Tom Engelhardt

An editor in publishing for the last 25 years, Tom Engelhardt is the author of The End of Victory Culture, a history of American triumphalism in the Cold War era, now out in a revised edition with a new preface and afterword, and Mission Unaccomplished, TomDispatch Interviews With American Iconoclasts and Dissenters. He is at present consulting editor for Metropolitan Books, a fellow of the Nation Institute, and a teaching fellow at the journalism school of the University of California, Berkeley. Visit his Web site. This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To stay on top of important articles like these, sign up to receive the latest updates from TomDispatch.com.

Washington’s Commandos Without Borders

When Donald Trump enters the Oval Office, awaiting him will not only be his own private air assassination corps (those CIA drones that take out terror suspects globally from a White House "kill list"), but his own private and remarkably secret military. Ever since John F. Kennedy first made the Green Berets into figures of … Continue reading “Washington’s Commandos Without Borders”

American Military Power in Asia and the Trump Factor

Originally posted at TomDispatch. “Did China ask us if it was OK to… build a massive military complex in the middle of the South China Sea? I don’t think so!” tweeted President-Elect Donald Trump after shattering nearly 40 years of U.S.-China diplomatic protocol by having a telephone conversation with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. The call … Continue reading “American Military Power in Asia and the Trump Factor”

Yet Another Undeclared US War

Originally posted at TomDispatch. What is it about America and its twenty-first-century wars? They spread continually – there are now seven of them; they never end; and yet, if you happen to live in the United States, most of the time it would be easy enough to believe that, except for the struggle against ISIS … Continue reading “Yet Another Undeclared US War”

Obama’s Last Chance

Originally posted at TomDispatch. Imagine this scenario: you’ve occupied an office for eight years and now you’re about to move out. You know who’s going to move in and, by reputation, he’s a fellow with a minimal ability to control himself who might conceivably be a danger to others. So here’s one thing you undoubtedly … Continue reading “Obama’s Last Chance”

Whose Finger on the Nuclear Button?

Originally posted at TomDispatch. I was born on July 20, 1944, the day of the failed officers’ plot against Adolf Hitler. That means I preceded the official dawning of the nuclear age by exactly 361 days, which makes me part of the last generation to do so. I’m speaking not of the obliteration of two … Continue reading “Whose Finger on the Nuclear Button?”

One Veteran’s War on Islamophobia

Originally posted at TomDispatch.Recently, I was asked a question about Kill Anything That Moves, my history of civilian suffering during the Vietnam War. An interviewer wanted to know how I responded to veterans who took offense at the (supposed) implication that every American who served in Vietnam committed atrocities. I think I softly snorted and … Continue reading “One Veteran’s War on Islamophobia”

The Doctrine of Armed Exceptionalism

Originally posted at TomDispatch. War, what is it good for? In America, the answer is that, much of the time, you’ll probably never know what it’s good for – or, in some cases, even notice that we’re at war. Right now, the U.S. is ever more deeply involved in significant conflicts in Iraq, Syria, Somalia, … Continue reading “The Doctrine of Armed Exceptionalism”