Month: February 2008

Updated at 1:26 a.m. EST, Feb. 22, 2008As the country awaits news on whether Shi’ite Moqtada al-Sadr will extend his ceasefire, at least 38 Iraqis were killed and another 16 were wounded in the latest attacks. New developments at the Turkish border also occurred. Also, two GIs were killed and four British soldiers were wounded … Continue reading “Thursday: 2 GIs, 38 Iraqis Killed; 16 Iraqis Wounded”

For a few, salaries have soared. For the rest, unemployment has. Many Iraqi workers enjoyed huge salary increases following the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003. But unemployment rose more sharply under policies introduced by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). CPA head L. Paul Bremer decommissioned the Iraqi military, leading to overnight unemployment for … Continue reading “Iraq Unemployment Too Becomes an Epidemic”

Forty-eight hours after Pakistani voters overwhelmingly repudiated the Bush administration’s "man in Islamabad," President Pervez Musharraf, Washington seemed uncertain about whether the election results marked a setback to U.S. strategic interests or an advance. On the one hand, Washington will have to deal with a new government, some of whose likely leaders have publicly denounced … Continue reading “US Reactions To Pakistan Election Results Mixed”

The US military is "severely strained" by two large-scale occupations in the Middle East, other troop deployments, and problems recruiting, according to a new survey of military officers published by Foreign Policy magazine and the centrist think-tank Center for a New American Strategy. "They see a force stretched dangerously thin and a country ill-prepared for … Continue reading “Overstretched Forces Concern US Officers”

Celebrate Good Times Whenever a bloodthirsty dictator resigns or, even better, dies, I pause to celebrate. I would have celebrated at Hitler’s death had I been alive then. Ditto Stalin. And I did celebrate when Mao died. I look forward to Fidel Castro’s death. After all the murders he has committed, he deserves it. End … Continue reading “End the Cuban Embargo”

Updated at 1:20 a.m. EST, Feb. 21, 2008At least 28 Iraqis were killed and another 53 were wounded across Iraq during attacks that included a significant bombing in Muqdadiyah and a mortar attack on a children playing soccer in Balad. One American soldier was killed and three more were wounded during a rocket-propelled grenade attack … Continue reading “Wednesday: 1 US Soldier, 1 US Civilian, 28 Iraqis Killed; 53 Iraqis Wounded”

Despite Tuesday’s historic announcement by President Fidel Castro that he is retiring from public office, U.S. citizens must await the departure of their own sitting president 11 months from now before Washington’s nearly 50-year hostility toward the Caribbean island is likely to be reviewed. Even then, change is not guaranteed. That was the consensus of … Continue reading “US Awaits Its Own Transition to Review Cuba Policy”

John McCain loves reporters, and the feeling is mutual: after all, he’s great copy, has a fantastic narrative, and is always eager to make their jobs easier by giving them plenty of good quotes to chew over. The latest installment of the longest love affair in American politics appears in the New Yorker, in Ryan … Continue reading “Why Is John McCain Running Against Robert A. Taft?”

As the U.S. moves toward holding death-sentence trials for six Guantánamo Bay detainees alleged to have plotted the Sept. 11 attacks, legal scholars and human rights advocates are questioning not only the six-year-long process and timing of the charges, but also whether the accused could ever receive fair trials. On Feb. 11, charges were issued … Continue reading “Experts Doubt Fair Trials for Gitmo Suspects”

Sen. John McCain’s virtually certain victory in the Republican Party’s presidential contest has led to scrutiny of his conservative credentials. The heated campaign debate between McCain and his former rival Gov. Mitt Romney about who was a less authentic conservative did more damage to Romney than to McCain because of McCain’s long-standing ability to draw … Continue reading “Non-Interventionism Is Conservative”