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Military Industrial Complex

All US presidents are ‘captives of the military-industrial complex’: Scholar

“The continued occupation of Iraq and Syria by US military forces contravenes all international norms and standards. Both the Syrian government and patriotic forces in the Iraqi government have demanded that the US withdraw its military but to no avail. There is no legitimate reason for the continued US presence in either country.”

“It is not surprising that the illegal US occupation of both countries has elicited popular resistance. The people of every nation have the inherent right to defend their sovereignty and territorial integrity from foreign invasion. Thus, US Secretary of State Pompeo’s assertion that it is acting defensively in attacking forces friendly to the Syrian and Iraqi governments is completely without merit,” he added.

“But, it is standard American practice to cry ‘national defense’ when it engages in offensive wars of aggression. Every US president talks peace and wages war and Trump’s talk about withdrawing US forces from the Middle East is likewise so much blather,” he said.

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The Pentagon’s Long Con

From The Nation:

“People condemn Trump for his incessant lying and his con games—and rightly so. But few Americans condemn the Pentagon and the rest of the national security state, even though we’ve been the victims of their long con for decades now. As it happens, from the beginning of the Cold War to late last night, they’ve remained remarkably skilled at exaggerating the threats the U.S. faces and, believe me, that represents the longest con of all. It’s kept the military-industrial complex humming along, thanks to countless trillions of taxpayer dollars, while attempts to focus a spotlight on that scam have been largely discredited or ignored.”

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Israeli Leaders Admit Lebanon War Was a ‘Failure in Judgement’

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is under fire from Israeli leaders who have concluded he took them to war with Lebanon “hastily” and without a solid plan.

From the BBC:

Retired judge Eliahu Winograd presented the findings of the six-month investigation at a news conference.

He said the decision to launch the war without a well thought-out plan showed “a severe failure in judgment, responsibility and caution”.

The aims of the war – to crush Hezbollah and force it to hand back two Israeli troops captured in a deadly cross-border raid – were “overly ambitious and impossible to achieve”, Mr Winograd said.

Some 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers, were killed in the 34-day conflict, while the two captured soldiers remain in captivity.

Israel was almost universally criticized for the invasion, though some right-wing observers still defend the action. US officials, like former UN ambassador John Bolton, rushed additional weapons to the Israeli army, blocked an attempted cease fire and prolonged the conflict. For their part, those US officials say they are “damned proud of what they did”.

By admitting that misconduct and failures in judgment occurred, the Israeli government takes a definitive first step toward correcting the errors of the attack on Lebanon.

Wouldn’t it be nice if the US learned something from Israel here?

Israeli Leaders Admit Lebanon War Was a ‘Failure in Judgement’

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is under fire from Israeli leaders who have concluded he took them to war with Lebanon “hastily” and without a solid plan.

From the BBC:

Retired judge Eliahu Winograd presented the findings of the six-month investigation at a news conference.

He said the decision to launch the war without a well thought-out plan showed “a severe failure in judgment, responsibility and caution”.

The aims of the war – to crush Hezbollah and force it to hand back two Israeli troops captured in a deadly cross-border raid – were “overly ambitious and impossible to achieve”, Mr Winograd said.

Some 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers, were killed in the 34-day conflict, while the two captured soldiers remain in captivity.

Israel was almost universally criticized for the invasion, though some right-wing observers still defend the action. US officials, like former UN ambassador John Bolton, rushed additional weapons to the Israeli army, blocked an attempted cease fire and prolonged the conflict. For their part, those US officials say they are “damned proud of what they did“.

By admitting that misconduct and failures in judgment occurred, the Israeli government takes a definitive first step toward correcting the errors of the attack on Lebanon.

Wouldn’t it be nice if the US learned something from Israel here?

Our Nation Has Six Senators, The Military Industrial Media Complex Has 93

My edit of David Swanson’s post at AfterDowningStreet.org (linked here and above):

On our side: Feingold, Harkin, Boxer, Kennedy, Kerry, and Byrd.

On their side: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Carl Levin, Debbie Stabenow and the other 89.

“Congress plunged into divisive election-year debate on the Iraq war Thursday as the U.S. military death toll reached 2,500. The Senate soundly rejected a call to withdraw combat troops by year’s end, and House Republicans laid the groundwork for their own vote. In a move Democrats criticized as gamesmanship, Senate Republicans brought up the withdrawal measure and quickly dispatched it – for now – on a 93-6 vote.” Continue reading

Our Nation Has Six Senators, The Military Industrial Media Complex Has 93

My edit of David Swanson’s post at AfterDowningStreet.org (linked here and above):

On our side: Feingold, Harkin, Boxer, Kennedy, Kerry, and Byrd.

On their side: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Carl Levin, Debbie Stabenow and the other 89.

“Congress plunged into divisive election-year debate on the Iraq war Thursday as the U.S. military death toll reached 2,500. The Senate soundly rejected a call to withdraw combat troops by year’s end, and House Republicans laid the groundwork for their own vote. In a move Democrats criticized as gamesmanship, Senate Republicans brought up the withdrawal measure and quickly dispatched it – for now – on a 93-6 vote.” Continue reading

© Nadir Omowale