Month: February 2007

Today is Presidents’ Day in the United States. It’s a holiday declared by the federal government to celebrate the birthdays of two presidents, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. George Washington is often called "the father of our country," and for good reason. Without his having led soldiers in the fight for independence from the British, … Continue reading “Does War Make Presidents Great?”

Madrid, Brussels, London, Berlin, Paris, Rome, and Vienna may well be off-limits to U.S. members of Congress soon. Just as well: they will still be able to enjoy pleasant summer breaks in Crawford, Texas, or Jackson Hole, Wyo., in the best of companies [1], [2]. That’s certainly preferable to ending up in a European jail … Continue reading “Congress’ Liability in a
Nuclear Strike on Iran”

Pledge Week I‘ve sent $50 during the past two donation drives. I’m sending $100 in the mail tomorrow. I have two boys in the military and appreciate everything you’re doing. I am tired of the lies and the greed and the cowardly bullying that has caused this war and is causing so much misery to … Continue reading “Backtalk, February 19, 2007”

"Pity the nation that is full of beliefs and empty of religion," – Lebanese poet, Khalil Gibran 1883 – 1931 From the ashes of The Great War came hope to a region long forgotten behind the Ottoman cloud. The vacating Turkish troops from the Arab lands of the Middle East ended a reign of more … Continue reading “Roots of Injustice Push Lebanon Toward Civil War”

Updated at 12:33 a.m. EST, Feb. 19, 2007 Three bombs killed dozens in Baghdad today despite a security crackdown that has hampered movement through the city for several days. Overall, 99 Iraqis were killed or found dead throughout the country today and 157 were injured. The U.S. military also reported the deaths of two American … Continue reading “Sunday: 99 Iraqis, 2 GIs Killed; 157 Iraqis Injured”

Updated at 7:25 p.m EST, Feb. 17, 2007 U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived for an unannounced visit to Baghdad this morning. A day earlier a Marine was killed in combat in Anbar Province. Also, at least 55 Iraqis were killed or found dead today and 108 others were wounded in violent incidents. While … Continue reading “Saturday: 55 Iraqis, 1 GI Killed; 108 Iraqis Wounded”

In a significant defeat for President George W. Bush, the House of Representatives Friday voted 246 to 182 to "disapprove" his plan to add an estimated 30,000 U.S. troops to the 140,000 marines and soldiers already deployed in Iraq. Seventeen Republicans voted with the majority Democrats to approve the nonbinding resolution. The vote, which capped … Continue reading “Bush Suffers First Iraq Defeat in Congress”

It can be both enlightening and frightening to work for a daily newspaper, in that the necessity to listen to and respond to people who have thoughts about what you have written can offer fascinating insights into the thought processes of ordinary Americans. This was brought home to me recently after I did a piece … Continue reading “America the Frightened”

On 29 November 1990, the United Nations Security Council authorized "Member States co-operating with Government of Kuwait" to "use all necessary means" to compel Iraq "to withdraw all its forces to the positions in which they were located on August 1, 1990." It then took about three months for a coalition of Member States – … Continue reading “Son of Agreed Framework”

In the face of multiple legal and legislative challenges, President George W. Bush this week issued an executive order to allow cases against prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba to move forward to trials by military tribunals. The challenges are to the constitutionality of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 (MCA), which Bush signed into law … Continue reading “Guantánamo Trials Near Amid Myriad Challenges”