Chuck Spinney: Buy Before You Fly … How to Suck Money During Sequestration […Legalized Treason?]

The joint-service F-35 strike fighter is the Pentagon’s largest program. In fact, it is the most expensive procurement program in the Pentagon’s history.  It is also an unfolding disaster that is well documented, but of almost unimaginable proportions.  And yet, the F-35 is impervious to budget cutbacks in sequesterland.  Not surprisingly, among the cognoscenti of …

Open Power: Democracy Lost & Found Essay, Book Review Blurbs and Links [Updated 3 MAR 2015]

NEW: Kindle Book Open Power ($2.99) OLD: Core Documents for Both Initiatives (Free) OLD: the foundation book The Open Source Everything Manifesto ROBERT STEELE: There are two schools of thought on effecting political (and hence economic and social) reform. One school is the school of love — this school emphasizes trust building and doing no …

Chuck Spinney: Kelly Vlahos on the Militarization of Yale Neuroscience

.. Or Escalating the Old Boot On Campus Game Below is an important, excellent and scary report by Kelley Vlahos.  But the MICC’s infiltration of elite campus’s is even worse that Ms. Vlahos says, because it builds on deep historical roots and tradition. Yale, a main focus of her report, has a long history of its …

Chuck Spinney: Neo-Imperialism and the Arrogance of Ignorance with Extended Comments and Additional Readings

My latest screed on US pol-mil policy, a shorter version of this appeared on 27 Feb in the Time Battleland Blog here. Chuck Spinney Africa and AFRICOM:Neo-Imperialism and the Arrogance of Ignorance by FRANKLIN C. SPINNEY Counterpunch, WEEKEND EDITION MARCH 1-3, 2013 Most Americans do not realize the extent to which the U.S. is becoming involved …

Review: Creative Innovators – The Making of Young People Who Will Change the World

Tom Wagner 5.0 out of 5 stars Creating Innovators is NOT What Most US Schools Do…., February 27, 2013 I had a chance to go through this book today while visiting a school in Fairfax Virginia and I liked it. I have gone with 5 stars because it is a message that needs repeating as …

Review: National Insecurity – The Cost of American Militarism

Mel Goodman 5.0 out of 5 stars Stellar Offering — Both Panoramic and Specific, February 23, 2013 First let me warn other reviewers, the new Amazon review protocol is not friendly. You have to enter a short review first, and then once that goes live, you can write a more sophisticated review with product links. …

Marcus Aurelius: White House Corruption + Flag Corruption = Defense Meltdown [Robert Steele: 2 Out of 3]

Add to this escalation of toxic leadership, particularly in Army, and senior leader incompetence [see Tom Ricks’ book, The Generals] and you get an unappealing prospect]. W/R/T Gen. Mattis specifically, his competence, integrity — and candor — are legendary.  His summary characterization of U.S. Marine is classic:  “no better friend, no worse enemy.”   I’ve heard Mackubin Owens …