Month: October 2005

In September 2001, the president announced that we were at war with terrorism. It was to be a conflict far longer than World War II, a titanic generational struggle more in line with the Cold War in its prospective length. It was a war that naturally deserved a name. Administration officials promptly gave it the … Continue reading “Name That War”

For a good many years, I have been writing about the tremendous influence of the neoconservatives in formulating and implementing U.S. foreign policy, and maintaining that their role has not just been important – it has been decisive. For underscoring the neocons’ pivotal role – since before the Kosovo war – I have been called … Continue reading “Was Plame Outed
by a Foreign Spy?”

Despite repeated vows by the Pentagon to fully investigate the deaths of all detainees in U.S. custody in Iraq and elsewhere in the “war on terror,” a major human rights group has found a pattern of “grossly inadequate and flawed investigations” that have made it difficult or impossible to hold perpetrators accountable. Human Rights First … Continue reading “Serious Lapses Taint Probes of Detainee Deaths”

The following is a transcript of the exchange between Senator Russ Feingold and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Thursday during the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. FEINGOLD: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Welcome, Secretary Rice. We always appreciate your presence here. And I will join the chorus and say we really do hope it will be … Continue reading “Playing Into the Insurgents’ Hands”

On Sept. 24, Washington, D.C., saw a huge rally calling for an end to the war in Iraq and for bringing the troops home. I marched with a contingent of Iraq Veterans Against the War, Veterans for Peace, Gold Star Families, and Military Families Speak Out, the group that has become family for me. I … Continue reading “Don’t Play Innocent, Democrats”

It is hardly impossible, but it won’t be easy. Iraqis who don’t want their country to be either torn apart by continuing insurgent violence or occupied permanently by U.S. military forces have a few weeks to get their act together. To be sure, despite the fact that he is suffering a bad bout of the … Continue reading “Interval of Uncertainty”

In its annual survey of press freedom around the world, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) once again ranked North Korea in last place of the 167 countries evaluated, closely preceded by Eritrea and Turkmenistan. The World Press Freedom Index calls these countries "black holes for news," where privately-owned, independent media outlets simply do not exist. Journalists … Continue reading “Iraq Is Deadliest Beat for Reporters Since WWII”

As top officials in the White House and Vice President Dick Cheney’s office await possible criminal indictments for their efforts to discredit a whistleblower, a top aide to former Secretary of State Colin Powell on Wednesday accused a “cabal” led by Cheney and Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld of hijacking U.S. foreign policy by circumventing or … Continue reading “Powell Aide Blasts Rice, Cheney-Rumsfeld ‘Cabal’”

While international human rights groups have long wanted former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to face trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity, they have serious reservations about whether proceedings that got underway in Baghdad Wednesday will meet international standards of fairness. Human Rights Watch (HRW) has been most outspoken about the rules governing the … Continue reading “Hussein Trial Put Off Amid Doubts About Fairness”

Indictments are expected to come down shortly as special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald completes the investigation originally precipitated by the outing of a CIA officer under deep cover. In 21-plus months of digging and interviewing, Fitzgerald and his able staff have been able to negotiate the intelligence/policy/politics labyrinth with considerable sophistication. In the process, they seem … Continue reading “Cheney’s Chickens Come Home to Roost”