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Tuesday 31st August 2010

Will Obama Out-BS Bush on Iraq?

Popcorn sales are soaring across the nation because Obama will give a live Oval Office speech tonight on the U.S. victory in Iraq.
I’m disappointed that Obama will not be giving the speech after climbing out of a jet wearing a flight suit, like George W. did with his “Mission Accomplished” speech in 2003.
I expect that [...]

Thursday 12th August 2010

How We Brought Freedom & Prosperity to Afghanistan

posted online today by the Future of Freedom Foundation, from the May issue of Freedom Daily -
BRINGING FREEDOM & PROSPERITY TO AFGHANISTAN
by James Bovard
The Obama administration is seeking to rechristen the Afghan debacle it inherited from the Bush administration. Obama’s efforts to legitimize the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan simply ignore the previous record of American [...]

Wednesday 4th August 2010

My 2 Cents on WikiLeaks, the FBI, and Assorted Hokum - Antiwar.com Transcript

The good folks at Antiwar.com Radio added a transcript to the MP3 of last week’s interview. My comments on the Obama administration’s ploy to increase FBI surveillance power are excerpted here at the top. (The full text is below. My Kelly Girl past is now no longer secret).
Bovard:
National Security letters have [...]

Tuesday 3rd August 2010

New U.S. Government Motto: Controlling Us to Secure Us

“If you don’t have control of the population, you can’t secure the population,” according to Brig. Gen. Frederick Hodges, director of operations for the NATO regional command in southern Afghanistan.
The front-page Washington Post piece with the above quote deals with Kandahar.
But it is also the motto for the U.S. government’s approach to [...]

Saturday 31st July 2010

MP3 of My Interview with Scott Horton on the FBI, WikiLeaks, Etc.

Scott Horton of Antiwar.com Radio and I had fun tarring-and-feathering the usual federal outrages on Thursday. The MP3 is here.
Scott balked at the chance to reveal his deepest thoughts on Chelsea’s wedding. It could have been a great “Bill Hicks moment.”
Here’s Scott’s thumbnail of the interview:
James Bovard, author of Attention Deficit Democracy, [...]

Thursday 29th July 2010

Excellent Interview with WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange by Antiwar’s Scott Horton

Antiwar’s Scott Horton did a superb radio interview with WikiLeaks’s Julian Assange yesterday. Transcript and the MP3 are here.
I have been amused to see the tut-tutting of some of the Washington press corps because the Afghan document disclosure was not as earth-shaking as the Pentagon Papers.
Folks, this game is only beginning. Assange confirmed [...]

Monday 26th July 2010

Three More Cheers for WikiLeaks!

The latest deluge of truth from WikiLeaks is a welcome novelty in American politics.
The New York Times, UK Guardian, and Germany’s Der Spiegel are simultaneously releasing articles today on more than 90,000 Pentagon documents that WikiLeaks posted on the web regarding the Afghan war.
These documents reveal the lies that have permeated U.S. Afghan [...]

Wednesday 21st July 2010

The Media’s Attitude Towards Government Surveillance

This 1990 New Yorker cartoon perfectly captures the usual media attitude towards government surveillance in the post-9/11 world.
Happily, today’s Washington Post blockbuster does not show the same complacency.

Monday 19th July 2010

Best Comical Response to Wash. Post “Top Secret America” Series?

The Washington Post series on “Top Secret America” by Dana Priest and Bill Arkin is off to a great start.
I am shocked to learn that the federal government has little or no idea what the hell it is doing.
I expect some conservatives will want to indict the Post reporters and editors for treason….
What are [...]

Wednesday 14th July 2010

The New American Credo

Weren’t things supposed to be different after Obama was elected?
[cartoon from the New Yorker, 2002]

Friday 9th July 2010

“Freedom & the War on Terrorism” - my Pennslyvania speech…

Now online here: the video of my “Freedom and the War on Terrorism” speech last month in Bernville, Pennsylvania. I want to thank Bob Bowers, who organized this libertarian supper club, for inviting Jacob Hornberger and I to talk there. The audience was excellent - lots of hardliners full of fire-and-brimstone. [...]

Thursday 24th June 2010

Towards a More Honest Afghan Policy

2:07 pm | Afghanistan | Obama | Comments: 6

Good riddance to McChrystal. His role in the coverup of the killing of Pat Tillman alone was enough to qualify him for the Pentagon Rogues Gallery of the new Millennium.
Petreaus is better than McChrystal because at least we get to sometimes watch him get overwhelmed by the sheer enormity of the BS he shovels [...]

Wednesday 2nd June 2010

Podcast: Brian Wilson Interview on Worldwide Downfall of Democracy

Talk Show mastermind Brian Wilson and I had fun today discussing the worldwide downfall of democracy.
This trend has gone so far that it might even affect Toledo.
Brian took the high road - preferring to discuss Berlusconi’s Italian corruption rather than Singapore culinary prohibitions.
You can download or listen to the @ 15 minute interview by clicking [...]

