For today, links to reports from the Associated Press, the Moscow Times, and Reuters; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. — MCM

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Russian missile turns Ukrainian market into fiery, blackened ruin strewn with bodies, by Mstyslav Chernov | AP  KOSTIANTYNIVKA, Ukraine — The Russian missile that struck Wednesday in eastern Ukraine turned an outdoor market into a fiery, blackened ruin where weeping civilians looked for loved ones among the mangled, burned bodies scattered across the ground. The blast in the town of Kostiantynivka killed 17 people and wounded at least 32. “There was no military target here. This . . . READ MORE . . .

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Powerful explosion rocks southern Russian city amid latest wave of drone attacks. From The Moscow Times. At least three Russian regions were targeted in overnight drone strikes, including the site of Russia’s central command center for its military campaign in Ukraine, officials and media reported today. Three buildings were damaged and one person received minor injuries, the Rostov region governor said. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine is gaining ground in its counter offensive, NATO chief says. From Reuters. BRUSSELS — Ukraine is making progress with a counter offensive started in June to reclaim territory seized by Russia, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said today, even though it was slow going due to Russian fortifications and minefields. Speaking to lawmakers at the European Parliament . . . READ MORE . . .

An extract from the new book Journalists and Their Shadows begins below. The book’s publication date from Clarity Press is Oct. 1, but it is apparently “out now.” Click HERE or HERE for another extract from it published in July by Consortium News, titled “The U.S. press, spooks & the Church Committee.” For brief recommendations of the book, click HERE. — MCM

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Bad faith & blank checks

By Patrick Lawrence | Consortium News

Some years ago, as the decline of American media became evident even among those not in the profession, friends and acquaintances began to ask two questions. Do journalists believe what they report and write? Or do they know what they tell us is misleading or false but mislead or lie so as to keep their jobs?

I had no ready reply to these queries, but I welcomed them as measures of a healthy loss of faith, another “dis-illusioning.” They suggested a reading and viewing public that was more aware, more alert to the crisis in our media, as the public was when Henry Luce financed the Hutchins Commission. [The commission published A Free and Responsible Press in 1947.]

To attempt a reply to these inquiries now, in journalism today we have a remarkably prevalent case of Jean-Paul Sartre’s mauvaise foi. Bad faith, in terms I hope are not too simplified, comes down to pretending to be someone or something other than oneself. It means surrendering authenticity, that essential value in Sartre’s thinking. In bad faith one enacts a role to meet the expectations of others as one imagines them to be. Sartre’s famous example is the café waiter whose every movement — “a little too precise, a little too rapid” — is an artificial display of what he thinks patrons expect a café waiter to be. In philosophic terms, it is a question of “being-for-others” as against “being-for-itself.”

A former journalist made the point very simply in the comment thread appended to one of my columns. “I was like most of the journalists I knew over the decades I spent off-and-on in the business. I was a faker.”

This is the American journalist as he or she has come to be, a journalist-for-others. The less he genuinely serves as a journalist — a journalist-for-itself — the more he must hold to the accepted image of the journalist. He is “the man without a shadow,” as Carl Jung put it in another context. Having become another of society’s “de-individualized persons” — Jung again — the journalist role-plays now, in psychotherapeutic terms. Newspapers, in the same way, are at bottom reënactments of newspapers.

To inquiring friends, I now say journalists are not liars, not precisely. “A man does not lie about what he is ignorant of,” Sartre wrote in Being and Nothingness, “he does not lie when he spreads an error of which he is a dupe.” It is our perfect term for the unmoored journalist of our time. We come again to the turning of Descartes upside down. “I think, therefore I am” becomes “I am, therefore I think.” This is what I mean: I am a Washington Post reporter, and these, therefore, are my thoughts and this my understanding of the world I report upon.

Self-deception of the kind I describe . . . READ MORE . . .

First, links to reports from the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Reuters, the Moscow Times, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. — MCM

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Blinken visits Kyiv in show of support for Ukraine’s counteroffensive, by Samya Kullab | AP  KYIV — U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Ukraine’s capital today for an unannounced visit hours after Russia launched a missile attack on the city, in a trip intended to show confidence in Kyiv’s forces amid a grinding counteroffensive. The trip aimed to assess Ukraine’s 3-month-old counteroffensive and signal . . . READ MORE . . .

