By granting its 2024 World Press Freedom Prize to Palestinian journalists covering the Israeli war on Gaza, UNESCO has acknowledged a historic truth. Even if the decision to name Gaza’s journalists as laureates of its prestigious award was partly motivated by the courage of these journalists, the truth is that no one in the world … Continue reading “Beyond Awards and Accolades: Why Gaza Journalists are the Best in the World”
FBI Documents Allege Japan Used Germ Warfare in Attack on US and Canada
Two FBI reports, one of them newly declassified, suggest the use of biological agents, in particular bubonic plague and anthrax, as part of a large-scale balloon barrage – code name “Fu-Go” – carried out by Japan over the United States and Canada in late 1944 and the first four months of 1945. One report, dated … Continue reading “FBI Documents Allege Japan Used Germ Warfare in Attack on US and Canada”
The Dignity Deficit of Rocking Out in Kiev
The first thought that came to mind while watching, albeit very reluctantly, a video of Secretary of State Antony Blinken “rocking out” on his guitar in a bar in Kiev was: What is wrong with these people? A friend and fellow journalist who I forwarded the video to responded with a one word email: “Gross.” … Continue reading “The Dignity Deficit of Rocking Out in Kiev”
The US Will Not Defend Japan, But Tokyo Doesn’t Tell the Truth to the Public
Washington and Tokyo strongly opposed China’s attempts to unilaterally change the status quo by force or coercion in the East China Sea. Still, the U.S. doesn’t promise anything special about defending Japan. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held a Summit Meeting with U.S. President Joseph Biden during his official visit to Washington D.C., On April … Continue reading “The US Will Not Defend Japan, But Tokyo Doesn’t Tell the Truth to the Public”
The Recent Risk of Escalation in Ukraine
When a solution to a problem has not worked, throwing more of the same solution at the problem is folly. That’s what the U.S. seems to have done with the recent signing into law of another $61 billion in aid for Ukraine. Sometimes that folly is inflated. A series of recent hints and revelations suggests … Continue reading “The Recent Risk of Escalation in Ukraine”
Washington DC: The Unaffordable and Unecessary War Capital of the World
Ultimately, there is no mystery as to why the Forever Wars go on endlessly. Or why at a time when Uncle Sam is hemorrhaging red ink a large bipartisan majority saw fit to authorize $95 billion of foreign aid boondoggles that do absolutely nothing for America’s homeland security. To wit, Washington has morphed into a … Continue reading “Washington DC: The Unaffordable and Unecessary War Capital of the World”
Jackson State and Forgotten History
This originally appeared on May 15, 2015 Many of us have heard the song, most of those probably know its famous backstory: “Tin soldiers and Nixon’s coming/We’re finally on our own/This summer I hear the drumming/Four dead in Ohio” sang Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young in 1971. The Kent State shootings – done by National … Continue reading “Jackson State and Forgotten History”
The Arsenal of Genocide: The US Weapons That Are Destroying Gaza
On May 8, 2024, as Israel escalated its brutal assault on Rafah, President Biden announced that he had “paused” a delivery of 1,700 500-pound and 1,800 2,000-pound bombs, and threatened to withhold more shipments if Israel went ahead with its full-scale invasion of Rafah. The move elicited an outcry from Israeli officials (National Security Minister … Continue reading “The Arsenal of Genocide: The US Weapons That Are Destroying Gaza”
NATO’s New Burden-Sharing Objectives
From its founding in 1949 until the start of NATO’s proxy war against Russia in 2022, the principal troublesome issue for the Alliance was Washington’s repeated calls for greater burden-sharing on the part of its allies. Discontent on Washington’s part emerged early and often. President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, warned … Continue reading “NATO’s New Burden-Sharing Objectives”
Goodbye to Pete McCloskey, an Antiwar Hero
From Richard Nixon to the Israel lobby, the late Republican Congressman Paul Norton “Pete” McCloskey Jr. challenged the most powerful elements of the ruling class on the American people’s behalf. On September 29, 1927, McCloskey was born in San Bernardino, California. He was raised in South Pasadena. After graduating high school in 1945, McCloskey joined … Continue reading “Goodbye to Pete McCloskey, an Antiwar Hero”