Thursday 27th May 2010

The Worldwide Downfall of Democracy

From the July issue of the American Conservative - my review of a fine new book -
Global Undemocratic Revolution

Freedom for Sale: Why the World Is Trading Democracy for Security, John Kampfner, Basic Books, 294 pages
By James Bovard
Freedom for Sale is the best synopsis of the recent collapse of restraints on government [...]

Monday 24th May 2010

Welfarization and the Capsizing of Democracy

Liberty Central just posted online my analysis of how government handouts subvert self-government…

WELFARIZATION AND THE CAPSIZING OF DEMOCRACY
by Jim Bovard
The Founding Fathers intended that America be composed of self-reliant individuals who would not hesitate to pull the reins in on their rulers. However, in the past 75 years, the soaring number of government dependents [...]

Friday 21st May 2010

Obama and Attention Deficit Democracy

for the Future of Freedom Foundation today….
OBAMA AND ATTENTION DEFICIT DEMOCRACY
by James Bovard
In his commencement address at the University of Michigan on May 1, President Obama warned that public ignorance subverts self-government. Obama declared: â€œWhen we donâ€™t pay close attention to the decisions made by our leaders, when we fail to educate ourselves about [...]

Tuesday 4th May 2010

Obama Makes a Joke About Predator Carnage

5:21 pm | Obama | Uncategorized | War crimes | Comments: 17

So now Obama, like Bush, has made a “joke” that views policies that resulted in killing innocent foreign civilians as fodder for mirth at the White House Correspondents Dinner.
Obama at that dinner on Saturday night:
“The Jonas Brothers are here; they’re out there somewhere. Sasha and Malia are huge fans. But boys, don’t get [...]

Monday 19th April 2010

Podcast of April 19th Interview with Ernie Hancock

Legendary hellraiser and freedom fighter Ernie Hancock had me on his radio show today. We talked about the meaning of April 19th - Waco, the Oklahoma City bombing, etc.
He tried to squeeze out a few predictions but I pretty much took a dive.
You can hear the show by clicking radio-jpb-2010-04-19-ernie-hancock-a-pmhere. (The [...]

Wednesday 14th April 2010

Kudos to the Libertarian Party of Ohio

The Libertarian Party of Ohio (www.lpo.org) held their annual convention last weekend in Worthington, Ohio. I was there for a Saturday night spiel, and it was a treat to meet so many folks gung-ho to fight for freedom. Many of their activists had a fervor about them which I rarely see inside the [...]

Friday 2nd April 2010

My CPAC Interview with Bill Jasper, Liberty News Network

When I visited the Conservative Political Action Conference earlier this year, I talked with Bill Jasper about the state of the Republic.

I was relieved to see that, according to the logo on that page, the interview was rated “G.”

Wednesday 31st March 2010

Federal Judge: Bush Administration Was Criminal Conspiracy

Federal judge Vaughn Walker ruled today that the Bush administration’s warrantless surveillance program was illegal.
This has been obvious ever since the New York Times blew the lid off of the National Security Administration’s massive surveillance operation in late 2005. It is amazing that the issue is still open to dispute.
Unfortunately, there is not a [...]

Wednesday 24th March 2010

Christian Science Monitor: The Census is Untrustworthy

10:05 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Obama | Surveillance | Comments: 5

posted today (and in their national weekly print edition) by the Christian Science Monitor -
My 2 favorite lines from this piece - *A surplus of lies naturally produces a deficit of trust.
*Citizens are not obliged to pave the data highway for Leviathanâ€™s next intrusion into their lives.
*******
The 2010 Census: Will Your Answers Stay [...]

Tuesday 16th February 2010

On Russian TV Talking About American Dictatorial Power

I was on Russian Television (the English language edition) last night talking aboutÂ all the “emergency” declarations and power grabs by recent presidents. The interview on “The Alyona Show” Â starts about 6 minutes into this YouTube segment here.
It was ironic toÂ be commenting on the danger of excessive presidential power on Russian TV….
PerhapsÂ at some point the mainstream [...]

Tuesday 2nd February 2010

Washington Post: Subjugation as “Apple Pie”

1:53 pm | Obama | wool | Comments: 0

“How Can Apple Pie Suddenly Turn Bad?” reads the headline in the print edition of today’s Washington Post.
The article talks of the tragic development that Obama’s health care plan appears to be sinking.
The fact that Americans would object to increased political control over health care is so completely inconceivable to Washington Post reporters and [...]

Saturday 30th January 2010

Justice Department Bans Justice for Torturers

The Obama Justice Department has apparently decided that, since torture is not a crime (at least not anything deserving of prosecution), then concocting legal doctrines that unleashed torturers around the world is also no offense.
A Justice Department internal investigation has concluded that John Yoo and Jay Bybee were gulity only of “poor judgment” in [...]

