An ‘American Holocaust’
Dr. Stannard, by most accounts, published in 1993 a meticulously researched, powerful book about genocide against indigenous populations in the Americas: in fact by far the greatest generations long genocide in the history of the world; primarily promulgated by white Christians. See. for instance, the Kirkus review that sums up the book thus: Genocide on […]
Was America Great When It Burned Native American Babies? (Audio and Transcript) – Truthdig
Posted initially on Aug 5, 2016 Interview by Truthdig Editor in Chief Robert Scheer “Benjamin Madley1 has changed the conversation on genocide and American Indians. After An American Genocide, it will no longer be possible to debate whether or not genocide took place. Instead we will need to confront the questions of how and why […]
Book Review of Just War Against Terror: The Burden of American Power in a Violent World
Just War Against Terror: The Burden of American Power in a Violent World, Jean Bethke Elshtain, New York: Basic Books, 2003, 240 pp. WN: My friend Ron Dart commissioned this review back in 2009. The author was a bright, productive Christian scholar. Incredibly naïve and blinded by ideology as well . . . The review […]
American Jews Divided On Israel Are Uniting — In Anti-ICE ‘Never Again’ Protests
American Jews Divided On Israel Are Uniting — In Anti-ICE ‘Never Again’ Protests July 16, 2019 by Aiden Pink and Ari Feldman photo above: Getty WN: Wonderful! excerpts: [su_dropcap size=”5″]I[/su_dropcap]f you’re liberal, Jewish and Zionist, it has been difficult to find a home in the earth-shaking activist movements of the past decade. A leading Black […]
The Doctrine of Discovery, Manifest Destiny, and American Exceptionalism
Posted on July 21, 2015 by christian hegemony Challenging Christian Hegemony Practical tools for recognizing and resisting Christian dominance WN: Every time I read an essay so well presented as that highlighted below (and so beyond tragic!), as a committed follower of Jesus, I know that I don’t have to wear the blame, but I […]
Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism
September 26, 2014 by CHARLES R. LARSON WN: There is someone of my acquaintance who rails against the US Black community for its violence of Black on Black, while almost completely downplaying police violence against Blacks. He also rails against them for their poverty: they just are not enterprising, and therefore deserve their state, end […]
Empire Politician:
The new president’s paper trail reveals a man who has often betrayed his own bedrock principles. Jeremy Scahill April 28 2021 WN: The article highlighted pulls no punches in underscoring Biden’s war-hawk and pro-police brutality policies over a lifetime as a politician. He–as anyone–still may change! But not his brutal record, as laid out in […]
An Open Letter To Joe Biden
Dear Mr. Biden. If I might be so bold, I wonder about connecting some dots at this incredible kairos moment of U.S. and world history. I was moved by your empathetic videoed message to the Floyd family during the funeral service in Houston. You have deeply suffered multiple losses as this article sensitively points out: […]
The Apocalypse of Settler Colonialism
The Roots of Slavery, White Supremacy, and Capitalism in 17th Century North America and the Caribbean August 24, 2018 Slavery and the Origins of Capitalism by Louis Proyect WN: I wrote the following in introduction to a book similar in its findings about 19th-century American capitalism to 17th-century colonial capitalism, entitled The Half Has Never […]
An Open Letter to Michelle Obama, October 13, 2016
WN: A friend reminded me, in response to that below, that none of us in the first world is untainted vis à vis violence. And with that taintedness is a bending at least towards hypocrisy and Pharisaism – which my friend also reminded me about. So with that mea culpa, please read on.: Dear […]
US War Crimes or “Normalized Deviance”
