Imperial Hubris

More than 1,000 Iraqis killed in July, highest monthly toll since 2008

"More than 1,000 Iraqis were killed in sectarian violence in July, the highest monthly death toll since 2008, the United Nations said, as Sunni Islamist groups stepped up their insurgency against Iraq’s Shi’ite-led government. Most of the 1,057 victims were civilians, killed in a relentless campaign of bombings and shootings that some Iraqis fear could drag the country into another war. July’s toll brought the number of people killed in militant attacks since the start of the year to 4,137. Last week hundreds of convicts ran free after simultaneous attacks on two high-security prisons, raising questions about the ability of the security services to combat al Qaeda." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMore than 1,000 Iraqis killed in July, highest monthly toll since 2008

Ron Paul: Iraq Collapse Shows Bankruptcy of Interventionism

"Millions live in constant fear, refugees do not return home, and the economy is destroyed. The Christian community, some 1.2 million persons before 2003, has been nearly wiped off the Iraqi map. Other minorities have likewise disappeared. U.S. support for the Syrian rebels next door has drawn the Shi’ite-led Iraqi government into the spreading regional unrest. The invasion of Iraq opened the door to al-Qaeda in Iraq, which did not exist beforehand, while simultaneously strengthening the hand of Iran in the region. Were the 'experts' who planned for and advocated the U.S. attack really this incompetent?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRon Paul: Iraq Collapse Shows Bankruptcy of Interventionism

“U.S. homeland security has forced terrorist groups to target Americans overseas”

"Increased security in the U.S. has forced terrorist groups to target Americans overseas instead. 'The enemy is going to find an easier way. They’re gonna find softer targets, they’re gonna find ways that they can hurt us and it may not be bringing it to America in hijacked airplanes. It may be doing things when we’re not looking, in places that are vulnerable and every embassy is vulnerable if you think about it,' said Smullen. The government has also issued a global travel warning for all Americans overseas. It will remain active until at least August 31st." Continue reading →

Continue Reading“U.S. homeland security has forced terrorist groups to target Americans overseas”

US issues global travel alert over Al Qaeda threat, prepares to close embassies

"The State Department issued a worldwide travel alert on Friday to U.S. citizens over an Al Qaeda terror threat as Washington prepared to close its embassies and consulates throughout the Muslim world this Sunday over security concerns. U.S. officials have not offered many details on the nature of the threat, but apparently are taking it seriously. A White House official said Friday night President Obama was being updated on 'a potential threat occurring in or emanating from the Arabian Peninsula.' 'There is a significant threat stream and we're reacting to it,' said Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS issues global travel alert over Al Qaeda threat, prepares to close embassies

US issues global travel alert over Al Qaeda threat, prepares to close embassies

"The State Department issued a worldwide travel alert on Friday to U.S. citizens over an Al Qaeda terror threat as Washington prepared to close its embassies and consulates throughout the Muslim world this Sunday over security concerns. U.S. officials have not offered many details on the nature of the threat, but apparently are taking it seriously. A White House official said Friday night President Obama was being updated on 'a potential threat occurring in or emanating from the Arabian Peninsula.' 'There is a significant threat stream and we're reacting to it,' said Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS issues global travel alert over Al Qaeda threat, prepares to close embassies

Al-Qaida chief Ayman al-Zawahiri says U.S. behind coup against Mohamed Morsi

"The head of al-Qaida has accused the US of overthrowing the former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, but also said he was responsible for his own downfall by for trying to appease Washington. Ayman al-Zawahiri, an Egyptian, said Morsi, who was deposed in a coup on 3 July, was targeted for being an Islamist by a conspiracy of secularists, Coptic Christians, and Egypt’s 'Americanised' army. But in his 15-minute internet audio message posted online on Friday, Zawahiri condemned Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood for having 'tried its best to satisfy America and the secularists' by relinquishing jihad, usually defined by al-Qaida to mean armed struggle." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAl-Qaida chief Ayman al-Zawahiri says U.S. behind coup against Mohamed Morsi

Al-Qaida chief Ayman al-Zawahiri says U.S. behind coup against Mohamed Morsi

"The head of al-Qaida has accused the US of overthrowing the former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, but also said he was responsible for his own downfall by for trying to appease Washington. Ayman al-Zawahiri, an Egyptian, said Morsi, who was deposed in a coup on 3 July, was targeted for being an Islamist by a conspiracy of secularists, Coptic Christians, and Egypt’s 'Americanised' army. But in his 15-minute internet audio message posted online on Friday, Zawahiri condemned Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood for having 'tried its best to satisfy America and the secularists' by relinquishing jihad, usually defined by al-Qaida to mean armed struggle." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAl-Qaida chief Ayman al-Zawahiri says U.S. behind coup against Mohamed Morsi

Pepe Escobar: Manning guilty; war criminals on the loose

"In a show trial/kangaroo court with an American twist, worthy of the Cultural Revolution in 1960s China, Bradley Manning was predictably found guilty of multiple counts of violating the Espionage Act. If only Walter Benjamin were alive to see the Angel of History once again throwing one of his trademark lightning bolts of irony; Manning was pronounced guilty of being a spy - by a Pentagon judge - just next door to Spy Central, the NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPepe Escobar: Manning guilty; war criminals on the loose

Pepe Escobar: Manning guilty; war criminals on the loose

"In a show trial/kangaroo court with an American twist, worthy of the Cultural Revolution in 1960s China, Bradley Manning was predictably found guilty of multiple counts of violating the Espionage Act. If only Walter Benjamin were alive to see the Angel of History once again throwing one of his trademark lightning bolts of irony; Manning was pronounced guilty of being a spy - by a Pentagon judge - just next door to Spy Central, the NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPepe Escobar: Manning guilty; war criminals on the loose

Top Federal Reserve economist slams ‘incoherent’ European Central Bank

"A paper by the Richmond Fed said the ECB is hamstrung by institutional problems and acts on the mistaken premise that excess debt is the cause of the eurozone crisis when the real cause is the collapse of growth. 'The ECB lacks a coherent strategy for creating the monetary base required to sustain the money creation necessary for a growing economy,' said the paper, written in July by Robert Hetzel, the bank’s senior economist. It called for direct action to buy 'bundles' of small business loans, as well as 'packages of government debt' across EMU states, including German Bunds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTop Federal Reserve economist slams ‘incoherent’ European Central Bank