NEW DELHI While India has thrown its hat into the United Nations Security Council ring, the process of actually gaining a permanent seat on the body which has the power to introduce sanctions and authorize the use of force in conflicts may prove...
Whose Fault Is It?
Out of almost 1,400 words, it was the following short sentence that attracted almost all the readers' reactions to my previous column: "The Arab states and the Palestinians have in fact acknowledged Israel's right to exist in peace, if it withdraws from the occupied...
Iraq Elections a Disaster in the Making
Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani continues to be concerned as to whether elections will be held in January in Iraq, and whether the outcome will reflect the Shi'ite majority in Iraq. He is worried that the system adopted, of nationwide party lists, favors a small set of...
Iran’s Golden Offer
The Pentagon has just conducted war games, modeling a preemptive attack against the Iranian uranium-enrichment facility at Natanz – which is still several years from becoming operational – and the Russian nuclear power plant nearing completion at Bushehr....
Human Dignity, Crazy Mike, and Indian Country
The reason why Washington is having such a difficult time persuading others of its good faith and its good works in the "war on terror" was best illustrated Tuesday this week. While President George W. Bush told the UN General Assembly that the U.S. belief in "human...
Destroying the National Guard
The unit knew it would soon be shipped to the front. Some soldiers responded by deserting. Others got drunk and fought. In response, officers locked the unit in its barracks, allowing the troops out only to drill, not even to smoke a cigarette, until it could be put...
A Draft After the Elections?
While President Bush has thus far never said whether or not he would bring back the draft (Sen. John Kerry stated that he opposed a draft on Sept. 22, 2004 in West Palm Beach, Fla.), there are increasing rumors and speculation that it will be reinstated after the...
Rigging the Iraqi Elections
Isn't it nice that come January there will be national elections in Iraq? After all those years living under the despotic rule of Saddam Hussein, the huddled Iraqi masses will be able to go to polling places and cast their secret ballots to choose their...
Sri Lankans Fear Ceasefire’s End
KILINOCHCHI, Sri Lanka - There are slim hopes that the Sri Lankan government and rebel Tamil Tigers will restart peace talks soon after four people, including a top renegade Tiger fighter, were shot dead in growing factional fighting in the country. The killings on...
After Giving Boost to Bush, Allawi Heads to UN
UNITED NATIONS - In his first address to world leaders gathered at UN headquarters, Iraq's Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi urged the wealthiest countries to forgive Iraq's debts and described his nation's future as a battle between the forces of democracy and...


