NewsTrust - Defense Industry - Most Recent Stories: Opinion (Independent)

Iron Dome -- the newly beloved missile defense system that nobody wanted

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0700

The Times of Israel - By Mitch Ginsburg - Mar. 14 (Opinion) - Were it not for Iron Dome, and with over 300 rockets fired from Gaza between Friday and Tuesday, military officials said, Israel might now be deeply embroiled in a ground operation in the Gaza Strip. Alternatively, were it not for Iron Dome, they said, Israel might not have made the decision to blow up Zuhair al-Qaissi in his car in Gaza City on Friday, no matter how great the concern that he was about to orchestrate a major terrorist infiltration from the Sinai.

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Report: Military Blew $1 Trillion on Weapons Since 9/11

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Mother Jones - By Adam Weinstein - Nov. 02 (Opinion) - A new study suggests that defense hawks are crying crocodile tears over planned cuts to Pentagon spending. Capitol Hill conservatives and Pentagon brass fighting cuts to defense spending have argued that the military is limping off the battlefield

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John Ashcroft takes image-rehab job with Blackwater

Wed, 04 May 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Salon - By Alex Pareene - May. 04 (Opinion) - The hiring of Ashcroft -- a puritanical straight-and-narrow type -- is obviously meant to signal to government agencies that Blackwater has totally changed since founder and real piece of work Erik Prince departed the company to concentrate on pretending he's been persecuted for anything besides his impossibly irresponsible management.

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45th Space Wing Launches Atlas V Carrying X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle

Mon, 26 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0700

spaceref.com - Apr. 26 (Press Release) - The Atlas V rocket carried the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), making its first space flight. The X-37B will provide a flexible space test platform to conduct various experiments and allow satellite sensors, subsystems, components and associated technology to be efficiently transported to and from the space environment where it will need to function. A number of new technologies will also be tested on the OTV itself.

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U.S military could make 'Star Wars' a reality

Mon, 26 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0700

thefamuanonline.com - By Jason Lawrence - Apr. 26 (Opinion) - The U.S. Air Force sent an unmanned spacecraft on its maiden voyage Thursday. With a wingspan of 15 feet and at a length of 27.5 feet, X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle 1 is expected evolve space exploration and technology, according to military officials. Despite the pageantry of sending a vehicle into space, the Air Force has kept the cost and purpose of the space vehicle a secret and for good reason – if exposed, the intent of this vehicle could, perhaps, lead to a second Cold War.

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Freedom vs. the Public Option

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

TruthOut - By George Lakoff - Jan. 25 (Editorial) - Which would you prefer, consumer choice or freedom? Extended coverage or freedom? Bending the cost curve or freedom? John Boehner, House minority leader, speaking of health care, said recently, "This bill is the greatest threat to freedom that I have seen in the 19 years I have been here in Washington.... It's going to lead to a government takeover of our health care system, with tens of thousands of new bureaucrats right down the street, making these decisions [choose your doctor, buy your own health insurance] for you." read more

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Defunding The Real Criminal Enterprises

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

OurFuture.org - By Brian Dockstader - Oct. 09 (Opinion) - While conservatives ravenously pounced on the opportunity to defund the network of community organizations committed to helping and empowering low-income communities (most egregiously by trying to help them participate in their own democracy), they happily and predictably turned a blind eye to the mass levels of fraud, criminality and assorted malfeasance that have been committed by their dear corporate benefactors over the years.

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Who Won and Who Lost in the Defense Budget?

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

New Republic - Apr. 08 (Comment) - Lockheed Martin, who got a funding boost in the budget for its F-35 fighter plane. (Boeing, on the other hand, would see production of the F-18 scaled back, and money for the F-22, in which Boeing has roughly a one-third stake, would be eliminated.) Also, the Obama administration wins for proposing to cut defense spending to below four percent of the GDP. The disorganization of Republicans, "who are now more concerned about fiscal discipline and deficits," has eliminated any "natural opposition to highlight the issue."

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Nine Steps to Peace

Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

TruthOut - By Deepak Chopra - Jan. 01 (Opinion) - You have been elected by the first anti-war constituency since 1952, when Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected after promising to end the Korean War. But ending a war isn't the same as bringing peace. America has been on a war footing since the day after Pearl Harbor, 67 years ago. We spend more on our military than the next 16 countries combined. If you have a vision of change that goes to the heart of this country's deep problems, ending our dependence on war is far more important than ending our dependency on foreign oil.

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Groups to Challenge Feds' Refusal to Limit Perchlorate in Drinking Water

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Common Dreams - By George Torgun - Oct. 03 (Press Release) - "EPA's decision has industry's fingerprints all over it. Weapons makers will benefit at the expense of millions of Americans drinking water spiked with rocket fuel," said Earthjustice attorney George Torgun. "Clean, safe drinking water is essential. That's why we will fight in court to make sure this toxin is regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act." For years, perchlorate was dumped in the ground by the military and missile-makers. The highly soluble toxin has spread from bases and factories to wells and rivers across the country.

