Long Live Syria !

        Long Live Syria the Center of Resistance to Imperialism


   Syria continues to survive against the odds. In the year 2015 there is no more heroic people on the planet. Since 2011 they have fought to defend their country against a seemingly endless stream of foreign terrorists financed by the old imperial powers like France and the UK who arrogantly redrew the map of the middle east 100 years ago robbing Syria of much of it's territory to suit their own convenience. The war is financed and lead by the backwards GCC monarchies like Qatar and Saudi Arabia. They founded schools across the planet bringing their own various insane brands of islam useful for inspiring terror and genocide across the planet. All done to further the interests of the CIA and of infamous schemers for global domination from  "realists" like Zbigniew Brzezinski to crazed neo-conservatives like Richard Perle. Thus the US and Israel are both major funders of the terror groups waging war on Syria. Both suffered embarrassing recent disclosures about this to the delight of the alt media. Syria has been targeted by the corporate media and the chorus of phony "humanitarians" like Human Rights Watch which are waging a propaganda campaign against Syria. They have exposed their complete moral bankruptcy by covering up the endless crimes of Al Nusra, the Free Syrian Army, and ISIS. Of course Human Rights Watch is no stranger to turning truth on it's head to name only one example they provided cover for Paul Kagame's genocidal rise to power when with US backing he invaded Rwanda, assassinated the president, seized power and then invaded the DRCongo killing 10 million people. Yugoslavia and Libya are other examples of their propaganda handiwork. Thankfully in the internet age such propaganda masterpieces are no longer so easy and the truth about the war in Syria is well known to at least the people who are paying attention and know where to look for information. On that note I can't resist mentioning Alexandra Valiente's great site on Syria: Syria 360

  https://syria360.wordpress.com

It's Definitely required reading for anyone following the war in Syria.

To sum up my introduction almost the whole world has targeted Syria for destruction. Thankfully it has allies like Russia and China who have blocked attempts to expand the war through their seats on the UN Security Council. Thankfully it also has allies like Iran and Hezbollah who are fighting side by side with the Syrian people in defense of civilization. It also has friends like Venezuela which provided crucial humanitarian aid, fuel and even provided an oil refinery I discovered recently. However other then these allies the entire world seems bent on destroying Syria turning it into a failed state ruled by death squads. This was the tragic fate of Libya where the horrors seem never ending torture, murder, and rape occur daily with no consequence and almost no outcry. A land of endless war and injustice. For the US, NATO, the GCC monarchs, and Israel Libya is the ultimate success story a blueprint for the whole future of the middle east. It is only the brave resistance of the Syrian people that prevents Libya from becoming the blue-print for the entire middle east and central Asia. Only their unity and solidarity in the face of the attempt to balkanize the country along ethnic and sectarian lines have prevented the country from becoming another Iraq. It is this unity which should be an example to the middle east and indeed the rest of the world. Sunni, Shiite, Druze, Christians, Kurds, Alawites, and Yezidis are fighting side by side to save Syria. We the people of the world must also unite in Syria's defense.


    I'd like to return briefly to the topic of funding the terrorists although I'm sure most of you already know all about it merely to record two embarrassing incidents that happened recently. Well actually there were 3 with the mainstream media reporting on the Saudi role in funding terror but of course that's news to no one. It's all related to the shifting alliances in the middle east, the Iran deal, the war on Yemen, the oil war on Russia etc. In the world of geo-politics everything is connected, and things are not always as they seem. Actually the US has long considered dumping it's embarrassing and backwards allies the Saudi Royal family. In fact Kissinger even drew up plans to invade and occupy the country as a contingency plan in response to the 70's oil price crisis. Ironically he had himself intentionally engineered the crisis with Saudi cooperation for the benefit of wall street and the petrodollar. The point is there is no telling when America might decide to betray Saudi Arabia so occasionally the Media remind everyone that Saudi Arabia is funding Al Qaeda just in case at some future date they decide to declare war on Saudi Arabia. It could mean the end of the war on terror but most likely Qatar, and the UAE, Turkey and Libya would merely expand their role to compensate. The war on terror is too valuable to end that is the whole point, a war that can never be won allowing the military industrial complex to get rich off the tax revenues of not just America but all it's allies as well. The only problem is that it requires willful ignorance after the war in Libya and now in Syria to believe in this nonsense. Yet they still try to foist this absurdity on people and in the insane narrative of the American Media the US is allied with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar in a fight on ISIS despite the fact that they also admit these countries train and fund ISIS. In fact Obama even announced that he planned to fight terror by funding terrorists. (See my September 2014 article "War on Syria and Iraq "Peace in Ukraine" )  American Journalists are paid a fortune not to laugh out loud at such absurdities but instead to report them with a straight face and hope no one is paying attention. I'll mention in passing the recent Saudi publicity campaign to announce their desire for nuclear weapons. In fact they may already have bought nuclear weapons on the black market. I hope I don't need to explain why this is a very bad idea.

    Of course the US role in funding, training, and founding such groups should also be well known by now. After all the largest CIA covert operation in history was the funding of terror groups to destabilize first Afghanistan, then the USSR itself and none other then Zbigniew Brzezinki openly bragged back in 1999 that contrary to popular myth the US began funding terrorist groups to provoke the intervention of the USSR, not in response as the Media generally still pretends. They are experts at ignoring with practiced ease the actual facts. This began the rise of the Mujadeen, Al Qaeda, Al Nusra, and the many groups spread across the whole arc of crisis part of NATO's secret war on Russia and China for control of central Asia. Actually it's worse then that since this covert CIA war also greatly expanded in Africa helped along by the destruction of Libya this synthetic terror network is now spreading throughout Africa. Even in Europe this network of terrorists has worked on behalf of the CIA. Inthe War on Yugolsavia Al Qaeda was allied to both the Bosnian Muslims, and later the Albanian KLA terrorist gangsters. They also operate with increasing visibility in Ukraine. They even hoped to start a branch in Venezuela to terrorize that people already under siege from Colombian death squads CIA assassination, economic warfare and endless failed coup attempts. These groups are thus part of a plan to literally destabilize the entire planet spreading chaos and destruction in nation after nation. This is why Pepe Escobar invented the term the Empire of Chaos. Only through the heroic resistance of the Syrian people has the chaos been held at bay there. Talk about david vs goliath where ever the empire spreads it's tentacles from Chechnya to Afghanistan wherever it sows poverty ignorance and chaos it has a hotbed of terrorists to funnel into it's war against Syria. No doubt some fourth generation warfare theorist in the pentagon is gloating about the sheer genius of it all. Everywhere on the planet the US spreads poverty and war. Now it can turn the wreckage it creates into a valuable military resource the more chaos and poverty is spread the more potential recruits it can turn on it's enemies. All the is required whether in Ukraine, Iraq, or America itself is an ignorant and indoctrinated public. Ironically even in America itself it's the chief victims of unrestrained america style capitalism who provide the chief pool of recruits to join the military and go off and destroy other countries in the name of "freedom" and "democracy." All the same who can forget when America was on the verge of attacking Syria blaming Assad for actions carried out by US supported terrorists members of the American military protested by taking photos of themselves in uniform holding signs concealing their faces that read "I won't serve as Al Qaeda's airforce" thus however slowly people are definitely figuring out what is actually going on. Still it is a slow process which is why it was great to see the leaked document from the DIA that predicted the rise of islamic state and admitted our allies were working towards that goal while failing to mention of course their own role in the rise of the islamic state. Rumor has it that the DIA has been involved in even more evil covert ops then the CIA running secret special forces dirty wars across the planet under CIA guidance.

   The Israeli role in supporting these groups has also been further revealed thanks to the brave resistance of the Druze community in the town of Hadar in the Israeli occupied part of Syria in the Golan heights. Israeli media (Channel 10) admitted Israel is coordinating attacks with Al Nusra on the village because of it's support for Assad and it's support for resistance against the occupation. Then the role was further exposed when villagers mobbed an Israeli ambulance carrying a wounded Al Nusra member pulled him out and killed him. Israel promised harsh punishment but they had been caught yet again providing medical treatment to anti-Syrian terrorists. Of course Israel has also made it's support obvious by acting as an air force for the terrorists launching unprovoked bombing raids against Syria in aid of the terrorists. In the latest incident they killed a senior Hezbollah commander because he was too effective in battling the terrorists. Just the latest illegal act of war from the Israeli rogue state. Not so surprising when you consider how many Israeli leaders have been admitted terrorists (Begin) or war criminals (Sharon).

Of course America's NATO allies are also involved in funding these groups as well as the so called five eyes countries like Canada and Australia. The most interesting and infamous european source is Georgia which funnels Chechen terrorists from the pankisi gorge to Chechnya, Syria and Ukraine. But I don’t want to risk a long tangent on Saakishvili attempting to instigate a major war with Russia over Transnistria from his new post in Odessa Ukraine just like he did over South Ossetia when he was in charge back in Georgia. Instead lets move from the funders of the war on the Syrian people to the war itself.

The war in Syria is complex taking place on multiple fronts. Seemingly however many terrorists the Syrian Arab Army, the National defense militias, Hezbollah and the Semi autonomous kurdish region kill there are always more for reasons that should be clear. The Saudis have had decades to set up their schools teaching wahabi madness while the US has made the ground fertile by spreading poverty, ignorance, and war. Thus from all over the world they come to wage war on Syria some are no doubt naive fools in the beginning others are cynical mercenaries who are already veterans of a number of these dirty terror wars. In an added bonus for the empire of chaos once recruits gain experience fighting in Syria they can then be sent home to destabilize their own countries.


