Foreign Policy & War

Book Review: A History of Force

by George Leef June 1, 2004

A History of Force by James L. Payne (Sandpoint, Idaho: Lytton Publishing, 2004); 296 pages; $23.95. Tune in to most news broadcasts and you will probably hear one or more stories dealing with the use of force: armed conflicts in the Middle East; crimes; riots; and more. It often seems that we live in a violence-saturated world. Perhaps so, but political ...

The Pentagon’s Plunge into Barbarism

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 28, 2004

A British citizen, Jamal Harith, who was held in Cuba for two years without trial by Pentagon officials, is alleging that U.S. troops committed the same kinds of abuse in Cuba that they committed in Iraq — severe beatings, forced injections, sleep deprivation, shackling in painful positions, and sexual ...

A Tale of Two Free Countries

by Anthony Gregory May 28, 2004

It isn’t the best of times, but hey, at least it isn’t the worst. That’s the way the warhawks are defending the torture in Abu Ghraib prison and the disaster of Operation Iraqi Freedom. ...

The Bright Side of War

by Sheldon Richman May 24, 2004

In case you didn’t realize it, there’s a bright side to the death, destruction, and prisoner abuse going on in Iraq and Afghanistan: they’re good for the American economy. War creates jobs. At least that’s what lots of people think. The Washington Post recently helped to spread that impression ...

No Draft — Ever!

by Sheldon Richman May 5, 2004

Iraq has become a bottomless pit for American blood and treasure. (To the Bush administration, Iraqi casualties seem unworthy of counting.) Congress will provide the treasure, compliments of the taxpayers. But who will provide the blood? At the moment, there are not enough men and women under arms. ...

Rebuilding America: Foreign Policy

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 1, 2004

Ever since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the demise of the Soviet empire, it has been an article of faith among many Americans that an extensive overseas military empire and a massive domestic military-industrial complex are vitally important and greatly beneficial to our country. Being the world’s “sole remaining superpower,” it has been widely believed, enables the ...

Yamashita v. Styer, 327 U.S. 1 (1946)

by Justice Frank Murphy May 1, 2004

The following is ...

The Neocon War on Peace and Freedom, Part 2

by James Bovard May 1, 2004

Part 1 | Part 2 In their book An End to Evil: How to Win the War on Terror, David Frum and Richard Perle’s attitude towards civilian casualties shines through in their brief discussion of the UN sanctions imposed on Iraq from 1990 to 2003. During the first Gulf War, the United States intentionally destroyed Iraq’s infrastructure. A 1995 ...

Conservative Support of Darth Vader and the Empire

by Jacob G. Hornberger April 23, 2004

Isnt it fascinating that so many conservatives steadfastly remain committed to the imperial role that the United States now plays in the world, even while claiming to support the limited-government republic of our forefathers? Hundreds of thousands of imperial troops are stationed on hundreds of military bases in more than 100 countries. Cities ...

9/11 Could Have Been Prevented

by Sheldon Richman April 21, 2004

From Richard Clarke to Condoleezza Rice, the security establishment agrees on one thing: there was no sure way to stop the attacks of September 11, 2001. Maybe, maybe not. But if that is correct, it doesnt get the Bush administration and its predecessors off the hook. The very inability to prevent terrorism is a powerful argument against the interventionist polices ...

Bush’s Imperial Echo of General Maude

by Jacob G. Hornberger April 14, 2004

In his press conference last night, President Bush said, As a proud and independent people, Iraqis do not support an indefinite occupation, and neither does America. We're not an imperial power, as nations such as Japan and Germany can attest. We're a liberating power, as nations in Europe and Asia can attest as well. Unfortunately, the president continues to maintain ...

The Neocon War on Peace and Freedom, Part 1

by James Bovard April 1, 2004

Part 1 | Part 2 The main problem with Bush’s war on terrorism is that he has not attacked enough foreign regimes and not sufficiently trampled the privacy of the American people. Such is the thesis of David Frum, former speechwriter for President Bush, and Richard Perle, currently on the Pentagon’s Defense Advisory Board, co-authors of the new book ...