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DHS blew $15 billion on 11 failed contracts

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Majikthise - Sep. 17 (Opinion) - DHS blew $15 billion on 11 failed contracts. In its testimony before the the House commitee on homeland security, the Project on Government Oversight identified the following factors that contribute to the massive waste at DHS:

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Former Halliburton Subsidiary Chief To Get Jail time For Cheney-Era Corruption

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Huffington Post - By Marcy Gordon - Sep. 04 (Opinion) - As CEO of Houston-based KBR, Stanley headed a subsidiary within Halliburton Co., the oilfield services conglomerate whose chief executive from 1995 to 2000 was Vice President Dick Cheney. Stanley also pleaded guilty to a separate count of conspiring to defraud KBR and others, admitting to receiving $10.8 million in kickbacks from a consultant hired by the company at his behest.

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Blackwater's Not Going Anywhere

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0700

The Nation - By Jermey Scahill - Jul. 31 (Opinion) - Shame on journalists for not recognizing the noble work of the gallant heroes and patriots (who happen to be paid much more than US troops, have not been subjected to any system of law and can leave the war zone any moment they choose) and forcing Blackwater to consider abandoning its (very profitable, billion-dollar) charitable humanitarian campaign in Iraq. Remember, according to Blackwater, it is not a mercenary organization, it is a "Peace and Stability" operation employing "Global Stabilization Professionals."

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Senator Obama and Private Military Contracting

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Balkinization - By Laura Dickinson - Mar. 24 (Opinion) - right now there are more contractors than troops in Iraq, which is an enormous shift in the way we project our power overseas, at least as compared to how we've done it in the last fifty years. It's not clear precisely how many of them are authorized to use force, in tasks such as providing security or conducting interrogations.

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CACI Awarded Millions in New Govt. Contracts Despite Being Accused of Widespread Abuse in Lawsuit Brought by 256 Prisoners Held in Iraqi Jails

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Democracy Now - By Susan Burke, Amy Goodman - Jan. 14 (Interview) - The contracts come despite a lawsuit CACI is facing for alleged abuses in Iraqi prisons, including Abu Ghraib. In December, 256 prisoners filed a lawsuit [alleging] CACI employees directed soldiers to mistreat the prisoners. The lawsuit was filed by Susan Burke and the Center for Constitutional Rights, a continuation of a class-action suit filed in 2004 after the leaking of the Taguba Report.

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Merc is the New Crack

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 14:21:12 -0700

In These Times - By Lindsay Beyerstein - Oct. 03 (Opinion) - Private security companies claim to support the U.S. military, but in fact, the interests of the two groups frequently conflict. Contractors answer to their clients, not to the generals on the ground, and certainly not to the public. Contractors are hired to protect the individuals who sign their checks--even if they undermine the overall counterinsurgency effort in the process.

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Singer: Blackwater and Counter-Insurgency

Thu, 27 Sep 2007 16:34:24 -0700

Abu Aardvark - By Marc Lynch - Sep. 27 (Opinion) - he argues that the reliance on contractors undermines the very counter-insurgency doctrines on which the military's hopes currently rest. The availability of these contractors feeds a set of perverse incentives - their financial interest is to build huge bases, for instance, with elaborate (and expensive) logistics which alienate Iraqis and go against counterinsurgency best practices as outlined in Petraeus's manual.

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A Disneyland of Militant Ignorance

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 18:47:11 -0700

Information Clearing House - By Phil Rockstroh - Aug. 13 (Opinion) - Resistance and the refusal to fight immoral wars constitutes bravery as well. This most recent version of the proto-fascist glorification of the military has its origins in the rightist revisionist history of the Vietnam War. Over the decades, the right has deftly and dishonestly framed the narrative and succeeded in foisting its mythos of unquestioning loyalty to all things military upon the history-bereft, reality-resistant American populace. At its dark and deceitful heart, this is a fantasy that is as fact free as it is invidious.

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Cost Overruns Make welfare Queens Look Awful Tame

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 16:22:16 -0700

Space4Peace - By Bruce Gagnon - Jul. 11 (Opinion) - The entire military industrial complex is way out of control. What will Congress do to stop this utter nonsense? Virtually nothing. The Republicans and the Democrats both like the campaign donations they get from the weapons corporations. They like the campaign donations they get from the unions representing workers at these military production facilities....If this was a "welfare mom" or a social program misspending a few thousand dollars there would be hell to pay. And I promise you there would be action taken. Severe action.

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