Spying, Lying, and Saying No

On the day that Ayman al-Zawahiri appeared in his nine thousandth video from – assumedly – the remarkably technologized wilds of the Afghan-Pakistan border region, mocking President Bush for a botched Predator-drone missile attempt on his life, another article caught my eye. In a piece in the Los Angeles Times, headlined “CIA Expands Use of … Continue reading “Spying, Lying, and Saying No”

Backtalk, February 1, 2006

Breathtaking Power GrabAlan Bock wrote “I’m not so paranoid as to think they have purposely avoided capturing Osama bin Laden so as to keep the potential threat out there.” I quite disagree. There exists anecdotal as well as published evidence to the contrary which suggests that this is precisely what this and previous administrations were … Continue reading “Backtalk, February 1, 2006”

US Realignment With Sunnis Is Far Advanced

Two major revelations this past week show how far the George W. Bush administration has already shifted its policy toward realignment with Sunni forces to balance the influence of pro-Iranian Shi’ites in Iraq. U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad revealed in an interview with Washington Post columnist David Ignatius that he has put the future of military … Continue reading “US Realignment With Sunnis Is Far Advanced”

Realists, Isolationists, and Neocons: A Primer

Scott McConnell is the editor of The American Conservative, a magazine he founded with Pat Buchanan and Taki Theodoracopulos in 2002. McConnell has a Ph.D. in history from Columbia University and was formerly the editorial page editor of The New York Post. He has been a columnist for Antiwar.com and New York Press. His work … Continue reading “Realists, Isolationists, and Neocons: A Primer”

To MOX or Not to MOX

After four years of intense debate, President Bush has apparently decided to override President Carter and Greenpeace and "close the fuel cycle." Carter had essentially prohibited the "recycling" of "spent" nuclear fuel and required all U.S. electric utilities operating nuclear power plants to charge their customers a monthly fee that was to be handed over … Continue reading “To MOX or Not to MOX”

Unlike Bush, bin Laden Keeps His Word

Now that he’s under pressure to defend his domestic spying program, President Bush is suddenly very worried about Osama bin Laden. And Bush says if we had any sense, we’d also be worried about bin Laden and stop bitching about the loss of our Fourth Amendment rights. "We’re at war with an enemy that wants … Continue reading “Unlike Bush, bin Laden Keeps His Word”

Hands Off Google!

Success, money, and the sort of competence that looks effortless – Google, the company behind the world’s best search engine, has it all. It was therefore only a matter of time before ideologues, cretins, and government regulators – or do I repeat myself? – conspired to bring it down. Last week, they crawled out of … Continue reading “Hands Off Google!”

Rank Ignorance Reigns

In keeping with its established role as purveyor of disinformation, Fox “News” talking head Brit Hume misreported Fox’s own poll. On Special Report on Jan. 26, Hume said that 51 percent of Americans “would now support” air strikes on Iran. What the poll found is that if diplomacy fails, 51 percent would support air strikes … Continue reading “Rank Ignorance Reigns”