Month: January 2001

Is it me, or have the lies of the War Party reached the point that no one can take them seriously? Not that we ever believed them, but at least before they had some kind of internal consistency, a logic, albeit twisted, that invited refutation. But now, it seems, they are desperately flailing about for … Continue reading “Are We To Be Spared Nothing?”

Once again, I’m mainly passing on information, offering only a smattering of commentary or assessment. The source is an experienced retired diplomat who knows many of and has worked with some of the members of the Bush foreign policy team. He offered his comments last week to members of the Orange County World Affairs Council. … Continue reading “Bush Team: Good People, No Larger Vision Yet”

GOING ALL PEDAGOGICAL I thought that this week I would sketch out a reading list for those wishing to pursue the themes dealt with in this column and at antiwar.com generally. Some of the works listed are popular, some are scholarly, but all contribute to building the framework needed if we are to gain a … Continue reading “An Anti-Imperialist’s Reading List: Part One”

Flipping the channels a few nights ago, I stumbled on an interesting story on the WorldLinkTV channel, “Never Fully American,” about the notorious Chinese(-American?) spy, Dr. Wen Ho Lee. Confronted with this disturbing story of yet another hysterical attack by our infamous “Justice” Department that had gone wrong, I quickly scanned the newspaper of a … Continue reading “Clinton Pardons Somehow Miss Dr. Wen Ho Lee”

The Kosovo war is over – or is it? – yet the battle for the hearts and minds of world opinion on the matter rages anew. As the West begins to confront the monster it created in Kosovo – as well as the rising horror of the “depleted” uranium mass poisoning in Bosnia, Kosovo, and … Continue reading “Lying About Kosovo”

In 1878, as the Ottoman Empire was collapsing and the Russians were on the brink of liberating the Christian Balkans from the Islamic yoke, British prime minister Benjamin Disraeli moved to block the Russian advance. As Russian troops advanced on Constantinople, Queen Victoria informed Disraeli she felt that she couldn’t remain “the sovereign of a … Continue reading “By Jingo!”

The dawning of the Age of Bush (II) brings with it a fresh crop of hysterics: bogeymen, old and new, are back in the news. Once again, the specter of Saddam haunts the imagination of editorial writers and policy wonks, right and left: we are reminded that, having been bombed back to the Stone Age, … Continue reading “Cold War Follies: There’s No Business Like Show Business”

In his surprisingly effective inaugural address George W. Bush spent only a nominal amount of time on foreign policy (as distinguished from military policy insofar as they can be distinguished) and filled it mostly with "we’re still engaged; terrorists don’t get any cute ideas" boilerplate. But it seems to me that a Bush administration foreign … Continue reading “Dubya’s Foreign Policy Could Depend On Us”

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Taiwan independence is dead. It died, stillborn. Taiwan independence was the triumph of politics over economics. That is, until the iron laws of The Marketplace turned Taiwan independence zealots’ pipe dream to dust. In retrospect, no other result was possible, or should have been expected. TAIWAN INDEPENDENCE IS DEAD A funny thing happened … Continue reading “Taiwan Independence, R.I.P.”

I hate to say I told you so – really I do, especially in this case – but reports are circulating that US military forces in Europe have been placed on alert status “Bravo” – and are about ready to go into action. Target: the Middle East. According to WorldNetDaily, US and British troops are … Continue reading “Inaugural Fireworks Over Iraq?”