‘Jagged Little Pill’ by Alanis Morissette Heads to Broadway

“You Oughta Know” Alanis Morissette is coming to Broadway.   The singer-songwriter has allowed songs from her 1995 breakthrough album “Jagged Little Pill” to be used in a new musical and producers plan to land it on Broadway this fall. “You Oughta Know” was a song on that Grammy-winning album.   “Jagged Little Pill” played …

Prominent Chinese Rights Lawyer Sentenced to 4-1/2 Years in Prison

A Chinese court has sentenced prominent rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang to 4-and-a-half years in prison on a single charge of subverting state power. The Second Intermediate People’s Court in the northeastern city of Tianjin announced in a brief online statement Monday that Wang had also been deprived of his political rights for five years. Wang …

Venezuelan Opposition Calls For New Protests

Venezuelan opposition leader and self-declared interim president Juan Guaido has called for demonstrations two days this week in his latest bid to sway the country’s military to his side and away from leader Nicolas Maduro. First, Guaido wants Venezuelans to mount a peaceful, two-hour, mid-day protest Wednesday “to demand that the armed forces side with …

Report: ‘Radical Rethink’ Needed to Tackle Obesity, Hunger, Climate

To defeat the intertwined pandemics of obesity, hunger and climate change, governments must curb the political influence of major corporations, said a major report Monday calling for a ‘global treaty’ similar to one for tobacco control. But this will not happen unless ordinary citizens demand a “radical rethink” of the relationship between policymakers and business, …

Violence at French Yellow Vest Protests Prompts New Rallies

French police are investigating how a prominent yellow vest protester suffered a dramatic eye injury in Paris, as well as other protest-related injuries. Violence by protesters and the sometimes-aggressive police response have prompted a national debate since the anti-government movement kicked off two months ago.   A counter-demonstration is planned Sunday in Paris by groups …

International Community Observes Holocaust Remembrance Day

January 27 is the day the international community observes Holocaust Remembrance Day by recalling the horrors committed during World War II by Nazi Germany.   The Holocaust was the systematic, bureaucratic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of six million Jews by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. Holocaust is a word of Greek origin meaning “sacrifice …

Serbian Opposition Stages Eighth Antigovernment March

Thousands of Serbs joined antigovernment rallies in Belgrade on January 26. Protesters marched to the headquarters of the daily Politika and the public radio and television broadcaster RTS and affixed the word “Censored” on their entrance doors. The protest organizers believe that both media outlets provide unbalanced reporting in favor of President Aleksandar Vucic. It …

Pompeo Urges International Support for Venezuelan Opposition Leader

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged the international community to support the Venezuelan people and recognize the interim government of opposition leader Juan Guaido as he stands up to disputed President Nicolas Maduro. “Now it is time for every other nation to pick a side,” Pompeo told the U.N. Security Council during a rare …

French ‘Yellow Vest’ Protests Mark 11th Week of Anti-Macron Marches

Thousands of so-called “yellow vest” protesters marched in France Saturday, in the 11th week of demonstrations against French President Emmanuel Macron’s economic reforms. Reuters news service estimated the total number of protesters at 22,000 by mid-afternoon. Most protests were peaceful, but in Paris there were a few violent incidents at Bastille Square, at the endpoint …

US, EU Concerned About Suspension of Nigerian Judge Ahead of Elections

The United States and European Union expressed concern Saturday about Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari’s suspension of the country’s top judge ahead of national elections. The European Union’s Election Observation Mission in Nigeria said the decision to suspend the chief justice has lead Nigerians to question “whether due process was followed”. “The timing, just before the …

5 Killed in Collision of Helicopter, Plane Over Italy

Five people were killed Friday when a helicopter and a small tourist airplane collided near the border between France and Italy.      Italy’s mountain rescue service said rescue workers found two people injured at the crash site and evacuated them.    Officials said the helicopter was carrying skiers to a glacier in the northwestern Italian …