Month: February 2009

Even as U.S. President Barack Obama prepares to deploy more military forces to Afghanistan – what he has called "the central front" in former President George W. Bush’s "global war on terror" – a consensus on overall U.S. strategy there remains elusive. Even Washington’s precise war aims in Afghanistan more than seven years after U.S.-backed … Continue reading “More Troops, More Worries,
Less Consensus on Afghanistan”

CAIRO – Despite declarations of victory by Israel, the military assault on the Gaza Strip failed to achieve its stated aims, many analysts say. The assault, and even its exceptional brutality, may only have vindicated the notion of resistance among the Arab public. “The steadfastness of the resistance in Gaza in the face of Israeli … Continue reading “Politically, Hamas May Have Won”

I never believed in the Internet’s potential to displace the world of print, nor did I take it seriously at all. It was sometime in the early 1990s – 1995, perhaps – when Eric Garris, our webmaster, then a computer publishing specialist at a weekly magazine, called me up and suggested registering a domain name. … Continue reading “Ideology and the Internet”

The United States began its war in Afghanistan 88 months ago. The "war on terror" has no sunset clause. As a perpetual emotion machine, it offers to avenge what can never heal and to fix grief that is irreparable. For the crimes against humanity committed on Sept. 11, 2001, countless others are to follow, with … Continue reading “Why Are We Still at War?”

President Barack Obama could swiftly improve U.S. relations with Latin America by announcing the death of the Monroe Doctrine and then presiding over its funeral. Such a statement would cost him little domestically and win him praise and appreciation throughout Latin America and much of the world. Most Americans don’t know the details of this … Continue reading “Repudiate the Monroe Doctrine”

Updated at 8:58 p.m. EST, Feb. 3, 2009At least four Iraqis were killed and another 15 were wounded in today’s attacks. No Coalition deaths were reported. Back in the U.S., Christopher Hill was named to be the next American ambassador to Iraq, replacing Ryan Crocker. In election news, the Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP) accused Anbar … Continue reading “Tuesday: 4 Iraqis Killed, 15 Wounded”

CENTCOM commander Gen. David Petraeus, supported by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, tried to convince President Barack Obama that he had to back down from his campaign pledge to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 months at an Oval Office meeting Jan. 21. But Obama informed Gates, Petraeus, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. … Continue reading “Generals Seek to Reverse Obama Withdrawal Decision”

Recently, reviewing lobbying disclosure reports, the Washington Times discovered “that 18 of the top 20 recipients of federal bailout money spent a combined $12.2 million lobbying the White House, the Treasury Department, Congress, and federal agencies during the last quarter of 2008.” Citibank alone, according to the New York Times, fielded “an army of Washington … Continue reading “Economic Death Spiral at the Pentagon”

Updated at 8:50 p.m. EST, Feb. 2, 2009As five Iraqis were killed and 14 more were wounded in today’s attacks, U.S. President Obama said that he would soon “roll out in a very formal fashion what [the U.S.’s] intentions are in Iraq as well as Afghanistan.” He also praised the mostly peaceful elections that took … Continue reading “Monday: 5 Iraqis Killed, 14 Wounded”

The vast majority of the world’s governments effectively deny citizens basic information they need to understand how public monies are being spent, according to a new report [.pdf] released Sunday by the International Budget Partnership (IBP), a Washington-based project that works with civil society groups to promote government transparency and improve accountability. Of the 85 … Continue reading “Report: Most Citizens Kept in Dark on Govt Spending”