Tuesday, 23 August 2016 09:22 By Nicolas J.S. Davies, Consortium News | Op-Ed photo above: 1986 launch of the doomed spaceshuttle Challenger, with reference to the “normalization of deviance” in the NASA culture that led up to the disaster, an expression coined by sociologist Diane Vaughan [WN] This is as succinct and compelling a statement […]
Rwanda Dispatches May 18 to July 12, 2018
At 30 years on to this day, April 7, 2024, the Rwanda Genocide broke out, that saw more than 1 million Rwandans murdered. CBC did the interview you see below. 30 years after Rwandan genocide, Roméo Dallaire feels ‘rage’ amid global crises | Watch (msn.com) Roméo Dallaire led the UN’s peacekeeping mission when more than […]
The Mumbai Bombs, July 2006
July 12, 2006 Dear Editor: Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Peter MacKay predictably was the pot that called the kettle black in (otherwise legitimately) condemning the bombing horror in Mumbai this week. Last July Prime Minister Tony Blair likewise as hypocritically called the London bombings “barbaric attacks.” On September 1, 1939, President Roosevelt similarly wrote […]
Legacy of Shame:
October 19, 2021 by Kenn Orphan photo above: Photograph Source: Reagan White House Photographs – Public Domain WN: Saint Augustine recounts this story of Empire: The king asked the fellow, “What is your idea, in infesting the sea?” And the pirate answered, with uninhibited insolence, “the same as yours, in infesting the earth! But because […]
On A letter from Hell
By Robin Schumacher, Exclusive Columnist photo above: pxhere.com WN: It is interesting that the photo chosen for the article highlighted below (not shown above) is along the lines of what Larry Dixon wrote (The Other Side of the Good News: Contemporary Challenges to Jesus’ teaching on hell 1 in apparent approval of an instance of […]
Gospel as Counter-Narrative to Empire
SEARCH and ARCHIVES options are at the bottom of all website pages. The website is dedicated to: The Gospel as Counter-Narrative to Empire. More on Empire below. PLEASE NOTE: the Sitemap. There is also a list of all Book Reviews separately, and alongside each post. You may search the Blog too. Please consider […]
I Was a Catholic Zionist: A Biblical Challenge to Tribalism and Idolatry
WN: This review is from THE AMERICAN COUNCIL FOR JUDAISM Review: “I Was a Catholic Zionist“–An Eloquent Exploration of Judaism’s Moral and Ethical Tradition and Zionism’s Departure From It by Allan C. Brownfeld Issues Winter 2019 I Was a Catholic Zionist: A Biblical Challenge to Tribalism and Idolatry By Ted Schmidt 430 pages, $28.00 (information […]
Chris Hedges: God’s Covenant in the Promised Land
WN: The following video, God’s Covenant in the Promised Land, was powerful in 2014. It is tragically as true now as then! Below is the text with some commentary from Canadian Catholic writer/activist/professor Ted Schmidt (please see his recent book: I Was a Catholic Zionist: A Biblical Challenge to Tribalism and Idolatry); jtschmidt@bell.net. Then Jesus said […]
Trump’s Secret Rules for Drone Strikes Outside War Zones Are Disclosed
By Charlie Savage May 1, 2021 photo above: Targeted killings away from conventional war zones have been a central feature of the sprawling war on terrorism, raising legal and policy questions that remain in flux. Credit… Janis Laizans/Reuters WN: Of course the use of drones–as any aerial bombing–invariably murders civilians–often vast numbers. Two classic studies […]
The look in Derek Chauvin’s eyes was something worse than hate
By Jake Jackson April 24, 2021 photo above: Daily Sound and Fury WN: The Prophets and Jesus constantly call us to have eyes to see, ears to hear . . . A documentary series based on events of the April 19, 1989, Central Park jogger case, has the riveting title: When They See Us. To […]
Killing Nora: The Real Reason Trump Should Have Been Impeached
January 22, 2021 by Nicky Reid cartoon: too true! WN: What is true of the Criminal Justice System is also “too true” in general of our living “normal lives” in the West. And it extends: to us in the West aware enough of what being in league/lockstep with Western powers (Five Eyes, NATO, NORAD etc., […]
Jesus Was a Victim of Empire. Acknowledging This Should Transform Christianity.
