THE ROVING EYE How Osama re-elects Obama By Pepe Escobar A nuclear deal with Iran? An organized retreat from Afghanistan? The eurozone picking up a little bit of steam? Stable oil prices? Forget it. The crucial foreign elector recruited for Obama II at the White House is one Osama bin Laden. Call [...]
(Photo: Greenpeace)A frontpage report in today’s New York Times paints the picture of a president eager to open a gateway to arctic drilling that members of his own energy and climate change advisory panel thought was both surprising and “improbable”. Ignoring Protest and Warnings, Obama Ushers in Era of Unprecedented Arctic Drilling The president, who once [...]
Photo by Reuters I’ve just returned home from the NATO summit and I can’t stop focusing on all that we don’t know after dozens of world leaders met for two days. I have to wonder if the Obama Administration is disappointed in the results. At the end of all of those hours of talking, the [...]
Why Even Failed Activism Succeeds By David Swanson http://warisacrime.org/content/why-even-failed-activism-succeeds I enjoy reading histories of past activism, including memoirs by long-time activists, such as Lawrence Wittner’s new book, Working for Peace and Justice. Almost every such account includes belated discoveries of the extent to which a government was been spying on [...]
Over One Million Say Shell No! to Arctic Drilling – Common Dreams staff Environmental groups delivered over a million signatures to the White House today demanding President Obama stop Shell’s plans for oil drilling in the Arctic. “President Obama has a small window to stop Shell from spoiling the Arctic, and that’s exactly what people [...]
WAR: The “Mutual Butchery” of the Poor and Working Class This is a war on all of us, and the struggle against war is really a struggle for a better life for the millions of folks who are in need here in this country. The fight against the [...]
Honoring a ‘Terror War’ Architect by Ray McGovern Since even readers of the New York Times are aware of deputy national security adviser John Brennan’s open identification with torture, secret prisons and other abuses of national and international law, Fordham University’s invitation to him to give the commencement address on May 19 brought, well, shock and awe to many Fordham [...]
“As the centers of American power were seized and hijacked by corporations, the media continued to pay deference to systems of power that could no longer be considered honest or democratic. The media treat criminals on Wall Street as responsible members of the ruling class. They treat the criminals in the [...]
President Barack Obama greets troops on a surprise visit this month at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan. America, one scholar says, is “addicted to war.” (Mandel Ngan, Getty-AFP photo / May 1, 2012) Steve ChapmanMay 6, 2012 Every president is a war president Politics protects the garrison state Ninety-six years ago, when President Woodrow Wilson ran for re-election, two notable things [...]
The President’s Private War Andrew Napolitano on drone killings: ‘What monstrous nonsense all this is’ By Andrew Napolitano May 05, 2012 “Information Clearing House” – Did you know that the United States government is using drones to kill innocent people in Pakistan? Did you know that the Pakistani government has [...]
John Brennan, chief counterterrorism advisor to President Obama. Photo Credit: Pete Souza/White House The Obama Team Just Doesn’t Get It: US Violence and Occupation Spark Terrorism There is almost no discussion about why so many people in the Muslim world object to U.S. policies so strongly that they are inclined to resist violently. May 3, [...]
Counterterrorism adviser John Brennan (second from right) in the Situation Room as President Obama and his national security team monitored the raid against Osama bin Laden on May 1, 2011. (White House photo) Not Explaining the Why of Terrorism May 2, 2012 Exclusive: President Obama signed a U.S.-Afghan strategic agreement on May 1, committing U.S. combat forces [...]
Confessions of an angry young drone By Pepe Escobar PARIS – These are tumultuous times in Droneland. Some bewildered United States drones are actually mired in second thoughts about their god-given mission – as expressed in detail to author and blogger David Swanson. [1] They even founded their own awareness [...]
Obama in Afghanistan to Sign Deal to Continue War Through 2024 President Sneaks Into Country to Sign Document, Bypasses Congress by Jason Ditz, May 01, 2012 Print This | Share This Months of “not quite public” Obama Administration efforts to negotiate a still-secret pact to ensure that US troops will [...]
Sibel Edmonds Finally Wins By David Swanson http://warisacrime.org/content/sibel-edmonds-finally-wins Sibel Edmonds’ new book, “Classified Woman,” is like an FBI file on the FBI, only without the incompetence. The experiences she recounts resemble K.’s trip to the castle, as told by Franz Kafka, only without the pleasantness and humanity. I’ve read [...]
White House Defends Drones Despite Civilian Deaths ‘Sometimes You Have to Take Life to Save Lives’ by Jason Ditz, April 29, 2012 Print This | Share This It’s no real secret that the Obama Administration’s ever escalating drone war has killed a massive lot [...]
The Obama Contradiction Weakling at Home, Imperial President Abroad By Tom Engelhardt He has few constraints (except those he’s internalized). No one can stop him or countermand his orders. He has a bevy of lawyers at his beck and call to explain the “legality” of his actions. And if he cares [...]
Michael Moore: Hacking Scandal Will Spread to Fox News Susan Sarandon: I was denied security clearance to go to the White House – Common Dreams staff Filmmaker Michael Moore and actress Susan Sarandon spoke Sunday in New York City at a Tribeca Film Festival event. The two discussed US domestic surveillance and whether the [...]
How Obama Became a Civil Libertarian‘s Nightmare Obama has expanded and fortified many of the Bush administration’s worst policies. April 18, 2012 | LIKE THIS ARTICLE ? Join our mailing list: Sign up to stay up to date on the latest headlines via email. When Barack Obama took office, he was the civil liberties communities’ [...]
The recent decision by the Taliban and one of its allies to withdraw from peace talks with Washington underlines the train wreck the U.S. is headed for in Afghanistan. Indeed, for an administration touted as sophisticated and intelligent, virtually every decision the White House has made vis-à-vis Afghanistan has been a disaster. On Mar. 15 [...]
A few months back, I reposted here an article that I wrote 10 years ago, before the invasion of Iraq: a fictional scenario of how the Terror War would play out on the ground of the target nations — and in the minds of those sent to wage these campaigns. I was reminded of that piece by [...]
The Hotel Caribe in Cartagena. The woman told the New York Times she would not speak to US investigators. Photograph: Reuters Three secret service agents involved in the allegations of misconduct involving prostitutes ahead of President Barack Obama’s visit to Colombiahave left the agency. Two were supervisors, according to the Associated Press – one who was [...]
The US commander in Afghanistan, General John Allen, has promised an inquiry into the photos. Photograph: Massoud Hossaini/AFP/Getty Images The US president, Barack Obama, has called for an investigation into a series of photographs that appear to show American soldiers posing with the bodies of dead Afghans, the White House said on Wednesday. The most [...]
The recent decision by the Taliban and one of its allies to withdraw from peace talks with Washington underlines the train wreck the U.S. is headed for in Afghanistan. Indeed, for an administration touted as sophisticated and intelligent, virtually every decision the White House has made, vis-a-vis Afghanistan, has been a disaster. On Mar. [...]
The Obama administration called the rocket launch a ‘provocative action’ that threatens regional security. Photograph: Ekaterina Shtukina/Ria Novosti/EPA Obama engagement policy ‘in tatters’ after North Korean rocket defiance US officials expect Pyongyang to carry out third nuclear test in near future, respresenting significant policy failure for president guardian.co.uk, Friday 13 April 2012 17.56 BST Article history [...]
Memo: Bush Made Intel Fit Iraq Policy By WARREN P. STROBEL and JOHN WALCOTT 05/06/05 “Knight Ridder” - – WASHINGTON - A highly classified British memo, leaked in the midst of Britain’s just-concluded election campaign, indicates that President Bush decided to overthrow Iraqi President Saddam Hussein by summer 2002 and was determined to [...]
Render to Caesar, Extraordinarily by Ray McGovern Some of us pause on Good Friday to mark the torture and death of a high-value detainee rendered, extraordinarily, to Roman occupiers. Although the charges against Jesus of Nazareth were trumped up, the Romans decided to err on the safe side by going to the “dark [...]
Can America’s Descent Possibly Be Reversed? By Scott Lazarowitz March 30, 2012 “”LRC” – My articles for LRC have been increasingly difficult and frustrating to write. More recently I have been trying to get people to understand America’s current police state. Yes, I have received some favorable emails when my [...]
West Bank Photo by: Nir Keidar One state – one vote: Rethinking an Israeli Spring There is no denying that settlement construction, Palestinian disunity, and other factors are fast rendering the two-state concept impracticable. A beleaguered Democratic president, beset by an unpopular war overseas and raging polarization at home, clamps [...]
The Massacre of the Afghan 17 and the Obama Cover-Up By James Petras March 27, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — The March 11 Massacre of the 17 Afghan citizens, including at least nine children and four women, raises many fundamental issues about the nature of a colonial war, the practices of a [...]
McGovern Protests Brennan’s Speech March 22, 2012 After learning that U.S. national security official John Brennan would address Jesuit-run Fordham’s graduating class, ex-CIA analyst (and Fordham alum) Ray McGovern protested in a letter to the Fordham Ram. McGovern cited Jesuit principles of truth and justice — and Brennan’s role in the “dark side” of the “war on terror.” [...]
Iran Leader: Israel, US Attacks Will Bring ‘Same Level’ Retaliation US Wargame Reveals Perils of Israeli Attack on Iran – Common Dreams staff Iran rang in the Persian new year Tuesday with a speech broadcast on live television by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Thousands jammed the Imam Reza mosque complex in the [...]
By Ray McGovern (about the author) Become a Fan (85 fans) — Page 1 of 4 page(s) opednews.com Editor’s Note: Three years ago, President Obama ignored warnings about an Afghan quagmire and followed the advice of Bush administration holdovers into a series of troop “surges” that have cost many lives but not turned around the [...]
