Grayling, A.C. (2009). Liberty in the Age of Terror: A Defense of Civil Liberties and Enlightenment Values. London: Bloomsbury In his 2009 book, Liberty in the Age of Terror: A Defense of Civil Liberties and Enlightenment Values, British philosopher AC Grayling sets out to do just what the subtitle suggests. He presents a case for civil libertarianism in a…

Su Progressive Review (“Two Types of Terrorism,” 7 dicembre), Sam Smith distingue due tipi di terrorismo: “Quello che usa armi e bombe e quello che usa le parole per terrorizzare la gente e convincerla ad accettare la volontà di chi sta al potere.” Ma tra i due tipi c’è una relazione, come dimostrano le relative…

At Progressive Review (“Two Types of Terrorism,” Dec. 7), Sam Smith breaks terrorism down into two types: “That which uses guns and bombs and that which uses words to terrify the public into going along with whatever those in power want.” But the two aren’t unrelated, as the respective domestic reactions to the Paris bombings…

Donald Trump’s indictment of the Bush II administration for failing to prevent the 9/11 attacks presents an opportunity for more of a bird’s eye view of American foreign policy in the Middle East, a policy that has killed many hundreds of thousands, maimed countless more, and laid waste to entire societies. As Peter Beinart reminds…

Every year, we’re subjected to another round of mawkish, smarmy 9/11 memorial ceremonies whose main purpose is to maintain loyalty to the very national security state whose aggression brought the terror attacks of September 11 on us in the first place. It’s all part of an endless cycle, repeated over and over, dating back to…

The Colbert Report‘s windup completes its namesake’s shift from the gadfly who tore into George W. Bush at an official White House event to the court jester who gave softball publicity to Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. It is thus the perfect symbol of the evolution of American liberalism from the tail ends of the administrations…

El resumen mínimo, parcial y fuertemente redactado del informe del Senado de Estados Unidos sobre el programa de tortura post-9/11 de la CIA ya es público. La recepción de ese informe por los medios tradicionales es al menos tan demostrativo de la problemática que aborda como el propio informe. Tal como lo diría amablemente cualquier…

È stato pubblicato un sommario minimo, parziale, fortemente censurato del rapporto che il senato americano ha redatto sul programma di torture della Cia dopo l’undici settembre. Il modo in cui i media di regime hanno accolto il rapporto illustra il problema in questione non meno del rapporto in sé. Come direbbe un tossicodipendente che cerca…

The US Senate’s minimal, partial, heavily redacted summary of its report on the CIA’s post-9/11 torture program is out. That report’s reception by establishment media turns out to be at least as demonstrative of the problem it addresses as the report itself. As any recovering addict will helpfully inform you, the first step is admitting the…

It is easy to criticise a government. Apologists and supporters defend it by claiming that they are doing the best they can, and they point to small token victories as evidence of progress. “Look at what this government has done for you”, they say, but my response is always, “is that it?” The ease of…

Nearly a century ago, after four bloody years of World War I, British colonialists created the state of Iraq, complete with their hand-picked monarch. Britain and France were authorized — or, more precisely, authorized themselves — to create states in the Arab world, despite the prior British promise of independence in return for the Arabs’…

On August 7th, President Obama announced his authorization of targeted strikes over Iraq in order to quell the ongoing Islamic State offensive. Just as important are the statements his administration has made through the actions that followed. The bombs actually started to fall on Friday, announcing without words that the US government’s policy of actively managing Iraqi affairs from afar…

U.S. bombs fall on Iraq yet again, in strikes authorized by Barack Obama against the militant Islamist group Islamic State, which has taken over a chunk of the country. Between this and the deployment of US military “advisers,” the memory of Obama’s campaign criticizing war in Iraq on his way to office has grown a…