Syria – Antiwar Radio with Scott Horton

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_27_escobar.mp3]

Globetrotting journalist Pepe Escobar discusses his article “Syria and Turkey’s Phantom War;” Turkey’s violation of Syrian airspace in a purposeful, measured provocation and test of Syria’s defenses; the near-invocation of NATO Article 5 and a wider war (an attack on one NATO country is an attack on all); looking for ways to bypass the UN on Syria, since China and Russia won’t let an interventionist resolution pass the Security Council; grand plans for NATO expansion in the official “Assured Security, Dynamic Engagement” plan; counterrevolutions in the Middle East and South America, as the US looks to rebuild its portfolio of client states; and how Qatar has become the new superpower in the Middle East, surpassing even Saudi Arabia.

MP3 here. (39:25)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

An extreme traveler, Pepe’s nose for news has taken him to all parts of the globe. He was in Afghanistan and interviewed the military leader of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, Ahmad Shah Masoud, a couple of weeks before his assassination. Two weeks before September 11, 2001, while Pepe was in the tribal areas of Pakistan, Asia Times Online published his prophetic piece, “Get Osama! Now! Or else …” Pepe was one of the first journalists to reach Kabul after the Taliban’s retreat, and more recently he has explored and reported from Iraq, Iran, Central Asia, US and China.

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_25_giraldi.mp3]

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses his article “Terrorism Arithmetic;” the National Counter Terrorism Center’s annual Report on Terrorism, which statistically proves that Americans are more likely to be killed by televisions than terrorists; the political realities that push Democratic presidents toward ultraviolence (which Obama seems to really enjoy); how international terrorists groups like al-Qaeda have given way to small franchises focused on local issues; the mainstream media’s better-late-than-never reporting on covert US support for Syrian regime change; and the self-perpetuating cycle of US foreign policy, where a new intervention is undertaken to fix a previous botched job, ad infinitum.

MP3 here. (29:16)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest.

Eva Galperin

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_20_galperin.mp3]

Eva Galperin, International Freedom of Expression Coordinator for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, discusses her article about pro-Syrian-government hackers using malicious computer software against Syrian activists; the online information battle between loyalists and anti-government groups, in the absence of on-the-ground media; why Skype isn’t any safer to use than social media like Facebook; protecting yourself online by encrypting communications and staying informed about threats; and how rudimentary hacking tools can be just as effective as the very sophisticated and expensive Stuxnet and Flame viruses.

MP3 here. (18:11)

A lifelong geek, Eva Galperin misspent her youth working as a Systems Administrator all over Silicon Valley. Since then, she has seen the error of her ways and earned degrees in Political Science and International Relations from SFSU. She comes to EFF from the US-China Policy Institute, where she researched Chinese energy policy, helped to organize conferences, and attempted to make use of her rudimentary Mandarin skills. Her interests include aerials, rock climbing, opera, and not being paged at 3 o’clock in the morning because the mail server is down.

John Glaser

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_19_glaser.mp3]

John Glaser, Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the moral and practical problems of US support for Syria’s opposition; how foreign meddling prolongs civil conflicts and reduces incentive to negotiate; why the German media’s contrary version of the Houla massacre is no more (or less) believable than the official story blaming the government; the war hawks in Congress who want Syrian regime change to weaken Iran, not for any humanitarian reason; and why policy makers aren’t thinking of intervention’s consequences, namely blowback.

MP3 here. (20:19)

Jason Ditz

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_12_ditz.mp3]

Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses his debate with the “Prince of Darkness” (Richard Perle) on BBC Radio; the Obama administration’s refusal to apologize for the deadly November attack on a Pakistani military outpost – even though critical supply lines to Afghanistan remain closed as a consequence; the technological barrier preventing other countries from using drones the way the US does; and how the dearth of journalists in Syria allows the Western media to spin the narrative any way they choose.

MP3 here. (20:05)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com. His op-ed pieces have been published in newspapers and other media around the world.

Joe Lauria

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_11_lauria.mp3]

Independent investigative journalist Joe Lauria discusses his article “Security Council Blames Syria for Attack;” allegations that the Houla massacre was actually Sunni rebels killing pro-government Alawites and Shia; why Bashar al-Assad deserves the blame for Syria’s civil unrest; the media’s scant coverage of al-Qaeda’s presence within Syria’s rebellion; Russia’s strategic interests in Syria aside from the Tartus naval port; why NATO intervention would almost certainly worsen the crisis; and the revenge massacres likely to follow in the wake of Syrian regime change, with a Sunni Islamist government in charge.

MP3 here. (21:41)

Joe Lauria is a New York-based independent investigative journalist. A freelance member of the Sunday Times of London Insight team, he has also worked on investigations for the Boston Globe and Bloomberg News. Joe’s articles have additionally appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Daily Telegraph, The Daily Mail, The Guardian, The Montreal Gazette, The Johannesburg Star, The Washington Times, New York Magazine, ARTnews and other publications.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_08_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of American Raj, discusses the fundamentally flawed Middle East countries created after the Ottoman Empire’s dissolution; the US’s first attempt at regime change in Syria in 1948, as told in The Game of Nations: The Amorality of Power Politics; a history of the Baath Party; the chance for regional autonomy in Syria instead of a bloody civil war; why the US insists on picking fights with Russia in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Syria; and why Georgia’s inclusion in NATO would be as ridiculous as Puerto Rico joining the Warsaw pact.

MP3 here. (38:12)

Eric S. Margolis is an award-winning, internationally syndicated columnist. His articles appear in the New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, Times of London, the Gulf Times, the Khaleej Times and Dawn. He is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post. He appears as an expert on foreign affairs on CNN, BBC, France 2, France 24, Fox News, CTV and CBC.

As a war correspondent Margolis has covered conflicts in Angola, Namibia, South Africa, Mozambique, Sinai, Afghanistan, Kashmir, India, Pakistan, El Salvador and Nicaragua. He was among the first journalists to ever interview Libya’s Muammar Khadaffi and was among the first to be allowed access to KGB headquarters in Moscow. A veteran of many conflicts in the Middle East, Margolis recently was featured in a special appearance on Britain’s Sky News TV as “the man who got it right” in his predictions about the dangerous risks and entanglements the US would face in Iraq.

Margolis is the author of War at the Top of the World: The Struggle for Afghanistan, Kashmir and Tibet and American Raj: Liberation or Domination?: Resolving the Conflict Between the West and the Muslim World.

