TECHNOIR (29 page)

            But like a lot of technology too good to be true, is the Internet a house of cards – with one US military-made computer virus away from taking it all down? Again, there you have it, technology seemingly outpacing us to the point of no return. Like nuclear weapons, which the powers-that-be have shielded with the oxymoron they’re for defense, the advent of more powerful Computer Network Attacks or CNA is a familiar road we’ve already been down. Even the US military isn’t sure how dangerous one of their emerging CNA’s might be; as Dan Verton said in Chapter 10, once you press that Enter button (releasing the worm), no one truly knows the ultimate outcome. And what’s so amazing is that the Bush and Obama administrations have advanced the US military’s CNA capability to an unknown level because they’ve been super-secret about research and they’re (the Pentagon) not talking. One reason is because China’s CAN capability could be greater than ours!

            Back to the Obama administration. In 2008, he promised to pull troops out of Iraq. He promised to cut military spending. He promised to further peace. It was the “Audacity of Hope,, his memorable campaign call-out that had so many enamored and sending him cash via Internet. But did he keep his promises? Not really (they never do!). As of this writing (2010), there are still thousands of American troops in Iraq. He did, however, in a clever trick on words, pull out some “combat troops.” Too bad they were shipped off to Afghanistan. He did cut some of the Pentagon’s annual budget, but what’s a few billion off a $400 billion mountain? And as for peace, well, he boosted the war in Afghanistan, against a foe some wonder are more drug dealer than terrorist.

            But what’s so insidious about this, is the question over whether he, Obama, lied to us, or exaggerated his promises, or something more sinister. He has no choice but to continue massive military funding or face “elimination.” Like what happened to John F. Kennedy and many others who tried to get in the way of US military industrial complex.

            Or what the CIA did to many a leftist and socialist leader from South and Central America – sabotage their planes so they simply fell out of the sky. Consider what happened to Republican computer hacker Mike Connell, or all the questionable suicides that have occurred in Iraq over the last several years. Some of them were US troops who were whistle blowers ready to blow the lid off the out-of-control corruption defense contractors had brought to this warzone. Defense contractors that were paying out huge bribes to US military procurement officers.

            Some like Major Gloria Davis, a 45-year-old African-American woman, and a very successful one at that. Her family depended on her, and yes, she accepted a bribe, around $200,000-plus, just peanuts in the world of defense contracting, and was facing a military indictment. Within days of getting caught, she turned up dead. An apparent gun-shot to the head. When was the last time you heard of a successful black woman killing herself? Successful American black women have probably the lowest suicide rates on Earth. She was probably “eliminated” because there was a chance she was going to reveal other layers of corruption. Who did it then? The US Military or civilian defense contractors? The advent of Blackwater makes that a tough call. In the end, when it comes to defense contracting and getting that fat government contract, it all boils down to Gandhi’s little quote: Greed is the root of all evil.

            So all of what I am writing here are nothing but verbal warnings, you’re thinking. This author is all about telling a cautionary tale. You’re asking, what about solutions?

            If you bought this book, then that’s one solution. As I wrote in the prologue, support independent progressive journalists, such as those that work for
Alternet
and
Toward
Freedom
, to name two outlets out of hundreds.

            Second, if you have the money to invest, check your investments, mutual funds, etc., and ask your broker whether the likes of Lockheed Martin, Boeing, or Alliant Techsystems, is in your portfolio. If so, I recommend searching through the pages of Mother Jones, where they have ads from financial brokers who claim their investments are morally straight: no defense contractors, exploiters of cheap labor or big-time polluters.

            Third, these days, both the Democrats and Republicans have long been sold-out to defense contractors and other industries. Could there be another party that emerges from the “Broken Government” era? Hopefully someday, God willing, there will be a political party about peace first when it comes to defense; one that keeps defense technology and spending under control, and offers much more public disclosure as to what’s being built. A party that truly puts the working-class first; raising minimum wage for example, to something that’s livable, say $12.50 an hour? It’s as if I am asking for a miracle. But if such a party were to emerge, this is one we all need to support.

            And last, I am a big supporter of people power. Have you ever had a friend with a serious emergency who needed a few bucks to get through? Perhaps a hat was passed around and everyone threw in a few dollars. It can add up quick, and in the end, everyone feels great because they finally did something worthwhile – and all they did was reach into their wallet for a few pieces of green paper. In 2008, Obama harnessed that power and won.

            Why can’t we harness that power now, and use it to force peace, cut defense spending, and keep dark technology underwraps? Apathy and a sold-out media and political system, come to mind. But think about Obama 2008. That power was in the flesh, right before your eyes and fingertips. Brought together by the people’s desire, with the help of technology. That power can be turned on again. We just need to wake-up and listen over the noise to characters such as Sarah Connor, who represents all of us.

            John Lasker is an independent, freelance journalist who resides in Columbus, Ohio, home to his Alma matter, the Ohio State University. But John, like his twin brother Paul, who also resides in Columbus, goes out of his way to let everyone know he was born and raised in Buffalo, NY. A proud, blue-collar American city that’s been devastated by tens-of-thousands of jobs sent overseas. Like the people of Buffalo, a city famous and infamous for its harsh winters, John is tough, loyal, passionate, inquisitive, and, last but certainly not least, still standing in the face of extinction, something American journalism has a hard time saying these days. It was on a bitterly cold Sunday morning in a Buffalo Catholic church where John, at the age of 7, received his calling. He had a vision he was holding a pen and pad, and covering one of his obsessions – the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League.

            John’s journalism career started at an independent alternative weekly; part of the journalism industry he’s gung-ho for, but sees it selling-out like much of mainstream journalism already has. John has written for
Wired news, Christian Science Monitor, Buffalo News, Toward Freedom, Space News, Fate magazine, The Lantern, Columbus Guardian
and many, many more. In 2008, he covered the Presidential Election from central Ohio for
Agence France-Press
, the oldest newswire on the planet. During the 2004 Presidential Election he worked for the Democrats, going door-to-door, nearly every day, for 18 months. He is credited with getting a huge area of urban Columbus registered to vote for that election. Columbus is often considered “Ground Zero” for Presidential Elections because of its extreme political diversity, which is partially the result of the tremendous economic division between the rich and working-class poor of central Ohio.

            John would like to thank his parents, his twin brother, and his wife, his sister Beth and her husband, and the rest of his family for their support. He also wants to thank his girlfriend Janet and her daughter, who believed, albeit naively perhaps, that he would make it as a writer (and to this day they’re still waiting patiently). He would also like to thank all of his sources who gave their valuable time and effort to give him the vital information needed to write these investigative stories.

            Feared by the Pentagon, despised by space-weapons lobbyists, and stalked by UFO hoaxers. That’s life for John Lasker. And to all those sell-out PR hacks and conniving Washington lobbyists who acted like their cell phone wasn’t working, or tried to lead him astray on a story, or laughed at his efforts to dig-out the truth, further peace, expose corporate pigs, and fight to end the exploitation of the working class across the globe: May you choke one day on your own Bullshit!