Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger
The issues discussed on this blog are wide-ranging even though at base we are all about upholding the Constitution and ensuring civil liberties. The disputed election of a President began this millennium in controversy, underlined by a horrific terrorist attack and the prosecution of two unnecessary wars. These wars have lasted longer than any other American war save for the Viet Nam debacle. They have resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of civilians, more than eight thousand of our troops, tens of thousands of soldiers with crippling injuries and unprecedented suicide rates among both active and inactive members of our armed forces. Trillions of dollars have been wasted on these adventures in the imperialistic pursuit of empire and no end is in sight, although our complicit corporate media has ceased to find interest in coverage of the continuing devastation.
As we know the linchpin for these phony wars was the attack on 9/11 by a team of Saudi Arabians purportedly working for Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda. However, the blueprint for this endless quest for America Hegemony was made public in 1997 with the publishing of the manifesto for the Project for the New American Century (PNAC). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_for_the_New_American_Century . This conceptualization laid out plans for a putative American Empire and its’ signatories prominently included those who would become part of the administration of George W. Bush. A list of those signatories will continue after the page break, with the most prominent in bold links.
Project for the New American Century Signatories:
Name Position(s) held Elliott Abrams Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Democracy, Human Rights, and International Operations (2001–2002), Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Near East and North African Affairs (2002–2005), Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Global Democracy Strategy (2005–2009) (all within the National Security Council) Richard Armitage Deputy Secretary of State (2001–2005) John R. Bolton Under-Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs (2001–2005), U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (2005–2006) Dick Cheney Vice President (2001–2009) Eliot A. Cohen Member of the Defense Policy Advisory Board (2007–2009)[62] Seth Cropsey Director of the International Broadcasting Bureau (12/2002-12/2004) Paula Dobriansky Under-Secretary of State for Global Affairs (2001–2007) Aaron Friedberg Deputy Assistant for National Security Affairs and Director of Policy Planning, Office of the Vice President (2003–2005) Francis Fukuyama Member of The President’s Council on Bioethics (2001–2005) Zalmay Khalilzad U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan (11/2003 – 6/2005), U.S. Ambassador to Iraq (6/2005 – 3/2007) U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (2007–2009) I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby Chief of Staff to the Vice President of the United States (2001–2005) Richard Perle Chairman of the Board, Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee (2001–2003) Peter W. Rodman Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security (2001–2007) Donald Rumsfeld Secretary of Defense (2001–2006) Randy Scheunemann Member of the U.S. Committee on NATO, Project on Transitional Democracies, International Republican Institute Paul Wolfowitz Deputy Secretary of Defense (2001–2005) 10th President of the World Bank (2005-2007) Dov S. Zakheim Department of Defense Comptroller (2001–2004) Robert B. Zoellick Office of the United States Trade Representative (2001–2005), Deputy Secretary of State (2005–2006), 11th President of the World Bank (2007–Present). And in addition: John Ellis “Jeb” Bush
Many of these people today are closely connected to the Romney Campaign as foreign policy advisors and indeed Romney’s foreign policy designs seem to dovetail nicely with those of the “now defunct” PNAC. Perhaps it is not surprising that the Romney websites’ section on foreign policy is titled: “An American Century” http://www.mittromney.com/collection/foreign-policy . If you follow the links for both PNAC and for the Romney Campaign you will see almost identical policy aims and an overlapping cast of characters.