Patrick Cockburn

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_06_04_cockburn.mp3]

Patrick Cockburn, Middle East correspondent for The Independent, discusses his article “Why War is Marching on the Road to Damascus;” assigning blame for the Houla massacre and whether it will spark US intervention; why Syria looks like Lebanon before its disastrous 15-year civil war; Saudi Arabia’s continued fight against Iran’s 1979 revolution and the Shia revival; why NATO “safe haven” zones would exacerbate conflict in Syria and lead to wider war; Iraq’s export of suicide bombers; how crony capitalism undermines popular support for Middle East/North Africa governments; and why US politicians don’t care much for long-term sensible foreign policy.

MP3 here. (23:10)

Patrick Cockburn, Middle East correspondent for The Independent, has been visiting Iraq since 1978. He was awarded the 2005 Martha Gellhorn prize for war reporting in recognition of his writing on Iraq. He is the author of, his memoir, The Broken Boy (Jonathan Cape, 2005), and with Andrew Cockburn, Saddam Hussein: An American Obsession (Verso, The Occupation: War, Resistance and Daily Life in Iraq (Verso, 2006) and Muqtada: Muqtada al-Sadr, the Shia revival and the Struggle for Iraq.

John Glaser

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_05_30_glaser.mp3]

John Glaser, Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the going-nowhere P5+1 Iran talks; the domestic political considerations that influence Obama’s foreign policy decisions; how US Iran Policy is Intended to Leave Open ‘Avenues for Regime Change;'” why the US and Israel won’t tolerate Iran’s nuclear breakout capability (even though nearly all nations with civilian nuclear programs have one); and the contradictory media reports on Syria’s Houla massacre.

MP3 here. (19:56)

John Glaser

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_05_11_kpfk_glaser.mp3]

John Glaser, Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the government’s premature bragging about foiling another underwear bomber terrorist plot – which became embarrassing when news broke about the bomber’s CIA/Saudi connection; Hillary Clinton’s well-founded doubts about arming Syria’s rebellion, whose ranks include al-Qaeda members and suicide bombers; why a “safe zone” in Syria is about as stupid as the “no fly zone” in Libya – and just as sure to start a larger war; the media’s disinterest in Libya since Gaddafi’s death and “mission accomplished,” even though human rights violations abound; the continued crackdown against peaceful protesters in Bahrain, though not even Al Jazeera finds it newsworthy; and how the US’s Middle East policy is geared toward maintaining a regional foothold and containing Iran, not exporting democracy.

MP3 here. (27:27)

Gareth Porter

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_05_10_porter.mp3]

Gareth Porter, investigative historian and journalist specializing in U.S. national security policy, discusses his article “US Treasury Claim of Iran-al-Qaeda ‘Secret Deal’ Is Discredited;” how former intelligence officer Paul Pillar and the recently-released bin Laden documents reveal the Obama administration’s strategy of diplomatic coercion on Iran; the lack of evidence that cooperation between al-Qaeda and Iran extends beyond prisoner swap deals; the need for a quick-response team of former intelligence/government employees to immediately counter media propaganda; the Syrian opposition’s use of suicide attacks against the Assad government; and why bad foreign policy decisions will continue so long as government officials face no consequences for being wrong on issues of war and peace.

MP3 here. (23:37)

Gareth Porter is an investigative historian and journalist specializing in U.S. national security policy. The paperback edition of his latest book, Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam, was published in 2006.

Stephen Zunes

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_05_10_zunes.mp3]

Dr. Stephen Zunes, Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, discusses how the Libyan War spilled over to Mali and destabilized West Africa’s most enduring democracy; the Al-Qaeda associated Islamic militants that swarmed into Mali and desecrated a UNESCO World Heritage holy site; the US-trained African military officers who will probably be among the next generation of dictators; the double-standard of international law, where US allies are exempt from UNSC resolutions and enemies must comply or get regime-changed; how legitimate political uprisings are corrupted by foreign aid; and why picking sides in Syria is difficult for proponents of both individual liberty and anti-intervention.

MP3 here. (26:15)

Dr. Stephen Zunes is a Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, where he chairs the program in Middle Eastern Studies. A native of North Carolina, Professor Zunes received his PhD. from Cornell University, his M.A. from Temple University and his B.A. from Oberlin College. He has previously served on the faculty of Ithaca College, the University of Puget Sound, and Whitman College. He serves as a senior policy analyst for the Foreign Policy in Focus project of the Institute for Policy Studies, an associate editor of Peace Review, and chair of the academic advisory committee for the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict.

Franklin Lamb

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_05_07_lamb.mp3]

Franklin Lamb, Director of Americans Concerned for Middle East Peace, discusses his article “The Lutfallah II Arms-Smuggling Scandal;” funneling weapons from Libya to Syria’s rebels, apparently helped by Saudi Arabia and Qatar; the pending case against NATO in the International Criminal Court; why foreign-orchestrated regime change in Syria will be much harder than it was in Libya; the disastrous US democracy-building exercises in the Middle East; and the reliability of news and casualty figures coming from Syrian sources.

MP3 here. (21:56)

Dr. Franklin Lamb is Director of Americans Concerned for Middle East Peace, Beirut-Washington DC, Board Member of The Sabra Shatila Foundation, and a volunteer with the Palestine Civil Rights Campaign, Lebanon. He is the author of The Price We Pay: A Quarter-Century of Israel’s Use of American Weapons Against Civilians in Lebanon and is doing research in Lebanon for his next book.

Lamb has been a Professor of International Law at Northwestern College of Law in Oregon. He earned his Law Degree at Boston University and his LLM, M.Phil, and PhD degrees at the London School of Economics. As a Middle East expert and commentator, Dr. Lamb has appeared on Press TV, Al-Manar and several other media outlets. His articles and analyses have been published by Counter Punch, Veterans Today, Intifada Palestine, Electronic Intifada, Opinion Maker, Dissident Voice, Daily Star and Al Ahram.

John Mueller

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_05_02_mueller.mp3]

John Mueller, author of Atomic Obsession: Nuclear Alarmism from Hiroshima to Al-Qaeda, discusses his article “Why Al-Qaeda May Never Die;” how “al-Qaeda” is used as a catchall name for terrorist groups, even those tangentially related to the original; why a large percentage of Americans fear terrorism even though dying in an attack is about as likely as being struck by lightning; US alliances with radical Islamic insurgents in Libya and Syria; and how imperial overreach hastened the Soviet Union’s collapse.

