If there was ever doubts about whether the editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, is a journalist, recent events erase those doubts and put him at the forefront of a movement to democratize journalism and empower people. The U.S. Department of Justice is still trying to find a way to prosecute Assange and others associated with …
Continue reading “WikiLeaks at the Forefront of 21st-Century Journalism”
Remember as far back as 2006, if you can (in Washington politics, that is like a quarter century). By December 2006, over 800 U.S. soldiers and marines in Iraq are dead for that year alone, while a civil war between Sunni and Shia plays out in the streets like a daily waking nightmare. The Democrats …
Continue reading “Sen. Jim Webb Loses Steam”
At least one Iraqi was killed and 16 more were wounded in light violence. In an Iraqi court, meanwhile, a British security guard was given life in prison for killing two colleagues.
“Why don’t the masses stream to the square here, too, and throw Bibi out?” my taxi driver exclaimed when we were passing Rabin Square. The wide expanse was almost empty, with only a few mothers and their children enjoying the mild winter sun. The masses will not stream to the square, and Benjamin Netanyahu can …
Continue reading “A Crazy Prophet”
As I watch the popular uprisings unfold against brutal dictatorships supported by my own government, I cannot help but reflect upon the moral implications of my participation in the American empire. My crimes began almost before I can remember, but I will address only the most immediately pertinent of them here. I am a citizen …
Continue reading “The Immorality of Empire”
“Saudi Arabia did not build a causeway to Bahrain just so that Saudis could party on weekends. It was designed for moments like this, for keeping Bahrain under control.” —Dr. Toby Jones, expert on Saudi Arabia at Rutgers University If Saudi Arabia was rattled by the fall of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, they will …
Continue reading “Bahrain and the Freedom Contagion”
Dear 112th Congress: You are surely as inspired by events in Cairo, Tunis, and Benghazi as the rest of us. And you are surely as distressed by events in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan as your fellow Americans. Now is as good a time as any to face a grim fact: you and your recent predecessors …
Continue reading “Dear Congress: Study War Some More”
Tens of thousands gather in the streets of Sa’na, demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh—it’s the Yemeni edition of the Great Arab Awakening sweeping the Middle East and toppling governments previously counted as US allies. Aside from framing events within this rather broad narrative, however, what is really going on inside Yemen—and why …
Continue reading “Yemen and the Arab Awakening”
At least six Iraqis were killed and twenty-seven others were wounded in new violence. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced a 100-day evaluation period for government ministries to shape-up, as a result of widespread protests on Friday.
The casualty figures from yesterday’s protests continued to rise today as reports trickled out from a number of cities across Iraq; however, the most chilling news came from Baghdad were hundreds of protestors may be detained and suffering from beatings. At least 19 Iraqis were killed and 33 more wounded besides those rumored beaten during …
Continue reading “Saturday: 19 Iraqis Killed, 33 Wounded, Hundreds Possibly Beaten” 
