In the commentary on the tenth anniversary of 9/11, the news and infotainment media predictably framed the discussion by the question of how successful the CIA and the military have been in destroying al-Qaeda. Absent from the torrent of opinion and analysis was any...
More Lost by the Second
It’s a bit odd to me that with my sense of geographical direction I’m ever regarded as a leader to guide groups in foreign travel. I’m recalling a steaming hot night in Lahore, Pakistan, when Josh Brollier and I, having enjoyed a lengthy dinner with Lahore University...
The Immorality of Empire
As I watch the popular uprisings unfold against brutal dictatorships supported by my own government, I cannot help but reflect upon the moral implications of my participation in the American empire. My crimes began almost before I can remember, but I will address only...
In the Crosshairs
“Slowly a humped shape rose out of the pit, and the ghost of a beam of light seemed to flicker out from it. Forthwith flashes of actual flame, a bright glare leaping from one to another, sprang from the scattered group of men. It was as if some invisible jet impinged...
Sarah Palin’s Cross Hairs – and Obama’s
It was a coincidence but an enlightening one. As I heard of Sarah Palin's cartoon cross hairs trained on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and other politicians along with Barack Obama's condemnation of violence, I happened to be tuning into a TV documentary on...
Bereaved Israelis, Palestinians Unite Across Violent Borders
JERUSALEM - With Middle East peace talks at a standstill, a group of activists is taking matters into its own hands. The Parents' Circle Families Forum, a group comprising Palestinians and Israelis who have lost family members in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, aims...
What Laila Sees
Kabul, Afghanistan - “We live in constant fear of suicide attacks,” said Laila, an Afghan woman who lives in Kandahar city and who visited with us yesterday. “When will the next one strike and where?” “Twelve days ago,” she continued, “a good friend was walking home...
Cluster Munitions Treaty Leaves US Behind
BANGKOK - A campaign to rid the world of cluster munitions has still to rope in the U.S. government, a major producer and stockpiler of the deadly payload, on the eve of a key global conference in Laos to ban its production and use. The mixed messages that Washington...
WikiLeaks Paints Grim Picture of Iraqi Civilian Casualties
Two revelations await the reader of the WikiLeaks section dealing with civilian deaths in the Iraq War: Iraqis are responsible for most of these deaths, and the number of total civilian casualties is substantially higher than has been previously reported. There were...
Report Shows Drone Strikes Based on Scant Evidence
New information on the Central Intelligence Agency's campaign of drone strikes in northwest Pakistan directly contradicts the image the Barack Obama administration and the CIA have sought to establish in the news media of a program based on highly accurate targeting...


