Chris Hedges and Andy Worthington: Over 17 Years of Detention and Torture at Guantanamo Bay Prison

Image by Victoria Pickering via Flickr

Dandelion Salad

with Chris Hedges and Andy Worthington

RT America on Mar 23, 2019

The most notorious U.S. detention site in the world, Guantanamo Bay, still holds 40 prisoners. Most of the 800 men shipped to Guantanamo Bay since it was opened under George W. Bush in 2002 were sold to U.S. forces for bounty by Pakistani and Afghan officials, militia and warlords. They were stripped of their legal rights, held for years without being charged or given a fair and open trial. Not only is the detention center a recruiting dream for radical jihadists, it costs American taxpayers $0.5 billion a year, roughly $11 million dollars for each detainee.

Howard Zinn: The Myth of American Exceptionalism

Image by Jagz Mario via Flickr

by Howard Zinn
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Originally posted June 9, 2010
June 11, 2018

Video Lectures
March 14, 2005

Running Time: 1:32:02

Americans have long embraced a notion of superiority, claims Howard Zinn. Governor Winthrop of the Massachusetts Bay Colony described establishing “a city on a hill,” to serve the world as a beacon of liberty. So far, so good. But driving this sense of destiny, says Zinn, was an assumption of divine agency—“an association between what the government does and what God approves of.” And too frequently, continues Zinn, Americans have invoked God to expand “into someone else’s territory, occupying and dealing harshly with people who resist occupation.”

Guantánamo, Torture and the Trump Agenda + The Hideous Pointlessness of Donald Trump’s Executive Order Keeping Guantánamo Open by Andy Worthington

Image by Stephen Melkisethian via Flickr

by Andy Worthington
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Andy Worthington, website, Jan. 25, 2018
February 7, 2018

I’m delighted that the video is now available of my speaking event, “Guantánamo, Torture and the Trump Agenda,” at Revolution Books in Harlem, which took place last week as part of my annual visit to the US to call for the closure of the prison on and around the anniversary of its opening — on January 11.

SPIN: The Art of Selling War (2004)

Image by Ted Swedenburg via Flickr

Dandelion Salad

Originally posted June 15, 2011

rushingfan on Jan 29, 2007

Directed by Josh Rushing, a veteran Marine Corps media spokesman, “SPIN: The Art of Selling War” is an investigative documentary that looks at the standard justification for going to war by the American administrations of past and present.

John Chilcot Finally Releases Iraq Inquiry Report

Image by Jasn via Flickr

Dandelion Salad

Chilcot Report critical of Tony Blair, British intelligence in lead-up to Iraq War

with David Swanson

RT America on Jul 6, 2016

After a seven-year-long investigation, Chairman of the Iraq Inquiry Committee Sir John Chilcot released his report on the United Kingdom’s role in the Iraq War. The Chilcot Report is highly critical of the UK’s intelligence services, saying they provided “flawed” information about Saddam Hussein’s alleged weapons of mass destruction. RT correspondent Polly Boiko has more on the report from London. Then, RT America’s Anya Parampil sits down with author and activist David Swanson, who says former British Prime Minister Tony Blair “knew very well” that WMDs did not exist in Iraq.

Have a Chilcot Fourth of July by David Swanson

Image by Jasn via Flickr

by David Swanson
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Let’s Try Democracy
June 28, 2016

This Fourth of July, U.S. war makers will be drinking fermented grain, grilling dead flesh, traumatizing veterans with colorful explosions, and thanking their lucky stars and campaign contributors that they don’t live in rotten old England. And I don’t mean because of King George III. I’m talking about the Chilcot Inquiry.

Who Stole The 2000 Election? (Hint: Not Nader) by Eric Ruder

Image by Elvert Barnes via Flickr

Dandelion Salad

by Eric Ruder
socialistworker.org
June 2, 2016

The myth that Ralph Nader “spoiled” the 2000 election and put George W. Bush in the White House is being resurrected. Eric Ruder remembers how it really happened.

WITH POLLS showing a much closer race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump than was originally expected, Clinton supporters are resorting to frantic warnings that Bernie Sanders could cause a replay of the 2000 elections–when, according to the standard narrative of what went down, Ralph Nader’s Green Party campaign put Bush in the White House.

Ten Revealing War Lies by David Swanson

Image by Rob via Flickr

by David Swanson
Writer, Dandelion Salad
telesurtv.net
April 13, 2016

Remarks prepared for event in Washington, D.C., on April 11, 2016.

Let’s look at ten revealing moments in the history of lying about wars to see what they tell us, and then I’ll be glad to try to answer any questions I can. These remarks will be published at TeleSUR.

Bush Urges Congress To Pass Bill Encouraging Americans To Drill For Oil In Their Own Back Yard + vid

Updated: added video

Satire

by R J Shulman
Dandelion Salad
featured writer
June 19, 2008

WASHINGTON – As a reaction to the rising cost of gasoline, President Bush urged Congress to pass his Protect Earth Bill, better known as the No Dinosaur Left Behind Act, which gives tax incentives to anyone who drills for oil in their back yard. “We need all Americans to throw their hand in the ring to help the energy crisis,” the President said, “so I’m not only de-banning the Democrat ban on oil expatriation that we need to have, but give a tax break to anyone who becomes their own backyard wildcatter.”

Bush’s Speech on Offshore Oil Drilling by Shelley Bluejay Pierce (+ video)

by Shelley Bluejay Pierce
featured writer
Dandelion Salad
June 11, 2008

President Bush speech today

Good morning my friends,

I have stopped doing my current research and writing on various topics today to address the recent speech given by President Bush just moments ago. I simply had to speak out and point out some key “media-spinning” that is going WAY over the top and many people may not realize that we are in a critical point here in the USA.

The World After Bush – Part II: Somalia By Liam Bailey

By Liam Bailey
featured writer
Dandelion Salad
Thursday, August 16, 2007

I said in a recent article that the U.S. arms sale to the gulf is a possible sign that a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq might be closer than Bush wants to admit. With all my conviction I say: there will be no U.S. victory in Iraq and eventually they will have to pullout, if not before Bush leaves office then sometime soon after.

Scholars Urge Bush to Ban Use of Torture

TheHuffingtonPost.com
June 25, 2007 07:33 PM EST