War Made Invisible – How America Hides the Human Toll or Its Military Machine
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General Westmoreland’s Death Wish and the War in Iraq
After he died on Monday, front pages focused on the failures of William Westmoreland as commander of U.S. forces in Vietnam. Overall, the coverage faulted him for being a big loser, not a mass killer.
The Washington Post noted that Westmoreland “was called a war criminal.” But the deaths of thousands of Vietnamese people each week during his four years as the top American general in Vietnam counted for little in the media calculus. The main problem, readers were encouraged to understand, was that Westmoreland pursued a losing strategy. “Historian Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. called Westmoreland possibly ‘our most disastrous general since Custer,’” the Post reported.
Read the full column.
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Sidney Blumenthal vs. Norman Solomon on Karl Rove, the Democrats and Iraq
A transcript, audio, and video of the segment from Democracy Now on July 15th are online.
There is also an MP3 (10.4 MB) of his appearance on the Laura Flanders Show on Air America Radio.
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War and Venture Capitalism
During the Vietnam War, one of the peace movement’s more sardonic slogans was: “War is good business. Invest your son.”
In recent years, some eminent pundits and top government officials have become brazen about praising war as a good investment…
And so, it was fitting when the New York Times reported days ago that Powell will soon be (in the words of the headline) “Taking a Role in Venture Capitalism.” The article explained that Powell is becoming a partner in Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, a renowned Silicon Valley venture firm…
Read the full column which is adapted from War Made Easy.
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Radio Times interview
Norman Solomon was interviewed by Marty Moss-Coane on Monday, July 11 on Radio Times on WHYY-FM.
Listen online (direct RealAudio link).
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Terrorism, “the War on Terror” and the Message of Carnage
When the French government suggested a diplomatic initiative that might interfere with the White House agenda for war, the president responded by saying that the proposed scenario would “ratify terror.” The date was July 24, 1964, the president was Lyndon Johnson and the war was in Vietnam.
Four decades later, the anti-terror rationale is not just another argument for revving up the U.S. war machinery. Fighting “terror” is now the central rationale for war…
Read the full column.
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“Withdrawal Would Cripple U.S. Credibility”
Obsession with seeming unequivocal and immovable has been frequent in the Oval Office. During the Vietnam War, such fixations were indifferent to the fact that the war was losing the U.S. government moral credibility around the world. But from the outset, Lyndon Johnson invoked credibility as an argument for staying the course. “If we are driven from the field in Vietnam, then no nation can ever again have the same confidence in American promises, or in American protection,” President Johnson said on July 28, 1965…
Read the full excerpt from War Made Easy.
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Media Matters
Norman Solomon was on Media Matters with Robert McChesney on July 3rd discussing War Made Easy. Audio is online (RealAudio and mp3).
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Mourn on the Fourth of July
Am I the only U.S. citizen who finds the annual Fourth rituals to be cloying and deceptive? Yeah — just me and probably tens of millions of other people.
Ever since the Vietnam War, the Fourth of July has seemed to be a celebration of the past in the midst of a distinctly un-glorious present. In 2005, as in 1965, lyrical appreciation of “bombs bursting in air” is chilling in the context of current realities…
Read the full column.
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War Made Easy
In a review in the June 29th Los Angeles Times, Russ Baker calls War Made Easy “a must-read for those who would like greater context with their bitter morning coffee, or to arm themselves for the debates about Iraq that are still to come.”
The table of contents and first chapter of War Made Easy are now online.
There are also more excerpts (first and second) from the book.
Norman Solomon’s book tour currently includes a July 10th talk in Wilmington, Delaware, a July 11th mid-day event in Philadelphia, a July 14th event in New York City, and August events in the Bay area.
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Memo to Iraq War: This Is the First Day of the Rest of Your Death
On the propaganda front, it’s been another tough week for Washington’s war makers. But for them, where there’s hope there’s death.
Let’s address the Iraq war directly:
It’s too soon to know whether the Bush administration’s new PR offensive will do anything for you in terms of public opinion. But rest assured that the U.S. military effort in Iraq won’t be curtailed anytime soon. Despite the downward trend of public backing for the war — and in spite of the mass media’s inadequate yet significant widening of debate in recent weeks — a combination of factors is in place to sustain your deadly momentum…
Read the full column.