Sunday, December 31, 2017

An Apology and Explanation

From Editor Robert Parry: For readers who have come to see Consortiumnews as a daily news source, I would like to extend my personal apology for our spotty production in recent days. On Christmas Eve, I suffered a stroke that…

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Reverberations from Trump’s Jerusalem Move

One ironic benefit from Donald Trump’s presidency is that the world is showing more independence against U.S. edicts, such as the recent rebuff of Trump’s decision to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, as Dennis J Bernstein reports.…

Monday, December 25, 2017

Trump’s Continuation of US Interventionism

Criticizing his predecessors for misguided foreign wars, President Trump promised a break in that approach, but his National Security Strategy report indicates a shift more in rhetoric than substance, reports Dennis J. Bernstein.   By Dennis J Bernstein President Trump’s…

Saturday, December 23, 2017

UN Members Show Spine in Rebuffing Trump

President Trump and Ambassador Nikki Haley tried to bully the U.N. into accepting Trump’s decision on Jerusalem as Israel’s capital but – in a rare show of independence – most U.N. members pushed back, notes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.…

The Israel-gate Side of Russia-gate

While unproven claims of Russian meddling in U.S. politics have whipped Official Washington into a frenzy, much less attention has been paid to real evidence of Israeli interference in U.S. politics, as Dennis J Bernstein describes.   By Dennis J…

How To Betray Your Wife, Destroy Her Self-Worth, And Implode Your Marriage In One Easy Step

I maintain, porn or no porn, that husbands should still be treated with respect in their homes. Continue reading →

The post How To Betray Your Wife, Destroy Her Self-Worth, And Implode Your Marriage In One Easy Step appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

Friday, December 22, 2017

The Strangelovian Russia-gate Myth

The Strangelovian palaver of Russia-gate is embraced by many liberals as some totem to ward off the vile Donald Trump, but this dishonest process only furthers the cause of American Empire and risks global destruction, says poet Phil Rockstroh. By…

Why Loss of Net Neutrality Hurts Democracy

The principle of every person having equal access to the Internet represented a strong pillar of modern democracy — and its removal represents another victory for profit-dominated plutocracy, as Dennis J Bernstein explains.   By Dennis J Bernstein Despite its…

Thursday, December 21, 2017

Intel Vets Tell Trump Iran Is Not Top Terror Sponsor

A group of U.S. intelligence veterans urges President Trump to stop his administration’s false claims about Iran being the leading state sponsor of terrorism when U.S. allies, such as Saudi Arabia. are clearly much guiltier.   MEMORANDUM FOR: The President…

Did Obama Arm Islamic State Killers?

Exclusive: A new study shows that U.S. government weapons ended up in the hands of Islamic State jihadists, but no one in Washington seems interested in how they got there or what President Obama knew, writes Daniel Lazare. By Daniel…

Dear Hollywood, These All-Female Remakes Are Dumb, Boring, Childish, And Demeaning

The trailer for the new all-female “Ocean’s 11” reboot was unveiled this week. The Hollywood Reporter called it "the capstone 2017 needed." Most regular people called it awful and stupid. Continue reading →

The post Dear Hollywood, These All-Female Remakes Are Dumb, Boring, Childish, And Demeaning appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

Trump’s Gross Hypocrisy on Yemen War

Exclusive: The Trump administration’s hypocrisy was on clear display when it denounced Iran over an ineffectual Yemeni missile that landed in Saudi Arabia while the U.S. aids the Saudi slaughter of Yemeni civilians, says  Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall Political…

Delusional Self-Interest in Trump’s Jerusalem Move

President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital let him boast about his courage but he ignored both international law and U.S. interests in delivering this gift to the Israel Lobby, as Lawrence Davidson explains. By Lawrence Davidson It is…

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

If You’re Angry About Getting A Tax Cut, Feel Free To Send The IRS A Personal Donation

The GOP's tax reform plan has provoked seething outrage across America. Over half of the population opposes the bill, which will cut their taxes and allow them to keep more of their own money. Continue reading →

The post If You’re Angry About Getting A Tax Cut, Feel Free To Send The IRS A Personal Donation appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

Let’s Try Saving Sex For Marriage. Clearly, The Other Way Isn’t Working.

If husband and wife are committed to each other and concerned with the other's happiness, sex will be not only a great joy but fulfilling and even edifying. It will bring them closer together. Continue reading →

The post Let’s Try Saving Sex For Marriage. Clearly, The Other Way Isn’t Working. appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

The Church In America Is Dying And It Isn’t Because Your Cashier Said ‘Happy Holidays’

I’m a Christian. I’m as culturally conservative as they come. But I can only roll my eyes when I hear about the so-called “War on Christmas.” Continue reading →

The post The Church In America Is Dying And It Isn’t Because Your Cashier Said ‘Happy Holidays’ appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

The Other Side of the Post’s Katharine Graham

Hollywood loves to make heroes of The Washington Post for the rare moments when it has stood up for journalism – while forgetting the blood-soaked cases of the Post spreading lies to justify wars, writes Norman Solomon. By Norman Solomon…

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

In Case You Missed …

Some of our special stories in November dealt with logical and evidentiary failings of the Russia-gate investigation and President Trump’s bombing of Syria over a dubious chemical-weapons attack.  “Rearranging the Watergate Myth” by James DiEugenio, Nov. 1, 2017 “The Legacy…

Monday, December 18, 2017

5 Questions Every Man Should Ask On A First Date To Weed Out The Man-Hating Feminists

A feminist writer named Lara Witt — who has said “whiteness is evil” and I’m sure a bunch of other crazy stuff that I can’t see because she blocked me on Twitter — went viral this week with an article titled “10 Things Every Intersectional Feminist Should Ask On A First Date.”

She opens her piece with this explanation:

“As a queer femme of color, I keep close relationships with people who go beyond allyship; they’re true accomplices in the fight against white supremacy, queerphobia, and misogyny. If you’re not going to support marginalized folks, then we can’t be friends, let alone date. The personal is political.”

By my count, there are as many made-up words in that paragraph as there are sentences. An impressive accomplishment, and somehow she manages to maintain that pace throughout the entire thing.

In case any man is curious about the interrogation he may face should he attempt to date the kind of woman who uses words like “allyship” and “queerphobia,” here are the questions:

Continue reading …

The post 5 Questions Every Man Should Ask On A First Date To Weed Out The Man-Hating Feminists appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

The Most Effective Way To Destroy Your Husband, Ruin Your Marriage, And Encourage Infidelity

There is more than one way to cheat on your spouse — or, I should say, cheat your spouse. And it seems that many husbands are being cheated by their wives in a way that is no less damaging and no more justified than being cheated on. This form of “cheating” is all the more common because our culture tells women that men aren’t owed anything in the first place. You can’t cheat them out of something you were never supposed to give them, after all.

But a husband is owed something, and his wife is obliged to provide it. He is not only owed it; he needs it.

That is: respect.

A wife who belittles her husband, cuts him down, nitpicks him relentlessly, holds her affection — both physical and emotional — as a ransom, nags him endlessly, criticizes him constantly, humiliates him in public and to her friends and in front of the children, and will not allow him to take a leadership position in the home, cannot be terribly surprised when he begins to withdraw. And if he cheats — which would be a great and indefensible evil, no matter how cold and domineering his wife may be — it cannot be said that he was the first. She cheated him; she lied to him, by promising to respect him and treat him like a man, only to turn around and treat him like a child.

Men have a deep desire for respect. It is truly a catastrophe that we are not raising our girls to understand and appreciate this fact. Instead they learn, often from their own mothers, from the media, from television, advertisements, academia, and so on, that men are worthless oafs who should be handled accordingly until they prove themselves worthy of better treatment. “My husband will be respected if he earns it,” the wife declares. “Let him do the chores I assign to him, let him accomplish everything I require, let him dance to my tune, and then perhaps I’ll reward him like a circus animal with little pellets of respect.”

This is not the right approach.

Continue reading …

The post The Most Effective Way To Destroy Your Husband, Ruin Your Marriage, And Encourage Infidelity appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

No, We Aren’t ‘Stealing From The Poor’ By Allowing The Rich To Keep More Of Their Own Money

Liberals have informed me that the GOP tax plan will “take from the poor and give to the rich.” Let me state from the start that I am passionately opposed to such a plan. I do not believe that the government should be stealing money from the wallets of our poor and putting it into the bank vaults of the wealthy. In fact, I would find this morally deranged, unsustainable, and criminal. I’ll do you one better: a government that enacts this kind of system ought to be violently overthrown.

It’s a good thing we don’t have that kind of system and we never will.

When liberals claim that the Republican tax plan will “steal from the poor” and “give to the rich” what they mean is that the rich will be getting a tax break and the poor and middle class will not. This is untrue even when phrased correctly. The middle class will, in fact, receive a tax break that isn’t any smaller, proportionally, than the break given to “the rich.” But let’s put that to the side for the moment and examine this notion that we are somehow “giving” to the rich by not taking what is already theirs.

To begin with, we have to establish one thing: rich folks already pay far, far, far more than their fair share of the taxes. The top 1% — Bernie’s dreaded millionaires and billionaires — pay 40% of all federal income taxes. The top 5% pay 60%. The top 10% pay 70%. The top 25% pay 86%. The entire bottom half of income earners are responsible for chipping in a whopping 3%. The poor pay no income taxes at all and receive a refund that exceeds the amount withheld.

