Kingston Reif, Director of Nuclear Non-Proliferation at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, discusses the cost effectiveness of the US missile defense system; the failure to test against ICBM's, decoys and countermeasures; why Israel's "Iron Dome" doesn't prove missile defense works; and how a seemingly defensive strategy could be used offensively against US rivals - sparking a new nuclear arms race.

IPS News journalist Adam Morrow discusses his article "Political Violence Grips Egypt From All Sides;" the National Salvation Front's demand for a new government and revised constitution; Mohamed ElBaradei's return to political prominence despite his unpopularity among Egyptians; divisions within the Salafist constituency; and why the protests are probably aimed at taking down President Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood.

Eric Margolis, journalist and author of American Raj, discusses how the disputed Senkaku Islands could ignite a China-Japan conflagration; the return of militant nationalism in Asia; why the US should gracefully withdraw from China's regional sphere of influence; the economic limitations of US empire going forward; attacks on Shia minorities in Afghanistan and Pakistan; and the military-industrial complex's motivation to stay in Afghanistan forever.

Blogger Marcy Wheeler discusses new details on the DOJ "white paper" justifying the extrajudicial assassination of American citizens abroad; judge Colleen McMahon's below-the-radar observation that Anwar al-Awlaki's killing was illegal; problems with "laws of war" justifications when the CIA is doing the killing; the spotty evidence al-Awlaki was directly involved with the underwear-bomb plot or the Ft. Hood shooting; and why the Obama administration had to know al-Awlaki's son was a minor...

Stephen Zunes, professor of politics and international studies at the University of San Francisco, discusses the French military offensive in Mali and the potential for blowback; Africa's past and present neocolonial domination; and the evidence that knowledgeable, competent government officials aren't calling the shots on US foreign policy.

Steve Breyman, former William C. Foster Visiting Scholar Fellow at the US State Department, discusses his article "Why the War on Terror Endures;" how the neoconservatives remain prominent media figures despite being wrong about everything; our culture of government impunity and failing upwards; how the deck is stacked in favor of the MSM's conventional (wrong) wisdom; the huge increase in terrorist attacks since the War on Terror's inception; the political climate that breeds religious...

Lew Rockwell, founder and chairman of the Mises Institute, discusses the Federal Reserve System's disastrous 100-year history; the rising popularity of Austrian economics thanks in large part to Ron Paul; achieving a brighter future by eschewing Keynes and taking away the government's control of the money supply; the problem with artificially low interest rates; and why central banking is nearly the worst thing to ever happen to mankind.

Max Blumenthal, author of the upcoming book Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel, discusses his article "How Law Enforcement and Media Covered Up the Plan to Burn Christopher Dorner Alive;" the online police scanner recordings that prove the cops (using "burners") were intent on extrajudicial assassination, not capture and arrest; the media's failure to provide coverage and ask important questions; and how Dorner exposed the deep animosity many Americans feel toward cops.

Ira Chernus, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder, discusses Secretary of State John Kerry's frank admission that "foreign policy is economic policy;" how the US came to dominate and "impose order" in the global marketplace; how the government manufactures the consent of Americans to start wars; individualism versus global citizenship and responsibility; and why antiwar activists waste energy when they try divining the government's "true motive" for waging war.

Ray McGovern, co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, discusses CIA Director-to-be John Brennan's "Tenet-Like Testimony" about Iran's nuclear program to the Senate Intelligence Committee; Brennan's apparent willingness to "fit the facts around the policy" and lie Americans into yet another war; why Brennan knows much more about CIA torture, rendition, and black sites than he admits; and the spectacle of Obama and Brennan casually giving a thumbs-up or thumbs-down - like...

Adil Shamoo, senior analyst for Foreign Policy in Focus, discusses why Iraq is heading toward civil war; how nationalist Iraqis fought both the American occupation and Al-Qaeda's foreign fighters; Prime Minister al-Maliki's near-dictatorial powers; how Western oil companies create conflict by cutting out Iraq's national government and making deals directly with the Kurds; and how the formation of a Kurdish nation would ignite a regional war involving Turkey, Iran, and Syria.