_____ (2021-10-10). Bellingcat Funded By Contractors That Aided Extremists In Syria. popularresistance.org Since its launch in July 2014, the self-styled open-source investigations website Bellingcat has cemented itself as a darling of mainstream Western media, with its dives into alleged Syrian government chemical weapon attacks and Russian intelligence operations showered with praise, puff pieces, and glitzy awards. | While vehemently insisting that it is independent of government influence, Bellingcat is funded by both the US government's National Endowment for Democracy and the European Union. CIA officials have declared their "love" for Bellingcat, and there are unambiguous signs that the outlet has partnered clo…

Chris Piech, Ali Malik, Eric J Topol (2021-10-09). [Perspectives] Digitising the vision test. thelancet.com The Dutch ophthalmologist Herman Snellen invented his visual chart in 1862 and it has remained the basis for assessing visual acuity since then. The Snellen chart relies on assessing the ability to discriminate high contrast symbols (optotypes) by asking a person to identify rows of letters at a fixed distance, showing them increasingly smaller sizes. Yet quantifying how well an individual can distinguish visual information in a fast and reliable way is a surprisingly difficult task. Despite the ubiquity of chart-based visual acuity assessments, these tests suffer from some shortcomings.

Chris Piech, Ali Malik, Eric J Topol (2021-10-09). [Perspectives] Digitising the vision test. thelancet.com The Dutch ophthalmologist Herman Snellen invented his visual chart in 1862 and it has remained the basis for assessing visual acuity since then. The Snellen chart relies on assessing the ability to discriminate high contrast symbols (optotypes) by asking a person to identify rows of letters at a fixed distance, showing them increasingly smaller sizes. Yet quantifying how well an individual can distinguish visual information in a fast and reliable way is a surprisingly difficult task. Despite the ubiquity of chart-based visual acuity assessments, these tests suffer from some shortcomings.

El Faro English (2021-10-08). From EL FARO ENGLISH: Exposed by the Pandora Papers. latinorebels.com Central America, in Brief: The Pandora Papers, a global investigation led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) involving more than 600 journalists in 117 countries, shed new light on how offshore banking shields the cash of Central America's wealthy and well-connected, including presidential candidates and former heads of state. While the practice doesn't prove illegal activity, it raises serious questions about transparency and economic inequality.

Editor2 (2021-10-08). Revolutionizing the Cities: 10 Years of Housing, Self-Management, and Communes in Venezuela. orinocotribune.com By Alba Movimientos — Oct 5, 2021 | Ten years ago we gathered in the Ezequiel Zamora Park (or El Calvario) of Caracas—as part of a public dialogue alongside Commander Hugo Chávez—and began an ongoing process of urban revolution that has allowed the people of Venezuelan to recover previously abandoned or underutilized lands. Today, millions of houses have been built on these lands, thousands of units have been constructed by people's power, many of which are now self-managed by the community. The right to housing for working families is fully protected, in stark contrast to a past in which people…

Editor2 (2021-10-08). Revolutionizing the Cities: 10 Years of Housing, Self-Management, and Communes in Venezuela. orinocotribune.com By Alba Movimientos — Oct 5, 2021 | Ten years ago we gathered in the Ezequiel Zamora Park (or El Calvario) of Caracas—as part of a public dialogue alongside Commander Hugo Chávez—and began an ongoing process of urban revolution that has allowed the people of Venezuelan to recover previously abandoned or underutilized lands. Today, millions of houses have been built on these lands, thousands of units have been constructed by people's power, many of which are now self-managed by the community. The right to housing for working families is fully protected, in stark contrast to a past in which people…

Marc Batko (2021-10-06). The Neoliberal Indoctrination. indybay.org Homo oeconomicus fades away as an economic theory along with market fundamentalism and market radicalism. Market failure and state violence epitomized by Enron's expansive accounting method and the aggressive wars in Vietnam, Nicaragua, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Syria should be lessons if the future is worth living.

Marc Batko (2021-10-06). The Neoliberal Indoctrination. indybay.org Homo oeconomicus fades away as an economic theory along with market fundamentalism and market radicalism. Market failure and state violence epitomized by Enron's expansive accounting method and the aggressive wars in Vietnam, Nicaragua, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Syria should be lessons if the future is worth living.

Sibylle Kaczorek (2021-10-05). German elections: Winners, losers, soul-searching for the left. greenleft.org.au The German social democrats' platform to raise the minimum wage and for universal health insurance clearly resonated with voters, and contrasted with the left's failure to present a coherent alternative to neoliberalism, reports Sibylle Kaczorek.