Will Congress Debate War with Iraq?

The Senate Foreign Relations committee spent much of last week hearing testimony about Iraq. A second U.S. invasion of Iraq seems a foregone conclusion, as the testimony focused not on the wisdom of such an invasion, but rather only on how and when it should be done. Never mind that our own State department and … Continue reading “Will Congress Debate War with Iraq?”

U.S. Government Behaving Badly

One expects a certain amount of corner-cutting on both procedures and concern for civil liberties during time of war. That’s one of the main reasons some of us prefer to avoid war when at all possible, because we know that government power will grow and citizen liberty will suffer. War, as Randolph Bourne explained so … Continue reading “U.S. Government Behaving Badly”

ATTACK OF THE CHICKEN-HAWKS

Forget the Senate hearings on Iraq, ignore Congress, and never mind our laptop bombardiers. How many of these guys have ever been anywhere near a battlefield? Instead, listen to what the US military is saying about the prospect of Gulf War II….Today’s [August 1] Washington Post reports “an increasingly contentious debate … within the Bush … Continue reading “ATTACK OF THE CHICKEN-HAWKS”

Balkans ‘Success’ Stories

True Stories of ‘Failed States’So often is it necessary to describe and decry all the iniquities of Imperial occupation in the Balkans, it is easy to lose track of other reasons for which the peninsula is important. Advocates of Empire often justify their pronouncements by mentioning what they call “failed states.” Successors of the former … Continue reading “Balkans ‘Success’ Stories”

Eight Washington Lies About Iraq

ONE IRAQ WAS INVOLVED IN THE 9/11 ATTACK ON AMERICA OR IS CLOSE TO OBTAINING NUCLEAR WEAPONS. ANSWER: The War Party in Washington has mounted a vast campaign in conservative media to attack Iraq again. See Georgie Anne Geyer column on lobby in Anti-Arab Advocates Risk U.S. Interests. Saddam is an enemy of Islamic Fundamentalists. … Continue reading “Eight Washington Lies About Iraq”

Eight Washington Lies About Iraq

ONE IRAQ WAS INVOLVED IN THE 9/11 ATTACK ON AMERICA OR IS CLOSE TO OBTAINING NUCLEAR WEAPONS. ANSWER: The War Party in Washington has mounted a vast campaign in conservative media to attack Iraq again. See Georgie Anne Geyer column on lobby in Anti-Arab Advocates Risk U.S. Interests. Saddam is an enemy of Islamic Fundamentalists. … Continue reading “Eight Washington Lies About Iraq”

The Homeland Security Non-Debate

Late Friday evening, after only a few short hours of debate, Congress passed legislation creating a new Department of Homeland Security. The new department represents the biggest government reorganization since the creation of the Department of Defense in the 1940s, and potentially the single biggest expansion of the federal government in our history. Over 175,000 … Continue reading “The Homeland Security Non-Debate”

PALACE REVOLUTION

The idea that oil is key to understanding the administration’s actions in the “war on terrorism” is an article of faith on the Left. Not the social-democratic Clintonite left – which naturally wouldn’t be caught dead in the company of Noam Chomsky, Alex Cockburn, and Ted Rall – but the remnants of the Old Left … Continue reading “PALACE REVOLUTION”