Month: July 2004

The government of Equatorial Guinea, the rags-to-riches West African petro-state where major U.S. oil companies have invested billions of dollars in recent years, has violently put down the latest coup plot against it, summarily executing at least a dozen alleged rebels and rounding up and torturing relatives and associates of an opposition party accused of … Continue reading “African Oil Giant Foils Alleged Coup”

The North African nation of Tunisia is holding in isolation as many as 40 leaders of a moderate Islamist movement, who are among 500 political prisoners in the country chosen by U.S. President George W. Bush as the base for his plan to democratize the Middle East, says a new report by Human Rights Watch … Continue reading “Report: US-Backed Tunisia Holding Political Prisoners”

This book is the definitive study of how a small group of dedicated imperialists took over America’s foreign policy. Loaded with footnotes and bibliography, it follows those who made the current disaster in America’s relations with most of the world. Chickenhawk academic intellectuals in Washington think tanks, with visions of military glory, knowing little of … Continue reading “America Alone: The Neo-Conservatives and the Global Order”

As Michael Moore‘s Fahrenheit 9/11 cleans up in movie theaters nationwide, and with antiwar documentaries all the rage these days, I went to see another, less heralded account of how and why we were lied into war: Hijacking Catastrophe: 9/11, Fear, & the Selling of American Empire, and it is (almost) everything I hoped Moore’s … Continue reading “Kerry and the ‘Antiwar’ Left”

There is, thankfully, a remnant of CIA professionals who still put objective analysis above political correctness and career advancement. Just when they thought there were no indignities left for them to suffer, they are shuddering again at press reports that Rep. Porter Goss (R-Fla.) may soon be their new boss. That possibility conjures up a … Continue reading “Porter Goss: Cheney Cat’s Paw”

BAGHDAD – Despite promises of over $1 billion in U.S. funding, hospital patients in Iraq continue to suffer ongoing hardship. Problems plaguing Iraqi hospitals fifteen months into what has been a brutal, bloody occupation range from ongoing medicine and equipment shortages to an overall lack of proper medical infrastructure. “We are getting less medical supplies … Continue reading “Broken Promises for Broken Hospitals”

Hours after U.S. officials declared Iraq a “sovereign” state, the case of a single Iraqi prisoner stood as a reminder that the question of which government now has jurisdiction over Iraqi detainees – the United States or the Interim Government of Iraq – is far from settled. In addition to potentially affecting the fates of … Continue reading “US Ignores Iraqi Courts”

A federal grand jury in Buffalo, N.Y., investigating charges against art professor Steven Kurtz finally handed down an indictment on Tuesday, ending deliberations that began on June 15. The indictment, technically for mail and wire fraud, also ensnared the University of Pittsburgh’s head of human genetics and surprised Kurtz’s supporters who had feared more serious … Continue reading “Biotech Artist Indicted”

An interview conducted by “Philip Dru.” Check out his other interviews with prominent libertarians and antiwar personalities. Recorded July 3, 2004 WMV format (requires Windows Media Player) MP3 format (download requires any MP3 player) “Philip Dru” interviews Elaine Cassel of Civil Liberties Watch and FindLaw about her skeptical view of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent … Continue reading “Hold Your Applause for the Supremes”

Complete report available here. I. Costs to the United States A. Human Costs U.S. Military Deaths: Between the start of war on March 19, 2003, and June 16, 2004, 952 coalition forces were killed, including 836 U.S. military. Of the total, 693 were killed after President Bush declared the end of combat operations on May … Continue reading “The Mounting Costs of the Iraq War”