Antiwar.com

During the presidential campaign last year, when John Kerry tried to be a bigger imperialist than George W. Bush, he chose the Balkans as his battleground. Here was a jewel in the crown of Clinton’s “humanitarian interventionism,” neglected by Bush as he went gallivanting about the Middle East, that candidate Kerry promised to resurrect to … Continue reading “A Broken Promise”

Recently, I wrote once again about the spread of torture as a way of life in the Bush administration’s offshore imperium. I offered my version of a national “self-portrait” for the New Year (“American Gothic”) and considered the latest torture news, now practically pouring through leaks in the Washington and Pentagon bureaucracy. While I was … Continue reading “What Is Wrong With Torture”

The thundering blast rocks me awake at 7:05 a.m. The first thing my eyes see are the curtains of my room flowing in, as if a strong wind is blowing into my room. "Holy sh*t, they hit the embassy," I think to myself, the blast was so close. I leave my windows cracked and curtains … Continue reading “Another Car Bomb … This Must Be Democracy”

When a U.S. Marine company used downtown Toledo for "urban warfare" training Jan. 7-8, it provided an opportunity for activists to think and act beyond normal limits. With barely a week’s notice, an article in the local paper announced that a weapons company of the 1st Battalion, 24th Marine Reserves would spend a weekend running … Continue reading “Addressing the Persuadable Middle”

In her confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, "Condi" Rice personified the Bush administration’s delusion-based "war against terror." Whenever a senator’s question penetrated to the harsh reality, Condi waffled and evaded, choosing to protect at the expense of her reputation the neocon delusion that invading Iraq was the "right thing to do." Exasperated, … Continue reading “Dying for Sycophants”

ARBIL – My journey back to Iraq began, as most trips to the north of the country do, at the airport in Diyarbakkir, the largest Kurdish majority city in Turkey. From there it’s a four-hour taxi ride to the border, provided you don’t get stopped by the Turkish army, whose war with Kurdish separatists was … Continue reading “Welcome to Kurdistan”

“Mr. Bush said there was no need to hold any of his officials accountable for mistakes or misjudgments in prewar planning or managing the aftermath…The [Washington Post] asked Mr. Bush why no one had been held responsible for wrong information about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq or mistakes made after the US-led war. “‘Well, … Continue reading “Bush: Unfazed … or Unhinged?”

Iran’s defense minister was pretty cocky the other day: “‘We are able to say that we have strength such that no country can attack us because they do not have precise information about our military capabilities due to our ability to implement flexible strategies,’ Shamkhani told reporters on the sidelines of a ceremony to present … Continue reading “Exporting Democracy
– or Terrorism?”

NEW YORK – Human rights groups are rallying behind a Virginia student who has been held without charges in a Saudi Arabian jail since June 2003, allegedly at the behest of the U.S. government. In court proceedings brought by the student’s family, a U.S. federal judge has given the Department of Justice until Jan. 31 … Continue reading “US Citizen Tortured in Saudi Arabia – at US Govt’s Behest?”

"The soldiers are doing strange things in Fallujah," said one of my contacts in Fallujah who just returned. He was in his city checking on his home and just returned to Baghdad this evening. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he continued, "In the center of the Julan Quarter they are removing entire homes which have … Continue reading “What Is the US Trying to Hide in Fallujah?”