So, while the well-off carry almost the entire tax burden, the poor turn a profit. I myself have been poor, or nearly poor, earning around 17 grand a year from a full-time job, and I well remember getting free money come tax day. Indeed, it was a shock to the system to achieve a little more success in life (though I still am certainly not rich) and learn what it’s like to actually pay taxes. It’s not fun. And the government takes such a massive chunk that, if they took much more, it would almost defeat the purpose of earning the money in the first place.

What more do you want? What sort of maniac could look at the percentage breakdowns and come to the conclusion that the upper brackets aren’t paying enough? They’re paying almost all of it. Should they pay literally all of it? Should they pay 500% of taxes so that everyone in the bottom 50% gets a $5,000 annual bonus? What’s the end game here?

Continue reading …

The post No, We Aren’t ‘Stealing From The Poor’ By Allowing The Rich To Keep More Of Their Own Money appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

Questioning the Russia-gate ‘Motive’

A key pillar of the Russia-gate affair is the assumption that Russia’s leaders wanted to stop Hillary Clinton and boost Donald Trump, but the Kremlin’s views on last year’s election were much more nuanced, writes Gilbert Doctorow. By Gilbert Doctorow…

Saturday, December 16, 2017

A Report to Our Readers

From Editor Robert Parry: Since we started Consortiumnews in 1995 at the dawn of the modern Internet, the threat to serious independent journalism has never been greater than it is today. Whatever one thinks of the Russia-gate imbroglio, what is…

Trump’s Misuse of Intelligence on Iran

Bowing to Israeli-Saudi desires, the Trump administration is abusing the U.S. intelligence process to whip up a war fever against Iran, much like George W. Bush did on Iraq, reports ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar The…

Friday, December 15, 2017

Protecting the Shaky Russia-gate Narrative

Exclusive: The New York Times continues its sorry pattern of falsifying the record on Russia-gate, giving its readers information that the newspaper knows not to be true, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry If Russia-gate is the massive scandal that…

The Scary Void Inside Russia-gate

Despite a lack of evidence at its core – and the risk of nuclear conflagration as its by-product – Russia-gate remains the go-to accusation for “getting” the Trump administration, explains Russia scholar Stephen F. Cohen. By Stephen F. Cohen The…

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Lavishing Money on the Pentagon

Exclusive: It seems like it’s always Christmastime at the Pentagon where the stockings are full and budget-cutting is for those domestic social-program guys, as Jonathan Marshall explains. By Jonathan Marshall Wise parents who celebrate Christmas advise their young children not…

What’s at Stake in Honduran Election

Protests continue over the disputed Honduran presidential election after a solid lead by a progressive was wiped out amid gross irregularities and the right-wing incumbent was declared the winner, reports Rick Sterling. By Rick Sterling For seven months in 1969,…

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

The Foundering Russia-gate ‘Scandal’

Exclusive: Taking on water from revealed FBI conflicts of interest, the foundering Russia-gate probe – and its mainstream media promoters – are resorting to insults against people who note the listing ship, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The disclosure…

Trump’s Illegal Syrian Mission Creep

Even as the Islamic State’s “caliphate” in Syria collapses, the U.S. government is keeping about 2,000 soldiers in-country despite lacking any legal right to be there, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar discusses. By Paul R. Pillar The other day…

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Silencing of Courageous Documentaries

Historically, documentaries have told important truth in powerful ways and often challenging powerful groupthinks, but such brave films are becoming an endangered species, explains John Pilger. By John Pilger In the U.S., I first understood the power of the documentary…

North Korea’s Understandable Fears

By escalating threatening rhetoric — and staging provocative military maneuvers — President Trump may believe he can intimidate North Korea into capitulation but history would tell you something else, writes David William Pear. By David William Pear Like Pavlov’s dog,…

Trump, N. Korea & the Phony ‘Terror List’

Seeing what happened to the leaders of Iraq and Libya, North Korea’s Kim Jong Un won’t surrender his nuclear bombs – and getting put on the U.S. “terrorism list” won’t change that, as Independent Institute’s Ivan Eland explains. By Ivan…

Trump’s Lethal Decision on Jerusalem

President Trump has won praise from Christian Zionists and many staunch supporters of Israel for declaring Jerusalem Israel’s capital, but critics say it only makes peace a more distant goal, reports Dennis J Bernstein.   By Dennis J Bernstein Protests…

Monday, December 11, 2017

Our National Panic Over Bullying Is Not Helping Bullied Kids. It’s Making Everything Worse.

Keaton Jones is the most famous middle schooler in the country. He’s also the most infamous. His story went mega-viral after his mother, Kimberly, filmed her son describing the bullying he faced from his peers at the lunch table. Through his tears, Keaton looked into the camera and explained that his bullies make fun of him for his nose, call him ugly, tell him that he has no friends, and pour milk on him. It’s a sad and personal story that, for some reason, Keaton’s mother wanted millions of people to hear. And they did hear it. And they felt really bad for Keaton.

For like five minutes.

The video was shared millions of times. Basically all of the celebrities in the country came out in defense of the young man. Every famous person from Snoop Dogg to Katy Perry to Justin Bieber to Mark Hamill lined up to send an inspirational message of support. The story especially resonated with athletes, as Lebron James and sports stars from across the spectrum chimed in. Keaton now has a standing invitation to attend dozens of different games and other special events. Or had, anyway.

A GoFundMe for Keaton has already raised over $50,000. There is now a scholarship fund in the works, in addition to the GoFundMe. It’s not clear why the kid needs 50 grand or how that will help with the bullying, but never mind. Sean Hannity promised to call the school himself to sort out the problem. He publicly called for the firing of “people” if the situation isn’t “fixed,” despite not knowing a single thing about the situation, aside from what he saw in a two-minute video from one of the kids involved. But nobody objected. Keaton was the hero of the moment.

And the moment passed in a hurry.

With fame comes scrutiny, which is why we should always be suspicious of parents who want fame for their kids. Literally nothing good can come of it. And, for Keaton, nothing did. Within hours, internet detectives had researched Keaton’s family and found a “racist” post on Kimberly’s Facebook page. Then rumors began to circulate that Keaton was bullied for making racist remarks to his classmates. The backfire began quickly and inevitably.

Continue reading …

The post Our National Panic Over Bullying Is Not Helping Bullied Kids. It’s Making Everything Worse. appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

Russia-gate’s Litany of Corrections

Exclusive: As much as the U.S. mainstream media insists that the Russia-gate scandal is growing, what is undeniably growing is the list of major corrections that news outlets have been forced to issue, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The…

National Democrats Resist Reforms

Still refusing to face why Donald Trump and the Republicans won in 2016, the national Democratic Party rebuffs proposals from progressives to make the party more democratic and less corporate-dominated, writes Norman Solomon. By Norman Solomon With the Democratic Party’s…

Saturday, December 9, 2017

The Corruption of College Athletics

The U.S. likes to view itself as the epitome of sports integrity, but beyond its own professional and amateur doping scandals, there is the institutionalized corruption around U.S. college athletics, reports Lawrence Davidson. By Lawrence Davidson There is an old…

Friday, December 8, 2017

When Washington Cheered the Jihadists

Exclusive: Official Washington helped unleash hell on Syria and across the Mideast behind the naïve belief that jihadist proxies could be used to transform the region for the better, explains Daniel Lazare. By Daniel Lazare When a Department of Defense intelligence…

Capitalism’s Failure of the Flesh

A bitter irony of modernity is that the age-old dream of freeing people from work’s tedium has been answered by the rise of robots, but capitalism has turned that “freedom” into a barren life with little left to lose, writes…

Missing the Significance of Israel-gate

Amid the U.S. mainstream media’s hyping of Russia-gate, there has been much less attention given to what some call “Israel-gate,” evidence that Israel was wielding much more behind-the-scenes influence, reports Dennis J Bernstein.   By Dennis J Bernstein President Trump’s…

Thursday, December 7, 2017

Trump’s Scheme to Carve Up Palestine

President Trump’s big idea for Israeli-Palestinian peace was the “outside-in” plan in which Israel’s new Saudi allies would squeeze the Palestinians until they accepted a bogus “state,” as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains. By Paul R. Pillar Donald Trump…

Russia-gate’s Reach into Journalism

The investigation to somehow blame Russia for Donald Trump’s election has now merged with another establishment goal of isolating and intimidating whistleblowers and other dissidents, as Dennis J Bernstein describes. By Dennis J Bernstein The Russia-gate investigation has reached into…

Franken’s Opportunism on the Iraq War

Sen. (and former comedian) Al Franken was a rising Democratic Party star before sexual harassment allegations brought him down to earth, but was he really ever a progressive hero, asks William Blum at Anti-Empire Report. By William Blum Poor Al,…

Year-End Fund Goal Set at $50,000

From Editor Robert Parry: We are setting our Year-End Fund Drive target at $50,000, an amount needed to continue our independent  journalism which has been challenging misguided conventional wisdom for 22 years. You can donate by credit card online (we accept Visa,…

Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Roy Moore and the Triumph of Partisanship

Partisanship has reached such extremes in U.S. politics that Republicans are prepared to brush aside multiple allegations that Roy Moore preyed on teen-age girls to keep a Democrat from winning in Alabama, writes Michael Winship. By Michael Winship Amid all…

Sucking Liberals into a New Cold War

Out of fury against President Trump, many liberals have enlisted in the ranks of the New Cold War against Russia, seeming to have forgotten the costs to rationality and lives from the first Cold War, warns William Blum. By William…

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

The Tangled Threads of Russia-gate

Exclusive: Once a Washington groupthink takes hold, as it has in the fervent belief about Russia-gate, respect for facts and logic fly out the window since all these important people can’t be wrong, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry A…

