US Foreign Policy

Sex, Lies and Julian Assange (documentary)

October 6, 2012
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Julian Assange and Wikileaks continue to be popular topics for the media, although  most of the media coverage is either biased or superficial. Sex, Lies and Julian Assange, reported by Andrew Fowler and presented by Kerry O’Brien, is an exception to this trend. In the brief space of 43 minutes, the investigative documentary revisits the advent of Wikileaks and the controversy surrounding its editor-in-chief, Julian Assange. Through well-selected interviews and detailed research, especially on the sexual offence allegations in Sweden, the documentary presents the story of Wikileaks and Julian Assange in a remarkably clear, unbiased way. It states what the mainstream…

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The Israeli lobby and how it operates

September 27, 2012
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In his blog post entitled “The Israel lobby and how it operates,”  Lawrence Davidson provides a simple, step-by-step account of how the Israel Lobby works its magic on the US Congress. This account provides a clear and compelling answer to a question that perplexes many observers of US foreign policy, the question of exactly why the American political establishment doggedly supports the state of Israel even though Israel is pursuing objectives that run contrary to US national interests. Davidson ends with an apt quote from Cicero: “Nihil tam munitum quod non expugnari pecunia possit,” translated as: “No fortification is such that…

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Highs and lows in debates on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

July 28, 2012
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Two recent debates on Democracy Now (here and here) regarding the BDS movement really stand out as remarkable in the history of debates on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In both of these debates, opposition to the BDS movement comes from Rabbi Arthur Waskow.  While he is opposed to a BDS movement against Israel, he clearly acknowledges Israel’s flagrant violations of international law and insists that the brutal occupation of Palestinian territory must be brought to an end. For him the only question is how best to do it. Because of this common ground, there is a level of civility and mutual respect…

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The sad state of affairs in Texas

June 29, 2012
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The 2012 political platform of the Republican Party of Texas is available online here. The views expressed  in this document are both disturbing and depressing. Below are a few highlights.  1. On Education Controversial Theories – We support objective teaching and equal treatment of all sides of scientific theories. We believe theories such as life origins and environmental change should be taught as challengeable scientific theories subject to change as new data is produced. Teachers and students should be able to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these theories openly and without fear of retribution or discrimination of any kind.    Knowledge-Based Education –…

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Julian Assange interviews Moazzam Begg and Asim Qureshi (The World Tomorrow)

June 25, 2012
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From the website of the The World Tomorrow: [The fifth episode] of The World Tomorrow takes us to the very heart of America’s War on Terror: Guantanamo Bay. Julian Assange sat down with a former Gitmo prisoner and a rights campaigner fighting for those still trapped behind the wire. Ten years ago the war on terror prompted the opening of the facility.  Now, more than three years after President Obama ordered its closure, the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, like the war in Afghanistan, remains with us. Over a year ago, Wikileaks blew the lid on Gitmo by releasing a cache of…

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Dear Germany: It’s okay to criticise Israel (by Mark Levine)

April 18, 2012
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Irvine, CA – My parents would never buy a Mercedes. Period. They couldn’t understand Jews who would (legitimate adults didn’t buy Volkswagons either back in the 1970s, at least where I lived). In fact, aside from long-dead German composers and pastries from the local German-American bakery – whose owners were probably Jewish – Jewish-Americans wanted nothing to do with Germany. For obvious reasons. Even today, it’s very hard for non-Jews to understand the trauma Jews born in the post-Holocaust generation experienced related to Germany. Our family lived in a strange zone between the past and present. At regular moments throughout the…

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Exposed: NSA Spy Center (interview with James Bamford)

March 26, 2012
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There is an interesting discussion on the March 21st edition of Democracy Now under the title “Exposed: Inside the NSA’s Largest and Most Expansive Secret Domestic Spy Center in Bluffdale, Utah.” The interview discusses a recent WIRED Magazine article by James Bamford entitled “The NSA Is Building the Country’s Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say)“. This is the Democracy Now introduction to the discussion. A new exposé in Wired Magazine reveals details about how the National Security Agency is quietly building the largest spy center in the country in Bluffdale, Utah, as part of a secret NSA surveillance program codenamed “Stellar…

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New PR for the coming attack on Iran

March 23, 2012
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Peter King, the Republic Chairman  of the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security convened a meeting this week to explain that the United States is currently facing a grave threat from a new scary monster: Iranian-backed Hezbollah agents that are inside the country and ready to attack. The shocking new evidence upon which these claims are based appears to be reports of Iranians videotaping subway tracks. Scary stuff indeed. In light of these reports, King claimed that “We have a duty to prepare for the worst.” One can listen to his opening speech at the committee meeting. It’s truly breathtaking.…

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Media failures in the Iran war debate

March 16, 2012
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Has the American media informed or mislead the public on the debate about whether or not the US should initiate or support an attack on Iran? In this article, originally published in Foreign Policy, Stephen Walt, Professor of International Affairs at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, provides a helpful list of the top ten media failures on this issue. He also participated in this related discussion on an NPR radio program.   .  

