Dhaka, Bangladesh (CNN) -- At least seven people died in a fire in a clothing factory in Bangladesh's capital late Wednesday, police and the factory's general manager said. Details here.

by Larry Powell I don't believe in capital punishment. Never have.  But maybe now is the time for me - and the rest of society- to step back, take a deep breath, and take another look. The profound evil which has been at play in the recent, horrific collapse of the garment factory in Bangladesh - killing hundreds of innocent workers - sinks to such depths of depravity in every aspect, such a re-assessment seems suddenly appropriate. And I'm not sure I'd stop at the owners of the building. Western multinational corporations  have blood on their hands, too, by using such despicable sweatshops to make their clothing, cheap - Wal Mart, Sears, Loblaws (the latter through its "Joe Fresh" clothing line in Canada and the 'States) - they've all filled their boots with more than their share of guilt. And the history of such things, steeped in blood as it has already become over the years, offers no way out for these heartless entities, to somehow claim ign

P in P : Will the outrageous tragedy involving the collapse of a garment factory in Bangladesh change anything with regard to workers' rights? Of course not. Wasn't it just the other month when a horrific fire claimed over a hundred lives at another similar factory in that same country, with workers locked inside? That sure changed a lot of attitudes and practises, didn't it? While cute little kids dance on Canadian TV, advertising Joe Fresh clothes which are made in these horrific sweat-shops, there is plenty of blame to go around. But greedy, soulless, heartless corporations like Joe Fresh, Walmart and Disney , including their hollow, despicable shareholders, surely must remain at the top of the blame-list.  Instead of improving working conditions and pay for the world's poor, thus allowing them to buy clothing, ethically made in places which pay decent, livable wages, human society is on a downward escalator, on a relentless race to the bottom. As long as

The Nation Never have I witnessed a gap between the mainstream media and the public quite like the last twenty-four hours since the death of Margaret Thatcher. Details here.

Chris Hedges  - TruthDig I was in a military courtroom at Fort Meade in Maryland on Thursday as Pfc. Bradley Manning admitted giving classified government documents to WikiLeaks. Details here.

Winnipeg Free Press. Details here. PLT: You don't suppose BP will simply write this off as "the cost of doing business" and carry on as before, do you? Naaaah!

Editor's note - It's worth noting that Canada has actually been making excuses for this stinking coup! Please express your solidarity with "Via Camp!" l.p. ====== Action Alert from the Vía Campesina in Tegucigalpa, Honduras - August 12th 2009 Last night at 11:23 pm, during curfew which began at 10pm, unknown individuals driving a cream colour Toyota , fired bullets at the office of Vía Campesina in Tegucigalpa, Honduras which is coordinated by Rafael Alegría. Above, the kind of people ViaCamp represents - women working in the field with a child! Obviously a subversive organization deserving of being shot at! The act was a clear attack against our social organizations and leaders who are part of the National Front Against the coup. In addition to the recent attack on Vía Campesina, a bomb capable of killing 15 people went off in the building of the Beverage Workers Union (STIBYS, by its Spanish initials)

Published on Wednesday, June 10, 2009 by Inter Press Service by Jaideep Hardikar. Click on headline for complete story. Please also read related story.. http://earthkeeperfarm.blogspot.com/2009/05/corporate-agriculture-to-blame-for.html Fawzan Husein for the New York Times

Published on Monday, May 18, 2009 by The Guardian/UK Ecology and culture at stake say environmentalists, as government plans to exploit rainforest for oil, gas and timber. Read more here.... Eds. note - Another shameful chapter in the shameful war by criminal corporations, aided by their criminal accomplices in government, against ordinary people, guilty of nothing more than wanting a place to live! l.p.