Rand Paul: Syria lacks security connection

"Sen. Rand Paul said the U.S. has 'no clear national security connection' to the war in Syria and called for a debate in Congress over possible military action in the country. The Kentucky Republican — who has been an outspoken advocate against military action in Syria — said in a statement the U.S. should 'condemn' the use of chemical weapons and determine who deployed them. But the decision of whether the conflict demands U.S. action should come from Congress, he added, not President Barack Obama. 'The war in Syria has no clear national security connection to the United States and victory by either side will not necessarily bring in to power people friendly to the United States,' Paul said." Continue reading

Continue ReadingRand Paul: Syria lacks security connection

Jeffrey Tucker: We’re All Edward Snowden Now

"In the course of only a few decades, everything unraveled. The monopoly over communication that the government once maintained had been completely smashed. This situation has persisted for about 15 years — a near-anarchist paradise of human sharing and interaction through technological innovation. What’s going on today is really the reaction and response by the elites. They want their power and control back. They are trying to get it through the oldest form of government control surveillance and the blackmail that comes with it. It’s the tactic guards used to control prisoners. It’s the tactic government is using to fight its way back toward having control over our lives." Continue reading

Continue ReadingJeffrey Tucker: We’re All Edward Snowden Now

Obama invades Cyprus in order to NOT invade Syria

"I remember how devastated I felt as a young intelligence officer sitting in the Kuwaiti desert in early 2003 watching Colin Powell make the case to the United Nations for the invasion of Iraq. Most of the intelligence community at the time knew the case for war was totally bogus. And I remember my colleagues and I looking at each other asking, 'What WMDs are these people talking about??' It was obvious there was a hidden agenda very high up in the administration. Ten years later, the body count from the conflict exceeds 100,000 military and civilian casualties. Yet Iraq is a ‘free country’. And China is reaping the benefits, buying nearly half the oil that Iraq produces at nearly 1.5 million barrels per day." Continue reading

Continue ReadingObama invades Cyprus in order to NOT invade Syria

Justifying the Unjustifiable: US Uses Past Crimes to Legalize Future Ones

"The US/NATO war against Yugoslavia, which used unilateral force to break up a sovereign state, detaching the historic Serbian province of Kosovo and transforming it into a US satellite, was clearly in violation of international law. During the past decade, the Western powers have invented and promoted a theoretical 'right to protect' (R2P) in an effort to get around the UN Charter in order to clear the way for wars whose final purpose is regime change. The use of R2P to overthrow Gaddafi in Libya gave the game away, ensuring Russian and Chinese opposition for any further such manoeuvre in the UN Security Council." Continue reading

Continue ReadingJustifying the Unjustifiable: US Uses Past Crimes to Legalize Future Ones

Pepe Escobar: Obama set for holy Tomahawk war

"The 'responsibility to protect' (R2P) doctrine invoked to legitimize the 2011 war on Libya has just transmogrified into 'responsibility to attack' (R2A) Syria. Just because the Obama administration says so. On Sunday, the White House said it had 'very little doubt' that the Bashar al-Assad government used chemical weapons against its own citizens. On Monday, Secretary of State John Kerry ramped it up to 'undeniable' - and accused Assad of 'moral obscenity'. So when the US bombed Fallujah with white phosphorus in late 2004 it was just taking the moral high ground. And when the US helped Saddam Hussein to gas Iranians in 1988 it was also taking the moral high ground." Continue reading

Continue ReadingPepe Escobar: Obama set for holy Tomahawk war

Has The CIA’s Phoenix Program Been Resurrected In Syria?

"Phoenix went far beyond aspirations of 'winning' in Vietnam. The program utilized a 'by any means necessary' strategy to warfare that included the use of random assassination and the FABRICATION of enemy atrocities in order to rally the civilian population around U.S. forces. PRU operators routinely targeted the backwater villages of Vietnam, killing at least 20,000 civilians as later admitted by CIA Director William Colby. The slaughter of villages was frequently blamed on the Vietcong, while PRU's ran rampant in the jungles, physically mutilating victims in order to draw greater emotional reactions from Southern citizens as well as oblivious Americans back home." Continue reading

Continue ReadingHas The CIA’s Phoenix Program Been Resurrected In Syria?

Israeli intelligence ‘intercepted Syrian regime talk about chemical attack’

"The bulk of evidence proving the Assad regime's deployment of chemical weapons – which would provide legal grounds essential to justify any western military action – has been provided by Israeli military intelligence. The 8200 unit of the Israeli Defence Forces, which specialises in electronic surveillance, intercepted a conversation between Syrian officials regarding the use of chemical weapons, an unnamed former Mossad official told Focus. The content of the conversation was relayed to the US, the ex-official said. Israel and the US had a 'close and co-operative relationship in the intelligence field', he added, but declined to comment specifically on the Focus report." Continue reading

Continue ReadingIsraeli intelligence ‘intercepted Syrian regime talk about chemical attack’

Lawmakers urge Obama to allow public debate on military action against Syria

"The United States is poised to launch a military strike on Syria in coming days after determining that President Bashar al-Assad’s regime used chemical weapons during an attack outside Damascus last week which killed hundreds of civilians. Several lawmakers sought to put the brakes on what Republican congressman Scott Rigell, who drafted the letter to Obama, said could be potential abuse of presidential authority if he decides to attack Syria without a congressional green light. Rigell and others are bristling at a possible executive order of use of force without the House and Senate weighing in, as was the controversial case in Libya." Continue reading

Continue ReadingLawmakers urge Obama to allow public debate on military action against Syria

United States and allies build case for military action in Syria

"The ground for a military intervention was set out by US Vice President Joe Biden, who for the first time said last week’s attack, thought to have killed hundreds, could only have been perpetrated by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces. Britain joined the US in saying regime forces were behind the strikes, and Prime Minister David Cameron said London and its allies had to consider whether targeted military action was required to 'deter and degrade the future use of chemical weapons'. Senior officials in Washington told NBC news that possible strikes against targets in Syria could take place as early as Thursday." Continue reading

Continue ReadingUnited States and allies build case for military action in Syria

British prime minister: We’re not considering regime change in Syria

"Any action against Syria would be aimed at 'degrading' the regime’s alleged chemical weapons’ capability, British Prime Minister David Cameron said Tuesday. But any military action against Syria would have to be proportionate and legal, the prime minister said. Cameron said no decisions had been taken but Britain and its allies had to consider whether targeted military action was required to 'deter and degrade the future use of chemical weapons'. Earlier, British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg denied that the aim would be to topple the regime of President Bashar al-Assad." Continue reading

Continue ReadingBritish prime minister: We’re not considering regime change in Syria