2021

Top 6 Ways Trump forced Abrupt US Departure from Afghanistan; and that Time Trump said Taliban would take over War on Terror

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – 1. in December, 2018, Trump ordered that half of the then 14,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan be brought out. The decision so angered then Secretary of Defense James Mattis that he abruptly resigned his position. Then Chairman of the joint chiefs of staff Joseph Dunford said he had not recommended […]

Democratic Party

The Republican Big Lie about 2020 is Old News, but the Stakes are Still High

Jill Richardson

( Otherwords.org ) – Unless we debunk the lies about 2020, the next election may be a lot less fair. By Jill Richardson | August 18, 2021 Right now our nation still has two competing narratives about the 2020 election. One is that Joe Biden legitimately won and that Donald Trump encouraged a false narrative, […]

Afghanistan

An Afghan American scholar describes his fear-filled journey from the chaos at Kabul airport to a plane bound for home in the US

The Conversation

By Hanif Sufizada | – Editor’s note: Afghan scholar Hanif Sufizada, who works at the Center for Afghanistan Studies at the University of Nebraska Omaha, got caught in Kabul during the chaos of the U.S. military pullout, when thousands of Afghans fled to the airport, seeking a way out of the country. Editor Catesby Holmes […]

Israel/ Palestine

Why Palestinian children under Israeli occupation do not Enjoy a Safe and Secure Life

Middle East Monitor

By Motasem A Dalloul | – More than 1.2 million Palestinian children in the occupied territories returned to their schools for the new academic year on 15 August. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA), most of them have been counting down the days and looking forward to schools […]

Afghanistan

Biden: After Trump-Taliban Treaty, Draw-down, Staying in Afghanistan would have Required a New War

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – President Joe Biden on Friday gave some further insight into his decision to leave Afghanistan, and refuted some of his critics’ talking points concisely and convincingly. Let me back up and explain that the Military-Industrial Complex spokespersons, like Gen. (ret’d) David Petraeus, criticized Biden for being unwilling to stay in […]

Afghanistan

Why Biden Is Right to End the War in Afghanistan

Peter Certo

Now our obligation is to those Afghans living with the consequences of our four decades of intervention

Afghanistan

Afghan troops sought safety in numbers – igniting a cascade of surrender

The Conversation

By Todd Lehmann | – The swift collapse of the Afghan military in recent days caught many in the U.S. by surprise, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In the months after President Joe Biden’s April 2021 announcement of the troop withdrawal, intelligence reports warned that the Afghan military might not fight […]

Nonviolence

As the US empire declines, what openings exist for progressive movements?

Waging Nonviolence

By George Lakey | – Hard as it may be to see beyond the chaos and suffering in Afghanistan, the larger picture reveals real opportunities for social change. ( Waging Nonviolence ) – The fall of Kabul with, once again, the hurried and chaotic departure of surprised Americans, has led to an abundance of hand-wringing […]

Afghanistan

Taliban Consider Iran-Style Supreme Leader as they Kill Three Protesters demanding Restoration of National Flag

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Taliban announced Thursday that they are considering a “leadership council” government for the country. But it sounds to me like a Sunni knock-off of the Khomeinist model in Shiite Iran. This in the wake of violent suppression of flag protests on Thursday that bode ill for any sort of […]

Archives for 2021