Surveillance Blowback

By Alfred W. McCoy, TomDispatch Jul 16, 2013 For well over a century, what might be called “surveillance blowback” from America’s wars has ensured the creation of an ever more massive and omnipresent internal security and surveillance apparatus. Its future (though not ours) looks bright indeed. Dig deeper ( 15 Min. Read )

Note Reportedly Says Marathon Attack Blowback Against U.S. Aggression

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig May 16, 2013 A note that Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is said to have left on an interior wall of the boat where police found him after the April 15 attacks claimed responsibility for the bombings and described them as retribution for the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, saying the Boston dead were "collateral damage" in the same way Muslims are in the American-led conflicts. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

A Cronkite Moment for the Blowback Era

David Sirota / Truthdig Apr 26, 2013 You are not allowed to honestly discuss the Central Intelligence Agency's concept of "blowback" without putting yourself at risk of being deemed a traitor to country. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Filling the Empty Battlefield

By Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch Apr 23, 2013 With "Blowback," Chalmers Johnson aimed to paint a portrait of how America's informal empire and its historically unprecedented garrisoning of the world looked to others, and so explain why animosity and blowback were building globally. Now we have a secret history of 21st-century American war in Jeremy Scahill’s latest book, "Dirty Wars: The World Is a Battlefield." Dig deeper ( 13 Min. Read )

Blowback: Why They Try to Bomb Us

David Sirota / Truthdig May 14, 2010 Imagine an alternate universe in which a foreign military power begins flying remote-controlled warplanes over your town, using onboard missiles to kill hundreds of your innocent neighbors, and then jokes about it.Imagine a foreign military power begins flying remote-controlled warplanes over your town, using onboard missiles to kill hundreds of your innocent neighbors, and then jokes about it. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Blowback From Bear-Baiting

By Patrick J. Buchanan Aug 17, 2008 For reasons too numerous to fit into a short summary, Pat Buchanan isn't someone whose writings we'd routinely pick up on this site. However, in this case his essay about the Georgia-Russia conflict, er, bears repeating here, if only to illustrate how not all conservatives see the recent clash in Eastern Europe the way the Bush administration does. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Obama Responds to Wright Controversy

Staff / Truthdig Mar 16, 2008 It was only a matter of time before Barack Obama would have to weigh in on the controversy surrounding the sermons of his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, whose rhetorical flair sometimes verged on the incendiary. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Intelligence Test

Mr. Fish / Truthdig Aug 24, 2007 Dig deeper

Blowback in Lebanon

Staff / Truthdig Jun 22, 2007 Truthdig contributor Reese Erlich connects the blowback from American meddling in the Mideast to the recent violence in Lebanon, where a Palestinian militant group has been fighting with the Lebanese army. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

CNN’s Martin Defends Ron Paul

Staff / Truthdig May 19, 2007 Rudy Giuliani was widely praised for his demagogic smackdown of Ron Paul during the second Republican debate, feigning shock and outrage at Paul's explanation of "blowback." But Giuliani's performance, while a crowd-pleaser, exposed the superficiality of his terror-fighting credentials. As CNN's Roland Martin writes: "Giuliani must be an idiot to not have heard Paul's rationale before." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Republicans Turn on Each Other in Second Debate

Staff / Truthdig May 16, 2007 The first Republican debate was like a first date, with the presidential candidates behaving politely and saying things they could all agree on, like "Ronald Reagan and tax cuts are great, don't you think?" But by the second debate, it's clear these guys aren't relationship material. Here are some highlights, including Rudy Giuliani attacking Ron Paul for making sense. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )