Category Archives: military

State Treasurer Frerich’s Investments are Unpopular and Immoral

In March, community organizers from Champaign-Urbana launched a local campaign to demand an end to Illinois’s investments in corporations supporting Israel’s genocide against the people of Palestine, including Illinois’s direct purchase of Israel Bonds. The local effort joins a statewide … Continue reading

 1,190 total views,  1 views today

Posted in divestment, Gaza, International, Israel/Palestine, Middle East, military, Peace movement, Section, War | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on State Treasurer Frerich’s Investments are Unpopular and Immoral

UIUC Engineering Open House

This year the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s Engineering Open House 2025 was expecting 40,000 visitors April 4 and 5. Designed to showcase the talents and research of students in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields, the theme this year … Continue reading

 559 total views,  1 views today

Posted in AI, Big Tech, Gaza, Israel/Palestine, Middle East, military, Music, Section, University of Illinois, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on UIUC Engineering Open House

Bombing Iran Might Bring on Regime Change—Just Not in Iran — Print Version

For decades Iran has been the gremlin in the American global imagination. US officials claim that Iran is the main source of instability in the Middle East, allowing them to dismiss any opposition to US or US allies’ policies as … Continue reading

 498 total views,  2 views today

Posted in International, International, International law, Iran, Middle East, military, Section, War | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Bombing Iran Might Bring on Regime Change—Just Not in Iran — Print Version

Bombing Iran Might Bring on Regime Change—Just Not in Iran — Full Version

For decades Iran has been the gremlin in the American global imagination. US officials claim that Iran is the main source of instability in the Middle East, allowing them to dismiss any opposition to US or US allies’ policies as … Continue reading

 692 total views,  1 views today

Posted in International, International, International law, Iran, Middle East, military, Section, War, Yemen | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Bombing Iran Might Bring on Regime Change—Just Not in Iran — Full Version

Going Dark in Afghanistan

In April President Biden announced he was “ending America’s longest war” by bringing US troops home from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021. If only this war were that simple. Biden isn’t really ending the war in Afghanistan, of course: he … Continue reading

Posted in International, International, military, War | Comments Off on Going Dark in Afghanistan

Counting the Costs of War

“The refugee crisis” is a big and scary concept, but to many of us it is just that, conceptual. However, a September 2020 study has found that between 37 and 59 million people from 12 different countries have been displaced … Continue reading

Posted in Foreign Policy, military, Refugees, War, World-wide death and suffering | Comments Off on Counting the Costs of War

Attacks on the Campus Left Then and Now: Fighting Student Activists on Illinois’ Campus in the 1930s

In the 1930s, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was home to a thriving anti-war and anti-imperialist community of different radical, socialist, and communist groups. The National Student League (NSL), later called the American Student Union (ASU), the Communist Youth … Continue reading

Posted in African Americans, Alt-Right, military, Students, University of Illinois | Comments Off on Attacks on the Campus Left Then and Now: Fighting Student Activists on Illinois’ Campus in the 1930s

Hiroshima 1945 and the Threat of Nuclear Catastrophe

“The unleashed power of the atom has changed everything save our modes of thinking, and thus we drift toward unparalleled catastrophe.” – Albert Einstein, 1946. “To hell with these maniacs.” – Premier Nikita Khrushchev, talking about his military advisors during … Continue reading

Posted in Cuba, Foreign Policy, Hiroshima, military, Nuclear War | Tagged , | Comments Off on Hiroshima 1945 and the Threat of Nuclear Catastrophe

The Honduran Crisis: Not Quite Your Father’s Oligarchy…

By Janice Jayes At first glance the political crisis in Honduras seems depressingly familiar: a military coup against a left-leaning President in 2009, continued repression of opposition groups, and now a Presidential election so full of irregularities that demonstrators refuse … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Environment, Honduran Election 2017, Human Rights, International, Land, military | Comments Off on The Honduran Crisis: Not Quite Your Father’s Oligarchy…

