By Melvin A. Goodman
May 1, 2009
Under the stewardship of Fred Hiatt, the editorial and op-ed pages of the Washington Post have gradually moved to the right.
Read on.
Friday, May 01, 2009
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Who Betrayed 'Objective' Journalism?
By Robert Parry
April 30, 2009
The mainstream U.S. news media often laments the decline of objective journalism, pointing disapprovingly at the more subjective news that comes from the Internet or from ideological programming whether Fox News on the Right or some MSNBC hosts on the Left.
Read on.
April 30, 2009
The mainstream U.S. news media often laments the decline of objective journalism, pointing disapprovingly at the more subjective news that comes from the Internet or from ideological programming whether Fox News on the Right or some MSNBC hosts on the Left.
Read on.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Memo to President Obama on Torture
By Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity
April 29, 2009
April 29, 2009
This memorandum is VIPS’ first attempt to inform you on a major intelligence issue, as we did your predecessor; thus, some background might be helpful.
House Dems Seek Special Prosecutor
By Jason Leopold
April 29, 2009
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers and other committee Democrats formally have asked Attorney General Eric Holder to appoint a special prosecutor to probe and, “where appropriate, prosecute,” Bush administration officials for the torture of “war on terror” detainees.
Read on.
April 29, 2009
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers and other committee Democrats formally have asked Attorney General Eric Holder to appoint a special prosecutor to probe and, “where appropriate, prosecute,” Bush administration officials for the torture of “war on terror” detainees.
Read on.
Grading Obama's First 100 Days
By Ivan Eland
April 29, 2009
Attention always focuses on a President’s first 100 days. The media — and the rest of Washington — correctly realize that historically a President’s power is at its zenith during the honeymoon period following his inauguration to a first term.
Read on.
April 29, 2009
Attention always focuses on a President’s first 100 days. The media — and the rest of Washington — correctly realize that historically a President’s power is at its zenith during the honeymoon period following his inauguration to a first term.
Read on.
Should Dem Voters Accept Specter?
By Stephen Crockett
April 29, 2009
Most Pennsylvania Democrats are Democrats for good reasons. It is not because they like the letter “D’ more than the letter “R.” They are Democrats because they support the Democratic approach on a wide array of issues more than they support the Republican policy positions on those issues.
Read on.
April 29, 2009
Most Pennsylvania Democrats are Democrats for good reasons. It is not because they like the letter “D’ more than the letter “R.” They are Democrats because they support the Democratic approach on a wide array of issues more than they support the Republican policy positions on those issues.
Read on.
Specter's JFK Specter
By Lisa Pease
April 29, 2009
Given that Arlen Specter has decided to leave the Republican Party, I think it's worth examining Specter's history to see if he will be an asset or a burden for the Democratic Party.
Read on.
April 29, 2009
Given that Arlen Specter has decided to leave the Republican Party, I think it's worth examining Specter's history to see if he will be an asset or a burden for the Democratic Party.
Read on.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
What Should Obama Do?
By Melvin A. Goodman
April 26, 2009
April 26, 2009
President Obama is displaying ambivalence in handling the issue of torture and abuse. He clearly wants to do the right thing and, as a result, has put a stop to torture and closed down the CIA’s secret prisons where the worst abuses occurred.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Democrats' 'Battered Wife Syndrome'
By Robert Parry
April 25, 2009
April 25, 2009
In recent years, the Washington political dynamic has often resembled an abusive marriage, in which the bullying husband (the Republicans) slaps the wife and kids around, and the battered wife (the Democrats) makes excuses and hides the ugly bruises from outsiders to keep the family together.
Needed: Another Ferdinand Pecora
By Michael Winship
April 25, 2009
For policy wonks near and far, the celebrity of the hour isn't Susan Boyle, the Scottish church marm who belted out "I Dreamed a Dream" with the voice of an airy angel, or ex-Somali pirate hostage Richard Phillips, or Carrie Prejean, the Miss USA contestant from California who's against gay marriage because the Bible tells her so.
Read on.
April 25, 2009
For policy wonks near and far, the celebrity of the hour isn't Susan Boyle, the Scottish church marm who belted out "I Dreamed a Dream" with the voice of an airy angel, or ex-Somali pirate hostage Richard Phillips, or Carrie Prejean, the Miss USA contestant from California who's against gay marriage because the Bible tells her so.
Read on.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Real World Reasons Against Torture
By Coleen Rowley
April 24, 2009
Back in December 2007, when I wrote "Torture is Wrong, Illegal and It Doesn't Work," I mentioned that "the FBI agent who reportedly had the best chance of foiling the 9/11 plot, Ali Soufan, the only Arabic-speaking agent in New York and one of only eight in the country, and who has since resigned from the FBI, could and should tell people the truth of how the CIA's tactics were counterproductive."
Read on.
April 24, 2009
Back in December 2007, when I wrote "Torture is Wrong, Illegal and It Doesn't Work," I mentioned that "the FBI agent who reportedly had the best chance of foiling the 9/11 plot, Ali Soufan, the only Arabic-speaking agent in New York and one of only eight in the country, and who has since resigned from the FBI, could and should tell people the truth of how the CIA's tactics were counterproductive."
Read on.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Bush Team Ignored Waterboard Cases
By Jason Leopold
April 23, 2009
George W. Bush’s Justice Department said subjecting a person to the near-drowning of waterboarding was not a crime and didn’t even cause pain, but Ronald Reagan’s Justice Department thought otherwise, prosecuting a Texas sheriff and three deputies for using the practice to get confessions.
Read on.
