Disintegrating Iraqi Sovereignty

You know things are going badly indeed in Iraq when U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad chooses to use an image – Pandora’s box – previously wielded only by that critic of the Iraq War, French President Jacques Chirac. Back in September 2004, Chirac compared American actions in Iraq to the famed box of myth, at a … Continue reading “Disintegrating Iraqi Sovereignty”

Dubai and Demagoguery

Americans are going to regret going into one of their periodic fits of xenophobic hysteria – this time over the Dubai port management issue – as the Islamists chalk up an important propaganda victory in their campaign to alienate the Muslim world from the West. But not to worry: as long as Arianna Huffington is … Continue reading “Dubai and Demagoguery”

Wasted Chances and
Dire Portents

When future historians start to discuss the first decade of the 21st century and the dramatic events that unfolded in that era, starting with the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, they will probably try to draw the outlines of the counterfactual what-if scenarios and contrast them with what-really-happened. They may … Continue reading “Wasted Chances and
Dire Portents”

Gen. Pace to Troops: Don’t Nuke Iran

At the luncheon of the National Press Club on Feb. 17, 2006, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Peter Pace, was asked by his interviewer, John Donnelly: “Should people in the U.S. military disobey orders that they believe are illegal?” Pace’s response: “It is the absolute responsibility of everybody in uniform to … Continue reading “Gen. Pace to Troops: Don’t Nuke Iran”

State Dept Lauds Iraq, Slams Iran in Rights Reports

Releasing the latest edition of its annual human rights "Country Reports," the U.S. State Department Wednesday named Iran and China as among the world’s "most systematic human rights violators" in 2005, along with North Korea, Burma, Zimbabwe, Cuba, and Belarus. In a 16-page introduction, the report also singled out the human rights performances of Syria, … Continue reading “State Dept Lauds Iraq, Slams Iran in Rights Reports”

Democracy in Action

Promoting Terrorists, Again Milan Babic, onetime president of the breakaway Republic of Serb Krajina (in today’s Croatia), was found dead in his temporary cell at the Hague Inquisition’s Scheveningen prison on Monday, having reportedly committed suicide. Two years ago, Babic had copped a deal with the Inquisition, confessing to one charge of (unspecified) crimes against … Continue reading “Democracy in Action”

Biddle’s Pivot

In Iraq, defeat stares us in the face. Efforts to “Iraq-ize” the campaign to crush the Sunni insurgency have the U.S. war effort sinking under the weight of its own implausibility, and American policymakers are flailing around in search of an alternative. As U.S. casualties mount and the specter of civil war materializes into a … Continue reading “Biddle’s Pivot”

What the Indian Giver Got

Standing beside Pervez Musharraf, an ally in the war on terror, President Bush explained how he told him Pakistan would not be getting the same aid in developing peaceful nuclear power that Bush had just promised to India: “I explained that Pakistan and India are different countries with different needs and different histories. So as … Continue reading “What the Indian Giver Got”