Currently the Syrian Arab Army and it's allies are trying to cut off the terrorists supply lines at the border regions. At the farms of Qalamoun and Arsal near the Syrian-Lebanon border the SAA and Hezbollah  have been battling for weeks to destroy terrorist hotbed there and to secure the border. In the north near the Syrian Turkish border the kurdish YPG fighters have been trying to push ISIS back but after capturing their strong hold at tel abayd they angered Erdogan the turkish leader and ISIS loosed a massive counter attack on the city of Kobane made famous last year for it's resistance to a months long ISIS siege from which it emerged victorious (See my October 2014 article "ISIS in Retreat, Fascism on the March") Now in revenge for the fall of Tel Abayd ISIS launched a major revenge attack first it detonated massive truck bombs then in the confusion that followed carried out a brutal massacre. 120 people were killed just another day of horror in the endless series of crimes that make up the war on Syria. Actually the easiest way to do the conflict justice is to take a look at a single day in the war on Syria so I'll merely reproduce here a part of a todays daily report courtesy of the excellent Syria 360 website originally released by Syria's state news agency SANA

Provinces, SANA- Units of the army and armed forces carried out Saturday special operations against terrorist organizations’ positions and dens in many areas across the country, inflicting heavy losses upon them in personnel and equipment.
Daraa
The army destroyed an armored vehicle and a rocket launching-pad for Takfiri terrorist organizations in al-Naema in Daraa countryside, a military source told SANA.
The source added that an army unit also destroyed a vehicle, leaving all the terrorists inside dead while targeting a hideout in the western side of al-Bajabja neighborhood in Daraa al-Balad.
The army also destroyed dens for Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists and killed large numbers of them, among them leaders, in Naseeb in Daraa countryside.
It killed 7 terrorists from Jabhat al-Nusra and destroyed 3 vehicles equipped with machine guns in al-Yadouda town in Daraa countryside.
Meanwhile, units of the army foiled attempts by terrorists to attack many military posts in Daraa and its countryside, killing large numbers of them and destroying their weapons.
Army units also destroyed a vehicle, leaving all the terrorists onboard dead on Alma road and inflict heavy losses upon them in al-Neima town, al-Naziheen Camp and Sawame’ al-Hoboub in the countryside of Daraa.
Damascus countryside
Meanwhile, army units destroyed dens of Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists in Damascus southwestern Countryside.
The army unit carried out concentrated operations against dens of Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists in Khan al-Sheih farms, adding that many terrorists were killed and others injured during the operations.
Sweida
Meanwhile, an army unit killed ISIS terrorists in Jarm al-Dawla village in Southeastern countryside of Sweida province.
Hama
In central Syria, the army air force destroyed several terrorists’ hideouts, killing and injuring large numbers of them and destroying a number of their vehicles, in al-Qastal, Hammadi Omar, al-Hadaj, Um Edoul and Eidoun in the countryside of Hama province.
Homs
The army foiled an attempt by terrorists to infiltrate from Wadi al-Ameriya into Homs-Salamiya highway in Homs countryside, killing a number of terrorists.
Meanwhile, army units killed and injured members of an armed terrorist group and destroyed their weapons in Sariko street in al-Rastan city to the north of Homs city.
Aleppo
The army destroyed dens and vehicles for terrorists in Dir Hafer, Banan al-Hiss, Khan Touman and killed terrorists from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the surrounding of the air force academy in Aleppo countryside.
Meanwhile, army units confronted Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists in al-Lairamoun, al-Ansari and Jub al- Qebba neighborhoods in Aleppo , where many terrorists were killed, others were injured and their vehicles were destroyed.
The army air force killed a number of terrorists in blows carried out against their hideouts in Izaz and Fafin in the countryside of Aleppo province.
Army units also targeted terrorists’ hideouts and concentrations in Binan al-Huss, Maghirat al-Shibli and Khan Touman, killing and injuring a number of terrorists and destroying their weaponry and vehicles.
An army unit targeted and destroyed terrorists’ hideouts and vehicles in the areas of Deir hafer, Tallat al-Sanobar and Kherbat al-Maasir in Aleppo countryside.
Idleb
In the northern Idleb province, the army air force killed large numbers of terrorists and destroys their vehicles in Abu al-Dohour, al-Majas, Tal Salmo and al-Rueifiyeh in the countryside.
Lattakia
The army air force destroyed hideouts for terrorists and killed a number of them in al-Saraya, al-Houlwa, Beit Ablaq and al-Rawda in the countryside of Lattakia coastal province.


As you can see the Syrian Arab army is involved in a tireless effort both to defend areas under their control from terrorist attacks and also battling to liberate those areas still under the control of ISIS, Al Nusra, and the FSA. Every day the war goes on like this and they have been fighting it for 4 years. This is why I have written this article to celebrate the courage of the Syrian People. No one thought Syria would last this long. After witnessing the complete destruction of Libya even I never expected Syria to hold out so long. Nor did the imperial leaders they thought Syria was on the verge of collapse years ago and foolishly announced that Assad would fall any day. However Assad did not fall because the Syrian people united behind their government. Who could have expected Bashar al-Assad a mild mannered doctor to earn himself the title of the lion with his firm defense of Syria. Yet against all the odds Syria survives Syria fights on.

    A month ago things looked grim for Syria with ISIS making a number of advances. Thankfully according to Eric Draitser of stopimperialism.org Iran came to the aid of Syria thus turning the Tide and now Syria is once again on the advance. Iran a prime example of America's arrogant and delusional foreign policy. The US is pursuing a peace deal with Iran while simultaneously waging war on Iran's allies in Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria nor are the Iranians fooled for one moment by the US claim to desire the end of ISIS Iran's leaders have publicly announced that the US is among ISIS's chief sponsors. Thus this peace deal is pointless if the US actually expects Iran to become it's ally. There is no way Iran will ever be foolish enough to trust a country allied with the lunatics in Tel Aviv and Riyadh that is waging war on them on every front imaginable. Now Iran has proved once again that it will not sell out it's friends in exchange for a peace deal and apparently both sides are so eager to sign it anyway that just as Iran hasn't pulled out over Yemen the US probably won't pull out over Iran's increased assistance to Syria. Of course I could be wrong and the US may find some way to sabotage itself, or some new outrage to inflict on Iran. The whole thing is a sham after all as informed observers know Iran was never pursuing a nuclear weapon they merely demanded their right to a peaceful nuclear program which as signatories to the NPT treaty they were entitled to. Yet thanks to the war mongering media, the baseless accusations of Israeli and American politicians are treated as reality not fantasy. Despite the fact even their own intelligence agencies publicly contradict them. Meanwhile US lapdog Saudi Arabia may already have nuclear weapons. And Israel already has hundreds (plus in the fascist political climate there Israeli politicians have been known to joke about nuking western Europe) but the world continues to obsess over the nonexistent Iranian nuclear weapons program.

    In Syria the war will go on. Syria's enemies will continue to flood the nation with terrorists set loose to bomb everything of value from food stores to power plants, destroying hospitals and schools, blowing up cultural landmarks. They will continue to chop off heads, torture people, rape, murder and they have even revived slavery. America and it's allies have unleashed all the evils of the world on Syria.More then  A quarter million people have been killed, and more then a million  refugees have been forced to flee. Yet despite all the horror and tragedy Syria will fight on. Despite all the forces arrayed against them they will fight to the end. This is why Syria is today the most heroic nation in the world. The people of the world must support their struggle. It is an outrage that the west still dares to openly fund terrorists groups whose crimes by now are  infamous around the world. We must never cease to expose the criminal nature of the war on Syria. However Syria's fate is in the hands of it's people whether fighting on the battlefield or braving the horrors of war to keep society running. Their bravery their unity should become an inspiration to the whole world. United and brave we can accomplish the impossible. Long Live Syria!

 





Sources

In addition to Syria 360 check out Viva Libya to follow the continuing tragedy in that country

 https://syria360.wordpress.com

https://vivalibya.wordpress.com



Eric Draitser on Iran entering the war in Syria

http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/06/10/did-the-war-in-syria-just-become-a-regional-war/

Israel admits coordination with Al Nusra

     https://syria360.wordpress.com/2015/06/19/israel-confirms-cooperation-between-zionist-entity-nusra-front/

Druze villagers expose Israeli medical treatment of Al Nusra

https://syria360.wordpress.com/2015/06/23/golan-villages-protest-against-israeli-insistence-on-treating-nusra-terrorists/
Tony Cartalucci on Syria's current strategy

https://syria360.wordpress.com/2015/06/09/logistics-101-where-does-isis-get-its-guns/

The article I excerpted on the fighting today in Syria

https://syria360.wordpress.com/2015/06/27/syria-in-last-24-hours-18/

Wayne Madsen on the many enemies of America ISIS targets at the request of the CIA

 http://www.occurrencesforeigndomestic.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Madsen-on-ISIL-as-ally.pdf

Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya explained the whole strategy a decade ago in this classic article

http://www.globalresearch.ca/plans-for-redrawing-the-middle-east-the-project-for-a-new-middle-east/3882

A great article on Georgia's role in America's dirty Wars and more dirt on Saakashvili

http://journal-neo.org/2015/06/27/saakashvili-and-the-chechens-in-ukraine-i-ve-seen-the-future-it-is-murder-2/

Check out the new Great Game website to keep track of the vital often overlooked events in Central Asia and the Caucasus. He also has great coverage of the recruitment of terrorists for the war in Syria from those countries.

http://www.christophgermann.blogspot.com

And a special thank you to Luci Frank currently in twitter exile as @justfightX

The Death of Mozgovoi & Battle at Mariinka

        The Assassination of Alexei Mozgovoi and the Battle of Mariinka


       Dedicated to my friend and comrade Luci Frank aka @Falluja05 on twitter


   In my last article I lamented having to go on break as I was certain events would accelerate as summer approached both in the War in Ukraine and Globally.  Unfortunately I was proven tragically correct as within days the terrible news arrived that Alexei Mozgovoi had been assassinated. Terrible but not unexpected news. Often when watching his statements which denounced not merely Fascist Kiev Junta, but also the appeasement of the phony Minsk  ceasefires, and even the corruption within Novorossia itself I worried he would be killed. Speaking the truth is a dangerous business after all. His loss was a terrible tragedy not just for supporters  of Novorossia but for all who dare to dream of a better world. It is our duty to keep his memory alive as an inspiration to continue the battle against Fascism, Imperialism and Capitalism. They can kill a man but never the revolutionary ideas which inspired him. Since his death the war in Ukraine has continued to escalate. The Kiev Junta has been mercilessly shelling the people of Novorossia after brazenly breaking the Minsk 2.0 agreements by moving their heavy weaponry back up to the front lines. At Mariinka the NAF (Novorossiyan Armed Forces) managed to inflict heavy losses when they launched a Counter attack on the UAF (Ukrainian Armed Forces) attempting to capture the town.