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The Kony controversy

March 16, 2012
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In the middle of the two or three-day period in which the Kony 2012 went viral, a note was posted on this blog linking to the video and recommending support for the campaign to arrest Kony. The world is now witnessing a viral explosion of criticism of the Kony 2012 video, which also deserves some comment. Aljazeera has devoted a section of its website to what it calls the “Kony Debate,” though it is less a debate than it is a collection of complaints against the film. Nonetheless, it is probably the single best source of information for understanding the criticisms…

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A Call Against Arms (Aljazeera report on Jeju naval base)

March 13, 2012
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In a tiny village on a small island off the coast of South Korea an entire community is taking on the might of the South Korean navy and government to contest the construction of one of the region’s largest naval bases.  The village of Gangjeong on the island of Jeju has fewer than 2,000 inhabitants but it has become the epicentre of growing discontent over one of the world’s biggest arms races. The South Korean government is adamant that the Gangjeong naval base, which it began constructing in 2007, will strengthen national security. But those opposed to it fear that…

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What Are Iran’s Intentions? (by Noam Chomsky)

March 9, 2012
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Published on Saturday, March 3, 2012 by The New York Times Syndicate. Written by Noam Chomsky. The January/February issue of Foreign Affairs featured the article “Time to Attack Iran: Why a Strike Is the Least Bad Option,” by Matthew Kroenig, along with commentary about other ways to contain the Iranian threat. The media resound with warnings about a likely Israeli attack on Iran while the U.S. hesitates, keeping open the option of aggression—thus again routinely violating the U.N. Charter, the foundation of international law. As tensions escalate, eerie echoes of the run-up to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are in the…

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The Israel Lobby Swims The Atlantic (by Grant Smith)

March 6, 2012
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Jeffrey Goldberg’s current cover story in The Atlantic, “The Point of No Return,”achieved massive distribution across a broad spectrum of old and new media in the United States. Some observers – including Glenn Greenwald in “How Propagandists Function” – noted how well the methodology and message of Goldberg’s piece serves the Israeli government’s efforts to push U.S. military action against Iran. Gareth Porter views it as part of an overarching strategy to keep the U.S. from restoring productive relations with Iran. A huge trove of newly declassified documentssubpoenaed during a Senate investigation reveals how Israel’s lobby pitched, promoted, and paid to have content placed…

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International award for hypocrisy

February 9, 2012
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Alan Hart recently wrote this emotional but accurate article on his blog, asking for the introduction of an international Award for Hypocrisy as a consequence of the British and American response to the failed UN Resolution on Syria. He says,  If there was such an award, the statements of European and American leaders in the immediate aftermath of Russia and China’s veto of the Security Council resolution to end the killing in Syria suggest two most obvious nominees for it. Those being William Hague, UK Foreign Secretary, and Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the UN. Some Quotes from the article: The obvious…

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American diplomacy: bags of cash

February 9, 2012
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The role of hard cash in America’s diplomacy and international relations is difficult to overstate. In his excellent book Overthrow: America’s Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq, Stephen Kinzer provides a detailed account of how US politicians, spies, business men, and CIA operatives conspired on numerous occasions to depose of foreign monarchs, presidents, and prime ministers that weren’t working in the interests of American corporations.  One of the most striking stories is that of Kermit Roosevelt, a CIA agent and grandson of Teddy Roosevelt, who in 1953 was sent to Iran with a bag of cash to fund…

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Highlights from the Republican debate in Florida

February 2, 2012
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Some selected highlights from the Republican presidential candidate debate, hosted in Florida on the 23.01.2012. Watch Mitt Romney declare that America is the natural leader of the world: http://youtu.be/D4BuTa6rE4I?t=4m5s And Newt Gingrich openly express his opinion that Fidel Castro will undoubtedly go to hell: http://youtu.be/D4BuTa6rE4I?t=40m2s While Rick Sentorum declares Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua to be working together with the Jihadists from Iran: http://youtu.be/D4BuTa6rE4I?t=43m43s Ron Paul then steps in and explains why he thinks, Iran’s actions are quite comprehensible: http://youtu.be/D4BuTa6rE4I?t=48m5s And exactly why has the “electability” of the Republican candidate become so much of an issue? Is it more important to…

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The Golden Rule in American politics

January 31, 2012
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The Golden Rule, which is foundational to all virtually ethical thinking, has various formulations but the basic idea is easy enough to understand and is well understood by every human being with the capacity to think. Indeed, it is highly likely that the rule is hardwired into the human brain. The rule is to treat others as you would have them treat you and to not do to others what you would not want them to do to you. Jesus was committed to the rule, as was Confucius, and Hillel. Indeed Hillel described as the whole of the Torah.  So…

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Save Jeju Island

January 31, 2012
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As this article by Matthew Hoey indicates, the protest movement against the military base on Jeju Island in South Korea is the “absolute front line of the struggle for international peace, and is increasingly gaining recognition as such in the minds of leading scholars, activists and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).” According to Hoey, peace activists see the Save Jeju Island campaign as an entirely winnable cause for peace with significant international implications. The following short video by Hoey gives some background on the military base and the resistance movement. To learn more about the movement and how you can contribute to it, visit…

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Containing China

January 31, 2012
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Recent headlines from Democracy Now describe the US plans to increase its military presence in the Philippines and the growing opposition movement there. Renato Reyes, spokesperson for the New Patriotic Alliance, states that: “We are very opposed to the plans to re-align and deploy more U.S. troops in the Philippines, and we are very aware that this is in line with the U.S. strategy to build up its armed forces in Asia to counter China. And we feel that the Philippines might be caught in the rising tension between the two countries if we allow the U.S. to base their troops in…

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Ron Paul

January 22, 2012
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Ron Paul is a very interesting figure in American politics. Progressives love his foreign policy but hate his economic plans and his positions on domestic issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and health care. Conservatives, on the other hand, love Paul’s domestic agenda of reducing the size of the government, lowering taxes, and abolishing the Federal Reserve, but they seem to hate his non-interventionist foreign policy. So Paul has been received differently by different political groups, but even among liberals and progressives, Paul has generated a significant amount of controversy. Consider Kathy Pollit’s recent essay, which outlines the reasons why…

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