“Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes that you can do these things. Among them are a
Continue readingTag: US
Dead Wild Roses: No Good Men Among The Living – Dispelling The Imperial Narrative
We tell ourselves the stories we need to hear. This is excerpt details American involvement in Afghanistan, but from a non-embedded reporters point of view and analysis. “The central thesis of the American failure in Afghanistan — the one you’ll hear from politicians and pundits and even scholars
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: That Burnt Smell, That Hissing Sound? That’s the Fuze.
Well, if nothing else, Stephen Harper might just have earned Canada a ringside seat to the outbreak of a Middle East regional war. The way the International Crisis Group sees it, the Saudi air war on Shiite Yemeni rebels might just be the burning fuze that explodes the Sunni-Shia powder
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Coming Clean, It’s Good for the Soul.
After half a century of persistent fudging the Pentagon has officially admitted the undeniable – Israel has an arsenal of nuclear weapons and all the high tech gear to best use them. That revelation might not matter much to most of us but, to the US government, it has serious
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Oh, snap! Iran Corners the US.
Iran has told the U.S. that it’s prepared to get rid of all of its nuclear hardware, down to the last nut and bolt, if only the U.S. complies with the 1970 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. “The Iranian people can no longer withstand the sanctions,” Mr. Iqhal said. “We have thrown
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Americans See Combating Climate Change a Moral Obligation. Speaking of Morality, Where’s Steve Harper?
Some are calling it the “Francis effect” after the forceful statements the Pope has made about the need to address climate change. A significant majority of Americans say combating climate change is a moral issue that obligates them – and world leaders – to reduce carbon emissions, a Reuters/IPSOS poll
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: The Christian States of America?
What if America became a theocracy? Apparently a survey of Republicans found 57 per cent in favour of making Christianity the official religion of the United States. Younger Republicans in the 18 – 45 age group were more favorable to the idea, with 63 percent of that cohort affirming that
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Is Netanyahu Being Targeted for Regime Change – By the White House?
Barack Obama may have had enough of Benjamin Netanyahu’s stunts. It might just be time for Bibi to go. Foreign Policy’s Aaron David Miller writes that Obama is pursuing regime change in the upcoming Israeli elections. Welcome to regime change, Obama-style. There are few opportunities to change the mullahcracy in Tehran.
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: ROCHON: Harper in closet over the economy as Canada heads toward another recession
This guest blog post has been written by Louis-Philippe Rochon. You can follow him on Twitter @Lprochon – Harper’s recent incarnation as an anti-terrorist crusader has caught many Canadians by surprise. Harper is spending considerable political energy beating the drums of war against terrorists, and introducing a far-reaching, and much
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Louis-Philippe Rochon’s Top 10 Economic Predictions for 2015
Louis-Philippe Rochon has written a provocative blog post for the CBC titled “Top 10 Economic Predictions for 2015.” The post is available here.
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Is Raul Castro’s Cuba the First Big Winner in Cold War II?
Now that Washington and Havana appear to be on the road to kissing and making up, it’s worth considering whether the timing is really that spontaneous? Cuba was always the Soviet’s toe hold in the Americas. It was over Soviet designs in Cuba that the world was brought to the
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Reflections on a Nation Brought Low From Within
Salon.com pundit Andrew O’Hehir looks at the week’s revelations on American torture and sees in it the demise of American democracy. O’Hehir asks, “Can we quit pretending torture is some huge aberration? It fits into a larger pattern of America’s imperial decay.” He says it’s convenient to blame this on
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: It’s Called "Blowback"
Our confused, incoherent, even knee-jerk response to ISIS appears to be backfiring on us, at least in Syria. There, it’s reported, US air strikes are driving anti-Assad groups – outfits we’ve supported like the Free Syrian Army – into the arms of ISIS. US air strikes in Syria are encouraging anti-regime
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: There’s Nothing Magical to 2100
A clear and usually overlooked measure of the threat posed to our global civilization by climate change and how pathetic is our response is the timeline. That’s the giveaway. We always frame the discussion in the context of the year 2100. The target becomes to stay in existence over the
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: If It’s Cold War You Want, It’s Cold War You’ll Get
Wasn’t one enough? Really? For almost a half century we, the West, and the Russians/Soviets poured mountains of money down the drain preparing for a war none of us would have survived had it come to that. Underground missile batteries, fleets of nuclear missile submarines, strategic (nuclear) bombers, nuclear-capable strike
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: The Madness of King Stephen
As excuses for war go, claiming a conflict to be “noble” is really scraping the bottom of the barrel. It’s something you resort to when there’s simply nothing left to pull out of your ass. “Squires, attend your Lords. Summon the Heralds. To the jousts! Ah, there’s a noble scent
Continue readingdrive-by planet: USA #1 when it comes to ‘violence and preparations for violence’
Interesting article on Stop the War coalition site this week entitled Yes it’s true, the United States really is the greatest country in the world – but in what? The article includes stats and links to demonstrate that when it comes to “violence and preparations for violence” the USA is
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Some Recent History in the Middle East – ISIS and US.
Fascinating reading about some of the circular nature of events that are playing out in the Middle East as of late. This excerpt from the Counterpunch article titled Once More, Into the Quagmire. The Middle East Needs Our Military Might One can hear, in the reverberating noise of mainstream
Continue readingLeft Over: The US Declares Permanent War in Arab Winter
How ISIS and Syria drove a stake through the Arab Spring The rise of ISIS is a setback for reform in a region that is crying out for it By Nahlah Ayed, CBC News Posted: Oct 03, 2014 5:00 AM ET Last Updated: Oct 03, 2014 5:00 AM ET The fact
Continue readingdrive-by planet: New US-led Middle East war repeats old mistakes: fuels the cycle of violence
Airstrikes and rockets targeting sites in Syria and Iraq this week marks an escalation in the early stages of a war stamped with the trademark Made-in-the-USA. This misguided war is a continuation of earlier interventions and strategic errors that have fanned the flames of jihadist resistance around the globe. The
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