   First I'll discuss the sad details surrounding the murder of Alexei Mozgovoi simply to inscribe them in the pages of history since they are doubtless known to most of my readers already. Returning from a meeting with the LPR (Lugansk People's Republic) government a mine exploded in front of his SUV and then multiple gunmen sprayed the car with bullets. Mozgovoi was not the only victim also killed were his Press Secretary Aseeva  Samelyuk "Anna", His Bodyguards Alaexei Kalascin, and Anrdej Rjajskih, as well as his driver Alexander Yuriev nicknamed "Song" The assassins also killed two innocent civilians who just happened to be in the car behind them a pregnant woman and her husband. The circumstances of his death were eerily similar to the previous attempts to kill him which both occurred when he was returning from meeting with the LPR government along the same stretch of road. In the Second attempt only  months earlier ( See my March 2015 Article Venezuela and Novorossia defying the Empire where I discussed this attempt) the mine had exploded too soon injuring but not killing him. This time unfortunately no one escaped alive.


   We may never know who was really behind this terrible crime. The previous 2 attempts were widely believed to be have been ordered by someone with connections to the LPR. This attack thus could have emanated from some corrupt and reactionary element within the LPR. After all things are known to be rather chaotic there for example the notorious battle waged between cossacks and the government over the black market coal business which resulted in actual fighting. There was also the Murder of Commander Bedonov aka Batman earlier this year widely suspected to have been ordered by the head of the LPR Plotnitsky. However it is also possible that he was killed as part of of a Psy-op by Ukraine and it's CIA masters. This would take advantage of the previous two attempts because many would assume LPR was responsible thus sowing dissension in the ranks of Novorossia and demoralizing their supporters worldwide. This is the official story and even Mozgovoi's successors at the ghost brigade have endorsed it. For those interested in learning more about both possibilities Colonel Cassad english translated two extremely in depth articles on the topic. After reading the first article I was certain the LPR was responsible after reading the second I was not so sure anymore. I'll post the link in the sources section below if your interested. Unfortunately we'll probably never know the real truth.


    More important then the question of who Killed Mozgovoi is remembering what he lived for and what he was quite clearly ready to die for. He was a larger then life figure there was something Iconic about him. You only had to look at his face to see the toughness there he had that infamous 1000 yard stare of people who have been through the hell of war and survived. Yet there was also a warmth, a gentleness about him. I'll never forget the thank you he received when delivering food to an elderly woman in a newly liberated area somewhere near Debaltsevo she showered him with hugs and kisses thank you's while he humored her smiling although he doubtless was eager to make his next delivery. Mozgovoi decided to film the Ghost brigade food deliveries not merely for good P.R. but he also wanted people to know that their donations really were going to help people. It was meant as a rebuke to some who used their positions to steal humanitarian aid and sell it for profit. He challenged everyone involved in distributing aid to film their activities. It was this defiant attitude attitude that was his essence. Not only did he work to fight corruption in the distribution of aid He also came up with other innovative ideas to help feed the people. For example he set up social Canteens where his men and women would eat together with the local civilian population so that as long as the ghost brigade had food so too  would the people they were defending. He also set up farms to help grow food so that the locals would not have to rely on outside aid. This is actually a strategy that people outside of Novorossia should be emulating. People should be starting farms whose sole purpose is to feed the hungry. That was also part of Mozgovoi's philosophy when he saw a need for something he would just go out and build it whether it was a school a farm or a playground.
   

   Mozgovoi's Ghost Brigade got it's name because it was reported destroyed so many times by the pathological liars in the Ukrainian media. However they would always re-emerge earning them them the nickname of the Ghost Brigade. Like so many famous commanders he fought at Slavyansk where a small force managed to hold off the much larger UAF besieging the town earning the city it's title of the Heroic City. The Ghost Brigade Motto was "Don't fear for your hide, care for your honor" Mozgovoi certainly managed to live up to this. He played a major role in the victory at Debaltsevo. But he was equally courageous off the battlefield always willing to voice the harsh truth and willing to make powerful enemies in his defense of the people's interests. It is the death of Mozgovoi the revolutionary that is the greatest loss. Novorossia has many brave fighters and commanders. What made Mozgovoi special was the power of his speeches on behalf of a better world. His demand that society must provide free Helathcare, and Education and make sure that no one starves or goes homeless. He demanded an end to Oligarchs those billionaires whose fortunes constantly grow in direct proportion to the growing  misery of everyone around them. It was this that made him beloved around the world. Revolutionaries around the world were inspired by his example and within the Ghost brigade there was a special battalion composed of internationalist communist fighters who traveled from around the world to join the fight against fascism. Thus while Mozgovoi may have died the Ghost Brigade will live on and will carry on fighting inspired by his revolutionary example.
 
   The war in Ukraine continues. The Kiev Junta has increased it's shelling of civilians. They favor using ammunition that sprays shrapnel everywhere when it explodes ammunition meant to kill and wound as many people as possible. In just one recent memorable example they killed a woman's husband and daughter and also managed to blow her arm off. In another they killed a small girl. These are the results whenever Kiev decides to send a message to Novorossia by terrorizing the civilian population.


   Unfortunately the War looks like it will be a long one. Last year the war moved quickly with  decisive battles every couple of months. However after their humiliating defeats last year the kiev regime has learned a little more caution in launching huge offensives. In addition Ukrainian forces are tougher and more battle hardened after a year of war. The NAF was able to inflict a major defeat on the UAF at Debaltsevo but it was at the cost of many lives. Russia seems intent on freezing the lines of conflict and the NAF have been restrained from retaliating. Thus currently the war is taking the form of a probing for weak spots. Ukraine is trying to find a weak spot in the Novorossian position to aim their next big offensive.

   Mariinka was the site of the biggest battle since Debaltsevo when the UAF attempted to capture it on the night of June 2-3. slavyangrad.org recently translated Col. Cassad's analysis of the battle on which I will base this simplified version of events. (See Sources Below) The battle began with intense Shelling of the town by the UAF followed by an attack made up of elements the 28th brigade, territorial battalions and reserve units. The NAF were having difficulty repulsing the attack and so 1,500 NAF reinforcements and 40 armored vehicles were sent to counter attack the town. They shelled the UAF then sent in their infantry. The UAF were caught by surprise, sustained heavy casualties and were forced to retreat leading to overoptimistic reports of the capture of the town by the NAF. However the NAF counter-offensive later met fierce resistance and stalled. The UAF shelled the NAF in their newly captured positions and the NAF decided to withdraw. Both Sides suffered heavy casualties one DPR special forces Unit Cassad spoke to lost 25 people. In the end the battle was indecisive both the UAF offensive and the NAF counter-offensive failed to gain control of the town although the in the end the NAF had made a small but costly advance.

   The war continues. The Ukrainian Rada recently voted to allow foreign troops to be permanently stationed in the country. They also hope to station Nuclear weapons there. Let's hope not even the empire of chaos (Aka America and it's allies) are crazy enough to give nuclear weapons to the delusional fascists who reign in Kiev. The Empire of Chaos is however planning to station nuclear weapons in other countries on Russia's borders. Apparently the US puppets there have forgotten what everyone used to know stationing Nuclear weapons in your country doesn't make you safer instead it means that those sites are sure to be targeted for attack by nuclear missiles in the event of war.

   However in the midst of these revived cold war games our thoughts are with the civilians of Novorossia trapped in this frozen conflict facing danger every day merely trying carry on with their lives. When will some new Mozgovoi arise to speak on their behalf?
   


Sources

Anyone who speaks both English and Russian please volunteer to help translate for Colonel Caasad in English. It would be of enormous help to all of Novorossia's english language supporters. Go Volunteer there

http://cassad-eng.livejournal.com

Col. Cassad tribute to Alexei Mozgovoi


http://slavyangrad.org/2015/05/26/while-revolutionaries-can-be-murdered-you-cannot-kill-ideas/

Greg Butterfield's Tribute to Alexei Mozgovoi

https://libya360.wordpress.com/2015/05/25/tribute-to-ghost-brigade-commander-alexei-mozgovoi-and-international-call-to-action/

Colonel Cassad on the Murder of Mozgovoi part 1

http://cassad-eng.livejournal.com/153119.html

Colonel Cassad on the Murder of Mozgovoi part 2

http://cassad-eng.livejournal.com/153426.html

Article on Death of Bednov AKA Batman

https://libya360.wordpress.com/2015/01/04/the-death-of-lugnsk-militia-commander-aleksander-bednov/

Colonel Cassad on the battle at Mariinka

http://slavyangrad.org/2015/06/17/outcomes-from-the-battle-for-mariinka-on-june-3-2015/


Slavyangrad translated one of Mozgovoi's last interviews

http://slavyangrad.org/2015/05/30/mozgovoy-the-oligarchs-remain-our-principal-enemy/


A letter from Novorossia expressing the current mood there

http://slavyangrad.org/2015/06/17/quit-mumbling/

Also check out Greg Butterfield's great site Red Star Over Donbass

http://redstaroverdonbass.blogspot.com

Summer Break

Announcement/ Summer Break

My Apologies I haven't been able to work on my blog recently. I am in the process of moving and there will probably be no new entries until late June. Terrible timing as world events always seem to heat up during the summer. Since I don't have time to write an article I thought instead I would briefly list all the things I'm unable to write about. 

