War & Peace

James Bovard: Facebook/Russia farce shows lawmaker deviousness, demagoguery

"Many Americans would cheer federal muzzling. Almost half of millennials supported restricting freedom of speech on social media, according to a recent survey. Congressional threats have probably already done long-term damage to corporate spines. It would be naive to expect Facebook, Twitter, or other social media companies to take heroic stands in favor of free speech. But it would be even more naive to expect anything good to result from permitting politicians to decimate freedom in the name of democracy."

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U.S. African Military Activity Is a “Recruiting Tool” for Terror Groups

" U.S. efforts, primarily focused on training allies and proxies, are flawed, often ineffective, and can have destabilizing effects on countries that military operations are meant to strengthen, according to experts. Cast as benign training operations, they can lead to unforeseen consequences and dangerous blowback."

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Mattis, Tillerson Want Blank Check to Wage Illegal War

"The practice of using questionable legal logic to justify military operations is not unique to the Trump administration. In fact, our last president engaged in similar maneuvers. Barack Obama rationalized his use of military force in several countries with reference to the 2001 AUMF, as well as to a second AUMF issued in 2002. The 2002 AUMF was granted to Bush by Congress specifically to remove Saddam Hussein from Iraq. That license ended once that purpose was accomplished."

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Saudi Arabia intercepts ballistic missile near capital Riyadh

"The Saudi air force shot down the alleged weapon on Saturday, Al Arabiya reports, adding that no damage has been caused. The missile was allegedly aimed at the King Khalid International Airport. Yemeni Houthi forces have claimed responsibility for the attempted strike, Al Jazeera reported, citing a spokesman for the rebels. A missile with a range of more than 800 kilometers (500 miles) was launched toward Riyadh late Saturday, having flown more than 500 kilometers (300 miles) over the border."

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French Gov’t Has Paid Out Nearly $600,000 To ISIS Fighters In Syria

"Jihadis have claimed unemployment benefits and family allowance for years while living in Syria. Over the past five years, some 500,000 euros ($583,200) have gone directly from the French taxpayers to the terror group, according to the report. Other European countries have uncovered similar problems. Close to every person who left Sweden to fight for terror groups in the Middle East received welfare, according to a government report."

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