Revolution #206, July 4, 2010


War Crimes…and the Promise of More

Barack Obama on dismissing General Stanley McChrystal:

“I don't make this decision based on any difference in policy with General McChrystal, as we are in full agreement about our strategy…. I've got great admiration for him and for his long record of service in uniform.”

This long record includes:

McChrystal approved a more than four-fold increase in night raid operations, from 20 in May of last year to 90 in November. Civilian deaths rose dramatically. Night raids caused more than half of the nearly 600 civilian deaths attributable to U.S./coalition forces in 2009, according to United Nations and Afghan government estimates.

In fact it should be no surprise that such atrocities happened under McChrystal’s command in Afghanistan. All this was part and parcel of the “surge” strategy he oversaw in Iraq.

And General Petraeus, who Obama picked to take McChrystal’s place, is another big war criminal. In announcing that Petraeus was taking over in Afghanistan, Obama declared, “Let me say to the American people, this is a change in personnel but it is not a change in policy. General Petraeus fully participated in our review last fall, and he both supported and helped design the strategy that we have in place.”

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