The photos of U.S. soldiers posing with the corpses of Afghan bombers have shocked the globe today, and the White House is none too happy that the graphic images were published. Given to the LA Times by a soldier from the 82nd Airborne Division, the pictures show soldiers, reportedly from the 82nd Airborne Division's 4th Brigade Combat Team, striking mocking poses with the deceased. more ›

Eight years after photographs of U.S. soldiers torturing prisoners at Abu Gharib shocked the country and world, there's now a set of photographs showing U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan posing with body parts of bombers. The photo were given to the LA Times, which reports that the soliders were initially supposed to get iris scans and fingerprints to ID "the mangled remains of an insurgent suicide bomber." more ›

New Yorker journalist George Packer's engrossing Iraq War drama Betrayed is in its last weekend at Lyric Theatre. Packer's work is based on true accounts of Iraqi citizens working as translators in the Green Zone. more ›

President Barack Obama announced today that he'll be pulling all the troops out of Iraq by the end of the year. In an announcement today, Obama said that "After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over," according to CNN. more ›

L.A. street activist LEBA will take his current social awareness mission to the sky on Thursday, October 13, at 7pm. Armed with 1,700 balloons, LEBA and five volunteer groups will release the balloons from the rooftops of five of Gallery Row's tallest buildings in downtown L.A. more ›

In an effort to help ease the transition for vets who become college students, California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) will open the Veteran Student Programs Office, the university's first dedicated space for student veterans. more ›

There's nothing wrong with a small cast or even a solo performer show--these forms are ideal for focusing intensely on character or theme. A large ensemble show, however, is inherently more theatrical, a trickier beast to tame. The folks at Theatre Banshee, however, have never lacked for ambition or talent, and their new production of Roddy Doyle's War (presented in repertory with John B. Keane's The Field) is a sparkling testament to the group's continuing high quality, a sixteen-actor comedy that roars with life and good humor. more ›

A union stagehand working the USC rally for President Barack Obama this morning was reportedly fired for wearing a sweatshirt that said "George H. W. Bush" on it, according to Eric Spillman at KTLA. But get this, it was a shirt that pictured the U.S.S. George H. W. Bush aircraft, where his son is currently serving, the worker said. Duane Hammond said he wasn't making a political statement, just supporting his son. A union supervisor gave him a choice: wear something else or go home. Hammond refused and said he was fired. more ›

Around one hundred people, including eight veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, this afternoon have gathered outside a military recruitment center in Hollywood to protest. "We're really here to say, on this ninth anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan, that the U.S. should end the war right now," explained Ian Thompson, a coordinator with the Answer L.A. Coalition. "We wanted to show that there are still people against this war and we think the numbers are growing." more ›

For a war that is nearing the decade mark, Afghanistan sure does fly under the radar. Lindsay Lohan’s SCRAM or the follies of modern athletes are likely to receive as much or more air time than armed conflicts involving our own neighbors, friends, and family members taking place in some hard-to-fathom hovel. In fact, compiled television news data from 2008 shows us that the Afghanistan campaign netted just over 1% of total airtime. Not exactly in-your-face journalism. more ›

On Tuesday the number of U.S. soldiers who have died in Afghanistan surpassed 1,000. "The $100-billion-per-year war itself—and the daily losses in lives—should be front-and-center in the media most days, but that often is not the case," says David Corn at Mojo, the politics and current affairs blog at Mother Jones magazine... more ›

A famous celebrity's name is protected for 70 years after death. That's because a "deceased personality," as state law calls them, has commercial value, thus the use of their voice, signature, photograph, or likeness in products and advertising is verboten unless permission by the family is given. Those laws don't apply to regular people, even if their death made them famous -- the law only applied to those who had notoriety before death, not because of or after death. more ›

All your friends know the Lowriders, but they may not know exactly where to find them nowadays. While there is a band, nominally called War, that performs “Spill The Wine”, "Why Can't We Be Friends" and “The Cisco Kid” around the world, its current incarantion is reduced to one original member, keyboardist Lonnie Jordan, who apparently leases the rights to use the name from the band’s old manager and producer, filling out the ranks with young players-for-hire. more ›

