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I have received a lot of curses in my lifetime, and here and there some compliments, too. But I have never received a compliment like this one: an important party, represented in the Knesset, has mentioned my name in its official election platform. Under the heading "Legislation and strict supervision of organizations and activists of … Continue reading “What Are Friends For?”

Of late, sundry elevated Neo-Conservatives have been facing up to the implications of their demands on History’s Muse. In passing, I note that for a movement said, "not to exist," they have been all over the place with their latest cogitations. Have their recent cogitations led them to draw back from their program of world … Continue reading “War and Its Discontents”

It may be in somewhat poor taste to say "I told you so," but I can’t resist. My prognosis that the Iraq war, far from being "inevitable," as we’ve been endlessly told, has been postponed if not put on the back burner indefinitely has been all but verified by recent events. In a column posted … Continue reading “War Party In Retreat”

Bush keeps hoping either China or Russia will step in and persuade North Korea to calm down, put away the nukes and let the US go about its business in the Middle East. But in recent meetings the two nations made it clear that they believed it was Bush’s big mouth that started the problem … Continue reading “Don’t Count on China”

I have received a lot of curses in my lifetime, and here and there some compliments, too. But I have never received a compliment like this one: an important party, represented in the Knesset, has mentioned my name in its official election platform. Under the heading "Legislation and strict supervision of organizations and activists of … Continue reading “Liberman’s Supreme Soviet”

The prospect of a war to subdue and occupy Iraq has brought the neo-imperialists out of the closet, so to speak, and inaugurated a new honesty among political commentators on the left as well as the right. As Americans wake up to the brutal reality of a war that could cost half a million Iraqi … Continue reading “Hail Caesar?”

We’ve been getting all these trial balloons, so maybe there’s a serious effort underway. (Or maybe not.) A December 29 Associated Press story that ran in numerous newspapers and Web sites around the world, says that Arab leaders "are considering the possibility of pressing Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to step down and go into exile. … Continue reading “Can Exile Solve the Saddam Problem?”

On June 13, 2002, Shin Hyo-soon and Shim Mi-sun, both 14 years old, walked along the side of a road on their way to a birthday party, chattering and laughing, as children do. They never saw the mammoth U.S. military truck with two soldiers on board as it crushed them, grinding their bodies into the … Continue reading “Korean Ghosts”

Max Boot starts out his essay on "What the Heck is a ‘Neocon?’" – which should have been titled "Who, Me?" – by claiming to find the label affixed to his political persona "mystifying." Yet he winds up writing a mini-manifesto of the Neocon Creed: "It is not really domestic policy that defines neoconservatism. This … Continue reading “Do Neocons Exist?”

Being an American living in China means never lacking for small talk. During times of peace, conversation tends to be genial. "If I visit Hollywood, where should I stand to see the most movie stars?" is a common query. "Can I really buy a gun at any supermarket in your country?" is another. Recently though, … Continue reading “The View From Over Here: Killing the Chicken to Frighten the Monkey”