Month: January 2008

Updated at 12:45 p.m. EST, Jan. 29, 2008A pair of large explosions shook northern Iraq today, leaving dozens of casualties. Overall, at least 104 Iraqis were killed and over 320 were wounded across Iraq. No Coalition deaths were reported. Also, a study from the Iraqi Health Ministry warned that 35 percent of the population are … Continue reading “Wednesday: 104 Iraqis Killed, Over 320 Wounded”

It’s only natural that citizens of foreign nations should take an interest in who aspires to the White House: after all, we’ve announced our "right" to launch a preemptive attack anywhere, under any circumstances, in order to prevent a perceived threat to our "national security," vaguely defined. It helps to know if you should start … Continue reading “Foreign Thought Police Target US Candidates”

Within the next month, the Pentagon will submit its 2009 budget to Congress and it’s a fair bet that it will be even larger than the staggering 2008 one. Like the Army and the Marines, the Pentagon itself is overstretched and under strain – and like the two services, which are expected to add 92,000 … Continue reading “How to Sink America”

The news that U.S. citizen José Padilla has received a prison sentence of 17 years and four months should provoke outrage in the United States, although it is unlikely that there will be much more than a whimper of dissent. The former gang member and convert to Islam – whose arrest in May 2002 was … Continue reading “Padilla’s Sentence Should Shock and Disgust All Americans”

The Hormuz Hoax Regarding the spoof radio messages heard by U.S. Navy ships in the Gulf of Hormuz, cannot they use D/F on such transmissions on the international inter-ship frequency and get a good idea of where they are coming from? This was done regularly by the British during World War I, 90 years ago. … Continue reading “Backtalk, January 23, 2008”

Updated at 11:50 p.m. EST, Jan. 22, 2008At least 32 Iraqis were killed and another 42 were wounded in the latest attacks. Meanwhile, one American soldier was killed and another was wounded during a rollover accident in Kirkuk today. Also, two journalism associations released a joint report documenting hundreds of false statements issued by President … Continue reading “Tuesday: 1 US Soldier, 32 Iraqis Killed; 42 Iraqis Wounded”

Out of the dozens upon dozens of reports of abuses by private contractors as part of the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, only one prosecution of a contractor has taken place. This, says a new report from Human Rights First [.pdf], epitomizes the woefully insufficient response by the U.S. government to hold private contactors … Continue reading “Contractor Abuses Rarely Punished, Groups Say”

BAQUBA – New military operations in Diyala province north of Baghdad have exacerbated a growing conflict between U.S.-backed Sunni fighters on the one hand and Iraqi army and police forces on the other. The U.S. military commenced a large military operation Jan. 8 in the volatile Diyala province. Seven U.S. battalions led an offensive to … Continue reading “Iraqi Police and Army Sidelined by Sunni Fighters”

Updated at 1:25 p.m. EST, Jan. 22, 2008At least 40 Iraqis were killed and 42 more were wounded in the latest attacks. One of the wounded is a relative of Saddam Hussein who was injured during arrest in Tikrit. Also, four American servicemembers were killed in separate incidents. A Marine was killed on Jan. 19 … Continue reading “Monday: 4 GIs, 40 Iraqis Killed; 42 Iraqis Wounded”

For the second time in two weeks, the entire U.S. press has let itself be scooped by Rupert Murdoch’s London Sunday Times on a dynamite story of criminal activities by corrupt U.S. officials promoting nuclear proliferation. But there is a worse journalistic sin than being scooped, and that is participating in a cover-up of information … Continue reading “US Media Covering Up for Government?”