escalation
GRITtv: I Rise Today In Favor of Peace
Alan Grayson, the outspoken representative from Florida, has made a name for himself with his floor speeches in favor of health care reform. He's also against escalation in Afghanistan, and in this video from Brave New Films, he calls on Congress to oppose sending any more troops to an unwinnable war.
Email this pageGRITtv: Dec. 21, 2009
The holiday season is usually when the biggest movies of the year come out, but there are several that have been out for a while generating lots of buzz. Is this going to be the year of the woman in cinema, or is it just hype?; MC Tamarrod is a rapper living in Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in Lebanon who joins us to talk about his life and offer a rhyme; Alan Grayson calls for sanity in Congress; getting pennies for standing next to priceless works of art and the F Word with Laura Flanders on the Senate passage of the health-care bill.
GRITtv: Firsthand Views from Afghanistan
President Obama spoke of "seeing firsthand" what happens in Afghanistan when he visited Walter Reed. But in the latest segment from Brave New Films' Rethink Afghanistan, veterans point out that at best Obama's only seen a second or third-hand version of what they saw and dealt with every day.
GRITtv: John Nichols: Congress Missing On War Debate
Obama might have laid out his reasons for continuing the war in Afghanistan, but the Nation's John Nichols wants us all to remember that the Constitution actually gave Congress the power to make war. Obama might be consistent with his campaign promises to escalate, but, Nichols notes, public opinion has shifted and Congress is better equipped to respond.
GRITtv: Back to Bush? World Media and Obama
The response to Obama's Afghanistan speech on most US news stations was delivered by the same old familiar faces: mostly male, mostly white anchors and serious pundits who had ruled out a long time ago the possibility of alternative solutions. But what did the rest of the world think? Esther Armah, award-winning international journalist and WBAI host, Michael Bronner, Vanity Fair correspondent, and Jamal Dajani, co-creator and producer of Mosaic: World News from the Middle East, join us to fill in the blanks on the coverage and provide some alternative viewpoints.
GRITtv: Dec. 3, 2009
Esther Armah, Michael Bronner, and Jamal Dajani fill in the blanks and provide some alternative viewpoints to MSM media coverage of the Afghan escalation. The Nation's John Nichols reminds us that the Constitution actually gave Congress the power to make war. Antonino D'Ambrosio is back, exploring the tradition of activism through art and music in "Let Fury Have the Hour," using the Clash to look at the ways artists influence and educate. And Sebastian Doggart talks about "Courting Condi," about the Secretary of State during the Bush years.
GRITtv: A Voice from RAWA: Zoya on Afghanistan
Barack Obama announced last night that the US would be sending 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan. (No word on how many private contractors would be accompanying them.) He did not explicitly use the Afghan women as justification, but many politicians have, claiming that we cannot leave the women to their fate. Zoya is a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of RAWA, the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, and she joined us to talk about what would really be best for the women - and all the people - of Afghanistan. Zoya is a pseudonym and her face is obscured to protect her identity.
GRITtv: The F Word: All-Too-Familiar Line on Afghanistan
The President talked about America's timeless values again at West Point Tuesday night … And there they were, a whole lot of values whose time one can only wish were up … The timeless retelling of the traditional Al Qaeda fairy tale: the one that leaves any mention of Saudi Arabia and Israeli occupation and post-Gulf War US bases -- in fact any mention of politics -- out … And the timeless claim of innocence: what empire, us? Finally and worst, for those who'd thought they'd voted for the death of the Bush Doctrine, sorry. - Laura Flanders
GRITtv: To Obama, From Afghanistan
Obama's announcement of escalation in Afghanistan last night laid out a case for more troops that claimed to look at what is best for the US and for Afghan citizens. Yet in this clip from Brave New Films, we hear messages for Obama from many Afghan citizens, who want a peaceful exit for US soldiers.
GRITtv: Dec. 2, 2009
Barack Obama, in a dramatic speech last night, was arguing for escalation in Afghanistan. The real down payment on America's future, of course, would be investing in the health of its citizens. Joining us to discuss the health care bill are Maggie Mahar, John Nichols, Jonathan Cohn and Olga Pierce. Obama called the escalation an investment in America's future, but what about the Afghan people? Zoya, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of RAWA, joins us to talk about what would really be best for the women--and all the people--of Afghanistan, and Brave New Films brings us messages for Obama from many Afghan citizens who want a peaceful exit for US soldiers.