April 23, 2009
George W. Bush’s Justice Department said subjecting a person to the near-drowning of waterboarding was not a crime and didn’t even cause pain, but Ronald Reagan’s Justice Department thought otherwise, prosecuting a Texas sheriff and three deputies for using the practice to get confessions.
Read on.
Torture-Spinning Punditry
By David Swanson
April 23, 2009
April 23, 2009
While much of elite U.S. punditry is backing away from torture, Jeff Jacoby is claiming to have opposed it but to now find it excusable.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
How Bush's Torture Helped al-Qaeda
By Robert Parry
April 23, 2009
Captured al-Qaeda operatives, facing the threat or reality of torture, appear to have fed the Bush administration’s obsession about Iraq, buying Osama bin Laden and other terrorist leaders time to rebuild their organization inside nuclear-armed Pakistan.
Read on.
April 23, 2009
Captured al-Qaeda operatives, facing the threat or reality of torture, appear to have fed the Bush administration’s obsession about Iraq, buying Osama bin Laden and other terrorist leaders time to rebuild their organization inside nuclear-armed Pakistan.
Read on.
On Torture, the Pressure Builds
By Ray McGovern
April 22, 2009
Well, well. The New York Times has finally put a story together on the key role that two controversial psychologists played in devising the Bush administration's torture policies. Guess we should be thankful for small favors.
Read on.
April 22, 2009
Well, well. The New York Times has finally put a story together on the key role that two controversial psychologists played in devising the Bush administration's torture policies. Guess we should be thankful for small favors.
Read on.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Obama's Tortured Stance on Torture
By Ivan Eland
April 21, 2009
Although Barack Obama should be applauded for stopping torture by the U.S. government and pledging to close the infamous Guantanamo and worldwide CIA secret prisons, he is nevertheless playing politics with the issue to get the best of both worlds.
Read on.
April 21, 2009
Although Barack Obama should be applauded for stopping torture by the U.S. government and pledging to close the infamous Guantanamo and worldwide CIA secret prisons, he is nevertheless playing politics with the issue to get the best of both worlds.
Read on.
Greedy Bankers Fuel Public Outrage
By Brent Budowsky
April 21, 2009
"Bank Lending Keeps Dropping," went the Monday headline in The Wall Street Journal. As Congress returns, bailout backlash will become road rage unless the President and Congress take action that is strong and credible.
Read on.
April 21, 2009
"Bank Lending Keeps Dropping," went the Monday headline in The Wall Street Journal. As Congress returns, bailout backlash will become road rage unless the President and Congress take action that is strong and credible.
Read on.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Connecting CIA Torture to Abu Ghraib
By Robert Parry
April 21, 2009
By blurring the lines between terrorism and combat – and by linking the 9/11 rationale to groups only tangentially connected to al-Qaeda – the Bush administration spread the policy of harsh interrogations far beyond terror suspects who worked directly for Osama bin Laden, newly released Justice Department memos reveal.
Read on.
April 21, 2009
By blurring the lines between terrorism and combat – and by linking the 9/11 rationale to groups only tangentially connected to al-Qaeda – the Bush administration spread the policy of harsh interrogations far beyond terror suspects who worked directly for Osama bin Laden, newly released Justice Department memos reveal.
Read on.
GOP's Civil Liberties Hypocrisy
By Nat Parry
April 20, 2009
Just as Republicans have refashioned themselves as fiscal conservatives in the age of Obama, apparently forgetting that they allowed a budget surplus to be transformed into a record deficit while George W. Bush was President, they now seem to be taking up the cause of civil liberties – at least as far as right-wing groups are concerned.
Read on.
April 20, 2009
Just as Republicans have refashioned themselves as fiscal conservatives in the age of Obama, apparently forgetting that they allowed a budget surplus to be transformed into a record deficit while George W. Bush was President, they now seem to be taking up the cause of civil liberties – at least as far as right-wing groups are concerned.
Read on.
Friday, April 17, 2009
How Bush's Tortured Legal Logic Won
By Robert Parry
April 17, 2009
April 17, 2009
Almost as disturbing as reading the Bush administration’s approved menu of brutal interrogation techniques is recognizing how President George W. Bush successfully shopped for government attorneys willing to render American laws meaningless by turning words inside out.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Bush's Hypocrisy on War Crimes
By Jason Leopold
April 16, 2009
In March 2003, after Iraqi troops captured several U.S. soldiers and let them be interviewed on Iraqi TV, senior Bush administration officials expressed outrage over this violation of the Geneva Convention.
Read on.
April 16, 2009
In March 2003, after Iraqi troops captured several U.S. soldiers and let them be interviewed on Iraqi TV, senior Bush administration officials expressed outrage over this violation of the Geneva Convention.
Read on.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Exaggerating China's Military Threat
By Ivan Eland
April 15, 2009
The Pentagon’s annual publication, “Military Power of the People’s Republic of China 2009,” accused China of stocking its military with weapons that can be used to intimidate or attack Taiwan and mitigate U.S. air and naval superiority near its territory.
Read on.
April 15, 2009
The Pentagon’s annual publication, “Military Power of the People’s Republic of China 2009,” accused China of stocking its military with weapons that can be used to intimidate or attack Taiwan and mitigate U.S. air and naval superiority near its territory.
Read on.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
NYT's American Blind Spot
By Robert Parry
April 15, 2009
On Tuesday, the New York Times ran two editorials that staked out sound positions – on the need for the American Bar Association to resist right-wing pressures in evaluating judicial nominees and on the value of holding tyrants accountable. But in both cases, the Times demonstrated blind spots about parallels to itself and the U.S. media.
