Source: Army Times, AP article

By Donna Cassata - Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Nov 29, 2012 17:25:35 EST

WASHINGTON — Reflecting a war-weary nation, the Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday for an accelerated withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan after more than a decade of fighting.

The strong bipartisan vote of 62-33 sends a clear message to President Obama and the military as they engage in high-stakes talks about the pace of drawing down the 68,000 U.S. troops, with a White House announcement expected within weeks.

Read more: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2012/11/ap-senate-backs-quicker-afghanistan-withdrawal-112912/

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About time, I say.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/media/view/?id=91aae863-dbc4-4081-b2f1-805a3a1cb9d2

Source: The Daily Beast

Should there be any doubt about how residents of Europe’s debt-stricken nations really feel about austerity, violent protests in Spain, Greece, Portugal, and Italy on Wednesday should serve as a poignant reminder. In all, 23 European nations took part in the so-called “European Day of Action and Solidarity” organized by the European Trade Union Confederation. Not surprisingly, protesters in the countries suffering from the deepest austerity cuts were the most violent. “Austerity is a total dead end, and must be abandoned,” said the website where the group’s call for action was posted. “Social protection and wages can no longer be sacrificed.”

Across Italy, an estimated 300,000 demonstrators took to the streets in 100 cities. Protesters broke windows and blocked the central train station in Naples. They set fires in Brescia and charged at police in Bologna. In Turin, 20 delinquents seriously injured a police officer with baseball bats, fracturing his skull. In Florence, angry mobs plastered bank windows with rotten eggs and defaced the normally pristine city center with profane graffiti. In Pisa, a group of angry protesters briefly occupied the historic Leaning Tower of Pisa, hanging a sign that read “Rise Up. We are not paying for your Euro crisis.”

Read more: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/11/14/europe-s-day-of-austerity-rage.html

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If Republicans have their way this is what we can expect in the US, rioting in the streets.