Posted on Categories PBC

Journalist Charles Glass on the Civil War in Syria; Prof. David Vine Reports US Now

[subscribers]

[/subscribers]

Preview Clip

Charles Glass was Middle East Correspondent for ABC News from 1983-1993 and has covered Syria and its neighbors for more than 40 years.  In recent articles available at his website, he has many observations about the conflict, its players, the outside supporters of the rebels, and much more.  He was in Damascus and Aleppo in April and May, but says the recent violence in the capital, including the attack that killed 3 top defense officials, opens a new chapter.  We talk about the influence of outsiders, the array of ethnic groups that comprise the Syrian population, and the recent Security Council vetoes from Russia and China.

At 32:38, we are joined by David Vine, an assistant professor of Anthropology at American University.  Extending the important work of the late Chalmers Johnson, Vine is researching the expanded–and still expanding–military footprine of the US, estimating that we have well over 1,000 bases worldwide.  We touch on most regions of the world, and most of them have seen an expansion of US military presence, notably in Africa, Asia/Pacific and in Central Asia in countries like Uzbekistan.  In particular, Africa is the scene of competition with China, and we are seeing many casualties (mostly unreported) from Africa recently.  Vine is working on a book on our bases that is due out in 2013.  In 2009, he published Island of Shame: The Secret History of the US Military Base on Diego Garcia.   His important article at Tomdispatch is here.

At about 1:09, Will Durst comments on Mitt Romney’s Bain problem.