Author Archives

Keith Preston

All the WikiLeaks Fit to Print

Article by Robert Scheer. —————————————————————————————————– There is a craven disconnect between the eagerness of leading editors to exploit the important news revealed by WikiLeaks and their efforts to distance themselves from both the courageous website and Bradley Manning, the alleged source of documents posted there. Alleged is required […]

Military Kangaroo Courts

Article by Nat Hentoff. ————————————————————————————————- When President Obama and Eric Holder succumbed to fierce bipartisan resistance to trying Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and four other charged defendants – for the 9/11 massacre of Americans – in our civilian federal court system, they were defied by Michael Daly, a stubbornly […]

Palestine, the Arab Spring, and the Middle East Lobby

Article by Jack Ross. —————————————————————————————————– During the upheavals sweeping the Arab world, a common refrain among hawkish supporters of Israel has been that the Arab street is indifferent to the plight of the Palestinians, and thus the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not at the heart of Middle East troubles. […]

Were You Circumcised? New Passport Questionnaire Baffles Many With Absurd Info Demands

Hat tip to NATA-NY ———————————————————————————————— Who was present when you were born? Can you remember every address you’ve ever had? How about every place you’ve ever worked? Were you circumcised? What if I told you that those were some of the queries the State Department is proposing for […]

"I'll take the reactionary over the murderer, thanks"

This really sums up what’s wrong with the thinking of contemporary leftists. ———————————————————————————————————- Ron Paul is far from perfect, but I’ll say this much for the Texas congressman: He has never authorized a drone strike in Pakistan. He has never authorized the killing of dozens of women and […]

Europeans as Indigenous Peoples

From Asatru Folk Assembly. ————————————————————————————————— When we hear the phrase “indigenous people,” we think of Amazon tribes, pygmies in Africa, the Australian aborigines, and other groups around the planet. There are probably hundreds – thousands? – of such societies. Their plight is well-known. Indigenous peoples in Africa, Asia, […]

Fight Broadband Fascism in North Carolina

Thanks to Miles for this alert. ————————————————————————————————– North Carolina’s Senate Finance Committee is poised to take away the right of communities to decide for themselves if building their own broadband network is a good idea or not. If it passes out of this committee, it goes right to […]

Gary Johnson Announces 2012 Presidential Bid

Article by Tim Dionisopoulos. A clash between the Paulistas and the Johnsonians could prove interesting. Ron is the more radical of the two, but Johnson is the more culturally liberal. —————————————————————————————————- Gary Johnson, the former Governor of New Mexico, has announced that he will be running as a […]

Marxists and the right to self-determination

by Paul D’Amato from the Socialist Worker. ————————————————————————————————- WE MARXISTS are internationalists. “Workers of the world, unite!” was the call of Marx and Engels in The Communist Manifesto. “You have nothing to lose but your chains.” Does this mean, then, that Marxists turn their backs on national oppression? […]

Fanatics' fury at Muslim Playgirl

The shit’s hitting the fan now. ————————————————————————————————– And Islamic fanatics have posted threatening internet messages. Sila, raised in Germany by conservative Turkish parents, says she fears being “spat at” and “shamed”. Her parents are said to have reacted with “horror” at the 12-page coverage, and her mother has […]

Court Grants New Sentencing for Mumia Abu-Jamal

From Infoshop. I don’t know enough about this case to know whether this guy is guilty or not. But, hell, the dude’s already been on death row for almost thirty years. Some countries don’t even allow prison sentences longer than that. Give the guy a break. ————————————————————————————————— from […]

Steve Sailer on Atlas Shrugged

Read the review. ————————————————————————————————– Atlas Shrugged: Part I is the most universally despised movie of 2011, but I liked it. Critics hate this adaptation of Ayn Rand’s 1957 cult novel for predictable ideological reasons, while Randites are embarrassed that their exalted capitalist system failed to pony up the […]

Pacifism as Pathology

Stuart Bramhall on the great Ward Churchill. ——————————————————————————————— Pacifism as Pathology is a collection of essays centered around Ward Churchill’s original 1985 essay “Pacifism as Pathology: Notes on an American Pseudopraxis.” The premise of the essay is that the militant nonviolent stance assumed by the US progressive movement […]

No Masters, Not Even Ron Paul

Article by David D’Amato. —————————————————————————————————- Anarchists are assured that rival organizations for defense, without monopoly power or captive markets, would surely shoot it out in the streets, while the single, overarching authority that we have at present will act only for the common good. So although statists are […]

A Clash of Victimologies

A recently column of mine at Alternative Right. The worldview advanced by the “totalitarian humanist” strand of the Left tends to view human social life from the reductionist perspective of group conflict between “oppressed groups” and “oppressor groups.” But what happens when individual members of “oppressed groups” engage […]

Why I Became a Left-Libertarian

Essay by “Martin” at the Liberal Conspiracy. ——————————————————————————————————— As Libertarians across the US flock to cinemas to watch the film version of Atlas Shrugged (the film has a limited release and harsh criticism from everyone outside those who are already fully bought into Ayn Rand’s philosophy of corporate […]

The Partisan Temptation: US Foreign Policy and Presidential Politics

Article by Justin Raimondo. ————————————————————————————————– In terms of ideology, 19 percent of those who consider themselves “very liberal” support Obama’s Libyan adventure, and the number goes way up to 42 percent when we’re talking about those who see themselves as “somewhat liberal.” 32 percent of self-described “moderates” support […]

Race and Economics

Thomas Sowell discusses the work of Walter Williams. ————————————————————————————————— I can still vividly recall the response to one of Walter’s earliest writings, back in the 1970s, when he and I were working on the same research project in Washington. Walter wrote a brief article that destroyed the central […]

Drones Are Coming to America

Article by John Whitehead. —————————————————————————————————– The U.S. government has a history of commandeering military technology for use against Americans. We saw this happen with tear gas, tasers and sound cannons, all of which were first used on the battlefield before being deployed against civilians at home. Now the […]

America, Prison Capital of the World

Article by Stephen Cox. ———————————————————————————————– The California prison system, euphemistically known as the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, employs more people than any other state agency. It has 69,000 authorized positions. Between 1998 and 2009, its budget almost tripled, reaching $10.3 billion dollars in the latter year […]

The Bush Dynasty: America's Largest Crime Family

Lew Rockwell interviews investigative journalist Russ Baker. ————————————————————————————————- Investigative journalist Russ Baker updates what he uncovered in Family of Secrets about the Bushes with his responses to the former President’s best-selling book. In sum, Bush started a war under false pretenses, allegedly left the cockpit because of substance […]

DEA Agent Shoots Himself in the Foot…

Literally. Watch the video —————————————————————————————————- Last week a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit against the Drug Enforcement Administration by Lee Paige, the DEA agent who literally shot himself in the foot with an allegedly unloaded gun while talking about firearm safety to a roomful of Florida children—right after […]

Message from Colonel Mu'ummar Qaddafi

His side of the story. Obviously, we’re not going to get this from the MSM. —————————————————————————————————– In the name of Allah, the beneficent, the merciful… For 40 years, or was it longer, I can’t remember, I did all I could to give people houses, hospitals, schools, and when […]

Political Prisoner Leonard Peltier Medical Alert!

From the Leonard Peltier Defense/Offense Committee (LPDOC), Northwest Organizer’s Office. —————————————————————————————————- Native American activist Leonard Peltier, who was wrongfully convicted in connection with the shooting deaths of two agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1977, and has been imprisoned for 35 years, is in dire need […]

Ron is Running Again!

Richard Spencer gives us the news. I don’t think that trying to get “one of us” elected to the presidency is exactly the way to go…to say the least. But as Richard says in this piece, RP is one of the few public officials who is not a […]

Courtesy and Class Struggle at Jimmy John’s

From Infoshop.Org. I worked in bars and restaurants for fifteen years. This is standard practice in the “food service” industry. ————————————————————————————————– It may come as a surprise to those who have never worked in the food industry to hear that not only Jimmy John’s sandwiches, but also the […]

Is Money Too Cheap, or Too Dear? Both

Kevin Carson explains why. —————————————————————————————————– It’s ironic that left-wing money cranks like me and right-wing money cranks like von MIses’ gold bug followers have so much trouble getting along. Us left-wingers, or anyway those of us in the tradition of William Greene and Benjamin Tucker, argue that the […]

Urban Renewal and the Destruction of American Cities

Hat tip to Raven Warrior. Raven has some additional comments of his own at the American Indian/Alaskan Native Attack the System blog. —————————————————————————————————– Many of the ‘blighted’ neighborhoods targeted by urban renewal were in fact quite liveable places, safer and better-maintained than the average inner-city district today. The […]

The Big Disconnect

When even a neocon mouthpiece like David Brooks admits the system is losing its legitimacy, then the system must really be in trouble. Of course, Brook’s call for a return to the “vital center” establishment consensus of the 1950s is pathetic. See William Houston’s response to Brooks as […]

The Conservative Nanny State

Read Dean Baker’s book online. ———————————————————————————————— In his new book, economist Dean Baker debunks the myth that conservatives favor the market over government intervention. In fact, conservatives rely on a range of “nanny state” policies that ensure the rich get richer while leaving most Americans worse off. It’s […]

African Americans Rally Against Obama

From Press.TV ———————————————————————————————- Members of the New Black Panther Party and the Black is Back coalition converged in a neighborhood in DC’s Southeast quadrant for a National Day of Action, demanding attention to inequalities in education, housing and healthcare, a Press TV correspondent reported on Monday. Protesters were […]

Is Libertarian Socialism an Oxymoron?

From the Anarchist FAQ. ————————————————————————————————- Isn’t libertarian socialism an oxymoron? No. As discussed in section A.1.3, the word “libertarian” has been used by anarchist socialists for far longer than the pro-free market right have been using it. This in itself does not, of course, prove that the term […]

World Government Aborning

Article by Charles Coulombe. ————————————————————————————————- On a recent trip to New York, I did something radically different from my usual forays back to the city of my birth: I visited the UN headquarters. To be sure, my One-Worlder credentials are very poor; I did not even trick-or-treat for […]

Fair Trial for Manning Now Impossible

Article by Kevin Zeese. —————————————————————————————————- The credibility of the military justice system is being undermined by the prosecution of Bradley Manning. His abusive punishment without trial violates his due process rights, his harsh treatment in solitary confinement violates the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment, and now the […]

The Empire Goes Down

Eric Margolis interviewed by Scott Horton. Eric Margolis, foreign correspondent and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses how a NATO defeat in Libya would be political disastrous for Obama and Sarkozy – meaning they’ll fight on til the bitter end; why […]

Japan's Broken Windows

Article by David D’Amato. —————————————————————————————————— On Friday (April 22), Bloomberg reported that Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced plans for budget supplements targeted at rebuilding in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami. If the economic contentions of statists hold true, then costly crises like the one that […]

Is Georgia About to Execute an Innocent Man?

From the Police Brutality and Atrocity Blog. —————————————————————————————————— Since Troy Davis’ 1991 conviction, numerous facts have emerged that introduce significant doubt as to his guilt. These facts include: * All but two of the original witnesses against Troy Davis have signed affidavits recanting their earlier testimony. Most claim […]

In Egypt, Revolution Moves Into The Factories

From Infoshop.Org. ————————————————————————————————— Egypt’s popular revolution was launched from a public square. Now there’s an uprising on factory floors — with labor strikes across the country. Under the regime of former President Hosni Mubarak, many industries were privatized as Egypt turned from a state-controlled to a market-driven economy. […]

Being Dishonest About Abe

Article by Paul Gottfried. ———————————————————————————————— In what may be described as the Dell comic-book version of “the Civil War’s true beginning,” Allen C. Guelzo, seated as Henry R. Luce Professor of the Civil War Era at Gettysburg College (I’ll bet my hat that the neocons are paying for […]

Why They Died in Vain

Article by Laurence Vance. ————————————————————————————————- Since the beginning of the war in Iraq, I have unequivocally maintained several things about the deaths of U.S. troops. Every one of the 4,450 U.S. soldiers who has died so far in Iraq has died unnecessarily, senselessly, for a lie, and in […]

Exporting Tyranny through Foreign Aid

Article by John Glaser. —————————————————————————————————- Before the successful ouster of Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak, Tahrir Square was filled with chants and handcrafted picket signs pleading with the U.S. to stop funding Mubarak’s repressive government. Rubber bullets, shotgun shells, and teargas canisters were collected by the largely peaceful protestors […]

Washington on the Rocks: An empire of autocrats, aristocrats, and uniformed thugs begins to totter

Article by Alfred W. McCoy and Brett Reilly. —————————————————————————————————- In one of history’s lucky accidents, the juxtaposition of two extraordinary events has stripped the architecture of American global power bare for all to see. Last November, WikiLeaks splashed snippets from U.S. embassy cables, loaded with scurrilous comments about […]

When Dictators Fall, Who Rises?

Article by Pat Buchanan. ———————————————————————————————— One month before the invasion of Iraq, Riah Abu el-Assal, a Palestinian and the Anglican bishop of Jerusalem at the time, warned Tony Blair, “You will be responsible for emptying Iraq, the homeland of Abraham, of Christians.” The bishop proved a prophet. “After […]

Syrian Tinderbox

Article by Justin Raimondo. ————————————————————————————————— Syria, like Libya, is a make-believe “country,” that is, it is a “nation” created entirely out of whole cloth by the colonial powers, the borders of which correspond to no ethnic, religious, or cultural contiguity. Ethnically, it is a hodgepodge of Arab, Circassian, […]