Month: January 2004

Contrary to what most Americans believe, the U.S. is in deep trouble in Iraq, and its policies are adrift. Especially ominous are problems surrounding the June 30 plan for elections. If direct elections are held, the Shi’ites, with 60% of the population, will prevail. If, however, their representation is watered down by resort to closed … Continue reading “Iraq: The Case for War Crumbles”

Everything Is Hyped Thanks for this article. In it Charley commented that “Iran and Iraq used them in their war in the 1980s, but there has been no study that I’m aware of on how effective they were.” Actually there was such a study done by the USMC. It can be found here [pdf file]. … Continue reading “”

While some German politicians are worried about the closing of US military bases in their regions, others fear nasty surprises will surface after the Americans depart. The United States has consistently valued military power more than the environment  – but at what price? Some in the White House argue that US national interests transcend greenie … Continue reading “US Military Wreaks Worldwide Environmental Havoc”

When police raided an Ottawa journalist’s office and home this week because of an article she wrote about a Canadian deported from the United States to face torture in Syria, it was a reminder how closely this country has followed the U.S. lead in the “war on terrorism.” Just four months after Sep. 11, 2001, … Continue reading “Canadian Journalist Caught in ‘Post-9/11 Witch Hunt’”

Poppies, from the milky sap of which opium and heroin are derived, represent a lifeline for Afghan families and day labourers around this border crossing with Pakistan. As in other parts of the country, farmers here plough their earnings from poppy cultivation into rebuilding their homes, buying livestock, and re-establishing communities devastated by war. Many … Continue reading “Afghan Reconstruction Hinges on Opium Poppy”

Pardon me while I yawn – the presidential horserace usually has that effect on me, and this time around the emanations wafting up from the track are especially soporific. Here we are in the middle of a war that could bankrupt us, both financially and morally, and spell the end of our old Republic, yet … Continue reading “The Horserace”

On Monday evening, as the returns from the Iowa Presidential Caucuses flooded in via CNN, C-SPAN, and other like outlets, it became all too clear to the casual viewer what the ramifications were. That Howard Dean, so-called “antiwar” candidate, had played himself. That MoveOn.Org made very little impact in the heartland; Senators Kerry and Edwards, … Continue reading “Out of Position: Where Will the ‘Antiwar’ Vote Go?”

The U.S. effort to design a new generation of low-power nuclear weapons, approved in the defense budget for 2004, is politically, technically and militarily unjustifiable, say critics. The so-called "mini-nukes" have a potency of less than five kilotons of explosive, a third of that contained in the bomb that the United States dropped on the … Continue reading “Mini-Nukes the New Defense – Or Threat?”

“Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land” (Jer 1:14) is a verse every Israeli pupil learns by heart. This biblical truth has never been more true than these days: the Syrian President, in a major threat to the Jewish state, offers Israel to resume peace talks. … Continue reading “The Syrian Threat”

North Korea has been using food as an instrument of political and economic control, says a major new report by Amnesty International (AI). While the country has been unable to produce enough food for all of its citizens since the collapse of the Soviet Union more than 10 years ago, food supplies – from domestic … Continue reading “North Korea Executing Starving People for Stealing Food”