Monday 25th January 2010

Dump Bernanke and Audit the Fed

12:21 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Obama | Ron Paul | Comments: 7

How much damage can one man inflict and still be treated like a saint and savior in Washington?
Ben Bernanke’s career answers that question. The Establishment media has rallied around the current Fed chairman as if his reign was the triumph of wisdom and goodness - instead of a debacle of bursting bubbles and [...]

Tuesday 1st December 2009

Will Obama Out-BS Bush?

Obama’s speech from West Point tonight may drive the final wooden stake into liberals’ hope that their guy would create a Brave New Order in Washington and the world.
The fact that Obama is following in Bush’s footsteps - talking to an audience of captive individuals who would be ruined for life by a single [...]

Wednesday 18th November 2009

Dying for Crooks: US Troops in Afghanistan

10:37 pm | Afghanistan | Attention Deficit Democracy | Obama | Comments: 12

Transparency International reported yesterday that Afghanistan is the most corrupt nation in the world - except for Somalia.
Heckua achievement, if the only nation on earth that is more shady is one that is full of pirates… Karzai is making Marion Barry look like Mother Teresa.
The Washington Post reported today that one of Afghanistan’s top [...]

Wednesday 9th September 2009

Obama and his “Leavening Hand”

10:47 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Obama | Comments: 5

Obama’s health care pitch on Wednesday night contained the usual howlers. One of the biggest hoots of the evening came in this riff -
“Our predecessors understood… that the danger of too much government is matched by the perils of too little; that that without the leavening hand of wise policy, markets can crash, monopolies [...]

Friday 7th August 2009

Obama and the Perilous Delusions of Democracy

The Future of Freedom Foundation posted online today my article on “Obama and the Perilous Delusions of Democracy.” This was originally published in the April issue of Freedom Daily.
OBAMA & THE PERILOUS DELUSIONS OF DEMOCRACY Freedom Daily April 2009
by James Bovard
When Barack [...]

Saturday 18th July 2009

Barron’s: Obama’s Make-Work Jobs Harm Teenagers

Barron’s ran an article of mine on summer jobs boondoggles as a guest editorial in the issue hitting teh stands today. Here’s an outtake from the article (a subscription is required to see the full version on the online site).
Playing At Work Isn’t Productive Barron’s July 20, 2009
by James Bovard
LONG BEFORE [...]

Sunday 5th July 2009

Obama’s Latest Four-Star Howler on Freedom

Prior to his trip to Russia, President Obama issued an appeal to Russian president Dmitri Medvedev to â€œto strengthen the rule of law in Russia, which of course includes making sure that all those accused of crimes have the right to a fair trial and that the courts are not used for political purposes.â€
Of [...]

Tuesday 23rd June 2009

Celebrate Torture Day by Punishing Torturers

The Future of Freedom Foundation is shotgunning out this email today…..
Celebrate Torture Day by Punishing Torturers
by James Bovard, June 23, 2009
Since 1997, every June 26 has been formally recognized as the International Day of Support for Victims of Torture. Political leaders around the globe take the occasion to proclaim their opposition to barbarism.
On June [...]

Wednesday 10th June 2009

The Latest Torture Coverup Scam

The Future of Freedom Foundation is shotgunning out an oped I wrote on the latest torture coverup. Alas, this subject continues to be hell on idealists.
*****
The Latest Torture Cover-Up Scam
by James Bovard, June 10, 2009
The Obama administration appears increasingly devoted to covering up the worst crimes of the Bush era. On Monday, CIA chief Leon [...]

Tuesday 28th April 2009

Saluting AmeriCorps in IBD

Good ol’ AmeriCorps just can’t get as many salutes as it deserves. This is the first time I have seen the phrase “bogus idealism” in a headline.
****
INVESTORS BUSINESS DAILY
Rife With Bogus Idealism, Waste, AmeriCorps Doesn’t Need To Exist
By JAMES BOVARD
President Obama signed legislation Tuesday to triple the number of AmeriCorps members from [...]

Saturday 25th April 2009

Obama’s Double Standard on Atrocities & Evil

At a Holocaust Remembrance Day at the Capitol on Thursday, President Obama called for “fighting the silence that is evil’s greatest co-conspirator.”
On the same day, Obama decided to oppose creation of a truth commission to vigorously investigate and expose U.S. torture crimes.
This is another of those damn paradoxes of which Washington is full of.
Perhaps [...]

Sunday 22nd February 2009

Obama Continuing Bush Coverups?

10:12 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Obama | Comments: 2

Though Obama thus far does not seem as bellicose as did George W. Bush, there are growing signs that his administration will continue the Washington tradition of covering up the crimes of his predecessors.
The Obama administration is repeating the same arguments used by the Bush White House to justify whitewashing the illegal deletion or coverup [...]

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