Three Questions About The Bergdahl Deal Answered
Three questions, all of which have easy, obvious answers. So why are we talking about this?
Category: War
The President Goes Prime Time on Syria: Initial Reactions
An open thread on the President’s remarks on Syria and where the crisis currently stands.
The Senate Drafts a Joint Resolution Authorizing Military Force in Syria
The full text of the Senate’s joint resolution authorizing the use of military force in Syria is now available.
On Syria, the War on Terror, and the Loss of Souls
As war with Syria approaches, no one cares. This, argues Tod Kelly, is the ultimate cost of the War on Terror.
Driving Blind: Syria’s Rebels and a Brief History of Chemical Weapons
Five must read articles on the subject of Syria.
Beating the Drums for Intervention with Syria
Everyone wants to offer the President advice on what the U.S. should do about Syria, but no one has any clue how their plans would work or why.
Fan Wankery Takes Star Trek Into Darkness.
Edit: Reposted with a new date so that people can comment on it and stuff. Note: This post is spoilerific. It will completely ruin any surprises that might exist in the upcoming movie Star Trek...
Professors Propose New Propaganda Strategy to Complement Obama’s War of Drones
At the Atlantic, an article by three professors was published which sought to examine the claim that “Pakistanis all hate the drone war.” For someone like me this is a useless bit of analysis. Indeed,...
Sketching Out States in Fantasy: Two Cases from Avlis
As promised here are two cases from Avlis of magic equipped societies. I will begin with a (moderately) short description of each state, then compare the place of magic and its political economy. This...
Brennan’s World: Drones and Future Administrations
So hot on the heels of Jason’s thought provoking piece, the Washington Post has an interesting profile of the role played by John Brennan in the Obama Administration’s counter-terrorism policy. Bobby Chesney has an...
A Theoretical Case for a Romney Presidency From a Foreign Policy PoV.
Over at Blinded Trials the esteemed Dr. Saunders has a post up about how W. Mitt Romney, much like John McCain before him, has managed to alienate potential voters with his mendacity and pandering to the...
Sketching a National Security State Saner Than Today
As my isolation from the chattering classes continues, I’m inclined to go into hypotheticals and counter-factuals. One such hypothetical I returned to over the past few days is the following: What would a saner...
The Depressing Reality That is Pakistan.
News connected to Pakistan is a bit like reading a George RR Martin novel. It’s grim. It’s depressing. There’s too many characters that come in and out of nowhere and the narrative never seems...
There Was No Civil Liberties Mandate
Conor Friedersdorf of The Atlantic has a widely read explanation of why he cannot, on moral grounds, do as he did in 2008 and vote for Barack Obama. It’s a long piece and it’s...
Avengers, Culture, Wackadoodle, and Weekend Open Thread
It just means that my head and my heart tell me it’s 1945. They tell me that when I switch on the radio, it should take a minute to warm up and music should...
Conflicting Accounts of Obama’s Foreign Policy Achievements
Andrew Sullivan wants Obamaites to more aggressively tout the President’s foreign policy achievements: “I think the Obamaites need to be more aggressive in foreign policy arguments. Obama ended one war in Iraq, dispatched Osama bin Laden...
Should The US Bring Back The Draft?
Tom Ricks thinks so: Since the end of the military draft in 1973, every person joining the U.S. armed forces has done so because he or she asked to be there. Over the past...
Does America Need a Draft? Hell No.
Tom Ricks says we need a draft. This is nonsense. If we want to prevent stupid wars, make the country pay for them. Since the end of the military draft in 1973, every person...
It’s not a war, and I am not a warrior.
Andrew Sullivan, in 2006, failing to give credit where credit is due: First, they came for the homos, then the near-dead, then the pregnant women. But you know who their ultimate target will...
