Iraq

Messianic Failure: Pursuing the GWOT Jabberwock

Anniversaries can provide occasions for reflection and deep consideration.  Past errors and misjudgements can be considered soberly; historical distance provides perspective.  Mature reflections may be permitted.  But they can also serve the opposite purpose: to cake, cloak and mask the record. The gooey name GWOT, otherwise known as the Global War on Terrorism, is some […]

Paul Wolfowitz: Deluded and At Liberty

It was all marvellous for Paul Wolfowitz to get on Australian television (why bother?) to brusquely discuss those attacks on US soil in September 2001 and criticism of the invasion of Iraq by US-led forces.  After two decades, the former US deputy secretary of defense has not mellowed. With each show, interview and podium performance […]
The post Paul Wolfowitz: Deluded and At Liberty first appeared on Dissident Voice.

How Can America Wake Up From Its Post-9/11 Nightmare?

Looking back on it now, the 1990s were an age of innocence for America. The Cold War was over and our leaders promised us a “peace dividend.” There was no TSA to make us take off our shoes at airports (how many bombs have they found in those billions of shoes?). The government could not […]
The post How Can America Wake Up From Its Post-9/11 Nightmare? first appeared on Dissident Voice.

9/11 and My Pariah Decade Counterpunch

Counterpunch, September 8, 2021 9/11 and My Pariah Decade by James Bovard Life in American changed 20 years ago after the 9/11 attacks.  Many Americans became enraged at anyone who did not swear allegiance to President George W. Bush’s anti-terrorism crusade. Anyone who denied “they hate us for our freedoms” automatically became an enemy of […]
The post 9/11 and My Pariah Decade Counterpunch appeared first on James Bovard.

Macron’s Visit to Iraq and Ankara’s Zealous Reaction

French President Emmanuel Macron’s two-day visit to Iraq, during which he visited several cities and was the special guest at a regional conference in Baghdad, ended on August 30. The president of France previously visited Baghdad In September 2020, where he met with Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kadhimi and President Barham Salih. At the press […]

Is it Really Time for Iraq to Say Goodbye to its American Conquerors?

Recently, the United States has been actively redistributing its financial and military power from the Middle East to the Asia-Pacific region, refocusing all its forces against China. Washington sees that country as its main competitor and rival in its future struggle to ensure unrestricted global leadership. For this reason, and against the backdrop of increased […]

Estimated Cost of Post-9/11 US Wars Hits $8 Trillion With Nearly a Million People Dead

With the final U.S. soldiers leaving Afghanistan earlier this week after nearly 20 years of occupation and war, a new analysis released Wednesday shows the United States will ultimately spend upwards of $8 trillion and that nearly one million people have lost their lives so far in the so-called “global war on terror” that was launched after the attacks of September[Read More...]

Afghanistan:  a military and an “aid” failure

While recent events have destroyed the credibility of militarists who pushed for the invasion and 20-year-long occupation of Afghanistan, the moral bankruptcy of their supporters in the aid industry has also been stunningly revealed. A quick Taliban victory over the foreign trained “Afghan army” at least (momentarily) embarrassed Canadian militarists. But what about their camp […]

Forget Wars on Covid and Terror: War on Climate Collapse Is the Only War of Necessity for Human Survival

Mythology of humans’ natural impulse for empathy Warfare has been a plague haunting the human species ever since our evolution to become Homo Sapiens, finally, around 300,000 years ago in Africa. Etymologically, homo means human and sapiens means wise or knowledgeable. One can see that in this 18th century anthropocentric characterization of our species, the […]