Month: October 2015

“To jaw-jaw is always better than to war-war,” as Sir Winston Churchill put it at a White House luncheon on June 1954. The aphorism applies in spades today as the U.S., Russia and other key countries involved in troubles in Syria decide whether to jaw or to war. Russia’s recent military intervention in Syria could … Continue reading “Seeing Syrian Crisis Through Russian Eyes”

On Monday, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee to outline a new US military strategy for the Middle East. The Secretary admitted the failure of the US “train and equip” program for rebels in Syria, but instead of taking the appropriate lessons from that failure and get out of … Continue reading “We Must Oppose Obama’s Escalation in Syria and Iraq!”

The New York Times’ Maureen Dowd captured the moment last weekend when she referred to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as "the midwife to chaos" in Libya. Dowd apparently came to that conclusion after watching Clinton bobbing and weaving and admitting and denying as she was confronted with the partial record of her failures … Continue reading “The Midwife to Chaos and Her Perjury”

At least 64 people were killed in Iraq, but the numbers could be higher if reports about Peshmerga executions are true.

Originally posted at TomDispatch. Afghanistan! Whether the story is the fall of a major city to the Taliban, the destruction of a hospital with staff and patients still in it, or the president’s announcement that U.S. troops will remain in that country until at least 2017, it’s true that you never feel there’s an exclamation … Continue reading “Taking Selfies in Iraq and Afghanistan”

There’s ain’t no mountain high enough, ain’t no valley low enough  to keep us from our sacred duty to protect the world from itself. From the South China Sea to the shores of the Black Sea, America stands guard over Freedom. This tweet from Foreign Policy magazine, the organ of the Council on Foreign Relations, … Continue reading “‘Freedom of the Seas’ Means American Global Hegemony”

New details about the hostages freed in rescue mission that left an American soldier dead in Iraq are emerging. The operation took place in Hawija last week and successfully liberated 69 hostages. These men are now telling their stories. Member of the Iraqi Parliamentary Committee for Security and Defense Affairs Shakhawan Abdullah is investigating claims … Continue reading “Policemen and Tribal Leaders among 105 Killed in Iraq”

Obama’s recent decision to leave American troops in perpetuity in the Afghanistan War, despite a fourteen-year failed attempt to remodel the country, is as unsurprising as it is appalling. Applicable is what Secretary of State John Kerry famously said, as a decorated Vietnam War veteran, about that conflict as it futilely stretched on: "How do … Continue reading “Endless War Makes Us Less Safe”

Last week the US House of Representatives called former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to appear before a select committee looking into the attack on a US facility in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012. The attack left four Americans dead, including US Ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens. As might be expected, however, the “Benghazi Committee” hearings … Continue reading “House Benghazi Hearings: Too Much Too Late”