Daily Articles

Food Stamp Politicians

by Laurence M. Vance January 24, 2012

Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich is in hot water for referring to Barack Obama as “the food-stamp president.” The NAACP and the National Urban League have sharply criticized Gingrich for saying that “the African-American community should demand paychecks and not be satisfied with food stamps.” In the FOX News Republican presidential debate held in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on ...

Beyond the DREAM Act

by Fergus Hodgson January 23, 2012

We’ve all heard of the policy centerpiece for immigration-reform proponents, the DREAM Act. The battle over this legislation, which would offer a path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants, has labored on for more than a decade now; but, rather than being enacted, the bill has failed repeatedly. Sadly, the legislative battle has stoked animosity instead of intelligent dialogue ...

Stopping the Rush to War against Iran

by Sheldon Richman January 23, 2012

A growing group of individuals and organizations has designated Saturday, February 4, as a “National Day of Action” aimed at preventing a war against Iran. The manifesto is simple: “No War, No Sanctions, No Intervention, No Assassinations.” Nothing is more urgent than stopping the march to war now underway. Economic warfare has begun already. Sanctions and embargoes are belligerent ...

The Road to the Permanent Warfare State, Part 9

by Gregory Bresiger January 23, 2012

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 |Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 |Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 |Part 12 |Part 13 In 1949, Harry Truman and Secretary of State Dean Acheson convinced Congress that the ...

A Fitting Symbol of the American Empire

by Sheldon Richman January 20, 2012

The image of four U.S. marines urinating on the corpses of Afghan fighters is a fitting symbol of American intervention in Central Asia and the Middle East. That picture will live forever in the memories of people in the region, along with the pictures from Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison. Most Americans aren’t much interested in making fine distinctions in foreign ...

The Jacob Hornberger Show – January 14, 2012

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 17, 2012

The Jacob Hornberger Show broadcasts live Saturday nights at 7pm EST. Visit FFF's Ustream Channel to watch the show live.

The American Press and War

by Tim Kelly January 17, 2012

There is a myth of an independent American press existing as a counterforce to government power. Unfortunately, the truth is less inspiring, especially with respect to the U.S. government’s wars, invasions, and foreign interventions. Rather than keeping the public well-informed, journalists and reporters have all too often served as conduits for government propaganda in the march to war. Sensationalistic “yellow ...

Is Ron Paul an Isolationist?

by Laurence M. Vance January 17, 2012

The word isolationist is a pejorative term used to ridicule advocates of U.S. nonintervention in foreign affairs, intimidate their supporters, and stifle debate over U.S. foreign policy. Throughout the twentieth century, opponents of U.S. intervention in foreign wars were smeared as isolationists. Conservative and Republican opponents of Congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul, although they may argue and fight among themselves, ...

Police Nondisclosure Rises to a New Low

by Wendy McElroy January 13, 2012

KOMO News reports (Jan. 4) that the City of Seattle is taking an attorney to court because he requested public records. The legal tug-of-war that will almost certainly ensue has national importance, not only because the lawsuit sets a precedent, but also because it is part of the city’s resistance to a Department of Justice (DOJ) attempt to rein ...

Be Careful What You Wish For

by Rich Schwartzman January 13, 2012

Mitt Romney’s recent comment about how he would repeal Obamacare if elected president was almost laughable. After all, Romney was the man who brought the same type of mandatory health coverage to Massachusetts when he was that state’s governor. Government healthcare has been a political issue for generations, and interest accelerated during the Clinton years, when it was called “Hillarycare.” ...

Opposing Imperialism Is Not Isolationism

by Sheldon Richman January 12, 2012

When pundits and rival politicians call Ron Paul an “isolationist,” they mislead the American people — and they know it. They know it? How could they not: Ron Paul is for unilateral, unconditional free trade. He believes any American should be perfectly free to buy from or sell to any person in the world. In that sense — the laissez-faire ...

The Permanent Injustice of Guantánamo

by Andy Worthington January 12, 2012

When the prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, opened on January 11, 2002, as part of the Bush administration’s global “war on terror,” in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, it was not immediately apparent that it was a dangerous aberration from recognized laws and treaties that would tarnish America’s name for years to come. There had been ...