“We can’t lose focus” after Bin Laden’s death, said the former Secretary of State, the woman who helped author the most costly loss of focus in the history of America’s fight against terrorism. Of course, Condi Rice had no earthly idea when she spouted her “mushroom cloud” warning years ago that Saddam Hussein had long given up his nuclear [...]
Archive for the ‘Obama’ Category
AfPak: Too Big To Fail?
Posted in 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, defense spending, democracy, Fundamentalism, Iraq, islam, Middle East, Muslims, nuclear weapon, Obama, Osama, Pakistan, Radical, revolution, September 11, South Asia, Taleban, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, America, Americans, defense spending, Iraq, islam, Middle East, Muslims, nuclear, Pakistan, South Asia, Taliban, U.S. Foreign Policy on May 5, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
What Comes First: The Dictator or the Fundamentalist?
Posted in 9/11, Al Qaeda, democracy, Egypt, Europe, Fundamentalism, Iran, Iraq, islam, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Osama, Radical, revolution, September 11, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, youth, tagged 9/11, Al Qaeda, America, democracy, Egypt, elections, Europe, Iraq, Libya, Middle East, mullah, Muslims, Radical, Syria, Tunisia, U.S. Foreign Policy, Yemen, youth on April 24, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
“La Ikhwan, La Salafia. A Sha’ab Bidu Huriyya.” “No Muslim Brotherhood. No Salafists. The Youth want Freedom.” The language above on the sign held up by a Syrian protester this week encapsulates all the promise, and anxiety, of this moment for Western policy makers watching the Arab revolutions unfold. What kind of freedom? Who will [...]
Demonstrations, With Air Support?
Posted in 9/11, Al Qaeda, democracy, Egypt, Europe, Fundamentalism, Hamas, Hizbullah, Iran, islam, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Osama, Radical, revolution, September 11, South Asia, Taleban, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, youth, tagged 9/11, Al Qaeda, America, Americans, Arab, democracy, Egypt, Europe, Hamas, islam, Libya, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Radical, Saudi Arabia, Taliban, terrorism, Tunisia, U.S. Foreign Policy, youth on March 27, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
“Barack Obama has now fired more cruise missiles than all other Nobel Peace Prize winners combined.” It’s good for a laugh. A cheap laugh. The blogger who wrote this clearly doesn’t have any appreciation for the reality that confronts American presidents on a daily basis. No doubt he or she also did not have any [...]
Under Obama, Business as Usual…
Posted in 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, Fundamentalism, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, nuclear weapon, Obama, Pakistan, Radical, September 11, Shia, South Asia, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, America, Americans, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Pakistan, Palestine, Palestinians, Radical, Saudi Arabia, South Asia, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy on October 24, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Hussein was not a dirty word for most American Muslims who watched the first black man inaugurated president two years ago. The president’s middle name represented a certain hope, not that our new head of state was a closet Muslim, for we all knew better, and, given many of our experiences, we were not advocates [...]
Insurgency and Counter-Insurgency
Posted in Afghanistan, democracy, Egypt, Fundamentalism, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, nuclear weapon, Obama, Pakistan, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged Afghanistan, Americans, Arab Gulf, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Jordan, mullah, nuclear, Palestinians, Saudi Arabia, Tea Party, U.S. Foreign Policy on September 2, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
This past weekend I hopped on Interstate 95 and rubbernecked my way along stimulus-inspired construction lanes down to colonial Williamsburg, a time-warp back to the days of British empire in America and its discontents. A passion-play called “Revolutionary City” was captivating a crowd of tourists along the former colonial capital’s cobblestone avenues, complete with costumed [...]
The Lost Narrative
Posted in 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, Egypt, Fundamentalism, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Osama, Pakistan, Radical, September 11, Somalia, Sunni, Taleban, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, America, Americans, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Radical, Saudi Arabia, Sunni, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy on August 25, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
I won’t attempt to decipher the swirling debate surrounding the manufactured controversy of Park 51, the “mosque” (actually, cultural center modeled on the Jewish YMCA at 92nd Street) “at Ground Zero” (actually, several blocks away, like the other mosques already in the area.). All heat and very little light, it’s clear the only thing this debate [...]
Top Secret America, in Denial
Posted in 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, Fundamentalism, Iraq, islam, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Osama, Pakistan, Radical, September 11, Taleban, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, Americans, Iraq, islam, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Radical, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy on July 29, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
The dust has yet to settle surrounding the twin revelations of the last several weeks: the Washington Post’s revealing expose on America’s mammoth national security apparatus with its ties to big business and the Wikileaks data dump of classified reporting from the front lines of the spiraling Afghan war. Taken together, the two episodes cannot [...]
No Reflection, On Both Sides
Posted in 9/11, Al Qaeda, Egypt, Fundamentalism, India, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, Obama, Pakistan, Radical, September 11, South Asia, Taleban, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged 9/11, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, America, Americans, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, Pakistan, Palestine, Palestinians, Radical, South Asia, Taliban, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy on July 6, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
A pair of instances recently reminded me how both sides- the “West” (more specifically, the United States) and the Muslim World- have engaged in so little self-reflection since the events of 9/11. It is much easier to project outward than to take a hard look at your own society. Problems are no longer yours when [...]
A Real Iran Policy
Posted in Ahmadinejad, Fundamentalism, India, Iran, Iraq, islam, Israel, Lebanon, Middle East, Muslims, nuclear weapon, Obama, Shia, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged America, Iran, Iranians, Iraq, islam, Israel, Lebanon, Middle East, mullah, nuclear, Obama, Shia, U.S. Foreign Policy on May 20, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Elected in no small part due to the backlash against rash Bush administration misadventures abroad, the incoming Obama team swore to itself it would pursue a more nuanced, collaborative policy towards Iran. And from the beginning, the president has acted with considerable restraint, even when the mullahs’ brutality against their own people streamed across the [...]
The Elephant (Not) Attending the Summit
Posted in Iran, islam, Israel, Middle East, Muslims, nuclear weapon, Obama, Pakistan, terrorism, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged America, Americans, democracy, Iran, Iranians, islam, Israel, Middle East, nuclear, Obama, Pakistan, Palestine, Palestinians, U.S. Foreign Policy on April 14, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Obama’s nuclear dream seems nice and perhaps in another dimension of reality (paradoxically called Fantasy Land), achievable. Down here on earth, nations will never give up nuclear capability once they have it because they will never know if their adversaries will develop it today or some time in the future. (They don’t even know who [...]