Jesus Was a Victim of Empire. Acknowledging This Should Transform Christianity. By Christine Mungai, Truthout Part of the Series: Religion’s Role in the Struggle for Justice December 16, 2020 photo above: howafrica.com WN: This is the central theme of this website! A significant portion of what follows is from the previous highlighted part. There is […]
The Unraveling of America
by Wade Davis August 6, 2020 Wade Davis holds the Leadership Chair in Cultures and Ecosystems at Risk at the University of British Columbia. His award-winning books include “Into the Silence” and “The Wayfinders.” His new book, “Magdalena: River of Dreams,” is published by Knopf. WN: This is an exceptional article! There is however a […]
Baseless: My Search for Secrets in the Ruins of the Freedom of Information Act
Baseless: My Search for Secrets in the Ruins of the Freedom of Information Act July 22, 2020 Bats With Napalm Vests and Other Great American Innovations by David Swanson WN: This is horrible! Unconscionable! Despicable! Exponentially Hypocritical! . . . and whatever other superlative expletives can be thrown at U.S. planning, developing, experimenting, and deploying […]
Baseless: My Search for Secrets in the Ruins of the Freedom of Information Act
Baseless: My Search for Secrets in the Ruins of the Freedom of Information Act July 22, 2020 Bats With Napalm Vests and Other Great American Innovations by David Swanson WN: This is horrible! Unconscionable! Despicable! Exponentially Hypocritical! . . . and whatever other superlative expletives can be thrown at U.S. planning, developing, experimenting, and deploying […]
Saying Goodbye to Sam
Oct 28, 2019 Opinion | TD originals sketch above: Mr. Fish / Truthdig Chris Hedges Columnist Chris Hedges is a Truthdig columnist, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, a New York Times best-selling author, a professor in the college degree program offered to New Jersey state prisoners by Rutgers… And so much more! WN: Chris Hedges is […]
TESTIMONY OF MICHAEL D. COHEN COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND REFORM U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 27, 2019
photo above: CNN Politics WN: I’ve spent a 40-year career working with prisoners and ex-prisoners. Many were clearly cons. Many were not. Some (I’m convinced) were entirely innocent. (See for instance Innocence Project Canada, and Innocence Project USA, reflect a moment, and weep.) The advance copy of Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen’s testimony before […]
Anti-Semitic Violence Erupts in America
Anti-Semitic Violence Erupts in America By Joseph Kishore October 29, 2018 photo above: Reaction to anti-Semitic violence in Pittsburg, October 2018 WN: World News Daily Information Clearing House tends towards right wing distortion. But it carries as well great analysis such as that highlighted below. excerpts: Eleven people were killed in the slaughter in Pittsburgh, […]
Thousands of Mental Health Professionals Agree With Woodward and the New York Times Op-ed Author: Trump Is Dangerous
My current concern is that we are already witnessing a further unraveling of the president’s mental state, especially as the frequency of his lying increases and the fervor of his rallies intensifies by Bandy X. Lee Friday, September 07, 2018 by The Conversation photo above: President Donald Trump holds a ‘Make America Great Again’ rally […]
Pope revises catechism to say death penalty is ‘inadmissible’
Commits the church to working toward its abolition worldwide1 Aug 2, 2018 by Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service Theology photo above: Pope Francis gestures before speaking about the death penalty at an event marking the 25th anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, at the Vatican in this Oct. 11, 2017, file photo. […]
How Martin Luther Paved the Way for Donald Trump
To understand why evangelicals support the president, look to the first Protestant. By Michael Massing April 19, 2018 illustration above by Sabine Formane WN: This article draws a fascinating direct line from Martin Luther in the early 16th century to Donald Trump in the 21st. There is likewise a fascinating/tragic direct line to be drawn […]
The Last Temptation
How evangelicals, once culturally confident, became an anxious minority seeking political protection from the least traditionally religious president in living memory Michael Gerson April 2018 Issue Politics WN: This is a greatly informed, wise and even hopeful assessment of what has happened to white Evangelicals in America since their embrace of Trump (81% voted for […]
Justin Trudeau, Israel and the Palestinians
photo above: A just peace for Palestine, means peace for Israel too. by Michael Rose from Flickr Creative Commons WN: My friend Ron Dart suggests three reasons that the Liberal Party of Canada is in fact not liberal towards the Palestinians. Unsurprisingly, each has to do with power and money. As pointed out elsewhere, Trudeau […]
Pope Denounces ‘Mentality of Fear’ Caused by Nuclear Regimes, Urges Disarmament
Published on Friday, November 10, 2017 by Common Dreams At a seminar at the Vatican, Pope Francis praised the U.N.’s recent anti-nuclear weapons treaty by Julia Conley, staff writer photo above: Pope Francis called for nuclear disarmament at a Vatican summit on Friday, a week after an emotional anti-war speech at a military cemetery in […]
Katharine Hayhoe: A leading climate scientist, and an evangelical
by Lloyd Mackey • October 12, 2017 • 0 Comments chart above: How Fossil Fuel Money Made Climate Change Denial the Word of God WN: Sadly, faith and politics have been a toxic mix that has led to enormous denialism (like Holocaust deniers) in the Plymouth Brethren/evangelical communities Hayhoe was raised in. Her appeal to Christians to embrace what Catholics […]
Trump has taken us to the brink of nuclear war. Can he be stopped?
