Showing all posts tagged Afghanistan
Get in line, blood suckers; much money to be made in Afghanistan
War! Money! Capitalism! Exploitation! Yes, as Salon’s Glenn Greenwald writes, privatisation is bringing goodness to the peaceful land of Afghanistan: As the Obama administration announced plans for hundreds of billions of dollars more in domestic budget cuts, it late last week solicited bids for the construction of a massive new prison in Bagram, Afghanistan.… … Posted on…
Hiring private thugs in Afghanistan and hoping for the best
It’s so hard to see why the Western-led war in Afghanistan is failing miserably: An Afghan-owned security company accused of operating an illicit protection racket received “a slap on the wrist” from the Defense Department despite ample evidence of wrongdoing, according to a senior House Democrat critical of the military’s efforts to combat corruption in…
Are we training Afghan forces to torture and kill?
We are constantly told in Australia that our brave boys in Afghanistan are training the local army. A new Human Rights Watch report reveals the reality of so much Western training (some of which is privatised); corruption, torture and death squads is what we appear to be leaving behind, presuming we ever depart: Militias and…
Nothing like a good war that enriches the leeches
The list of private companies gouging America and its allies since 9/11 is long and dubious. For example (via Mother Jones): In 2007, US planners decided to pave a 64-mile mountain road between the Afghan towns of Khost and Gardez. They figured it would take $69 million to complete, but the cost swelled to $176…
Former NYT head admits backing for Iraq war because he wanted to be manly
The New York Times after 9/11 was notorious for consistently siding with the Bush administration, especially backing the Iraq war thanks to the stenography of Judith Miller. Bill Keller has just stepped down from his role as Executive Editor of the paper and writes this revealing essay about why he and many “liberals” embraced the…
My reaction to 9/11 didn’t turn into desire to murder Arabs
I was interviewed last week by Radio Farda, Iranian Branch of Radio Free Europe, on my attitudes toward 9/11 and the subsequent decade. My answers were translated into Farsi so my English responses are below: 1) Do you remember how and where you got the info on 9/11? I was in Melbourne, Australia and I…
A decade of (mostly) media failure since 9/11
Al Jazeera English captures the post 9/11 decade well, showing how the vast majority of journalists and media companies became propagandists for endless war against the Muslim world:
The Left and 9/11
Two views, one from here in Australia and the other on the global scene. From my perspective, the last decade has brought both remarkable levels of carnage by both Western actions and Islamists but also a growing awareness of where the real threats reside, and it isn’t from some men in a cave in Afghanistan…
Some are doing very well with this endless war post 9/11
The Los Angeles Times reports: It wasn’t long after the World Trade Center twin towers fell that U.S. Army special forces units were dispatched to the desolate outcroppings of Afghanistan to stalk and eradicate the Taliban. The commandos were outfitted with radios, night vision goggles and automatic rifles. But a select few carried a new…