Spencer Ackerman

Author of REIGN OF TERROR: HOW THE 9/11 ERA DESTABILIZED AMERICA & PRODUCED TRUMP. Pulitzer/National Magazine Award/etc winning journalist. WALLER VS WILDSTORM for DC Comics, IRON MAN for Marvel.

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Ottomans vs. Vampires: Saladin Ahmed on His New Comic, DRAGON

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The Summertime FOREVER WARS Work Slowdown

Honestly? It's getting hot out and this newsletter is bleak. Let's take some deep breaths

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What America Does Abroad Is What America Does at Home

Human life means nothing to America, domestically or internationally. We who live here will simply have to overcome America for the sake of those who can't. Not great

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Civil Libertarian Opposition To New Domestic-Terrorism Bill Weakens

The Buffalo attack has given new life to a Democratic bill establishing domestic counterterrorism offices within DHS, DOJ and the FBI. The ACLU and others no longer oppose it.

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When Terrorism Is White, As It So Often Is

Don't go looking for consistency in the application of counterterrorism. The only relevant consistency is America's tolerance of white terrorism, terror as American as apple pie.

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Who Becomes A "Terrorist" in Post-Roe America?

The fusion centers that DHS set up early in the War on Terror can be used to police your uterus. No federal abortion ban necessary.

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The Defense Industry Is Winning in Ukraine

I know, big surprise. But this stuff is worth tracking, especially as the war bogs down.

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NSA Gives $10 Billion Contract To Company With Ex-NSA Director on Its Board

I simply do not know how Amazon, which entirely coincidentally put Ret. Gen. Keith Alexander on the same board as Jeff Bezos, swung this one. PLUS: Neal Adams, RIP.

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As Elon Musk Seizes Twitter, Watch His Pentagon Moves

The world's wealthiest troll, who recently claimed his satellite array defeated a Russian attack, is the exact sort of bullshitter the Defense Department drools over.

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COVID-19, Season 3 Opener

It's my turn to get the coronavirus and, unfortunately, I'm writing about it. Don't worry, this isn't going to be one of those Substacks.

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Life After Being The Center of The World

The hüzün of Istanbul, rendered by Orhan Pamuk, has some lessons for an America that sees itself as the axis on which the earth rotates.

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How The Forever Wars Were (Mis)Reported For 20 Years

I was honored to be part of this discussion with Azmat Khan, Murtaza Hussain and Alice Speri at the International Journalism Festival.

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Thirty Months To The Beginning of Extinction

The IPCC's latest report is a grim reminder that the U.S.' response to the Russian aggression in Ukraine threatens the long-term viability of human life on earth.

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How The U.S. Moves in Europe vs. How The U.S. Moves in Asia

Prepare for more U.S. troops permanently stationed in Europe. Meanwhile, the Transportation Command outlines some logistical problems for U.S. hegemony in the Pacific.

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Saving Ukraine vs. Defeating Russia

A month into the invasion, these two goals look the same. Biden's regime-change line is a reminder of how divergent they are.

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Maybe Take It Seriously When Coup Advocates Talk About Throwing People in Guantanamo?

I read Ginni Thomas' texts to Mark Meadows and it turns out that the longer a forever prison stays open, the worse an assumption it is that only Those People end up there

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The Second U.S. Sacrifice of Yemen

A hidden casualty of Russia's Ukraine invasion is Yemen, as the Saudis and the Emiratis raise the cost for the U.S. of increasing oil production. It's an oil prince's world; people just die in it.

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His Torture Was 'On-The-Job-Practice' for CIA Interrogators' ‘Certification’

Langley's case for abusing Ammar Al-Baluchi was 'weak,' 'fuzzy and circular,' & 'extra-legal,' says a secret 2008 CIA inspector general report that FOREVER WARS is publishing for the first time.

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Report of the CIA Inspector General Regarding Allegations of Torture Made by Ammar al-Baluchi

Paragraphs 35b to 145, redacted and unclassified

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Pentagon Official Rules That A Man The CIA Raped And Tortured Can Go Free

Majid Khan's sentence has been reduced to time served. His lawyer doesn't expect bureaucratic subterfuge before Khan flies out of Guantanamo Bay.

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As The Invasion of Ukraine Goes On, Pressure To Escalate Goes Up

The Biden administration is, correctly, against a no-fly zone. The problem will be keeping that politically tenable.

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Trust The CIA About What It Should Cover Up, Says Supreme Court

The leading liberal on the Court expressed impressive credulity in blocking an attempt at justice for torture. But Abu Zubaydah's attorneys see a path forward.

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Making Ordinary Russians Suffer for Putin's Invasion

Neither Putin nor his oligarchs will suffer from U.S. and European economic siege warfare—it's part of how Putin rose to power in the first place. Plus: a Xius ex machina?

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U.S. Bombs Somalia as Russia Bombs Ukraine

You do not, in fact, have to choose between American and Russian imperial aggressions. Better to bear witness to what is being done in your name.

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Pennsylvania Man Charged With Torture Outside Official CIA Channels

The Justice Department really had the nerve to boast about indicting its second U.S. citizen under the 1994 federal torture statute. Also: nothing about Ukraine.