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1. The think tank New America issued a report showing that more Americans died from right wing extremist violence than deadly Jihadist attacks since 9/11. The U.S. media, government, and Islamophobic pundits have exaggerated the threat of Islamic extremism in the U.S. to such an extent that it is accepted as fact without the need of any proof. Not only that, Glenn Greenwald reports that Americans are more likely to be killed by a car, bees/wasps/hornets, lightening, or crushed by their own furniture than be killed by Islamic extremists.
http://securitydata.newamerica.net/extremists/deadly-attacks.html
2. The Taliban launched a daring attack on the Afghan parliament in Kabul while it was in session. If the Taliban is making such daring attacks while the U.S. troops are still stationed in the country, what will they do when the American presence is further scaled back? If the capital city is not secure and safe from Taliban attacks, then nowhere else in Afghanistan is safe. This means that as soon as the U.S. pulls its last soldier from the country—which is inevitable—the current Afghan government will likely fall, the Taliban will seize power, and the United States’ fourteen year presence in Afghanistan will have been futile.
3. A study released by the Pew Research Center this week found that the majority of the global public opposes torture (harsh interrogation techniques)—except for the American public. According to the report,
“A median of 50% across 40 nations surveyed say they oppose these practices, which were detailed in a widely publicized U.S. Senate report in December 2014. Only 35% believe they were justified. Americans disagree – nearly six-in-ten (58%) say they were justified.”
Though this story is worthy of attention, the media shies away from exposing the American public as nationalist flag-waving aggressors they have been propagated into by—you guessed it—the media.
4. The Pentagon released its new “Law of War Manual.” In it there is a chilling finding. As reported by Anti-Media,
“One change in terminology directly targets journalists, stating, ‘in general, journalists are civilians. However, journalists may be members of the armed forces […] or unprivileged belligerents.’ Apparently, reporters have joined the ranks of al-Qaeda in this new “unprivileged belligerent” designation, which replaces the Bush-era term, ‘unlawful combatants.’ What future repercussions this categorization could bring are left to the imagination…”
One would think that the media would be ‘shouting this from roof tops,’ in the interest of their self-preservation should they get killed while covering a story. It is not far fetched for the U.S. military to target journalists and kill them. They have done it during the invasion phase of the Iraq war. Now that the policy is codified into law, the question should be asked: Is the U.S. military going to target journalists in future wars? Alas, the media is too obsessed with a piece of cloth to ask this serious question.
5. At a time when Detroit is recovering from bankruptcy and water to its residents is cut, Israel is asking the U.S. for more money in FMF (Foreign Military Financing). Since the early 1970s, the U.S. has given Israel $3.1 billion in FMF on a yearly basis. Beginning in 2007, the U.S. aid package to Israel was negotiated on a 10 year basis. Now, Israel wants the aid package increased to $4.5 billion per year. The money is delivered up front, at the beginning of each year, so Israel can invest said money in U.S. treasury bonds and earn more money from the interest charged to the U.S. taxpayer. Apparently, the Confederate flag is more important for the mainstream media than the fleecing of the U.S. taxpayer by an alleged ally that spies on the U.S. and refuses to stop illegal settlements in the West Bank and the Golan Heights.
6. Wikileaks is at it again. On June 23, Wikileaks released NSA documents implicating the agency in spying on France—specifically current and former French presidents and members of the French cabinet. According to the cables, “The top secret documents derive from directly targeted NSA surveillance of the communications of French Presidents Francois Hollande (2012–present), Nicolas Sarkozy (2007–2012), and Jacques Chirac (1995–2007), as well as French cabinet ministers and the French Ambassador to the United States.” This is part of a broader pattern of spying that the NSA has engaged in for years. Thanks to Edward Snowden and Wikileaks, we now know that the NSA was not only spying on Americans, but on up to 35 foreign countries, as well as the Vatican.