Now it is well known on this blog that I personally support Barack Obama for President so I understand that some will call me to task for my hypocrisy in doing so, since I decry the similarities between Obama’s foreign policy, his predecessor’s and indeed PNAC. In this respect my views do not represent those of this blog, its proprietor and even other guest bloggers. To the hypocrisy charge I have two responses:
The first is that my concerns in this coming election focus primarily on domestic policy, women’s rights, gay rights, prejudice against non-whites and finally upon the inequality represented by the privileges of the 1% of our country and the economic oppression of the remaining 99%. In this respect I believe the chasm between the policies of the two candidates is immense. Secondly though, It has been my long time belief that since the “60’s” United States Foreign Policy has been under the control of the 1% as represented by the Military/Industrial/Corporate Complex and thus is out of the hands of any given President. With the George W. Bush Administration this power came to fruition via the response to 9/11 and in panicked legislation like the “Patriot Act”. I believe that President Obama’s power has been limited by the cabal that took charge of our country after JFK’s assassination and whose successors continue to wield power extra-legally. I made that clear in this guest blog from 3/17/12. http://jonathanturley.org/2012/03/17/a-real-history-of-the-last-sixty-two-years/#more-46802
Today the steady drumbeat to attack Iran and to replace the regime in Syria is played out by a press coverage that laps up the propaganda about these countries and our duty to intervene in them, fed by people considered being the “serious people” of US foreign policy. I hold no brief for either Iran or Syria, which are countries run by despots and where human rights simply don’t exist. However, the country that equals their human rights abuses and their despotism is to my mind our closest ally in the Middle East, namely Saudi Arabia. The horrific excesses in the Sudan and in Namibia recall The Shoah, yet we feel no compunction to intervene there. Please also don’t get me started on the North Korean despots and their nuclear weapons, which because of their poverty and lack of oil fall off the radar of those who would have the US be the “world’s policeman”.
What started me in the direction of this guest blog was a video supplied by Russ Baker’s superb investigative website WhoWhatWhy http://whowhatwhy.com/ The video is of former General Wesley Clark, from 2007. General Clark http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wesley_Clark_presidential_campaign,_2004 discusses the fact that his contacts in the Pentagon over a period of years beginning in 1999, told him that US Military Policy was the imposition of American Hegemony and the replacement of the governments of Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Syria and other countries in the interests of US economic and military power. He connects this “secret” policy with PNAC and their belief that the US should become an Imperial Empire. I would urge you to spend the time to hear General Clark’s point of view and then comment on its validity.
My personal belief is that our country is heading towards becoming a feudalistic empire in the model of ancient Rome. The Romans were masters of warfare and of engineering. With the most powerful armed forces of their time they created an empire almost matchless in world history and imposed their pax romana on a vast geographical scale. While in high school this was taught as a “good thing” for the backward barbarians of the world, the reality was it was an empire built upon cruelty, venality, and oppression, whose citizens were distracted by bread and circuses. I despair at times when I see the similarity between the Roman Republic that Caesar turned to Empire and to the American Republic that those behind PNAC are trying to turn in the same direction. This is occurring as we citizens are caught up in sports, celebrities and TV reality shows, as we decry our dwindling economic power and the growing unimportance of our opinions influencing our government. In this guest blog I’ve tried to make available the foundation on which my opinions are built with the hope that if this topic is of interest to you that you will follow the links to see whether you agree, or disagree with me. As we count down to another important election, we see that this imperialism is an issue that gets almost no coverage, I present this blog lest we forget those whose lives have been coldly sacrificed in this despicable and unnecessary enterprise, whose ultimate aim is imperial power.
Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger
What is PNAC? Ís that “Northwood” or some conference where Cheney blew the neocon script line, as the story is told? Or???? Or do I have to re-read the whole blog?
Yeah, I know, I might learn something new. Said with self-irony. BTW, thanks for the links. Did not reslize that we readers might gain from reading them.
Lots to learn.
Woody,
Had already put it into my cart to save for thumbing through it before purchase. Style, facts, choice of areas, readability (ability to tell a yarn) are important. But then I might read Chomsky anyway, even if he is hard to chew. Thanks for the effort anyway.
What’s your take on Ellsberg’s “Secrets”?
lotta,
Years ago I read The Persistence of Vision, then stumbled onto PRESS Return. Read one of his stories last night. “Options”. Have you read it?
M.S. said:
“Bill McW,
Where did I say I believed in 9/11?”
Who said that you BELIEVE in 9/11? Not me, but it does sound like you believe the Official 9/11 conspiracy theory. You pretty much SAID you do.
