Our First Report from Istanbul as Coup Unfolds
Reading Time: 2 minutes Our first report from Istanbul
We Anticipated Turkey Coup — Here’s a Briefing
Reading Time: 5 minutes With a military coup unfolding in Turkey, it’s useful to read this piece we published back in May — noting the possibility of a coup and providing context.
RadioWhoWhatWhy: Push-Button Warfare
Reading Time: < 1 minute As countries launch cyber attacks on each other constantly, online soldiers are becoming increasingly important to militaries around the world.
RadioWhoWhatWhy: The Future of Outsourced Warfare
Reading Time: < 1 minute Blackwater may have become a symbol of all that can go wrong when government contractors outnumber trained military personnel, but what really happened in the killing fields of Iraq and Afghanistan? WhoWhatWhy’s Jeff Schechtman sits down with Blackwater founder Erik Prince to discuss the history and future of “outsourced” warfare.
Does Jade Helm Violate Posse Comitatus?
Reading Time: 13 minutes The multi-state military drill known as Jade Helm has provoked a fierce debate. Is it much ado about nothing—or, as some claim, an effort to desensitize the public toward martial law? WhoWhatWhy takes a look.
Classic WhoWhatWhy: Police State Gears Up
Reading Time: 4 minutes On May 18, 2015, President Obama made a surprising announcement: he ordered the federal government to reverse its standing practice of providing American police departments with surplus weapons and vehicles from the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq. Given declining confidence in police after a seemingly constant recent stream of fatalities involving black suspects, this newfound caution with heavy provisioning is understandable. But questions about the wisdom of militarizing police are not new. WhoWhatWhy first wrote about the issue in February, 2014.
Why Obama Cannot Undo the Surveillance Society—But We Can
Reading Time: 5 minutes When a country is truly run by a handful, how can they ever let up on surveillance? They can’t, and won’t. But we can make them do it. However, not if we wait for instructions from the establishment.
POST-ELECTION PROJECT: To Finagle Chuck Hagel?
Reading Time: 9 minutes With Obama reaching across the aisle for his next Secretary of Defense, an unlikely alliance within the media has developed to torpedo the nomination in the minds of the elite of DC and New York. But what does the fight over Chuck Hagel tell us about the future of American foreign policy in the 21st century?
Meanwhile, Back in the Middle East…
Reading Time: 8 minutes Now that the US has had a few days to rejoice or despair over Obama’s re-election, here’s one area where the candidates agreed—and what you may have missed over the past two months–in the (barely) covert war on Syria.
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Iran and the Bomb, Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Facts
Reading Time: 10 minutes 8 simple lessons to keep in mind amidst the deluge of war propaganda concerning Iran’s nuclear program. Add your own favorite 9th lesson.
WHO EXCLUSIVE: Gen. Wesley Clark on Oil, War and Activism
Reading Time: 3 minutes Exclusive Video: Gen. Wesley Clark calls for movement to fight big oil and its ability to determine foreign policy and drive wars.
Does Obama Leak More Than Others?
Reading Time: 3 minutes Mitt Romney is accusing Barack Obama of leaking sensitive national security material, essentially betraying the country. But everyone leaks—including Romney…and especially the “national security” people.
Must-Watch: O’Donnell on Romney and War
Reading Time: < 1 minute We don’t usually post material from the cable talk channels. But this is one for the ages. Everyone must watch.
The Cradle of Conflagration: The End (and Beginning) of the War for Iraq
Reading Time: 4 minutes Why the US withdrawal does not mean peace for Iraq….here’s the historical context
Comedy and Reality Break: Bill Hicks Classic on War, Taxes, Media and Freedom
Reading Time: < 1 minute In this classic bit from early 90s, the comedian/commentator Bill Hicks weighs in on the First Gulf War, George HW Bush, manipulating the masses, and more.
WORTH READING: No Shots; Baby Frankenstein; Money & Problems; BotPuppets
Reading Time: 2 minutes How the GOP will penalize children. Why kids who play more are smarter. Money, it turns out, really does not lead to happiness. And another bad idea from the Pentagon.
The New Sub-prime Threat?
Reading Time: < 1 minute I continue to be fascinated by the leaks that are coming out of the Pentagon during the Obama administration. On Wednesday, the New York Times published an article that, in the electronic edition, was headlined “Russian Subs Patrolling Off East Coast of U.S.” Pretty ominous. Even more so in the print edition, on page A5, Read More
Death by the Numbers
Reading Time: 2 minutes Should the numbers of enemy fighters killed by American forces be published? That’s the topic of the moment at the Wall Street Journal, as summarized by Slate: The WSJ fronts a look at how the U.S. command in Afghanistan has been releasing numbers of every enemy fighter killed in combat. It marks the first time Read More