FM newswire for July 21, interesting articles about geopolitics

Today’s links to interesting news and analysis. If you find this useful, please pass it to friends and colleagues.

Recommended: Analysis of the Reagan tax cuts: “Goodbye Supply Side“, Kevin Williamson, National Review, 3 May 2010
Do conservative economists believe that tax cuts pay for themselves?, Bruce Bartlett, Capital Gains and Games, 17 July 2010 — Their quotes provide the answer.
Recommended, about DoD info ops run against us: “Behind the media contractors’ veil“, Mark Prendergast, Stars and Stripes, 12 July 2010
Recommended: “The Real U.S. Government“, Glenn Greenwald, Salon, 17 July 2010 — Gets good halfway through.
The opposite of what the mainstream media reported: “Amiri Told CIA Iran Has No Nuclear Bomb Programme“, Gareth Porter”, Gareth Porter, IPS, 19 July 2010
“American Hypocrites – The only thing Americans hate more than big government is the absence of government protection“, Anne Applebaum, Slate, 19 July 2010
Big factual errors in the above Applebaum article (lies repeated eventually become consensus, which is why propaganda works), exposed by Matthew Yglesias, ThinkProgress, 20 July 2010
“Advice for General Petraeus on the Rules of Engagement: It’s Neither/Nor, Not Either/Or“, Tom Engelhardt, 20 July 2010
“Do sovereign debt ratios matter?“, Michael Pettis (Prof Finance, Peking U), 20 July 2010
Another lynching by Andrew Breitbart (leading conservative propagandist), as usual playing fast and loose with the facts: “Longer Video of Speech in Question Is Released by N.A.A.C.P.“, New York Times, 21 July 2010 — But his audience loves lies, assuring his success.
Speaking of conservative lies (still believed by many of faithful): “Born in the U.S.A. – The truth about Obama’s birth certificate“, FactCheck (U Penn), 1 November 2008
About those jihadist terrorists: “The Case for Calling Them Nitwits“, Daniel Byman and Christine Fair, The Atlantic, July/August 2010