The Martyr of Mosul

On April 1 – Palm Sunday – after bullets were fired into the Church of the Holy Spirit in Mosul, Iraq, during mass, the pastor, Father Ragheed Ganni, a Chaldean Catholic, e-mailed friends at the Asia Times: "We empathize with Christ, who entered Jerusalem in...

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The End of Dissent?

Congress recently passed a resolution calling on the UN to bring charges of "genocide" against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Now, I hold no brief for the Iranian ranter – whose jeremiads against the West are in the category of Borat-like humor – but...

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Is Iraqi Kurdistan a Good Investment?

ARBIL - A huge building complex is rising above Arbil's ancient citadel and mosques, for long the outstanding features of this city in Iraqi Kurdistan. Once complete, Arbil's Modern Market with its four 33-floor towers will accommodate more than 5,000 shops and...

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Backtalk, June 21, 2007

Lying Us Into War, Again Charlie I love this bit: "Finally, of course, there is the matter of deterrence. Deterrence worked against the Soviet Union's 30,000 nuclear weapons and the means of delivering them." You Americans do not get it even now. Deterrence...

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New Iran Arms Claim Reveals Cheney-Military Rift

In a development that underlines the tensions between the anti-Iran agenda of the George W. Bush administration and the preoccupation of its military command in Afghanistan with militant Sunni activism, a State Department official publicly accused Iran for the first...

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Imperial Poker

One of the more persistent misconceptions about the current Emperor is that he is from Texas. He may have lived there for many years, may have even been the governor of the state, but he was in fact born in Connecticut. A real Texan would know a thing or two about...

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Will Bush, Blair Intensify Mideast Peace Efforts?

Reports that US President George W. Bush has asked outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair to act as the Quartet's special envoy for Middle East peace are adding to speculation that Washington plans to intensify peace efforts between Israel and the Palestinians,...

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