MP3 here. (20:23)

John Mueller is the Woody Hayes Chair of National Security Studies and Professor of Political Science at Ohio State University. He is the author of Overblown and The Remnants of War, winner of the Joseph P. Lepgold Prize for the best book on international relations in 2004, awarded by Georgetown University.

John Glaser

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_04_18_glaser.mp3]

John Glaser, Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com, discusses his article “How to Make Syria Much, Much Worse; John McCain and Joe Lieberman’s meeting with leaders of the anti-Assad resistance; compelling arguments against arming Sunni “freedom fighters,” this time in Syria; why Kofi Annan’s ceasefire plan is still holding; how Libyan regime change destabilized the entire region; Zbigniew Brzezinski’s bellyaching about the end of American hegemony; and President Obama’s dismissal of decriminalization and ending the War on Drugs in Central America.

MP3 here. (32:16)

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_04_10_escobar.mp3]

Globetrotting journalist Pepe Escobar discusses his recent articles at the Asia Times; why the whole world is a mess except for South America; the Iran to Pakistan (and possibly China) pipeline, abhorred by the US, that could be operational in 2014; how Iran sanctions allow Russia’s Gazprom to continue dominating the European energy market; US strategists coming up short in the global “great game;” Syria’s strategic importance to Russia’s navy and NATO’s plans for Mediterranean supremacy; AFRICOM’s reconquest of Africa; and a possible Iran-Iraq-Syria-Lebanon pipeline.

MP3 here. (41:54)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

John Glaser

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_04_09_glaser.mp3]

John Glaser, Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com, discusses UN Special Envoy to Syria Kofi Annan’s proposed ceasefire deal; the difficulty of negotiating with Syria’s decentralized and leaderless opposition; a Cold War-type proxy battle, with Russian and Iran supporting the Assad regime and the US aiding the rebellion; forcing Iran into an impossible-to-accept “Rambouillet” ultimatum – purposefully designed to start a war; and why the Obama administration’s Iran agenda still can’t be deciphered.

MP3 here. (20:10)

John Glaser is Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com. He is a former intern at The American Conservative magazine and CATO Institute.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_03_26_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses his article “The Dangerous Mess in Syria Grows Murkier;” the foreign forces instigating regime change by supporting Syria’s rebellion; why fractured Arab nations – which are mostly colonial relics – can’t be made whole again; how Republican warmongering has finally gone too far, alienating the electorate and damaging the party; and the US’s waning international influence, evidenced by India’s refusal to abide by sanctions on Iran’s oil exports.

MP3 here. (20:02)

John Feffer

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_03_14_feffer.mp3]

John Feffer, co-director of Foreign Policy In Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies, discusses his new book Crusade 2.0: The West’s Resurgent War on Islam; how the Obama administration is “bribing Israel” with offers of bunker buster bombs and long range aircraft if Israel will wait until after the election to attack Iran; looking at the pros and cons – for Iran – in pursuing a nuclear weapon; and the lack of resolve in US policy on Syria.

MP3 here. (19:56)

John Feffer is co-director of Foreign Policy In Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies and author of Crusade 2.0: The West’s Resurgent War on Islam. His webpage is JohnFeffer.com.

John has been a Writing Fellow at Provisions Library in Washington, DC and a PanTech fellow in Korean Studies at Stanford University. He is a former associate editor of World Policy Journal. He has worked as an international affairs representative in Eastern Europe and East Asia for the American Friends Service Committee. He has studied in England and Russia, lived in Poland and Japan, and traveled widely throughout Europe and Asia. He has taught a graduate level course on international conflict at Sungkonghoe University in Seoul in July 2001 and delivered lectures at a variety of academic institutions including New York University, Hofstra, Union College, Cornell University, and Sofia University (Tokyo).

John has been widely interviewed in print and on radio. He serves on the advisory committees of the Alliance of Scholars Concerned about Korea. He is a recipient of the Herbert W. Scoville fellowship and has been a writer in residence at Blue Mountain Center and the Wurlitzer Foundation. He currently lives with his partner Karin Lee in Hyattsville, Maryland.

Daniel Larison

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_03_09_kpfk_larison.mp3]

Daniel Larison, writer for The American Conservative Magazine, discusses the TAC-type of conservatives who oppose interventionist foreign policy and wars of aggression; how the never ending War on Terror increases the size and scope of government; the secret panel of government insiders passing for “due process” in the Obama administration; why the “Libyan model” of easy, from the air, regime change won’t work in Syria; and why, John McCain’s bluster aside, most Republicans really don’t want war in Syria.

MP3 here. (27:40)

Daniel Larison writes the blog “Eunomia” at The American Conservative.

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_02_29_giraldi.mp3]

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses the unusual NY Times headline acknowledging that Iran is not making nuclear weapons; the possible reasons why the Times ran James Risen’s piece instead of the usual scaremongering from David Sanger; next week’s AIPAC Policy Conference in Washington; the questionable wisdom of pushing regime change in Syria; and the politicians, think tanks and policy papers bankrolled by pro-Israel billionaire Sheldon Adelson.

MP3 here. (20:03)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_02_27_escobar.mp3]

Globetrotting journalist Pepe Escobar discusses “A Separation,” the first Iranian movie to win an Academy Award; the suspiciously-timed announcement of a plot to assassinate Vladimir Putin, just days before Russia’s presidential election; Pepe’s article “What is Iran’s Supreme Leader’s Game;” the Green movement’s exclusion from Iran’s parliamentary elections; why a US/Israeli war with Iran could bring Russia and China into the fray; and how GCC’s support for Syria’s opposition is fomenting a prolonged civil war.

MP3 here. (29:54)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_02_24_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses the many countries covertly and overtly supporting Syria’s armed resistance; the Western media’s one-sided anti-Assad coverage; how the US is hijacking the Arab Spring, toppling unfriendly dictators (while protecting compliant ones) and subverting genuine grassroots democratic revolutions; the near-total elimination of al-Qaeda, so that it exists mostly as a catchall name for anti-American groups; and the danger of Russian intervention in Syria.

MP3 here. (23:09)

Hillary Mann Leverett

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_02_20_leverett.mp3]

Hillary Mann Leverett, former State Department official and co-founder of The Race For Iran, discusses neoconservative Michael Rubin’s doubts about Iran’s 2003 “Grand Bargain” of diplomatic overtures to the US; how US and Iranian interests aligned against al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan, creating an opportunity for an al-Qaeda/MEK prisoner swap that may have prevented future terrorist attacks; the pushback from the US intelligence community/military against Israel and the Obama administration (proudly “marching in lockstep” with Israel); why Iran really is an imminent threat (to Israel’s regional hegemony, not existence); and why plans to use Syria as a conduit to effect regime change in Iran are not based in reality.

