How Neocons, Neolibs, and their Media Collude for War | Katrina vanden Heuvel

For decades, liberals have been shilling for the US war-state and collaborated with the worst neocons in the name of a self-righteous value discourse. In this tragedy, the media-industrial-think-tank-complex has been playing a crucial role.

This is the first part of a discussion with Katrina vanden Heuvel, an icon of US journalism and publishing. She was for decades the editor in chief and a pillar of the progressive magazine “The Nation”. As such, she was pivotal in giving alternative voices a place to speak, especially when it came to US involvements in wars. I consider her and her late husband Stephen F. Cohen as giants of US public peace work and realism in international relations. Katrina has been writing about US domestic and foreign policy for 40 years and she is also a member of the American Committee for US-Russia Accord, that has for many years been pushing for better relations between Washington and Moscow.

[markjohnson]

I am a Swedish citizen and believe in neutrality. There was no debate here at all about joining Nato and we were not given the chance to vote on the issue. The most disappointing part was the flip of the Social Democrats who had previously had an ideology which believed in dialogue and diplomacy. Those of us who believed in these ideas are wondering where to turn to find a party that represent us.

[vaska]

Stephen F Cohen, her late husband and unarguably the best Russia Studies expert the US ever had, is sorely missed. He spent the 2010s tirelessly warning about the folly of cornering Russia and forcing it to respond militarily to NATO provocations in Ukraine. For his efforts, Steve Cohen, a major pillar of the policy of detente in the 1960s and 1970s, was completely sidelined by all American MSM. Check out his talks and interviews on NATO and Ukraine still accessible online.

His and her views diverged markedly during the last ten years of his life.

[slorter]

The US is a plutocracy it is not a democracy ! One has to comment in that context ! What that context has given us is selected candidates and limited choice!

[ObjectiveAnalysis]

Necrons + Neolibs are two sides of the same coin (imperialism)

[nerdusuztra]

Although the last two years have been exceptional when it comes to the lack of journalistic integrity, I have to remind myself often that the western press was ALWAYS lacking in this department. We forget that they were always influenced and coerced, but most of all they, as all of us in the west, were brainwashed by our own cultural pedestal of moral authority. The key words are "western values", which is now undressed as hollow words trumpeting a propaganda narrative for imperialism, neo-colonialism or even techno feudalism as Varoufakis calls it. Who are we without this pedestal? And can there even be a western peace movement without it? And how do we go about separating the narrative from the substantive human morality that is needed?

[JackGreystoke]

What conscription in Russia…… evidence anywhere…?!?

[carolberry]

I think she has some skewed ideas actually ....comes with a mainstream American audience she has been too used to. Definitely subtle propaganda in her rhetoric.

[joesaba]

She bombed out when she said Russia has 60yr olds fighting!! That's Ukraine.

[meggallucci]

OMG. Is she ever wrong about Biden. I have never agreed much with her. I did listen to Stephen Cohen, but his bond with Gorbachov was naive beyond belief on both sides. Gorbachov, Club of Rome member, Pizza Hut commercial guy, let’s get a verbal agreement re NATO not moving East guy because our enemy is no longer our enemy, like that adversarial relationship suddenly went poof! No problem any more. And you are wrong, Pascal. During Vietnam, and I remember it well because I was an anti-war demonstrator, we did not react against American deaths in Vietnam, we reacted against award winning photographs of what we were doing to the Vietnamese. The young, crying Vietnamese girl who tore her napalm drenched clothes off and was running on the road in her village, the young Vietnamese soldier being shot point blank by a fellow-Vietnamese general. Morley Safer on the ground on CBS nightly news. This woman speaks in the abstract. She is an elite who has no knowledge of the gritty mess that Vietnam was. Unfortunately, we were not sympathetic to our own military and unfairly blamed our working class soldiers for fighting in the war when it was not their fault. You have not studied that war, Pascal. There are many ordinary people alive who remember it well. You are not speaking to one of them. A rare misstep on your usually inspired channel.

[Papawcanner]

I dropped my subscription to the Nation shortly after Stephen Cohen died and his widow confirmed the correctness of my decision .

[prose]

Conscription in Russia, what evidence? Surely she meant Ukraine?

[terrywhelan]

Those calling for war never intend to fight in it themselves.

[GETJUSTICEU]

8:20 Surely the question is, "How is it that the Wealthiest country (huge empire) in the world has any child poverty, or any poverty, why?

[GETJUSTICEU]

She talks about conscription in Russia where there is none due to a steady stream of volunteers: yet very little, if any, mention of he
horendous Ukrainian conscription?

[andrejmucic]

Petite bourgeoisie hand wringing, classic!

[aprescoup]

Before the attack on Pearl Harbor, The Nation repeatedly called on the United States to enter World War II to resist fascism, and after the US entered the war, the publication supported the American war effort.[21] It also supported the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.

On January 14, 2016, The Nation endorsed the neoliberal-imperialist record sporting Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders for President.

Pascal is in the weeds with this servant of oligarchy.

[edilemma]

Nobody drafts 60 yo in Russia! They conscript eligible men between ages of 18 and 27 for 12 months, and new conscripts DO NOT serve on front lines.

[DimmackFan]

This person did sellout after her husband died, she is a pmc

[katejudson]

Long term fan of this great journalist. Thanks so much for this conversation.

[chxhoen]

Cannot listen to this person beyond her praise for Biden. How did she get onto this channel!!