In Our Circles Archives - Page 27 of 62

South Africa: The Return of State Repression

by Jane Duncan | Jun 11, 2010

South Africans appear to have had their constitutional right to protest suspended during the 2010 World Cup, writes Jane Duncan, following a directive from the country’s police service (SAPS) to municipalities hosting matches. Skeptical of claims that the country does not have the capacity to police marches and the World Cup simultaneously, Duncan asks whether SAPS decision is motivated by ‘the need to remake South Africa’s brand in the international media as a land of peace, reconciliation and stability’, or if it reflects, more seriously, ‘an intensification of a recent trend towards suppressing the waves of protest action’ by the Zuma administration.

Obama Shakes Pillars of US Security

by Jim Lobe | Jun 3, 2010

In sharp contrast to the NSS released by president George W Bush six months before the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, the 52-page document underlined the limits of military power and the kind of unilateralism that characterized Bush’s first term, in particular.

American Denial: Living in a Can’t-Do Nation

by Tom Engelhardt | Jun 3, 2010

Back in 1966, the world was in debt to us. We were the high-tech brand you wanted to own. Here’s what I didn’t doubt then: that I would get a job. I didn’t spend much time thinking about my working future, because American affluence and the global dominance that went with it left me unshakably confident that, when I was ready, I would land somewhere effortlessly. So much of daily life would be predicated on, and tied to, the country’s economic power, cheap oil, staggering productivity, and an ability to act imperially on a global stage without seeming (to us Americans at least) like an imperial entity.

The Nuclear Posture Attack

by Robert Farley | Jun 3, 2010

In a May 11 Washington Times editorial, Frank Gaffney, Ed Meese, Clifford May, and four additional coauthors—all of whom represent institutions that form part of the hawkish extreme of the Republican Party establishment—called for a “renewed adherence to the national security philosophy of President Ronald Reagan: ‘Peace Through Strength.’”

Making the Invisible Empire Visible

by John Junkerman | May 26, 2010

It is the singular misfortune of the residents of Guam and the Northern Marianas to have been born on tiny islands of great strategic value in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The consequence has been their colonial subordination for four centuries to a succession of empires: Spain, the United States, Germany, Japan, and, since the Pacific War, the US again.

A State of Emergency in Paraguay: The Risks of Militarization

by Raul Zibechi | May 26, 2010

Since Apr. 26, a state of emergency has been in effect in five northern provinces of Paraguay, which represent a third of the nation’s territory. The government maintains that there is an active guerrilla presence in the region, although it has never been able to prove its existence. However, what is certain is that acts of violence have been committed by mafia organizations and the government is trying to resolve the situation through militarization.

Don’t Reward Violence in Iraq by Extending U.S. Troop Withdrawal Deadline

by Raed Jarrar | May 26, 2010

Washington pundits are still pushing Obama to delay or cancel the U.S. disengagement, calling on him to be “flexible” and take into consideration the recent spike of violence in Iraq. Hundreds of Iraqis have been killed and injured during the last few months in what seems to be an organized campaign to challenge U.S. plans.

Radio, TV Marti Seen as Bust

by Jim Lobe | May 21, 2010

Despite spending more than half a billion dollars over the last quarter century, U.S. government broadcasts to Cuba have gained only a tiny audience and have had virtually no effect on the island’s politics, according to a new report by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Multinational Oil, The US and Nigeria: A Crude Contrast

by Alex Free | May 21, 2010

In the wake of the environmental disaster caused by the 20 April explosion of BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig, the oil multinational was immediately pressured into providing adequate compensation by the US government. This is an experience palpably not shared by Nigerian people in the face of another multinational, Shell, in the country’s Niger Delta, writes Alex Free.

The Relentless Pursuit of Extreme Energy

by Michael Klare | May 21, 2010

It took President Obama 24 days to finally get publicly angry and “rip” into BP and its partners for the catastrophic oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico. What was he waiting for? The pattern has been obvious enough: however bad you thought it was, or anyone said it was at any given moment, it’s worse (and will get worse yet).