A little more nuanced analysis of the release and negotiation with he Taliban through Qatar than you will see on the Sunday talk shows.

Stg. Bergdahl was apparently being held by the Haqqani group, which has bases in the Federally Administered Tribal Area FATA of Pakistan. Does this prisoner swamp show that the Taliban are ready to negotiate? The Haqqani group is the most hardline of the 4 major organizations now called “the Taliban” by US officials and journalists. The are the ‘old Taliban’ of Mullah Omar, the Hizb-i Islami or Islamic Party of Gulbadin Hikmatyar who fought the Soviets as occupiers in conjunction with the CIA, but in 2002 switched and decided to fight the Americans; the Haqqani Group led by Siraj Haqqani; and the “Pakistani Taliban,” most members of Mahsud and other FATA tribes, who have never been to a madrasah or institution of higher learning like 2 of the other 3 they aren’t Taliban, which means “seminarians.” The Haqqanis are said to be close to al-Qaeda

via What Does Sgt. Bergdahl’s Release tell us about Afghanistan, Pakistan & the Taliban today? | Informed Comment.

BLACK – YouTube.

Be sure to watch the end.  Imperialism has come home to roost

George Carlin – Muhammad Ali – YouTube.

Carlin’s unassailable and hilarious logic illustates the insanity of War. enjoy!

HowMuchIsPeaceActuallyWorth?-PacificStandard:TheScienceofSociety.

In the last decade, researchers and economists from all over the world have made great gains in the nascent field of peace economics. They’re finding that violence and war are terrible for the economy, but also that we can use economics to prevent them.

The most recent study published by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) found that violence cost the world $9.46 trillion in 2012 alone. That’s 11 percent of gross world product. By comparison, the cost of the financial crisis was just 0.5 percent of the 2009 global economy.

In the coming 25 years, the Air Force hopes to have drones take over or assist with more of the types of missions that are currently being conducted by manned aircraft, including search and rescue, inflight refueling and humanitarian assistance. Military officials also believe that advances in technology will allow drones to use “kinetic” and “directed energy” weapons to destroy short-range battlefield missiles.

But, for the time being, the Air Force is reluctant to entrust drones with the mission that we hope never to see happen:

Certain missions, such as nuclear strike, may not be technically feasible unless safeguards are developed and even then may not be considered for UAS [unmanned aircraft systems] operations….Ethical discussions and policy decisions must take place in the near term to guide the development of future UAS capabilities, rather than allowing the development to take its own path apart from this critical guidance.

via Air Force Says Drones Won’t Carry Nukes…For Now.

Rand Paul speaking to student Republican at western Kentucky University in 2009

Video here

It’s Dick Cheney in 1995 being interviewed on why they didn’t go into Baghdad the first time under the first George Bush. And his arguments are exactly mirroring my dad’s arguments for why we shouldn’t have gone in this time. It would be chaos. There’d be a civil war. There’d be no exit strategy. And cost a blue bloody fortune in both lives and treasure. And this is Dick Cheney saying this. But, you know, a couple hundred million dollars later Dick Cheney earns from Halliburton, he comes back into government. Now Halliburton’s got a billion-dollar no-bid contract in Iraq. You know, you hate to be so cynical that you think some of these corporations are able to influence policy, but I think sometimes they are. Most of the people on these committees have a million dollars in their bank account all from different military industrial contractors. We don’t want our defense to be defined by people who make money off of the weapons.

via Rand Paul: Dick Cheney used 9/11 as excuse to invade Iraq for the benefit of Halliburton – Democratic Underground.

Artists install massive poster of child’s face in Pakistan field to shame drone operators

via Artists install massive poster of child’s face in Pakistan field to shame drone operators | The Raw Story.

Thought provoking video on the military industrial complex and how we should beat our swords into plow shares. Or our tanks int rail cars or buses or rescue vehicles or other peaceful production.

via The Cost of Cutting America’s Defense Budget – YouTube.

John Stewart commentary on the Transparency in governance in Congress points out that like everything else only the elites actually are entitled to these protections.

The Covert Report – The Daily Show – Video Clip | Comedy Central.

Senate Passes Military Sexual Assault Bill Scrapping ‘Good Soldier Defense’.

Sounds like a victory if the house passes it in the spring!

Vote was 97 – 0