Read on.
April 15, 2009
On Tuesday, the New York Times ran two editorials that staked out sound positions – on the need for the American Bar Association to resist right-wing pressures in evaluating judicial nominees and on the value of holding tyrants accountable. But in both cases, the Times demonstrated blind spots about parallels to itself and the U.S. media.
Read on.
Anatomy of Bush's Torture 'Paradigm'
By Ray McGovern
April 14, 2009
The prose of the recently leaked report of the International Committee of the Red Cross on torture seems colorless. It is at the same time obscene — almost pornographic.
Read on.
April 14, 2009
The prose of the recently leaked report of the International Committee of the Red Cross on torture seems colorless. It is at the same time obscene — almost pornographic.
Read on.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Reagan, Media and Heroes
By Robert Parry
April 13, 2009
When we write about a U.S. media culture that reflexively bends to the Right, some people dispute our analysis. After all, they’ve heard those endless complaints about the “liberal media.”
Read on.
April 13, 2009
When we write about a U.S. media culture that reflexively bends to the Right, some people dispute our analysis. After all, they’ve heard those endless complaints about the “liberal media.”
Read on.
US News Media Fails America, Again
By Robert Parry
April 13, 2009
Watching Glenn Beck of Fox News rant about “progressive fascism” – and muse about armed insurrection – or listening to mainstream pundits prattle on about Barack Obama as the “most polarizing President ever,” it is hard to escape the conclusion that today’s U.S. news media represents a danger to the Republic.
Read on.
April 13, 2009
Watching Glenn Beck of Fox News rant about “progressive fascism” – and muse about armed insurrection – or listening to mainstream pundits prattle on about Barack Obama as the “most polarizing President ever,” it is hard to escape the conclusion that today’s U.S. news media represents a danger to the Republic.
Read on.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Re-Fueling the Terrorism Scare
By David Swanson
April 12, 2009
Virginia is for lovers, but there's a terrorist behind every dogwood.
Read on.
April 12, 2009
Virginia is for lovers, but there's a terrorist behind every dogwood.
Read on.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Israeli Scholar Disputes Founding Myth
By Morgan Strong
April 12, 2009
The founding narrative of the modern State of Israel was born from the words of Moses in the Old Testament, that God granted the land of Israel to the Jewish people and that it was to be theirs for all time.
Read on.
April 12, 2009
The founding narrative of the modern State of Israel was born from the words of Moses in the Old Testament, that God granted the land of Israel to the Jewish people and that it was to be theirs for all time.
Read on.
CIA Videos Predated Bush Memo
By Jason Leopold
April 11, 2009
The CIA began videotaping interrogations of two alleged “high value” terrorist detainees in April 2002, four months before Bush administration attorneys issued a memo clearing the way for CIA interrogators to use “enhanced interrogation techniques,” the Justice Department disclosed in court documents.
Read on.
April 11, 2009
The CIA began videotaping interrogations of two alleged “high value” terrorist detainees in April 2002, four months before Bush administration attorneys issued a memo clearing the way for CIA interrogators to use “enhanced interrogation techniques,” the Justice Department disclosed in court documents.
Read on.
Friday, April 10, 2009
US Media and the Memory Hole
By Norman Solomon
April 10, 2009
A headline in The New York Times announced a few days ago: "Brain Researchers Open Door to Editing Memory." This news ran above the fold on the front page.
Read on.
April 10, 2009
A headline in The New York Times announced a few days ago: "Brain Researchers Open Door to Editing Memory." This news ran above the fold on the front page.
Read on.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
America, Torture and Hypocrisy
By Robert Parry
April 9, 2009
The International Committee of the Red Cross’s torture report should be required reading for all Americans not just because its contents are shocking – which they are – but because it reveals that the United States is not the special nation that it often pretends to be, and won’t be as long as it chooses to look away from such crimes.
Read on.
April 9, 2009
The International Committee of the Red Cross’s torture report should be required reading for all Americans not just because its contents are shocking – which they are – but because it reveals that the United States is not the special nation that it often pretends to be, and won’t be as long as it chooses to look away from such crimes.
Read on.
'Let the Railsplitter Awake!'
By Michael Winship
April 9, 2009
A number of years ago, when I was writing a public television series for the Smithsonian Institution, I watched a woman in one of the museum's conservation labs, restoring what appeared to be an old top hat.
Read on.
April 9, 2009
A number of years ago, when I was writing a public television series for the Smithsonian Institution, I watched a woman in one of the museum's conservation labs, restoring what appeared to be an old top hat.
Read on.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Gates's Up-Is-Down Military Budget
By David Swanson
April 8, 2009
The largest military budget in the history of the world is being increased. Certain weapons are being cut back, others expanded. But the overall budget is going UP. Not that you would readily know that from these fine news sources:
Read on.
April 8, 2009
The largest military budget in the history of the world is being increased. Certain weapons are being cut back, others expanded. But the overall budget is going UP. Not that you would readily know that from these fine news sources:
Read on.
Easter Hope: Justice Against Torture
By Ray McGovern
April 8, 2009
April 8, 2009
Three years ago, Easter dawned in Crawford, Texas, for the many friends of peace gathered to celebrate new Easter hope.
Read on.The Gates Doctrine for More Wars
By Melvin A. Goodman
April 8, 2009
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has learned very little from the military trials and tribulations of the United States over the past 50 years.
Read on.
April 8, 2009
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has learned very little from the military trials and tribulations of the United States over the past 50 years.
Read on.