Monday, December 4, 2017

Apparent Election Theft in Honduras

Eight years ago, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton defended a coup in Honduras to prevent a possible second term by a progressive president, but the U.S. now sits by as a right-wing president looks to steal a second term, says…

How Russia-gate Rationalizes Censorship

Special Report: The Russia-gate hysteria has spread beyond simply a strategy for neutralizing Donald Trump or even removing him from office into an excuse for stifling U.S. dissent that challenges the New Cold War, reports Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria…

Saturday, December 2, 2017

Cherry-picking Toward War with Iran

In trying to rally American hostility toward Iran, CIA Director Pompeo and other U.S. officials are engaging in the same kind of distorted intelligence that led to the catastrophic Iraq invasion, writes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R.…

Edward R. Murrow’s Timeless Warnings

As the Russia-gate hysteria expands, it is coming to resemble the McCarthyism of the 1950s, except this time liberals and progressives are promoting the insidious “guilt by association,” as Michael Milillo describes. By Michael Milillo Does the American government requiring…

Honduras Again in the Balance

The initial Honduran election returns looked promising for the progressive challenger but the vote count has since stalled and the authoritarian incumbent sent troops into the streets to stop protests, as Dennis J Bernstein reports.   By Dennis J Bernstein…

Friday, December 1, 2017

The Scalp-Taking of Gen. Flynn

Exclusive: The Russia-gate prosecutors have taken the scalp of ex- National Security Adviser (and retired Lt. Gen.) Flynn for lying to the FBI. But this case shows how dangerously far afield this “scandal” has gone, reports Robert Parry. By Robert…

America’s Military-Industrial Addiction

Polls show that Americans are tired of endless wars in faraway lands, but many cheer President Trump’s showering money on the Pentagon and its contractors, a paradox that President Eisenhower foresaw, writes JP Sottile. By JP Sottile The Military-Industrial Complex…

Thursday, November 30, 2017

What’s Wrong with Talking to North Korea?

Exclusive: President Trump fancies himself a crafty, zigzagging negotiator, but his pride in his bellicose unpredictability has brought the North Korean crisis to the edge of a horrific calamity, as Jonathan Marshall explains. By Jonathan Marshall Anyone who says talk…

Behind the Push for Catalonian Independence

Exclusive: Like many separatist movements, the push for Catalonian independence from Spain results from a mix of historic grievances, cultural pride and economic challenges, as war correspondent Don North describes. By Don North Before embarking for a visit to Barcelona,…

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

US Bows to Israeli/Saudi Alliance in Blaming Iran

Exclusive: Contrary to common belief, Israel supported Iran’s Islamic Republic for more than a decade in the 1980s before shifting its favors to Saudi Arabia in the 1990s and making sure the U.S. followed suit, recalls Ted Snider. By Ted…

Refusing to Learn Bloody Lessons

President Trump’s continued Afghan War pursues the same failed path as the prior 16 years, with the U.S. political/media elites learning no lessons, says former Marine officer Matthew Hoh in an interview with the American Herald Tribune. Interviewer Mohsen Abdelmoumen: As…

How Trump Botched Iran Policy

By bowing to the desires of Saudi Arabia and Israel, President Trump has dashed a potential détente with Iran and driven average Iranians into stronger support for their government, explains ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar An…

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Russia-gate Inquisitors Subpoena Journalist

The Russia-gate frenzy is reaching into the ranks of non-mainstream journalists with the House Intelligence Committee’s subpoena of Pacifica’s Randy Credico, who compares this witch-hunt to the McCarthy era, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein The House Intelligence…

Democrats Rely on Blame-Shifting

By riding hatred of President Trump and spurring on the Russia-gate hysteria, Democrats hope to win in 2018 without a serious examination of why they lost support of key working- and middle-class voting blocs, says Andrew Spannaus. By Andrew Spannaus…

The Hidden Hazards of GOP’s Tax-Cut Plan

Though sold as a pain-free tax cut for most Americans, the Republican plans favor the rich and carry hidden dangers for Social Security, Medicare and other key social programs, as Dennis J Bernstein describes.   By Dennis J Bernstein The…

Saudi Arabia’s Mysterious Upheaval

Stung by an apparent defeat in Syria, Saudi Arabia’s aggressive Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman has arrested rivals within the kingdom’s elite and provoked a political crisis in Lebanon, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein Change is clearly…

The Struggles of ‘A Good American’

Exclusive: A new documentary tells the story of ex-NSA official William Binney and his fight to get the federal bureaucracy to accept an inexpensive system for detecting terrorists while respecting the U.S. Constitution, writes James DiEugenio. By James DiEugenio In…

Monday, November 27, 2017

The Right Returns to the Religion Well

Over the centuries, religion has cloaked hypocrisy – and it’s getting a test again as President Trump and Senate candidate Roy Moore hide behind the Religious Right’s self-interested sanctimony, write Bill Moyers and Michael Winship. By Bill Moyers and Michael…

Sunday, November 26, 2017

The Dark Inevitability of Zionism

Among the growing assaults on freedom of speech is an Israeli-driven campaign to criminalize a campaign to boycott Israel over its racist persecution of Palestinians, writes Lawrence Davidson. By Lawrence Davidson We know where Zionism has taken Israel. The Balfour…

Friday, November 24, 2017

Trump Resists Progress on Global Warming

Exclusive: Market trends now favor renewable energy as a cost-effective alternative to fossil fuels, but President Trump’s resistance to this good news is doing real damage in the fight against global warming, reports Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall With petrochemical…

Thursday, November 23, 2017

How US Tries to Link Iran to Al Qaeda

The U.S. propaganda campaign against Iran has tried to tie it somehow to Al Qaeda, including exploitation of a newly released document, but a close reading shows a very different story, says Gareth Porter at The American Conservative. By Gareth…

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Trump Resumes Abuse of ‘Terror List’

The U.S. government has long abused its “terrorism list” by including disfavored nations while leaving off “allies” implicated in 9/11 and other terror attacks, a practice President Trump has resumed, notes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar…

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

In Case You Missed…

Some of our special stories in October dealt with the impact of climate change, the Saudi role in Mideast bloodshed, and the ongoing Russia-gate melodrama and what it means to journalism. “Galveston’s BioLab Amid Global Warming” by Joe Lauria, Oct.…

Monday, November 20, 2017

The Lost Journalistic Standards of Russia-gate

Exclusive: The Russia-gate hysteria has witnessed a widespread collapse of journalistic standards as major U.S. news outlets ignore rules about how to treat evidence in dispute, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry A danger in both journalism and intelligence is…

Denying the Imperium of Death

The tens of thousands of American deaths from drug overdoses are a measure of the hopeless desperation left behind by the soul-starving socio-economic system of late-stage capitalism, writes poet Phil Rockstroh. By Phil Rockstroh According to a nationwide study conducted…

Sunday, November 19, 2017

How Syrian-Nuke Evidence Was Faked

Exclusive: In joining Israel and the White House selling military intervention in Syria, the CIA and international inspectors hid key evidence that would undermine the case, says Gareth Porter in a second part of a two-part series. By Gareth Porter…

Undercounting the Civilian Dead

During the “war on terror,” the U.S. government has understated the number of civilians killed (all the better to manage positive perceptions back home). But a new report underscores the truth, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R.…

Saturday, November 18, 2017

Israel’s Ploy Selling a Syrian Nuke Strike

Exclusive: The Iraq WMD fiasco wasn’t the only time political pressure twisted U.S. intelligence judgments. In 2007, Israel sold the CIA on a dubious claim about a North Korean nuclear reactor in the Syrian desert, reports Gareth Porter. By Gareth…

Signs of U.K. Misconduct in Assange Case

The world’s most prominent freedom-of-the-press case remains the legal pressure on WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange, still in Ecuador’s London embassy amid signs of U.K. prosecutorial misconduct, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein A British court proceeding on a…

Friday, November 17, 2017

Strange Twists in the Hariri Mystery

French President Macron has invited Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri to Paris, a possible opportunity to determine whether Hariri’s sudden resignation, announced in Saudi Arabia, was coerced, as Dennis J Bernstein reports. By Dennis J Bernstein The strange case of…

Trump’s Saudi Scheme Unravels

President Trump and his son-in-law bet that the young Saudi crown prince could execute a plan to reshape the Mideast, but the scheme quickly unraveled revealing a dangerous amateur hour, writes ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke. By Alastair Crooke Aaron Miller…

Thursday, November 16, 2017

Russia-gate Spreads to Europe

Exclusive: The Russia-gate hysteria has jumped the Atlantic with Europeans blaming Russia for Brexit and Catalonian discontent. But what about Israeli influence operations or, for that matter, American ones, asks Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Ever since the U.S. government…

America’s Renegade Warfare

Exclusive: Claiming the right to launch preemptive wars and fighting an ill-defined “global war on terror,” the U.S. government has slaughtered vast numbers of civilians in defiance of international law, says Nicolas J S Davies. By Nicolas J S Davies…

Stumbling Blindly into Cold War Two

As the U.S. and its Western allies lurch into a new and dangerous confrontation with Russia, the different sides don’t even have a thorough understanding of the history behind the tensions, warns Alice Slater. By Alice Slater NATO’s recent provocative…

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

The Charmed, Doomed Life of Barry Seal

Exclusive: Tom Cruise’s portrayal of drug-smuggler-turned-government-informant Barry Seal is a fast-paced visit back to the Reagan era’s shadowy world of the CIA, cocaine and secret wars, writes James DiEugenio. By James DiEugenio Barry Seal’s life has become the stuff of  legend. And…

