The military coup by SOA graduates in Honduras has once again exposed the destabilizing and deadly effects that the School of the Americas has on Latin America. The actions of the school’s graduates are unmasking the Pentagon rhetoric and reveal the anti-democratic results of U.S. policies. It is time for a change towards justice. From November 20-22, 2009, thousands will vigil at the gates of Fort Benning, Georgia, to stand up for justice, to shut down the School of the Americas and to end the oppressive U.S. foreign policy that the school represents.

Palin is whining about her Newsweek photo, but it reflects who and what she really is.

Thom Hartmann talks with John Perkins author of Hoodwinked and Confessions of an Economic Hit man

A massive increase in foreign investment in US corporations keeps the dollar afloat right now, while one economics group is sounding the alarm that 'our companies are being taken over in a buying frenzy by foreign investors – like piranha fish consuming its weakened prey.'

We're buried in foreign debt and now we have a news group that's blaming it all on those "foreigners" (the same ones who float our debt every month) and "the government" (the same government in which some of the group served). Pat Buchanan, Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-NC) and some other well known names make up the group, "Economy in Crisis." The group talks about restoring the "former glory" of our economy. For the vast majority of citizens, what glory was that?

International travel by world leaders is mainly about making symbolic gestures. But let’s hope that when the cameras aren’t rolling Mr. Obama and his hosts engage in some frank talk about currency policy. For the problem of international trade imbalances is about to get substantially worse. And there’s a potentially ugly confrontation looming unless China mends its ways. Despite huge trade surpluses and the desire of many investors to buy into this fast-growing economy, Chinese authorities have kept that currency persistently weak. China’s weak-currency policy exacerbates the problem [of the depressed state of the world economy], in effect siphoning much-needed demand away from the rest of the world into the pockets of artificially competitive Chinese exporters. This problem is about to get much worse. Because for the past year the true scale of the China problem has been masked by temporary factors. Looking forward, we can expect to see both China’s trade surplus and America’s trade deficit surge. Unfortunately, the Chinese don’t seem to get it: rather than face up to the need to change their currency policy, they’ve taken to telling us to raise interest rates and curb fiscal deficits. And I’m not sure the Obama administration gets it, either. The administration’s statements on Chinese currency policy seem pro forma, lacking any sense of urgency. That needs to change. I don’t begrudge Mr. Obama the banquets and the photo ops; they’re part of his job. But behind the scenes he better be warning the Chinese that they’re playing a dangerous game.

After eight years of war, we’re losing – only to have turned Afghanistan and Pakistan into terroristic turmoil.

The current U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, General Karl W. Eikenberry, who was top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan from 2005 to 2007, has told President Obama he opposes sending more troops. .... snip ... When the RAND Corporation held a forum on Afghanistan recently on Capitol Hill, Zbigniew Brzezinski claimed that it was uncontroversial that US troops had to stay in Afghanistan. I pointed him to polls of Americans, and he replied that Americans get fatigued and don't know any better.

"I was facilitating a meeting in Washington, DC this past weekend, and an Iraq “War” veteran claimed that the GI resistance movement ended the Vietnam War. I started to say that I was sure that the GI movement was a part of ending the Vietnam War as was the draft, the student movement, the Congress (that had some influence back then), and I was interrupted by the rep from Veterans for Peace who simply said: “actually it was the Vietnamese people who ended that war.” That’s the plain truth after millions dead/wounded, the Vietnamese people succeeded in vanquishing the U.S."

Chomsky takes on a critic. "Noam Chomsky interviewed on the BBC program HARDtalk, during his tour of the United Kingdom in Nov. 2009."

He has been the most recent high level official to state publicly what many NATO military and political leaders are increasingly recognizing as a primary obstacle to success in the war torn country.

"Soon we’ll know who our new administration has in mind to replace Karzai’s regime. Will it be an insider like our General Wardak? Certainly not impossible. He’s been the man for decades, and they’ve invested a lot in him and his son, and enriched him and his family tremendously. Will it be another puppet just like Karzai but with a new face? Certainly possible. That would mean another group of carpetbagger war profiteers entering the market to grab the pots of gold financed by us, while the Karzais and Wardaks go away and enjoy their hundreds of millions of dollars stashed somewhere."

The US Supreme Court will soon announce a major decision on our lightly controlled system of campaign funding. Will it retain some limitations on corporate influence or will the court blow the lid off and cause a perpetual flood of unrestricted corporate contributions? An additional outcome may surprise and shock the public. If the Supreme Court overturns the lower court’s decision, foreign nationals, corporations, and governments with partial ownership of U.S. corporations will, in effect, end up contributing to and influencing U.S. candidates in federal elections.

Last month, a large ship carrying 76 men was seized off the coast. Although the origins of the ship and the men was initially unknown, the government has learned that the men are Tamil migrants and the ship was used by the LTTE, a terrorist organization...

His books sell in their hundreds of thousands, he is mobbed by students as a celebrity, but he is rarely reported or interviewed in the US outside radical journals and websites. The explanation, of course, isn't hard to find. Chomsky is America's most prominent critic of the US imperial role in the world, which he has used his erudition and standing to expose and excoriate since Vietnam.

New York City may be the dirtiest city in the country (per square foot), but New York City residents have the lowest carbon footprint in the nation on a per capita basis. David Owen, author of Green Metropolis, explains why.

Battle in Kentucky with an openly can candidate seeking to unseat an ultra-conservative incumbent. Finally, one of the biggest nightmares to Kentucky's gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and intersex community, Representative Stan Lee (R-Lexington) has competition in the upcoming 2010 election. Lee is not only a nightmare to the LGBTI community, but EVERYONE who wants to move Kentucky forward and stands for equality, justice, and progress. The election is closer than you think, considering the primary is in May 2010. Representative Lee has run unopposed in the last several elections.

Is New York the greenest city in America? Urban planner Jane Jacobs famously talked about population density as the driver of vibrant communities in cities. In this video, David Owen connects Jacob's views on urban planning and community sound environmental planning and sustainable living.

Hezbollah rejects Israeli allegations that weapons on a seized ship were destined for the Lebanese militant group.

"The Anti-Empire Report “It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.” — Voltaire Question: How many countries do you have to be at war with to be disqualified from receiving the Nobel Peace Prize? Answer: Five. Barack Obama has waged war against only Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia. He’s holding off on Iran until he actually gets the prize."