Indispensible reading

[inibo]

If you consider yourself to be a libertarian--either left or right flavor--or a progressive, or if you just have an interest is politics or foreign policy, I highly recommend this series of essays by Arthur Silber. If, on the other hand, you are are a staunch backer of the GOP or a "serious" Democrat I can only say, move along, nothing to see here

Comments

[i]

i read through about half of the first one, but the distortions and flat-out fabrications (the mujahadeen were created by the US, LOL) piled up so fast that i wasn't able to take his few good points seriously any more. propagandists suck. they make it too easy to dismiss the truth.

[inibo]

Does the name Zbigniew Brzezinski mean anything to you?

Perhaps you're not old enough to have seen 60 Minutes segments with Dan Rather traipsing through the mountains of Afghanistan interviewing the brave Afghan freedom fighters carrying US supplied stinger missiles as they went off to fight the evil Soviets who Zbig goaded into invading, but I remember it like it was yesterday.

If you think that is propaganda would you please enlighten me as to what the truth is?

Edited to add: Just came across this: http://hnn.us/articles/1491.html

i'm plenty old enough.

[i]

the mujahadeen were funded and trained to an extent by the US. they were largely muslim brotherhood members released from egyptian jails where they had been imprisoned following the assassination of sadat.

watch the bbc documentary "The Power of Nightmares".

Re: i'm plenty old enough.

[inibo]

I started watching it last night. I'll probably be watching part 3 some time today. It is very good. It definitely fills in a lot of details I didn't know, but I don't think it changes the main thrust of what Silber is saying about US foreign policy.