Charley Reese

One of the most useful devices of general semantics is the use of numbers and dates to remind ourselves of individuality and change. Cow-1 is not the same as cow-2, and Israel-1967 is not the same as Israel-2006. In 1967, Israel launched a blitzkrieg attack against Egypt, Syria, and Jordan, and in less than a … Continue reading “One Is Not the Other”

In a perfect world, military power would match the brainpower of the people who wield it. Alas, it’s not a perfect world, and the mismatch between power and smarts is sometimes wider than the Grand Canyon. Remember when Paul Wolfowitz was in the Defense Department? Why, he told Congress that the Iraqis will greet us … Continue reading “In a Perfect World”

You can observe three important things simultaneously in the Middle East: One, Israel’s total disregard for the lives and property of the Arab people; two, the effectiveness of the Israeli propaganda machine; and three, the utterly craven support for Israel by the U.S. government. A fourth thing, if you can stand to watch television news, … Continue reading “Disaster in the Making”

Back in the 1970s, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, one of the giants of the 20th century, gave a commencement address at Harvard. It was, I believe, the last public address he gave in America. His criticism was so dead-on that he quickly became persona non grata. I’ve always thought that it is a permanent disgrace that this … Continue reading “America: Government of Cowards”

The media flap over North Korea’s test launches of missiles is another red herring tossed out by the Bush administration to distract the public from its disastrous policies, both foreign and economic. As I keep pointing out, the intercontinental missiles armed with nuclear warheads that should be our concern are operational and sitting in silos … Continue reading “North Korean Missile Test: Another Red Herring”

Ann Coulter, to use one of her favorite words, is an over-40 smart “broad” who makes a ton of money out of being controversial. She laughs all the way from her Palm Beach, Fla., mansion to the bank when Democrats and liberals get outraged by something she says or writes. A former corporate lawyer, she’s … Continue reading “Meaningful Lives”

Terrorism is a tactic, not an entity, and it is a tactic used by people who have a political grievance. Therefore, if you want to eliminate terrorism, you have to address the political problems that gave it birth. President Bush has made no effort to do this. He has aggravated the situation and made it … Continue reading “Terrorism Is a Tactic”

I‘m getting tired of hearing politicians and generals talk about Americans dying for peace and freedom. The main breaker of the peace in recent years has been the United States. Since 1945, no nation on Earth has either declared war against us or attacked us. We intervened in a Korean civil war, a Vietnamese civil … Continue reading “Dying for Peace and Freedom?”

President Bush teared up on Memorial Day and said we must complete the mission in Iraq to honor the 18,000 wounded and 2,400-plus dead. Well, I have a question. What is the mission? Is it to overthrow Saddam Hussein? He’s been overthrown and is awaiting execution by a kangaroo court we selected to do the … Continue reading “What Is the Mission?”

If we allow the Bush administration to drag this country into a war with Iran, we should all burn our voter-registration cards and go ahead and admit that we are no longer worthy of being citizens of a self-governing republic. For heaven’s sake, the administration is employing the same tactics it used to justify the … Continue reading “Too Stupid for Citizenship”