Blackwater’s Erik Prince Has a Solution for the Refugee Crisis
The last thing the refugee crisis needs is Erik Prince. Last we heard from Erik Prince, he had set up sail for the new shores of Abu Dhabi, away from pesky congressional hearings about unlawful killings in Iraq, and close to the security-laden borderlands of the Horn of Africa. His new venture, Frontier Services Group, provides logistical and material support in conflict zones as well as aid delivery. We’d like to seize the opportunity of a new year to wish the former Blackwater CEO the best in his new endeavours. In an opinion-piece penned for the respectable Financial Times, the…
Reacting to the ‘Syrian Boy’
During her daily CNN show Kate Bolduan started to cry while discussing the video of the small Syrian boy. The video is going viral on facebook even after the footage of the 5 year old boy – Omran Daqneesh had already hit the news cycle. Bouldan wasn’t trying to make the story about her – she was just responding as I am right now as I write this. I’m not sure how we’re supposed to respond to this as journalists, as commentators or just as human beings. Walter Cronkite in an interview with Terry Gross spoke of the moment that he told America that President…
The Weekend Off – News You Missed
Alaska ADN – Journalist who broke Fairbanks Four case unsatisfied after their release The letters seemed outlandish. But Brian O’Donoghue went to the courthouse to check them out, part of his job in 2000 as the opinion page editor at the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. What he found wouldn’t let him go: the story of four young men convicted of murder on flimsy evidence. On Thursday, their convictions were vacated and the Fairbanks Four were finally released after 18 years in prison. O’Donoghue joined the celebration but said the job’s not done. Juneau Empire – This is what it takes to get into…
Alaskan Reps Weigh In on Syrian Refugees
Even though state and local officials have no actual power over preventing or allowing refugees to be placed in their state – nearly all of them have decided to weigh in on the issue. The 10,000 or so refugees that were originally planned on being brought to the US for temporary placement would go through “13 separate security screenings – at the international, federal and state level – before they are considered for resettlement,” but that doesn’t seem to be enough for some members of the Alaskan delegation. While not a single one of the terrorists that attacked Paris last…
Open Thread: September 11th
It’s been 12 years since a group of Saudi men took two planes and flew them into the World Trade Center Towers. It’s sparked two wars in the Middle East, over five thousand dead Americans, and hundreds of thousands of Afghans and Iraqis. Bin Laden was killed… eventually. Now with drones flying in the sky over Yemen, dropping bombs on sheepherders and JSOC killing wedding parties, we stand at the precipice of a new war – one with Syria – yet another Middle Eastern country. We considered an attack by commercial aircraft an act of war, but our Secretary of…
Facts: They’re Just My Opinion
A few months ago a listener to my radio show delivered a fresh new conspiracy/scandal. He was certain that President Obama had orchestrated the Sandy Hook school shooting to help get himself re-elected. Really. When I pointed out to the caller that the president had been reelected more than a month before the shooting, he responded, “That’s just your opinion.” So, now actual historical events are JUST MY OPINION because they don’t fit into the narrative that Obama wants to take your guns so badly he’ll send a Manchurian nut-job to shoot up a school. OK, so this guy may…