Month: November 2003

Something quite sinister is happening. But you knew that. As we know all too well, since the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, everything changed: the earth somersaulted on its axis, and reality became …inverted. I first broached, somewhat tentatively, the idea that 9/11 ripped a hole in the space-time continuum and delivered us … Continue reading “The Bizarro Effect”

Middle East peace activists are seeing rays of hope for the first time since pro-Likud neo-conservatives grabbed control of US policy toward the region after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and the Pentagon. The specific focus of those hopes lies with two "unofficial" peace plans put together by leading Israelis and Palestinians … Continue reading “American, Israeli Hawks Worried Over Peace Moves”

The killing of a French UN relief worker Sunday in the Afghan provincial city of Ghazni underscores both the deteriorating security situation in much of the country two years after the ouster of the Taliban regime, and the degree to which the United Nations and aid workers in general have become targets in the ongoing … Continue reading “Murder of UN Worker Spotlights Resurgence of Taliban”

Well, praises be! It’s not exactly utopia yet, and I wouldn’t put it past Dubya to veer once again toward the messianic vision presented so forcibly by various neoconservatives, including people in his administration. But the quick turnaround last week on the timetable for turning Iraq over to actual Iraqis suggests at least the possibility … Continue reading “Light at the End of the Tunnel?”

Will neoconservatives be held responsible for orchestrating a war in order to pursue their Middle Eastern agenda? Will they get away with inflicting death and injury on thousands of Iraqis and Americans? Colin Powell put his reputation on the line when he gave the UN assurances that “every statement I make today is backed up … Continue reading “Hold the Neocons Accountable”

“The Tip of the Iceberg“ I would appreciate Mr. Turse’s comments on the role played by Colin Powell in covering up the horrible series of atrocities which he recounts. Many thanks. ~ Robert Clarke, Chicago, Illinois Nick Turse replies: I have no knowledge of Powell’s involvement in any “cover-ups” while he was the assistant chief … Continue reading “”

Former Secretary of State George Shultz talked with Charlie Rose a few weeks ago and said this, or words to this effect, in defense of pre-emptive war. "Well, if you knew someone intended to kill you and had the means to do so, you wouldn’t wait until they attacked. That would be silly," said the … Continue reading “Pre-Emptive Killing”

As George W. Bush gets ready to hightail it out of Iraq – or at least tries to convince the American people that’s what he’s doing with his “Iraqification” policy – the neocons are up in arms and poor little Billy Kristol is in a veritable tizzy. In a piece co-authored with Robert Kagan in … Continue reading “The Neocons Are Losing”

Sometimes it feels lousy to be right. Watching the Bush Administration scramble for an exit strategy from Iraq is cold comfort to those of us who warned America against blundering in. For the sake of our troops, I would have preferred it had the daydreams of the neoconservative hawks come true—if U.S. soldiers had been … Continue reading “Divide and Scamper”

I was the basketball coach at the First Annual Chengdu MBA Student Basketball Tournament last week. The four biggest universities in the city (and Sichuan Province for that matter) all fielded teams: Southwest University of Finance and Economics, Southwest Transportation University, University of Electronics and Technology and Sichuan University. I coached Sichuan University’s team and … Continue reading “China’s MBA Craze”