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Those critical of Western imperialism are doubly tasked under the Obama administration and Michael Ignatieff’s rapid ascent to Prime Minister. The first task remains unchanged: to monitor centres of power. The second, more difficult task, is to strip away the “saintly glow” that emanates from these supposed humanitarian and altruistic liberal elites.

The notion that the world is a better place under Obama is dangerous, granting the president extreme latitude. So long as this image persists, and Obama’s team is spending millions to insure it does, the possibility of any real change is distant and unlikely. The lies and distortions of Obama need to be exposed. This edition of War Zones focuses on some of the best recently published articles that grapple with Obama’s foreign policy:

Chomsky went unpublished for months, only to produce two consecutive articles condemning the Obama administration.

• Why We Can’t See the Trees or the Forest: The Torture Memos and Historical Amnesia by Noam Chomsky — TomDispatch

• Turning Point? By Noam Chomsky — Chomsky.com

In his “reaching out” in Cairo, as in his “anti-nuclear” speech in Berlin, as in the “hope” he spun at his inauguration, this clever young politician is playing the part for which he was drafted and promoted. This is to present a benign, seductive, even celebrity face to American power, which can then proceed towards its strategic goal of dominance, regardless of the wishes of the rest of humanity and the rights and lives of our children.”

• Smile On The Face Of The Tiger by John Pilger‏ — Znet

• Team Obama/Cult Obama by Bill Blum‏ — Znet

• Obama Electrifies The World: Can We Believe The Hype? by Danny Schechter‏ — Znet

• Middle East reacts to Obama — The Real News Network

• Obama in Cairo: A Bush in sheep’s clothing by Ali Abunimah — The Guardian

• Obama’s Cairo Speech by by Gilber Archar — Socialist Project