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In-Depth Interview: Tireless Peace Activist David Swanson on America’s Wars, and His New Book, “War Is A Lie”

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David Swanson returns to our program for a wide-ranging conversation on Obama’s wars and the lies that propel them.Swanson is a longtime activist, author, journalist and radio host.  He is director of WorldBeyondWar.org, campaign coordinator for RootsAction.org  His blogs are here and here, and you can listen to TalkNationRadio here.

We open with a recap of how we met, at Camp Democracy in D.C. in 2004, and lament that the peace movement that challenged Bush dissipated after Obama was elected.

We talk about the recent “dissent memo” signed by 51 State Department officers, and Obama’s undeclared 2-year war in Syria.  We discuss the endless war in Afghanistan, which is now one of Obama’s wars, and other conflicts we are currently involved with.  Swanson notes the use of humanitarian arguments in persuading Americans to support more wars.

Swanson comments on Obama’s recent visit and speech in Hiroshima, and compares it to his 2009 pro-war acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize.