Jim Lobe

Thursday’s London bombings that killed at least 49 people have rekindled a familiar debate in this country on the question first posed after the Sep. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and the Pentagon: "Why do they hate us?" As then, neoconservative and right-wing hawks who led the drive to war in Iraq 18 months … Continue reading “Familiar Debate Resumes in Wake of London Bombings”

Thursday’s terror attacks against London’s public transportation system, which reportedly killed at least 37 people, came amid indications of growing skepticism here about the effectiveness of U.S. President George W. Bush’s "war on terrorism," the policy initiative that has earned him his highest public-approval ratings since September 2001. The Gallup organization released a new survey … Continue reading “London Hit as Skepticism Grows on ‘Terror War’”

As an unexpected resurgence of fighting by Taliban and allied forces against the U.S.-backed government of President Hamid Karzai is raising new concerns over Afghanistan’s stability, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has repeated its call for the prosecution of past atrocities by key warlords, a number of whom continue to hold senior posts under Karzai. In … Continue reading “Calls Mount to Prosecute Past Afghan Atrocities”

As U.S. citizens mark their annual celebration of patriotism, the Fourth of July holiday, they might do well to also ponder the specter of two other “isms” that threaten the Republic’s durability and strength raised by two important books published over the past year. America Right or Wrong: An Anatomy of American Nationalism, by Financial … Continue reading “Specters of Militarism, Nationalism Haunt Independence Day”

Despite a strong delivery, solemn demeanor, and a respectful military audience, U.S. President George W. Bush’s effort to rally the nation behind his Iraq strategy through a prime-time televised speech at Fort Bragg, N.C., offered nothing new to reassure a restive public that the situation was coming under control. Rejecting increasingly bold calls by Democrats … Continue reading “Bush’s Iraq Speech Falls Flat”

Despite the growing likelihood of confrontation between their two countries, U.S. President George W. Bush and Iranian President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad share a number of remarkable similarities. Juan Cole, a prominent blogger and Middle East historian at the University of Michigan, noted last week that the two men’s campaign tactics suggest that they are "soul mates," … Continue reading “Ahmadinejad and Bush: Separated at Birth?”

Two years after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, Washington’s image in Europe, Canada and much of the Islamic world remains broadly negative, according to the latest in a series of surveys of public opinion in 16 countries sponsored by the Pew Global Attitudes Project (PGAP). While some of the hostility, particularly in Muslim countries immediately … Continue reading “US Image Abroad Still Sinking”

A familiar clutch of hardline U.S. hawks who led the march to war against Iraq have tried to carry out yet another preemptive strike. But this time it wasn’t military. As millions of Iranians prepared to vote for the successor to President Mohammed Khatami Friday, the group, helped along by a strong denunciation by Bush … Continue reading “US Hawks Try Preemptive Strike on Iran Vote”

While the violence in Iraq continues unabated, the situation in Haiti, where the George W. Bush administration also played a key role in engineering regime change, is going from bad to desperate, according to increasingly worried analysts here. The UN Security Council, which will decide the terms for extending its peacekeeping operation (MINUSTAH) in the … Continue reading “Haiti: Another Regime Change in Trouble”

Two weeks after the Bush administration began attacking Amnesty International for calling the U.S. detention practices against suspected terrorists "the gulag of our times," it finds itself increasingly on the defensive on the issue. With the Senate Judiciary Committee poised to hold unprecedented hearings this week on the administration’s detention policies, the issue is also … Continue reading “Sen. McCain: Try or Release Detainees”