Bush's CIA Suspected of More Torture
By Jason Leopold
April 8, 2009
The Bush administration may have abused or tortured many more detainees at secret CIA prisons than the 14 “high-value” terror suspects already known, the International Committee of the Red Cross said in a confidential report.
Read on.
April 8, 2009
The Bush administration may have abused or tortured many more detainees at secret CIA prisons than the 14 “high-value” terror suspects already known, the International Committee of the Red Cross said in a confidential report.
Read on.
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Fixing the Real Wall Street Blame
By Bill Moyers and Michael Winship
April 7, 2009
A cartoon in the Sunday comics shows that mustachioed fellow with monocle and top hat from the Monopoly game - "Rich Uncle Pennybags," he used to be called - standing along the roadside, destitute, holding a sign: "Will blame poor people for food."
Read on.
April 7, 2009
A cartoon in the Sunday comics shows that mustachioed fellow with monocle and top hat from the Monopoly game - "Rich Uncle Pennybags," he used to be called - standing along the roadside, destitute, holding a sign: "Will blame poor people for food."
Read on.
Saving Mexico by Legalizing US Drugs
By Ivan Eland
April 7, 2009
While the U.S. superpower has meddled in many far-flung nations around the globe in the name of enhancing its security, as prior to 9/11, it has ignored a threat much closer to home.
Read on.
April 7, 2009
While the U.S. superpower has meddled in many far-flung nations around the globe in the name of enhancing its security, as prior to 9/11, it has ignored a threat much closer to home.
Read on.
Monday, April 06, 2009
El Salvador Turns a Page
By David Corbett
April 6, 2009
April 6, 2009
On March 15, El Salvador made history by electing the first left-wing president in its history.
Another Bush Intelligence Failure
By Robert Parry
April 6, 2009
Add to the list of President George W. Bush’s failures his inability to straighten out what he regarded as one of the top national security needs, a more effective U.S. intelligence community.
Read on.
April 6, 2009
Add to the list of President George W. Bush’s failures his inability to straighten out what he regarded as one of the top national security needs, a more effective U.S. intelligence community.
Read on.
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Cowardice in the Time of Torture
By Ray McGovern
April 5, 2009
I used to take a certain pride by association with prominent Bronxites who have “made it.” Cancel that for Attorney General Eric Holder and former Secretary of State Colin Powell.
Read on.
April 5, 2009
I used to take a certain pride by association with prominent Bronxites who have “made it.” Cancel that for Attorney General Eric Holder and former Secretary of State Colin Powell.
Read on.
Conyers Again Seeks Bush Prosecutor
By Jason Leopold
April 5, 2009
April 5, 2009
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers has renewed his call for a special prosecutor to conduct a criminal inquiry into “war on terror” policies of the Bush administration, including whether “enhanced interrogation techniques” used on alleged terrorist detainees violated international and federal laws against torture.
Saturday, April 04, 2009
WPost Sees Neocon Hope in Obama
By Robert Parry
April 4, 2009
When reading Washington Post editorials, one often is reminded of the famous question from “Shawshank Redemption”: “How can you be so obtuse?”
Read on.
April 4, 2009
When reading Washington Post editorials, one often is reminded of the famous question from “Shawshank Redemption”: “How can you be so obtuse?”
Read on.
Friday, April 03, 2009
Miss Universe's Excellent Adventure
By Michael Winship
April 3, 2009
April 3, 2009
"A crown is merely a hat that lets the rain in." That was Frederick the Great of Prussia's take on the pain of being royalty.
'Torture Memo' May Finally Go Public
By Jason Leopold
April 3, 2009
The world may finally get to read the Bush administration’s infamous “torture memo,” the Aug. 1, 2002, document that provided legal cover for the brutal and humiliating treatment of detainees in George W. Bush’s “war on terror.”
Read on.
April 3, 2009
The world may finally get to read the Bush administration’s infamous “torture memo,” the Aug. 1, 2002, document that provided legal cover for the brutal and humiliating treatment of detainees in George W. Bush’s “war on terror.”
Read on.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Leahy Faults GOP Partisanship on Bush
By Jason Leopold
April 2, 2009
April 2, 2009
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy said the refusal of Republicans to act in a non-partisan way has hobbled his plan for a “truth commission” that would examine alleged Bush administration abuses.
Truth, Crimes, Commissions and Hope
By David Swanson
April 2, 2009
Good news is being taken as bad. Vermont constituents of Sen. Patrick Leahy report that he's finding very little support for his proposed truth and reconciliation commission from Republicans or Democrats in the Senate. Numerous people have taken this as bad news and cause to despair. I disagree.
Read on.
April 2, 2009
Good news is being taken as bad. Vermont constituents of Sen. Patrick Leahy report that he's finding very little support for his proposed truth and reconciliation commission from Republicans or Democrats in the Senate. Numerous people have taken this as bad news and cause to despair. I disagree.
Read on.
I.F. Stone's Son on New Izzy Award
By Jeremy Stone
April 2, 2009
Amy Goodman and Glenn Greenwald shared the first "Izzy Award" for independent journalism named for the legendary I.F. Stone.
Read on.
April 2, 2009
Amy Goodman and Glenn Greenwald shared the first "Izzy Award" for independent journalism named for the legendary I.F. Stone.
Read on.
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Leahy Bails on 'Truth Commission' Plan
By Charlotte Dennett
April 1, 2009
Those of you following the George W. Bush prosecution trail will be interested to know that Patrick Leahy’s “truth commission” is a no-go. I was in a meeting with Leahy and four other Vermonters on Monday when he broke the news to us.
Read on.
