Month: July 2011

Apparently, We Are All Belarusians

How many Americans would be able to find Belarus on a map? I fancy myself as pretty well informed on foreign affairs, but it took me two tries to locate it. Yet Belarus is apparently so important that the United States Congress is currently preparing to pass a Belarus Democracy Reauthorization Act of 2011 in … Continue reading “Apparently, We Are All Belarusians”

No One Supports the Troops More Than Bradley Manning

Even though the yellow ribbons of the Bush era are out of fashion, the admonition to support our troops continues to grate. In January 2006 then-Los Angeles Times humor columnist Joel Stein wrote an inflammatory oped titled “Warriors and Wusses.” “I don’t support our troops,” he began. “But I’m not for the war. And being … Continue reading “No One Supports the Troops More Than Bradley Manning”

Sudan’s Lessons for Iraq

Remember the forgotten U.S. war in Iraq? In the Vietnam War, after the start of the “Vietnamization” program, which trained South Vietnamese forces to replace leaving U.S. forces, the world lost interest; people thought “problem solved.” That is, they thought that until the discovery of President Nixon’s escalation of the war in nearby Cambodia while … Continue reading “Sudan’s Lessons for Iraq”

Things You Can Say, Things You Cannot

The anti-boycott law passed Monday night. Much has been said about what the American administration — blind as always to Middle East realities — tagged “an internal issue.” Let me just add that my readers should remember, from now on, that there are things I am not allowed to say. For example, I expressed my … Continue reading “Things You Can Say, Things You Cannot”

Calls Mount to Investigate Bush Officials for Torture

Senior officials under the former George W. Bush administration knowingly authorized the torture of terrorism suspects held under United States custody, a Human Right Watch (HRW) report released Tuesday revealed. Titled “Getting Away With Torture,” the 107-page report presents a plethora of evidence that HRW says warrants criminal investigations against former Vice President Dick Cheney, … Continue reading “Calls Mount to Investigate Bush Officials for Torture”

Obama’s Bush-League World

George W. who? I mean, the guy is so over. He turned the big six-five the other day, and it was barely a footnote in the news. And Dick Cheney, tick-tick-tick. Condoleezza Rice? She’s already onto her next memoir, and yet it’s as if she’s been wiped from history, too. As for Donald Rumsfeld, he … Continue reading “Obama’s Bush-League World”

Has US Foreign Policy Ever Been Such a Mess?

I can’t remember a time when the U.S. military has been stuck in so many quagmires at once. Libya seems destined to fail unless the U.S. gets a lucky shot and kills Gadhafi. U.S. militarists are openly maneuvering to stay in Iraq — the war Obama told us was over. Relations with nuclear-armed Pakistan are … Continue reading “Has US Foreign Policy Ever Been Such a Mess?”

US Hardens Tone Against Assad

Escalating its rhetoric against Bashar al-Assad, the White House declared Tuesday that the Syrian president had “lost his legitimacy” but declined to call explicitly for his resignation or removal. The statement, which echoed similar remarks by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Monday, followed what appeared to be orchestrated attacks by pro-Assad demonstrators on the U.S. … Continue reading “US Hardens Tone Against Assad”

The Debt Ceiling and the Warfare State

The “ticking time bomb” gambit is a sure way to establish when someone is trying to pull the wool over your eyes. You’ll recall this was how the advocates of torture argued: what if the terrorists had a nuclear device designed to go off in the heart of, say, New York City’s Times Square, and … Continue reading “The Debt Ceiling and the Warfare State”