Month: August 2014

Ferguson: Ten Days That Shook the Country

The facts surrounding the murder of Michael Brown, an 18-year-old resident of Ferguson, Missouri, gunned down by Darren Wilson, a Ferguson police officer, are not entirely known – but enough is known that it’s quite justified to characterize it as cold-blooded murder. Thanks to Brown’s family, an autopsy has revealed that of the six shots … Continue reading “Ferguson: Ten Days That Shook the Country”

A Tale of Two Alleged Iran Nuke Leakers

Last week focused a lot of attention on New York Times reporter James Risen, who is facing the threat of jail time for refusing to testify in a leak case against former CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling. The Supreme Court refused to hear Risen’s appeal of a subpoena to testify in June. On Monday, a bunch … Continue reading “A Tale of Two Alleged Iran Nuke Leakers”

The American Cult of Bombing

Originally posted at TomDispatch. Bombing Iraq, as retired Air Force lieutenant colonel and TomDispatch regular William Astore indicates today, has become an American pastime. (These days, you can’t be president without sending in the bombers and drones.) So let’s try to get our heads around the latest U.S. air strikes in northern Iraq against the … Continue reading “The American Cult of Bombing”

ISIS Issues New Threat As 146 Are Killed Across Iraq

Mostly militants were killed today in operations across Iraq. The Islamic State released a video purportedly showing the beheading of an American journalist. The militants also warned the United States that it would execute another journalist if U.S. forces do not withdraw from Iraq immediately. At least 146 people were killed and 24 more were wounded.

Blowback from More Intervention in Iraq

As Iraq faces a governmental crisis and collapses into what looks to be a three-sided civil war, Republicans even other Democrats – members of Congress and potential presidential candidates, such as President Obama’s former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton – are alleging that Obama facilitated the rise of the Sunni radical group Islamic State (formerly … Continue reading “Blowback from More Intervention in Iraq”

What Have We Accomplished in Iraq?

We have been at war with Iraq for 24 years, starting with Operations Desert Shield and Storm in 1990. Shortly after Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait that year, the propaganda machine began agitating for a US attack on Iraq. We all remember the appearance before Congress of a young Kuwaiti woman claiming that the Iraqis were … Continue reading “What Have We Accomplished in Iraq?”

A USS Liberty Hero’s Passing

Terry Halbardier, who – as a 23-year-old seaman in 1967 – thwarted Israeli attempts to sink the USS Liberty, died on Aug. 11 in Visalia, California. It took the U.S. government 42 years after the attack to recognize Halbardier’s heroism by awarding him the Silver Star, a delay explained by Washington’s determination to downplay Israeli … Continue reading “A USS Liberty Hero’s Passing”

Back to the Sixties

Nixon has imposed a curfew as black protests continue, militarized "police" prowl the streets, and the Black Panthers call for resistance –and, no, we haven’t traveled in a time machine back to the turbulent Sixties. The Nixon in question is Jay Nixon, the liberal Democrat Governor of Missouri, where the black majority town of Ferguson … Continue reading “Back to the Sixties”