Eli Clifton discusses the Biden Administration’s Afghanistan study group, a panel of national security experts and former officers giving recommendations on whether the U.S. should get out of Afghanistan on the Trump administration’s withdrawal timeline. Some of these experts have recommended that we pull troops out soon, but the majority have counseled against a hasty withdrawal—which of course in practice could very well mean staying indefinitely. Clifton points out the obvious problem with this group: most of its members have current or former financial ties to the arms industry. Even if these experts aren’t giving recommendations solely on the basis of personal financial interest, their backgrounds at least indicate that they are the type of people who associate professionally with weapons manufacturers, and are therefore likely to hold views that are favorable to the those who plan and benefit from war.
Eli Clifton is a reporting fellow with The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute and a contributing editor for Lobe Log. Follow him on Twitter @EliClifton.
Ray McGovern talks with Scott about the lies and malfeasance of the national security state during the “Russiagate” fiasco. McGovern begins by rehashing the FBI’s lies that first led to a FISA warrant on Carter Page, who they failed to disclose to the court was already a CIA asset who was delivering them information about the Russians. McGovern also reminds us that Comey himself lied about the reliability of the evidence in the Steele dossier, which in private he revealed that he knew to be dubious. But of course the real target was always Donald Trump and his campaign all along, who could be easily spied on thanks to the “two hops” principle, by which almost anyone can become the target of “legitimate” surveillance according to the convoluted and malicious system of the national security apparatus.
Ray McGovern is the co-creator of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity and the former chief of the CIA’s Soviet analysts division. Read all of his work at his website: raymcgovern.com.
Scott interviews Gareth Porter about his coverage of the recent and widespread claims of a Chinese genocide of the Uyghurs. Many of these accusations have relied on the work of one man, Adrian Zenz, whose research Porter calls into question. Porter wrote a piece with Grayzone collaborator Max Blumenthal covering the many instances of data manipulation on Zenz’s part, all of which undermine the case that the Chinese government is perpetrating a genocide. To be clear, says Porter, China is an authoritarian regime with many instances of mistreatment of all its citizens. And the Uyghurs have, in some cases, borne a disproportionate amount of that abuse. But we have to be very careful in distinguishing truth from exaggerated claims by partisans and ideologues, who may have reasons for deliberately inflaming tensions between China and the U.S. Peace between these two countries, he reminds us, is absolutely vital for global security.
Discussed on the show:
“US State Department accusation of China ‘genocide’ relied on data abuse and baseless claims by far-right ideologue” (The Grayzone)
Scott talks to Ben Wizner of the ACLU about the ongoing Julian Assange saga. Assange’s attempted prosecution under the Espionage Act is practically unprecedented, says Wizner. While it’s true that many leakers of government secrets have been charged for violations of secrecy agreements, no journalist or publisher has ever been successfully prosecuted for putting those secrets out to the public. The Obama administration considered going after Assange, but realized that to do so would set a precedent that would also encapsulate the New York Times, the Washington Post and any other outlet that claims to conduct national security journalism. The Trump administration, on the other hand, apparently wasn’t concerned with that problem, and went after Assange anyway. Wizner and Scott just hope that mainstream journalists will realize what a problem it would be if Assange were convicted, not just for their livelihoods, but for American liberal democracy as we know it.
Nathan Robinson shares his story of being fired from the Guardian after posting a sarcastic tweet about Israel. After joking about the amount of military aid the U.S. government sends to Israel, Robinson was immediately labeled an anti-semite and swiftly fired from his position as a columnist at the Guardian. He is hardly the first to endure such treatment. Robinson points out how ironic the favorable treatment of the state of Israel is by world governments and the mainstream media, all while it is guilty of serious and ongoing abuses against the Palestinians. Criticism of Israel, on the other hand, even on the grounds of its human rights abuses, is quickly silenced.
Discussed on the show:
“How the Media Cracks Down on Critics of Israel” (Current Affairs)
Nathan J. Robinson is Editor-in-Chief of Current Affairs and a former columnist for the Guardian. Follow him on Twitter @NathanJRobinson.
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Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism by Scott Horton, A Video Adaptation Commentary by the author. Directed by Gus Cantavero. Access the full video playlist here. https://youtu.be/RLFe4xWvhR8?list=PLq2qhcVwTVJRQuCWXMVUM8SG2qYDFoPZA
Eli Clifton discusses the Biden Administration's Afghanistan study group, a panel of national security experts and former officers giving recommendations on whether the U.S. should get out of Afghanistan on the Trump administration's withdrawal timeline. Some of these...
Ray McGovern talks with Scott about the lies and malfeasance of the national security state during the "Russiagate" fiasco. McGovern begins by rehashing the FBI's lies that first led to a FISA warrant on Carter Page, who they failed to disclose to the court was...
Scott interviews Gareth Porter about his coverage of the recent and widespread claims of a Chinese genocide of the Uyghurs. Many of these accusations have relied on the work of one man, Adrian Zenz, whose research Porter calls into question. Porter wrote a piece with...
Scott talks to Ben Wizner of the ACLU about the ongoing Julian Assange saga. Assange's attempted prosecution under the Espionage Act is practically unprecedented, says Wizner. While it's true that many leakers of government secrets have been charged for violations of...
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