The problem with this war for, I think, many Americans is that the premise on which we justified going to war proved not to be valid — that is, Saddam having weapons of mass destruction. So when you start from that standpoint, then figuring out in retrospect how you deal with the war — even [...]
Archive for the ‘war’ Category
Political quote of the day
Posted: 8th September 2010 by Brant in politics, warTags: Iraq War, Robert Gates, war, Weapon of mass destruction
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Nukes in space
Posted: 5th July 2010 by Brant in politics, science, tech, warTags: environment, Nuclear bombs, science
The ultimate July 4th fireworks. The full story is here.
Chutzpah quote of the day
Posted: 31st May 2010 by Brant in politics, warTags: Gaza, Israel, justice, Mideast, war
Israel is a sovereign state and cannot accept the undermining of its sovereignty. Israel has stopped ships in international waters before and when ships refuse to accede to warnings and obey instructions, we have the right to board them under international law. – Israel’s Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, defending the Israeli attack on humanitarian aid [...]
Lady Gaga’s “Telephone”: the Afghanistan version
Posted: 2nd May 2010 by Brant in culture, warTags: Lady Gaga, music, parody
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This is really terrific. It is fun and charming at the same time.
Another nuanced take on terrorism
Posted: 9th January 2010 by Brant in politics, warTags: civil liberties, Democrats, Obama administration, republicans, terror
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Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Paul Campos joins the ranks of those who view our current response to threats of terrorism realistically and not emotionally. He notes the remote risk than any particular US citizen will be a victim of terrorism, and yet we persist in imposing upon ourselves a huge costs in loss [...]
Peace Prize for Obama
Posted: 9th October 2009 by Brant in culture, politics, warTags: Nobel Awards, Obama
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Quite a stunner: Barack Obama has won the Nobel Peace Prize. He is credited with creating an international climate for peace. “The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009 is to be awarded to President Barack Obama for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples. The [...]
Ironic quote of the day
Posted: 20th July 2009 by Brant in politics, warTags: justice, Taliban, torture, war
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We condemn the use of this video and the public humiliation of prisoners. It is against international law. –US Military spokesperson, denouncing the release by the Taliban of a video of a US soldier captured in Afghanistan. Payback is a bitch.
Political quote of the day
Posted: 15th June 2009 by Brant in politics, warTags: Cheney, civil liberties, Obama, politics, republicans, terror, torture
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It’s almost, a little bit, gallows politics. When you read behind it, it’s almost as if he’s wishing that this country would be attacked again, in order to make his point. I think that’s dangerous politics. –Leon Panetta on Dick Cheney’s warnings that Obama is making the country less safe.
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More info from Singularity Hub.
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What sets us apart from our enemies in this fight…is how we behave. In everything we do, we must observe the standards and values that dictate that we treat noncombatants and detainees with dignity and respect. While we are warriors, we are also all human beings. General David Petraeus May 10, 2007
Was torture for political purposes?
Posted: 14th May 2009 by Brant in politics, warTags: Cheney, torture, war
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There is increasing talk that waterboarding and other forms of torture were undertaken not to protect us from another attack, but at the urgings of the Office of Vice President as part of a program to try to force evidence that Iraq was in an alliance with Al Queda. This was the major basis on [...]
Obama administration to fire gay Arabic linquist (updated)
Posted: 8th May 2009 by Brant in politics, warTags: economy, Obama, Obama administration
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Obama, who has pledged to pretect the rights of gay people, is about to allow the firing from the military of a West Point graduate because he is gay. The current policy has to change, for the good of the country. There is no reason for the military to lose the talents of men and [...]
Cheney assasination squad
Posted: 31st March 2009 by Brant in politics, warTags: Cheney, civil liberties, terror
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In an earlier post, I referred to Seymour Hersch’s statements that Cheney authorized an assasination squad to take out America’s enemies. One of his aids seems now to confirm the story. Earlier this month the New Yorker’s Seymour Hersh claimed that his research for an upcoming book uncovered evidence of a secret special operations unit [...]
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If you are running a Windows computer, you should be aware of a wide-spread worm that has infected a large number of such computers called Conficker. Conficker apparently is written to seek additional instructions from its creator tomorrow, April 1. The Department of Homeland Security has put out an alert. And you can download tools [...]