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Kyiv on an unannounced visit. Reported by Steve Inskeep and Brian Mann | NPR  Blinken arrives at a moment when Ukraine’s summer counteroffensive is entering its final weeks — still struggling against powerful Russian defenses in the south and east. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Cuba accuses Russia of quietly recruiting its citizens into the war in Ukraine. Leila Fadel of NPR talks with Chris Simmons, an expert in Cuban spycraft, about Cuba charging that Cubans have been conscripted into fighting in Ukraine in exchange for Russian citizenship. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Ukraine reports frontline success, Russia minister decries Kyiv’s failure. From Reuters. Ukraine’s military on Tuesday reported advances and robust defence along the front lines of its 18-month old war with Russia, with Moscow acknowledging “tension” in the souther  sector but dismissing Kyiv’s campaign as unsuccessful. Ukraine has struggled to break through entrenched Russian lines and . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia announces ‘tactical’ withdrawal from Ukraine’s Robotyne. | From The Moscow Times. A Kremlin-installed official in southern Ukraine admitted today that Russian forces have withdrawn from the village of Robotyne more than a week after Kyiv announced its recapture. “The Russian army abandoned — tactically abandoned . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia first to wipe out Challenger 2 tank in 30 years — report. From Tass. LONDON — The destruction of the UK-made Challenger 2 tank near Rabotino in the Zaporozhye area is the first such incident in the last 30 years these tanks have been used in battle, The Guardian reported citing military experts. Overall, London shipped 14 Challenger 2 tanks to Kiev this year. Meanwhile . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

The “9/11” and anthrax attacks of September 2001 helped push the United States into a series of wars. As the 22nd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks approaches, an interview recorded in July seems particularly fitting for this week; it is from the program “9/11 Free Fall,” which is part of Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth. NOTE: For a list of anniversary events, scroll down or click HERE. And for today’s selection of news items about the Ukraine war, scroll down or click HERE. — MCM

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9/11, Russia, and how we got here. Andy Steele of AE911Truth talks with Rick Sterling of Antiwar.com, a retired electronics engineer, about the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and subsequent wars. Click HERE to listen and watch.

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MAY BE CONTINUED

For today, links to reports from Agence France-Presse, Tass, the Associated Press, National Public Radio, and Reuters; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. — MCM

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Russia downs 3 drones on approach to Moscow. From AFP. Russian air defense systems destroyed three drones early today on their approach to Moscow, according to the city’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, who said air defense had “destroyed . . . READ MORE . . .

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Total victory over genocide-promoting Kiev only possible outcome of special op — Medvedev. From Tass. MOSCOW — The special military operation should continue until its goals have been achieved and those responsible for the eight years of genocide in Donbass have been duly punished, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev has said in a statement. The former president said those responsible for the murder of civilians in Donbass . . . READ MORE . . .

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Putin says he won’t renew the grain deal until the West meets his demands. The West says it has. From AP. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that a landmark deal allowing Ukraine to export grain safely through the Black Sea amid the war won’t be restored until the West meets Moscow’s demands on its own agricultural exports. Ukraine and its Western allies have dismissed . . . READ MORE . . .

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Turkey has failed to persuade Russia to rejoin the Ukraine grain deal, by Charles Maynes | NPR  MOSCOW — In closely watched talks in the southern Russian resort city of Sochi, Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected efforts by his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to revive a United Nations-backed deal to allow the safe passage of grain from Ukraine — the latest setback in the grain deal since Moscow exited it in July. In a news conference after the one-day summit on Monday . . . Click HERE article and radio report.

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Congress mulls more money for Ukraine, as Zelenskyy replaces his defense minister. Leila Fadel of NPR speaks with Michael Bociurkiw, an expert on foreign affairs, about the replacement of the Ukrainian defense minister. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Upward of 20,000 Ukrainian amputees experiencing trauma on a scale unseen since WWI, by Evgeniy Maloletka | AP LVIV, Ukraine — Ukraine is facing a future with more than 20,000 amputees, many of them soldiers who are also suffering psychological trauma from their time at the front. Europe has experienced nothing like it since World War I, and the United States not since the Civil War. Mykhailo Yurchuk, a paratrooper . . . READ MORE . . .

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Cluster bombs, banned in more than 100 countries, killed hundreds of Ukrainians. Leila Fadel of NPR talks with Mary Wareham of Human Rights Watch about the Cluster Munition Coalition report which says there were 987 casualties from the weapons in 2022 — mostly Ukrainian civilians. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Ukrainian intercepts show Russian soldiers’ anger at losses, disarray, by Tom Balmforth and Filipp Lebedev | Reuters  Intercepts of phone conversations in early to mid-July placed by Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine, shared with Reuters by a Ukrainian intelligence source, provide a rare – albeit partial – glimpse into the conditions of some Russian soldiers as Kyiv prosecuted a major counteroffensive, two military analysts told Reuters. READ MORE . . .

