David Swanson
How the U.S. Institute of Peace Avoids Peace in Afghanistan
Four years ago, I wrote this after a meeting at the U.S. Institute of Peace: “The president of USIP Nancy Lindborg had an odd response when I suggested that inviting Senator Tom Cotton to come speak at USIP on the need for a longer war on Afghanistan was a problem. She… »
For the First Time in My Life I’m Against Impeaching the President
By David Swanson I had hoped to make the above statement after electing a president whom I did not consider a vile mass-murderous warmongering climate-destroying threat to humanity. I’m saying it early. I’m saying it while Trump is president. But I’m not saying it because I’ve come to share any… »
Nonviolence Denial Is As Dangerous As Climate Denial
By David Swanson Persistent willful ignorance of necessary knowledge can be deadly. This is true of denial of climate collapse. It is also true of denial of the tools and power of nonviolent action. As evidence and knowledge pile up in each case, denial of the facts looks more and… »
The Myths, the Silence, and the Propaganda That Keep Nuclear Weapons in Existence
By David Swanson Remarks in Poulsbo, Washington, August 4, 2019 This week, 74 years ago, the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were each hit with a single nuclear bomb that had the power of a third to a half of what NPR calls a low-yield or “usable” weapon. By NPR… »
Poor Wittle CNN
“So, Senator Sanders, do you think that someone who’s profited from the current so-called healthcare system, like John Delaney, is qualified to tell you not to change it?” is a different sort of question from “So, Congressman Delaney, won’t good Americans run screaming from Senator Sanders’ rabid socialism?” Similarly, “Senator… »
Abolish Terrorist Agencies
By David Swanson Every government on earth, beginning with the United States, should shut down and be done with secret agencies, spy agencies, agencies used for murder, torture, bribery, election-manipulation, and coups. While these agencies prevent the public from knowing what is being done in its name, they do not… »
Southeast Asia Was Hit By a Record-Breaking Disaster; It Was Called the United States
In my town in the United States — as is not especially unusual — we have big memorials in prominent public places marking some of the most catastrophically immoral actions of the past. Unfortunately, all five of these major monuments celebrate and glorify these past horrors, rather than reminding us… »
U.S. Troops Back in Saudi Arabia: What Could Go Wrong?
By David Swanson The First Gulf War back in 1990 was a big huge success. One of the things it accomplished was a major U.S. troop presence in Saudi Arabia. Muslims around the world were outraged. Bombs were repeatedly set off at Khobar Towers where troops were stationed. In 1998… »
Military Bill Amended for the Better: This Pig Has Really, Really Good Lipstick
By David Swanson, World BEYOND War The latest U.S. House of Representatives version of the National Defense Authorization Act, which is beyond global in scope and not the least bit defensive, offended Donald Trump’s desire for limitless power and spending in dozens of ways detailed by the people he employs… »
Join the CIA: Travel the World Passing Out Nuclear Blueprints
By David Swanson In the year 2000, the CIA gave Iran (slightly and obviously flawed) blueprints for a key component of a nuclear weapon. In 2006 James Risen wrote about this “operation” in his book State of War. In 2015, the United States prosecuted a former CIA agent, Jeffrey Sterling, for… »