The Oliver Stone film "Snowden" is predictably being nit-picked by the denizens of the establishment, nevertheless those with a better understanding of what it means to live in a free society are calling it an important opportunity for average Americans to get a look at what living in a surveillance state looks and feels like. Thanks to NSA spying, the government collects virtually every bit of possible information on all of us, storing it for a later date so as to use against us if we run afoul of the powers that be. Today's Liberty Report is joined by former State Department official and whistleblower Peter Van Buren to consider how dramatically the world has changed since 9/11 and what we can do to work against encroaching tyranny. read on...
Last week’s announcement of a record-breaking US aid package for Israel underscores how dangerously foolish and out-of-touch is our interventionist foreign policy. Over the next ten years, the US taxpayer will be forced to give Israel some $38 billion dollars in military aid. It is money we cannot afford going to a country that needs no assistance to maintain its status as the most powerful military in the Middle East.
All US foreign aid is immoral and counterproductive. As I have often said, it is money taken from poor people in the US and sent to rich people overseas. That is because US assistance money goes to foreign governments to hand out as they see fit. Often that assistance is stolen outright or it goes to the politically connected in the recipient country. read on...
The latest from the Gallup Poll is that only 32 percent of Americans trust the print and TV media to tell the truth. Republicans, 18 to 49 year old Americans, and independents trust the media even less, with trust rates of 14 percent, 26 percent, and 30 percent.
The only group that can produce a majority that still trusts the media are Democrats with a 51 percent trust rate in print and TV reporting. The next highest trust rate is Americans over 50 years of age with a trust rate of 38 percent.
The conclusion is that old people who are Democrats are the only remaining group that barely trusts the media. This mistaken trust is due to their enculturation. For older Democrats belief in government takes the place of Republican belief in evangelical Christianity. Older Democrats are firm believers that it was government under the leadership of President Franklin D. Roosevelt that saved America from the Great Depression. As the print and TV media in the 21st century are firmly aligned with the government, the trust in government spills over into trust of the media that is serving the government. As the generation of Democrats enculturated with this mythology die off, Democratic trust rates will plummet toward Republican levels. read on...
Video footage appears to show US commandos fleeing a Syrian town under a barrage of abuse and insults hurled at them by fighters from the American-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebel group.
The video appears to be the first evidence of US special forces cooperating with Turkish troops in their battle against Islamic State (ISIS).
The incident illustrates the complex web of alliances and enmities in Syria, where many of America’s allies are fighting each other and some rebel groups that receive US support still harbour strong anti-American sentiments. read on...
Oh, it was a very big deal, one of those Defining Moments our media likes to chortle over. There was Libertarian Party presidential candidate Gary Johnson on “Morning Joe” being interviewed by a panel of pundits including Mike Barnicle. “What,” asked Barnicle, “would you do about Aleppo?”
Johnson looked puzzled, because he was: “And what is Aleppo?” he answered.
“You’re kidding,” said Barnicle.
“No,” said Johnson.
“Aleppo is in Syria,” explained Barnicle, looking and sounding both smug and incredulous. “It’s the epicenter of the refugee crisis.”
The media – which has finally realized that Johnson is taking more votes away from Hillary than he is from Trump – was all over this. Joe Scarborough declared – as if he were delivering a Papal Bull – that this automatically disqualified Johnson from any serious consideration as a presidential candidate. And the rest of the media pack followed suit: How could he not know about Aleppo? After all the propaganda about that poor little soot-covered boy, Omran Daqneesh, who was uninjured but very photogenic, and those dastardly Russians bombing those sweet innocent Islamic rebels – how could Johnson not know that Aleppo is the epicenter of the War Party’s latest attempt to drag us into yet another foreign war? read on...
The US military-industrial complex and the US mainstream media often describe the leadership of North Korea, headed by President Kim Jong-un, as crazy and irrational. But what could be more crazy and irrational than doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results?
What better way to describe the actions of the US national-security establishment and its loyal acolytes in the mainstream press whenever North Korea does something that they don’t like, such as engaging in underground nuclear testing?
In response to North Korea’s latest round of underground nuclear testing, the national-security establishment responded with its standard, predictable response by flying two B-1 bombers, flanked by several US fighter planes, right near the South Korea-North Korea border.
What’s that supposed to accomplish? Does the Pentagon really think that that’s going to stop North Korea from engaging in more nuclear testing? If so, one has to ask why Pentagon officials would believe that given that the last time they did the same thing, North Korea responded with another round of nuclear testing. read on...
US National Security Advisor Susan Rice met with her Israeli counterparts yesterday to sign an historic aid deal that will see $38 billion dollars shipped from US taxpayers for the Israeli military. In a press conference, Rice claimed that, [t]his MOU is not just good for Israel—it’s good for the United States. Our security is linked..." Today's Liberty Report is joined by former CIA officer Philip Giraldi to discuss how closely "linked" is US national security with Israeli security. Also, we discuss what a huge boon this will be for US defense contractors, who will supply all the military items to Israel... read on...
Snowden is a helluva movie, kicking an audience’s ass on a number of levels. I had a chance to see the film last night at a preview event; it opens everywhere on September 16. Go see it.
On one level the film presents Snowden’s story as a political thriller. A brave but frightened man, certain he is doing the right thing but worried if he can pull it off, smuggles some of the NSA’s most secret information out of a secure facility. He makes contact with skeptical journalists in Hong Kong, convinces them of the importance of what he has to say, and then goes on the run from a U.S. government out to arrest, or, possibly assassinate, him. read on...
The "new" ceasefire in Syria seems a lot like the one from earlier this year. This time, according to John Kerry, the Syrian government has to ask permission from the US before it bombs rebels in the country. In exchange the US has agreed (or not, depending on which official you listen to) to finally demand that the rebels it backs and arms separate themselves from al-Qaeda. While any cessation of hostilities is good, especially for civilians caught up in the tragedy, this agreement does not tackle the real underlying issues in Syria. Can it hold? We consider the possibilities in today's Liberty Report... read on...
There is considerable chatter about who will win in some of the hotly contested congressional races around the country, but one thing is certain: whoever triumphs will soon be receiving a nice all expenses paid luxury trip to Israel to learn all about Benjamin Netanyahu’s views regarding what more Washington can do to support him and his government. The “educational seminars” are organized by the Israel Lobby, more specifically by a tax exempt entity referred to as the American Israel Education Foundation (AIEF), which is a part of the hardline American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
Participation in the journey by all freshman congressman is not mandatory but is advisable if one wants to stay on the right side of the Lobby. In August 2015 the class of 2014 only had three abstentions out of 53 new congressmen when it traveled to Israel along partisan lines with a Democratic group followed shortly thereafter by a GOP contingent.
These orientation trips are in addition to the frequent taxpayer funded visits made by congressmen to update themselves on Israel’s expanding list of “needs.” One such recent excursion involved Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who enthused that “in a region consumed by terrorism and oppression, Israel stands out as a shining beacon of hope and freedom.” Congressman David Rouzer, also from North Carolina, observed that “Any attack on Israel of any kind is an attack on the American people. It was an honor for us to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.” read on...