In previous nuclear standoffs, Trump’s predecessors knew when to hold back from further antagonising the other side. But now there is no such certainty Wednesday 9 August 2017 12.39 BST Jonathan Freedland WN: A few months ago, Germany’s Der Spiegel used an online headline about Trump and Jong un thus: “The Two Crazies with the Bomb”“. I […]
Worried About Those Global Cyber Attacks? They Were Started by Washington
Worried About Those Global Cyber Attacks? They Were Started by Washington The notorious US spy agencies invented this monster, first with the Stuxnet virus against Iran—but then they lost control over it. By William Greider JUNE 30, 2017 WN: Of course, the United States has never been the “peacekeeper that upholds the world’s higher values”, as […]
Fifty Years On: MLK’s Concerns Still Plague Us, Including Militarism
Tuesday, 04 April 2017 photo above: Racism, extreme materialism and militarism are still inextricably linked, and still prevent our society’s becoming anything close to Dr. King’s “beloved community.” (Photo: Susan Melkisethian) KEVIN MARTIN AND REVEREND DR. HERBERT DAUGHTRY WN: The United States has acted like an empire since its inception: its two foundational sins are indigenous […]
Trump travel ban hits major setback after judges uphold temporary restraining order
Ben Jacobs in Washington @Bencjacobs Thursday 9 February 2017 23.17 GMT Complete victory’: attorney general celebrates Trump travel ban verdict Judges upheld order issued last week to prevent 90-day travel ban from seven Muslim-majority countries and 120-day freeze on US admission of any refugees Travel ban: judges refuse to reinstate Trump’s order – live WN: One […]
Millions Will Be Harmed by Trump’s Policies, Warns Rights Advocate in Open Letter
‘As president, you will have the heavy responsibility to prevent enactment of dangerous pledges and proposals that were made in the course of the campaign’ Published on Thursday, November 24, 2016 by Common Dreams By Nika Knight, staff writer WN: Human Rights Watch Director Kenneth Roth, subject of the article highlighted below, valid as it […]
My Journey to the Center of the Alt-Right – The Huffington Post
By Luke O’Brien Illustrations By Mariano Pascual November 3, 2016 I went to a white nationalist ethnostate in Indiana. I got bounced from a secret meeting in D.C. I spent weeks figuring out how hate gurgles up from the nastiest recesses of the Internet. And I’m sorry to report that unconscionable racists will be a […]
PAULIST FATHERS STATEMENT ON MORAL ISSUES IN THE 2016 U.S. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
photo above: St. Mary’s of the Lake, Lake George, N.Y. – Paulist Fathers, www.paulist.org Though this is not a ringing disavowal of war (when will the RC Church – and so many other churches – ultimately reject “just war” for the heresy it is?), it in many ways is encouraging. And though the Paulist Bishops […]
Bob Kerrey’s Unit Slaughtered Civilians in Vietnam; Why Was He Appointed to Chair Fulbright University?
By John Marciano, Truthout | Op-Ed photo above: Former Sen. Bob Kerrey, board chairman of the new Fulbright University Vietnam, is presented with the school’s license during a ceremony in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, May 25, 2016. The appointment of Kerrey to lead the university has set off a sharp debate among Vietnamese over […]
Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants (C.U.R.E.)
Upcoming World Conference Human Rights and Prison Reform Seventh International CURE Conference April 25-29, 2017, San Jose, Costa Rica, Courtyard Marriott Airport Alajuela Theme: Implementing United Nations Mandela Rules in the Americas (the treatment of prisoners in the Twenty First century) Photo above is an Argentine prisoner, the dove of peace is actually a pigeon. […]
The London Bombs, July 2005
By Wayne Northey July 9, 2005 Dear Editor: Prime Minister Tony Blair hypocritically called the London bombings “barbaric attacks.” On September 1, 1939, President Roosevelt similarly wrote to the major powers that aerial bombing of civilians had “profoundly shocked the conscience of humanity” and was “inhuman barbarism.” He later as disingenuously referred to the December 7, 1941 […]
“Not Enough!” and International Restorative Justice
Colloquium on Violence & Religion (COV&R) Presentation, May 31 – June 4, 2006, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada WN: When I finally decided to register to present a paper at my friend Vern Redekop’s urging (he was the Conference host), there was only a slot left under French language workshops. I immediately asked two bilingual colleagues about […]