At least 14 Iraqis were killed and 12 more were wounded in the latest violence. In the worst attack almost a dozen people were killed or injured during a clash in Kirkuk. Meanwhile a young girl died in a grenade attack in the south.
read moreThe Babylonian Captivity of Washington
The most troubling prerogative of modern government is the ability of the sovereign or head of state to go to war. War means death, debt, and, if the decision is a bad one, the very end of civil society and the prevailing political order. Because war is potentially...
Putting Defense Back Into US Defense Policy
Now that the second of two counterinsurgency wars, Afghanistan, seems on the road to de-escalation — mainly out of flagging American public support for the quagmire — it is a good time to ask what type of military the United States should have in the future. Although...
Attack on Iraqi Mayor’s Family Leaves Five Dead
At least nine Iraqis were killed and nine more were wounded in today’s attacks. The worst focused on Diyala province where an entire family was killed. Meanwhile, Iraq is denying allegations that two more bodyguards working for fugitive Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi died while in detention. Yesterday, the vice president’s office issued a statement claiming the two men were tortured to death.
read moreThe Freedom 7 and You
Bradley Manning Support Network member David House was returning to the country from a vacation last year when he was detained by agents from the Department of Homeland Security. They confiscated his laptop, camera and USB drive (all of which they kept for seven...
Robert Bales: Mass Murderer
and PTSD Poster Boy
The story of Robert Bales, mass murderer, has pretty much disappeared from the headlines: news of the grisly killing spree, during which he slaughtered nine children and eight adults, has been displaced by the sudden “discovery” that 100,000-plus US soldiers are...
The Afghan Syndrome
Take off your hat. Taps is playing. Almost four decades late, the Vietnam War and its postwar spawn, the Vietnam Syndrome, are finally heading for their American grave. It may qualify as the longest attempted burial in history. Last words — both eulogies and curses —...
Two More Hashemi Bodyguards Killed in Custody; 5 Other Iraqis Killed in Random Attacks
According to Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi’s office, two of the vice president’s bodyguards were tortured to death while in Iraqi custody. An independent human rights commission, now being organized, could eventually look into the matter. Meanwhile, the United Nations is reporting that over 600 Iraqi civilians have died this year. Including the two bodyguards who died weeks ago, at least seven Iraqis were killed and 10 more were wounded in new reports.
read moreObama Administration Silencing Pakistani Drone-Strike Lawyer
When is the last time you heard from a civilian victim of the CIA’s secret drone strikes? Sure, most of them can’t speak because they’re deceased. But many leave behind bereaved and angry family members ready to proclaim their innocence and denounce the absence of due...
Iraqi VP Travels to Istanbul, 7 Iraqis Killed in Violence Back Home
Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi today arrived in Turkey, the third stop in a multi-country tour. Back in Iraq, at least seven Iraqis were killed and six more were wounded in new violence.
read more
