commentary editorials
The Hypocrisy of Faux Noise, CiaNN, and MSNBCia
By Cindy Sheehan
Aug 8, 2023
In 2004-2005 (Camp Casey)when I began speaking out against George W. Bush and his regime that I know killed my son, Casey, and over one million more people, Faux Noise tore me apart: CiaNN was bad, but MSNBCia were generally positive (which is interesting, since the network used paid Pentagon shills to cheerlead for the war). These were and are still the main Cable Noise networks.
While perusing the webs today, I noticed that NOW Faux Noise is sympathizing with the families of the service members killed in the cluster fudge, aftermath of Biden’s withdrawal from the decades long US occupation of Afghanistan.
I sympathize with the families, as well, because I know how badly it hurts, however, even if the problem was the “withdrawal” the biggest war crime occurred in 2001, (which Biden also supported), was invading Afghanistan militarily, in the first place. If you disagree, please provide evidence (non-corporate media) that Afghanistan perpetrated the crime of 9/11, or that it was harboring bin Laden.
“Deadly Afghan Exit Leaves 13 Dead”
I think more than 13 died, but the War Machine grinds up innocent civilians like hamburger meat with no remorse
Cindy Lee Sheehan is an American anti-war activist, whose son, U.S. Army Specialist Casey Sheehan, was killed by enemy action during the Iraq War. She attracted national and international media attention in August 2005 for her extended antiwar protest at a makeshift camp outside President George W. Bush’s Texas ranch—a stand that drew both passionate support and criticism. Sheehan ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2008. She was a vocal critic of President Barack Obama’s foreign policy. Her memoir, Peace Mom: A Mother’s Journey Through Heartache to Activism, was published in 2006. In an interview with The Daily Beast in 2017, Sheehan continued to hold her critical views towards George W. Bush, while also criticizing the militarism of Donald Trump.
Ms.Sheehan was the 2012 vice-presidential nominee of the Peace and Freedom Party, and received 1.2% of the statewide vote in the 2014 California gubernatorial election.
The author graciously has granted this website permission to reprint selected essays and editorials.
The views expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect those of APS Radio News or of its affiliate, APS Radio.
commentary editorials
Notes from APS Radio News
The “Costs of War”, a project affiliated with Brown University, has itemized the costs associated with the wars in Iraq and in Afghanistan:
Over 801,000 people have died in the post-9/11 wars due to direct war violence, and several times as many due to the reverberating effects of war
Over 335,000 civilians have been killed as a result of the fighting
37 million — the number of war refugees and displaced persons
The US federal price tag for the post-9/11 wars is over $6.4 trillion
The US government is conducting counterterror activities in 85 countries
The wars have been accompanied by violations of human rights and civil liberties, in the US and abroad.
In addition, the website makes mention of this fact: Since the commencement of these wars, there have been 30,177 suicides of veterans of these wars.
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According to a number of economists, the expenditure of vast sums of money—trillions of dollars—on these wars has reduced substantially the purchasing power of the dollar.
Observers have called inflation a “hidden tax”.
During the 1990’s the Clinton administration gave tacit if not explicit support to the Taliban government that took over the country during that time after over a decade of US and Soviet interventions in Afghanistan in the 1980’s.
During the late 1970’s then National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski oversaw surrpetitious intervention, which, in its turn, caused the secular government in Afghanistan to petition the Soviet Union to intervene.
According to the author Jean-Charles Brisard, in the summer of 2001, representatives of the Bush Administration and those of Unocal held a series of meetings with representatives of the Taliban government, for the purpose of obtaining rights of way for the emplacement & construction of a massive pipeline.
When the negotiations came to grief, Bush representatives threatened the Taliban with attacks against the country, Mr. Brisard described in his book, “Forbidden Truth”.
Following the commencement of Soviet and US intervention in Afghanistan in the 1980’s, the country devloved into spheres of influnece dominated by various warlords.
The Pashtuns are the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan; they form a substantial precentage of the population on both sides of Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan.
The Taliban are comprised of members of the Pashtuns, which are the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan.
During the 1960’s and 1970’s, compared to the the 1990’s and beyond, Afghanistan had governments that were deemed more secular.
During that time women attended schools and were more likely to wear Western type clothing.
As a result of actions and policies implemented National Security advisor, Zbigniew Brzezinski, during the Carter administration, the government in Afghanistan in the late 1970’s requested Soviet assistance.
After the Soviet armed forces had entered Afghanistan, the CIA funded and armed groups like the Mujahideen and other militant Islamists.
For his part, former President Bush was said to be lying about the existence of “weapons of mass destruction” in Iraq.
Over the months in 2003, the narrative as to why the US had invaded Iraq changed a number of times.
After it was found that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, the narrative changed to one of creating a democratic and stable government in Iraq.
As the years proceeded, sectarian violence and chaos increased substantially in Iraq.
The US caused the destruction of a large part of Iraq’s infrastructure.
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