Near the end of one of the character Vito Corleones iconic scenes in the movieTheGodfather(1972), he talks to his son Michael about how other mafia families will organize and come after the new don intending to murder him. With political correctness in mind, the scene still has much to teach those whove had this whole, unified rotten political and economic system coming at them for a very long time.

How will neoliberal Democrats and far-right fascists of the Republican Party come at the political left following the reenactment of the Reichstag fire (1933) at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021?

Had the forces of reaction had an organized Il Duce (For those still sensitive about labels, the idea of a Fhrer is also well suited for the role.) at its helm anytime from election day November 2020 on, then those of us on the left would have been in deep shit. We lucked out as a bumbling narcissist was in control.

Had protesters from the Black Lives Matter movement, or the left demonstrated at the Capitol on January 6, 2021 in large numbers with the intent of making a strong statement against the power elite, the result would have been obvious.

Those on the left know that our rights have been hammered away since the attacks of September 11, 2001. Our voices were silenced earlier by the destruction of the Vietnam Syndrome, or the hesitancy of those in the US to back war. Edward Snowdens revelations about the National Security Agencys collection of the phone data of ordinary US citizens got him a one-way ticket to Russia, the alternative being a long prison sentence in a maximum security US federal prison. Readers need only look as far as former Army member Chelsea Manning to learn how the government will come at those who choose to inform the public about what is going on behind the scenes of US endless wars.

We on the left need to know about the most extreme cases of censorship, but our own experiences over decades inform us about how censorship and self-censorship work in limiting what the mass media will air. When was the last time thatMSNBC, CNN, CBS, PBS, NPR,or theNew York TimesorWashington Postaired or wrote a major piece about public intellectuals like Noam Chomsky or Chris Hedges? Dont hold our collective breath until those media outlets run and air stories about the left or a critical analysis about the right. The fire is burning amid the ashes of republican democracy, but dont ask for rational assessments about the military-industrial-financial class of immensely wealthy elites to happen soon.

Over the past several years, the march to privatize and censor some on the Internet has moved along with many sites such as the one on which I write these words harder to find during a search of topics on search engines. Just as the algorithms of consumerism are in place when a consumer looks for a pair of sneakers, so are algorithms in place to steer those on the Internet away from critical commentary and information.

We know the propaganda machine behind the erroneous claim that Russia was behind Hillary Clintons loss to Donald Trump in 2016 and that the US only has noble designs for its part in the war in Syria. Even some media outlets on the left will throw in their support with the noble cause of the endless proxy war in Syria.

What we dont know with any level of certainty is how many members are on the far right and how many of those people are armed and ready to carry out attacks against innocent people Homeland security warns of heightened domestic terror threat after US Capitol attack,Guardian, January 27, 2021):

The US Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday issued a national terrorism bulletin warning of the lingering potential for violence from people motivated by anti-government sentiment after Joe Bidens election.

The bulletin suggests the riot by a mob of Donald Trump supporters at the US Capitol on 6 Januay [sic] may embolden extremists and set the stage for additional attacks.

We know that some on the left have voiced sympathy with the Capitol marauders in a kind of I feel your pain missive. The left needs to be cognizant of fatal contradictions before taking up the cause of people who have lethal military-style weapons and ammunition and are ready to implement deadly plans against innocent people. One popular program that airs on the Internet recently featured an interview with a self-identified member of the far-right Boogaloo Boys. A semi-automatic rifle stood against the wall of the room in which the interviewee sat, located just to the left of a backpack. The insanity of the US gun culture and its melding with the far right could be easily identified from that scene (Jimmy Dore Boogaloo Boys Interview Sparks Outrage Among Critics: Youre a Sucker,Newsweek, January 25, 2021).

Glen Ford of theBlack Agenda Reportwrites:

The U.S. corporate ruling class finally has its Reichstag fire to justify suspension of constitutional liberties under cover of national emergency. (Democratic Fascists Prepare to Drop the Hammer, January 28, 2021).

It cant happen here? The Red Scare and McCarthyism are proof that it can! A splintered, weak, and divided left would have been no match for an organized assault that continued after January 6, 2021. The assault of the foot soldiers of the right will regain strength as long as real and imaginary injustices go unanswered and as long as there are those who plan and enjoy murder and spread hate (Its endemic: state-level Republican groups lead partysdrift toward extremism.Guardian, January 31, 2021). The equation of white supremacists, anti-Semites, anti-immigrant louts, Islamophobes, misogynists, radical-right insurrectionists, with a nation-wide elected political base and millions of supporters does not point to the survival of republican democracy. That inequality has grown since the move toward a deindustrializedsociety since the 1970s is fodder for the far right (An Emboldened Extremist Wing Flexes Its Power in a Leaderless G.O.P.,New York Times, February 1, 2021). Many are dedicated to the Medieval premise of anti-science.

