USA

The Israel Lobby. Portrait of a Great Taboo

For many years now the American foreign policy has been characterized by the strong tie between the United States and Israel. Does the United States in fact keep Israel on its feet? And how long will it continue to do so? In March 2006 the American political scientists John Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) and Steve Walt (Harvard) published the controversial article ‘The Israel Lobby and US foreign policy’. In it they state that it is not, or no longer, expedient for the US to support and protect present-day Israel. The documentary sheds light on both parties involved in the discussion: those who wish to maintain the strong tie between the US and Israel, and those who were critical of it and not infrequently became ‘victims’ of the lobby. The question arises to what extend the pro-Israel lobby ultimately determines the military and political importance of Israel itself. Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson (Colin Powell’s former chief-of-staff) explains how the lobby’s influence affects the decision-making structure in the White House.
With political scientist John Mearsheimer, neocon Richard Perle, lobby organization AIPAC, televangelist John Hagee, historian Tony Judt, Human Rights Watch director Kenneth Roth, colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, Democrat Earl Hilliard, Israeli peace negotiator Daniel Levy and investigative journalist Michael Massing.

Research: William de Bruijn
Director: Marije Meerman

For more information visit http://www.vpro.nl/programma/tegenlic…

October 8, 2009 0

Connecting the Dots: The Axis of Evil Closes in on Iran’s Nuclear Sites, while the G20 stamps on our Civil Rights

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In the great global chess match, the Axis of Evil exchanges pieces with Russia towards a check-mate on Iran, while Afghanistan is set to be the proving ground of an open-ended military strategy.

The G20 crowns itself queen of the global economy, as our civil liberties are pawned off the board for the illusion of security.

If the audience is the human masses, they seem blithely disinterested in the high-stakes moves on the board and only vaguely aware that beneath the board itself Mother Nature is shaking the table, rattling the Earth and making waves.

September was yet another episode in the slow motion collision of humanity’s tragic history and reality.

read on

October 8, 2009 0

War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength, and Debt is Recovery

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In light of the ever-present and unyieldingly persistent exclamations of ‘an end’ to the recession, a ‘solution’ to the crisis, and a ‘recovery’ of the economy; we must remember that we are being told this by the very same people and institutions which told us, in years past, that there was ‘nothing to worry about,’ that ‘the fundamentals are fine,’ and that there was ‘no danger’ of an economic crisis.

Why do we continue to believe the same people that have, in both statements and choices, been nothing but wrong? Who should we believe and turn to for more accurate information and analysis? Perhaps a useful source would be those at the epicenter of the crisis, in the heart of the shadowy world of central banking, at the global banking regulator, and the “most prestigious financial institution in the world,” which accurately predicted the crisis thus far: The Bank for International Settlements (BIS). This would be a good place to start.

The economic crisis is anything but over, the “solutions” have been akin to putting a band-aid on an amputated arm. The Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the central bank to the world’s central banks, has warned and continues to warn against such misplaced hopes.

Read on

October 5, 2009 0

Tent cities spring up in LA

September 15, 2009 0

Eight Years Later: Speak Out Against the War in Afghanistan

Barbara Lee

September 15, 2009 0

US Embassy: Brews, Brawls, Butt Sniffing and Prostitutes

KABUL, Afghanistan — The U.S. Embassy in Kabul said it is joining the inquiry into claims that some of its private security guards practiced hazing rituals, sexual activity and intimidation.

“A full review of local guard force policies and procedures is under way and a full investigation is ongoing,” said an embassy statement released Thursday.

“Embassy officials continue to interview guard force personnel as a part of the investigation, to assess the need for possible suspensions and terminations.”

Along with the investigation, the embassy has also banned alcohol at Camp Sullivan, the facility at which the guards live.

The allegations about the guards’ behavior were reported by the watchdog group Project On Government Oversight.

The group sent a letter Tuesday to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and briefed reporters on its findings, which it said were based on e-mails and interviews with more than a dozen guards who had worked at the U.S. compound in the Afghan capital.

Should initiation rituals such as hazing be allowed?

September 4, 2009 0