Category: Uncategorized

On Saturday, Nov. 6, 2004, U.S. forces pounded Fallujah and razed a civilian hospital. "Witnesses said only a facade remained of a small emergency hospital in the center of the city," reported the BBC News on the day of the military blitz. "A nearby medical supplies storeroom and dozens of houses were also damaged as … Continue reading “Support the Troops, Oppose Their Actions”

CARACAS – Venezuela has begun to train popular defense units to help defend the country in the event of war, although not all of the volunteers will receive weapons training. "Not all of the members of the reserves will be armed," said General Melvin López, secretary of the National Defense Council. "Each person will play … Continue reading “Venezuela: Citizen Reserves to Defend Against ‘External Aggression’”

Serbia and the EU Proponents of joining the EU in Serbia rejoiced this week as Brussels announced the opening of talks on the Stabilization and Association Agreement with Belgrade – the first step on a long road to the EUSSR. Speculation has been rife that the move came as a reward for Belgrade’s stream of … Continue reading “Bargains, Rumors, and Lies”

In Baghdad yesterday, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told reporters the U.S. has no "exit strategy" for the country – just a "victory strategy." That statement seems in line with the sentiment of most lawmakers on Capitol Hill. They’re posed to approve another $80 billion for American military activities in Iraq and Afghanistan. Included in the … Continue reading “Billions More for Military Contractors and Permanent Bases”

The U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, the military’s most senior leaders, want Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to approve new guidelines that will formalize the George W. Bush administration’s policy of imprisoning so-called enemy combatants without the protections of the Geneva Conventions and enable the Pentagon to legally hold "ghost detainees," a human rights group is … Continue reading “Pentagon: Detainees? What Detainees?”

BEIRUT – Taking a cue from the 1968 uprising in former Czechoslovakia, many pundits are wondering whether the new breeze of democracy in various Middle East countries is an Arab spring. The jury is still out on the question, but many hope that the "spring" such as it is does not lead on to gloomy … Continue reading “Arab Spring Not Quite in the Air”

“Semper Fidelis,” Always Faithful. The motto of the United States Marine Corps, and for anyone who sweated their way through recruit training at Parris Island or San Diego, or the Officer’s Basic School in Quantico, these words – usually shortened to a simple “Semper Fi” – take on much meaning. They define a way of … Continue reading “Semper Fraud, Senator Roberts”

As we approach the second anniversary of the “liberation” of Iraq – marked by the much-touted toppling of Saddam’s statue in Baghdad’s main square – a simple juxtaposition of photos reveals the utter phoniness of the American project in the Middle East. Of course, Antiwar.com was all over that particular deception as it was happening, … Continue reading “An Iraqi Potemkin Village”

While our media is filled with stories on the Bush administration and Iran, they almost invariably focus on the Iranian nuclear program (or European negotiations and U.S. non-negotiations about the same). You could read our press for weeks at a time – if you didn’t stray onto the business pages – and not be aware … Continue reading “Oil and the Coming War With Iran”

BEIJING – As anti-Japanese protests continued for a third day in a row here, government censors imposed a news blackout on coverage of protests signaling that Beijing was trying to contain further damage to already strained Sino-Japanese relations. None of the nation’s thousands of newspapers, television stations, and news Web sites carried any details of … Continue reading “Chinese Govt Censors Anti-Japan Protests”