Rights

By Alfred W. McCoy | (Tomdispatch.com) – “The sovereign is he who decides on the exception,” said conservative thinker Carl Schmitt in 1922, meaning that a nation’s leader can defy the law to serve the greater good. Though Schmitt’s service as Nazi Germany’s chief jurist and his unwavering support for Hitler from the night of […]

Barack Obama

Against Torture: American Heroes who Indicted Cheney’s Dark Side

contributors

By Rebecca Gordon | (Tomdispatch.com) Why was it again that, as President Obama said, “we tortured some folks” after the 9/11 attacks? Oh, right, because we were terrified. Because everyone knows that being afraid gives you moral license to do whatever you need to do to keep yourself safe. That’s why we don’t shame or […]

Culture

Civilization’s Advance has depended on “Blasphemy” of Thinkers & Mystics

contributors

By Farhang Jahanpour The Wednesday edition of Charlie Hebdo (a week after the barbaric attack by two deranged terrorists on its premises) carried a cartoon of Prophet Muhammad, with a caption “Je Suis Charlie”, with a tear drop on his face announcing, “all is forgiven”. It is not clear who is forgiven and for what, […]

African-Americans

Ten Things You Should Know About Selma Before You See Oprah’s Film

contributors

By Emilye Crosby | (Zinn Education Project) In this 50th anniversary year of the Selma-to-Montgomery March and the Voting Rights Act it helped inspire, national media will focus on the iconic images of “Bloody Sunday,” the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the interracial marchers, and President Lyndon Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act. […]

Dissent

Online Freedom of Speech under Siege even in “Democracies”

contributors

By Jillian York | (Electronic Frontier Foundation) In the midst of the global surveillance debate, talk of online censorship has often taken a backseat. Yet, all around the world, the inalienable right to freedom of expression is violated on a regular basis. While in 2014, issues such as terrorism and online harassment generated new discussions […]

African-Americans

The Other Torture Report: What the USA looks like to the World

Rebecca Gordon

(special to Informed Comment) — At long last – despite the attempts at sabotage by, and over the protests of the CIA, and notwithstanding the dilatory efforts of the State Department – the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has finally issued the executive summary of its 6,300-page report on the CIA’s detention and interrogation program. […]

Bill of Rights

“President Authorized Torture Techniques”: Cheney and Rove throw Bush under the Bus

contributors

Cenk Uygur “The Young Turks” | — “”Former President George W. Bush knew about and authorized the CIA’s use of harsh interrogation techniques, such as waterboarding, sleep deprivation and other controversial tactics, according to Karl Rove, Bush’s former top political adviser. A report released last week by the Senate Intelligence Committee asserted that Bush was […]

Bill of Rights

3 Ways the Mainstream Media let the Gov’t off the Hook on Torture

contributors

By Rebecca Gordon | (Tomdispatch.com — American Torture — Past, Present, and… Future? Beyond the Senate Torture Report By Rebecca Gordon It’s the political story of the week in Washington. At long last, after the endless stalling and foot-shuffling, the arguments about redaction and CIA computer hacking, the claims that its release might stoke others […]

Bill of Rights

How Uncle Sam’s Reputation became Icky (Political Cartoon)

contributors

By James MacLeod via Facebook