Doug Bandow

Iraq is an unalloyed disaster. War with Iran would be even worse. Lebanon’s Cedar Revolution has empowered groups hostile to America. Where is the new democratic dawn in the Mideast that the administration promised? It certainly isn’t represented in the Israeli-Palestinian “peace process.” The West Bank is still occupied and Gaza is nearing civil war. … Continue reading “Misguided Theology Makes Bad Foreign Policy”

When the mobs start gathering in the streets of a major city in some distant nation, U.S. officials usually start jabbering. When fighting erupts and local politicians begin wringing their hands, U.S. Marines usually start reporting. Yet another grand nation-building exercise is about to begin. Years later, when cold hatred has replaced bloody combat, American … Continue reading “For America, a Nation-Building Disaster Avoided”

Winning the Un-War: A New Strategy for the War on Terrorism Charles Peña Potomac Books 272 pp. If critics of the Bush administration are setting themselves up for a stay at Gitmo, then Charles Peña will end up spending a long time in a particularly small cell. A senior fellow with the Coalition for a … Continue reading “Readings in the Age of Empire”

Peace is boring. How else to explain America’s seemingly incessant search for a new enemy? The Cold War might have been scary, but it provided an exciting challenge: contain the Evil Empire. Create an international coalition to defend the “free world.” Exciting, but we won. So the entire foreign policy establishment had to ask “now … Continue reading “Searching for the Next Enemy”

A shining city on a hill. A light unto the world. That’s what early Americans hoped their land would become. A beacon of liberty, beckoning others to follow. A place of refuge and hope for those fleeing tyranny or seeking opportunity. An oasis in the midst of conflict and chaos. This once described the United … Continue reading “A Foreign Policy of Fools”