Month: August 2014

At least 129 people, mostly militants, were killed today, while another 25 were wounded. U.S. airstrikes focused on the Mosul Dam region.

The trouble with war is that it has two sides. Everything would be so much easier if war had only one side. Ours, of course. There you are, drawing up a wonderful plan for the next war, preparing it, training for it, until everything is perfect. And then the war starts, and to your utmost … Continue reading “Eyeless in Gaza”

The recent events in Ukraine where a war is slowly emerging, do not mean that progressive critics should be silent on these issues. On the contrary, intellectuals should add their voice to pressing concerns, be they the annexation of the Crimea by Russia, the shelling of civilians by the Ukrainian government or US support for … Continue reading “Mass Killing in East Ukraine and the Failure of Liberal Intellectuals”

At least 183 people were killed and 21 more were wounded today. Islamic State militants stormed another Yazidi town, slaughtering dozens of men. In better news, Sunnis are ready to deal with the new government that is forming in Baghdad.

I’m dating myself, but the recent hysteria over the alleged "humanitarian catastrophe" which absolutely required quick US military intervention in Iraq – accompanied by familiar cries of "Genocide!" and numbers as high as 100,000 potential victims – brings to mind Emily Litella. Played by Gilda Radner on "Saturday Night Live" in the 1970s – I … Continue reading “Iraq: The ‘Humanitarian Catastrophe’ That Petered Out”

On Saturday, a still-unnamed member of the Ferguson, Missouri police force fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown. The police say that after Brown was stopped for walking in the street, he shoved the officer back into his car, and fought him for his weapon. Brown, unarmed himself, then ran from the car, and was shot about … Continue reading “Missouri Shooting Provokes Mainstream Backlash Against Militarized Police”

Last week, we were told there were 40,000 Yazidis on Sinjar Mountain facing starvation if they remained there, and slaughter by ISIS if they came down. But a team of Marines and Special Forces that helicoptered in has reported back that, with a corridor off the mountain opened up by U.S. air strikes, the humanitarian … Continue reading “Let Congress Vote on Iraq War III”

Originally posted at TomDispatch. Think of it as a different kind of blowback. Even when you fight wars in countries thousands of miles distant, they still have an eerie way of making the long trip home. Take the latest news from Bergen County, New Jersey, one of the richest counties in the country. Its sheriff’s … Continue reading “One Nation Under SWAT”

The top news today is the Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has given up the fight to remain in his post. That did not stop the fighting. At least 245 people were killed and 62 more were wounded.

The wide wake that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is leaving across the Levant is mysterious in a number of ways. How they have so easily overwhelmed a third of Syria and a quarter of Iraq is one. But perhaps most mysterious is the American response to the rise of the Islamic … Continue reading “The American Response to ISIS: They’re Patterns, Not Coincidences”