Purdue Pharma, the makers of OxyContin, filed for bankruptcy protection on Sunday in New York. The company said the filing was the only way to implement an agreement with more than 2,000 state and municipal governments to provide funding for anti-opioid addiction programs. But the news also broke over the weekend that the Sackler family, the owners of Purdue, secretly transferred $1 billion out of the country and into European bank accounts so that it would not be subject to the bankruptcy. The move, of course, is likely illegal. And the entire agreement is now in jeopardy because of it.
Drone attacks over the weekend on Saudi Arabia’s largest oil refinery and on one of its oil fields have cut the country’s oil production in half, causing oil prices to soar overnight. Meanwhile, President Trump and Secretary of State Pompeo are blaming Iran for the attacks, despite Yemen’s Houthi rebels’ claim of responsibility. With the President’s comments yesterday that the US military is “locked and loaded,” war with Iran could be in the offing. Kathy Kelly, co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Non-Violence, joins the show.
Nearly 50,000 General Motors workers went on strike at midnight last night after negotiations between the company and the United Auto Workers Union faltered. Negotiations continued today, but union officials said the two sides were far apart on the issues of wages, health care, the use of temporary workers, job security, and profit-sharing. Brian and John speak with Neal Sweeney, the Vice President of UAW Local 5810.
Israelis will vote tomorrow for the second time in six months in an election that could see Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu win an unprecedented fifth term. Or it could end his decades-long dominance of Israeli politics. One thing most observers agree on, however, is that no matter who wins, the peace process is dead, Israeli settlements will continue to expand, and there’s no end in sight to the oppression of Palestinians. Miko Peled, the author of “The General’s Son - A Journey of an Israeli in Palestine,” and of "Injustice: The Story of the Holy Land Foundation Five,” joins the show.
Monday’s segment “Education for Liberation with Bill Ayers” is where Bill helps us look at the state of education across the country. What’s happening in our schools, colleges, and universities, and what impact does it have on the world around us? Bill Ayers, an activist, educator and the author of the book “Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto,” joins Brian and John.
In this segment, The Week Ahead, the hosts take a look at the most newsworthy stories of the coming week and what it means for the country and the world, including the strike on Saudi Arabia’s oil fields and President Trump’s threat that the United States is “locked and loaded”, the revelations that the Sackler family is allegedly hiding Purdue Pharma’s profits as they claim bankruptcy in the wake of a lawsuit over the opioid crisis, 50,000 auto workers on strike at General Motors plants nationwide, and the Israeli election taking place tomorrow. Sputnik News analysts and producers of this show Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.
Monday’s regular segment Technology Rules with Chris Garaffa is a weekly guide on how monopoly corporations and the national surveillance state are threatening cherished freedoms, civil rights, and civil liberties. Web developer and technologist Chris Garaffa joins the show.
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