My guest today is journalist Alison Weir. Her best-selling book Against Our Better Judgment: The Hidden History of How the U.S. Was Used to Create Israel has been called a must-read for all Americans and her websites, If Americans Knew and Israel Palestine News are invaluable sources for information on Palestinian human rights and the pernicious influence of the Zionist lobby on US politics.
Beginning with the arrest of Marzieh Hashemi of Press TV, we look at the relationship of the US and Iran and the "threat" Iran poses to Israel. Then we look at the case of a local activist silenced because her cause is not on the approved list. Today's episode contains content from Catherine Shakdam and Dr. Jack Dresser. We also report on a local activist and friend whose address to the local Womxn's March was silenced by the organizers because she wasn't fighting the correct oppression.
In this episode, I'm joined by Margaret Kimberley, Editor and Senior Columnist for Black Agenda Report for a discussion of NATO, US foreign military bases, the role of the Democratic Party in progressive movements, the arrest of Marzieh Hashemi and other topics. For information on the campaign to get the US out of Africa go to http://tinyurl.com/shutdownafricomorhttps://blackallianceforpeace.com/
With the issue of Venezuela dominating the news, especially after President Trump declared Juan Guiado to be the legitimate President of Venezuela, I am extremely pleased to have Eva Golinger as my guest on this program. Eva was a close personal friend and adviser to former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and knows the players in this crisis personally. Eva Golinger is the author of the best-selling book "The Chavez Code: Cracking US Intervention in Venezuela", and "Bush Versus Chavez: Washington's War on Venezuela". Her most recent book is "Confidente of Tyrants: The Story of the American Woman Trusted by the US's Biggest Enemies". We discuss the economic malaise in Venezuela and its origins, the history of US intervention in the Venezuelan democracy, and the hope for solving this crisis in a way that preserves the gains made for ordinary Venezuelans under Chavez.
Mark Sleboda is an international affairs and security analyst for RT, a former Senior Researcher at the Sociological faculty of Moscow State University and a former Nuclear Reactor Operator for the US Navy. Mark is currently based in Moscow. We talk about the abandonment of the cold war weapons treaties between Russia and the US.
Ilhan Omar and Tulsi Gabbard are women of color who are making waves in the Democratic Party because of their anti-war stands and their strong objections to US foreign policy. We discuss each and the dilemma they pose for the establishment Democrats and their narratives.
I am very pleased to welcome Walter Hixson to the program today. Dr. Hixson is Distinguished Professor of History at the University of Akron concentrating in diplomatic and cultural history. He is the author of a number of books including The Myth of American Diplomacy: National Identity and US Foreign Policy and American Settler Colonialism: A History. His new book, Israel’s Armor: The Israel Lobby and the First Generation of the Palestine Conflict is due out soon. His PhD is from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1986. The episode also includes excerpts from the speech by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to the Munich Security Conference on February 17, 2019.
My guest today is a long-time anti-war activist Brian Willson. He spoke to me via Skype from his home in Nicaragua. Brian is the author of three books, On Third World Legs, now out of print, Blood on the Tracksand his latest book isDon’t Thank Me for My Service. We discuss his life of activism, the situation in Venezuela, US regime change attempts in Nicaragua and the state of activism and resistance in the age of Trump.
Ramin Mazaheri is the chief correspondent in Paris for Press TV and has lived in France since 2009. He has been a daily newspaper reporter in the US, and has reported from Iran, Cuba, Egypt, Tunisia, South Korea and elsewhere. His work has appeared in various journals, magazines and websites, as well as on radio and television. We talk about the origins and makeup of the Gilets Jaunes protesters, Emmanuel Macron and his government, and the likely increase in protests this spring. Ramin has been covering the unusual winter protests every weekend since they began.
This episode features an interview with Christine Ahn, founder and International Coordinator of Women Cross DMZ and currently working with Korea Peace Now , a global campaign to educate, organize and advocate for a Korea peace agreement by 2020. The group is currently working to promote passage of House Resolution 152 calling for a formal end to the Korean War. The bill was introduced by Rep. Ro Khanna of California on February 26th, and has 22 co-sponsors including Representatives Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Tulsi Gabbard of Hawai’i. The bill has been referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs.