Kelley B. Vlahos

Rodney McKeithan is a 20-year Navy veteran who retired in 2007 to open up a barbershop in the military community of Norfolk, Virginia, home of the Atlantic Fleet. When asked by reporters recently what his clients, mostly military, say about a pending war in Syria, he says, "We’ve got to look out for our guys. … Continue reading “NeoCon: We’ve Got ‘No Right’ to War Weariness”

"Promoting democracy can be messy in the short-run and isn’t always possible in every circumstance but, in general, it is the best long-term bet for promoting American interests" – Max Boot in Commentary, 8/20/13 Promoting democracy is "messy" all right, especially when one considers the waves of humanity picking up, leaving their homes and wondering … Continue reading “Refugee ‘Mess’ Is Ours, and Getting Worse”

Imagine for a moment that you live in the nation’s capitol, by the Pentagon or minutes away in Quantico, the Marine Corps headquarters, or one exit down the parkway from the National Security Agency (NSA) in nearby Maryland. Imagine farther out, places where our Navy fleets are stationed – Norfolk, San Diego – or the … Continue reading “‘Surgical Strikes’ an Orwellian Dream”

Most of us cannot understand the pain associated with post-traumatic stress in any visceral way, as described by this recent veteran from the Iraq War: “My mind is a wasteland, filled with visions of incredible horror, unceasing depression, and crippling anxiety.” Now think of the veteran who wrote these words, 30-year-old Daniel Somers, being sent … Continue reading “Sending Broken Men Back Into Afghanistan”

Observers say they are on the cusp of getting the hard evidence needed to prove Iraqis are suffering from a disproportionate rate of birth defects and cancers, likely due to massive pollution caused by the war. So what’s the problem? Or should we say, WHO is the problem? As in the World Health Organization. WHO … Continue reading “WHO Is Delaying Release of Iraqi Birth Defect Data?”

Brad Pitt’s most successful box office film to date is about a man’s race against time to save the world from zombies. He does this by putting together clues or "crumbs" left behind to puzzle together how the planet was overrun by the undead, and what he has to do to fix it. The Special … Continue reading “Is Afghanistan a Dead Man Walking?”

A classic beltway tale: once upon a time, if a vaudeville act was so horrible, audience members would heckle it right off the stage, and maybe target it with a few rotten vegetables. But in Washington, despite scathing reviews, watchdog investigations and bare-knuckle insults from lawmakers who hold the purse, Uncle Sam will continue funding … Continue reading “Congress Finally Getting Wise to JIEDDO”

WASHINGTON – To the glee of her critics, Janet Napolitano, the longest-serving secretary at the Department of Homeland Security in its decade-long existence, has announced her resignation. No longer will Republicans have old Janet to kick around. As for the civil libertarians and frustrated national security state watchers, she was a reliable foot solider and … Continue reading “Time To Abolish DHS?”

WASHINGTON – There is nothing wrong with giving credit where it is due. In recent months, Senator Rand Paul has taken positions we have both applauded, and grimaced over. And Sen. Ted Cruz, well let’s just say comparisons to the late redbaiter Sen. Joseph McCarthy have been called uncanny, and not altogether unfair, on these … Continue reading “Paul, Cruz Show Backbone on Military Rape Issue”

There are belittling moments in writing when one realizes that a story she’s penned has become perversely innocuous – maybe even meaningless – as it’s dwarfed by much more powerful revelations that were just around the corner waiting to explode. Even worse, it’s a tough kick when a writer feels she has been duped or … Continue reading “A Mea Culpa of Sorts”