Essays

Dear World, Americans Don’t Want War With Syria

"Their propaganda doesn't work on us anymore. They can't hide behind political labels anymore. They can't hide behind geopolitical unions and corporations anymore. They can't hide behind religions or 'humanitarian' organizations anymore. By their actions we shall know them. A Reuters poll released today said only 25% of Americans would support military intervention in Syria if, and only if, it was proven that Assad used chemical weapons. There is virtually no support for this war. If it happens, please know that it is not the will of the American people. We stand with you - our human brothers and sisters - for peace, liberty, and justice against this global threat." Continue reading →

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White House Lies Undermine Its Credibility

"There is an outright lie, like this one: 'It is certainly not the policy of the coalition, of this administration, to decapitate, or to effect regime change in Libya by force.' There is the half-truth or half-lie, like this: 'Beyond Afghanistan, we must define our effort not as a boundless ‘global war on terror’ — but rather as a series of persistent, targeted efforts to dismantle specific networks of violent extremists that threaten America.' Then there is this type: 'There is no spying on Americans, we don’t have a domestic spying program. What we do have are some mechanisms where we can track a phone number or an email address that we know is connected to some sort of terrorist threat.'" Continue reading →

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The Case for Restraint in Yemen

"Historical trends exhibit the danger that newly poised al Qaeda affiliates are posing to American safety, rivaling or even eclipsing the original sects in place before U.S interventions. These militant groups have primarily local interests, and are best left alone if the United States wants to avoid making new enemies or to attenuate existing plotting against U.S. targets. Yet instead, the U.S continues to form 'partnerships' with often questionable factions to fight terrorism, many times resulting in the exchange of one extremist government for another. This policy can incite blowback." Continue reading →

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Hubris Isn’t the Half of It

"When Diane Sawyer asked Bush why he had claimed with such certainty that there were so many weapons in Iraq, he replied: 'What’s the difference? The possibility that [Saddam] could acquire weapons, If he were to acquire weapons, he would be the danger.' What's the difference? In a society based on the rule of law, the difference would be a criminal prosecution. MSNBC and Hubris steer us away from any ideas of accountability. And no connection is drawn to current war lies about Iran or other nations. But the production of programs like this one that prolong Americans' awareness of the lies that destroyed Iraq are the best hope Iran has right now." Continue reading →

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A Guide To Understanding the Middle East, Syria, The West and Oil

"Saudi Arabia wants Assad out of power because it considers him a non-Sunni Muslim apostate, an ally of its Shiite enemy Iran and Saudi Arabia can't bear the thought of an Alewite-Shiite ruling over Sunni Muslims, most of whom reject Saudi styled Sunni Salafist Wahhabism. The US and Saudi Arabia are arming and funding Wahhabist radicals in Syria to secure Wahhabist control of the nation. Why? Because Saudi Arabia doesn't have the military power to do it, it likes to pretend that its on good terms with its Shiite neighbors and it prefers that the US do its dirty work. This has been going on for years because the House of Saud happily jumped in bed with western Big Oil." Continue reading →

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Read more about the article How to End the Wars – It really is easy and it’s been done before

How to End the Wars – It really is easy and it’s been done before

"The slaughter of millions of southeast Asians and a rising US military death toll was angering the people. LBJ's war was such a disaster that his re-election was in jeopardy. As the situation grew progressively worse for LBJ, he feared the humiliation of a general election or primary defeat so he decided NOT to run for re-election in 1968. Nixon, a foreign policy hawk, won the 1968 election. The Vietnam War resulted in over 58,000 dead Americans but the hawks were determined to wage the Vietnam War for all eternity. However, Nixon was soon smothered with anti-war Congress Critters who ferociously fought to end the Vietnam War. By 1973, Congress simply refused to fund it." Continue reading →

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Eleanor Roosevelt’s Snippy Letter to Dorothy Day [2011]

"On April 17, 1959 the indefatigable Dorothy Day once again defied the annual civil defense drill in New York City known as Operation Alert. She had been protesting the nationwide test every year since 1955. And, as she had been in previous years, the pacifist and co-founder of the Catholic Worker movement was promptly arrested and charged. At some point around the time of her initial arrest, Ms. Day had written a letter to the former first lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, concerning, apparently, Operation Alert. On April 21, 1959 Mrs. Roosevelt replied. The obtuse, schoolmarmish tone of the letter is shocking considering Roosevelt’s standing as the matriarch of liberalism." Continue reading →

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Why NSA Snooping Is Bigger Deal in Germany

"While the U.S. has few laws concerning data privacy, Germany has something unknown to Americans: 17 state data protection supervisors (one national and one for each state), who watch over the compliance of authorities and companies with data privacy laws. After the Snowden revelations, they have discontinued giving out new licenses to companies under the so-called Safe Harbor principles, which are meant to guarantee that personal data is only transferred to countries with sufficient data protection, for example when Germans use American companies’ cloud storage space. The supervisors consider user data in the hands of U.S. companies not safe anymore." Continue reading →

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