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An inside look at Ukraine’s cyber war with Russia. Reported by Jenna McLaughlin | NPR  Ukraine is also fighting a cyber-war against Russia as the battlefield counter-offensive grinds on. A top Ukrainian intelligence official provides an inside look. Click HERE to listen and read.

For now, links to reports from National Public Radio, the Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. Also today, scroll down or click HERE for a summary of events related to the 22nd anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. — MCM

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Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sacks the country’s defense minister. Reported by Leila Fadel and Brian Mann | NPR  Zelenzkyy’s move follows corruption scandals involving military contractors and a grinding summer counteroffensive that critics say underperformed. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Ukraine President Zelenskyy says defense minister Oleksii Reznikov will be replaced this week. From AP. KYIV — Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that defense minister Oleksii Reznikov will be replaced this week with Rustem Umerov, a Crimean Tatar lawmaker. Zelenskyy said new leadership was needed after , , , READ MORE . . .

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Who is Rustem Umerov, Ukraine’s likely new defence minister? From Reuters. KYIV — President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has proposed Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine’s main privatisation agency, to serve as the country’s wartime defence minister. Umerov, 41, who would replace Oleksii Reznikov as defence minister, is a Crimean Tatar born in Samarkand in Uzbekistan to a . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine forces down 17 drones in Odesa region, strikes damage buildings: Governor. From AFP. Ukrainian forces downed 17 Russian drones over the southern Odesa region, officials said today, adding that strikes caused damage in a district on the Danube river that borders NATO member Romania. Regional governor Oleg Kiper said there were no civilian casualties but damage was done “in several settlements of Izmail . . . READ MORE . . .

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Putin says grain deal, Syria among topics of discussion with Erdogan. From Tass. SOCHI — Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to discuss the situations in Ukraine and Syria, as well as a grain deal, with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, he said in opening their talks. “Of course , , , READ MORE . . .

Events around 22nd anniversary of ‘9/11’

To mark the 22nd anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, activists in the 9/11 truth movement have scheduled at least seven events between Tuesday, Sept. 5, to Monday, Sept. 11. Details are HERE in a Truth Action Project summary. 

They include:

* A forum, “Parallels of 9/11 and Covid: Justice Around the Corner,” this Tuesday, Sept. 5, sponsored by the Truth Action Project and featuring Richard Gage, former CEO of Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth, and Mick Harrison, litigation director of the Lawyers Committee for 9/11 Inquiry. It begins at 8 p.m. EDT.

* Oral arguments on Friday, Sept.  8, in a Washington, D.C., courtroom by Harrison on behalf of Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth. His presentation “represents a critical step toward holding NIST accountable and demanding a comprehensive and unbiased re-evaluation of the official World Trade Center Building 7 report.” Time and exact location to be announced.

* A five-hour “Free World NYC Conference” on Saturday, Sept. 9, beginning at 11:30 a.m. at the “Town School” at 540 E. 76th Street, New York City. It will focus on “9/11 and the honest pursuit of truth and free speech.” “In a world where the pursuit of truth can be met with skepticism, this event updates us and empowers us to engage in informed conversations about the events that shook the world more than two decades ago.”

* An online symposium on Sunday, Sept. 10. Richard Gage will present the First Draft of Episode 1 of the film series ‘9/11: Crime Scene to Courtroom’ film series. The event is designed to be “a reminder that the journey for truth and justice is ongoing and promises to shed light on the progress made as well as the challenges that lie ahead.” It is co-sponsored by the Lawyers Committee for 9/11 Inquiry and the International Center for 9/11 Justice.

* The screening of a new film, “Peace, War and 9/11,” also on Sunday, Sept. 10, at 6 p.m. at Cinema Village, East 12th Street, New York City.

* An airplane flyover at the MetLife Stadium parking lot in East Rutherford, N.J., on Sunday, Sept. 11, at 4 p.m. EDT. A small plane will pull a banner overhead reading, “9/11 TRUTH: AARON KNOWS. DO YOU??” The event will star quarterback Aaron Rogers, who will begin his first game as a Jet that evening.

