[BLOG] Some politics-related links

[rfmcdonald]

• 3 Quarks Daily links to an essayist wondering why people talked about Gaza not the Yezidis as a way to dismiss Gaza.


• The Broadside Blog's Caitlin Kelly notes how Americans subsidize Walmart's low wages by givibng its employees benefits.


• The Dragon's Tales notes that Chinese plans to reforest Tibet could accelerate the dessication of its watershed since trees suck up water, observes the existence of a new Chinese ICBM and links to a report of a Chinese drone, notes that the ecologies of Europe are especially vulnerable to global warming owing to their physical fragmentation, and notes that Canadian-Mexican relations aren't very friendly.


• Eastern Approaches notes Russia's reaction to the shootdown of the MH17 flight over eastern Ukraine and observes the issues with Poland's coal industry.


• Geocurrents' Martin Lewis calls for American military intervention to protect the Yezidis from genocide.


• Lawyers, Guns and Money looks at the plight of the Yezidi, examines the undermining of liberal Zionism, wonders how Russian relations with Southeast Asia will evolve, and after noting the sympathy of some Americans on the left for Russia analyses the consequences of a Russian-Ukrainian war.


• Marginal Revolution wonders if Russia's food import ban is a sign of a shift to a cold war mentality, notes the collapse of the Ukrainian economy, wonders about the strategy of Hamas, and comments on the weakness of the economy of Ghana.


• The New APPS Blog comments on the implications of the firing of American academic Steven Salaita for his blog posts.


• The Pagan Prattle looks at allegations of extensive coverups of pedophilia in the United Kingdom.


• Personal Reflections' Jim Belshaw notes the decreasing dynamism of the ageing Australia economy.


• The Power and the Money's Noel Maurer doesn't think there's much of a crisis in Argentina following the debt default, notes ridiculous American efforts to undermine Cuba that just hurt Cubans, examines implications of energy reform and property rights in Mexico, has a good strategy shared with other for dealing with the Islamic State.


• Understanding Society's Daniel Little contends with Tyler Cowen's arguments about changing global inequality, and studies the use of mechanisms in international relations theory.


• The Volokh Conspiracy touches upon Palestine's case at the ICC against Israel, looks at Argentina's debt default, and wonders if Internet domain names are property.


• Window on Eurasia has a huge set of links, pointing to the rivalry of Russian Jewish organizations in newly-acquired Crimea, looking at Ukrainian ethnic issues in Russia, suggests that the Donbas war is alienating many Ukrainians in the east from Russia, notes Islamization in Central Asia, suggests that Russia under sanctions could become as isolated as the former SOviet Union, suggests Ukrainian refugees are being settled in non-Russian republics, wonders if Ukraine and Georgia and Moldova will join Turkey as being perennial EU candidates, suggests that Belarusians are divided and claims that Belarusian national identity is challenging Russian influence, looks at the spread of Ukrainian nationalism among Russophones, looks at the consequences of Kurdish independence for the South Caucasus, and notes that one-tenth of young Russians are from the North Caucasus or descend from the region.