MP3 here. (24:16)

Hillary Mann Leverett has more than 20 years of academic, legal, business, diplomatic, and policy experience working on Middle Eastern issues. In the George W. Bush Administration, she worked as Director for Iran, Afghanistan and Persian Gulf Affairs at the National Security Council, Middle East expert on the Secretary of State’s Policy Planning Staff, and Political Advisor for Middle East, Central Asian and African issues at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. From 2001-2003, she was one of a small number of U.S. diplomats authorized to negotiate with the Iranians over Afghanistan, al-Qa’ida and Iraq. In the Clinton Administration, Leverett also served as Political Advisor for Middle East, Central Asian and African issues for the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, Associate Director for Near Eastern Affairs at the National Security Council, and Special Assistant to the Ambassador at the U.S. embassy in Cairo. She was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and a Watson Fellowship, and in 1990-1991 worked in the U.S. embassies in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt and Israel, and was part of the team that reopened the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait after the first Gulf War.

Ms. Leverett has published extensively on Iran as well as on other Middle Eastern, Central and South Asian, and Russian issues. She has spoken about U.S.-Iranian relations at Harvard, MIT, the National Defense University, NYU, the Norwegian Institute for International Affairs, and major research centers in China. She has appeared on news and public affairs programs on BBC, CNN, MSNBC, and Al Jazeera (Arabic and English), and was featured in the highly acclaimed BBC documentary, Iran and the West. Along with Flynt Leverett, she appeared in the PBS Frontline documentary, “Showdown With Iran”, and was profiled in Esquire magazine. She has provided expert testimony to the U.S. House Government Reform and Oversight Committee.

Ms. Leverett is a graduate of Harvard Law School and Brandeis University. She also studied at the American University in Cairo and Tel Aviv University. She currently teaches foreign policy at the American University in Washington D.C.

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_02_15_escobar.mp3]

Globetrotting journalist Pepe Escobar discusses allegations that Iranian assassins tried to kill Israelis in Bangkok, Thailand; why the amateurish operation, and Israel’s history of frame-ups, leads him to believe it was a false-flag attack; the strange bedfellows uniting behind the Syrian opposition, including the Arab League, US, NATO and Al Qaeda; why Syrian religious minorities and the “business class” still support the Assad government; why Patrick Cockburn is right about Syria’s “Lebanisation” and descent into a prolonged sectarian civil war; and the Saudi tanks and made-in-USA tear gas that crushed the protests in Bahrain – and exposed the hypocrisy inherent in US “democracy building” foreign policy.

MP3 here. (29:39)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

John Glaser

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_02_02_glaser.mp3]

John Glaser, Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com, discusses why Russia will veto any UN Security Council resolution for “civilian protection” or “no fly zones” in Syria; US support for Arab Spring democratic revolutions – so long as the deposed government isn’t a close ally; how Syria presents a classic case for non-intervention; and how Iran’s supposed plot to assassinate a Saudi ambassador has returned to the news cycle, thanks to National Intelligence Director James Clapper.

MP3 here. (19:48)

John Glaser is Assistant Editor at Antiwar.com. He is a former intern at The American Conservative magazine and CATO Institute.

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_01_20_escobar.mp3]

Globetrotting journalist Pepe Escobar discusses his article “Sinking the Petrodollar in the Persian Gulf;” the increasingly divergent US and Israeli “red lines” on Iran’s nuclear program; proposed pipelines that would route oil around the Persian Gulf, marginalizing Iran’s ability to shut the Strait of Hormuz; how sanctions on Iran have lessened the US dollar’s dominance in global oil trading transactions; and the civil strife in Syria, where the opposition is no more credible than the reigning minority Assad regime.

MP3 here. (26:07)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

Roy Gutman

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/12_01_02_gutman.mp3]

Roy Gutman, Baghdad Bureau Chief for McClatchy Newspapers, discusses the bureaucratic hindrances to the MEK’s move out of Camp Ashraf in Iraq; how individual asylum cases will essentially force the MEK to disband (as no country is willing to accept the whole group); Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki’s efforts to consolidate power in the splintered and unworkable Iraqi government system; the many Iraqi politicians with huge security forces that also function as hit squads against rivals; why Iraq’s political outcome is critical to the region, world oil market and Western world; how Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are jockeying for position in the “up for grabs” countries of Syria and Iraq; why US intervention in the Middle East is necessary to protect oil resources and fill the security vacuum; and the merits of US interventionism in general, from Iraq to Afghanistan.

MP3 here. (63:43)

Roy Gutman is the Baghdad Bureau Chief for McClatchy Newspapers.

He formerly served as McClatchy’s foreign editor, as diplomatic correspondent for Newsweek, and as director of American University’s Crimes of War Project. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the 1993 war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, where he provided the first documented reports of concentration camps.

Gutman’s honors include the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting, the George Polk Award for foreign reporting, the Selden Ring Award for investigative reporting, and a special Human Rights in Media Award from the International League for Human Rights. He holds an M.A. in international relations from the London School of Economics.

Gareth Porter

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_12_30_kpfk_porter.mp3]

Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses the Israeli Mossad chief’s admission that a nuclear-armed Iran would not be an “existential threat;” the conflict between policy “realists” in Israel’s military and intelligence community and the “messianic” hawks aligned with Netanyahu and Ehud Barak; why a Republican presidential victory in 2012 (excepting Ron Paul) would advance Netanyahu’s push for war; how ever-harsher sanctions are leading to a complete shutdown of Iran’s oil exports (which could provoke a reaction like Japan’s in 1941); and why Obama would be “crazy” to push for a Libyan-style regime change in Syria.

MP3 here. (28:43)

Gareth Porter is an independent historian and journalist. He is the author of Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam. His articles appear on Counterpunch, Huffington Post, Inter Press Service News Agency and Antiwar.com.

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_12_20_giraldi.mp3]

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses his article “NATO vs. Syria;” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the CIA working overtly and covertly to undermine the Assad regime; how the lack of reliable news from Syria makes it hard to tell if there really is a civil war or major uprising; the worse alternatives to secular Middle East dictators who at least tolerate religious minorities; the Syrian opposition’s receipt of “training” and weapons from Europe, Turkey and Libya; and how Obama wages war on the sly, using drones, covert operations and “rebel” proxy fighters on the ground.

