War infects and weakens our republican form of government, spreads social and political diseases throughout the body politic – but is, as Randolph Bourne put it, "the health of the State." The State, in wartime, is glorified and empowered: the militarization of...
The State’s True Colors
Perhaps, alongside thankfulness that against the odds nobody was hurt, one should be almost grateful to the national government for clarifying matters. Political scientists define government as the institution in a given society with a monopoly on the legitimate use...
Lessons of Vietnam–When Will They Ever Learn?
On the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam war the airwaves are full of special programs, and the op-ed pages are packed to the gills with articles and symposia – all opining about the "lessons" of that...
Propaganda Wars: from Miami to Mitrovica
From Miami to Mitrovica, from Ruby Ridge to Iraq, the US government propaganda machine is geared up to put the best "spin" on the violence at the core of its power. In the assault on Iraq, TV viewers in the West were entertained by the "Nintendo war" as American...
Elian’s Persecutors–A Government of Criminals
I know, at least in theory, that we are governed by criminals: after all, what kind of a person would bomb an aspirin factory in an effort to divert attention from his own sickening perversions? Who else would slaughter thousands in the former Yugoslavia in the name...
NATO’S SHEER INCOMPETENCE: A LARGER MEANING?
One of the pleasures of keeping fat files – sometimes outweighed, sometimes not by the general air of messiness on the desk – is the opportunity to compare what officials said they expected at various times in the past to what has actually occurred. In the...
Elian Gonzalez and the Hand of God
Whatever else they disagree on when it comes to the controversy surrounding Elian Gonzalez, pundits left and right all nod their heads sagely whenever someone says that this is a great "tragedy" and offers up the bromide that "no one is a winner" in this case. This is...
Nationalism I: Austria, Nations, States, and Human Scale Revisited
THE STATE OF PLAY A few weeks ago, I dealt with the overblown reaction to the electoral success of Austrian’s "far right." Since then, the watchdogs of Euro morality have taken up other subjects, but "sanctions" remain in place. Some...
An Electronic Pearl Harbor?
The BBC headline said it all: "Serb Hackers on the rampage" – or did it? This was the story the media went with in response to last week's spate of hacking attacks on a number of high profile sites, including Addidas and Viagra, where the content was stripped and...
Who Won the Cold War?–The Answer May Surprise You
With the end of the Cold War, and the implosion of Communism, the political landscape in the US is undergoing a seismic shift. The Left, which had once been antiwar and pro-individual rights (at least in theory) has been infected with a mania for militarism (albeit in...