It is absolutely appropriate to condem Russian militarism in the Crimea. I recently did so on Russian TV and was yelled at for my trouble. But it must be noted that:
1. The United States promised Russia years ago that NATO would not expand “an inch” eastward (see account by President Ronald Reagan’s ambassador to the USSR in the New York Times of April 20, 1999);
2. NATO has rapidly expanded eastward (having already added the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Estonia,
On Putin Ruining the World Read More »
That sounds like a crazy question, doesn’t it? Why would President Obama denounce Martin Luther King, Jr.?
Well, the reason I ask is that he’s done it before.
Really? But surely he wouldn’t do it on such a solemn occasion?
Well, the time he did it before was in a Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech.
When President Barack Obama joined the ranks of Henry Kissinger and the other gentle souls who have received Nobel Peace Prizes, he did
Will Obama Denounce MLK as Memorial Dedicated? Read More »
President Obama on Monday said he would “never hesitate” to use the U.S. military “unilaterally” to defend “interests” and “values,” including “maintaining the flow of commerce.” Fear of exactly that led the founders of this republic to give Congress the exclusive power to declare war. James Madison did not believe any single individual could be trusted with such power:
“The strongest passions and most dangerous weaknesses of the
Obama on Libya: What Would MLK Say? Read More »
One of the oldest excuses for war is that the enemy is irredeemably evil. He worships the wrong god, has the wrong skin and language, commits atrocities, and cannot be reasoned with. The long-standing tradition of making war on foreigners and converting those not killed to the proper religion “for their own good” is similar to the current practice of killing hated foreigners for the stated reason that their governments ignore women’s rights. From among the rights of women encompassed
The Art of Demonization Read More »
By David Swanson
“And the bewildered herd is still believing
Everything we’ve been told from our birth
Hell they won’t lie to me
Not on my own damn TV
But how much is a liar’s word worth
And what happened to peace on earth”
–Willie Nelson
When President Barack Obama joined the ranks of Henry Kissinger and the other gentle souls who have received Nobel Peace Prizes, he did something that I don’t think anyone else had previously done in a Peace Prize acceptance
Be the Peace You Want to See on Earth Read More »
A Nonviolent Exchange of Views in Four Parts
1. Don’t You Know That You Can Count Me Out – In
By David Swanson
Ted Rall’s new book “The Anti-American Manifesto” advocates for violent revolution, even if we have to join with rightwingers and racists to do it, and even if we have no control over the outcome which could easily be something worse than what we’ve got. We have a moral duty, Rall argues, to kill some people.
Now, I much prefer a debate over what radical
A Debate on Violence: Ted Rall and David Swanson Read More »
Ted Rall’s new book “The Anti-American Manifesto” advocates for violent revolution, even if we have to join with rightwingers and racists to do it, and even if we have no control over the outcome which could easily be something worse than what we’ve got. We have a moral duty, Rall argues, to kill some people.
Now, I much prefer a debate over what radical steps to take to a debate over whether it’s really appropriate for President Obama to whine about people’s
Don't You Know That You Can Count Me Out – In Read More »
The minority staff of the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, under the leadership of Congressman John Conyers (D., Mich.) has produced over the past many months a staggering report, just released, which documents the hard evidence of crimes and abuses committed by President Bush and his administration (breaking 26 specific laws). This report, “The Constitution in Crisis,” should provide the raw material for numerous news reports and point reporters toward fertile ground
Conyers Releases Massive New Report on Bush-Cheney Crimes Read More »
By David Swanson
Simple acts and a little courage have worked wonders in the world. Nonviolent people’s movements won democratic reforms in Russia, booted the British out of India, resisted the Nazi occupation in Denmark, drove a dictator out of El Salvador and another out of the Philippines, ended Jim Crow, crushed Soviet power in Poland, toppled military regimes in Argentina and Chile, ended Apartheid, and brought democracy to the Ukraine. George W. is no match for a force this
How You — Yes You — Can End the War Read More »
