More news of civilians murdered in Afghanistan. Are Nato forces winning over the Afghan hearts and minds? Are they getting the bad guys? This quote from General McChrystal says it all:
However, to my knowledge, in the nine-plus months I’ve been here, not a single case where we have engaged in an escalation of force incident [...]
Bus of Afghan Civilians Fired At By Nato Troops
World March for Peace and Nonviolence
An effort by people in 90 countries to eradicate nuclear weapons, withdraw occupying armies and end wars.
U.S. Military Suicides at Record High
The Pentagon reported last month that the rate of suicides among US troops has reached an all-time high since record-keeping began three decades ago. At least 128 and potentially as many as 143 soldiers from the United States Army took their own lives last year.
Will Barack Obama Embrace Nonviolence?
Barack Obama looks back to Lincoln, and in doing so identifies with a President regarded as our greatest. Lincoln presided over one of the most brutal conflicts in history. Barack also looks back to that preacher from Atlanta who sang We Shall Overcome and espoused nonviolence.
The United States and Israel: Aid, Arms, & Legitimated Violence
The United States – Israel relationship is unique. In 1989, Israel was officially designated by the United States as a Major non-NATO ally (MNNA). This has allowed Israel to remain an “unofficial” ally of the U.S. while at the same time conferring them a number of military and economic benefits.
Fear, Politics and Altruism
Two new academic articles have got my attention because of their link to positive social change. The first article, found in Current Directions of Psychological Science, reports on the science of gratitude.
All options on the table?
NUCLEAR threats and counter-threats are a subtext of our times, steadily, it seems, becoming more insistent. The July meeting in Geneva between Iran and six major world powers on Iran’s nuclear programme ended with no progress.
Obama and the Progressive Base
A reasonably evenhanded biography of Barack Obama, published last year, describes him as “an exceptionally gifted politician who, throughout his life, has been able to make people of wildly divergent vantage points see in him exactly what they want to see.”
Honeywell Project Chapter 4 of 5
Honeywell, best known for their automatic controls and thermostats, bought the patent to the thermostat in 1916 from Albert Butz boosting the company’s sales to almost $300,000 that year (Honeywell Project 1988: 7). However, just prior to World War II, Honeywell consented to its first contract for the defense department. The United States government [...]
Did the United States Go to War with Iraq for Oil?
The New York Times is reporting that the four major oil companies who were kicked out of Iraq 36 years, have all received no-bid contracts