Pentagon

( Tomdispatch.com ) – When, in his farewell address in 1961, President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned of the dangers of the “unwarranted influence” wielded by the “military-industrial complex,” he could never have dreamed of an arms-making corporation of the size and political clout of Lockheed Martin. In a good year, it now receives up to […]

Pentagon

Wars R Us: Our Best and Brightest have Warned us of Pentagon Propaganda Machine

William J. Astore

(Tomsdispatch.com ) – Put up with me for just a moment while I wax literary. It turns out that, if French novelist Marcel Proust lived today, he might have had to retitle his Remembrance of Things Past as Remembrance of Things Present, or even more sadly, Things Future. As an ex-military man who lived through […]

Iran

Iranian Aggression? Or American? Even Great US News Outlets can’t Escape Jingoism

Tom Engelhardt

Tomdispatch.com) – Headlined “U.S. Seeks Other Ways to Stop Iran Shy of War,” the article was tucked away on page A9 of a recent New York Times. Still, it caught my attention. Here’s the first paragraph: “American intelligence and military officers are working on additional clandestine plans to counter Iranian aggression in the Persian Gulf, […]

Pentagon

No, Neocons, it Isn’t Always 1939, and WW II wasn’t such a ‘Good War’

Andrew J. Bacevich

(Tomdispatch.com) – How best to describe the recently completed allied commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion of France? Two words come immediately to mind: heartfelt and poignant. The aged D-Day veterans gathering for what was probably the last time richly deserved every bit of praise bestowed on them. Yet one particular refrain […]

Climate Crisis

The Defense Dep’t is Open about Climate Crisis, but is a Major Emitter itself

The Conversation

By Neta C. Crawford | – Scientists and security analysts have warned for more than a decade that global warming is a potential national security concern. A U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet launching from the USS Theodore Roosevelt on full afterburner. U.S. Navy/Wikimedia They project that the consequences of global warming – rising seas, powerful storms, […]

China

Bolton may want War with Iran, but the Pentagon is Eyeing China

Michael T. Klare

(Tomdispatch.com) – The recent White House decision to speed the deployment of an aircraft carrier battle group and other military assets to the Persian Gulf has led many in Washington and elsewhere to assume that the U.S. is gearing up for war with Iran. As in the lead-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, U.S. […]

Pentagon

Bad for Memorial Day, Bad for America: Trump Must not Pardon War Criminals

The Conversation

By Andrew Bell | – As a veteran, I was astonished by the recent news that President Trump may be considering pardons for U.S. military members accused or convicted of war crimes. But as a scholar who studies the U.S. military and combat ethics, I understand even more clearly the harmful long-term impact such pardons […]

Pentagon

Our ~8,000 Military Dead in US Mideast Wars: ‘Words sacred, glorious, and sacrifice and the expression in vain’

Andrew J. Bacevich

(Tomdispatch.com) – Earlier this month, I spent a day visiting Marseilles to videotape a documentary about recent American military history, specifically the ongoing wars that most of us prefer not to think about. Lest there be any confusion, let me be more specific. I am not referring to Marseilles (mar-SAY), France, that nation’s largest port […]

Pentagon

Boondoggle, Inc.: Making Sense of the $1.25 Trillion National Security State Budget

William D. Hartung

By William D. Hartung and Mandy Smithberger | – ( Tomdispatch.com ) – In its latest budget request, the Trump administration is asking for a near-record $750 billion for the Pentagon and related defense activities, an astonishing figure by any measure. If passed by Congress, it will, in fact, be one of the largest military […]