Saturday, September 10, 2011

Bruce Gagnon: Endless War for Endless Profit

New World Notes News
Vol. 4, Nos. 37-38 -- September 10 & 17, 2011

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This fortnight in New World Notes, radio programs #184-185, September 13 & 20, 2011

Bruce Gagnon:
Endless War for Endless Profit

The War Machine's grand vision: control the solar system through
space-based high-tech warfare--defending the profits of
U.S.-based transnational corporations.

In brief

Antiwar and antinuke activist Bruce K. Gagnon argues brilliantly that the main purpose of US wars is to enrich the military-industrial complex and the rest of the oligarchy.

And the techniques remain the same, generation after generation. The same lies, the same U.S. atrocities against civilans, the same false demonization of "enemy" leaders--from Muammar Gaddafi to Saddam Hussein, ... back at least as far as Crazy Horse in the 1870s.

Gagnon's history of the U.S. campaign against Crazy Horse is an eye-opener. After the U.S. government won the Indian Wars, and all the once-rebellious tribes including their leaders were sitting on reservtions--unarmed and horseless--profits of the war industries plunged. So the warmongers invented and widely publicized false stories of Indians still on the rampage. They especially demonized Crazy Horse, now denouncd for ongoing vicious plunder, rape, and murder of white settlers.

It was all lies, but military procurements rose in response, and war industry profits went back up.

Did somebody mention Gaddafi and his alleged Viagra-fueled rape squads?

Crazy Horse. Most graphics: Click to enlarge.

There's more, including the insanity of sending plutonium into space, of mining on other planets, and of planning to control--militarily--the solar system. Then there's the U.S. military's explicit acknowledgement (in case there was any doubt in your mind) that their purpose is to advance the interests of the plutocrats that control the transnational corporate capitalist stystem. (Defend the United States nation against attack? How quaint!)

Notes, credits, & links

I recorded Bruce Gagnon live in Wethersfield, Connecticut, on August 20, 2011. I have slightly condensed his talk for radio.

Bruce on the Web: http://www.space4peace.org/. His recent book, Come Together Right Now: Organizing Stories from a Fading Empire (revised ed., 2008), is available through his site: http://www.space4peace.org/sales#books

An earlier talk by Bruce Gagnon, also recorded live, was broadcast on New World Notes in May 2010. The Web page has photos, information, and links for listening or download: http://newworldnotes.blogspot.com/2010/05/bruce-gagnon-on-endless-war-and-economy.html .

Bruce Gagnon

New World Notes is produced under the auspices (Latin for "aegis") of WWUH-FM, a community service of that beacon of light in darkest Connecticut, the University of Hartford.

You can listen to any installment of New World Notes online or else download it (as an mp3 audio file) for later listening. The show is archived at both radio4all.net and (from #90 onwards) The Internet Archive. Either link should get you a reverse-chrono listing of available installments. Or browse the show's Web site: Each installment has a page, and each page has links to the recorded audio. See the gray sidebar on the right ("CONTENTS [Links]") for a table of contents.

Series overview:
Political and social commentary in a variety of genres. Exploring the gap between what we want ... and what they're trying to make us settle for.

Above: The United States Space Command, author of Vision for 2020, is now the Joint Functional Component Command for Space (JFFC Space), within the United States Strategic Command.  ("U.S. Space Command" must have sounded far too clear.)  Below: Amen!

Coming soon (Tuesday air debut date shown)
  • September 20 -- Bruce Gagnon, Part 2--recorded live in Wethersfield, Connecticut, August 20, 2011
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