Month: November 2005

BOGOTA – Three decades after Washington declared Colombia the world’s leading producer of cocaine, experts consider U.S.-financed efforts to eradicate illegal drug crops a failure. Although Washington has poured more than 40 billion dollars into anti-drug efforts in Colombia over the past 25 years, this country remains the world champion of cocaine and a major … Continue reading “Three Decades of a Failed Policy”

Last week, Dana Priest revealed in the Washington Post that “the CIA has been hiding and interrogating some of its most important al-Qaeda captives at a Soviet-era compound in Eastern Europe.” “The secret facility is part of a covert prison system set up by the CIA nearly four years ago that at various times has … Continue reading “Cheney Leaks Again”

The Last Lie of the Iraq War ExposedThanks for the well-written article. Finally people are starting to get the message, but I believe it will take more time to expose all of the corruption and lies. At least the real news is starting to come out more in the mainstream media – that encourages me. … Continue reading “Backtalk, November 12, 2005”

Was she an innocent dupe who was played mercilessly by exile chieftain Ahmed Chalabi and his neoconservative and Pentagon backers who led the march to war with Iraq in March 2003? Or was she a co-conspirator in what former Secretary of State Colin Powell’s chief of staff Lawrence Wilkerson called a "cabal" that hijacked U.S. … Continue reading “Controversial WMD Reporter and NY Times Divorce”

The War Party is going bonkers, these days – maybe it’s the indictment of Scooter Libby. Or the way the war itself is going – badly. In any case, the war’s proponents seem to be in a downward spiral of what can only be described as utter craziness. Why else would this administration – or, … Continue reading “Their Terrorism, and Ours”

Much has happened in the past two months – hurricane after hurricane, a devastating earthquake, avian flu on Europe’s doorstep, Libby under fire, Saddam in a cage, China in space again… Important people from all walks of life tend to discuss China, even if only from a "Yo, they got cars now right?" perspective. Topics … Continue reading “German Gloom, Chinese Boom”

The Middle East’s newest tragedy was marked by three almost-simultaneous suicide missions against popular American hotels in Amman. The event, which took place on the 9th day of the 11th month, carries the signature of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the top representative of al-Qaeda in Iraq. In the warm night of early November, while the body … Continue reading “The Myth of Zarqawi”

What is the truth about the charge that “banned weapons” (such as the napalm-like white phosphorus) are being used in Iraq – specifically that they were used during the November 2004 Battle of Fallujah? The U.S. Department of State has addressed this through its “Truth Squad” Web site, which debunks “misinformation” and anti-American slurs. The … Continue reading “Who’s Misinforming Whom About White Phosphorus?”

This is the second of two pieces dedicated to shame and honor in the Bush era. The first was “The Wall of Shame.” On Nov. 2, 2005, I found myself in a familiar situation – at a protest. This time, it was the New York version of the World Can’t Wait nationwide protest on the … Continue reading “Who Had the Real Intel on the War”

While Cindy Sheehan has deservedly gotten a lot of attention for reawakening the antiwar movement with her allies from veteran and military family organizations, the most interesting thing about the opposition to the Iraq war is that it includes former military leaders, national security and intelligence officials, and foreign service officers. Thus the Iraq war … Continue reading “Look Who’s Joined the Antiwar Chorus”