Bush in Deep Denial? Two reactions to the article: Your argument against preemptive aggression is convincing but more importantly for me, for the first time I realised its enormous, gaping flaw, namely: if you are going to strike something before it becomes truly harmful, then the first thing to do is find out why it … Continue reading “”

Lost in Translation

Unlike Sofia Coppola’s charmingly discombobulated film, there is nothing funny or charming about the way the Imperial “order” is crumbling everywhere, from the Balkans to Babylonia. Driven by a devastating mix of arrogance, ignorance, malice and stupidity, foreign occupiers in Iraq, Bosnia and Kosovo strain to keep their grip on power, but are actually losing … Continue reading “Lost in Translation”

Why We Get It Wrong

One of the few consistencies of the war in Iraq is America’s ability to make the wrong choices. From starting the war in the first place through outlawing the Ba’ath and sending the Iraqi army home to assaulting Fallujah and declaring war on Shiite militia leader Muqtada al-Sadr, we repeatedly get it wrong. Such consistency … Continue reading “Why We Get It Wrong”

One US Hostage – and 20,000 Iraqi Hostages

Private First Class Matt Maupin assigned to the U.S. Army Reserve’s 724th Transportation Company based at Bartonville, Illinois, became the first prisoner taken by Iraqi insurgents since the fall of Saddam Hussein. The U.S. military is currently holding more than 20,000 Iraqis behind bars – most of them taken during house to house searches by … Continue reading “One US Hostage – and 20,000 Iraqi Hostages”

‘I Am Happy and Proud to Do What I Did’

Excerpts from the news conference with Mordechai Vanunu held upon his release from an Israeli prison after serving 18 years for disclosing Israel’s nuclear secrets. I have a statement to tell you. I’m speaking only in English. I’m not speaking in Hebrew. If Israel don’t let me to speak to foreigners, I’m not speaking in … Continue reading “‘I Am Happy and Proud to Do What I Did’”

Once Again, the US Makes a Bad Deal with the Wrong Group

Bob Woodward’s latest book, Plan of Attack, exposes the underbelly of the build-up to the US war with Iraq. In it Woodward reveals that the “CIA hired the leaders of a Muslim religious sect at odds with Saddam, but nonetheless with numerous members highly placed in Saddam’s security services. The CIA’s code name for them: … Continue reading “Once Again, the US Makes a Bad Deal with the Wrong Group”

Locked on Course to Wider War

The American public has been deceived and locked on a course toward conscription and a wider war. On April 20 Republican Senator Chuck Hagel acknowledged the deceit when he urged the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to support the restoration of compulsory military service. The draft must be reinstated, the Republican Senator said, in order that … Continue reading “Locked on Course to Wider War”

Bush Outsources Mideast Policy

“Speaking of the Palestinians, they were dealt a lethal blow,” exulted a jubilant Ariel Sharon, “It will bring their dreams to an end.” Sharon was bragging about his trip to Washington where he bullied Bush into selling out the Palestinians as thoroughly as Neville Chamberlain sold out the Czechs at Munich. “Sharon Got It All” … Continue reading “Bush Outsources Mideast Policy”

Hondurans Cheer Iraq Withdrawal, Salvadorans Call for Same

Civil society groups in Honduras applauded the government’s decision to withdraw the country’s 370 troops from Iraq, while voices in El Salvador called for a pullout of the Salvadoran forces as well. "We were taken by surprise, because it looked like the troops would stay there," Juan Barahona, coordinator of the Popular Bloc, which links … Continue reading “Hondurans Cheer Iraq Withdrawal, Salvadorans Call for Same”