The late singer-songwriter Phil Ochs had it right inCrucifixion: But ignorance is everywhere, and people have their way.

Excerpt from:
How Are They Going to Come at Us? - CounterPunch.org - CounterPunch

Almost 250 years ago, in 1777, Jacob Ritter, a member of the Pennsylvania militia, assessed the carnage surrounding him on the battlefield and decided, right then and there, that he would never take up arms again. The rest of Jacob Ritters life was shaped by that moment of conscientious objection, a term invented a century before, reports Chris Lombardi, author of I Aint Marching Anymore: Dissenters, Deserters, and Objectors to Americas Wars.

Whats more, Lombardi notes that while Ritters position was not particularly popular, it was also not unique, and in the centuries since, scores of people have not only opposed war, but have resisted other aspects of militarism, from paltry wages paid to servicemembers, to opposition to the racism, sexism, homophobia, and imperialism that have long been endemic to U.S. policy.

This big-picture overview makes Lombardis meticulously researched text essential reading. Beginning with Ritters revolutionary act of conscience, she covers every armed conflict the US has engaged in and zeroes in on the many principled acts of courage that have turned flag-waving patriots into anti-war activists. The result is both harrowing and inspiring.

That said, there are some odd omissions, among them the sidestepping of Vietnam-era resistors who fled to Canada, choosing to uproot themselves from their friends, families, and communities rather than face imprisonment or ascend into harms way. But this is a small criticism in an otherwise sweeping look at an important piece of under-reported history.

Among the most interesting nuggets in the book is Lombardis deep dive into the role that social classpovertyhas always played in determining who enters military service. Prior to and during the Civil War, for example, Lombardi writes that virtually every recruit had been wooed in advance by promised signing bonuses of three months payMany enlisted for the sake of their families, having no employment, and were promised that they could leave part of their pay for their families to draw in their absence.

Sadly, then, as now, promises made were not promises kept and thousands of men deserted, walking away in fury and despair when the money did not materialize. This, Lombardi notes, was particularly glaring for soldiers of color. The Armys refusal to give Black soldiers equal wages caused some to desert rather than work without pay. A few even chose execution rather than return to duty, she writes.

The author makes a deep dive into the role that social classpovertyhas always played in determining who enters military service.

As enraging as this was, Lombardi adds that not every desertion was motivated by principle, with some warriors going AWOL because they were too psychologically damaged to continue fighting, suffering from what was then called nostalgia or soldiers heart. We now know this condition as Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD. In fact, between 1861 and 1866, she writes, government reports acknowledged 5,213 cases and 58 deaths attributed to nostalgia among white troops, with 334 and 16 deaths among colored troops.

The Civil War is where the emotional damage of war became an area of medicine, Lombardi explains. The War also created the first generation of writers for whom that damage yielded dissent, including Marine veteran Herman Melville and Army nurse Walt Whitman.

In subsequent generations, writers Kurt Vonnegut, Howard Zinn and Ron Kovic; filmmakers John Houston and Oliver Stone; and cartoonist Bill Mauldin used their military experience to create art with an explicitly antiwar message, finding in creative expression a way to affirm that war is hell.

Not surprisingly, this message is repeatedly hammered in I Aint Marching Anymore, but Lombardi also tackles voluntary enlistment and interviews dozens of soldiers who signed up only to later discover that theyd made a huge mistake. The many organizations that assist themfrom Veterans for Peace to the War Resisters League to the Central Committee for Conscientious Objectorsare showcased and Lombardi paints an ardent portrait of their day-to-day efforts. In addition, our eras most prominent resistersDaniel K. Choi, Stephen Funk, Chelsea Manning, and Reality Winner are introduced as exemplars of bravery and integrity, committed veterans-turned-activists who are willing to speak truth to power and assert that peace is possible.

I Aint Marching Anymore: Dissenters, Deserters, and Objectors to Americas WarsChris LombardiThe New Press, 2019304 pages

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Originally posted here:
War No More: 250 Years of Military Dissenters and Deserters Celebrated in New Book - The Indypendent

The shocking double standard with respect to violations of federal law committed by members of the national security bureaucracy compared to similar offenses by whistleblowers is on display once again. In late January, federal judge James Boasberg sentenced former FBI assistant general counsel Kevin Clinesmith, who admitted falsifying evidence submitted to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court for a warrant to spy on Carter Pageaonetimeforeign-policy adviser to former President Donald Trump. Boasberg sentenced Clinesmith to a mere twelve months probation and four hundred hours of community service. The judge said the evidence persuaded him that Mr. Clinesmith likely believed that what he said about Mr. Page was true.

