23 February 2010 | Afghanistan, Blackwater, Iraq, Military-industrial complex, News | Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
How’s this for a recipe that defies the seeming laws of common sense:
First, take Blackwater, otherwise known as “Xe,” a private security contractor that has been accused of abusive, hostile and violent behavior against the indigenous population of Iraq — including murder — not to mention corruption and intimidation of its employees, throughout the Iraq [...]
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30 January 2010 | 9/11, George W. Bush, Iraq, News, WMD, War party | L. Reichard White
After all these years, Jane WAS Right!
British political news has been consumed for the last several weeks by a formal inquiry into the illegality and deceit behind Tony Blair’s decision to join the U.S. in invading Iraq…. A major focus of the investigation is the illegality of the war. … –Remember the illegal destruction [...]
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06 January 2010 | Afghanistan, Blackwater, Halliburton, Iraq, Military spending, News | Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
I’m not sure why Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D, decided to surprise everyone and announce his retirement Tuesday. I’ll admit right up front that I am not an expert on North Dakota politics, nor a thorough observer of the man’s nearly-30 year career (17 years in the Senate; 11 years in the House of Representatives) in [...]
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29 October 2009 | Iran, News, Ron Paul | Scott Horton
Wednesday, in the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas explained to his colleagues the reasons for his opposition to the Iranian sanctions legislation and wondered why Congress would try to undermine the president when he’s in the middle of trying to reach a deal with them (Via DailyPaul.com):
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01 October 2009 | Iran | Scott Horton
Listen as Ron Paul explains the danger that the dollar could be pushed passed its breaking point by any war the U.S. might start with Iran.
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02 August 2009 | Iraq, Propaganda, Saddam Hussein, Torture, US Military | Matt Barganier
For just one example of the disgusting exploitation of Capt. Scott Speicher by pro-war officials and pundits, I give you this from Jed Babbin on March 23, 2003, three days after the invasion of Iraq began:
He [Speicher] may still be alive in Iraq, rumored to have been kept as a personal torture toy for Saddam’s [...]
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02 August 2009 | George W. Bush, Iraq, Propaganda, Saddam Hussein, US Military, War party | Matt Barganier
From the New York Times, March 14, 2002:
President Bush said today that he ”wouldn’t put it past” President Saddam Hussein of Iraq to have secretly held an American pilot hostage for more than a decade.
Speaking at a news conference, Mr. Bush indicated that he did not know for certain the fate of Lt. Cmdr. Michael [...]
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28 July 2009 | Bogus Terrorism Cases, Civil liberties, Drug War, Intervention, Iran, Iraq, Libertarianism, Sanctions, WMD | Matt Barganier
Kelley Vlahos has a great piece today on the Henry Gates affair and the larger problems of which it’s a symptom. One such problem is the ever increasing number of pretexts on which the authorities can interrogate, search, assault, and arrest citizens. The authority figure, equipped with endless excuses to initiate an interaction with the [...]
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25 June 2009 | Iran, Republicans | Matt Barganier
“Who is at the helm? The way Iran is acting up, and what about weather catastrophes? Hopefully no decision has to be made.”
- South Carolina state Sen. Jake Knotts (R-Lexington), Tuesday, on then-missing Gov. Mark Sanford
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25 June 2009 | Iraq, News, US Military | Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
Looking at Margaret and Jason’s close monitoring of the continued bloodshed in Iraq– something like 300 Iraqis dead in bombings since last Monday — it’s becoming clear that nothing short of a nuclear bomb dropped on the Green Zone will get administration officials and their supporters in the Washington military establishment to acknowledge that something [...]
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23 June 2009 | 4GW, Lebanon, News, US Military, War party | Matt Barganier
Of course, any act against the United States government is an act of terrorism. Just read the first graf of this Jeff Stein blog post:
He may yet turn out to be the avatar of Iranian democracy, but three decades ago Mir-Hossein Mousavi was waging a terrorist war on the United States that included bloody attacks [...]
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22 June 2009 | Barack Obama, Empire, Iran, Iraq, John McCain, Sanctions, War party | Matt Barganier
Like Justin, I’m pulling for Iran’s Greenies. No, Mousavi’s worldview and goals aren’t radically different from Ahmadinejad’s; if they were, his candidacy wouldn’t have been approved by the clerics. Nor are the people out in Tehran’s streets good little junior Americans, much less state-hating libertarians like me. But the protesters strike me as decent people [...]
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