April 1, 2009
Those of you following the George W. Bush prosecution trail will be interested to know that Patrick Leahy’s “truth commission” is a no-go. I was in a meeting with Leahy and four other Vermonters on Monday when he broke the news to us.
Read on.
Bush Aides Changed Watchdog Report
By Jason Leopold
April 1, 2009
Before leaving office, senior Bush administration lawyers secured changes in a Justice Department watchdog agency’s report that reportedly was sharply critical of legal opinions granting President George W. Bush sweeping powers, including the right to abuse “war on terror” captives.
Read on.
April 1, 2009
Before leaving office, senior Bush administration lawyers secured changes in a Justice Department watchdog agency’s report that reportedly was sharply critical of legal opinions granting President George W. Bush sweeping powers, including the right to abuse “war on terror” captives.
Read on.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
To Bush's GWOT, RIP
By Robert Parry
March 31, 2009
President Barack Obama has come under some criticism for slowing his promised withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq and for beefing up U.S. forces in Afghanistan, but his 70-day-old administration at least has dumped one part of George W. Bush’s bellicose foreign policy: the phrase “global war on terror.”
Read on.
March 31, 2009
President Barack Obama has come under some criticism for slowing his promised withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq and for beefing up U.S. forces in Afghanistan, but his 70-day-old administration at least has dumped one part of George W. Bush’s bellicose foreign policy: the phrase “global war on terror.”
Read on.
The President's Troublesome 'Friends'
By Ivan Eland
March 31, 2009
President Warren Harding once said, “I have no trouble with my enemies,” but noted that his friends “keep me walking the floor nights.” That maxim should have applied to U.S. foreign policy since 9/11 and even before that.
Read on.
March 31, 2009
President Warren Harding once said, “I have no trouble with my enemies,” but noted that his friends “keep me walking the floor nights.” That maxim should have applied to U.S. foreign policy since 9/11 and even before that.
Read on.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Democrats Duck Bush Torture Probe
By Jason Leopold
March 30, 2009
Despite now overwhelming evidence that ex-President George W. Bush and many top aides engaged in a systematic policy of illegal torture, national Democrats appear to be shying away from their recommendation last year for a special prosecutor to investigate these apparent war crimes.
March 30, 2009
Despite now overwhelming evidence that ex-President George W. Bush and many top aides engaged in a systematic policy of illegal torture, national Democrats appear to be shying away from their recommendation last year for a special prosecutor to investigate these apparent war crimes.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Spanish Judge Probes Bush Torture
By David Swanson
March 29, 2009
Spain has begun a criminal investigation into six of Bush and Cheney's torture lawyers, and our own Justice Department has got some 'splaining to do.
Read on.
March 29, 2009
Spain has begun a criminal investigation into six of Bush and Cheney's torture lawyers, and our own Justice Department has got some 'splaining to do.
Read on.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Welcome to Vietnam, Mr. President
By Ray McGovern
March 28, 2009
I was wrong. I had been saying that it would be naïve to take too seriously presidential candidate Barack Obama’s rhetoric regarding the need to escalate the war in Afghanistan.
Read on.
March 28, 2009
I was wrong. I had been saying that it would be naïve to take too seriously presidential candidate Barack Obama’s rhetoric regarding the need to escalate the war in Afghanistan.
Read on.
Friday, March 27, 2009
The MSM and Swimming Naked
By Robert Parry
March 28, 2009
There’s a Wall Street saying about what happens to traders who have taken too many chances, when the stock prices ebb: “When the tide goes out,” it’s said, “you see who’s been swimming naked” – what might be called the ultimate consequence of a bear (or bare) market.
Read on.
March 28, 2009
There’s a Wall Street saying about what happens to traders who have taken too many chances, when the stock prices ebb: “When the tide goes out,” it’s said, “you see who’s been swimming naked” – what might be called the ultimate consequence of a bear (or bare) market.
Read on.
No Angry Mob, But a Movement
By Michael Winship
March 27, 2009
A college friend of mine, after much quaffing from the keg, so to speak, would start singing a faux hymn that began, “We are sliding into sin – whee!”
Read on.
March 27, 2009
A college friend of mine, after much quaffing from the keg, so to speak, would start singing a faux hymn that began, “We are sliding into sin – whee!”
Read on.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Iraqi Civil Strife Threatens US Pullout
By Ivan Eland
March 27, 2009
Bosnian Serb leaders have threatened to withdraw from Bosnia-Herzegovina, the decentralized entity created by the 1995 Dayton Accords, which ended a brutal civil war in the Balkans that killed more than 100,000 people in the early 1990s.
Read on.
March 27, 2009
Bosnian Serb leaders have threatened to withdraw from Bosnia-Herzegovina, the decentralized entity created by the 1995 Dayton Accords, which ended a brutal civil war in the Balkans that killed more than 100,000 people in the early 1990s.
Read on.
Lost History Hurts Obama's Iran Bid
By Robert Parry
March 26, 2009
March 26, 2009
President Barack Obama and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei spoke past each other in a recent exchange partly because both countries nurse historical grievances against the other and neither has fully acknowledged that mutual history dating back three decades.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Bush's 'Lawyer-Shopping' for Torture
By Jason Leopold
March 24, 2009
March 24, 2009
In 2005, after pushing out the Justice Department lawyer who had overturned President George W. Bush’s claimed authority to abuse “war on terror” prisoners, his administration reinstated key elements of the memos granting Bush virtually unlimited powers over the detainees, according to a list of still-secret documents.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Laissez Unfair
By Brent Budowsky
March 24, 2009
This is a tale of Washington, Wall Street and wounded troops. It is a story about socialism for the few who game the system and Darwinian capitalism against the many who suffer the pain and pay the cost.