   Baltimore erupted in an uprising against police brutality, racism and the disastrous economic policies of the past thirty-five years. I lived for many years in a suburb about an hour away from Baltimore incidentally. 

   In addition to random police murder conducted with impunity the american injustice system apparently has even greater ambitions. It is apparently reviving the practice of murdering black political leaders. A new name may soon be added to the list of such figures as Martin Luther King, Fred Hampton, and Malcolm X assassinated by the American deep State. The Prison system has been attempting to murder America's most famous political prisoner Mumia Abdul Jamal. The methods intentional medical malpractice and the strong likelihood of the use of some unknown toxin or poison. Meanwhile America has the gall to lecture other nations on the need to release their "political" prisoners who have often committed murder or stolen billions. It was recently the Anniversary of the Infamous "Move bombing" of men women and children in Philadelphia by the city's Fascist police. I recommend the documentary "Let the Fire Burn" about this tragic event. This Crime by the City went completely unpunished and should never be forgotten. One MOVE member Phil Africa was killed in January by the same methods now being used in the current attempt to kill Mumia. We must remind them that the whole world is watching their criminal schemes.

   Speaking of dangerous criminals John Kerry and Victoria Nuland were recently in Moscow according to Pepe Escobar they seek to temporarily de-escalate the conflict although diplomacy bares little relation to reality as Ukraine continues to increase the intensity of their attacks on Novorossia. Obviously I doubt if the US has any actual interest in de-escalating a conflict which they themselves engineered. However some speculate that the sight of Chinese troops marching beside the troops of their Russian allies through red square on victory day may have brought on a bout of temporary sanity in the empire of chaos.

The Saudi role in 9/11 and in funding terrorism is making an appearance in the mainstream media. Seymour Hersh was recently savaged in the media for releasing the latest revised version of the probably unreal story of the Bin Laden killing in 2011. Cynics like me suspect that he was already dead as he was already an invalid back in 2001. Sibel Edmonds speculates this renewed coverage of what everyone who's done ten minutes of research already knows is meant to pressure Saudi Arabia to continue it's cowardly and brutal war on the people of Yemen. The new king was deeply involved in funding Al Qaeda (at CIA request) in aid of America's covert wars in Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Yugoslavia.

Speaking of Covert wars ISIS recently made new advances in Syria and Iraq. In Syria they threaten one of the most important sites from the classical world Palmyra. For those interested in the ancient world I suggest you do some research on one of the great women in ancient history the Queen of Palmyra Zenobia. Yet again the US is waging a horrifying proxy war not only on the people's of Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon but is waging war on all of humanities heritage even elements central to western civilization. How much has already irreparably lost, losses that will be mourned for centuries to come. America is sponsoring not only the destabilization and  impoverishment of the planet but it's barbarization. Meanwhile the bloodbath continues. Congress has openly announced plans to fund the partition of Iraq (as I discussed in my May 2014 article "the Destruction of Iraq) Also a document leaked from the Defense Intelligence Agency which prove that the Rise of ISIS was all according to plan. Mahdi Nazemroaya predicted all this nearly a decade ago.

In Burundi there was a failed coup attempt aimed at preventing a third term for Burundi's president Nkurunziza. The Issue of a third term is being used by the US and it's genocidal allies Uganda and Rwanda in an attempt to install a puppet in Burundi. It is all related to the Genocidal Proxy war the US is waging through it's allies Paul Kagame dictator of Rwanda, and Yoweri Museveni Dictator of Uganda on the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This War has killed 10 million people so far but continues to be largely ignored. 

Museveni is also waging a war on South Sudan with US backing although the US itself created South Sudan to split up what was Africa's biggest state Sudan. Well actually the UK and Israel are equally to blame the covert war on Sudan began back in the 1950s.

In Libya Europe is planning to wage war on the refugees of it's wars of Destabilization in Africa. Wars conducted in conjunction with their imperial masters in Washington. The latest tragic chapter in the horrifying fate Libya suffered as a result of the NATO GCC campaign to bomb Libya into chaos, handing the country over to a bunch of Al Qaeda linked death squads to fight over for who knows how long. 

Elections are approaching in Venezuela and the mainstream media is bandying about phony reports claiming that the Fascist Venezuelan opposition may win. They ignore other polls showing that Maduro will win. The Venezuelan people have voted in favor of the Venezuelan Revolution 18 out of the past 19 times.

I also won't be able to write about the historical topics I have been researching lately. First there was Douglas Valentine's Brilliant expose of the phony war on drugs and the connections between the political and economic elites and organized crime. For those interested Read his "Strength of the Wolf"  and "Strength of the Pack." Nor will I be able to write about the Origins of the CIA as revealed in Burton Hersh's Classic "The Old Boys: The American Elite and the Origins of the CIA" I can only mention that the Dulles brothers had deep business connections to Nazi Germany before and during World War 2. Future CIA head Allen Dulles also was collaborating with the Nazis against the Soviets long before the war ended. "Why America Fights" By Susan A. Brewer was a great study of the way America's overt wars are sold to the public through the media. Lastly I Have been researching the Russian Revolution reading the excellent Three Volume "The Bolshevik Revolution from 1917-1923" By E. H. Carr. I'm also reading the classic first hand account "Ten Days that shook the World" By John Reed.

Obviously there are many things I wish I could write about and I look forward to a time when circumstances will allow me to return to work. Meanwhile I'll continue my research because I can't really help myself at this point. Check out My February 2014 "Alternative Media Spotlight" and my June 2014 "Alternative Media Spotlight 2" for some recommendations on where to go for news.  Eric Draitser has returned to the World of Podcasting he now does the podcast for the Counter Punch Website. Also Check out the Tri-Continental You Tube channel for some great conferences on Anti-Imperialist Themes with great speakers like Sukant Chandan, Carlos Martinez and Marcel Cartier. I discovered it through Alexandra Valiente's new site Revolutionary and Strategic Studies that I also Highly recommend along with Her other Sites Libya 360 and Syria 360 here it is

https://revolutionarystrategicstudies.wordpress.com

I don't have Time to engage in my usual hunt for sources so instead I'll just list the some of the Authors I read who deserve some credit. Eric Draitser, Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya, Pepe Escobar, Gleb Bazov And the Site Runner Alexandra Valiente.  

Also thanks to @RedKahina who recommended the "Bolshevik Revolution" books by E. H. Carr Follow her on twitter as she wages a war of Criticism on the Phony Celebrity Left and it's support for the American Empire. 

                          

