Tag: Iraq

More Iraqi Prison Abuses Exposed on WikiLeaks

The publication of a mother lode of secret field reports from the Iraq War is shining a bright light on heretofore unknown or underreported suspicions about the power of private security contractors and the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by their fellow Iraqis, often with their U.S. military counterparts “turning a blind eye.” The release of … Continue reading “More Iraqi Prison Abuses Exposed on WikiLeaks”

Frago 242

The biggest US security breach in our history, carried off by WikiLeaks, reveals a wealth of information – hundreds of thousands of field reports, the raw material collected by the US military on the ground in Iraq. It will be quite a while before the “gems” are mined from this treasure trove, but initially the … Continue reading “Frago 242”

An Award for WikiLeaks

You are not likely to learn this from the “mainstream media,” but WikiLeaks and its leader Julian Assange have received the 2010 Sam Adams Associates for Integrity in Intelligence (SAAII) award for their resourcefulness in making available secret U.S. military documents on the Iraq and Afghan wars. If the WikiLeaks documents get the attention they … Continue reading “An Award for WikiLeaks”

Continued Foibles in Iraq and Afghanistan

After Richard Nixon started the U.S. troop drawdown in Vietnam, the American public thought “problem solved” and demonstrations on college campuses dissipated. Then it was disclosed that Nixon, while reducing U.S. forces in Vietnam, was escalating a parallel war in Cambodia by bombing and invasion. Antiwar protests resumed with a new frenzy. Similarly, for some … Continue reading “Continued Foibles in Iraq and Afghanistan”

After False Promises, the Heat Is On

BAGHDAD – Iraqis promised development with the ouster of Saddam Hussein and the arrival of the U.S. are now suffering lack of development as never before. And where it hurts every moment is through the collapse of power supply. More than seven years into the U.S. occupation, most Iraqis lack electricity, leading to demonstrations in … Continue reading “After False Promises, the Heat Is On”

Democracy Is Overrated

American policymakers love to see purple thumbs in the developing world, especially in countries in which the United States has undertaken “nation-building” projects (read: invasions and occupations). The recent Afghan parliamentary elections are a case in point. Yet elections in the developing world are not usually what they are cracked up to be and can … Continue reading “Democracy Is Overrated”

The American Way of War Quiz

Yes, it would be funny if it weren’t so grim. After all, when it comes to squandering money and resources in strange and distant places (or even here at home), you can count on the practitioners of American-style war to be wildly over the top. Oh, those madcap Pentagon bureaucrats and the zany horde of … Continue reading “The American Way of War Quiz”