completely fine. \s

Trotskyist new parties getting media coverage on being “revolutionary” on a purely aesthetic basis. Never seen that op before.

Another Lula bad move portrayed as a victory. The price of groceries were going down in Brazil specifically because of the tariffs.

Now he has secured an end to those tariffs which mostly affected only the comprador agribusiness sector, while selling off more of the country, from water companies, to oil in the Amazon, and now the rare earths deals.

The US isn’t even Brazil’s main trading partner. This is only a win for the Brazilian agribusiness (fuck them) and the US citizenry. Brazil itself should self-impose tariffs for exportation until every citizen can afford groceries in one of the most fertile countries in the world.

Where’s the lie?

Update: 1 day later the Haitian National Police (PNH) conducted an armed operation, including helicopters, with intentions to take the seized evidence. The attack was held back and one helicopter was shot down.

Statement by the Communist Party of Ireland on the Irish Presidential Election.

The Communist Party of Ireland recognises that the office of Uachtarán na hÉireann is largely symbolic. Incumbents, such as President Higgins, have used the office to raise issues of concern to the people of Ireland, such as homelessness, the genocide in Gaza, the erosion of Irish neutrality and promotion of the Irish language.

They are, however, precluded from taking any independent political action by Article 13.11 of the Constitution which states that,“No power or function conferred on the President by law shall be exercisable or performable by him save only on the advice of the Government.” Recognising the limits of the office, we believe that the present election is important because there is a clear demarcation between the two candidates representing the government parties and Catherine Connolly who is supported by an ad hoc broad left and republican front.

The government candidates, in particular Jim Gavin the Fianna Fáil candidate, are seeking to use the Presidential election as an unofficial referendum on Irish neutrality. Gavin, who has no history of political involvement opened his election campaign by calling for the abolition of the triple lock on the deployment of Irish Defence Forces abroad. Echoing his handler, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Gavin has called for the bypassing of the UN Security Council when deploying Irish troops abroad, instead relying on decisions made by NATO or the EU. Neither Fianna Fáil nor Fine Gael campaigned on the removal of the Triple Lock in the last General Election.

They have repeatedly refused to give the people a vote on the issue. The Taoiseach is determined to abolish the Triple Lock and the danger is that in the event of a victory for Gavin in the Presidential Election, he will try to claim that as support for the abolition of the Triple Lock.

Abolishing the Triple Lock will mean further erosion of neutrality and closer links with NATO. It will mean diverting billions of euros from health, housing, education and social services into the coffers of US, European and British arms companies.

It will mean turning Ireland into a target in any future wars launched by the NATO/EU Bloc. It will mean our sons and daughters slaughtering and dying to enforce US/EU/British control over resources in Africa, Asia and South America. It will mean abandoning the anti-colonial, progressive and internationalist ideals of Ireland’s long, and unfinished struggle for National Independence and joining with the oppressors.

The Communist Party of Ireland supports Catherine Connolly’s campaign for the office of Uachtarán na hÉireann. She is the only candidate supporting the retention of the Triple Lock. She is the only candidate who opposes the Genocide in Gaza and calls for action not words. She articulates a vision of Ireland in which the needs of society come before the interests of the wealthy.

We call on all those who wish for a sovereign, re-united, neutral and socialist Ireland to campaign for Catherine Connolly in your workplaces, in your schools and colleges, in your communities, your unions and your sporting and cultural organisations.

TURN THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION INTO A REFERENDUM ON NEUTRALITY AND PEACE.

VOTE CONNOLLY NO. 1