Month: February 2006

Both law-enforcement and intelligence agencies fundamentally depend on informants. Informants in foreign intelligence are at best traitors to their respective countries. Informants in domestic crime issues are often paid, either in cash or in deals cut on crimes they have committed. Altogether, they are a sleazy lot. One point many people often don’t understand is … Continue reading “How Do They Know Who Is a Terrorist?”

The president passed through his State of the Union address – ill-digested chunks of so many other speeches he’s given (“We’re writing a new chapter in the story of self-government – with women lining up to vote in Afghanistan, and millions of Iraqis marking their liberty with purple ink…") – largely untouched by the media. … Continue reading “When Two Worlds Collide”

He’s Not Your Commander in ChiefMr. Eddlem,Sir, thank you for an excellent article and lesson on the American Constitution. When I joined the Marines in 1968 (OK, I was young and dumb) I swore an oath to defend the Constitution, NOT to any person or office. By the way, when I was released from active … Continue reading “Backtalk, February 4, 2006”

"Phase two" of the investigation by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence into how we got it wrong on Iraq has been delayed for quite some time, initially because of Sen. Pat Roberts’ outright blocking tactics, and now, apparently, due to a Pentagon internal investigation into the activities of former Deputy Secretary of Defense for … Continue reading “A Treasonous Camarilla”

DOHA, Qatar – Six weeks after parliamentary elections, occupied Iraq is still struggling for a viable government, as violence and instability worsen. The results of the Dec. 15 elections have yet to be finalized, but it is clear that the United Iraqi Alliance (UIA), a Shia fundamentalist coalition, won at least 128 seats in the … Continue reading “Iraq’s Shias Head for Uncertain Govt”

Wars, most wars at least, run not evenly but in fits and starts, settling down into sputtering Sitzkrieg for long intervals, then suddenly shooting out wildly in wholly unpredicted directions. The war in Iraq has fallen into a set pattern for long enough that we should be expecting something new. I can identify three factors … Continue reading “The Next Act”

The reaction in the United States to the surprise victory by Hamas in last week’s Palestinian elections appears to have ignored the role that Washington played in bringing the radical Islamist group to power. Both Congress and the George W. Bush administration are on the record insisting that Hamas’ virulent anti-Israel stance and the history … Continue reading “Hamas Ascendance Was Years in the Making”

Most of the controversy surrounding the White House policy of warrantless telephone and e-mail eavesdropping has centered on whether President Bush has overstepped his authority under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, which was created in 1978. The provisions of FISA allow the president to authorize electronic surveillance without a court order for up … Continue reading “Going Old School on al-Qaeda”

The theme of Eugene Jarecki’s thoughtful yet hard-hitting documentary, Why We Fight, is inspired by President Dwight Eisenhower’s famous farewell speech, in which he warns against the rising danger of militarism as an economic system and a mindset: “This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American … Continue reading “Why We Fight”

WASHINGTON – Large majorities of Iraqis believe that the United States has no intention of ever withdrawing all its military forces from their country and that Washington’s reconstruction efforts have been incompetent at best, according to a new survey [.pdf] released here Tuesday. At the same time, however, only 35 percent of Iraqis – most … Continue reading “Most Iraqis Doubt US Will Ever Leave”