Fascist Terror in Ukraine

           Fascist Terror in Ukraine



   The recent murder of journalist Oles Buzina has once again reveled the horrific nature of the Fascist US installed government in Ukraine. Not only is this Government waging a brutal Terror campaign on Novorossia constantly shelling civilians and unleashing Fascist death squads on the populace,  It is also conducting a terror campaign in the territories it still controls targeting not just "separatists," and communists but anyone advocating a peaceful solution to the war. Kiev is waging a terror campaign against it's own citizens no one knows how many ordinary people have been tortured and murdered so far. In addition Ukraine passed draconian laws legally punishing dissent people have been sentenced to 10-15 Year prison terms on the suspicion of "separatism" laws that target any one who expresses sympathy for Novorossia or Russia. People have been sentenced to long prison terms merely for liking a post on Facebook.   Torture has become systematic among the police military and the Fascist volunteer battalions like Azov and Aidar. Murders and disappearances are widespread. As I said we will never know how many ordinary people have perished but in their arrogance the Kiev regime has also been assassinating public figures opposition politicians and journalists. A string of murders have taken place which the Kiev regime transparently labeled suicides. Ukraine has also been intensifying attacks on Novorossia.
    First I'll discuss two recent political developments in Ukraine. First several weeks ago notorious gangster oligarch Igor Kolmoisky engaged in a failed power struggle with President Petro Poroshenko over an oil company. Kolmoisky is infamous for many reasons. His business methods involve sending armed gangs to seize competitors factories and that was before the Maidain coup pushed Ukraine into total lawlessness. Today he is known for his support of infamous Neo-Nazi volunteer battalions like the Azov and Aidair battalions. Ironically he is also a staunch supporter of Israel with which he has close ties and dual citizenship. The paradox is explained by the fact that the Ukraine conflict began partly as revenge for Russia's support of Syria, and the new regime is closely allied to Israel which is why notorious neo-cons like John Kerry and Victoria Nuland played such a public role in the Maidan coup last year. This is not the first time Israel has openly collaborated with Fascists the most infamous example being the massacre at Sabra and Shatila by Fascist Phalange militias during Israel's invasion of Lebanon in the 80's which took place under the approving eye of future Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Actually pre-state Israel had dealings with the Nazis themselves on occasion. In any case with Ukraine rapidly disintegrating and Poroshenko having suffered a string of humiliating defeats at the hand's of Novorossia's Armed Forces, Kolmoisky apparently grew overambitious.     Kolmoisky who funds Dmitry Yarosh's Right Sector may have hoped he could seize power for himself using the fascists under his control. However the US backed Poroshenko to avoid further alienating the europeans. Kolmoisky was forced to back down. Poroshenko announced that the Fascist militias would be forced to join the regular army. At first the Militias who wanted access to better weapons appeared to agree but then they reversed themselves. They have since been doing their best to sabotage the Minsk 2 protocols by launching constant attacks against Novorossia. The independent fascist militias are useful for maintaining plausible deniability since they often defy orders. They are also valuable for doing the regimes dirty work eliminating political opponents as I'll discuss later.  They could also be used to overthrow Poroshenko when Washington tires of their puppet. Thus it will be interesting to see if Poroshenko will eventually attempt to bring them under control. Unfortunately even if these units did get integrated into the Ukrainian army that would only give them the chance to indoctrinate their fellow soldiers who would all the more inclined to listen to fascists if they were fighting side by side in the same units. A similar process has already taken place in the national guard battalions which recruited heavily from neo-nazi paramilitary groups. Those who weren't Fascists prior to joining these units were quickly converted.
   The second political event was a recent law which was passed in the Rada the Ukrainian Parliament banning  all Communist imagery. Prior to the coup last year the Communist Party was one of the most popular in the country. Of course the party was more akin to a European Social Democratic Party rather then a radical party advocating a return to the soviet era. It was so moderate and corrupt that genuine radicals were forced to split off and form Borotba (Struggle) which since the coup has been forced underground, if discovered Borotba members face prison, torture and or death.  The more Mainstream Communist party was also made illegal. Now all symbols  as well as all communist books and imagery have also been banned despite the fact that Ukraine was once an integral part of the soviet union. There is now a complete ban on "Communist Propaganda Symbols" and "Glorification of Soviet History. The Communist Party  was already defacto illegal just like the party of regions facing constant harrasment from the Neo-Nazi street Gangs who have been given free reign to terrorize the opposition often under direct orders from the ministry of the interior. This is a Crucial feature of Ukraine's Fascist "Democracy" Parties that a large portion of the population supported before the coup have been ruthlessly suppressed. It was the soviets who so generously gave Ukraine Donetsk and Lugansk and the Crimea in the first place incidentally. Despite this Ukraine has banned all reference to it's history as part of the Soviet Union all positive reference in any case. Just like in Iraq and Syria the US is waging war on history itself and the cultural monuments that preserve it's memory.
    On the other hand the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's Parliament) Simultaneously voted to glorify the memory of Nazi collaborator Stephan Bandera and his Terrorist Fascist army. They have been officially dubbed "Freedom Fighters" Their horrific war crimes have long been amply documented. To save bullets they loved to hack their victims to pieces or strangle them. Women volunteers were often tasked with murdering children. However for Ukraine's Fascists they have long been venerated as heroes. Bandera has seemingly been elevated into semi-sainthood his portrait treated like a Religious Ikon. Thus it should come as no surprise that Ukraine's parliament has voted him open honors.
   On the same day as both bills were passed a battalion of US troops arrived to train Ukraine's Fascist National Guards units like the notorious Azov battalion which has revived the atrocities of world war 2 committing a rampage of torture rape and murder since the conflict began. This training mission has already gotten into trouble drunkenly terrorizing a nightclub and allegedly some of it's members were involved in a rape. Apparently they completely despise the locals. I doubt if their bad behavior will keep them from accomplishing their mission of making the Fascist Militias even more dangerous. Appropriately this program is based in the most intensely pro-Fascist city in Ukraine Lvov. On the positive side it is in the far west of Ukraine far from Novorossia so hopefully the Americans will be able to avoid accidentally starting World War 3 by getting killed in the war zone by the NAF (Novorossiyan Armed Forces) which given the hysterical western media would inevitably be blamed on Russia. One american Azov Battalion volunteer and avowed Bandera supporter was already killed last fall and rumor has it an American Special forces trainer was killed last summer. Given the US desire to escalate the conflict it's only a matter of time before US special forces and Russian Spetsnaz will be battling each other in Ukraine. In fact I wouldn't be surprised to learn such battles had already taken  place last year. What is certain is that all sorts of foreign mercenaries working for US military contractors have been involved since the beginning of the conflict. In gratitude for this latest show of support from the US the Azov battalion has taken to flying the American flag which is now destined to join the Wolfsangel and swastika as symbols of a revived 21st century Fascism.  A fitting tribute to the empire of Chaos how long before the American Flag flies as well next to the black flag of Al Qaeda I can't help but wonder.  Of course the US has been working with Ukrainian Fascists for 70 years so it is only fitting that they should be the first to so openly express their gratitude.
   
     Which brings us to this string of murders many of which were sloppily arranged to look like suicides. There have been over a dozen high profile murders in recent months. Victims included Journalists like Sergei Sukhobok and Oles Buzina. They also included politicians like Peklushenko, Chechetov, and Oleg Kalashnikov. Ironically all three politicians had agreed to go along with the Maidan coup which apparently didn't save them. It seems from the translated interview with Oles Buzina published at Slavyangrad after his death that Buzina's only real crime was a desire for peace. His views were seemingly quite moderate although doubtless he had to guard his words since dissent is illegal in Ukraine while Murder of critics can occur with impunity. However even self censorship couldn't save him and he was shot. Sinister details have emerged about the murder. First their is the role of Website which exists solely to provide lists of targets to death squads. Oles Buzina is only the latest to be murdered after apearing on this Called Mirotvorets which translates into "the peacekeeper" The People over at slavyangrad.org  did some digging and discovered the site was based in Texas and apparently belonged to NATO directly. Computers loaded with death lists have been a common feature of America's dirty wars although the public nature of these death lists is new. In addition Cyber Berkut a russian hacker group (probably an intelligence front) managed to discover who was responsible by hacking into government account. It was revealed that the murder  was ordered by Kharkov regional deputy head Vyascheslav Abbakumov. Well actually as the hacked emails revealed he wanted Oles Buzina beaten but the militia he tasked murdered him instead. When he complained about the scandal that was sure to ensue the militia commander warned Abbukumov never to criticize him or his men again for carrying out their sacred duty to cleanse Ukraine I might as well qoute the whole exchange since it's impossible to capture it's craziness.

A critical Abbakumov email to one of the alleged state-sponsored assassins said:

"You bastards, what are you doing? You consider this to be an intimidation measure?"

"Do you know how much barking there will be on Moskal TV (a Ukrainian ethnic Russian slur) after this?"

"I understand that this bald head murdered journalist (Oles Buzina) had been asking for a brick to the head for a long time, but it was supposed to be a brick, (not a gun) understand?"

"You were given license to shut this trash up, but not permanently. You had told me about knocked out teeth, broken fingers."

"As for the fate of your team of thugs: Dublon (a nickname for Ukrainian Security Service Major General A. Dublik), called me personally three times."

"Now get back to Kharkov and return to base. The remaining orders are canceled for now."

The alleged assassin responded as follows:

"Do not ever dare to humiliate me or my boys again! We took up arms in order to clean our native land of garbage and traitors to the national idea, and not in in order to make you sad about the fact that another traitor to Ukraine went to a place from where he will never bark again!"

"We will not come back (from Kiev) - and why did your poem-reciting Dublon give us the authority then?"

"We have money, weapons, and allies in every corner of the country. We will return (to Kharkov) once we finish the job."

"And as you know, we have a lot of work yet to be done! Glory to Ukraine!"


