Month: May 2008

Discussions of foreign intervention often devolve into ideological debates. Republicans contend that the Democrats are "soft" on the war on terror and can’t stomach the sacrifices that are required to spread democracy and freedom around the world. Democrats often respond that the Republicans botched the current efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan with poor planning and … Continue reading “The Political Economy of Exporting Democracy”

Editorial note: This is an excerpt from a pamphlet published in 1996, Into the Bosnian Quagmire: The Case Against U.S. Intervention in the Balkans. We republish it now, in successive installments, because the rise of Barack Obama as the putative Democratic presidential candidate augurs the rise of a new liberal internationalism – the very same … Continue reading “Into the Bosnian Quagmire”

Updated at 12:45 a.m. EDT, May 23, 2008At least 27 Iraqis were killed and five were wounded during the latest attacks. Among the deadly inicidents, was a U.S. air strike on a group of frightened shepherds in Baiji, and the deaths of two journalists. Meanwhile, an incident in which a U.S. soldier used a Quran … Continue reading “Thursday: 27 Iraqis Killed, 5 Wounded”

The US military command in Iraq continues to talk about an alleged pipeline of Iranian weapons to Iraqi Shiites opposing the US occupation, implying that they have become dependent on Iran for indirect-fire weapons and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs). But US officials have failed thus far to provide evidence that would support that claim, and a … Continue reading “Where Are Those Iranian Weapons in Iraq?”

Statement on H Res 1194, "Reaffirming the support of the House of Representatives for the legitimate, democratically-elected Government of Lebanon under Prime Minister Fouad Siniora." I rise in opposition to H. Res. 1194 because it is dangerously interventionist and will likely lead to more rather than less violence in the Middle East. I have noticed … Continue reading “March to War in Lebanon?”

Nothing so destroys the delusions about democracy as the practice thereof. Examples of this are legion; one could look at the daytime drama presidential campaigns in the U.S., or the ethnic referenda in places like Kenya or Bosnia-Herzegovina. The latest exhibit in the case against democracy comes from Serbia, where general elections were held on … Continue reading “Tadic’s Titanic”

Updated at 11:45 p.m. EDT, May 21, 2008As Sadr City remained relatively quiet, neighboring Baghdad saw a number of attacks. Overall, at least 45 Iraqis were killed and 33 more were wounded in the latest violence. No Coalition deaths were reported. In Baghdad, five dumped bodies were recovered. Eleven people were killed and another three … Continue reading “Wednesday: 45 Iraqis Killed; 33 Iraqis Wounded”

Key elements of the Bush administration’s anti-terrorist detention policies appear to be unraveling, according to human rights and legal advocates. In the past two weeks alone, a military judge has disqualified a Pentagon legal official from participating in the Guantanamo war crimes trial of Salim Ahmed Hamdan, a former driver for Osama bin Laden, because … Continue reading “Guantanamo Trials Hit Setbacks”

Back in the mid-1990s, in my book, The End of Victory Culture, I wrote the following about the adventure films of my childhood (and those of earlier decades): “For the nonwhite, annihilation was built not just into the on-screen Hollywood spectacle but into its casting structures. Available to the Other were only four roles: the … Continue reading “Irony Man”

For most of 2008, the media’s interest in Guantánamo has focused not on the majority of the 273 prisoners who are still held there without charge or trial and largely unknown to the outside world, but on the 13 who have been plucked from the grinding obscurity of indefinite detention to face trial by "military … Continue reading “Guantánamo Trial Delayed”