Who's Paying The Pro-war Pundits?

[georgephillip]

What do Fox Folks think about the integrity of their pro-war whores like Tony Zinni, Jack Keane, and former Bushie official Fran Townsend and their corporate paymasters like Academi (Blackwater), General Dynamics, SCP Partners, BAE Systems, and MacAndrews & Forbes and Monument Capital Group?

"'I think an inclination to use military action a lot is something the defense industry subscribes to because it helps to perpetuate an overall climate of permissiveness towards military spending,' says Ed Wasserman, dean of the UC Berkeley Graduate School for Journalism.

"Wasserman says that the media debate around ISIS has tilted towards more hawkish former military leaders, and that the public would be best served not only with better disclosure but also a more balanced set of opinions that would include how expanded air strikes could cause collateral civil casualties. ”'The past fifty years has a lot of evidence of the ineffectiveness of air power when it comes to dealing with a more nimble guerrilla-type adversary, and I’m not hearing this conversation,' he notes.

"The pro-war punditry of retired generals has been the subject of controversy in the past. In a much-cited 2008 exposé, The New York Times revealed a network of retired generals on the payroll of defense contractors who carefully echoed the Bush administration’s Iraq war demands through appearances on cable television. 



Who s Paying the Pro-War Pundits The Nation

 

[georgephillip]

"If you read enough news and watch enough cable television about the threat of the Islamic State, the radical Sunni Muslim militia group better known simply as ISIS, you will inevitably encounter a parade of retired generals demanding an increased US military presence in the region.

"They will say that our government should deploy, as retired General Anthony Zinni demanded, up to 10,000 American boots on the ground to battle ISIS.

"Or as in retired General Jack Keane’s case, they will make more vague demands, such as for 'offensive' air strikes and the deployment of more military advisers to the region.

"But what you won’t learn from media coverage of ISIS is that many of these former Pentagon officials have skin in the game as paid directors and advisers to some of the largest military contractors in the world.

"Ramping up America’s military presence in Iraq and directly entering the war in Syria, along with greater military spending more broadly, is a debatable solution to a complex political and sectarian conflict.

"But those goals do unquestionably benefit one player in this saga: America’s defense industry.

"Keane is a great example of this phenomenon..."

Who s Paying the Pro-War Pundits The Nation

 

[Freemason9]

I object to the very usage of the word "war" in this case. It is NO WAR. ISIS is a group of criminal terrorists; hell, do we declare "war" on drug sellers in this country? No, we don't. The word "war" is simply used as propaganda to fuel the passions of the ignorant masses.

 

[georgephillip]

I object to the very usage of the word "war" in this case. It is NO WAR. ISIS is a group of criminal terrorists; hell, do we declare "war" on drug sellers in this country? No, we don't. The word "war" is simply used as propaganda to fuel the passions of the ignorant masses.

We've had a "war on drugs" in the US for at least a generation, and when retired generals shill for military responses in Iraq and Syria, it seems disingenuous to suggest "war" isn't exactly what many Americans are calling for.

"Keane has appeared on Fox News at least nine times over the last two months to promote the idea that the best way to stop ISIS is through military action—in particular, through air strikes deep into ISIS-held territory.

"In one of the only congressional hearings about ISIS over the summer, Keane was there to testify and call for more American military engagement.

"On Wednesday evening, Keane declared President Obama’s speech on defeating ISIS insufficient, arguing that a bolder strategy is necessary. 'I truly believe we need to put special operation forces in there,' he told host Megyn Kelly.

"Left unsaid during his media appearances (and left unmentioned on his congressional witness disclosure form) are Keane’s other gigs: as special adviser to Academi, the contractor formerly known as Blackwater; as a board member to tank and aircraft manufacturer General Dynamics; a 'venture partner' to SCP Partners, an investment firm that partners with defense contractors, including XVionics, an 'operations management decision support system' company used in Air Force drone training; and as president of his own consulting firm, GSI LLC."

Who s Paying the Pro-War Pundits The Nation

 

[Freemason9]

War on Drugs
War on Inflation
War on Poverty
War
War
War

I'd say the U.S. has a specific problem when it comes to "war talk."

 

[konradv]

I wonder if some of the more rabid wingnuts are getting paid by both sides. One minute they want to bomb the whole ME, except Israel, into oblivion and the next they're calling Obama a warmonger/war criminal. I don't think I've ever seen a group as guilty of talking out of both sides of their mouth as the ODS sufferers.

 

[georgephillip]

War on Drugs
War on Inflation
War on Poverty
War
War
War

I'd say the U.S. has a specific problem when it comes to "war talk."

There appears to be far more incentives for killing IS than for saving lives threatened by Ebola, judging by the UNSC meeting Obama will chair today. Maybe a Death Tax of 100% on all war-related profits earned after the first child dies in any conflict would reincentivize the western war machine?

 

[HenryBHough]

There will be no war.

Only apologies.

Isn't that why Americans elected a Kenyan rather than an American?

 

[georgephillip]

There will be no war.

Only apologies.

Isn't that why Americans elected a Kenyan rather than an American?

How many more wars are you in favor of?

 

[HenryBHough]

One.

 

[georgephillip]

Operation Unthinkable - Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

 

[Freemason9]

There will be no war.

Only apologies.

Isn't that why Americans elected a Kenyan rather than an American?

You ache for the thrill of war reports on the cable news shows?

Then YOU go fight it, and YOU pay for it.

Your war fantasies are too expensive for most of us to pay for.

 

[georgephillip]

I wonder if some of the more rabid wingnuts are getting paid by both sides. One minute they want to bomb the whole ME, except Israel, into oblivion and the next they're calling Obama a warmonger/war criminal. I don't think I've ever seen a group as guilty of talking out of both sides of their mouth as the ODS sufferers.

Maybe it's the mid-terms?
It's hard for me to imagine a Republican presidential candidate capable of winning their primaries AND still appealing to enough mainstream conservatives to win the general election in 2016; if that puts Hillary in the White House, the Long War will get much longer and louder, IMHO.