A Wall Street Journal editorial points out just how much that excuse lacks credibility since prosecutors made clear that evidence of Mr. Clinesmiths animus toward Donald Trump is considerable. As for being an honest mistake, remember that Mr. Clinesmith changed an email confirming Mr. Page had been a CIA source to one that said the exact opposite, explicitly adding the words not a source before he forwarded it.

Moreover, his forgery was only the most egregious abuse that he and other officials committed in the FBIs handling of the Page case and the rest of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation into Russia collusion allegations. The Dec. 9, 2019 report by Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz identified seventeen major instances of improper behavior, including violations of standard procedures and safeguards for the rights of individuals targeted in an investigation.

Boasbergs decision to give Clinesmith the proverbial slap on the wrist is typical of how the courts have treated loyalist national security bureaucrats even when theyre caught red-handed committing crimes. Two other cases stand out as especially outrageous examples: the plea deals given to Bill Clintons former national security adviser, Samuel R. Sandy Berger, and Barack Obamas former CIA director, David Petraeus.

Evidence emerged that in 2000 Berger had illegally removed classified documents on two separate occasions from the National Archivesreportedly by stuffing them down his pants before exiting a secure reading room. After months of negotiations with federal prosecutors, he entered a guilty plea to a misdemeanor charge of mishandling classified material. It was, to put it mildly, an extremely generous offer by the government, since Bergers theft of highly classified materials was so brazen.

Treating such a violation of law as a mere misdemeanor was the operational definition of a sweetheart deal, but the penalty phase of the plea bargain was even worse. Not only did Berger avoid having to serve any jail time, the penalties he did experience was little more than a cynical joke. He had to pay a $50,000 fine and relinquish his security clearance for three years. The court also sentenced him to one hundred hours of community service. Someone with Bergers economic means probably could pay $50,000 out of the familys petty cash account.

The Petraeus case was an even clearer example of how the Washington national security establishment protects one of its own. His criminal conduct occurred when he served as the commander of U.S. military forces in Afghanistan, although it did not come to light until later when he was head of the CIA. After a lengthy FBI investigation, Petraeus admitted that he gave highly-classified journals to his lover, Paula Broadwell, who was writing a laudatory biography. He also admitted that he had lied to FBI and CIA investigators about his conduct when first questioned.

Despite such flagrant misconduct, Petraeus only had to plead guilty to a single misdemeanor charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified information. Moreover, as part of the plea bargain, he did not have to serve a single day behind bars. His sentence consisted of two years of probation and a $100,000 fine. Although the latter might seem a significant financial penalty, it was reportedly less than Petraeus charges for a single speaking engagement.

While national security insiders are routinely given the kid-glove treatment that Berger, Petraeus, and Clinesmith received, the experiences of whistleblowers who dare expose even the most blatant misdeeds by those agencies are very different indeed. Stephen Kim, a former State Department official, pled guilty to one count of violating the 1917 Espionage Act for merely discussing a classified report about North Korea with Fox News reporter James Rosen. Moreover, the report itself was subsequently described in court documents as a nothing burger in terms of its sensitivity. Yet, even with a plea deal, Kim was given a thirteen-month sentence in federal prison.

CIA agent John Kiriakou and Army private Chelsea Manning, who disclosed classified information in the course of blowing the whistle on U.S. government abuses (and in Mannings case, outright war crimes), received even longer sentences. Kiriakou was given thirty months in federal prison. Mannings penalty was the most shocking and draconian of all. She was sentenced to thirty-five years, although Barack Obama commuted her sentence once she had served seven years. One can only imagine what Edward Snowden would face if U.S. authorities ever got their hands on him.

The double standard at play could scarcely be more blatant. The U.S. justice system crucifies whistleblowers and other critics who expose the misdeeds of or otherwise embarrass the mandarins in charge of national security policy. Conversely, high-level members of that governmental club have little to fear even when there is irrefutable evidence of their criminal behavior. The Clinesmith case is the latest confirmation that the corruption and lack of accountability is pervasive.

Ted Galen Carpenter, a senior fellow in security studies at the Cato Institute and a contributing editor at the National Interest, is the author of twelve books and more than nine hundred articles on national security and international affairs.

Image: Reuters

Link:
The National Security State Shields One of Its Own MiscreantsAgain - The National Interest