Tonight Long Beach-based funk troubadours War will be headlining the Greek Theatre. NY's own electroclash duo Fischerspooner are poised to grace the Avalon. And, lastly, Montreal-based indie rockers the Dears will be sharing the stage at the Echoplex with hometown heroes Great Northern and Eulogies (LAist Interview, Review, #2, #3). But we strongly suggest heading over to Spaceland to experience Ann Arbor's crown jewel, a relatively diminutive post-afrobeat outfit by the name of Nomo (LAist Review, #2). Swedish indie pop act Those Dancing Days are slated to kick things off. more ›

Paranoia was rife in Los Angeles County during the Second World War. Military Aircraft were constantly on the defense from the German's as well as the Japanese after the Pearl Harbor assaults, so rumor that another foreign invasion was on the horizon caused mass hysteria. more ›

In honor of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, unprecedented numbers of Americans served their communities today in beautiful ways. And President-Elect Obama’s Renew America Together service forged new means of connecting Americans (and Los Angelenos) with local volunteering opportunities. more ›

Once again, a number of protests reflecting both sides of the issue will hit the streets today on Wilshire Blvd. more ›

Yesterday Wilshire Boulevard became the scene of two protests over recent rocket attacks and military action between Israel and Palestine. One by Jews for Peace outside the Federal Building in Westwood; the other at the Israeli Consulate sponsored by ANSWER LA. At the latter location, over 500 people--mostly pro-Palestinian--attended making for an "extremely tense" and loud event as each side chanted from their side of the street, said LAist photographer Tom Andrews. Here's some a little slice of what happened... more ›

December is list-making season. And for us music journalists, it is a time to look back on scores of albums, reflect upon the music and recapitulate our favorites. This year we asked some of the staffers what inspired them. The prompt was not limited to albums that came out in 2008. more ›

After rocket attacks and military action between Israel and Palestine that began on Saturday, protests have been lining streets around the world. Two of them are set for this afternoon, the LA Weekly finds. Protesting Israel's counterattacks, Jews for Peace will assemble outside the Westwood Federal Building at 3 p.m. At 4:30 p.m., LA's most widely known grassroots organizing force, ANSWER LA, is sponsoring an "emergency protest" outside the Israeli Consulate. more ›

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Although today is Veterans Day, the holiday also serves as a reminder of those who served next to our Vets that did not come home. more ›

"The reason appears to be anti-war, but I don't know the specifics," Sgt. Lorenzo Duarte. Duarte said of the masked gunman that stopped 101 Freeway traffic for hours starting this morning around 7:10 a.m. more ›

Tomorrow music magazine Under the Radar will auction off handmade protest posters by some of indie music's biggest names. In the photos from the project, the musicians, hold their posters to shout there message loud and proud. Brit Daniel from Spoon show off his his 'VIVA LA RAZA' poster, Sharon Jones pleads "END THIS WAR NOW', and OK GO warns 'THEY BANK ON YOUR APATHY' . more ›

Yesterday the Freeway Blogger came to Los Angeles to promote peace via his easy-to-make signs placed over freeways where they get millions of impressions by passing drivers until someone comes by and takes them down. He hit at least seven spots yesterday. Did you see the signs saying "Peace" or "Peace on Earth"? more ›

Not a lot of people showed up to "No War on Iran" protest earlier this month on Saturday, August 3rd. Apparently, word didn't get around activist groups e-mail lists and only a small gathering of people showed up to Pershing Square that afternoon. One LAist commenter, jrb, was there and helps put a story to LAist Photographer Tom Andrews' photos. more ›

Ever wonder who puts up those signs along freeways advocating for some cause or the other? One person is the Freeway Blogger who has hung over 4,000 signs against the war on freeways across the California and the western U.S. The above photo is from late July, but at least five went up yesterday afternoon, according to the blogger in an e-mail. more ›

"He definately knew how to make everyone laugh," wrote a friend of Staff Sgt. Du Hai Tran on an LA Times comment board. Tran, 30, of Reseda was killed Friday by a roadside bomb in Baqubah, Iraq. He is the 501st soldier from California (24th from Los Angeles) to be lost due to the war. more ›

It's Memorial Day. That means Federal, state, county and city offices, courts, libraries, animal shelters and banks are closed. And Metro will run on a Sunday schedule. more ›