Post 9/11, it was Afghanistan. Then Iraq. Then drones over Pakistan. Bombs against Gaza. Counter-terrorism in Somalia and Yemen. Now the main target is Iran. The vast majority of corporate media hacks in the West hear a statement from Israel and America and simply report it without question. That’s called stenography. Salon’s Glenn Greenwald writes:…
Showing all posts tagged war on terror
In Afghanistan, America fiddles while watching 10 plus years of abject failure
It is remarkable that the most powerful military in the world is utterly incapable of beating insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. And for this we should be grateful, as Washington clearly needs to learn again, post Vietnam, that its desire to expand empire has limits. Nick Turse in TomDispatch: In late December, the lot was…
The secret contractor toll in Afghanistan; this is how we fight our wars
Strong piece in the New York Times that reveals some of the reality behind the Western war in Afghanistan. Increasingly privatised with no accountability at all, it’s a system that suits the powers that be very much. Corporations are making a killing and governments look like they’re hiring less staff. Almost the perfect definition of…
When Afghans move away from privatised thuggery (in theory)
After years of the US allowing Afghanistan to become a paradise for private mercenaries, Kabul is fighting back (though, to be sure, a government with no legitimacy at all): The push by Afghanistan’s president to nationalize legions of private security guards before the end of March is encouraging corruption and jeopardizing multibillion-dollar aid projects, according…
At least MSM admits that CIA’s role is to ruin independent nations
This is classic mainstream “journalism” in the Washington Post. America has the right to intervene anywhere, haven’t you heard? The CIA is expected to maintain a large clandestine presence in Iraq and Afghanistan long after the departure of conventional U.S. troops as part of a plan by the Obama administration to rely on a combination…
What White House press corps need to hear; you suck
Michael Hastings, author of the stunning new book The Operators, talks to Harpers: 4. Your book pays at least as much attention to the Pentagon press corps and its relationship with power as it does to Stanley McChrystal and his team, and you write that after your article ran, you found that you had few…
Four handy rules to understand American empire
Salon’s Glenn Greenwald provides direction: The Rules of American Justice are quite clear: (1)… If you are a high-ranking government official who commits war crimes, you will receive full-scale immunity, both civil and criminal, and will have the American President demand that all citizens Look Forward, Not Backward. (2)… If you are a low-ranking member of the…
American drone killings leading to one thing; predictable blow-back
Washington’s drone wars against countless countries receives far too little media scrutiny (is it because the White House says they’re killing “terrorists” and clueless reporters believe it?) and… private companies are increasingly involved. Joshua Foust writes in the Atlantic that the US should be worried: The Intelligence Community (IC) as a whole has been reoriented to…
Unaccountable companies assisting America’s drone wars
The future is here, corporations who know the US military (and other countries, too) love nothing better than finding new ways to kill “enemies” (via McClatchy Newspapers): After a U.S. airstrike mistakenly killed at least 15 Afghans in 2010, the Army officer investigating the accident was surprised to discover that an American civilian had played…