Trump Adds to Washington’s ‘Swamp’

Exclusive: President Trump’s vow to “drain the swamp” was just one more empty promise as he adds to the muck with military contractors in key Pentagon jobs and other industry lobbyists at regulatory posts, says Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall…

Trump’s Debasement of Civilization

Hillary Clinton’s “deplorables” comment was surely a campaign gaffe, but she wasn’t wrong about Donald Trump’s exploitation of white grievances and other ugly attitudes, writes Lawrence Davidson. By Lawrence Davidson There is more to being civilized than being a citizen…

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

America’s Righteous Russia-gate Censorship

Exclusive: Arriving behind the anti-Trump “resistance” and the Russia-gate “scandal” is a troubling readiness to silence dissent in the U.S., shutting down information that challenges Official Narratives, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry A stark difference between Washington when I…

The Ever-Expanding ‘War on Terror’

In the shadows, the U.S. special operations war on “terrorists” keeps on expanding around the globe, now reaching into Africa where few detectable American “interests” exist, writes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall If national-security reporters are ever replaced by robots…

The Ongoing Misery of Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico’s recovery from Hurricane Maria, which hit the U.S. territory on Sept. 20, remains slow and spotty with continued power outages, unsafe water and school closings, reports Dennis J Bernstein.   By Dennis J Bernstein It’s been nearly seven…

Monday, November 13, 2017

Mocking Trump Doesn’t Prove Russia’s Guilt

Exclusive: President Trump is getting mocked for “trusting” Vladimir Putin’s denial about “meddling” in U.S. politics — and not accepting Official Washington’s groupthink — but ridicule isn’t evidence, writes ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern. By Ray McGovern If the bloody debacle…

Sunday, November 12, 2017

Remaking Armistice Day into Veterans Day

The holiday now celebrated as Veterans Day – to thank American soldiers for their service – started as Armistice Day, a time for reflection on the horrors of war in the wake of the millions who died in World War…

Saturday, November 11, 2017

Behind the Saudi Troublemaking

Saudi Arabia’s monarchy is bombing Yemen, locking up domestic rivals and stirring up trouble in Lebanon, while a slow-burning confrontation continues against Qatar which could split the Gulf Cooperation Council, says Paul Cochrane. By Paul Cochrane Five months after the…

The Balfour Declaration’s Century of Turmoil

As Israel continues to occupy Palestinian lands and threatens a new war against Lebanon, much of this turmoil traces back to Great Britain’s Balfour Declaration during World I, a century ago, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein Great…

Friday, November 10, 2017

Saudi Arabia’s Desperate Gamble

Furious over defeat in Syria, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince is gambling again, arresting rivals at home and provoking a political crisis in Lebanon, but he may lack the geopolitical chips to pull off his bet, says ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke.…

The Saudi Hand in Lebanon’s Crisis

Facing defeat in its proxy war for “regime change” in Syria, Saudi Arabia undertook some startling moves, including staging the resignation of Lebanon’s prime minister, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein Last weekend during a visit to Saudi…

Thursday, November 9, 2017

Did Al Qaeda Dupe Trump on Syrian Attack?

Special Report: Buried deep inside a new U.N. report is evidence that could exonerate the Syrian government in the April 4 sarin atrocity and make President Trump look like an Al Qaeda dupe, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry A…

How Saudi Arabia Sows Instability

U.S. propaganda pretends Iran causes Mideast instability, but the truth is that Saudi Arabia – from its backing of Islamic extremists to its cruel blockading and bombing of Yemen – is the real culprit, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar…

Wednesday, November 8, 2017

Trump and Democrats Misread Mandates

Exclusive: Neither the Democrats nor President Trump learned the right lessons from the 2016 election, leaving the nation divided at home and bogged down in wars abroad, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry One year ago, the American electorate delivered…

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

The Politics of Sexual Harassment and War

The Harvey Weinstein scandal has forced the ugly practice of sexual harassment into the public square, where private companies have proven to be more responsive than the political world, reports David Marks. By David Marks The multiple sexual-harassment allegations against…

The Dangerous Business of Journalism

As information warfare becomes a hotter topic, journalists have become bigger targets for repression and even assassination, a troubling trend that is spreading across the globe, reports veteran war correspondent Don North. By Don North Amid a surge in violence…

Trump and the NAFTA Effect

President Trump has blamed NAFTA for eliminating manufacturing jobs for U.S. workers but it also caused economic dislocation in Mexico, driving some desperate Mexicans northward to the U.S., as Dennis J Bernstein reports.   By Dennis J Bernstein During his…

Monday, November 6, 2017

Learning to Love McCarthyism

Special Report: Many American liberals who once denounced McCarthyism as evil are now learning to love the ugly tactic when it can be used to advance the Russia-gate “scandal” and silence dissent, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The New…

Sunday, November 5, 2017

How US Blunders Strengthened Iran

Exclusive: By echoing the Israeli-Saudi bellicosity toward Iran, President Trump is repeating the same mistakes of his predecessors and inviting wider Mideast wars that could enhance Iran’s position, writes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall Behind only North Korea, Iran is…

Trump’s Misplaced Love for Gitmo Trials

President Trump has brought the boorish bigotry of right-wing talk radio into the White House, as shown again by his ugly reaction to the terror attack on a New York bike path, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains. By…

Saturday, November 4, 2017

The Trumped-Up Syria-Sarin Case

As Israel threatens an expanded war against Syria and Lebanon, an emotional justification is the alleged April 4 sarin attack that was blamed on the Syrian government despite huge holes in the evidence, as Rick Sterling reports. By Rick Sterling…

Israeli-Saudi Tandem Adjusts to Syria Loss

Facing defeat in the proxy war in Syria, the Israeli-Saudi tandem is planning a new front against Hezbollah, presaged by Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri’s sudden resignation, as ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke explains. By Alastair Crooke It seems that matters are…

The Legacy of Dennis Banks

Native American activist Dennis Banks, who died Oct. 29 at 80, leaves behind a legacy that includes a reenergized movement that reminded America of its original sins of genocide and deceit, as Dennis J Bernstein deports   By Dennis J…

Friday, November 3, 2017

Recycled GOP Promises of ‘Trickle Down’

Since the 1980s, Republicans have insisted that tax cuts for the rich will benefit working people, but the rich just sock away their money and national needs are neglected. Yet, the same cycle is back again, says JP Sottile. By…
Since the 1980s, Republicans have insisted that tax cuts for the rich will benefit working people, but the rich just sock away their money and national needs get neglected. Yet, the same cycle is back again, says JP Sottile. By…

Thursday, November 2, 2017

How Afghans View the Endless US War

To understand why the 16-year-old U.S. war in Afghanistan continues to fail requires a look from the ground where Afghans live and suffer, a plight breeding strong opposition to the U.S. presence, explains Kathy Kelly. By Kathy Kelly On a…

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Rearranging the Watergate Myth

Exclusive: A Washington axiom holds that that when power and truth clash, power usually wins, but the contest can be complicated by competing personal agendas, as James DiEugenio notes about a new Watergate movie. By James DiEugenio Bob Woodward and…

Israel Set to Block Palestinian Unity

As the Palestinians seek unity between their two rival factions, Israel stands ready to obstruct the process and thus maintain its complaint that the Palestinians remain divided, notes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar The latest attempt…

Trump Follows Well-Worn Mideast Trail

Despite the chaotic appearance of President Trump’s Mideast policies, they actually represent a troubling consistency in U.S. subservience to Israel and Saudi Arabia, as ex-CIA official Graham E. Fuller explains. By Graham E. Fuller Washington media, think tanks, various commentators…

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Blaming the Afghan War Failure on — Russia

Exclusive: Another part of the U.S. mainstream media’s rash of Russia-bashing is to claim that Moscow is arming Afghanistan’s Taliban, but again the evidence doesn’t match the accusations, writes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall News flash: The United States is…

Democrats, Class and Russia-gate Magic

Stunned by the defection of working-class whites, many Democrats respond by calling these Trump voters “stupid” and hoping that Russia-gate will be the “deus ex machina” to restore Democratic power, as poet Phil Rockstroh explains. By Phil Rockstroh Recently, Democratic…

California Wildfires and the Undocumented

California’s wildfires, like the hurricane devastation in Texas and Florida, compounded human rights concerns about the Trump administration’s treatment of the undocumented amid emergencies, as Dennis J Bernstein reports. By Dennis J Bernstein Even as Northern California’s massive wildfires are…

Sorting Out the Russia Mess

Exclusive: The U.S. mainstream media finally has its “smoking gun” on Russia-gate — incriminating information from a junior Trump campaign adviser — but a closer look reveals serious problems with the “evidence,” writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Russia-gate special…

Monday, October 30, 2017

How America Spreads Global Chaos

The U.S. government may pretend to respect a “rules-based” global order, but the only rule Washington seems to follow is “might makes right” — and the CIA has long served as a chief instigator and enforcer, writes Nicolas J.S. Davies.…

The Deep State’s JFK Triumph Over Trump

  Exclusive: Fifty-four years after President Kennedy’s assassination, the CIA and FBI demanded more time to decide what secrets to keep hiding – and a chastened President Trump bowed to their power, observes ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern. By Ray McGovern…

The Political Organization Men

Many working-class Americans voted for Donald Trump believing he would address their needs, not those of rich Republicans. But all pols, it seems, end up conforming to their political group’s priorities, as Lawrence Davidson explains. By Lawrence Davidson In 1956,…