* In Oakland, Calif., the 19th annual 9/11 Truth Film Festival, from 3 to 9 p.m. at the Grand Lake Theater, 3200 Grand Avenue. Doors open at 2:30.  It begins with a recording of a presentation Graeme MacQueen gave in 2016, called “War on Democracy: The Intimidation of Congress in the Anthrax Operation.” Then, A First Draft of the new film series by RichardGage911 and LC911 titled “9/11: Crime Scene to Courtroom.” Also, the premier of a new film by Ken Jenkins about David Ray Griffin’s 2009 book, The Mysterious Collapse of World Trade Center 7: Why the Final Official Report About 9/11 Is Unscientific and False.

— MCM

For today, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Tass, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. — MCM

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Russians press Ukraine in the northeast to distract from more important battles in counteroffensive, by Samya Kullab | AP  LYMAN, Ukraine — Here, along a small section of the 1,200-kilometer (745-mile) front line, Moscow’s army is staging a ferocious push designed to pin down Ukrainian forces, distract them from their grinding counteroffensive and minimize the number of troops Kyiv is able to send to more important battles in the south. The Kremlin tactic threatens . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian drone attack hits Danube port infrastructure, Ukraine says. From Reuters. Russian drones hit Danube River port infrastructure that is critical to Ukraine’s grain exports, injuring at least two people in the attack on southern parts of the Odesa region today, Ukrainian officials said. The Danube has become Ukraine’s main route for exporting grain since July, when Russia quit a U.N. and Turkey-brokered deal that had given safe passage to Kyiv’s exports of grains, oilseeds and vegetables oils via the Black Sea. . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian rmy has recruited 280,000 soldiers since January — Medvedev. From AFP. Russia’s former president and Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said today that Moscow had recruited some 280,000 people into the army since the start of the year. Russia has not announced another mobilization — seen as an unpopular measure — but . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian Aerospace Force delivered drone strike against fuel storages. From Tass. MOSCOW — The Russian Aerospace Force delivered a group drone strike against fuel storage facilities used to support Ukrainian army materiel, the Russian Defense Ministry said. “Tactical and army aviation, rocket troops and artillery of battlegroups of the Russian Federation Armed Forces engaged manpower and materiel of the adversary in . . . READ MORE . . .

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The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra is embarking on its second international tour. Scott Simon of NPR talks with conductor Keri Lynn Wilson of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra about its second international tour. Click HERE to listen and read.

For now, a link to a report from National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. — MCM

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Ariel Dorfman on his novel ‘The Suicide Museum.‘ Scott Simon of NPR speaks with author Ariel Dorfman about his latest novel, The Suicide Museum. The book takes a fictional look into the very real death of Chilean president Salvador Allende in 1973. Click HERE to listen and read.

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MAY BE CONTINUED

First, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. Then, via Consortium News, commentary from PassBlue. — MCM

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Russia says it thwarted attacks on Crimea bridge. Shelling and strikes leave at least 2 dead, by Susie Blann | AP  KYIV — Russia said today its forces destroyed three Ukrainian naval drones being used in an attempt to attack a key bridge linking Russia to Moscow-annexed Crimea, forcing its temporary closure for a third time in less than a year. One naval drone  . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine troops are ‘moving forward’, Zelenskiy says in rebuff to critics. From Reuters. KYIV — President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said today that Kyiv’s troops were “moving forward” in their counteroffensive against Russian forces, rebuffing Western officials who say that Ukraine is gaining ground too slowly. The counteroffensive, nearing the three-month mark, has retaken more than a dozen villages but . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine’s counteroffensive gains traction in the south. Reported by Brian Mann | NPR  Ukraine has made significant progress but at great cost, and the terrain ahead is heavily defended. Click HERE to listen and read.

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Russia’s Armed Forces hit command and Ukrainian observation posts in DPR. From Tass. MOSCOW — The Russian Armed Forces hit two command and observation posts of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as an enemy communications center in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Russian Ministry of Defense said today. The Russian Armed Forces also destroyed . . . READ MORE . . .

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What we know about the arson attacks in Russia. Reported by Noah Caldwell, Tinbete Ermyas and Mary Louise Kelly | NPR  Mary Louise Kelly talks with Mika Golubovsky, the English language editor for Mediazona, about the arson attacks in which Russians have been trying to set recruitment offices on fire. Click HERE to listen and read.

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What happened to the U.N.’s ability to mediate? by Jamal Benomar | PassBlue / Consortium News  The United Nations has made a great deal of effort since former Secretary General Kofi Annan’s “In Larger Freedom” reform proposals in 2005 to professionalize its mediation processes and establish a series of guidelines that place inclusion at the forefront. However, the practice continues to lag behind . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED