Category: US
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Blackwater owner Erik Prince gets blackballed by Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair publishes a detailed report Tycoon, Contractor, Soldier, Spy by Adam Ciralsky on Blackwater analyzing its founder Erik Prince where it has been revealed that Erik Prince and his company (Blackwater / Xe) may have more then $1 billion from government contracts during the George W. Bush tenure. Prince blames the newly elected democratic…
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Jermey Scahill talks about Blackwater on Democracy Now
Jermy Scahill, the defense analyst who recently published an article in The Nation, is interviewed by Amy Goodman on Democracy Now. Jermey Scahill says that when he was about to go to press with the article, he got some frantic calls from US Joint Chief of Staff General Mullen. He goes on to discuss the…
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Blackwater’s Secret War in Pakistan being Verified
Jeremy Scahill writes a must read detailed report on the operations of Blackwater in Pakistan. His extensive investigation naturally starts off from The White House which refused to comment or respond to his emails but a spokesperson from the US Department of Defense denied the presence of Blackwater in Pakistan to categorically say “We don’t…
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Open Letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Your Excellency, Allow me to apologize to you for not being able to be present during your address to civil society at the hallowed campus of Government College University in my beloved city of Lahore. Much as I would have wanted to benefit from the wisdom of your analysis and foresight, I could not make…
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Waziristan Strategy or Pakistan Strategy?
By Azhar Aslam Waziristan today has come to symbolize the paradigm in which Pakistan finds itself. An epicentre of ‘terrorism’, a symbol of ‘Talibanization’ and now a field for what has been euphemistically called ‘mother of all battles’. Pakistan and Waziristan were not always like this. How we have come to this pass is crucial…
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US official, Resigns in Protest questioning the American agenda in Afghanistan (& Pakistan)
Matthew Hoh, A former Marine Corps captain stationed in the Zabul province in Afghanistan tendered his resignation to the US Ambassador Nancy Powel, becoming the first U.S. official known to resign in protest over the Afghan war, which he had come to believe simply fueled the insurgency. “I have lost understanding of and confidence in…
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The Risks Of A Remote-Controlled War: CIA using Drones for International Assassination
Jane Mayer, a political journalist for The New Yorker discusses the ethics and controversies surrounding the CIA’s covert drone program, in which remotely controlled, unmanned planes target terror suspects in Pakistan. A 32 minutes interview on NPR [transcript] Mayer writes that unlike the military’s publicly acknowledged drone program in Afghanistan and Iraq — both official…
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David Rohde’s Insights Into What Motivates the Taliban: Held by the Taliban
David Rohde writes about the seven months he was held hostage by a group of extremist Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan and conveys this observation about what motivates them: My captors harbored many delusions about Westerners. But I also saw how some of the consequences of Washington’s antiterrorism policies had galvanized the Taliban. Commanders fixated…
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Laidback Show Episode 4 – @skdev
Show notes after the jump
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The Right to Refuse
Begging, as a profession could well compete with many others considered oldest on the list, with very similar characteristics. The first clink of coins falling in the begging bowl takes away one’s self esteem and any left over reluctance for all times to come. From here on, there is no looking back. One ceases to…
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K-L Bill – Yes or No?
‘Do you know why these suicide attacks are suddenly one the rise again?’ asked my friend. ‘No, but I guess you have a reason to justify them’ I replied in a cold manner, wondering when did the attacks actually slowed down. ‘Yes I know it is because of the Kerry Lugar bill. You know, these…
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Imran Khan discusses the “War of Terror” & “Pakistani Taliban”
Imran Khan presents a very logical perspective as to why this Army offensive does not necessarily mean an end to this war on terror. Collateral Damage which leaves more civilians dead in its wake will most definitely create more enemies then good. Credit: The Critic Magazine
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Abdullah Saad > Operation Rah-e-Nijat: An operational assessment
Abdullah Saad discusses the operational assessment of Pakistan Army’s offensive in South Waziristan Operation Rah-e-Nijat (Path to Salvation). A definite read to understand the dynamics of this offensive that Pakistan needs to take upon itself to possibly clean up the shit left by the Americans and their disastrous War on Terror
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US Joins Arms Trade Treaty but at a High Price
The United Nations is at the moment undergoing a very important debate on the Arms Trade Treaty which more or less has a very direct impact on the lives of everyone, specially in countries like Pakistan where there is an abundance of unregulated arms and ammunition. The Arms Trade Treaty is to control the conventional…
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Kerry-Luger Bill: Signing a Political Death Warrant
Kashmir policy, acquiring nuclear asset(s) and Army has been sensitive issues for Pakistan since its birth in 1947. Though there can be no disagreements that Army rule could not bring change by ridding corruption and opening flood gates of economic progress by sacking popular leaderships in their four trials in 1958, 1969, 1977, and 1999…