Month: July 2016

Editorial note: In view of the terrorist attack in Nice, Wednesday’s column seems quite pertinent, so I’m linking to it here. I’ll have a full column on the subject on Monday. What follows was written hours before the Nice incident. These are dark days for the Republic – and the world – what with war … Continue reading “The Good News”

The overseas hub for America’s “war on terror” is the massive Ramstein Air Base in southwest Germany. Nearly ignored by US media, Ramstein serves crucial functions for drone warfare and much more. It’s the most important Air Force base abroad, operating as a kind of grand central station for airborne war – whether relaying video … Continue reading “The Most Important US Air Force Base You’ve Never Heard Of”

Iraq held a military parade celebrating the 1958 founding of the Republic.

When FBI Director James Comey publicly revealed his recommendation to the Department of Justice last week that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton not be prosecuted for espionage, he unleashed a firestorm of criticism from those who believe that Clinton was judged by different standards from those used to judge others when deciding whether to … Continue reading “Hillary Clinton and Personal Honesty”

At the present time, an increase in U.S. military spending seems as superfluous as a third leg. The United States, armed with the latest in advanced weaponry, has more military might than any other nation in world history. Moreover, it has begun a $1 trillion program to refurbish its entire nuclear weapons complex. America’s major … Continue reading “Are We in for Another Increase in Military Spending?”

Last year, I wrote an article that made many readers unhappy. As soon as it was published, I began receiving messages of abuse and angry, threatening calls. I hesitated about reporting the threats to the local police in Washington State and, in the end, I resolved to file the unpleasant experience under a burgeoning folder … Continue reading “Being Black Palestinian: Solidarity as a Welcome Pathology”

Attacks in Baghdad continue with little relief from the recapture of Fallujah.

Remember “We’re fighting them over there so we don’t have to fight them over here”? That was the justification for the worldwide war on terrorism the Bush administration trumpeted in the early days of the post-9/11 era. Keeping in mind that the American people don’t really care about what goes on thousands of miles away, … Continue reading “The Myth of the ‘War on Terrorism’”

A review of War No More: Three Centuries of American Antiwar and Peace Writing.  Lawrence Rosenwald, editor.  New York: The Library of America, 2016.  838 pgs. James Carroll, the novelist and Christian man of letters who has won numerous accolades over a long, distinguished career, sets the tone for this fine edition, War No More, … Continue reading “The Antiwar Tradition in American Letters”

Originally posted at TomDispatch. Imagine a secret government facility buried deep in the bowels of a mountain; a deluxe bomb shelter – encased within dense, almost fissure-less rock – for top government officials to ride out doomsday. I did. A lot. I spent an inordinate amount of time as a child reading everything I could … Continue reading “We Have Met the Alien and He Is Us”