BillMcW,
I think you project your own suppositions onto me. I’ve been consistent in not believing the “official positions” on anything. That PNAC in 1997 seemed to foreordain 9/11 is highly suspicious. If you followed the links in this piece you would have seen why I suspect the official story. However, I laid it out for you, but if you don’t want to do the legwork I suggested then that is your problem.
US FUNDS THE TALIBAN????
One of the most important issues today is the war in Afghanistan-Pakistan and the fact that US
Military Aid to Pakistan is being used to fund the Pakistani ISI which is in turn funding Taliban
and Al Quada fighters. While this has been reported sporadically in the media for whatever
reason political pundits on the left and right have effectively ignored this issue.
Joe Klein in an article for Time, August 9, 2010, p. 19, has written an article that every American
citizen should go to their library and read, he writes,
“The commanders are unanimous in their belief that the ISI is running the show….And so,
despite professions of alliance with the US by Pakistan’s then dictator Pervez Musharraf, a
decision was made to keep the Taliban alive. A spigot of untargeted military aid from the George
W. Bush Administration helped fund the effort. A commander of the vicious Haqqani Taliban
network tells Waldman that their funding comes from ‘the Americans–from them to the
Pakistani military, and then to us.’ Waldman reports that the commander receives from the
Pakistanis ‘a reward for killing foreign soldiers, usually $4000 to $5000 for each soldier killed'”.
American tax dollars if not directly, then indirectly are being used to fund the Taliban and put
a bounty on American boys and girls head… Makes one wonder why the establishment right
or left is not reporting on this? If the right is covering for
the mistakes of the Bush administration…why is the establishment left not reporting on this???
…this is the most important issue of the day…we will never win a war where if not directly then
indirectly the US is funding the opposition!!!!
woody voinche
Thanks Idealist…every paragraph is documented by citing Newsweek, Time,
the NYT, Wall Street Journal, etc and various books have been cited on each page, Yes i have been harrassed by the FBI and/or other governmental agencies…the bugging of phones and my home and have tried to bring false charges and i have filed a number of FOIA, Privacy Act , FRA, constitutional lawsuits on this and have tried to get Mr. Turleys advice…
The book is on … http://www.amazon.com … type in my name and sample pages are available citing sources….Thanks
Pete, You know how movies that include time travel generally have some special effect to denote the end of a time-jump, something to visually cue the moviegoer that the action now resumes in real time regardless of what that time frame is? Having spent most of my life reading Sci-Fi and being a great fan of William Gibson, Bruce Stirling, John Brunner, John Varley et al, I sometime feel as if that effect is actually happening all around me. An article here, a TV report there, then more articles and reports until they become commonplace and viola! the future (as speculated) is now, anticipation merges with actuality. It’s enough to give one the vapors. 🙂
Woody,
Assuming it is true what you say here and write in your book, how did you research all this? And why haven’t you been taken out?
I can generally assume you may be right, just from knowing that the simple stories we are told are always lies.
Your constructive criticism of my book …MidEast ChessBoard..
on Amazon
This book is an overview of the major events that have
contributed to the history of three major countries in the
mideast: Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan. From the coup d’etat
that brought about the downfall of Mossadeq and the rise
to power of the Shah of Iran; to the arming of the Shah and
his final downfall(with Iranian Air Force General Rabii telling his
Judges…;General Huyser threw the Shah out of the country
like a dead mouse;); the hostage crisis in Iran and the use
of this event by both Republican and Democratic groups in
what became known as the October Surprise; the rise and
arming of Saddam Hussein and the part played by western
interests; the US support of the mujahadeen in Afghanistan
and the role played by Bin Laden and other Islamists culminating
in the breakup of the Soviet Union; the Islamist group on
the periphery of the Alkifah Refugee center in New York and
the 1993 World Trade Center bombing; the events leading up
to 911 and the evidence suggesting the Intelligence agencies
had advanced knowledge of this event; And the evidence that
US forces have had the opportunity to eliinate top al Qaeda
and Taliban forces in Afghanistan and Iraq but for whatever
reason have failed to do this…
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=woody+voinche&x=14&y=18
Simon, omg, you drank the koolaid. Saddam Hussein got rid of all his WMD (most furnished by the US, Carlyle Group specifically) and was cooperating with the inspectors.