Sunday, October 29, 2017

The Democratic Money Behind Russia-gate

As Russia-gate continues to buffet the Trump administration, we now know that the “scandal” started with Democrats funding the original dubious allegations of Russian interference, notes Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria The two sources that originated the allegations claiming that…

Saturday, October 28, 2017

Guardians of the Magnitsky Myth

Exclusive: In pursuit of Russia-gate, the U.S. mainstream media embraces any attack on Russia and works to ensure that Americans don’t hear the other side of the story, as with the Magnitsky myth, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry As…

Hillary Clinton Keeps Pointing Fingers

Hillary Clinton blames others for last year’s electoral defeat, never recognizing that many Americans — both Democrats and Republicans — found her public record appalling, as Dennis J Bernstein discusses with John Pilger.   By Dennis J Bernstein Because of…

Friday, October 27, 2017

A Voiceless Left Faces History’s Monster

Despite all its armed might and long history of conquests, America remains a perpetually frightened country without a strong movement to  protest this imperialism and warmongering, notes poet Phil Rockstroh. By Phil Rockstroh Rumors of war and the lexicon of…

US Tries to Stir Up Trouble for Iran

Ash President Trump’s foreign policy falls deeply under the Israeli-Saudi spell, his Mideast diplomats are stirring up conflict against Iran and drawing a rebuke from Iraq, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains. By Paul R. Pillar In Iraq, as…

Thursday, October 26, 2017

Russia-gate Breeds ‘Establishment McCarthyism’

Exclusive: As Russia-gate gives cover for an Establishment attack on Internet freedom and independent news, traditional defenders of a free press and civil liberties are joining the assault or staying on the sidelines, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry In…

The Ploy to Shift 9/11 Blame to Iran

The U.S. government often plays the game of blaming “enemies” and excusing “friends,” a particularly ugly reality in the push to blame Iran and absolve Saudi Arabia for the 9/11 attacks, says 9/11 widow Kristen Breitweiser. By Kristen Breitweiser Largely…

NYT’s Assault on Press Freedom

Exclusive: The New York Times, which once postured as the champion of a free press, now is seeking crackdowns on news that the public gets from the Internet under the guise of combatting “Russian propaganda,” explains Daniel Lazare. By Daniel…

Iraqi Kurds Suffer Major Setback

A political miscalculation by Iraqi Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani – staging an independence referendum that prompted fierce retaliation by Baghdad – has set back hopes for a Kurdish state by decades, writes Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria Masoud Barzani was…

Wednesday, October 25, 2017

What Did Hillary Clinton Know?

Exclusive: With the disclosure that Hillary Clinton’s campaign helped pay for the original Russia-gate allegations against Donald Trump, a new question arises: what did Clinton know and when did she know it, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The revelation…

Perpetual War: Treadmill of America’s Mind

Like a caged hamster on a running wheel, the American people are trapped in perpetual wars that the foreign policy elites offer no way to end, only excuses to continue, observes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar…

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Escaping the Colonized Mind

In our late-stage capitalism, every inch of humanity has been exploited and maximized for profit, creating “colonized” minds and emotions, a challenge for humans to free themselves and save the planet, says poet Phil Rockstroh. By Phil Rockstroh Human sexuality…

California Wildfires Inflict More Devastation

Among recent natural disasters striking the U.S. are devastating wildfires that torched California’s wine country, destroyed thousands of homes and killed more than 40 people, report Dennis J Bernstein and Miguel Gavilan Molina.   By Dennis J Bernstein and Miguel…

Getting the Left to Embrace US ‘Exceptionalism’

Exclusive: Neocons have deftly used the Left’s hatred of President Trump and the demonizing of Russia to lure liberals and progressives into an interventionist mindset to defend “American exceptionalism,” observes James W. Carden. By James W. Carden Last year, Donald…

Trump’s Praise for Philippines’ Killer-President

Exclusive: President Trump may see his tough-guy rhetoric as just part of the reality TV show that he’s putting on, but violent talk often goes hand-in-hand with real-life violence as in the Philippines, notes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall White…

Demonizing Venezuela’s Revolution

Venezuela’s socialist experiment, which seeks to reduce the country’s extreme income equality and alleviate widespread poverty, has upset U.S. policymakers who now have new hopes for regime change, as Dennis J Bernstein explains.   By Dennis J Bernstein The U.S.…

Monday, October 23, 2017

Russia-China Tandem Changes the World

The West’s persistent demonization of Russia over the past decade has pushed Moscow into a de facto alliance with China, changing the geopolitical landscape in ways that U.S. pundits still won’t admit, writes Gilbert Doctorow. By Gilbert Doctorow Much of…

As Trump Preens, Puerto Rico Still Suffers

Many Puerto Ricans continue to live in primitive and dangerous conditions more than a month after Hurricane Maria devastated the U.S. territory in the Caribbean, as Judith Berkan explained to Dennis J Bernstein.   By Dennis J Bernstein Last Thursday,…

Sunday, October 22, 2017

The Strange World of Russian ‘Trolls’

A big part of the Russia-gate hysteria is to accuse Russia of spreading U.S. dissension via Internet “trolling,” but that’s just one more wild exaggeration among many, as William Blum describes at Anti-Empire Report. By William Blum Webster’s dictionary: troll…

In Case You Missed…

Some of our special stories in September examined the risk of nuclear war over North Korea, the shifting power balance in the Middle East and the escalating hysteria over Russia-gate. “Seymour Hersh Honored for Integrity” by Ray McGovern, Sep. 1,…

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Trump and His ‘Beautiful’ Weapons

It’s easy to understand why some of President Trump’s senior advisers privately consider him a “moron,” with a limited vocabulary and stunning lack of normal human empathy, as William Blum explains at Anti-Empire Report. Capturing the wisdom and the beauty…

Trump Bows to Neocons, Netanyahu

Rather than expand U.S. exports to Iran – and create more American jobs – President Trump fell in line behind Israel’s P.M. Netanyahu, decertifying the Iran-nuclear deal and risking more war, as Gareth Porter explains at The American Conservative. By…

Friday, October 20, 2017

Clinton, Assange and the War on Truth

Australia’s public broadcasting network gave Hillary Clinton an open mike to defame WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange as “a tool of Russian intelligence” without giving him a chance to respond, as John Pilger describes. By John Pilger On Oct. 16, the Australian…

Uncle Sam: The Ultimate Gun Nut

The murky motive behind the Las Vegas massacre – carried out by a heavily armed “gun nut” – parallels the incomprehensible rationales for the global wars waged by the ultimate “gun nut,” Uncle Sam, writes JP Sottile. By JP Sottile…

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Man Bites Dog: NYT Does Journalism

Exclusive: When the Trump administration blamed Cuba for a “sonic attack” on U.S. diplomats, a New York Times reporter did something unusual for his newspaper: he tried objectively to assess the evidence, as Robert Parry reports. By Robert Parry I…

Trump’s Nihilism on Healthcare

Petulant bombast is a dangerous approach to governance – what the Founders associated with the British crown – but now President Trump has brought that style to U.S. policymaking on healthcare, as Michael Winship observes. By Michael Winship A couple…

The Indonesia Massacre’s Historic Message

Exclusive: The U.S. mainstream media’s credulity toward today’s Official Narratives is especially troubling given the false storylines from the past, such as the cover-up of Washington’s hand in the Indonesia massacres, as Jonathan Marshall describes. By Jonathan Marshall Fifty-four years…

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Blaming Russia for the Internet ‘Sewer’

Exclusive: As the Russia-gate hysteria spirals down from the implausible to the absurd, almost every bad thing is blamed on the Russians, even how they turned the previously pristine Internet into a “sewer,” reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry With…

Trump Escalates Anti-Leak Campaign

President Trump has made clear his anger about “leaks,” but he is far from alone among recent U.S. presidents waging war against whistleblowing, write Jesselyn Radack and Kathleen McClellan for ExposeFacts. By Jesselyn Radack and Kathleen McClellan The Trump administration…

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Why the Vengeance Toward Sgt. Bergdahl

The angry politics around Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s “desertion” in Afghanistan revolve around right-wing hatred for President Obama who engineered Bergdahl’s freedom from the Taliban, as Matthew Hoh describes. By Matthew Hoh Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl’s guilty plea begins the end of…

The Thwarted Dreams of Kurdistan

Almost a century ago, European powers promised the Kurds a state but soon reneged on the deal, leaving Kurdish nationalists to fume for generations and leading to Iraq’s recent military capture of Kirkuk, reports Lawrence Davidson. By Lawrence Davidson It…

Busting Upward the Military Budget

The Trump administration and Congress are in accord on one thing: the budget constraints on military spending must be busted to sustain overseas bases and to fund local pork projects, writes Ivan Eland. By Ivan Eland Although the Senate and…

Human Anxiety in Late-Stage Capitalism

  Superficial explanations for today’s social anxiety and political discontent miss the underlying reality: the crisis of late-stage capitalism in its frantic death throes, explains poet Phil Rockstroh. By Phil Rockstroh A number of recent, press articles, including an over…

Monday, October 16, 2017

Understanding the ‘Fake News’ Hysteria

The mainstream media’s hysteria over “fake news” is aimed less at the few instances of intentionally fabricated stories than at well-reported articles that challenge the U.S. government’s dubious official narratives, says David P. Hamilton. By David P. Hamilton For the…

