Porkins Policy Review
Here is a great example of the way in which Netanyahu keeps Israeli safe; and ensures his reelection campaign will be a success.
The cold war between America and Iran has just gotten a whole lot hotter. CNN has reported that Iran shot at an unarmed US drone. According to CNN, which never quotes Iranian officials and instead relies entirely on unnamed US officials, the drone was in international waters near Kuwait on a routine mission when it was fired upon. But as John Glasser points out
The claim that the drone was in international airspace cannot be confirmed, but it is dubious considering the difficulty Iran would have of firing on a small drone far from its own territory.
The claim that the unarmed Predator drone was engaged in “routine maritime surveillance” is also very dubious. First of all, just because it was “routine” has no bearing on whether its activity could justly be seen as hostile.
And if it was routine, and the Pentagon has nothing to hide, then the surveillance mission should not have been classified, as it was.
Thankfully there are still media organizations like Antiwar.com and the Christian Science Monitor who are questioning CNN’s reporting on this incident. For a great take on how CNN is merely acting as a PR firm for the White House read Glenn Greenwalds piece from yesterday.
All of this comes on the heels of Patrick Clawson’s disturbing comments on how the US could provoke a war with Iran. Clawson is the head of the Israeli funded pro-Israel think tank the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
Former NYT journalist Daniel Simpson speaks to RT about the Times war propaganda and bias towards our brutal political overlords.
While our peace loving President gave another bland and erroneous speech at the UN today on how much America loves the Muslim world and democracy, a new report came out detailing the destructive and violent nature that the drone wars have been inflicting on the people of Pakistan. The report is yet another damning look at how awful and illegal this particular policy is. The report in entitled “Living Under Drones” and I urge anyone unfamiliar with the drone war to read it. It is time that the American people wake up and throw off the shackles that our political overlord have placed upon us. We do not need to be engaged in constant warfare in which we murder innocent people in order to make us “safe”. This is the most counterproductive way of going about protecting America. When you step into that voting booth in 42 days here are a few things you should think about.
(Via: The Bureau of Investigative Journalism)
Here is some advice to any terrorists trying to get off the State Department terror list; work for the United States and Israel. The MEK will be taken off the list at the behest of Secretary Clinton as early as today. The evidence that the MEK is being used by Israel to assassinate Iranian scientists is very well documented at this point. And the intense lobbying by American officials on behalf of the terrorist cult is widespread in Washington DC.
The delisting should prove to Iran and its population that America has every intention of fomenting regime change, and no intention of negotiating a peaceful settlement over the nuclear issue. Like all other US policies towards Iran, the delisting should also help to consolidate the Iranian elites power over the population. Liberal Tehran Iranians don’t like the MEK. They will not side with an Israeli/American backed terror group against their own government. The brutal sanctions have not resulted in Iranians rising up against the regime. Why would a terror group that fought on the side of Saddam Hussein be welcomed by the Iranian public? Iran’s population will see this as yet another attempt by the United States to try and dominate them.
Here is a decent look at the group that Hillary Clinton, Rudy Giuliani, Howard Dean, Frans Townsend and all the other plastic people in DC are so eager to embrace.
A new low been reached in the ongoing saga over “The Innocence of Muslims” video and the protests that have engulfed the Muslim world. The US State Department has bought $70,000 worth of TV air time in Pakistan to run adds proclaiming how they had nothing to do with making the video. These adds include this pathetic statement from Sec. Clinton
Let me state very clearly, the United States has absolutely nothing to do with this video. We absolutely reject its contents
Here are a few things that the US government have done that may be causing people in Pakistan to protest.
-Massive drone strikes.
This one is a no brainer. Maybe Clinton has forgotten that her boss has murders hundreds of Pakistanis with robots. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that might engender some resentment towards the US government. Either the administration is completely stupid, not totally unbelievable, or they are so cynical that they don’t care. If you drop a bomb from a flying death robot and kill someone’s brother, uncle, or daughter, chances are they are not going to go out in the street and praise you.
-CIA running amok
Again this is another no brainer for the US government. America would never stand for a foreign intelligence agency running around killing and kidnapping people. Why would the Pakistanis be ok with this? The Pakistani public still remembers Raymond Davis. And guess what, they are still upset about it.
-Bin Laden raid
This one seems to be the most difficult
for Obama and his cronies to understand. The White House is still under the impression that the Pakistanis should be bowing down before their imperial overlords, kissing their feet for murdering Americas sworn enemy. The average Pakistani does not care about Bin Laden. They are more concerned with providing for their families and avoiding drone strikes, not with the fate of Bin Laden. In fact if you asked most people in Pakistan or the Muslim world at large they would agree with most of what Bin Laden preached. Most Muslims are in agreement that the constant occupation of their countries, green light for Israel to conduct wars, and support of brutal dictators are despicable policies that America is guilty of. Now while most Muslims are not in favor of flying airplanes into the Twin Towers, they are also not in favor of American special forces illegally flying into their nation and killing people. Unsurprisingly the Pakistanis also don’t like when the CIA recruits a corrupt doctor to give phony vaccinations to children in a vain attempt to find Bin Laden.
