The National Education Union general secretary speaks to Ben Chacko on growing calls to protect children from a toxic online culture
THE announced withdrawal of 2,000 US military personnel from Syria by President Trump on December 19, along with the pull out of 7,000 troops from Afghanistan, has precipitated a new and deeper crisis in the administration.
Defence Secretary Jim Mattis resigned late in the evening on December 20 in protest over the decisions. Mattis, who has had longstanding policy disagreements with Trump, was said to be the last major restraint within the administration to Trump’s impulsive decisions and erratic behaviour.
With the Mueller investigation closing in on Trump’s criminal conduct and the Republicans’ stunning November election losses, Trump is in what has been described by administration officials as a “tailspin.” Trump is increasingly brooding, isolated and erratic. These new developments could open the door to a far more dangerous phase of his presidency.
Trump threatens war and punitive tariffs to recapture Iranian resources – just as in 1953, when the CIA overthrew Mossadegh and US corporations immediately seized 40% of the oil, says SEVIM DAGDELEN
As US hegemony crumbles and Trump becomes ever more unpredictable, European powers cling to the pact’s militarist agenda in a bid to disguise their own increasing irrelevance, writes CHRIS NINEHAM



