The Progressive June 15, 2016: Following the Orlando night club massacre, Trump attacked Hillary Clinton for refusing to label the violence carried out by a mentally-disturbed American-born gunmen of Muslim background as a manifestation of “radical Islam”… To her credit, Clinton rejected such bigotry. However, she called for returning to the “spirit of 9/12,” ignoring how that reaction to 9/11 resulted in a major crackdown on civil liberties and preparation for war…
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Morocco continues occupation of Western Sahara, in defiance of UN
National Catholic Reporter June 6, 2016: As Morocco continues to defy the UN, the International Court of Justice, and much of the international community in its continued occupation of Western Sahara, the United States continues supporting that autocratic government.
Reasons to oppose the proposed state anti-boycott bill
Santa Cruz Sentinel June 2, 2016: The California State Assembly is considering a bill entitled the “Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions of Recognized Sovereign Nations or Peoples Act” (AB 2844) that could lead to penalizing California businesses that boycott any country or any products from a particular country — even if the product is being made in a colony or occupied territory or if it is made under illegal, inhumane or environmentally deleterious conditions. It would also deny state or local government contracts to sole proprietorships who participate in such boycotts.
Africa’s Last Colony: Western Saharan Independence Movement Mourns Loss of Polisario Front Leader
Defending Israel’s Attacks on Civilians—A Harbinger for Clinton’s Presidency?
The Progressive May 26, 2016 and his May 29 Tikkun column:
Bernie Sanders’ appointees to the platform committee, Cornel West and James Zogby, plan to challenge the party establishment’s uncritical support for an increasingly aggressive, right wing Israeli government… Hillary Clinton has repeatedly gone on record defending the IDF’s conduct.
Turkey’s Creeping Authoritarianism: Is the Resistance Enough?
The Progressive May 13, 2016: Turkey’s march towards authoritarianism took another dangerous turn with the forced resignation of moderate Islamist Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, apparently at the insistence of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan… And he is becoming ever more autocratic.
Berrigan’s witness to nonviolence challenged church and nation
The National Catholic Reporter May 9, 2016
Also at Huffington Post, Corpus-blog.blogspot.com,
and the Resource Center for Nonviolence
Jesuit priest Father Daniel Berrigan, who died at the end of April, not only challenged the conscience of the Catholic church and the nation on the dangers of militarism and the need to affirm Christ’s teachings of nonviolence, he challenged those who oppose war to engage in direct action to stop it… Over the decades, I prayed with him, broke bread with him, was arrested with him, and discussed matters of politics, theology and movement-building. We did not always agree. Yet his warmth, his humor, his faith, his wisdom and his commitment always left me inspired…
Hillary and Bernie Part Ways on Israel
The Progressive April 18, 2016: In last week’s debate… Bernie Sanders reiterated both his longstanding position condemning Hamas rocket attacks on Israel and supporting Israel’s right to self-defense. But he also declared that the killing of nearly 1,500 Palestinian civilians by Israel during that fifty-day conflict represented a “disproportionate” use of force… But Hillary Clinton refused to acknowledge Israel had done anything wrong.
Hillary Clinton’s Iraq War vote still appalls
Hillary Clinton’s double standards on human rights
The US role in the Honduras coup and subsequent violence
The National Catholic Reporter March 14, 2016: Thousands of indigenous activists, peasant leaders, trade unionists, journalists, environmentalists, judges, opposition political candidates, human rights activists, and others have been murdered since a 2009 military coup ousted the democratically elected president Manuel Zelaya [who had] raised the minimum wage and provided free school lunches, milk for young children, pensions for the elderly, and additional scholarships for students. He built new schools, subsidized public transportation, and even distributed energy-saving light bulbs.
Syria after the Ceasefire
Boston Review, March 2, 2016
The partial ceasefire in Syria announced by the United States and Russia on February 23 has been met with less than overwhelming optimism, and, after so much bloodshed and the entrenchment of hardline positions, it is not hard to see why. The accord stipulates that the Syrian government and allied groups, including Russia, end attacks against opposition forces that are party to the agreement and these opposition forces suspend military operations. Both sides must refrain from seizing additional territory and allow “rapid, unhindered and sustained access” to humanitarian agencies. Even incomplete implementation would be good news for the Syrian people…
Bipartisan Congressional efforts to support Israeli settlements and expansionism
The National Catholic Reporter February 29, 2016: The expansion of territory by military force is prohibited under the U.N. Charter, and the Israeli settlements are considered illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention, a series of UN Security Council resolutions, and a landmark advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice…
Hillary the Hawk
The Cairo Review of Global Affairs, Winter 2016: Her hawkish views go well beyond her strident support for the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 and subsequent occupation and counter-insurgency war. From Afghanistan to Western Sahara, she has advocated for military solutions to complex political problems, backed authoritarian allies and occupying armies, dismissed war crimes, and opposed political involvement by the UN and its agencies. In Michael Crowley’s 2014 story in TIME, Obama administration officials noted how she was “skeptical of diplomacy with Iran, and firmly opposed to talk of a ‘containment’ policy that would be an alternative to military action should negotiations with Tehran fail.” Clinton disapproved of the opposition expressed by Pentagon officials regarding a possible U.S. attack on Iran because she insisted “the Iranians had to believe we would use force if diplomacy failed.”
On Hillary Clinton, Sexism, and U.S. Foreign Policy
Foreign Policy In Focus February 12 2016
After Bernie Sanders’ strong early primary showings, a few high-profile supporters of his rival Hillary Clinton have seized upon an explanation: sexism…
The Five Lamest Excuses for Hillary Clinton’s Vote to Invade Iraq
In These Times February 1, 2016: Also published in:
Common Dreams, Counterpunch, Consortium News, Democratic Underground, News.Alayham.com, Antiwar.com, Foreign Policy in Focus, My Trust In Conflict, Portside.org, RINF.com, Reddit, The Scott Horton Show radio, and referenced in other media. e.g., Mondoweiss.net.
The primary reasons Clinton gave for supporting President George W. Bush’s request for authorizing that illegal and unnecessary war have long been proven false. As a result, many Democratic voters are questioning — despite her years of foreign policy experience — whether Clinton has the judgment and integrity to lead.
Hillary Clinton’s strident opposition to the International Criminal Court
National Catholic Reporter January 18, 2016: Hillary Clinton’s support for Iraq war authorization effectively placed her in opposition to the UN Charter and the Nuremberg Principles forbidding such wars of aggression.
Panel discussion on top five international stories of 2015
Republican Candidates Defend Killing Civilians to Fight Terrorism—and So Do Democrats
The U.S. and the Rise of ISIS
National Catholic Reporter December 7, 2015
[and republished in Tikkun] The rise of ISIS (also known as Daesh, ISIL, or the “Islamic State”) is a direct consequence of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. While there are a number of other contributing factors as well, that fateful decision is paramount…