Originally posted at TomDispatch. War, American-style, in the twenty-first century hasn’t exactly been a sterling success story. (How did the Brits ever manage to run that empire of theirs for so many years with such modest numbers of troops?) Take Afghanistan,...
Bravo! The Donald Finally Fired a Swamp Creature
We were beginning to think the Donald's days as the Great Disrupter were over before he even got started. So bringing the hammer down on one of the most self-righteous prigs and self-aggrandizing swamp creatures to ever inhabit the Imperial City came just in the nick...
ISIS Attack near Jordan Border; 81 Killed in Iraq
Poll: Americans Believe South Korea and Israel ‘Most Likely’ Allies To Embroil US in War
Americans view South Korea and Israel as two U.S. allies most likely to "embroil the US in an unnecessary, protracted and costly war." 36% of Americans believe South Korea is "most likely" while 28.5% of Americans believe Israel is "most...
Why the US Should Negotiate in Good Faith With North Korea
The United States is technically still at war with North Korea. No peace agreement has been signed despite repeated requests from Pyongyang for high-level negotiations. Former presidents Carter and Clinton and other high-level officials have gone to the North and...
Heavy Fighting Continues in Mosul; 201 Killed in Iraq
The Globalization of Misery
The closest I ever got to Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, was 1,720.7 miles away – or so the Internet assures me. Although I’ve had a lifelong interest in history, I know next to nothing about Mosul’s, nor do I have more than a glancing sense of what it looks...
President Trump: Toss Your Generals’ War Escalation Plans in the Trash
By the end of this month, Defense Secretary James Mattis and National Security Advisor HR McMaster will deliver to President Trump their plans for military escalations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. President Trump would be wise to rip the plans up and send his...
Trump Should Meet With Kim Jong-un
The launching of yet another ballistic missile test by North Korea dramatizes the conundrum we face in dealing with Kim Jong-un. The trajectory of the missile – it traveled around 430 miles and landed some 60 miles from Russia, in the Sea of Japan – limns the...
Will Trump Agree to the Pentagon’s Permanent War in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria?
The two top national security officials in the Trump administration – Secretary of Defense James Mattis and national security adviser HR McMaster – are trying to secure long-term US ground and air combat roles in the three long-running wars in the greater Middle...