Read on.
March 24, 2009
This is a tale of Washington, Wall Street and wounded troops. It is a story about socialism for the few who game the system and Darwinian capitalism against the many who suffer the pain and pay the cost.
Read on.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
WPost Elitists Feel for Wall St. Brethren
By Robert Parry
March 22, 2009
One interesting trait of elitists is that they show remarkable class solidarity, often more so than people of lesser means. Which may help explain why the Washington Post’s editorial writers penned three editorials last week decrying the populist outrage over the AIG bonuses.
Read on.
March 22, 2009
One interesting trait of elitists is that they show remarkable class solidarity, often more so than people of lesser means. Which may help explain why the Washington Post’s editorial writers penned three editorials last week decrying the populist outrage over the AIG bonuses.
Read on.
The Iraq War's Six Years of Mayhem
By David Swanson
March 22, 2009
Thus far, 4,261 members of the U.S. military have been killed in Iraq and 67,237 wounded.
Read on.
March 22, 2009
Thus far, 4,261 members of the U.S. military have been killed in Iraq and 67,237 wounded.
Read on.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
How to Really Hit Back at Wall Street
By Brent Budowsky
March 21, 2009
Let’s ban political contributions to any candidate, of any party, for any office by any company that receives bailout money, until the money is paid back in full.
Read on.
March 21, 2009
Let’s ban political contributions to any candidate, of any party, for any office by any company that receives bailout money, until the money is paid back in full.
Read on.
CIA Has 3,000 Docs on Torture Tapes
By Jason Leopold
March 21, 2009
The CIA has about 3,000 documents related to the 92 destroyed videotapes that showed “war on terror” detainees being subjected to harsh interrogations, the Justice Department has disclosed, suggesting an extensive back-and-forth between CIA field operatives and officials of the Bush administration.
Read on.
March 21, 2009
The CIA has about 3,000 documents related to the 92 destroyed videotapes that showed “war on terror” detainees being subjected to harsh interrogations, the Justice Department has disclosed, suggesting an extensive back-and-forth between CIA field operatives and officials of the Bush administration.
Read on.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Good News, Bad News
By Robert Parry
March 20, 2009
The good news is that – thanks to our readers – we did meet the grant challenge from a donor.
Read on.
March 20, 2009
The good news is that – thanks to our readers – we did meet the grant challenge from a donor.
Read on.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Losing the Oxygen of Journalism
By Gray Brechin
March 19, 2009
We seldom think of oxygen unless it’s absent. You’d think about it a lot if it suddenly exited this room; you’d start gasping and writhing, your eardrums would burst, you and your neighbors would do a lot of bleeding on each other, then you’d die.
Read on.
March 19, 2009
We seldom think of oxygen unless it’s absent. You’d think about it a lot if it suddenly exited this room; you’d start gasping and writhing, your eardrums would burst, you and your neighbors would do a lot of bleeding on each other, then you’d die.
Read on.
Framing Obama -- by the WPost
By Robert Parry
March 19, 2009
March 19, 2009
An insidious power of a propagandistic newspaper – especially one with great influence – is how it can “frame” an issue so the assumptions behind a story guide the readers to a preordained conclusion under the guise of presenting a fair journalistic account.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Torture Revealed Yet Again
By David Swanson
March 19, 2009
As with the evidence that Bush, Cheney and gang intentionally lied us into a war, or the evidence of illegal and unconstitutional spying, each time a major new piece of evidence of torture emerges, it is impossible not to hope that this is the one that will compel the Justice Department or Congress or the courts or the American people to act decisively.
Read on.
March 19, 2009
As with the evidence that Bush, Cheney and gang intentionally lied us into a war, or the evidence of illegal and unconstitutional spying, each time a major new piece of evidence of torture emerges, it is impossible not to hope that this is the one that will compel the Justice Department or Congress or the courts or the American people to act decisively.
Read on.
CIA's Panetta Is Falling Short
By Melvin A. Goodman
March 18, 2009
President Barack Obama’s CIA director, Leon Panetta, needed only one month to establish that he lacks the courage, contrariness, judgment, and political and intellectual independence to reform the Central Intelligence Agency.
Read on.
March 18, 2009
President Barack Obama’s CIA director, Leon Panetta, needed only one month to establish that he lacks the courage, contrariness, judgment, and political and intellectual independence to reform the Central Intelligence Agency.
Read on.
Indentured Servants, Circa 2009
By Barbara Koeppel
March 18, 2009
The immigration imbroglio is the gorilla in the room that won’t go away.
Read on.
March 18, 2009
The immigration imbroglio is the gorilla in the room that won’t go away.
Read on.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
New Evidence of Bush Torture Crimes
By Jason Leopold
March 17, 2009
As more pieces of a very ugly mosaic fall into place – including new details from a confidential 2007 report by the International Committee of the Red Cross about interrogations at CIA “black sites” – any remaining doubt that the Bush administration engaged in a conscious policy of torture is disappearing.
Read on.
March 17, 2009
As more pieces of a very ugly mosaic fall into place – including new details from a confidential 2007 report by the International Committee of the Red Cross about interrogations at CIA “black sites” – any remaining doubt that the Bush administration engaged in a conscious policy of torture is disappearing.
Read on.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
WPost Is a Neocon Propaganda Sheet
By Robert Parry
March 15, 2009
For Americans who hear the name Washington Post and still think of “All the President’s Men” – brave journalists and editors facing down a corrupt President – today’s version of the newspaper would be a sad disappointment, a betrayal of a noble past.