The U.S. Military in Africa: a Workshop for the Militarization of Foreign Policy

By Janice Jayes After four American servicemen were killed in in Niger in October, social media discussion fixated on President Trump’s insensitive remarks to the widow of one of the slain soldiers and questions about the logistics surrounding the unlucky … Continue reading

Posted in Africa, Foreign Policy, International, military | Comments Off on The U.S. Military in Africa: a Workshop for the Militarization of Foreign Policy

Congress must end American support for Saudi war in Yemen

By Mark Weisbrot The New York Times editorial board recently took an unusual position of denouncing what it called “war crimes” by a U.S. ally, in a war in which the United States is actively participating militarily. “Saudis try to starve … Continue reading

Posted in International, Middle East, military, Politics | Comments Off on Congress must end American support for Saudi war in Yemen

The 2018 U.S. Militarized Budget

The 2018 U.S. Militarized Budget My premise is that the military budget, as proposed by the current administration, is a principal reason for the strangling of our civil society. This article explains why it is unnecessary, why it is promoted, … Continue reading

Posted in Economy, Foreign Policy, Middle East, military | Comments Off on The 2018 U.S. Militarized Budget

OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND, THE HIDDEN COSTS OF WAR

“War is a racket!” This was a famous quote from retired U.S. Marine Corp General Smedley Butler in 1934. Butler stated that “I spent 33 years in the Marine Corp, most of my time being a high-class muscle man for … Continue reading

Posted in Economy, Environment, Foreign Policdy, Foreign Policy, labor, Middle East, military | Comments Off on OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND, THE HIDDEN COSTS OF WAR

Foreign Relations, Domestic Security, and the Trump Era

The foreign policy outlook for the near future is bleak, but not just because of the incoming Trump administration’s proposals. Trump’s public statements about rolling back U.S. investments in “soft” issues like human rights or economic development, abandoning multilateral obligations … Continue reading

Posted in 2016 election, International, military, Trump | Comments Off on Foreign Relations, Domestic Security, and the Trump Era

Independence Day 2016

We have just celebrated the independence of our nation with fireworks and other reminders of the “glories” of war. Only a few weeks ago I saw our president laying a wreath at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Somehow it doesn’t … Continue reading

Posted in military, Politics | Comments Off on Independence Day 2016

Alternative to U.S.-Led War

Sarah Lazare is a staff writer for Common Dreams and an independent journalist whose work has been featured in The Nation, Al Jazeera, TomDispatch, Yes! Magazine, and more. She is also an anti-militarist organizer interested in building people-powered global movements … Continue reading

Posted in military, Politics | Comments Off on Alternative to U.S.-Led War

The Assault on Gaza

Throughout the current Israel’s assault on Gaza, President Obama, the Congress, and the media have been sounding off the mantra of “Israel’s right to defend itself” against rockets from Gaza—a self-evident right, if Israel were indeed the innocent victim of … Continue reading

Posted in International, military, Politics | Comments Off on The Assault on Gaza

US Labor Against the War

The level of violence in Iraq is rapidly escalating and the country is falling apart. There are calls for sending back US troops. Syria’s catastrophic civil war is being fueled by arms shipments from various directions. There are calls for … Continue reading

Posted in Labor/Economics, military | Comments Off on US Labor Against the War

Shooting the Messenger: Reflections on the Court Martial of Whistle Blower PFC Bradley Manning

I spent five days in and around Fort Meade military base in Maryland, attending the first two days of the court martial of the whistleblower, Bradley Manning.  The trial started on June 3rd, after he had already spent three years … Continue reading

Posted in Human Rights, military, Politics | Comments Off on Shooting the Messenger: Reflections on the Court Martial of Whistle Blower PFC Bradley Manning

NATO & G8 Imperialism

NATO (or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is, according to its website, a political and military alliance founded in 1949 to protect its member states from attacks by non-member states.  It “promotes democratic values and encourages consultation and cooperation on … Continue reading

Posted in International, military, Politics | Comments Off on NATO & G8 Imperialism