Month: April 2005

Religious Profiling Sparks Federal Lawsuit

NEW YORK – Three influential civil rights groups charged Wednesday that border control tactics used by the Department of Homeland Security discriminate against U.S. citizens solely on the basis of their religion and ethnicity, in violation of the U.S. Constitution. In simultaneous news conferences held in New York City and Buffalo, on the Canadian border, … Continue reading “Religious Profiling Sparks Federal Lawsuit”

Jordan Quashes Unions, Critics of US

Jordan’s new Prime Minister Adnan Badran is coming under attack from pro-democracy advocates for his role in the killing of three university students in 1986. Badran wasn’t elected prime minister of Jordan – he was simply picked for the post by Jordanian ruler and U.S. ally, King Abdullah II. Columnist Jamal Tahat had just graduated … Continue reading “Jordan Quashes Unions, Critics of US”

The New American Militarism

We are now in an America where it’s a commonplace for our president, wearing a “jacket with ARMY printed over his heart and ‘Commander in Chief’ printed on his right front,” to address vast assemblages of American troops on the virtues of bringing democracy to foreign lands at the point of a missile. As Jim … Continue reading “The New American Militarism”

The Coming Storm

Empire Stirs to Action in Kosovo Violence pays. How else should one interpret that the ultimate result of the horrific pogrom in Kosovo last March would be an aggressive campaign by power-mongers in the Empire to reward Albanian separatism and finish the job begun six years ago by severing that occupied province from Serbia? Forces … Continue reading “The Coming Storm”

Republican Defector Scuttles Bolton – for Now

The Republican majority on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee suffered a stunning defeat today in its efforts to confirm the nomination of Undersecretary of State John Bolton as the new U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. In a surprise move during an unusually rancorous meeting of the committee, Republican Senator George Voinovich of Ohio told … Continue reading “Republican Defector Scuttles Bolton – for Now”

Not so Fast Out of Gaza

GAZA – Two dates in the Middle East that once seemed set in stone are now being challenged as Israel considers delaying its Gaza disengagement and Palestinians mull over postponing their elections. Israel is considering at least a three-week delay in the implementation of its Gaza "disengagement plan," and Palestinians may have to postpone their … Continue reading “Not so Fast Out of Gaza”

Waco as Metaphor

On April 19, 1993, agents of the U.S. government assaulted the Branch Davidian “compound” at Waco, Texas – a religious community of Adventists under the leadership of David Koresh – killing 74 men, women, and children, including 12 children younger than five years of age. It was an act of state terrorism so blatant that … Continue reading “Waco as Metaphor”

Yes, Some People Do Push Back

“All great truths begin as blasphemies,” said George Bernard Shaw. But not all blasphemies are the beginnings of great truths, a distinction worth remembering when it comes to Ward Churchill. The chairman of the ethnic studies program at the University of Colorado gained notoriety for calling the victims of 9/11 “little Eichmanns.” By this he … Continue reading “Yes, Some People Do Push Back”

Laying the Groundwork for War With Iran

WASHINGTON, D.C. – When the Senate Foreign Relations Committee votes on John Bolton’s appointment as ambassador to the United Nations Tuesday, they will do so having never asked him about his support for a group called the Mujahedin-e-Khalq, an Iranian dissident group that was backed by Saddam Hussein for almost two decades and has a … Continue reading “Laying the Groundwork for War With Iran”