MP3 here. (19:47)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_12_12_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses the conflict in Syria, where Western-backed instigators and a legitimate domestic opposition face off against the Assad regime – which still enjoys widespread popular support; the consequences of Syrian regime change for Palestinians, Iran and Hezbollah; how Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states are exporting homegrown Islamic radicals to fight in Syria (shades of 1980s Afghanistan – what could possibly go wrong?); what a truly democratic Middle East would look like; whether Egyptian sympathy for Palestinians will be tempered by continued US bribe money; and why the US needs to accept the Muslim Brotherhood as a legitimate political force – or deal with something far more radical later on.

MP3 here. (19:52)

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_12_09_kpfk_giraldi.mp3]

In this interview, produced for KPFK 90.7 FM Los Angeles, Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi reprises and expands on his previous interview about his article “Washington’s Secret Wars,” Obama’s newly signed “findings” that authorize covert operations to destabilize the Iranian and Syrian governments, how the US and Israel use the Baluch Jundallah, Kurdish PJAK and MEK groups to commit terrorism-by-proxy, and the MEK’s energetic and well funded campaign to get de-listed as a terrorist group.

MP3 here. (29:13)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_12_08_giraldi.mp3]

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses his article “Washington’s Secret Wars;” Obama’s newly signed “findings,” authorizing covert operations to destabilize the Iranian and Syrian governments; how the US and Israel use the Baluch Jundallah, Kurdish PJAK and MEK groups to commit terrorism-by-proxy; the MEK’s energetic and well funded campaign to get de-listed as a terrorist group (in order to more easily commit terrorist acts); and how the 1996 neoconservative policy document “A Clean Break: A New Strategy for Securing the Realm” is going according to plan.

MP3 here. (20:09)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_12_02_escobar.mp3]

Globetrotting journalist Pepe Escobar discusses his article “The shadow war in Syria;” how Turkey is helping NATO and GCC foment a Syrian civil war; why the Muslim Brotherhood is best situated to replace the Assad regime, not the Syrian exiles favored by the US and Europe; Jordan’s susceptibility to an Arab spring revolution (not that King Abdullah II would mind much – he’d rather be in NY City); how the US and NATO are provoking a new Cold War with Russia; and the US backup plan for world domination, should the 1000+ foreign military bases become untenable in future.

MP3 here. (40:22)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_11_23_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses the mid-1980s declaration of Osama bin Laden’s mentor Abdullah Azzam that the mujahideen would go after US forces in Saudi Arabia after the Soviets were expelled from Afghanistan; taking a closer look at the “they hate us for our freedom” explanation of Islamic extremism; the angry know-nothing Republican presidential candidates (with two exceptions); and how the convergence of regional and world powers in Syria could lead to war with Iran.

MP3 here. (20:32)

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_11_21_giraldi.mp3]

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses the CIA agents “rolled up” in Iran and Lebanon because of sloppy tradecraft (like regularly meeting at a Beirut Pizza Hut); clarifying the CIA terms “officer,” “agent,” and “asset;” the Iranian agents killed from ill-conceived CIA mailing practices during Giraldi’s tenure (though he learned about it in the newspaper); how the purging of US intelligence assets could help the Iran war propaganda campaign; and why a Libyan-style regime change could soon come to Syria.

MP3 here. (21:17)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_11_17_giraldi.mp3]

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses his article “Will Washington Thump the Syrian Domino;” how the Obama administration’s belligerent foreign policy almost makes you pine for the wisdom and restraint of George W. Bush; the unwinding of poorly-conceived post-colonial countries, including Syria and Iraq; reports that Saudi Prince Bandar is forming an al-Qaeda style posse to fight in Syria, with US consent; and the collusion between current and former US government officials and the MEK terrorist group.

MP3 here. (19:48)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_11_15_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses his article “Nuclear Pots Call Iranian Kettle Black;” why Iran hasn’t developed nuclear weapons despite having incentives to do so; the US-sourced chemical and biological warfare agents used by Saddam Hussein against Iran in the 1980s; why Iran is far more likely to be “wiped off the map” by Israel than the other way around; and how Syria – as the last Arab state not subservient to the US – is being torn apart by genuine popular discontent as well as Western and Israeli interference.

MP3 here. (29:52)

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_10_31_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses how a Libyan-style regime change in Syria could give the neoconservatives a backdoor-to-war with Iran; talk of securing Netanyahu’s legacy through a Churchill-like “moment of greatness” where he attacks Iran and saves Israel from another holocaust; behind-the-scenes fighting by British and French special forces in Libya; why Turkey is harboring an anti-Syrian “army” of deserters; why Iraq will fall apart (even more) when the US completely withdraws; the former Pakistani cricket player leading protests against US influence; and why the Haqqani network is just the latest excuse for the failing war in Afghanistan.

MP3 here. (38:34)

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_10_13_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, internationally syndicated columnist and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses his healthy skepticism of all FBI sting operations, especially this latest Iranian assassination plot; the curious targeting of Saudi Arabia’s ambassador – hardly a powerhouse political figure; cooperation between the US, Israel and Saudi Arabia on getting rid of the Assad government in Syria; the long term neoconservative plan to break up Arab countries into stateless warring tribes, leaving Israel as the unchallenged regional hegemon; how India’s increasing involvement in Afghanistan provokes Pakistan and serves as a foil to Chinese influence; rumors that Israel is working with India in restive Islamic tribal areas; cowardly Congressional Reps who still won’t speak out against the Afghan War even after a decade of futility; and the planeloads of western businessmen flying to Libya, exemplifying what colonialism looks like in the 21st century.

MP3 here. (38:20)

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_10_03_escobar.mp3]

Pepe Escobar, journalist and author of Obama Does Globalistan, discusses the Syrian rebellion’s near-triumph in Damascus and Aleppo; the large presence of Gulf Cooperation Council members eager to help a like-minded regime come to power should Assad be deposed; what murdered journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad had to say about al Qaeda’s strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan; how the corrupt and incompetent Karzai regime fails to lure ordinary Afghans away from the Taliban’s influence; and the opportunity for China, Pakistan and Russia to broker an Afghanistan peace deal while the US and NATO remain preoccupied in their pursuit of total victory.

