Expat Files – 08.28.16

#1- Latins are perpetually happy. Does that magic rub off on us too? How long does it take? Can even perpetually sour Expats “south of the border” expect an instant personality makeover? Today we discuss those conundrums

Jon Kofas – Western Xenophobia, Islam And The Third World

Xenophobia has been on the rise in the last two decades in the Western World and it has influenced the political arena not just of conservative parties moving toward a more right wing course, but even centrist ones under pressure to “protect” the nation from perceived external threats. Is rising xenophobia a reflection of rising nationalism and conservatism in the …

US Government: Muslims Are the VICTIMS of “Between 82 and 97% of Terrorism-Related Fatalities”

ISIS and Al Qaeda terrorist attacks on Westerners are evil. And as a white American from a Judeo-Christian background, I am repulsed by the fact that ISIS is targeting Christians in Syria and Iraq with brutal murder … including crucifixion. But most victims of ISIS, Al Qaeda and other Islamic terrorism are themselves Muslim. The U.S. National Counterterrorism Center – the United States government organization responsible …

Saudi Arabia is on the Brink of Regime Change

It seems that Saudi Arabia has started to undergo the transformation various experts predicted. Those became obvious when the sitting king Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud replaced his deceased elder brother Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in January 2015, and made a number of quite unusual arrangements within the ruling elite, appointing the head of the Ministry of Interior Muhammad bin …

Paul Craig Roberts – The 21st Century: An Era Of Fraud

In the last years of the 20th century fraud entered US foreign policy in a new way.  On false pretenses Washington dismantled Yugoslavia and Serbia in order to advance an undeclared agenda.  In the 21st century this fraud multiplied many times. Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, and Libya were destroyed, and Iran and Syria would also have been destroyed if the President …

Daniel Lazare – Will Reckless Saudis Seek War with Iran?

Now that Saudi Arabia has severed diplomatic ties with Iran and reportedly bombed Iran’s embassy in Yemen, the big question is whether the Saudis are desperate and unhinged enough to launch an attack across the Persian Gulf. While Saudi leaders insist they have no such intent, there are mounting pressures pushing them in that direction. The ruling family is under unprecedented strain. Its …

Adam Johnson – U.S. Dropped 23,144 Bombs on Muslim-Majority Countries in 2015

Council of Foreign Relations resident skeptic Micah Zenko recently tallied up how many bombs the United States has dropped on other countries and the results [3] are as depressing as one would think. Zenko figured that since Jan. 1, 2015, the U.S. has dropped around 23,144 bombs on Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia, all countries that are majority Muslim. The …

Robert Parry – How Obama Enables Atrocities

As the New Year dawns, the neocons and their liberal interventionist sidekicks remain firmly in control of Official Washington’s storylines – on Syria, Russia and elsewhere – even as their policies continue to wreak havoc across the Mideast and threaten the stability of Europe and indeed the future of civilization. The latest proof of this dangerous reality came when Saudi …

Ben Moshi – Saudi Arabia spends 25% of its budget on its military — here’s what it has for the money

Saudi Arabia has one of the best-funded defence forces in the Middle East. The kingdom spends 25% of its budget, or about $80 billion, on its military. That is about double what it spends on health and social development. It has been throwing its weight around recently, engaging in a war in Yemen and joining forces with Turkey against Syrian …

Prof. John McMurtry – Global Crises 2016: Western Media, the Public Interest, Corrupting Youth, the Real Terrorism, Collective Consciousness

Philosopher John McMurtry was asked to “co-operate with Ayatollah Khamenei in the Supreme Leader’s letter to the Youth in Europe and North America”.  The questions posed by  a designated US enemy opened a new world standpoint on the US-led world disorder and the taboo depths of  shared crises as we enter 2016.  What in general do the Western media hide and …