   Once again the western media revealed itself as a nothing more then a propaganda outlet in the their handling of the string of murders. When Boris Nemtsov was shot in Russia the media went into overdrive vilifying Putin for the crime. Yet the many journalists and politicians who have been murdered in Ukraine have received zero coverage. Just the latest example of the massive suppression of news coming out of the Ukraine. Not even the lure of ratings can tempt the media to expose Ukraine's year long  fascist terror campaign. If mentioned at all fascism in Ukraine is still mentioned only in passing inevitably buried deep in the article and never a headline.
    In a recent article (the April 2015 "The Phoenix Program") I discussed the notorious CIA terror campaign in Vietnam aimed at murdering those opposed to the brutal American occupation there. The CIA trained death squads to hunt down all opposition. Later these programs migrated to Central America where hundreds of thousands would perish at the hands of death squads in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua. Then the Phoenix Program moved to Iraq and Syria. With this string of murders in Ukraine clearly the Phoenix Program has arrived in Ukraine. Now once again the US will be openly training death squads. It has been over a year since the CIA director arrived in Ukraine in the week before the outbreak of the civil war. Unfortunately my dire predictions at the time (see my April 2014 "War in Ukraine") about this visit have been amply born out. Wherever the CIA sets out to fight it's dirty wars  there inevitably follows the same pattern of torture, Murder and the inevitable reign of the Death squads. Now they have moved from the covert training of theses death squads, which began long before the Maidan Coup, to the Overt training of these groups by the US military. Canada and the UK have also decided to openly train these groups. In Fact Ukrainian Fascists form a powerful lobby group in Canada which recently flexed it's muscles by getting Musician Valentina Lisitsa banned from playing in Toronto for the crime of supporting Novorossia and opposing the Fascist Kiev regime. According to Canada's Orwellian laws if You oppose ethnic cleansing and racism in Ukraine (or Palestine) that means that you are committing hate speech. In other words if you oppose racism that means you must be a racist a masterpiece of doublethink copied from the Ukraine Lobbies  friends in the Israel Lobby.
    Ukraine's attacks on Novorossia have increased over the past couple of weeks. Yet for now Novorossia has been forced to continue pretending the ceasefire is still in effect. Like the last ceasefire this one has been marked by constant shelling by the Ukrainian side. They even made a failed attempt to recapture the airport which ended in disaster. Novorossia expects a possible major offensive to coincide with the May 9th victory day celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the final defeat of Nazi Germany. Contrary to what Hollywood would have you believe it was the Soviet Union which deserves most of the credit for this victory. The Russian's were already advancing steadily towards Germany by the time the Normandy invasion occurred.  Germany had been stopped in front of the Gates of Moscow back in 1941 after inflicting a series of disastrous defeats on the soviets. Then the Nazi forces had been surrounded and Crushed Outside of Stalingrad after their army had been bogged down in failed attempts to seize the city in brutal urban combat. After that the Soviets dealt them another decisive blow in Histories greatest tank battle in Kursk. Over 25 million Russians died in the war. 90% of German casualties occurred on the eastern front. Sorry for the long Tangent but it is a disgrace the way that the US and Britain have refused to give proper credit over the years and now this has evolved into something far more sinister with the US putting pressure on countries not to celebrate victory day in Moscow this year. Apparently the US seemingly now regrets fighting on the right side of that war and wishes that Nazi Germany had won or at least the soviet union had lost. I'm Half Joking but this must be what many Russians are thinking. Of course I'm only half joking because a sector of the American Elite really did think this way. In fact I learned yesterday that future CIA head Alan Dulles would during the war be engaged in secret negotiations with the Nazi's in which Germany would potentially overthrow Hitler and ally with the US and UK in a war against the Soviets. In Greece, Britain Cynically switched it's support to the Fascists against the Communists years before the war would even end. It was this type of thinking that would lead to recruitment of thousands of Fascists at wars end by the UK and US  setting in motion the cold war. After the Cold War the fascists were sent back to Ukraine with the disastrous results we see today. (See my June 2014 "Nazis and The CIA" for more on this topic) Yet this alliance with Fascism was always a dirty secret not something the average american would ever even suspect. Now by Publicly boycotting the May 9th Victory Day celebrations and pressuring others to do the same America's dark side is on full display. Especially since while Russia will be celebrating it's victory over Fascism It's former allies will be openly training what even the New York Times has admitted in the past are  Neo-Nazi battalions.
   In Novorossia as I mentioned they are expecting a massive attack from the Fascists in Ukraine. Doubtless Novorossia hopes to celebrate victory Day with a New victory of their own. The Fascists will doubtless be tempted to attack both to avenge their heroes Ukraine's Fascist OUN-B and to get revenge for their own more recent string of defeats. It must be humiliating for those pumped up by crazed notions of Ukrainian superiority to subhuman moscals as they refer to their Russian cousins. This is the comedic part about Ukrainian Fascism. Nazi Germany was initially successful conquering France and forcing the British to flee back across the channel. Their attack on the Soviet Union was initially very successful conquering Ukraine and Belarus and pushing deep into Russia nearly capturing Moscow and Leningrad. Thus their arrogant conceit about their innate superiority would initially be born out by events and only the immense sacrifices of the Russian people would eventually be able to disabuse them of these illusions. Ukraine on the other hand has no reason for soaring fantasies of superiority. They have suffered one humiliating defeat after another. Who can forget the wars beginning when Ukrainian troops decided to desert when faced with opposition from unarmed civilians. Actually this was one of the wars only bright spots when humanity briefly triumphed over the madness the US had planned for the region.
   Shortly thereafter there was the Odessa Massacre the Anniversary is Fast approaching May 2. Officially 48 people died although rumor has it was closer to 150. In a further example of life in Fascist Ukraine the government has been arresting the families of victims in the hopes of preventing protests to mark the anniversary. In addition it is still holding 20 anti-fascist demonstrators arrested on the day of the massacre and they have all suffered torture awaiting trial for the crime of surviving the massacre. However repression will not be enough to stifle dissent and Odessa is home to a powerful anti-fascist resistance movement. Those who oppose Fascism in Ukraine will never forget this Vile massacre in which a pregnant woman was strangled. The fires were actually set to cover up the brutal massacre fascist paramilitary gangs carried out inside the building. We must continue to keep the memory of this terrible event alive. With The Odessa massacre the War truly began. (See May 2014 Ukraine Lies and Death for more on the Odessa Massacre)
    Now to briefly further recap the events of the war. Next there was the months long battle of Slavyansk where a tiny force under Igor Strelkov managed to hold off a massive part of the Ukrainian army inflicting a series of defeats against all the odds. Then as they were about to be trapped and cut off they managed a surprise withdrawal. The Veterans of Slavyansk would form the backbone of the NAF defending Novorossia. Famous NAF commanders who fought at Slavyansk include Givi, Motorola, and Alexei Mozgovoi among others. With the Fall of Slavyansk Ukraine launched a major offensive in an attempt to crush Novorossia. Instead they were surrounded and forced to surrender. Another major offensive would meet the same fate a defeat so decisive that Ukraine was only saved because Russia ordered the advance halted and negotiated the Minsk agreement instead. The first "ceasefire" would end with the capture of Donetsk Airport by the NAF and their crushing of the Ukrainian counter offensive to recapture the airport. Next the NAF would capture the enormous bridgehead at Debaltsevo at enormous cost in lives leading to the latest Minsk 2.0 Ceasefire. My point being that clearly the Ukrainians need to rethink their delusions of grandeur. My other point is to wish the people of Novorossia a well earned and happy Victory Day. Their string of victories surprised the world their courage and sacrifice have given birth to a new nation, a symbol of resistance against fascism, oligarchy and the American Empire. We can only hope that one day they will be allowed to liberate the rest of Ukraine or at least bring it back to it's senses. Hopefully one day we will be able to celebrate Victory in Ukraine day.
    Until then Ukraine will live under a US backed reign of fascist terror. For now it appears that the Fascist militias will be allowed their independence so long as they continue to be useful cannon fodder in the war on Novorossia and so long as they keep doing the regimes dirty work by eliminating all dissent. The awful legacy of such infamous CIA programs as Project Paperclip, Operation Gladio and the Phoenix program will continue to wreak horror and terror in Ukraine.

Sources

First in Celebration of the upcoming Victory Day let me recommend two documentary series available for free on YouTube chronicling the epic war between Russia and Nazi Germany. First there is the "The Uknown War." Produced in the 70's by the Soviet Union and hosted by Burt Lancaster it contains rarely scene archival footage of the war on the eastern front. I highly recommend it. There is also the newer Soviet Storm which often goes into more detail but often relies on recreations and computer animation. I learned of the Dulles brothers connection with the Nazi's while reading the excellent "The Old Boys: The American Elite and The Origins of the CIA" by Burton Hersh which I started yesterday.

Greg Butterfield on the anti-communist laws and the recent string of assassinations

https://libya360.wordpress.com/2015/04/20/ukraine-nato-and-political-assassinations/
 
Steven Lendman on the Hacked emails detailing Buzina's death

http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2015/04/more-evidence-of-ukraines-reign-of.html

Slavyangrad on the Death List Website

http://slavyangrad.org/2015/04/17/murder-of-oles-buzina-an-act-of-intimidation-by-nato/

