Month: January 2004

On the last Sunday in 2003, Serbian voters sent a message of protest and rage to both their domestic tyrants and their foreign backers, giving the largest number of votes (but not a majority) to the Radical Party. The result was predictable, and indeed predicted by some observers, yet still came as a shock to … Continue reading “Nothing Radical”

Yesterday I found two news items, one from Georgia, one from South Carolina, about local governments trying to prevent their local military bases from facing Rumsfeld’s budget ax. There have also been a few others in recent weeks that I can recall. After a quick Google search, we found stories from about 2/3 of the … Continue reading “US States Scramble to Hold On to Military Base Pork”

In November 2003, George W. Bush described what he termed the third pillar of America’s security: "global democratic revolution.” If Iraq and Afghanistan were the first "beneficiaries" of this revolution, then it seems almost certain that Saudi Arabia will feature somewhere in Bush’s revolutionary plans. The post-September 11 story goes that Saudi Arabia is the … Continue reading “Leave Revolution in Saudi Arabia to the Saudis”

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Wimpy wonky David Brooks, with his quiet mannerisms and good-little-boy demeanor, was really in danger of boring his readers to death. With his endless columns about nothing all that memorable, the latest addition to the ranks of New York Times columnists, in the words of one reader, “puts one to sleep by seeming reasonable in … Continue reading “The Neoconning of America”

As a longtime writer, who observed four revolutions and lived with terrorism in several Latin American nations, herewith a few observations. Despite all the warnings for us to fear indiscriminate killing from Al-Qaeda, thinking about their past targets is the way to understand them. All have been against U.S. military or government, e.g. the embassies, … Continue reading “Thoughts on Terrorist Targets”

Mid-December saw a flurry of articles about how U.S. tactics in Iraq were beginning to resemble those of Israel in the occupied territories. Then, on December 22, the resemblance became downright eerie. On that day, Voice of Palestine radio reported that the Israeli army had raided various towns, imposing curfews and destroying houses. In Balata … Continue reading “Violence Begets Violence, Beers Begets Tutwiler”

Oral traditions eventually recorded in the Book of Exodus narrate the tales of the ancient Israelites’ escape from bondage in Egypt. A cruel Pharaoh was ruthless in his murderous demands. Already crushed by the work of building monuments to their oppressor, they were then ordered to also gather the straw to make the bricks that … Continue reading “Rebuilding Iraq with Poisoned Bricks”

The news was not good for journalists in 2003, as media workers were killed, jailed and censored at much higher rates than a year earlier, according to reports by two watchdog groups. More journalists were killed in the line of duty in 2003 than in any other year in almost a decade, reported Paris-based Reporters … Continue reading “Killings of Journalists Soared in 2003”

While I was pleased finally to have been able to visit Israel, and I certainly know a little more than I did before about how to place events in Jerusalem in context, I would not want to suggest that a visit of four or five days makes me an expert; in fact my dislike of … Continue reading “A Visit to Israel”