-Aid and support for military and corrupt government
This aspect may in fact be the most corrosive. American aid money and support to a corrupt military and government that willingly participates in the war on terror has led to widespread hatred of America. The Pakistani government would not be able to commit some of its more heinous crimes if it were not for American aid money. Pakistanis are not stupid. They understand that their puppet masters are controlled by Uncle Sam.
This is why people are protesting in Pakistan.
There was a time in my life when I used to read Foreign Policy and think that it was really cutting edge and unbiased, alas this is no longer the case. Eventually I woke up to the fact that Foreign Policy is the mouth piece of the warmongering bipartisan foreign policy establishment in Washington. James Traub is an excellent example of the kind of fools that Foreign Policy employs. He is a fellow at the Center on International Cooperation which is like all the other establishment Beltway think tanks. In his weekly column, Terms of Engagement, he attempts to show how it is now time for President Obama to really get involved in Syria. Traub hardly hides his imperialist reasons for why Obama should start massively arming the rebels
The rebels have been forced again and again to break off battles they might otherwise win for lack of ammunition and firepower. With anti-aircraft capability, the rebels could create a safe haven on their own. With anti-tank missiles, they night quickly turn the tide in other disputed areas.
The United States has a profound interest not only in bringing the slaughter in Syria to an end, but in having a meaningful presence on the ground when that happens — as it did in Libya thanks to the NATO air campaign. It will not be easy, under any circumstances, to prevent Syria from collapsing into religious and ethnic enclaves, or into a war of all against all. But if Washington remains on the sidelines, as it has until now, it will have little influence with those who will ultimately prevail, and thus little ability to help shape the post-Assad landscape.
Obama might decide to postpone the decision until after the election, but that would be an act of consummate cynicism. He should act now, before it’s too late.
The Justice Dept (obviously at the behest of the President) will not bring charges against the CIA for torture. Federal prosecutor John Durham has been investigating the disgusting treatment of 101 detainees that were in U.S. custody. Thankfully for the government and all those who wish to continue the imperialist empire no one will be held accountable. The lamentable Eric Holder said that
based on the fully developed factual record concerning the two deaths, the department has declined prosecution because the admissible evidence would not be sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt.
Even more disturbing was the CIA Director David Petraeus’s message to CIA employees
as intelligence officers, our inclination, of course, is to look ahead to the challenges of the future rather than backwards at those of the past. Nonetheless, it was very important that we supported fully the Justice Department in its efforts
I would like to thank everyone who played a role doing so.
Former CIA Director Micheal Hayden gave a similar response, saying he was
heartened that the investigation is complete, and I’m heartened by the results. I had great confidence in Mr. Durham. I just regret that many CIA officers had to go through yet another review of these activities.
This is what “Hope and Change” has gotten us.
The indispensable Israeli NGO Breaking the Silence has released a new report on children and youth in the Occupied West Bank. Complete with video testimonies the new report paints a disturbing picture of the daily violence that the IDF inflicts on Palestinian children. Now normally the American media would try their best to ignore this sort of report. They may even try their best to some how portray this as yet another viscous anti-Semitic attack. Lucky for the media the Republican National Convention will be eating up most of their time and energy. So before you get all worked up over the RNC and DNC conventions take the time and read through the report. If you cant read the whole report here are articles in The Independent, The Guardian and Ynet, all of which deal with the recent report. When your watching the balloons falling from the convention arena ceiling, you may want to take a minute and think about how your tax dollars go to funding this decades long occupation.
Unfortunately most of the American population seems to view Libertarianism and traditional Conservatism as evil. Rather than explore Libertarianism most Americans would rather denigrate it as a political ideology embraced by gun nuts and fringe candidates. In the wake of Paul Ryan being chosen as Mitt Romney’s VP several news outlets published stories about how Libertarians were now suddenly going to shift over to the Romney camp. Paul Ryan is not a Libertarian. Just because you have read Ayn Rand and want to cut the budget does not make you a Libertarian. In fact it is people like Paul Ryan who have given a bad name to both Libertarians and traditional Old Right Conservatives. Well I have decided that Porkins Policy Review needs a shift. Many people such as my self have had to hide our Libertarian leanings from our friends and family so as not to be ostracized. Well it is time to come out of hiding and educate people on the virtues of Libertarianism. The best place to start educating people is on the Libertarian stance on war. So please watch the above video and read the link. You may find out that you have a lot more in common with Libertarians than previously expected.
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