MP3 here. (19:57)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

Pepe Escobar

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_08_15_escobar.mp3]

Pepe Escobar, journalist and author of Obama Does Globalistan, discusses why his article “Why the Syrian regime won’t fall” could prove false if major demonstrations break out in the largest urban areas, including Damascus and Aleppo; whether Turkey’s mediation can prevent the slaughter of civilian protesters in the street; the despots-in-waiting groomed by Saudi Arabia to fill vacancies in Syria and Yemen; the proposed Saudi Arabian “anti-terrorism” law that would send critics of the regime to prison for ten years; the crushed rebellion in Bahrain, thanks to stormtroopers from the GCC; and why we shouldn’t hold our breath for a democratic reform government in Yemen.

MP3 here. (20:07)

Pepe Escobar is the author of Globalistan: How the Globalized World is Dissolving Into Liquid War and Obama Does Globalistan.

Jason Ditz

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_08_01_ditz.mp3]

Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the Syrian tank offensive in Hama that killed more than 140 protesters; how previous crackdowns have resulted in ever-larger anti-government demonstrations; a graphic YouTube link that shows what a massacre really looks like; how “days not weeks” became open-ended intervention in Libya, with no end in sight; the assassination of Libyan rebel chief of staff Abdel Fatah Younes and the complexities of civil war; the rebel atrocities that embarrass their supporters in the US Congress; and the political maneuvering in Iraq to allow US troops (or “trainers”) to stay indefinitely.

MP3 here. (19:35)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com. His op-ed pieces have been published in newspapers and other media around the world.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_07_13_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, foreign correspondent and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses why France and the US are working in tandem against the Assad regime in Syria; how Syria’s dissolution would cause massive regional upheaval, and should cause the West and Israel to rethink regime change plans; the public relations trappings that disguise naked imperialism by the US/NATO; the “low IQ” hawks in Congress who shout “send in the troops!” but don’t know Syria from Senegal; and why Gadhafi’s days in Libya (and on earth) are numbered.

MP3 here. (22:47)

Jason Ditz

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_06_09_ditz.mp3]

Jason Ditz, news editor of Antiwar.com discusses the wounded flight of Yemen’s dictator Saleh as the country falls apart, sorting out different factions, tribes and student groups, the US call for Saleh to step down, not in support of democratic reform, but because he is no longer an effectively brutal autocrat, the US campaign of recent air strikes al Qaeda targets, the Golan Heights protests, why casualties reflect Israel’s great concern about large peaceful protests; and Syria’s increasingly unstable government amid huge protests.

MP3 here. (19:50)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com. His op-ed pieces have been published in newspapers and other media around the world.

Dean Ahmad

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_05_16_ahmad.mp3]

Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, founder of the Minaret of Freedom Institute, discusses the typically sycophantic White House response to Israel’s shooting of peaceful Nakba protesters; Israel’s core founding myth, especially to Americans: no indigenous population existed (a.k.a. there is no such thing as a Palestinian); Palestinian peace activists initiating a third, peaceful, intifada in the spirit of the Arab Spring revolutions; the unquestioned absurdity of Israel “defending its borders” of the occupied Syrian Golan Heights, from Syrians; the Egyptian-moderated Fatah/Hamas unity agreement for new elections and a functioning coalition government; the interminable “peace process” that remains fatally flawed while the US refuses to act as a genuine “honest broker;” and how the hopelessly-devoted US Congress sees Israel as a crucial domestic priority, not an object of foreign policy.

MP3 here. (21:14)

Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, Ph.D. is the President and director of the Minaret of Freedom Institute and an internationally known interdisciplinary scientist, author of Signs in the Heavens: A Muslim Astronomer’s Perspective on Religion and Science. He is a senior lecturer at the University of Maryland where he teaches courses on religion and progress and on religion, science and freedom. He also teaches a course on Islam, Science and Development at Georgetown University for the Center on Muslim-Christian Understanding.

Jason Ditz

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_05_12_ditz.mp3]

Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the latest news with Scott, who’s been on the road this week and missed that whole bin Laden story; the changing US government narrative on events before, during and after the bin Laden raid; the already-forgotten euphoria that gave Obama’s approval rating a temporary boost and had crowds chanting USA! USA!; the White House’s confident assertion that the raid sets a “precedent” that may well be repeated; renewed drone strikes and attention on the tribal areas even though bin Laden was caught in Pakistan proper, nearer India than Afghanistan; and why the US may be jumping the shark on Syria regime change.

MP3 here. (18:13)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com. His op-ed pieces have been published in newspapers and other media around the world.

Jason Ditz

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_04_27_ditz.mp3]

Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the sparse news coverage on the stalemate in Libya that may lead to partition; NATO’s “no assassination” policy in a conflict where every target can be defined as a military asset; decentralizing power in Yemen, where many provinces have become autonomous; the Saudi-dominated Gulf Cooperation Council troops in Bahrain that are staying for the duration of Shia protests; and the persistence of protesters in Syria, who turn out in ever-greater numbers despite the mortal risk in doing so.

MP3 here. (19:15)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com. His op-ed pieces have been published in newspapers and other media around the world.

Doug Bandow

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_04_22_bandow.mp3]

Doug Bandow, senior fellow at the Cato Institute, discusses his articles “Whiners at War” and “Libya: Resisting the Siren Call of Creeping Intervention;” the bogus pretexts for war, from Saddam Hussein’s nonexistent WMD cache to Col. Gadhafi’s supposed threat of a massacre in Benghazi; why “antiwar” is an overly-provocative word for the Left; why it’s hard to imagine a war the US isn’t involved in; and the god-complex developed by government officials possessing secret information.

MP3 here. (19:58)

Doug Bandow is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, specializing in foreign policy and civil liberties. He worked as special assistant to President Reagan and editor of the political magazine Inquiry. He writes regularly for leading publications such as Fortune magazine, National Interest, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Times. Bandow speaks frequently at academic conferences, on college campuses, and to business groups. Bandow has been a regular commentator on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel, and MSNBC. He holds a J.D. from Stanford University.

Philip Giraldi

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_04_22_giraldi.mp3]

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi discusses the US “democracy building” institutions contributing to the protests in Syria; whether the US government deserves credit for the Arab Spring by playing both sides – minimally funding opposition groups while massively funding dictators; John McCain’s return trip to Libya, this time on the rebel side; the competing factions that make a unified foreign policy based on national interest impossible; summing up Syria policy as “what’s best for Israel;” and how Libya is becoming a Balkan-style quagmire.