Iraqi Forces Clash with Kurdish Militia

Iraqi military forces have seized strategic positions around the oil-rich city of Kirkuk as a showdown over Kurdish calls for independence enters a dangerous new phase, writes Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria Overreaction in Baghdad, Ankara and Tehran to what…

Sunday, October 15, 2017

How Netanyahu Pulls Trump’s Strings

Special Report: It turns out that Hillary Clinton was partly correct: President Trump is a “puppet,” but his puppet master isn’t Russian President Putin but Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry In the final presidential debate…

Trump Ignores Israeli/Saudi Abuses

By offering a propagandistic tirade on Iran’s role in the Mideast – a classic neocon screed – President Trump has demonstrated his inability to bring any fresh or honest thinking to the regional crises, as Kathy Kelly explains. By Kathy…

Saturday, October 14, 2017

Fueling More Bloodshed in Ukraine

Exclusive: In the U.S., Russia-hating liberals are joining the neocons in seeking more war in Ukraine, as the prospects for a rational and peaceful resolution to the crisis continue to fade, explains James W. Carden. By James W. Carden Last January,…

Trump’s North Korea Delusions

Exclusive: A combination of ignorance and rashness is making President Trump a particularly dangerous leader as he crashes ahead with a possible preemptive war on North Korea, writes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall President Trump reportedly tells an average of…

Friday, October 13, 2017

The Legacy of Reagan’s Civilian ‘Psyops’

Special Report: When the Reagan administration launched peacetime “psyops” in the mid-1980s, it pulled in civilian agencies to help spread these still-ongoing techniques of deception and manipulation, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Declassified records from the Reagan presidential library…

Trump’s Mendacious Speech on Iran

President Trump, in decertifying the Iran-nuclear deal, trotted out all the tripe about the “world leading sponsor of terrorism” and ties to Al Qaeda. But his new policy is one of dangerous incoherence, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By…

Trump’s War for Coal Raises Risks

Exclusive: President Trump’s war for coal is threatening progress on alternative energy while creating hazards both in the weather effects from global warming and in health risks from breathing dirty air, writes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall When Environmental Protection…

As Trump Fumes, Puerto Rico Struggles

Angered by criticism from desperate U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico, President Trump lashed out with threats to remove federal rescue and recovery personnel — even as the crisis grows worse, as Dennis J Bernstein reports. By Dennis J Bernstein Some…

Thursday, October 12, 2017

How Trump’s Iran Decision Invites War

By decertifying the Iran-nuke deal, President Trump would put another Mideast war of choice on the table, but war on Iran is really the choice of Israel and Saudi Arabia wanting the U.S. to do the killing and dying, as…

Trump’s Scary Nuclear Doctrine

Pleasing Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and terrifying almost everybody else, President Trump is threatening nuclear war against North Korea and, by implication, war with Iran, as ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke explains. By Alastair Crooke There are acres of print analyzing…

Why North Korea Wants Nuke Deterrence

Exclusive: The revelation that North Korea hacked into South Korea’s military secrets and found U.S. plans for a preemptive “decapitation” of Pyongyang’s leadership explains its rush to build a nuclear deterrent, says Nicolas J S Davies. By Nicolas J S…

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Catalonia and the ‘Europe of Regions’

Exclusive: Catalonia’s bid for independence from Spain had a curious twist, a readiness to take its place within the supranational European Union, a further challenge to traditional nation-states, observes Andrew Spannaus. By Andrew Spannaus Political debate across Europe has been…

Puerto Rico’s Continuing Health Crisis

President Trump and his team stress the positive about their response to Hurricane Maria’s devastation of Puerto Rico, but people are dying because the island’s health care system remains crippled, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein More than…

A Silenced Israeli Critic

Although the U.S. news media’s fancies itself the world’s “gold standard,” it operates with stunning hypocrisy and huge blind spots, none bigger than its fawning coverage of Israel that ignores critics like Miko Peled, notes Rick Sterling. By Rick Sterling…

The Osage Indian Murder Mystery

Exclusive: The European arrival in North America led to genocide against Native Americans along with various schemes to steal their land by both government and individual murderers, as James DiEugenio explains. By James DiEugenio White America has deployed any number…

Trump’s Destructive Priority on Iran

President Trump’s threatened “decertification” of the 2015 agreement to constrain Iran’s nuclear program fits with his desire to negate all of President Obama’s achievements but won’t serve U.S. interests, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar Press…

The Evil That Guns Do

On the defensive over the Las Vegas massacre, the NRA is trotting out some new arguments, such as the inevitability of evil, to deter any meaningful gun control, explains Michael Winship. By Michael Winship In the United States, you will…

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Russia-gate Jumps the Shark

Exclusive: Russia-gate has jumped the shark with laughable new claims about a tiny number of “Russia-linked” social media ads, but the U.S. mainstream media is determined to keep a straight face, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry A key distinction…

Citadels of Paranoia: An Occupation by Phantoms

The frantic fear-mongering of American culture – Russians, North Koreans, Iranians, the Others are out to get us – has generated an alienation that fuels violence, globally and in random acts of murder, writes poet Phil Rockstroh. By Phil Rockstroh…

Monday, October 9, 2017

The Illogical Assault on Iran Deal

Israel’s domination of U.S. foreign policy in the Mideast is no more evident than in the prescribed hatred toward Iran. But there are also logical arguments on the merits that ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar examines. By Paul R. Pillar…

Anti-Nuke Activists Win Nobel Prize

In contrast to past Nobel Peace Prizes often going to war-makers – from Henry Kissinger to Barack Obama – this year’s award went to a global campaign for the elimination of nuclear weapons, as ex-CIA analyst Elizabeth Murray observes. By…

A Deaf Ear to Dire Russian Warnings

Official Washington is so obsessed with the hyped Russia-gate allegations that it isn’t picking up on dire warnings from Russia that continued U.S. military interference in Syria won’t be tolerated, as Gilbert Doctorow notes. By Gilbert Doctorow From time to…

Agent Orange: Vietnam’s Ongoing Calamity

The U.S. government’s crime of saturating large swaths of Vietnam with poisonous Agent Orange got short shrift in PBS’ “The Vietnam War,” but it remains an ongoing calamity, write Marjorie Cohn and Jonathan Moore. By Marjorie Cohn and Jonathan Moore…

Sunday, October 8, 2017

America’s Long History of Warfare

Americans like to view their country as a force for peace in the world when the historical reality is almost the opposite, a reality ignored by the PBS Vietnam War documentary, writes Lawrence Davidson. By Lawrence Davidson If you go…

Saturday, October 7, 2017

Last Call on Fall Fund Drive

From Editor Robert Parry: Thanks to the generosity of our readers we have gotten within about $5,000 of our fall fund drive goal of $35,000. If you haven’t and would like to donate, there’s still time. You can donate by credit card…

Kurdish Referendum Roils the Mideast

The Kurdish referendum seeking independence from Iraq has created more uncertainty in the turbulent Mideast with Israel appearing to see value in the new chaos, reports ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke. By Alastair Crooke One week after Kurdish leader Masud Barzani…

Friday, October 6, 2017

The Rise of Britain’s ‘New Politics’

As more Britons turn toward Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, the British establishment is upping the pressure on the “radical” Corbyn to conform to U.S.-U.K. militarism and interventionism, as John Pilger explains. By John Pilger Delegates to the recent Labour…

President Zigzag

Exclusive: President Trump boasts about his “zigzag” foreign policy as if inconsistency is an attribute in dealing with a fragile world, but his zigzagging endangers backchannel intermediaries handling outreach to North Korea, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry President Trump’s…

Recalling Japan’s ‘Comfort Women’ Rapes

Japan’s current nationalist leadership downplays and denies many crimes from World War II, but a global movement continues to press for a recognition of the mass rapes and murders of so-called “comfort women,” reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J…

Thursday, October 5, 2017

Political Fig Leaf After Las Vegas Slaughter

The Las Vegas massacre, like all the other massacres, won’t change the easy accessibility of guns in America, but politicians are scrambling to enact a fig-leaf bill against a rapid-fire device used by this one shooter, JP Sottile explains. By…

The Spiraling Crisis of Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico’s infrastructure, which already faced severe pressures because of the U.S. territory’s huge debt and demands from its creditor, has now been devastated by Hurricane Maria, as Dennis J Bernstein reports. By Dennis J Bernstein Though President Trump bragged…

America’s Hypocrisy on Democracy

U.S. politicians often lecture other nations about their flawed governance as if American democracy is the gold standard, but anti-democratic measures like gerrymandering belie that self-image, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar An old fear about…

Ignoring Today’s ‘Great Hungers’

The U.S. government presents itself as the beneficent superpower, but the reality of Washington’s endless wars and lavish spending on bombs – while millions face starvation and disease – suggest a different reality, as Kathy Kelly notes. By Kathy Kelly…

Shielding Saudis on Yemen Atrocities

The Saudi-led war on Yemen is inflicting a slaughter by bombs, famine and disease, yet both Presidents Obama and Trump have insisted on supporting the Saudi “allies” in their war crimes, warns Shireen Al-Adeimi. By Shireen Al-Adeimi Yemen continues to…

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

The Mystery of the Russia-gate Puppies

Exclusive: The U.S. mainstream media is determined to prove Russia-gate despite the scandal’s cracking foundation and its inexplicable anomalies, such as why Russia would set up a Facebook “puppies” page, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry What is perhaps most…

Challenging the Saudi Air War on Yemen

Placating Saudi Arabia over the Iran nuclear deal, President Obama authorized U.S. military support for the Saudi air assault on Yemen, a policy now facing congressional challenge, as Gareth Porter explained at The American Conservative. By Gareth Porter The bill…

