( Tomdispatch.com ) – The divestment campaigns launched last spring by students protesting Israel’s mass slaughter in Gaza brought the issue of the militarization of American higher education back into the spotlight. Of course, financial ties between the Pentagon and American universities are nothing new. As Stuart Leslie has pointed out in his seminal book […]
Shortening the Kill Chain: Silicon Valley aims to turn our World into an AI Wargame
( Tomdispatch.com ) – Venture capital and military startup firms in Silicon Valley have begun aggressively selling a version of automated warfare that will deeply incorporate artificial intelligence (AI). Those companies and their CEOs are now pressing full speed ahead with that emerging technology, largely dismissing the risk of malfunctions that could lead to the […]
Democracy Versus Autocracy on America’s Campuses
( Tomdispatch.com ) – I’ve spent most of my life as an advocate for a more peaceful world. In recent years, I’ve been focused on promoting diplomacy over war and exposing the role of giant weapons companies like Lockheed Martin and its allies in Congress and at the Pentagon as they push for a “military-first” […]
War is Bad for you — And the Economy: Biden touts the Alleged Benefits of the Arsenal of Democracy
( Tomdispatch.com ) – Joe Biden wants you to believe that spending money on weapons is good for the economy. That tired old myth — regularly repeated by the political leaders of both parties — could help create an even more militarized economy that could threaten our peace and prosperity for decades to come. Any […]
The Military-Industrial Complex Is the Winner (Not You) – Overspending on the Pentagon Is Stealing Our Future
( Tomdispatch.com ) – 2023 was a year marked by devastating conflicts from Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine to Hamas’s horrific terror attacks on Israel, from that country’s indiscriminate mass slaughter in Gaza to a devastating civil war in Sudan. And there’s a distinct risk of even worse to come this year. Still, there was one […]
Bad Times in Gaza and Ukraine: Good Times for the Military-Industrial Complex
( Tomdispatch.com ) – The New York Times headline said it all: “Middle East War Adds to Surge in International Arms Sales.” The conflicts in Gaza, Ukraine, and beyond may be causing immense and unconscionable human suffering, but they are also boosting the bottom lines of the world’s arms manufacturers. There was a time when such weapons […]
AI Goes to War: Will the Pentagon’s Techno-Fantasies Pave the Way for War with China?
( Tomdispatch.com) – On August 28th, Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks chose the occasion of a three-day conference organized by the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA), the arms industry’s biggest trade group, to announce the “Replicator Initiative.” Among other things, it would involve producing “swarms of drones” that could hit thousands of targets in […]
The Profiteers of Armageddon: Oppenheimer and the Birth of the Nuclear-Industrial Complex
( Tomdispatch.com) – Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past few months, you’re undoubtedly aware that award-winning director Christopher Nolan has released a new film about Robert Oppenheimer, known as the “father of the atomic bomb” for leading the group of scientists who created that deadly weapon as part of America’s World […]
The Ultimate All-American Slush Fund: How a New Budget Loophole could send Pentagon Spending Soaring even Higher
By Julia Gledhill and William D. Hartung ( Tomdispatch.com ) – On June 3rd, President Joe Biden signed a bill into law that lifted the government’s debt ceiling and capped some categories of government spending. The big winner was — surprise, surprise! — the Pentagon. Congress spared military-related programs any cuts while freezing all other […]
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