Reports from Hancock and Beyond
The Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones and End the Wars
Friends, this is a great film on the damage done by drone warfare and the increasing potential for state terrorism presented by drones. The video is from 2016 but I have never seen it before so I’m glad it turned up in my email today. The film has interviews with whistleblower Sean Westmoreland, and many of the antidrone activists and drone victims from Waziristan whom we met there as well. And, interviews with our good friends Nick Mottern of Knowdrones.com
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How Unpiloted Aircraft Expand the War on Terror By Rebecca Gordon, originally published on Tom Dispatch, May 24, 2018 They are like the camel’s nose, lifting a corner of the tent. Don’t be fooled, though. It won’t take long until the whole animal is sitting inside, sipping your tea and eating your sweets. In countries around the world — in the Middle East, Asia Minor, Central Asia, Africa, even the Philippines — the appearance of U.S. drones in the sky
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It is suspected that a small drone carrying a thermite grenade may have caused a massive arms depot blast near Balakliya, Ukraine in March 2017. The 350 hectare site near Kharkiv is around 100km from the frontline of the conflict in the eastern Donbas area. 20,000 people were evacuated and the blast is likely to have left a significant environmental footprint of heavy metals and energetic materials. by Doug Weir and Elizabeth Minor, Originally published on Toxic Remnants of War
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In Pakistan in October of 2012, my group of peace activists met Malik Jalal, who spoke to us about the effect of drones on his community in Waziristan and later accompanied our caravan up to Tank, a town on the edge of Waziristan, where we joined a lively anti-war rally. I specifically remember Malik Jalal as a handsome man in the prime of life, accustomed to having authority. He had a full beard and wore the garb of a Tribal
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Ed Kinane at Left Forum Session 7, 3:40 to 5:40 p.m., Sunday, May 22, 2016 Room 1,127 John Jay College of Criminal Justice, NYC Panel with Ed K., Nick Mottern, Debra Sweet, Shelby Sullivan-Bennis Moderator: Amanda Bass Like the phony “war on drugs,” the phony “war on terrorism” promotes economic interests, serves political agendas, entrenches militarism. Neither war reduces drug use or violence. Nor are they designed to. Terrorism — past and present — pervades the U.S. psyche and economy.
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If, like me, you were not able to attend “Inside Drone Warfare”, the Whistle Blower Symposium organized by Nick Mottern and Ann Wright in Las Vegas this spring during Shut Down Creech!, you can still view the speakers in these YouTube videos. I watched them and was glad I took the time. Ann Wright moderates the event. Part 1: Jesselyn Radack of Whisper Whistleblower and Resource Protection Program and Cian Westmoreland, former Drone Maintenance Technician Part 2: Christopher Aaron, former
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Drones, Black Lives Matter, the European Refugee Crisis: What do They Have in Common? Panel discussion at Nazareth College in Rochester with walker Russell Brown, Professor Harry Murray and Yaqub Shabbaz, a social sciences student and community organizer from Chicago. Below is an audio recording of this fascinating conversation. I have broken out the introduction, each individual speaker and the following discussion for convenient listening. Introductory Remarks by Harry Murray: Yaqub Shabbaz speaks about Black Lives Matter: Russell Brown speaks
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