The US military accidentally killed 9 Afghan soldiers in an air strike on Wednesday, one in a series of mistaken such aerial attacks in recent months, some of which have left behind substantial civilian casualties. Earlier in the Afghanistan war, US commanders had avoided the tactic of air strikes precisely for fear that they would […]
Iraq Moves Closer to Obama-Type Plan for early US Withdrawal; Cabinet rejects Security Agreement
The debate between Senators John McCain and Barack Obama about a timetable for withdrawal of US troops from Iraq may have just been overtaken by events. Without a bilateral agreement on the rules governing US military actions in Iraq, US soldiers and officers would become liable to prosecution for acts committed in the course of […]
When did McCain become a Neocon? Shiite MPs demand SOFA Renegotiation
Jonathan Landay carefully traces John McCain’s transformation from pragmatist to Neoconservative warmonger, which took place while Bush was still just a Texas politician. He rather amusingly quotes Max Boot claiming that McCain is not a warmonger. I mean, in 2003 Boot acknowledged that the US killed thousands of Filipino civilians in the early 20th century […]
Powell’s Finest Moment
What is remarkable to me about Colin Powell’s endorsement of Barack Obama on Meet the Press was its sincerity and the form of its reasoning. He addressed issues, not personalities. He engaged in analysis, not demonization. After the Rove years of Goebbels-like propaganda, guilt by association, and innuendo, Powell’s appearance brought fresh air into the […]
Joe McCain: N. Virginia "Communist"; John McCain: Obama Socialist
Is McCain a far Right extremist? When McCain calls Obama a “socialist,” is he Red-baiting? Republicans back in the 1950s through the 1980s routinely accused Democrats of being “Communists” or hinted around that they were fellow travelers or ‘soft on communism.’ Richard M. Nixon, the grand dragon of dirty tricks, described the Democratic standard bearer […]
Muqtada Calls on Parliamentarians: ‘Just say ‘No’
Muqtada al-Sadr called Saturday for Iraqi parliamentarians to reject the draft security agreement proposed by the Bush administration and PM Nuri al-Maliki. Tens of thousands of Iraqis rallied against the agreement. Reuters reports political violence in Iraq on Saturday: ‘ * SAMARRA – A mass grave containing 11 bodies was found in the northeast of […]
Maliki Implies Odierno Ouster; Thousands Protest Security Pact
Although Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has approved a draft agreement on US troops in Iraq, it faces severe opposition from many parliamentarians and may not actually be enacted into law. A major stumbling block is immunity for US troops from Iraqi law. Meanwhile, al-Maliki said Friday that Gen. Ray Odierno may have lost his position […]
McCain & Letterman; What about Liddy? Al E. Smith and the Candidates
John McCain returns to David Letterman’s Late Show in an attempt to redeem himself after his erratic behavior and earlier cancellation. It is the oddest thing, that entertainment show hosts such as Letterman ask harder and more persistent questions about questionable campaign techniques than do the hard news interviewers. The McCain appearance on Letterman had […]
Losing Afghanistan after Winning It
Nir Rosen reports on ‘How we lost the War We Won’ in Afghanistan: ‘ Until recently, Ghazni, like much of central Afghanistan, was considered reasonably safe. But now the province, located 100 miles south of the capital, has fallen to the Taliban. Foreigners who venture to Ghazni often wind up kidnapped or killed. In defiance […]
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