MP3 here. (21:13)

Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and executive director of the Council for the National Interest. He writes regularly for Antiwar.com.

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_04_20_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, foreign correspondent and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses how a NATO defeat in Libya would be political disastrous for Obama and Sarkozy – meaning they’ll fight on til the bitter end; why the US spends trillions fighting little countries of no strategic value; the depth of interference in Syria’s demonstrations by the US, Saudi Arabia and Israel; why the next Syrian potentate probably lives in Virginia right now; fracturing the Arab world into its tribal components so Israel can rule the region; and why Iraq, for the most part, is not better now than under Saddam.

MP3 here. (23:40)

Eric Margolis

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_04_01_kpfk_margolis.mp3]

This recording is from the KPFK 90.7 FM Los Angeles broadcast of April 1st. The KPFK archive is here.

Eric Margolis, foreign correspondent and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses why the Libyan War could mark the beginning of a counterrevolutionary response to the “Arab Spring;” why Syria’s uprising – though based on legitimate grievances – may have been instigated by the US and Israel; the spectacle of watching Libya’s rag-tag rebels drive patchwork vehicles across the desert, somewhat resembling characters in a Mad Max movie; the even greater spectacle of watching NATO forces kill Libyan civilians in a campaign to prevent the killing of Libyan civilians; why Arabian Peninsula-based Al Qaeda franchises are bit players in global terrorism; and the large number of foreign workers in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain who potentially threaten the stability of their despotic hosts.

MP3 here. (25:32)

Jason Ditz

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/11_03_28_ditz.mp3]

Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the lengthening Libya intervention from “days not weeks” to an open ended commitment with no end in sight – despite Robert Gates’s assertion that Libya poses no threat to the US; how the Bahrain issue has driven a (real or invented) wedge between the US and Saudi Arabia; Yemeni protests coming to a head and spelling the end of President Saleh’s rule; protests in Syria gaining enough momentum to possibly force the end to an emergency law in effect since 1963; and how French President Sarkozy competes with the impressive warmongering of the two Liebermans, Joe and Avigdor.

MP3 here. (27:43)

Jason Ditz is the managing news editor at Antiwar.com. His op-ed pieces have been published in newspapers and other media around the world.

Philip Giraldi

Some Reasons for Optimism

[audio:http://awr.dissentradio.com/09_03_23_giraldi.mp3]

Philip Giraldi, contributing editor at The American Conservative magazine, discusses the disposition of U.S. diplomacy in the Obama administration, the role Dick Cheney played in scuttling a Syria/Israel peace agreement, Obama’s use of unofficial envoys to float diplomatic trial balloons in Iran and Russia, the fate of Hamid Karzai and why the Pyrrhic nature of the Israel lobby’s recent victory over the realists has been greatly exaggerated.

MP3 here. (41:43)

Philip Giraldi is a former DIA and CIA counter-terrorism officer, member of the American Conservative Defense Alliance and contributing editor at the American Conservative Magazine. His Smoke and Mirrors column is a regular feature on Antiwar.com

Eric Margolis

American Raj

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/08_11_13_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, author of American Raj: Liberation or Domination?: Resolving the Conflict Between the West and the Muslim World, discusses the repeating of history in Afghanistan, India’s under-the-radar regional influence and sweetheart nuclear deal, ramifications of a future “Pashtunistan”, the precarious economic and political conditions in Pakistan, the possibility of Obama using Bill Clinton as Kashmir peacemaker, the need for a waxing Department of State and waning Pentagon in the foreign policy realm, the Caspian oil pipeline as “Great Game” prize, new accusations about Syria’s nuclear program and the supreme importance of U.S./Russia relations.

MP3 here. (53:49)

Eric Margolis is a foreign correspondent and columnist with the Quebecor Media Company and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj.

Joe Cirincione

Iran, Iraq, Syria, North Korea, Russia

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/08_10_08_cirincione.mp3]

Joe Cirincione, president of the Plougshares Fund, discusses developments in the Israeli bombing of an alleged nuclear reactor in Syria, the North Korean nuclear program, the Bush regime’s failure to negotiate its dismantling, the AQ Kahn nuclear secret black-market network, the Iranian nuclear energy program, what it would take for Iran to build a weapons program, the missed opportunity five years ago to become friends with them, the political structure within Iran, the foreign policies of the presidential candidates, the dismantling of the old Soviet nuclear arsenal and the necessity of a nuclear weapon free world for the survival of the species.

MP3 here. (44:04)

Joe Cirincione is President of Plougshares Fund based in Washington, DC and San Francisco and author of Bomb Scare: The History and Future of Nuclear Weapons.

Gordon Prather

Axis of False Accusations

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/08_06_26_prather.mp3]

Dr. Gordon Prather, Antiwar.com’s in-house nuclear physicist, discusses the chaos of the Bush regime’s policies against the “Axis of Evil” and global non-proliferation regime, from trying to frame North Korea with the same bogus intel as they used on Iraq to trying to connect Iran and North Korea with the Israeli-bombed facility in Syria, the U.S.’s nuclear deals with India, how A.Q. Kahn’s stolen intel scheme was falsely claimed by George Tenet to be a CIA success story, the vague credentials of nuke “expert” David Albright Ph.D and how the Bush team has put us in far more danger from nuclear proliferation.

MP3 here. (52:09)

YouTube here.

Physicist James Gordon Prather has served as a policy implementing official for national security-related technical matters in the Federal Energy Agency, the Energy Research and Development Administration, the Department of Energy, the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Department of the Army. Dr. Prather also served as legislative assistant for national security affairs to U.S. Sen. Henry Bellmon, R-Okla. – ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee and member of the Senate Energy Committee and Appropriations Committee. Dr. Prather had earlier worked as a nuclear weapons physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California and Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico.

Mohamad Bazzi

US Harms Peace Efforts

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/charles/aw0520MOHAMADBAZZI.mp3]

Mohamad Bazzi, Edward R. Murrow Press Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, discusses his recent article in Newsweek about the prospects for peace in the Middle East, the peace talks between Israel and Syria over the Golan Heights, the Bush administration’s policy of isolating Syria, their close alliance with Iran, Turkey’s role in the Israeli-Syrian talks, the State Department’s recent contact with the Syrian ambassador to the U.S., U.S. involvement in the Middle East, the situation in Lebanon between the Seniora government and Hezbollah and takes questions from callers.

MP3 here. (16:41)

Mohamad Bazzi is Edward R. Murrow Press Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. He is a former Middle East bureau chief at Newsday. He is currently working on a project about Hezbollah and the Shiite community in Lebanon.

