contributions

As explained in a new book, Mission Rejected, the sight of U.S. troops kicking the heads of decapitated Iraqis around ’like a soccer ball’ made Army soldier Joshua Key desert to Canada.
By Peter Laufer
The following text is an excerpt from Peter Laufer’s new book, "Mission Rejected: U.S. Soldiers Who Say No to Iraq" (Chelsea Green, 2006).
"We was going along the Euphrates River," says Joshua Key, a 27-year-old former U.S. soldier from Oklahoma, detailing a recurring nightmare — a scene (…)

By ROBERT FISK
Could Haditha be just the tip of the mass grave?
The corpses we have glimpsed, the grainy footage of the cadavers and the dead children; could these be just a few of many? Does the handiwork of the United States’ army of the slums go further?
I remember clearly the first suspicions I had that murder most foul might be taking place in our name in Iraq. I was in the Baghdad mortuary, counting corpses, when one of the city’s senior medical officials, an old friend, told me (…)

It is absurd to demand that Tehran should have made concessions before sitting down with the Americans
by Jonathan Steele
It is 50 years since the greatest misquotation of the cold war. At a Kremlin reception for western ambassadors in 1956, the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev announced: "We will bury you." Those four words were seized on by American hawks as proof of aggressive Soviet intent.
Doves who pointed out that the full quotation gave a less threatening message were drowned (…)

By James Read
Bolivia’s president has given more than 30,000 square km (18,600 sq miles) of land to indigenous peasant communities under a programme of agrarian reform.
Evo Morales launched the programme after landowners walked out of talks with the government, warning they would take action to defend their estates.
Thousands of peasants gathered in the centre of Santa Cruz to see Mr Morales launch his agrarian revolution.
They cheered and waved rainbow flags symbolising indigenous (…)

Merco Press (Falklands)
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet announced Wednesday the firing of the head of the riot police and severely condemned the ’excesses’ committed by over-zealous Carabineros during the violent repression Tuesday in Santiago of protesting students.
"We will not accept condemnable acts such as those we saw yesterday" she said during a joint press conference at the presidential palace next to the head of the reporters’ guild, Alejandro Guillier.
Several journalists (…)

by John Nichols
Cultural conservatives, who have been busy of late trying to claim that the rebellious songs of The Who are other rock groups are really right-wing anthems, have misread America’s tastes in a major way when it comes to the Dixie Chicks.
Conservative politicians, pundits and political writers — from Georgia Congressman Jack Kingston to Media Research Council president L. Brent Bozell and bloggers by the dozen — couldn’t wait to trash Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire and (…)

Baltimore, MD - On Sunday afternoon, June 4, 2006, a Forum, which dealt with the topic of “Iraq, Iran and Militarism,” was held at the Cork Gallery. It is located near the historic Greenmount Cemetery. (1) The event was sponsored by the “Generations for Peace and Democracy,” a progressive group. The speaker at the affair was the popular anti-war activist, Kevin Zeese.
Zeese said, “We know that both parties are selling the country to the highest bidder. So, in a historical context, where (…)

by WILLIAM JOHNSON
Chances are you haven’t heard of Silver Capital, a small, now-defunct Chicago-based company that used to manufacture mirrors, frames and glass-cutting boards.
Silver Capital’s workers were mostly Mexican immigrants, working for substandard wages and zero benefits—no healthcare, no pensions, no sick days. And no matter what the auto companies tell you, manufacturing work is not fun. Silver Capital workers suffered severe injuries (fingers chopped off, limbs gouged) and (…)

Ford, UAW retirees spar in court over health insurance cuts
by Bryce G. Hoffman
DETROIT — Dozens of Ford Motor Co. union retirees were in federal court Wednesday to ask a judge to reject an agreement between the automaker and the United Auto Workers that would cut their health benefits to help ease Ford’s financial troubles.
The retirees argued that they were denied a say in the deal, which could cost them hundreds of dollars a year in higher health care costs.
Larry Bronson, a (…)

by Dave Zirin
In Colorado, there stands a holy shrine called Coors Field. On this site, named for the holiest of beers, a team plays that has been chosen by Jesus Christ himself to play .500 baseball in the National League West. And if you don’t believe me, just ask the manager, the general manager and the team’s owner.
In a remarkable article from Wednesday’s USA Today, the Colorado Rockies went public with the news that the organization has been explicitly looking for players with (…)