Much Ado Over Not Much
Although Afghan president Hamid Karzai may not be much of a ruler of the kind that firmly establishes control of the entire country – which might not be a bad thing in less parlous times in Afghanistan, which has never really cottoned to central government –...
Groups Unanimously Assail New Detention Law
By enacting new legislation this week governing the treatment and trial of suspects in Washington's "global war on terror," Congress has turned its back on both international law and the U.S. Constitution, according to the country's major human rights...
The Devil and the Post-9/11 Era
President Hugo Chávez's speech at the U.N. on September 20, 2006 created a new nadir of crudeness. It was also just one more attempt to demonize an opponent. He depicted President George W. Bush as the devil. Watching him speak extemporaneously, and with so...
Not Worth a Camel
A deluge of experts, attracted by government money, is drowning Washington. So many elected and appointed officials know even less than the phony experts that it's like a gold-rush town for the briefcase-toting fast-talkers. You, however, don't need to be an expert...
Bad Faith and the Destruction of Palestine
A mistake too often made by those examining Israel's behavior in the occupied territories – or when analyzing its treatment of Arabs in general, or interpreting its view of Iran – is to assume that Israel is acting in good faith. Even its most trenchant...
My President, Right or Wrong
Last week at the United Nations, Hugo Chávez, the president of Venezuela, called President George W. Bush "the devil" and complained he could still smell the sulfur. The reaction was immediate, visceral, and scary. Even the president's most virulent enemies took...
Iraq at the Gates of Hell
Recently, in one of many speeches melding his Global War on Terror and his war in Iraq, George W. Bush said, "Victory in Iraq will be difficult and it will require more sacrifice. The fighting there can be as fierce as it was at Omaha Beach or Guadalcanal. And victory...
The ‘Color’ Revolutions:
Fade to Black
How quickly we forget. It seems like only yesterday that the headlines were ablaze with news of the color-coded revolutions supposedly inspired by our president's commitment to fostering "democracy" throughout the globe. In an inaugural speech widely derided by those...
The Sanctuary Delusion
At America's behest, Pakistan sent its army into the tribal territories along its northwest frontier. Predictably, its army got beaten. The Pakistani government has now signed a truce with the tribes in North Waziristan, a wise move given that government's fragility....