Since the Iranians overthrew the US installed shah, that country has been in the cross hairs of the US and some of its allies. Woe be to any country that lifts its middle finger to the US, the only country to ever use nuclear weapons against an enemy. My suggestion would be to let Iran alone and stop threatening. The US could stop implementing the neo-con strategy for a global empire.
Hussein had spent the best part of the decade (since his invasion of Kuwait) obfuscating every single attempt by nuclear watchdogs to try and make sure he wasn’t building a nuclear arsenal.
Iran is no longer even working with the inspectors.
The prospect of either these gaining nuclear weapons was and should be simply terrifying to any sane, rational person.
We already have two totally mad states armed with nuclear weapons (Pakistan and NK). We must do everything in our power to stop the spread of these weapons and especially so to theocratic regimes like Iran.
I hereby challenge you, MikeS, to come up with a strategem that will effect the desired outcome. How will you achieve what so many experts have failed to over the many decades of dialogue with Iran?
Simon,
Your premise is false as Bettykath explained.
pete,
give us a 3-line resumé please. you know, politician screws citizen……type. is there a shorter trip. Don’t have money to pay for 5 hours…..maybe an hour.
Was it worth it?
I couldn’t agree more with Spindell’s article. It’s also important to note how extreme the lengths our government has gone through to ensure our “safety.” So far, all their work has done is make it unnecessarily difficult to fly to freaking New York. Now both the TSA and airline staffers have become so intoxicated by their power that stories like this one have become the norm instead of the exception: http://lawblog.legalmatch.com/2012/08/24/delta-airlines-tsa-tolerance-policy-joke-t-shirts/
LK
spent the last 5 hrs wandering down the yellow brick road from your links. a lot more to that than i realized.
Great article Mike. The Romney foreign policy “team” is Bush part Two.
M.S.
You really should learn something about 9/11 before you buy into the official hoax hook line and sinker. Or do you just pretend to believe the 9/11 fairy tale for fear that if you don’t pretend to believe it, you’ll stop being invited to post your own long-winded sermons here?
Dredd….
HAHAHA… 😀
Bill McW,
Where did I say I believed in 9/11?
Idealist707 and Gurl,
Get a woom … 😉
Pete, From the reports available China and Russia usually goes after information that can help them economically and we use attacks (Iran, Afghanistan, contemplated use in Libya) for military actions. As to a US counter attack, well, there is either a big carrot or stick in play (2nd link) and we may already be counter-attacking. If so, the Chinese aren’t going to say anything and neither is the US IMO.
If the blackouts were of Chinese origin I think between that and Stuxnex there may have been an attempt to communicate the relative levels of potential threat between the parties since Iraq is a Chinese and Russian ally. Stuxnex and the blackouts happened about the same time as I recall and the later water plant incident looks like a ‘we can do hat kind of thing too’ message since a method similar to the workings of Stuxnet burned out the pumps at the water station. If an attack even happened.
It’s a strange new world out there,
“FBI and Homeland Security launch probe as foreign cyber attackers target U.S. water supply”
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2063444/Cyber-attack-US-water-supply-traced-Russia-FBI-Homeland-Security-launch-probe.html
“US and China Team Up to Stop Cyberattacks”
http://mashable.com/2012/05/08/us-china-cyberattacks/
BettyKath,
You are correct in comparing Assange to a newspaper publisher, and he did didtribute his news via NYTimes, etc. My mention of Ellsberg is too a corroboration of the need for a “leaker”. Ellsberg had his way, and but for clumsy prosecutorial moves would probably be in prison today.
If Wikileaks dsappears, new ones should spring from the movement if they don’t break Assanges silence through torture to take out those experienced in running such an organization.
LK
since cyber attacks constitute an act of war i wonder when we are going to attack. http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2008/05/did-chinese-hackers-cause-us-blackouts/53331/