Eric Margolis

Neocons Push for More Horrible Wars

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/08_05_12_margolis.mp3]

Eric Margolis, foreign correspondent for Canada’s Sun National Media and author of War at the Top of the World: The Struggle for Afghanistan, Kashmir and Tibet, discusses the new hype about Israel’s bombing of the supposed Syrian/North Korean nuclear facility in September 2007, the North Korean uranium enrichment program which still does not exist and which they still won’t fess up to, Israeli peace negotiations with Syria over the Golan Heights on the eve of further war, the two countries’ relative strength, the insane neocon “the Iranians want to be bombed and taken over by the MEK” theory, new war plans being drawn up, various ways that Iran could strike back, the bogus threat of the “Shi’ite Crescent,” the very real willingness of the Iranians to negotiate and do business with the U.S., the motivations which drive the al Qaeda movement, pro-Americanism in France and the NATO/EU Army question.

MP3 here. (42:17)

Award winning author, columnist, and broadcaster Eric S. Margolis has covered 14 wars and is a leading authority on military affairs, the Middle East, South Asia, and Islamic movements. He is the author of War at the Top of the World. See his website.

Philip Giraldi

Intelligence Estimate

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/08_04_24_giraldi.mp3]

Philip Giraldi, former DIA and CIA officer and columnist for Antiwar.com, discusses his scoop for the American Conservative magazine that the information leading the FBI to Ben Ami Kadish came from inside the Israeli government, speculation that it may have been an attempt by antiwar factions in Israel to thwart scheduled testimony by Israeli intelligence agents in favor of the bogus story of the North Korea/Syria nuclear weapons program, the promotion of Gen. Petraeus to commander of Centcom, the remaining danger of war with Iran given a suitable pretext, the detriment of the narrative of the indivisibility of Israeli and American interests, the natural divisions between groups like Hezbollah, al Qaeda, the Iranian Mullahs, the War Party’s claims about their cooperation, the FBI’s bogus terrorism prosecutions since 9/11, America’s regime change in Somalia, the case for immediate withdrawal from Iraq and the McCain prescription for confrontation with Russia and China.

MP3 here. (39:51)

Philip Giraldi is a former DIA and CIA officer, partner at Cannistraro Associates, Francis Walsingham Fellow for the American Conservative Defense Alliance, contributing editor at the American Conservative magazine and columnist at Antiwar.com.

Gareth Porter

Admiral Fallon’s Dismissal

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/08_03_12_porter.mp3]

Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses the “retirement” of Adm. Fox Fallon from his position as the head of Centcom, his repeated clashes with the White House over Iran policy, Robert Gates role, his belief that war is still unlikely, the U.S. government propaganda again blaming Iran for all the problems in Iraq, Obama and his advisers, Bill Clinton’s 1997 attempt to have former Centcom commander Gen. Anthony Zinni to create a pretext for war with Iraq and Zinni’s play to shut it down and attempt to pin bin Laden’s Khobar Towers attack on “Iranian-backed Saudi Hezbollah” as a pretext for war against Iran.

MP3 here. (27:32)

Some relevant Porter articles: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Dr. Gareth Porter is an investigative historian and journalist on U.S. national security policy who has been independent since a brief period of university teaching in the 1980s. Dr. Porter is the author of four books, the latest of which is Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam (University of California Press, 2005). He has written regularly for Inter Press Service on U.S. policy toward Iraq and Iran since 2005.

Dr. Porter was both a Vietnam specialist and an anti-war activist during the Vietnam War and was Co-Director of Indochina Resource Center in Washington. Dr. Porter taught international studies at City College of New York and American University. He was the first Academic Director for Peace and Conflict Resolution in the Washington Semester program at American University.

Seymour Hersh

Israel’s Sept. Attack on Syria

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/charles/aw020508syhersh.mp3]

Seymour Hersh from the New Yorker discusses his new article about the Israeli air strike against Syria last September, U.S. complicity and the lies used to justify it.

MP3 here. (17:00)

Seymour Hersh is an award winning investigative reporter currently writing for the New Yorker magazine.

Joseph Cirincione

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/07_09_25_cirincione.mp3]

Joseph Cirincione, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and author of Bomb Scare: The History and Future of Nuclear Weapons, discusses the true nature of Syria, North Korea and Iran’s nuclear programs, the neoconservatives lies about them, their motives, the Cheney Cabal’s attempted end run around the president, the willingness of the mass media to continually repeat whatever the government says about Iran, the fragility of the UN’s non-proliferation regime and the possibility of a nuclear war against Iran.

MP3 here. (39:31)

Joseph Cirincione is Senior Fellow and Director for Nuclear Policy at CAP and author of the new book, Bomb Scare: The History and Future of Nuclear Weapons (Columbia University Press, Spring 2007). Prior to joining the Center in May 2006, he served as director for nonproliferation at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace for eight years. He is the co-author of Contain and Engage: A New Strategy for Resolving the Iran Nuclear Crisis (Center for American Progress, March 2007), Deadly Arsenals: Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Threats (Second Edition, 2005), and Universal Compliance: A Strategy for Nuclear Security (March 2005). He teaches at the graduate School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.

Steve Clemons

[audio:http://dissentradio.com/radio/07_09_19_clemons.mp3]

MP3 here. (44:54)

Steve Clemons, director of the Strategies Program at the New America Foundation and author of the influential blog TheWashingtonNote, discusses his view that the president is seeking a “third option” and is not yet on board with Dick Cheney’s plan to bomb Iran.

Clemons also breaks the story that in a personal discussion with former South Korean President Kim De-Jung on Tuesday he was told that the current South Korean Foreign Minister has informed him that their government believes there is no merit at all to the recent claims that the North Koreans have been working with Syria on nuclear technology and that this is an effort by the neoconservatives to derail the six-party talks.

Steven Clemons directs the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation, which aims to promote a new American internationalism that combines a tough-minded realism about America’s interests in the world with a pragmatic idealism about the kind of world order best suited to America’s democratic way of life. He is also a Senior Fellow at New America, and previously served as Executive Vice President.

Publisher of the popular political blog The Washington Note, Mr. Clemons is a long-term policy practitioner and entrepreneur in Washington, D.C. He has served as Executive Vice President of the Economic Strategy Institute, Senior Policy Advisor on Economic and International Affairs to Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and was the first Executive Director of the Nixon Center.