Thursday the news came in. The position of director of national intelligence (DNI), insisted upon by the 9/11 Commission, was finally filled. Shopped around for weeks unsuccessfully, it had already been rejected by former CIA Director Robert Gates, former Senator Sam...
Iraq: Bush Must Negotiate
The best news in a long time has got to be Time magazine's remarkable story about negotiations taking place between the U.S. and the Iraqi insurgency. Time reports: "Pentagon officials say the secret contacts with insurgent leaders are being conducted mainly by...
Blindly Backing Israel Against Iran
Well, that tears it. First we had Dick Cheney – the most powerful Vice-President we've ever had – nonchalantly tell a radio talk-show host just hours before the Bush-Cheney second inaugural: "Well, one of the concerns people have is that Israel might...
US vs EU
Much of the media coverage of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's recent trip to Europe seemed to be preoccupied with the new American chief diplomat's winning style. Apparently "Chere Condi" has succeeded in charming even those "old" Europeans, including French...
The Nuclear Domino Effect
Even as the United States leans on North Korea and Iran to renounce any nuclear objectives, peace activists say it has stepped up spending on its own arsenal, including investments in a new generation of longer lasting and sturdier "bunker buster" weapons. The "quiet...
All Not Quiet on the Northern Front
ISTANBUL Turkey holds the option of unilateral intervention in northern Iraq if Kurds declare independence and claim the oil wealth of disputed Kirkuk, considered the main spoils in the uncertain Iraqi equation. In bellicose tones, Turkish officials have served...
A Shi’ite Iraq Emerges
Muhammad Husain Adili, the Iranian ambassador to the United Kingdom, said Thursday that his government had lent substantial help to the United States in fostering a "calm atmosphere" for the holding of elections on Jan. 30 in Iraq. He revealed that Iran had contacted...
Hail, Hail The Gang’s All Here
The nomination of John Negroponte to the new post of director of National Intelligence (DNI) caps a remarkable parade of Bush administration senior nominees. Among the most recent: Alberto Gonzales, confirmed as attorney general: the lawyer who advised the president...
How Israel Is Once Again Redefining the Terms of Peace
The recent and supposedly 'successful' Sharm el-Sheikh summit in Egypt on February 8 was anything but a triumph, as far as Palestinians, the occupied party, and genuine peace-seeking Israelis are concerned. Leave out the spectacular view of the Red Sea resort, the...
American Muslims Live in Fear of Govt
Harsh immigration and anti-terrorism laws have had a devastating effect on many Muslim communities in the U.S., leaving a legacy of fear and disillusionment, especially among young people, Asian activists said Thursday. In post-Sep. 11 America, immigrants from...