Read on.
March 15, 2009
For Americans who hear the name Washington Post and still think of “All the President’s Men” – brave journalists and editors facing down a corrupt President – today’s version of the newspaper would be a sad disappointment, a betrayal of a noble past.
Read on.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
The Brave, Living and Dead
By Michael Winship
March 14, 2009
In this bicentennial year of Abraham Lincoln's birth, I recently was re-reading part of Doris Kearns Goodwin's epic history, Team of Rivals.
Read on.
March 14, 2009
In this bicentennial year of Abraham Lincoln's birth, I recently was re-reading part of Doris Kearns Goodwin's epic history, Team of Rivals.
Read on.
Gates Carries Over Iraq-WMD Lie
By Melvin A. Goodman
March 14, 2009
March 14, 2009
In 1987, President Ronald Reagan nominated Robert Gates to be Director of Central Intelligence (DCI), but he was denied confirmation because a majority of members on the Senate Intelligence Committee believed he was lying about his knowledge and role in the Iran-Contra Affair.
Friday, March 13, 2009
War Crimes & American Rejectionism
By Peter Dyer
March 13, 2009
On June 13, 1899, one of the largest battles of the Philippine-American war took place on the southern outskirts of Manila.
Read on.
March 13, 2009
On June 13, 1899, one of the largest battles of the Philippine-American war took place on the southern outskirts of Manila.
Read on.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Israel Lobby Knocks Out Freeman
By Melvin A. Goodman
March 12, 2009
March 12, 2009
Israel is capable of debating sensitive national security issues dealing with a variety of Israeli-Arab issues, but this does not appear to be possible in the United States.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Oh, What a Lovely Class War!
By Michael Winship
March 11, 2009
My goodness, how they howl when the proverbial shoe is on the proverbial other foot. You'd think the Red Army had just left Moscow and was preparing a frontal assault on the Federal Reserve.
Read on.
March 11, 2009
My goodness, how they howl when the proverbial shoe is on the proverbial other foot. You'd think the Red Army had just left Moscow and was preparing a frontal assault on the Federal Reserve.
Read on.
Timidity Derails Obama Intel Choice
By Ray McGovern
March 11, 2009
On Tuesday morning, Director of National Intelligence, Admiral Dennis Blair, employed the indicative mood in describing the high value that Chas Freeman, his appointee to head the National Intelligence Council (NIC), will bring to the job — “his long experience and inventive mind,” for example.
Read on.
March 11, 2009
On Tuesday morning, Director of National Intelligence, Admiral Dennis Blair, employed the indicative mood in describing the high value that Chas Freeman, his appointee to head the National Intelligence Council (NIC), will bring to the job — “his long experience and inventive mind,” for example.
Read on.
The Neocons Strike Back
By Robert Parry
March 11, 2009
The neoconservatives have demonstrated that their power in Washington remains strong as they have succeeded in keeping veteran diplomat Chas Freeman out of a top intelligence job.
Read on.
March 11, 2009
The neoconservatives have demonstrated that their power in Washington remains strong as they have succeeded in keeping veteran diplomat Chas Freeman out of a top intelligence job.
Read on.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Can Obama's Change Find El Salvador?
By Don North
March 11, 2009
More than a quarter century ago, the U.S. government under Ronald Reagan drew a Cold War line in El Salvador and made the defeat of the leftist Farabundo Marti Front for National Liberation (the FMLN) a major foreign policy goal.
Read on.
March 11, 2009
More than a quarter century ago, the U.S. government under Ronald Reagan drew a Cold War line in El Salvador and made the defeat of the leftist Farabundo Marti Front for National Liberation (the FMLN) a major foreign policy goal.
Read on.
Finally, Putting Country First
By Brent Budowsky
March 10, 2009
We Americans have our backs against the financial wall. We are in a war against fear, greed and corruption of the marketplace.
Read on.
March 10, 2009
We Americans have our backs against the financial wall. We are in a war against fear, greed and corruption of the marketplace.
Read on.
Obama's DNI Urged to Backi Freeman
By Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity
March 10, 2009
March 10, 2009
We write to give strong endorsement to your choice of Chas Freeman for Chair of the National Intelligence Council.
Monday, March 09, 2009
The Threat to Obama's Presidency
By Robert Parry
March 9, 2009
Less than two months into Barack Obama’s presidency, it has become clear that the top threat to his ability to accomplish his goals – from reversing the recession to reforming health care to building a greener economy – is not just an obstructionist Republican Party but a U.S. news media that remains largely tilted to the Right.
Read on.
March 9, 2009
Less than two months into Barack Obama’s presidency, it has become clear that the top threat to his ability to accomplish his goals – from reversing the recession to reforming health care to building a greener economy – is not just an obstructionist Republican Party but a U.S. news media that remains largely tilted to the Right.
Read on.
Sunday, March 08, 2009
Who Wants to Watch the Watchmen?
By Lisa Pease
March 8, 2009
I was really looking forward to seeing “Watchmen.” While I had not read the graphic novel, I was familiar with Alan Moore's work from his novel “V for Vendetta,” and the Wachowski brothers' magnificent movie based on the novel.
Read on.
March 8, 2009
I was really looking forward to seeing “Watchmen.” While I had not read the graphic novel, I was familiar with Alan Moore's work from his novel “V for Vendetta,” and the Wachowski brothers' magnificent movie based on the novel.
Read on.
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Bush Boasted about Tortured Captive
By Jason Leopold
March 8, 2009
About the time President George W. Bush was boasting of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri’s capture in late 2002, the alleged mastermind of the USS Cole bombing was undergoing waterboarding, according to top-secret documents released in a New York federal court case.
