Of course Ellsberg is best known for the release of the Pentagon Papers, a top secret study of the decision-making of the U.S. government in relation to the war in Vietnam, how long it had been planned for, and how – like in the bombing of Iraq – lies were used to actually begin the war in Vietnam. Less known is his support of whistle-blowers and his anti-nuclear work.
Daniel Ellsberg has used his experience to defend Julian Assange and other whistleblowers – even up to current days – when it has become known that he received a cancer diagnosis that gives him only a few more months to live.
Frank Barat spoke with Daniel Ellsberg on Jan 19, 2023. He is a French activist, author and film producer and has edited books with Ilan Pappé, Noam Chomsky, Angela Davis and Vijay Prashad.
On May 22, 2021, during the Biden administration, The New York Times reported that Daniel Ellsberg had just released classified documents revealing the Pentagon in 1958 drew up plans to launch a nuclear attack on China amid tensions over the Taiwan Strait. According to the documents, US military leaders supported a first-use nuclear strike even though they believed China’s ally, the Soviet Union, would retaliate and millions of people would perish.
Here is part of an interview that Paul Jay held with Ellsberg on September 21, 2022 that gives a contemporary cast to the problem. The title of the interview is Why is Biden Risking Nuclear War With China?
Paul Jay is a journalist and filmmaker. He’s the founder and host of theAnalysis.news, a video and audio current affairs interview and commentary show and website.
This rebroadcast is part of a celebration of the work and life of Daniel Ellsberg. He recently disclosed that he has pancreatic cancer and has only three to six months to live. He has remained active and productive and wrote that his editor knows that he works better under a deadline. And Ellsberg adds “It turns out that I also live better under a deadline!”
CREDIT: Frank Barat and Paul Jay
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:00 — 39.8MB)