ASSOCIATED PRESS This page has been saying for some time that the use of drones will be a complete scourge and murderous monstrosity perpetuated by military murderers and elite arms manufacturers. Nothing has happened to put the slightest dent in this view. Drones enable a push button war to be conducted with minimal losses to [...]
“The most dangerous man in the world” Netanyahu v Obama By Alan Hart March 16, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — The headline over an article in Ha-aretz by Bradley Burston on Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s poker game with President Obama was If Obama wins in November, is Netanyahu in trouble? That’s a question I’ve had in my [...]
President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron also discussed Iran’s alleged nuclear plan [Reuters] President Barack Obama has said the prospect of international military intervention in Syria is premature and could lead to a civil war. Speaking at a White House news conference on Wednesday, Obama said military intervention could lead to more deaths in Syria. [...]
Bribing Israel By John Feffer The bully came to Washington. The American president told him in no uncertain terms that the United States would not support a military attack on Iran at this moment. The bully met with 13,000 of his U.S. supporters in an effort to pressure the White House. It didn’t work. The [...]
Barack Obama and David Cameron are set to agree on US and UK troops taking on a support role in Afghanistan by mid-2013. Photograph: Paul Grover/AP David Cameron and Barack Obama will on Wednesday agree tentative plans for British and US troops to end their “lead combat role” inAfghanistan by the middle of next year. Their meeting comes amid [...]
“Capitalism attacks and destroys all the finer sentiments of the human heart; it ruthlessly sweeps away old traditions and ideas opposed to its progress, and it exploits and corrupts those things once held sacred.” - Daniel De Leon “We have a world to conquer…one person at a time…starting with ourselves.”- Nikki [...]
Obama Offered Israel Weapons to Postpone Attack on Iran The administration may have bribed Israel to hold off on Iran war until after the 2012 presidential elections by John Glaser, March 08, 2012 | Print This | Share This | Antiwar Forum The Obama administration offered Israel advanced weaponry in return for putting off a possible attack on Iran [...]
Photo Credit: Shutterstock You Are Being Tracked Online: Here Are 5 Ways to Protect Your Privacy If you listen carefully online, you’ll hear a deep sucking sound — that’s the sound of all your personal data being gobbled up by digital service providers. March 6, 2012 | If you listen carefully when you turn on your [...]
War with Iran is not inevitable, says Netanyahu Israeli PM warns Iran has ‘bamboozled the west’ and that only military threat will deter Tehran from developing nuclear weapon Binyamin Netanyahu and Barack Obama meeting in Washington earlier this week. Photograph: Mark Wilson/Getty Images Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has said that an attack onIran‘s [...]
Obama met with Netanyahu in the White House on Monday, telling him the US ‘will always have Israel’s back’ [AFP] New York, NY - Everyone who goes to the movies knows about a game police interrogators play called “Good Cop/Bad Cop“. The “good” cop tries to seduce the accused, promising he will go easy if there [...]
US President Barack Obama meets with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. (Reuters/Jason Reed) By Jeffrey Heller and Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) — President Barack Obama, aiming to head off any premature Israeli strike on Iran, sought to assure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday that [...]
VP Biden to Reject Calls From Latin America to End War on Drugs by John Glaser, March 03, 2012 | Print This | Share This | Antiwar Forum Vice President Joe Biden will tour Latin America and meet with heads of state amid growing pressure from the region for a different approach to the failed war on drugs. Political leaders [...]
WASHINGTON – Top Pentagon officials are considering putting elite special operations troops under CIA control in Afghanistan after 2014, just as they were during last year’s raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan, sources told The Associated Press. The plan is one of several possible scenarios being debated by Pentagon staffers. [...]
Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, says Iran could try to evade pressure by entering new talks [Reuters] President Barack Obama has issued his most direct threat yet of US military action against Iran if it builds a nuclear weapon, but in a message to Israel’s leader ahead of White House talks he also cautioned against a pre-emptive [...]
(Reuters/file) JERUSALEM (Reuters) — A wide majority of Israelis either oppose an Israeli strike on Iran or would favor an attack only if it was carried out with US agreement, an opinion poll showed on Thursday. The survey by the University of Maryland and the Israeli Dahaf Institute was released before talks next [...]
Israeli officials say that Binyamin Netanyahu is not happy with Obama’s ‘vague assertion’ that all options are on the table in dealing with Iran. Photograph: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images Israeli PM demands Obama commit to military action if Iran sanctions fail Binyamin Netanyahu pressing for explicit threat from US ahead of crucial meeting with Obama next [...]
Obama ‘Consulted’ Team Before Apologizing Over Quran Burnings Newt Says Afghans Don’t Deserve Apology by Jason Ditz, February 24, 2012 | Print This | Share This | Antiwar Forum Politics means never having to say you’re sorry. Or sometimes, it means seeing someone else saying he’s sorry and expressing outrage. [...]
