Month: September 2008

Imagine being seized in Afghanistan or Pakistan, where you were, perhaps, a completely innocent man sold for a bounty, or a Muslim soldier fighting other Muslims in a civil war whose roots lay in the resistance to the Soviet occupation of the 1980s, which was partly funded by the United States. Then imagine that, both … Continue reading “Government Says Six Years Not Long Enough to Prepare Evidence”

Fellow Antiwar.com columnists (and friends) Alan Bock and Ivan Eland have recently written about Pakistan, so I hope readers will forgive me for piling on. But it’s hard to ignore Pakistan at the moment. On Saturday, a truck bomb killed more than 50 people – including two U.S. Marines and the Czech ambassador – and … Continue reading “The Pakistan Dilemma”

Updated at 8:10 p.m. EDT, Sept. 23, 2008At least 19 Iraqis were killed and 27 more were wounded in the latest attacks. The bombings continue in Baghdad, but not as many were reported there as in recent days. Also, a U.S. soldier was killed during a small arms attack in Salman Pak.Gunmen attacked a U.S. … Continue reading “Tuesday: 1 US Soldier, 19 Iraqis Killed; 27 Iraqis Wounded”

RAMALLAH, West Bank – Israeli-Palestinian peace talks appear to have hit a dead end, while efforts to bridge the yawning chasm that divides Hamas and Fatah politically and ideologically appear to be going nowhere. The two main streams of Palestinian politics are already locking horns over when the next legislative and presidential elections will be … Continue reading “Palestinian Politics on the Road to Nowhere”

The following is an excerpt from Winter Soldier Iraq and Afghanistan: Eyewitness Accounts of the Occupations by Iraq Veterans Against the War and Aaron Glantz. From March 13-16, hundreds of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans gathered in Silver Spring, Md., to testify about atrocities they had personally committed or witnessed while deployed. Among those who … Continue reading “Calling Gitmo What It Is”

On Sept. 10, 2002, I asked 35 questions regarding war with Iraq. The war resolution passed on Oct. 16, 2002. Now today, as some of my colleagues try to reestablish credentials regarding spending restraint, I want to call attention to my 18th question from six years ago: “Are we willing to bear the economic burden … Continue reading “Whose Iraq Predictions Have Come True?”

Earlier this month Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned that time is running out in Afghanistan. Though emphasizing the need for reconstruction and noting that "we cannot kill our way to victory," he also announced that a new strategy would have to be pursued that would essentially consist of sending … Continue reading “Ashes of Empire”

Updated at 6:10 p.m. EDT, Sept. 22, 2008 At least 40 Iraqis were killed and 18 more were wounded in the latest attacks. Half the dead were recovered from mass graves in Diyala province. Also, a U.S. soldier was killed during an armed attack yesterday in Baghdad. Meanwhile, a U.S. federal appeals court ordered pictures … Continue reading “Monday: 1 US Soldier, 40 Iraqis Killed; 18 Iraqis Wounded”

In reading about the federal bailout of all those financial wheeler-dealer outfits that are supposedly “too big to fail,” the layman may be forgiven for failing to comprehend the intricacies of the arcane financial instruments currently backfiring on their whiz-kid inventors. Such exotic creatures as “credit default swaps” may elude the understanding of the hoi … Continue reading “The American Empire:
Too Big to Fail?”

The following is an excerpt from Winter Soldier Iraq and Afghanistan: Eyewitness Accounts of the Occupations by Iraq Veterans Against the War and Aaron Glantz. From March 13-16, hundreds of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans gathered in Silver Spring, Md., to testify about atrocities they had personally committed or witnessed while deployed. Among those who … Continue reading “These Are the
Consequences of War”