Why Trump Slaps Down Minority Protests

There’s a troubling subtext to President Trump’s harsh attacks on people of color who complain and protest, as if he thinks they should keep quiet and know their place, as Michael Winship observes. By Michael Winship A post-surgical convalescence has…

Tuesday, October 3, 2017

How 2nd Amendment Distortions Kill

Exclusive: The Las Vegas massacre underscores the intellectual dishonesty of the “gun rights” lobby, which falsifies Second Amendment history and pretends armed citizens could shoot back to stop slaughters, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Many politicians, especially those on…

America Not Immune from Chaos

“Exceptional” America views itself as largely immune from devastating storms and the violence that infect much of the world, but recent weeks show that there is no protection against natural and human catastrophes, writes Ann Wright. By Ann Wright Over…

Pilger Criticizes Ken Burns’s ‘The Vietnam War’

For decades, the U.S. mainstream media has shied away from a clear-eyed view of the Vietnam War, not wanting to offend the war’s apologists, a residue of which tainted the recent PBS series, as John Pilger told Dennis J Bernstein.…

Monday, October 2, 2017

Galveston BioLab’s Amid Global Warming

Special Report: During Hurricane Harvey, a story questioning the wisdom of putting a biocontainment lab on vulnerable Galveston island revealed not only that public hazard but the failure of today’s corporate media, reports Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria Ken Kramer grew…

Trump’s Hurt Feelings over Puerto Rico

President Trump bristled at criticism of his administration’s slow response to the disaster that Hurricane Maria inflicted on Puerto Rico, lashing out on Twitter against San Jose’s frontline mayor, report Dennis J Bernstein and Randy Credico. By Dennis J Bernstein…

A ‘Challenge’ or Matching Grant

From Editor Robert Parry: A medium-sized foundation, which is considering a $20,000 grant to Consortiumnews.com, has first challenged us to see if we can match that amount from reader donations. So, if you are thinking about contributing to our unique news…

Sunday, October 1, 2017

Russians Battle Western Sanctions

Given Russia’s imbalanced economy — heavily dependent on energy income — it seemed an easy target for Western sanctions, but instead Russians have responded by creating new industries, big and small, writes Gilbert Doctorow. By Gilbert Doctorow In 2014, when…

Saturday, September 30, 2017

How Syria’s Victory Reshapes Mideast

The failure of the U.S.-Israeli-Saudi “regime change” project in Syria changes the future of the Mideast, possibly ushering in an era of greater secularism and tolerance, writes ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke. By Alastair Crooke Plainly, Syria’s success – notwithstanding the…

Friday, September 29, 2017

Russia-gate’s Shaky Foundation

Special Report: The Russia-gate hysteria now routinely includes rhetoric about the U.S. being at “war” with nuclear-armed Russia, but the shaky factual foundation continues to show more cracks, as historian Daniel Herman describes. By Daniel Herman Anyone who watches the…

Trump’s Irrational ‘Travel Ban’

President Trump has used the three iterations of his “travel ban” as a dog whistle to his “base,” which he thinks harbors hatred toward Muslims, but there is no logic behind the policy, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar observes.…

Thursday, September 28, 2017

The Slimy Business of Russia-gate

Special Report: As the U.S. government doles out tens of millions of dollars to “combat Russian propaganda,” one result is a slew of new “studies” by “scholars” and “researchers” auditioning for the loot, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The…

In Case You Missed…

Some of our special stories in August focused on Official Washington’s growing hostility toward dissent, the Trump administration’s drift toward more endless warfare, and the worsening crises in Korea and Mideast. “How US Policy Helps Al Qaeda in Yemen” by…

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

The MSM’s Anti-Russia Bias

The U.S. mainstream media (MSM} presents itself as the arbiter of truth-telling and journalistic professionalism – the global gold standard – but its deep-seated biases, especially on Russia, belie that self-image, notes William Blum. By William Blum The anti-Russian/anti-Soviet bias…

Trump’s Generals Fatten the Pentagon

President Trump’s troika of generals may ease public fears about his irascible unpredictability, but they also are busy padding the U.S. military budget and fattening up friendly arms manufacturers, JP Sottile writes. By JP Sottile Americans are really counting on…

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

The Rise of the New McCarthyism

Special Report: As the New McCarthyism takes hold in America, the neocon Washington Post makes Russia the villain in virtually every bad thing that happens, with U.S. dissidents treated as “fellow-travelers,” writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Make no mistake…

New Earthquake Leaves Mexico on Edge

Mexico continues to struggle with recovery after another earthquake over the weekend left some people still trapped inside collapsed buildings and many Mexicans on edge, as Molly Kate Goss described to Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein The earth…

North Korea’s Rational Nuclear Strategy

A favorite tactic of U.S. propaganda is to label a foreign adversary “crazy” to justify a military attack — as is now happening with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un although his nuclear program really makes logical sense, observes Ted Snider.…

Monday, September 25, 2017

WPost Pushes More Dubious Russia-bashing

Special Report: The Washington Post has published another front-page story about Russia maybe placing some ads on Facebook, but the article violates a host of journalistic principles in hyping its case, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Some people are…

What We Do — and Why

From Editor Robert Parry: Honest journalism is vital to a genuine democracy. But what we’ve seen from the U.S. mainstream media – of which I was a part for many years – is something dangerously far from honest. It has become…

Sunday, September 24, 2017

Vote by Iraqi Kurds Adds to Tensions

The Kurds, a long-suffering ethnic group in the Mideast, have long sought an independent state – and Iraqi Kurdish areas will vote in a referendum that is adding to the region’s tensions, as Joe Lauria reports from Erbil, Iraq. By…

Hersh Receives Adams Award for Integrity

Journalist Seymour Hersh, whose career includes exposing U.S. intelligence abuses, received an award for integrity from an organization of former U.S. and Western intelligence officials who share Hersh’s ethical concerns about such abuses. The trademark “Oscar” for Sam Adams Associates…

Saturday, September 23, 2017

Israel’s Stall-Forever ‘Peace’ Plan

Despite boosting the idea of Mideast peace, President Trump shields Israel in its resistance to a workable agreement with the Palestinians, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explained in a Sept. 19 speech. By Paul R. Pillar President Trump’s son-in-law,…

Trump Threatens a Genocide

As President Trump taunts North Korea’s leader with schoolyard insults, the terrifying possibility is that his threat to “totally destroy” a country of 25 million people could involve the U.S. in another genocide, warns David Marks. By David Marks The…

Friday, September 22, 2017

The Crazy Imbalance of Russia-gate

Exclusive: If the U.S. government and mainstream media are really concerned about foreign influence in American politics, they might look at Israel and other nations with much more clout than Russia, notes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The core absurdity…

Thursday, September 21, 2017

The Killing of History

PBS’ “The Vietnam War” may show some of the conflict’s horrors but still soft-pedals the horrific war crimes that America inflicted on Vietnam, fitting with a corporate-dependent documentary project, writes John Pilger. By John Pilger One of the most hyped…

Civil Society Rises to Confront Disasters

As the Mexican earthquake becomes the latest natural disaster to hit the Western Hemisphere, the role of civil society — especially the first responders — has demonstrated the best of human nature, as Dennis J Bernstein reports. By Dennis J…

How Merkel’s Win May Hide Rising Discontent

Exclusive: With German Chancellor Merkel expected to win reelection on Sunday, the European elites may celebrate having turned back a populist surge, but their neo-liberal policies continue to fuel discontent, says Andrew Spannaus. By Andrew Spannaus The citizens of Germany…

Trump, a Boorish Interventionist

President Trump’s decision to go before the U.N. and unmask himself as a belligerent interventionist dashed any remaining hopes that he would choose a substantively different course from his predecessors, says Gilbert Doctorow. By Gilbert Doctorow My political positions have…

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

More Holes in Russia-gate Narrative

Exclusive: New tests support the skepticism of U.S. intelligence veterans that Russia “hacked” the DNC’s computers, pointing instead to a download of emails by an insider, write ex-NSA official William Binney and ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern. By William Binney and Ray…

PBS’ ‘Vietnam War’ Tells Some Truths

Exclusive: The PBS 10-part Vietnam War series offers valuable insights into the horrific conflict but still treads lightly on U.S. leaders’ guilt as they lied and connived to start and extend the slaughter, as war correspondent Don North describes. By…

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Trump Falls in Line with Interventionism

Exclusive: President Trump’s U.N. speech showed that despite his America First rhetoric, his policies are virtually the same as the neocon strategies of George W. Bush and liberal interventionism of Barack Obama, says Robert Parry. By Robert Parry In discussing…

An Escalating North Korea Crisis

With President Trump demeaning North Korea’s leader as “Rocket Man” and threatening to “totally destroy” North Korea, tensions over Kim Jong Un’s nuclear missile program grow worse, as Dennis J Bernstein reports. By Dennis J Bernstein The United Nations Security…

How the UN Covers for US Aggression

For decades the American Right has decried the U.N. for encroaching on American sovereignty, but the truth is that the U.N. is a chief U.S. accomplice in violating the sovereignty of other nations, notes J.P. Sottile. By J.P. Sottile President…

Monday, September 18, 2017

Fake Arguments for Killing Iran-Nuke Deal

Israel and its American supporters continue to press President Trump to repudiate the nuclear agreement with Iran, often using disingenuous arguments that ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar dissects. By Paul R. Pillar Opposition to the Iran nuclear agreement, known formally…

