Norman Solomon

The men and women of the National Guard shouldn’t be killing in Iraq. They should be helping in New Orleans and Biloxi. The catastrophic hurricane was an act of God. But the U.S. war effort in Iraq is a continuing act of the president. And now, that effort is hampering the capacity of the National … Continue reading “The National Guard Belongs in New Orleans and Biloxi”

Over the weekend, a spectrum of liberal responses to Cindy Sheehan came into sharper focus. The message is often anti-Bush… but not necessarily antiwar. Frank Rich spun out his particular style of triangulation in the New York Times. While deriding President Bush’s stay-the-course stance, Rich also felt a need to disparage the most visible advocate … Continue reading “Triangulation for War”

The Bush administration may ratchet up the Iraq war. That might seem unlikely, even farfetched. After all, the president is facing an upsurge of domestic opposition to the war. Under such circumstances, why would he escalate it? A big ongoing factor is that George W. Bush and his top aides seem to believe in red-white-and-blue … Continue reading “Close the Door on Escalation”

The day after Wednesday night’s nationwide vigils, the big headline at the top of the MoveOn.org home page said: "Support Cindy Sheehan." But MoveOn does not support Cindy Sheehan’s call for swift withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. Many groups were important to the success of the Aug. 17 vigils, but the online powerhouse MoveOn … Continue reading “MoveOn’s Soft Stance on Iraq”

The surge of antiwar voices in U.S. media this month has coincided with new lows in public approval for what pollsters call President Bush’s "handling" of the Iraq war. After more than two years of a military occupation that was supposed to be a breeze after a cakewalk into Baghdad, the war has become a … Continue reading “Camp Casey vs. Camp Carnage”

On Sunday, the New York Times published a piece by Frank Rich under the headline "Someone Tell the President the War Is Over." The article was a flurry of well-placed jabs about the Bush administration’s lies and miscalculations for the Iraq war. But the essay was also a big straw in liberal wind now blowing … Continue reading “Someone Tell Frank Rich the War Is Not Over”

In 1972, after many years of U.S. involvement in Vietnam, the Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg wrote: “In that time, I have seen it first as a problem; then as a stalemate; then as a crime.” That aptly describes three key American perspectives now brought to bear on US involvement in Iraq. The moral clarity … Continue reading “Cindy Sheehan’s Moral Alternative to Bush and Dean”

Mid-August 2005 may be remembered as a moment in U.S. history when the president could no longer get away with the media trick of solemnly patting death on its head. Unreality is a hallmark of media coverage for war. Yet – most of all – war is about death and suffering. Warmakers thrive on abstractions. … Continue reading “Rage Against the Killing of the Light”

A lot of people want to believe that the current war on Iraq is some kind of aberration – a radical departure from the previous baseline of U.S. foreign policy. That’s a comforting illusion. Yes, the current administration in Washington is notable for the extreme mendacity and calculated idiocy of its claims. But – decade … Continue reading “Big Star-Spangled Lies for War”

On Tuesday, big alarm bells went off in the national media echo chamber, and major U.S. news outlets showed that they knew the drill. Iran’s nuclear activities were pernicious, most of all, because people in high places in Washington said so. It didn’t seem to matter much that just that morning the Washington Post reported: … Continue reading “Media Flagstones Along a Path to War on Iran”