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I was pretty positive about J Street when it launched 18 months ago. And of course, on balance I prefer J Street to the bellicose AIPAC. The former does not advocate that America launch wars (Iraq) that are not in its interest to fight.
But J Street’s premises may be flawed. This “pro-Israel, pro-peace” lobby exists [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy, Politics, World
The NYT’s story about how the CIA has had Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s brother Ahmed Wali on the payroll for much of the past eight years is intended to shock because Ahmed Wali has frequently been linked to drug trafficking. Well, he is also linked to his brother, which is why he is important. As [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy, War
John M. Cole, a former FBI Counterintelligence and Counterespionage Manager, has publicly confirmed the FBI’s decade long investigation of the former State Department Official Marc Grossman. Cole worked for 18 years in the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division. According to Cole, as in over one hundred cases involving Israeli espionage activities directed against the US government, the Grossman case was [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy, Uncategorized
The indefatigable Kagans, Fred and Kimberly, have again been given a bully pulpit to sell their particular brand of snake oil regarding Afghanistan. Today’s Washington Post op ed page featured a piece called “The Afghan Illusion,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/11/AR2009091103625.html. Not surprisingly, the article advocates more US soldiers. I have no time for the Kagans and their nonsense [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy, War
That’s my suggested word for oblivious to irony.
An example. Republican Congressman Eric Cantor, in Israel as part of a 56-member Congressional contingent summoned by AIPAC, repeating a theme developed there to criticize US foreign policy:
“I’m very troubled by that, because I don’t think we in America would want another country telling us how to implement and execute [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy, Politics, War, World
There has been a running commentary in the Wash Post regarding Afghanistan. It started two days ago with a George Will op-ed called “Time to Get Out of Afghanistan” http://voices.washingtonpost.com/postpartisan/2009/09/no_will_no_way.html. Will basically accepted that the war is being lost and indeed might be unwinnable in any conventional sense because it is really all about nation [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy, War
Hearing the retired four-star general and former commander of CENTCOM speak is an exercise in whiplash. He opposed the invasion of Iraq—and supported the surge. He’s optimistic that the Obama administration will chart a new course in foreign affairs—but laments the absence of a strategic statement and admits that there has been no significant break [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy, Uncategorized
For those who appreciate a little comedy of the absurd with their Saturday morning coffee I recommend an article on the Baghdad Embassy/Mausoleum in today’s Wash Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/28/AR2009082803166.html. The Embassy, the largest in the world, will cost $1.5 billion to run this year, rising to $1.8 billion in 2010 and 2011. The Embassy has 88 State Department Security [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy
Those who are interested in issues like widespread corruption of our elected officals by foreigners have no doubt followed the ex-FBI traslator turned whistle blower Sibel Edmonds saga for the past few years. Sibel has finally testified in court under oath about some of the things that she learned while working for the bureau. The [...]
Filed under: Congress, Foreign policy
An Israeli peace activist publication called “Occupation Magazine” has printed an article called “The Foreign Ministry presents: talkbackers in the service of the state.” It starts “After they became an inseparable part of the service provided by public-relations companies and advertising agencies, paid Internet talkbackers are being mobilized in the service in the service of [...]
Filed under: Foreign policy