Compiled by Bob Nixon
- According to Foreign Policy magazine, Afghanistan’s Nimruz province is a case study of what went wrong during the 16-year US-led war in Afghanistan. After billions of dollars spent in aid, the province is still controlled by drug lords, smugglers, kidnappers and a corrupt military. (“On the Edge of Afghanistan,” Foreign Policy, Sept. 12, 2017)
- Two months after the summer’s deadly fire at London’s Grenfell Tower, former tenant Tomassina Hassel and her son were living in a hotel along with other displaced Tower residents. Many tenants were not sure where they would find a new home in a community that had become gentrified, and was unaffordable to the working poor. (“Grenfell Fire Casts Harsh Light on London’s Dwindling Low-Income Housing,” Aug. 18, 2017, Christian Science Monitor)
- 20 years ago, Newton, Iowa was a blue-collar union town, home to a large Maytag factory, lots of good paying jobs, and a contract with the United Auto Workers. Employees there could look forward to a full pension upon retirement. Fifteen years ago, before the big recession hit and corporate mergers took its toll, 4,000 workers were employed by Maytag. But in 2006 when Whirlpool merged with Maytag the Newton plant was shut down, leaving the rust belt town in economic free-fall. (“When Green Jobs Come at the Expense of Unions,” In These Times, Sept. 27, 2017)