President Trump’s Mass Movement

President Trump is building a mass movement – or a cult of personality – based on the alienation that millions of Americans feel toward the economic/political system, as Lawrence Davidson describes. By Lawrence Davidson In the Sept. 10 issue of…

Sunday, September 17, 2017

Harvard’s Cowardice on Chelsea Manning

Exclusive: In an abject display of intellectual cowardice, Harvard’s Kennedy School withdrew a fellowship from Chelsea Manning after hearing protests from accomplices in the war crimes she exposed, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School…

The Right’s Made-up Constitution

From the Archive: On U.S. Constitution’s 230th birthday, many Americans don’t realize that the document actually gives the federal government broad powers to provide for the nation’s welfare, as Jada Thacker noted in 2013. By Jada Thacker (Originally published on July…

Saturday, September 16, 2017

The Push for a Medicare-for-All Plan

America’s complex and inefficient healthcare system ends up being both very expensive and limited in its coverage, a problem that Sen. Bernie Sanders is targeting in his Medicare-for-all plan, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein Sen. Bernie Sanders…

Friday, September 15, 2017

The NYT’s Yellow Journalism on Russia

Exclusive: The New York Times’ descent into yellow journalism over Russia recalls the sensationalism of Hearst and Pulitzer leading to the Spanish-American War, but the risks to humanity are much greater now, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Reading The…

Trump’s Bonfire of Washington Politics

President Trump shocked the political world and his own “base” when he struck a budget deal with Democrats to get emergency funding for Hurricane Harvey victims, reports ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke. Last week, President Trump threw a grenade into the…

Thursday, September 14, 2017

How North Korea Outmaneuvered U.S.

  Exclusive: Like U.S. presidents before him, Donald Trump blustered about North Korea, but the seemingly isolated nation has somehow survived and may now be coming out on top, as Daniel Lazare explains. By Daniel Lazare Don’t look now, but…

Unrealistic North Korean Sanctions

Sanctions are a favorite weapon of U.S. foreign policy, but often these punishments amount to expressions of indignation rather than instruments to achieve realistic change in a country’s behavior, observes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar The…

America’s Fragile Future

  The U.S. mainstream’s flailing about over alleged Russian “meddling” in American politics reflects a nation that is rapidly losing its global dominance and fearful of even the slightest challenge, as Gilbert Doctorow explains. By Gilbert Doctorow Does the United…

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Reagan Documents Shed Light on U.S. ‘Meddling’

Special Report: “Secret” documents from the Reagan administration show how the U.S. embedded “political action,” i.e., the manipulation of foreign governments, in ostensibly well-meaning organizations, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry “Secret” documents, recently declassified by the Reagan presidential library,…

Tuesday, September 12, 2017

The Neglected Legend of Dolores Huerta

Dolores Huerta, a largely unsung hero in the fight for farmworkers’ rights, is the subject of the new movie, Dolores, that recounts her life as a feminist and union organizer, reports Dennis J Bernstein and Miguel Gavilan Molina. By Dennis J…

Monday, September 11, 2017

Has the NYT Gone Collectively Mad?

Special Report: Crossing a line from recklessness into madness, The New York Times published a front-page opus suggesting that Russia was behind social media criticism of Hillary Clinton, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry For those of us who have…

The Military’s Warning on Global Warming

The U.S. military, which gets called on to cope with unrest tied to global warming, is taking the climate threat seriously as opposed to civilian politicians who are pandering to special interests, says ethicist Daniel C. Maguire. By Daniel C.…

Early Fall Fund Drive Target: $35,000

From Editor Robert Parry: We are setting our Early Fall Fund Drive target at $35,000, an amount needed to continue our independent  journalism which has been challenging misguided conventional wisdom for almost 22 years. You can donate by credit card online (we…

Sunday, September 10, 2017

Echoes of Iraq-WMD Fraud in Syria

Special Report: Just as the West ignored signs in 2002-03 that anti-government Iraqis were fabricating WMD claims, evidence is being brushed aside that Syrian jihadists have ginned up chemical attacks, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The New York Times…

Hurricanes Blow Away Climate Change Denial

The startling landfall of two giant hurricanes – feasting on especially warm water off Texas and Florida – crashes into the climate change denialism that has been politically popular on the Right, notes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul…

Saturday, September 9, 2017

The Dangerous Decline of US Hegemony

Exclusive: The bigger picture behind Official Washington’s hysteria over Russia, Syria and North Korea is the image of a decaying but dangerous American hegemon resisting the start of new multipolar order, explains Daniel Lazare. By Daniel Lazare The showdown with…

Friday, September 8, 2017

U.N. Enablers of ‘Aggressive War’

Special Report: U.N. investigative reports, like a new one condemning Syria for alleged sarin use, are received as impartial and credible, but are often just more war propaganda from compromised bureaucrats, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry Many people still…

Syria’s Survival Is Blow to Jihadists

Despite last-ditch efforts by Israel and its allies to salvage the “regime change” project in Syria, the looming defeat of the Western-backed jihadists marks a turning point in the modern Middle East, says ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke. By Alastair Crooke…

Trump’s Confused Embrace of Egypt’s Sisi

Exclusive: President Trump’s tolerance of Egypt’s Saudi-backed crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood and other political opposition groups is sending more mixed signals in the Middle East, writes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall Confusion and bad timing aren’t exactly news when…

Thursday, September 7, 2017

A New Hole in Syria-Sarin Certainty

Special Report: A new contradiction has emerged in the West’s groupthink blaming Syria for an April 4 chemical attack, with one group of U.N. investigators raising doubt about the flight of a Syrian warplane, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry…

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Nikki Haley Falsely Accuses Iran

Israel and the neocons still seek an excuse to bomb Iran, now citing false claims about its supposed noncompliance with the nuclear deal. The new water carrier is U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar describes. By…

Growing Fears in Immigrant Communities

Amid more federal and state crackdowns on illegal immigrants, some Latinos feared that Hurricane Harvey relief efforts could serve as another excuse to round up people without documents, as Dennis J Bernstein learned. By Dennis J Bernstein Federal and state…

Tuesday, September 5, 2017

On the Brink of Nuclear War

Special Report: As nuclear war looms in Korea, the life-or-death question is whether President Trump and his team can somehow marshal the skill and strength of President Kennedy in the Cuban Missile Crisis, writes historian William R. Polk. By William…

The Drudgery of Modern Work

A bitter irony of modern life is just when computers and robots should give people more time for creativity and relaxation, the opposite is often the case for many, a continued life of drudgery, as Lawrence Davidson observes. By Lawrence…

Monday, September 4, 2017

How ‘Regime Change’ Wars Led to Korea Crisis

Exclusive: The U.S.-led aggressions against Iraq and Libya are two war crimes that keep on costing, with their grim examples of what happens to leaders who get rid of WMDs driving the scary showdown with North Korea, writes Robert Parry.…

Sunday, September 3, 2017

The Risk of NATO’s H-Bombs in Turkey

Exclusive: As the world nervously assesses North Korea’s claims about having a hydrogen bomb, another danger point is in Turkey where an erratic leader could seize NATO’s H-Bombs, warns Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall Even in this contentious era, one…

Saturday, September 2, 2017

Russia-gate’s Totalitarian Style

Special Report: The New York Times is at it again, reporting unproven allegations about Russia as flat fact, while anyone who questions the Russia-gate groupthink faces ugly attacks, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry It is a basic rule from…

Friday, September 1, 2017

The Reasons for Netanyahu’s Panic

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is pushing the panic button over the collapse of the Saudi-Israeli jihadist proxies in Syria and now threatening to launch a major air war, as ex-British diplomat Alastair Crooke describes. By Alastair Crooke A very senior…

Galveston Bio-Lab Declared Safe

Exclusive: Flooding from Hurricane Harvey triggered a dangerous chemical explosion outside Houston, but a bio-lab in Galveston bristled over concerns about the potential release of its dangerous pathogens, reports Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria The Galveston National Laboratory in Texas,…

Seymour Hersh Honored for Integrity

An organization led by former U.S. intelligence officials has selected legendary journalist Seymour Hersh to be the recipient of an annual award for integrity and truth-telling, named for the late CIA analyst Sam Adams. By Ray McGovern. Journalist Seymour Hersh…

Thursday, August 31, 2017

The Real ‘Fake News’ Crisis

The secret of Donald Trump’s political success rests largely on his experience with the fake reality of “reality TV” via “The Celebrity Apprentice” – and how fake drama has spilled into political “news,” as JP Sottile explains. By JP Sottile…

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

The Same Ol’ Afghan War Fallacies

Unless President Trump can pull off a peace deal with the Taliban, his Afghan War policy is following the same bloody and futile path that his predecessors took, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar describes. By Paul R. Pillar President…

Worries about a Galveston Bio-Lab

Exclusive: The flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey has left thousands homeless in the greater Houston area but there also is rising concern about a biological lab in Galveston that houses deadly diseases, notes Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria Concern is…

Tuesday, August 29, 2017

The Alt-Right’s Alternative Reality

President Trump’s “Alt-Right” is a grab bag of mostly incoherent or contradictory ideas derived from white resentments. Now, it will be played off against the Republican establishment with unpredictable results, as JP Sottile explains. By JP Sottile One thing to…

Bias in Arizona’s Reaction to Immigrants

In Arizona, a federal judge ruled that racial animus drove a shutdown of a Mexican-American ethnic studies program, as President Trump pardoned ex-Sheriff Arpaio over his harsh treatment of immigrants, reports Dennis J Bernstein. By Dennis J Bernstein President Trump’s…