Month: July 2014

Bombers resumed their campaign in Baghdad where at least six bombs were detonated today. Overall, at least 50 people were killed and 92 more were wounded, mostly civilians.

Robert Kaplan is worried about Moldova. He didn’t come out and say it, but it almost felt like he was going to do a full on McCain and claim "We’re all Moldovans now." The place sounds like a mess. His July 9, 2014 piece, originally in Stratfor, titled Why Moldova Urgently Matters certainly makes one … Continue reading “Oh No! Bob Kaplan Says Now It’s Moldova”

The Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF), or Public Law 107-40, was passed as a reactionary measure to the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001. It is difficult to overstate the aggregate emotion of the American public (and the world for that matter) as a consequence of the day’s events. I was in-between … Continue reading “Repeal the AUMF”

Though the fatalities in the latest flare up between Israel and Hamas – about 285 Palestinians and two Israeli killed so far – dwarf those in other conflicts, the American public needs to pay particular attention to what’s happening there. The US is not merely an onlooker here: we are directly involved in militarily supporting … Continue reading “Further Military Assistance to Israel May Be Illegal Under US Law”

In March 1979, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein told his inner circle that leading the Arab countries to a final victory against Israel would first entail a showdown with the United States. Throughout the 1980s, even while the United States officially supported Iraq in its war against the Islamic Republic of Iran, Saddam contended the CIA … Continue reading “Locking Away Iraqi History”

At least 107 people were killed today. Except for one, the dead were all militants. Another 14 were wounded.

As the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear program approach the Jul. 20 deadline, both U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif have signaled through their carefully worded statements that they are now moving toward toward agreement on the two most crucial issues in the talks: the level of Iranian … Continue reading “Zarif and Kerry Signal Momentum on Nuclear Pact”

Originally posted at TomDispatch. Who even knows what to call it? The Iraq War or the Iraq-Syrian War would be far too orderly for what’s happening, so it remains a no-name conflict that couldn’t be deadlier or more destabilizing – and it’s in the process of internationalizing in unsettling ways. Think of it as the … Continue reading “How America’s Policies Sealed Iraq’s Fate”

Terrorism is defined by Merriam Webster’s dictionary as: "the use of violent acts to frighten the people in an area as a way of trying to achieve a political goal." One could say Hamas fits this definition out of desperation and a lack of moral leadership. But Israeli actions toward Palestinians are much worse: Israel … Continue reading “Israel Terrorizes Palestinians in Gaza”

A group of Palestinian boys is playing on the beach in Gaza, kicking a soccer ball around in the bright sunshine. But not for long: an Israeli missile hits a nearby shack, where their family members keep their fishing boats: it bursts into flames and the boys take off running. But they can’t run fast … Continue reading “Israel Kills – For the Fun of It”