March 2013 marks the tenth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. Over the weekend, Robert Greenwald, founder and director of Brave New Foundation, spent some time on the Ed Schultz radio show to reflect on the occasion.

The two recalled how the mainstream media failed to critically examine the narratives pushed by the Bush administration regarding weapons of mass destruction. With high profile leaks coming from inside the White House, the media should have spent more time questioning the reliability of the information and less time printing and broadcasting it as fact.

Once the truth came out about WMDs, we collectively vowed to never let it happen again. However, as we find ourselves in the midst of a shadowy drone war that has killed at least 178 children as well as an ongoing war against whistleblowers, we have to ask ourselves, have we really learned from the lessons of Iraq? Click the link to hear the discussion.

I went to Pakistan this fall and spoke with Pakistani officials, legal experts, public health officials, and journalists to hear, document, and learn more on the drone policy that has now garnered national attention. Prior to the CIA Director Nomination Hearing where John Brennan discussed the use and analysis of drone use and the white paper memo surfacing, there was little coverage in the media on the Obama's administration use of drones.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have come at a great cost to the American people. Thousands of men and women have died in uniform in the war zones, and billions of dollars have been spent on the wars. The wars have caused the deaths of thousands of civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan, and they have arguably had a destabilizing effect on the Middle East. It seems that the only ones benefitting from the wars have been defense contractors. Over the last decade the United States has outsourced much of the wars. Defense contractors have built bases, shipped supplies, cooked food, cleaned uniforms, and provided security. Many of the functions that used to be performed by the military have been outsourced to corporations such as Halliburton. However, we don't always get what we paid for.

The levels of power in Washington, D.C. are pulled by those with the most influence or those that can buy the most influence. Rep. Buck McKeon has a significant amount of influence as Chairman of the powerful Armed Services committee. McKeon's is one of the most strident defenders of the military-industrial complex, and his corporate campaign donors have purchased his influence to protect their industry.