Tangled Threads of US False Narratives

Exclusive: Official Washington’s many false narratives about Russia and Syria have gotten so tangled that they have become a danger to the struggle against Sunni terrorism and conceivably a threat to the future of the planet, a risk that Robert Parry explores. By Robert Parry One way to view Official Washington is to envision a giant…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/11/tangled-threads-of-us-false-narratives.html

You’re Not A Bad Christian Just Because You Want To Be Cautious About Syrian Refugees

I want to finally tell you in detail what I think about the Syrian refugee crisis, and what I think America should do in response to it. I haven’t said much on the subject until now because I’ve been researching the facts and reading other analyses on both sides of the debate. I’ve read a lot of really stupid arguments, and a lot of really compelling ones. Through that process, I still have not become an expert, I still could be wrong, and I still have a very limited knowledge about the history of American refugee policy and other related issues. Unlike everyone else on the internet, apparently, I actually am not a scholar on this subject. I’m just a guy with a few opinions.

My opinions do not fit neatly into the “yea” or “nay” paradigm. If you assume you know my position based on the title of this piece, you’re probably assuming incorrectly. To very briefly summarize, I understand the hesitations about taking in the refugees, I believe it would be reckless to admit thousands without thorough background checks ahead of time, I do think we should be discriminatory in who we accept and who we don’t, I do think 10,000 is probably too many at this precise moment in time, and I am extremely concerned about importing radical Islamic ideology into our communities.

On the other side of it, I don’t think these refugees are terrorists, I don’t think there’s any evidence to support the more panicked reactions to them, I sincerely doubt that we have to worry about orphans and widows being ISIS double agents, and I do believe we have a moral obligation to help.

There’s more to it. You really just have to read this one to understand what I’m saying. Because I’m staking out, perhaps, more of a third option on this issue, I’m likely to disappoint virtually all of my readers on both sides. But I think sometimes I need to disappoint my readers. If I never did, that’s probably a sign that I’m not being honest about my opinions. If you do agree with everything I’m saying here, please give it a share so that another side of this debate can be represented:

Click here to read the post.

The post You’re Not A Bad Christian Just Because You Want To Be Cautious About Syrian Refugees appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.

from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/11/youre-not-bad-christian-just-because.html

How Russians See the West and Russia

The U.S. mainstream media’s recent depictions of Russia amount to little more than crass propaganda, including the inside-out insistence that it is the Russian people who are the ones brainwashed by their government’s propaganda. Author Natylie Baldwin found a different reality in a tour of Russian cities. By Natylie Baldwin After a year and a half…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/11/how-russians-see-west-and-russia.html

Reform Judaism’s Israeli Critique

Israel’s nearly seven decades of repressing Palestinians has soured many ethical Jews on the idea that the Jewish state should get unqualified support for its behavior, including now Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the leader of U.S. Reform Judaism, as Lawrence Davidson describes. By Lawrence Davidson Something significant recently happened in the ongoing political-ethical drama that grips Israel…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/11/reform-judaisms-israeli-critique.html

Baiting Obama to ‘Shock and Awe’

Official Washington’s armchair warriors are pounding their drums again, demanding a larger U.S. invasion of Syria and decrying President Obama as “feckless” for showing some restraint. But these hawks offer little thinking about the consequences of another long-term occupation, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar President Barack Obama has repeatedly made adjustments…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/11/baiting-obama-to-shock-and-awe.html

Neocons Make Rubio Their Favorite

With Sen. Marco Rubio surging in the polls – closing the gap on Donald Trump and easily besting Hillary Clinton in some general-election match-ups – the neocons have found their favorite candidate, a fresh face who would put them firmly back in the driver’s seat of U.S. foreign policy, as JP Sottile explains. By JP…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/11/neocons-make-rubio-their-favorite.html

CIA Whistleblower Kiriakou Honored

CIA officer John Kiriakou, the first U.S. official to confirm that waterboarding was used to torture “war on terror” detainees, then faced a retaliatory prosecution and 30 months in prison. Recognizing his sacrifice, the literary group PEN gave Kiriakou its First Amendment Award, observed ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern. By Ray McGovern  Editor’s Note: On Nov. 16, PEN Center USA, the West…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/11/cia-whistleblower-kiriakou-honored.html