Month: June 2007

TEHRAN – As Iran reluctantly begins implementing Thursday a plan to reduce consumption of mostly imported gasoline by cutting massive consumer subsidies, it is with an eye to possible tightening of international sanctions for the country’s controversial nuclear program. Saeed Laylaz, economic observer and former consultant to Iran Khodro, the country’s largest automaker, told IPS … Continue reading “Fear of Sanctions Drives Gas Rationing Plans”

These are the “birth pangs” of a “new Middle East,” said Condi Rice last summer, as Israel pounded Lebanon. Unfortunately, the new Middle East may make us all pray for the return of the old. Hamas is today engaged in savage street-fighting with Fatah for control of Gaza. If Hamas prevails, it could convert this … Continue reading “On the Escalator to War With Iran”

Today, Michael Klare, expert on war and energy, and author of the indispensable book, Blood and Oil, gives us an unprecedented sense of what it means when the Pentagon fills its own tank (as well as its tanks). It is, after all, the Hummer of Defense Departments, the planet’s gas-guzzler par excellence. On the other … Continue reading “Fighting Wars for Oil to Fight Wars”

Today, Michael Klare, expert on war and energy, and author of the indispensable book, Blood and Oil, gives us an unprecedented sense of what it means when the Pentagon fills its own tank (as well as its tanks). It is, after all, the Hummer of Defense Departments, the planet’s gas-guzzler par excellence. On the other … Continue reading “Fighting Wars for Oil to Fight Wars”

As he informed Scooter Libby‘s lawyers that their client would not squirm out of his jail term of two and a half years, Judge Reggie B. Walton revealed that he had been threatened, via letters and phone calls, by some of Libby’s more rabid supporters – not really a very surprising development. After all, it … Continue reading “Scooter’s Fate:
I Say Torture Him”

Overblown: How Politicians and the Terrorism Industry Inflate National Security Threats, and Why We Believe Them John Mueller Free Press, 2006 259 pp.   Sept. 11 changed everything, it is said, and nowhere has its effect been more significant than on U.S. foreign policy. In 2000, George W. Bush campaigned on behalf of a “humble” … Continue reading “Overblown Confronts Consensus of Fear”

Updated at 1:25 a.m. EDT, June 15, 2007Thanks to increased security presence and curfews, violence was kept somewhat in check following yesterday’s bombing of the Golden Mosque. However, at least 56 Iraqis were killed and 34 were wounded anyway. A number of mosques have also been damaged or destroyed. Also, one American soldier was killed … Continue reading “Thursday: 2GIs, 56 Iraqis Killed; 36 Iraqis Wounded; Several Mosques Attacked”

Updated at 1:01 a.m. EDT, June 14, 2007Once again the Golden Mosque in Samarra has suffered extensive damage during a bombing. Although no casualties were reported during the incident, a bombing at the mosque last year unleashed a wave of sectarian violence that killed hundreds. In northern Iraq, a fourth bridge has been demolished by … Continue reading “Wednesday: 3 GIs, 45 Iraqis, 1 American Contractor Killed; 52 Iraqis Wounded”

I see that Zbigniew Brzezinski is stealing my ideas and not giving me credit, but, what the heck, I’m in a generous mood – and he puts his own gloss on it – so I don’t mind (via Matthew Yglesias): “Zbigniew Brzezinski at the conference says the U.S. and Israel should try to put their … Continue reading “It’s All About Israel”

The U.S. Vets Westside Residence Hall is a hulking eight-story structure a few blocks from Los Angeles International Airport. It’s the largest transitional housing and employment center for homeless veterans in the country, hosting 700 veterans annually. Michael Hall is one of its residents. The 31-year-old Army staff sergeant enlisted shortly after high school and … Continue reading “Homeless Vets Struggle Long After War’s End”