Read on.
March 8, 2009
About the time President George W. Bush was boasting of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri’s capture in late 2002, the alleged mastermind of the USS Cole bombing was undergoing waterboarding, according to top-secret documents released in a New York federal court case.
Read on.
Yoo Defends His Legal Memos
By Jason Leopold
March 7, 2009
Former Justice Department lawyer John Yoo refuses to back down on his post-9/11 legal opinions that gave President George W. Bush virtually unchecked power, even though many of the memos have since been repudiated for overreaching and inferior scholarship.
Read on.
March 7, 2009
Former Justice Department lawyer John Yoo refuses to back down on his post-9/11 legal opinions that gave President George W. Bush virtually unchecked power, even though many of the memos have since been repudiated for overreaching and inferior scholarship.
Read on.
Friday, March 06, 2009
Neocons Wage War on a 'Realist'
By Robert Parry
March 6, 2009
In a normal world, people in Washington might welcome the hiring of a “realist” to oversee the production of U.S. intelligence analyses, with the hope that even if the truth doesn’t set you free, it at least might be the foundation for sound policies.
Read on.
March 6, 2009
In a normal world, people in Washington might welcome the hiring of a “realist” to oversee the production of U.S. intelligence analyses, with the hope that even if the truth doesn’t set you free, it at least might be the foundation for sound policies.
Read on.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
War Crimes and Double Standards
By Robert Parry
March 5, 2009
New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristof – like many of his American colleagues – is applauding the International Criminal Court’s arrest order against Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for his role in the Darfur conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.
Read on.
March 5, 2009
New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristof – like many of his American colleagues – is applauding the International Criminal Court’s arrest order against Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for his role in the Darfur conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.
Read on.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
House Strikes Deal for Rove Testimony
By Jason Leopold
March 4, 2009
The House Judiciary Committee cut a deal with representatives of ex-President George W. Bush that will result in aides Karl Rove and Harriet Miers testifying in Congress’s long-running investigation into the firings of nine U.S. Attorneys in 2006. But the testimony, at least for the time being, will not be public.
Read on.
March 4, 2009
The House Judiciary Committee cut a deal with representatives of ex-President George W. Bush that will result in aides Karl Rove and Harriet Miers testifying in Congress’s long-running investigation into the firings of nine U.S. Attorneys in 2006. But the testimony, at least for the time being, will not be public.
Read on.
Iran in the Crosshairs
By Gareth Porter and Ray McGovern
March 4, 2009
Last year, the Middle East dodged the danger of an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities and the inevitable spread of hostilities.
Read on.
March 4, 2009
Last year, the Middle East dodged the danger of an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities and the inevitable spread of hostilities.
Read on.
How Close the Bush Bullet
By Robert Parry
March 4, 2009
March 4, 2009
Earlier this decade when some of us warned that George W. Bush was behaving more like an incipient dictator than the leader of a constitutional republic, we were dismissed as alarmists, left-wingers, traitors and a host of less printable epithets.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Justice Memos Gave Bush Total Power
By Jason Leopold
March 3, 2009
Lawyers for George W. Bush’s Justice Department asserted that the President had unlimited powers to prosecute the “war on terror” on American soil and could ignore constitutional rights, including First Amendment freedoms of speech and the press and Fourth Amendment requirements for search warrants, according to nine secret memos just released.
Read on.
March 3, 2009
Lawyers for George W. Bush’s Justice Department asserted that the President had unlimited powers to prosecute the “war on terror” on American soil and could ignore constitutional rights, including First Amendment freedoms of speech and the press and Fourth Amendment requirements for search warrants, according to nine secret memos just released.
Read on.
Monday, March 02, 2009
CIA Destroyed More Torture Videos
By Jason Leopold
March 2, 2009
The CIA destroyed 92 videotapes – far more than previously known – to prevent disclosure of evidence revealing how the agency’s interrogators subjected “war on terror” detainees to waterboarding and other brutal methods, according to court documents filed by the Justice Department.
Read on.
March 2, 2009
The CIA destroyed 92 videotapes – far more than previously known – to prevent disclosure of evidence revealing how the agency’s interrogators subjected “war on terror” detainees to waterboarding and other brutal methods, according to court documents filed by the Justice Department.
Read on.
The American Media Misdiagnosis
By Robert Parry
March 2, 2009
March 2, 2009
It’s widely agreed that there are a number of factors dragging down American newspapers, including the economic recession and the impact of the Internet, but a reason rarely mentioned is that the national news media failed in its most important job – to serve as a watchdog for the people.
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Hockey Mom Takes on Radio Right
By Lynne Gillooly
March 1, 2009
My name is Lynne and I am a 52-year-old basketball-playing Hockey Mom. I own a small business and have four children. Until 1999, I was an Independent voter. I voted for R. Reagan and Bush 41, but not for Bush 43.
Read on.
March 1, 2009
My name is Lynne and I am a 52-year-old basketball-playing Hockey Mom. I own a small business and have four children. Until 1999, I was an Independent voter. I voted for R. Reagan and Bush 41, but not for Bush 43.
Read on.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Obama's War with the Right (& Media)
By Robert Parry
February 28, 2009
February 28, 2009
In a startling ambitious budget message, President Barack Obama has thrown down the gauntlet to the American Right not only by tying the current economic crisis to the recklessness of the past eight years under George W. Bush but by tracing it back further to the anti-regulatory, anti-labor and anti-government policies of Ronald Reagan.
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