Genocide in Vietnam

       The Vietnam War: The Defeat of Technowar



   The American empire met a humiliating defeat in the war in Vietnam. Despite it's massive technological advantage it was beaten by a nation of peasants. In "The Perfect War: The War We Couldn't Lose and How We Did" James William Gibson provides a brilliant analysis explaining how the Vietnamese were able to win against these seemingly insurmountable odds. It thus also provides clues to the defeats the empire has suffered in Iraq and Afghanistan. He also exposes the horrors of the war in Vietnam. The "Perfect War" is undoubtedly one of the most brilliant books ever written on the Vietnam War.
   He begins his account by providing a long historical background to the war. He observes later that most American Policy makers had absolutely no understanding of the history of Vietnam. With typical American arrogance they didn't think it was worth studying. They despised the very people they claimed to be helping and hence most had no idea that Vietnam had a history of two thousand years of successful resistance to empires. Vietnam throughout it's history was repeatedly conquered by China and repeatedly won it's independence. This history played an important part in Vietnamese culture which held up various resistance leaders as heroes and models for confucian imitation. Their defiant speeches were preserved and formed an important part of Vietnamese literary tradition. Likewise those Vietnamese who had collaborated with the Chinese were remembered as villains and held up for abuse in the Vietnamese literary tradition. Thus Vietnam possessed a culture and history of resistance. Next the French would attempt to colonize the country. Vietnam would fight a brutal war for independence lasting almost a hundred years. French rule eventually would give way to that of Japan an ally of Vichy France (The government in France which had chosen to collaborate with the Nazi's.)   Ironically the OSS would briefly train the Vietnamese resistance during the war. Ho Chi Minh would attempt to gain American support for an independent Vietnam after the war but his generous proposals were completely ignored. Instead the US would funnel millions of dollars to the French as they attempted to reassert control over their colony. French rule had been a disaster for the Vietnamese the French stole massive swaths of land converting them into huge plantations. This teansformed many peasnts into landless hired laborers. Land reform and independence were the two chief themes of the Vietnamese resistance lead by Ho Chi Minh and General Giap. They had lead the resistance since before the war and another major theme of the resistance was generational struggle. The Vietnamese were willing to carry on the war for as long as it took. However the French defeat occurred surprisingly quickly in 1954 at Dien Bien Phu the Viet Cong managed to capture a massive base the french had believed to be impenetrable. Ironically the French strategy was developed after the failure of their "Fort Strategy." They had built tiny forts across the countryside which proved to be easy targets for the guerrillas. So instead they decided to build massive fortresses which would force the guerrillas to mass their forces if they wanted to attack and then the french assumed with their superior firepower they would be able to destroy any attack by the Viet Minh (The Vietnamese resistance.) At Dien Bien Phu however the Viet Minh were able to enlist the people in a heroic effort to transport artillery by bicycle and by hand through hundreds of miles of dense jungle. Thanks to this they managed to hide artillery positions all around the base and managed to surround and capture the base inflicting a decisive defeat on the French. In the Geneva treaty that ended the war it was agreed that elections would be held to determine the future government of Vietnam. However since Ho Chi Minh was certain to win America instead decided to back Diem as a dictator in south Vietnam and indefinitely postpone nationwide elections. Instead Diem was installed in crooked elections with the help of massive bribery and massive brutality. However his brutal crackdown aimed at eliminating all opposition inspired new resistance. For almost a decade the CIA waged a covert war aimed at keeping Diem in power before a faction of the CIA  decided he had to go. Diem was overthrown in a coup and killed along with his brother replaced by a string of corrupt generals who were constantly plotting against each other. The new president Lyndon Johnson decided to commit American troops since their corrupt South Vietnamese puppets had proved incapable of stopping the North Vietnamese supported guerrillas in the south from controlling the countryside. (See my two previous articles on Vietnam the March 2015 "Wars in Korea of Vietnam" and the April 2015 "The Phoenix Program." for more on the origins of the war and the nature of the Viet Cong resistance.)
   The American officials who planned the war were certain that they would be victorious. James William Gibson gives a brilliant analysis of the mindset of the technocrats who planned the war. To describe their philosophy he coined the term "Technowar." During World War Two the US had succeeded in creating a massive Military Industrial Complex. They had achieved a great deal of efficiency using management science.  They decided the American war effort had been successful because it's production side had been run like a giant business. They decided that the next war itself would be run like a giant business. America would use it's massive industrial base and it's mastery of science and technology to outproduce the enemy. Then on the battlefield it would use it's massive technological advantage to produce massive casualties among the enemy. Eventually a tipping point would be reached when the US would be killing more of the enemy then they could replace and their surrender would become inevitable. A primary theorist behind all this was Henry Kissinger who also believed that only westerners because of their enlightenment traditions had the ability to perceive reality accurately. The author has a great deal of fun throughout the book turning this axiom on it's head by showing that the war managers were on the contrary completely disconnected from the on the ground reality believing in deeply flawed statistics promising victory that bore no relation to the truth. Another feature of technowar was the idea that war could be rationally managed like an algorithim or a computer program. Vietnam was a war fought with flow charts. The whole country was classified and filed. For example there was the so called Hamlet evaluation system every hamlet would be graded on a variety of factors. They applied the same system to their own troops and commanders everyone was graded in an elaborate system of performance evaluation. The war planners believed that the enemy would respond rationally and predictably to the use of force. Ultimately they would realize they had no chance of winning and would surrender.  Ultimately Technowar was the belief that with it's technological advantage America could not lose. With all those tanks, bombers, helicopters and artillery it was only a matter of time before the Vietnamese realized that resistance was futile and would surrender. As noted they paid no attention to Vietnamese ideas of generational resistance. They did not bother to stop and wonder why the french had been beaten. In technowar which reduced the world to numbers there was no place for the human spirit. Their theories assumed that the Vietnamese were merely inferior copies of themselves and that they would respond in the same way as they themselves would. Needless to say they completely underestimated the Vietnamese.
   Ironically the Vietnamese would win by understanding the nature of their foe and turning their strengths into weaknesses. For Instance the American's would wage war along set patterns. First would come a spotter plane. Then helicopters would fly in the men and artillery. The VC (the Communist Vietnamese Guerrilla resistance) would learn these patterns and would thus know exactly when and where the americans were planning to attack. Forgotten by the war planners in their air conditioned Washington offices was just how noisy all this american technology was. Planes and tanks could be heard coming from miles away. The VC knew exactly where the americans were and what they were planning as soon as they would arrive in an area since they always followed the same patterns. As a result they were able to ambush the US forces at will. The author quotes statistics proving that the VC held combat initiative in 75% of engagements with battles at the VC choice of time place, type, and duration. In other words the Americans were constantly being ambushed and further the VC were usually able to successfully escape. Cynically the whole American strategy of search and destroy was based on this fact. the troops would be sent out to get into ambushes which would allow the Americans to pinpoint the enemy and call in massive artillery and airpower to destroy them. However since the VC understood this they were able to calculate exactly how long each attack should last because they knew how long it would take artillery or air support to be called in and thus could escape in time. When the US tried to compensate by using agent orange to destroy the jungles this only made the US troops easier targets.
   The US troops constantly being ambushed retaliated by indiscriminately attacking the civilian population and by destroying their villages. Relying on war memoirs and novels the author reconstructs the brutal war crimes that formed the reality of the war. The Vietnam war was an orgy of rape, torture and murder. However this massive destruction was not merely the result of vengeful troops. Instead the genocidal nature of the war was determined by policy. As mentioned earlier the US hoped to win by producing more death then the other side. As a result they established production targets or kill quotas. Platoons that didn't produce enough kills could be punished by being forced to remain in the field. On the other hand a unit could win privileges and vacation time if it had a high kill count. Officers promotions depended on them meeting their quota on the amount of kills. Some units would get into fights over the body parts each side wanting to get the kill count. Of course this would lead to false and exaggerated reporting that would delude the war managers into believing victory was near. More tragically for the Vietnamese it would result in the reporting of all civilian deaths as VC deaths. One joke floating around american units at the time was "When we kill a pregnant woman, we count it as two VC, One soldier and One Cadet." After that ugly quote I should mention that the author manages to provide quite a Horrifying picture of the war by compiling some of the songs and jokes current among the troops at the time. I'll provide another example here is a forward air patrol song.

Bomb the Schools and Churches.
Bomb the rice fields, too.
Show the children in the courtyards
What napalm can do.

Strafe the town and kill the people.
Drop napalm in the square.
Get out early every Sunday
And Catch them at their morning prayer.

Throw candy to the ARVN [South Vietnamese Army]
Gather them all around
Take your twenty mike-mike [20mm Automatic cannon]
And Mow the bastards down.

As the author discusses in his chapters on the air war schools, hospitals and churches really were frequent targets of american bombers. Just as dead civilians were reported as dead VC. Bombed churches and schools were reported as destroyed barracks. However to return to the ground war in addition to demanding high kill counts war planners were directly responsible for the massive destruction in the countryside. They hoped to cut the VC off from their base of support in the countryside by forcing the vietnamese into model villages in the countryside. Here the author also has many interesting things to say about the delusional war planners who always conceived the VC as some outside other since it fit into their mythology of the war. In this mythology America was there to defend south Vietnam from outside communist aggression. In border regions it was true that the North Vietnamese sent their army to attack keeping the bulk of american forces pinned down. However in the interior of the country the war was a guerrilla war by the south vietnamese peasants themselves they were the VC. However the American strategy constantly sought to create a barrier to protect the vietnamese from some outside other which was pointless since the Vietnamese peasants were that other. However using such a mythology as a justification they carried out war on the entire populace under the cover of protecting them from the VC.
    As mentioned they attempted to force the peasants into model villages. In reality these were more like prison camps surrounded by barbed wire fences and machine gun nests. For the average peasant this was also a spiritual catastrophe. In Vietnamese Buddhism the villagers buried their ancestors in the village and regularly performed rituals to aid them in the after life. To be separated from the burial places of their ancestors was a terrible trauma for them. On a more practical level they were peasants who were cut off from their land. They were handed propaganda leaflets promising them prosperous new lives. The Americans were supposed to supply the new villages with food. However their south vietnamese puppets were notoriously corrupt and specialized in ripping off american aid and making fortunes by selling them on the black market. The food for the peasants met the same fate most of it never reached them. Often the building materials for their new houses were also sold on the black market and they lived in card board boxes. Anyone who didn't leave the village or anyone who returned to it was a target those areas were labeled Free-Fire Zones. One amusing feature of the book is that Vietnam marked a definite turning point towards using euphemisms. Thus such accurate terms as Free Fire Zone, or Search and Destroy were replaced during the war by specified strike zone and search and clear in an effort to disguise reality.  Even ambushed was changed to engaging the enemy on all sides or meeting engagement on all sides. They even made a list for the press of terms that were no longer acceptable and their new and more boring Orwellian replacements.  A process that has reached untold heights during the Obama administration when they attempted to rename the "War on Terror"  "Overseas Contingency Operations."
   A free-Fire Zone was exactly what it sounded like an entire area where everything was a legitimate target for artillery strikes, bombing raids and roving search and destroy patrols. These search and destroy patrols were often exactly what they sounded like when they found a village they would often destroy everything in it the standard order was often "Kill Anything that moves" (The the Title of Nick Turse's excellent book on Vietnam). They would kill old men, women and children. The young men were never around either drafted into the ARVN, fighting with the Viet Cong or hiding since death was certain for any military age man found by US troops. They even killed the livestock burned the crops, blew up the well and burned down the village. This was one of the ways that the Vietnamese were forced into model villages. If they returned to their land they were subjected to daily bombing and artillery strikes. To survive they grew expert in digging bomb shelters beneath their huts usually they could only farm at night. The Americans would spray their crops with agent Orange to destroy them. First to starve would be the children, then the old, then the babies when their mothers milk would run out. Frankly it  is long past time we started calling what happened in Vietnam a genocide. It is time we began writing histories that portray the heroism required for these civilians merely to survive in places  where the US wages it's endless wars. Places like Vietnam, Guatemala, Iraq, Syria and Ukraine.  Instead we get histories with a lot of nonsense about tragic errors and noble sacrifice, and best intentions which completely ignore all the horrors the American Empire have inflicted on the planet. Take up your pens Iraqi's and Vietnamese write down your stories before it is to late.
   As You can see I get angry just thinking about all the Vietnamese peasants had to endure so let's return briefly to the land of Technowar back in the air conditioned offices in Washington DC thousands of miles from the hell on earth they had created over in Vietnam. Here they finally received a dose of reality during the Tet offensive. As mentioned everyone had good reason to inflate their kill numbers and to record civilians as dead VC. Even more ridiculously the General in charge decided to erase the entire Viet Cong guerrilla force from the estimates of enemy strength. This was in keeping with the myth that the United States was "defending" south Vietnam. They noticed a lull in incidents and they ignored intelligence of a massive VC offensive. They announced that victory was finally in sight lulled by the phony numbers the military was feeding them. Instead the VC launched the massive Tet offensive targeting cities around the country. The VC suffered heavy casualties in the offensive but on the other hand the US was forced to bring all it's troops in from the countryside to retake the cities. The VC were able to further strengthen their control of the countryside. More importantly this was the moment the war planners realized that they would lose. Thus Tet led to Lyndon Johnson deciding not to run for President again.  Increasingly they turned to air power in an attempt to delay the inevitable.
    The Air war in Vietnam was in many ways the embodiment of the technowar. First it involved demonstrating America's technological superiority. Second the air war planners seemed to believe in the beginning that if they struck just the right targets with the right intensity they could force the North Vietnamese to surrender. They had ever expanding target lists. The war planners viewed the air war as a form of communication and the author cleverly examines their insane views hatched by the technocrats at the Rand Corporation. The Air war would both Signal to north Vietnam that they couldn't hope to win and signal their resolve to their allies in south vietnam. However the air war eventually evolved into bombing everything in sight as I explained earlier. They would drop twice as many bombs on Vietnam as were dropped in all of world war two. They also expanded the air war into Laos and Cambodia. Nixon who replaced Johnson developed the Mad Man doctrine. He would attempt to terrify North Vietnam into submission and told his subordinates to tell the North Vietnamese that he could barely be restrained from using Nuclear weapons. The Americans dropped so many bombs that they caused almost as much destruction as a nuclear war would have in terms of explosive kilotons they actually dropped the equivalent of several nukes in conventional bombs.
    However just as Technowar would fail on the ground it would fail in the Air as well. The Vietnamese came up with clever solution. Everyone in North Vietnam was issued an assault rifle  a major reason that America never dared to invade directly. The North Vietnamese became one giant air defense system every time a plane would approach and they could be heard from miles away everyone would fire up into the air. The Americans were forced to fly out of their range which put them in range of the North Vietnamese radar guided anti-air defenses. Many planes were shot down. During one major bombing offensive the pilots  were forced to fly unfamiliar planes because of the scale of the attack so every plane was supplied with a huge library of technical manuals. When one of these bombers was shot down the North Vietnamese were able to adjust their air defenses perfectly to target US airpower using all the valuable information in the technical manuals. In addition North Vietnam was a largely Agricultural not industrial society thus it was able to survive the massive destruction of it's cities. Aside from trying to force the North Vietnamese to surrender the Air war also hoped to cut off their ability to supply the VC. Yet this only revealed yet another paradox of technowar. It turns out the VC only needed 12 tons of supplies a day. It was impossible to stop such a tiny amount of supply from reaching them. The Americans turned to one of their most high tech solutions. They built a massive sensor network along the Ho Chi Minh trail. If the sensors detected a loud noise the information would be sent to a bomber which would target the site. However the VC learned to mask the sound of trucks using tape recorded nature sounds and also to make the Americans target non existent trucks by playing truck sounds. Since the sensors were also destroyed in the attack they had no idea whether any trucks had actually been destroyed. Of course they reported that trucks had been destroyed but when planes were sent to assess the damage the next day usually there was no wreckage to be found. Even if they had managed to destroy all the north Vietnamese trucks the VC required so little outside supply that they could have used bicycles or backpacks to smuggle the needed 12 tons across the border. They could also always buy whatever they needed from America's South Vietnamese allies who stole billions in supplies and operated a massive black market of American weapons across the country.
      The Air war thus proved as much of a failure as the ground war. There was also an economic war the US tried to win the south vietnamese over by flooding them with cheap consumer goods. In one revealing example they attempted to conquer the country with TV. They set up TV stations to air propaganda tinged soap operas and other programs. Color Television was coming into use in america so the government shipped all the black and white sets people were tossing out over to Vietnam. This was only one aspect of a massive propaganda war the US waged on the country billions of leaflets were dropped and hundreds of Vietnamese journalists were paid to spread CIA propaganda. However since they didn't bother to learn anything about Vietnamese culture this propaganda war often backfired just like every other aspect of technowar. American efforts to turn Vietnam into an urban consumer society were equally disastrous. Millions of refugees who avoided the model villages ended up in the massive slums that surrounded the cities. Many were forced to survive by prostitution, begging, and by eating garbage. The money the US flooded the country with drove up inflation to the point where the south vietnamese troops couldn't support their families. To make matters worse their officers often stole their pay. In this regard America did succeed in shaping south Vietnam in it's own image it was a land where a few crooks got rich while everyone else got poorer. It's the American way.
   The corruption, the poverty, and above all the massive slaughter inflicted by the Occupying american army only served to increase the popularity of the VC and discredit the south vietnamese government.  Despite the massively destructive ground war the VC managed to maintain the initiative throughout the war ambushing the Americans at will. Despite the massive bombing campaign that also targeted Laos and Cambodia the Americans were unable to force the North Vietnamese to surrender nor could they cut off their supplies. In the end there were advantages to being low tech that the americans didn't foresee. It was cheaper making it impossible for the americans to cut off their supplies. It was also quieter and less visible. It was also less detached from reality Technowar allowed the war to be directed from thousands of miles away and thus to be directed by people completely separated from the day to day realities. Even the commanders stationed in Vietnam itself were divorced from reality by technowar. They directed their troops from helicopters flying over the battlefields their experience very different from the grunts trudging through the jungle below. In another technowar disaster they arrogantly sent their commands over open channels. The VC well supplied with american radios purchased on the black market could hear everything further enhancing their ability to lay ambushes and evade detection. Above all it was the VC's irrational determination to struggle on no matter what the odds that foiled the rational plans of the technocrats back in Washington as they re-ran the numbers after Tet they realized that they could never send enough troops to win. Incidentally the author shows that contrary to popular belief the troop buildup in Vietnam was not decided on piecemeal but had been scheduled in advance from the beginning. Nixon hoped to use airpower to prop up south Vietnam but this also proved a failure. South Vietnam quickly collapsed after US troops were withdrawn the country was finally reunited and independent. America would quickly find another war in Angola but it would be forced to wage it covertly and it suffered another humiliating defeat.
   The author ends the book by discussing how American came to understand the war. There were the liberals who saw it as tragic but noble mistake. Then their were the conservatives who claimed America could have won if only the generals hadn't been restrained by the politicians. Both were equally delusional there was nothing noble about a genocidal war that killed millions in order to protect the regimes of a string of corrupt dictators. Nor was America on the verge of victory. If they had invaded North Vietnam they would have encountered an entire nation organized into an armed militia in addition to the massive force North Vietnam kept in reserve to meet this eventuality. They would have faced a more intense form of the same guerrilla war they were already losing in the south and they lacked the manpower to occupy north and south Vietnam.  Not only that but China itself might have intervened. This is why the US never invaded North Vietnam although it did launch covert attacks across the border. Instead of this mythology the lessons we should learn from Vietnam are obvious. First it is the story of a genocidal assault on the Vietnamese people using everything short of an atom bomb. Second it is the story of a successful resistance against this overwhelming might in the end brains and determination were enough to defeat the American Technowar. Wherever people are struggling against the empire they should remember Vietnam. In fact as Pepe Escobar reported in the weeks before the invasion many Iraqis carefully studied the writings of General Giap who masterminded the military campaign in Vietnam. Once again America's massive Technowar machine would be brought to a standstill and shock and awe would prove useless against a determination to resist no matter what. Once again the arrogant war planners were humbled. And once again the Empire killed millions in revenge. Now in Afghanistan the US is poised for yet another defeat and few doubt that their puppet government will quickly collapse once the last foreign troops  are withdrawn.

Sources

I based this article on James William Gibson's excellent book "The Perfect War:The War We Couldn't lose and how we did." I highly recommend it. Actually I decided to take my own advice and rewatched Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" and was surprised to find many lines of Dialog taken directly from the "The Perfect War." For more on the American war crimes in Vietnam read "Kill Anything That Moves" By Nick Turse for a discussion of the conventional war. Also Read the excellent "The Phoenix Program" By Douglas Valentine for a discussion of the CIA's covert war in Vietnam using death squads and special forces. For a discussion of the Origin of the War as well as more on the wars in Laos and Cambodia read Peter Dale Scott's "The War Conspiracy." I Discuss Scott's "War Conspiracy in my March 2015 "Wars in Korea and Vietnam." I discuss Doug Valentine's "The Phoenix Program in my April 2015 "The Phoenix Program"

An Excellent two hour interview with James William Gibson is available online it is highly recommended and is what inspired me to read the book in the first place. Warning it contains many graphic descriptions of war crimes.

https://archive.org/details/AV_316_317-THE_PERFECT_WAR-_TECHNOWAR_IN_VIETNAM

Check Out More great episodes of alternative views an old public access news show that serves as an invaluable historical resource because of all the great coverage they did. They have great shows on the wars El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Angola as well as many interviews with CIA whistleblower John Stockwell who I discussed in my February 2015 article The CIA in Africa.

https://archive.org/details/alternative_views