The Syrian Dilemma

President Obama’s failed attempt to pass a resolution in the UN Security Council condemning the Assad regime’s attack on his domestic enemies in Qoms may mean that there are no more risk-free ways to both act and not to act against the government in Damascus. In a 13-2 vote by the U.N. Security Council later [...]

Slab City

Lying on a couch in a transit lounge while waiting for a connection to a Third World destination is probably the perfect place to think of of Slab City, a trailer park in a California desert that describes itself as the Last Free Place in the state, “beyond the reach of electricity, running water and [...]

Spores

One of the unresolved mysteries surrounding September 11 are what have come to be called the 2001 Anthrax attacks. The basic facts of the case are simple. Someone sent envelopes containing anthrax spores to the offices of two Democratic Senators, “killing five people and infecting 17 others. According to the FBI, the ensuing investigation became [...]

A Reversal of Fortune

Remember when the Muslim Brotherhood was reckoned to be part of the movement for democratic change in Egypt? That was then. This is now. The New York Times reports that “Gaining Power in Parliament, Islamists Block a Cairo Protest”. Who could have seen that coming? CAIRO — The Muslim Brotherhood flexed its muscles here on [...]

Return To Sender

There’s good news: an American ally is finally going to take charge of Afghanistan. For keeps too. The bad news is that ally is Pakistan. (Reuters) – The United States military has said in a secret report that the Taliban, backed by Pakistan, are set to retake control over Afghanistan after NATO-led forces withdraw from [...]

Hold That Tiger

Three years ago two tiger parks in India reported that while they had no tigers, they had plenty of officials to manage them. “State Minister of Forests Rajendra Shukla said that the [Panna National Park] reserve, which three years ago had 24 tigers, no longer had any … this is the second tiger reserve in [...]

Carousel

Syrian uprising reaches the edge of Damascus, according to the Washington Post. Hanin Ghaddar argues that Israel actually prefers to keep Assad in power as a lesser evil to a possible Islamist takeover. And so too does Hezbollah! As perhaps does Russia, according to the NYT. But despite this, Assad’s regime is looking more and [...]

That Old Magic

In the years immediately after the Second World War, American prestige was so great that it covered many of its actions with “that old magic” — the aura of invincibility and power that made it hard for foreign governments to question it. That magic has worn thin. Pakistan has decided to jail a doctor who [...]

Cycle 25

The nice thing about the term “Climate Change” is that it covers all possibilities. The Daily Mail reports: Based on readings from more than 30,000 measuring stations, the data was issued last week without fanfare by the Met Office and the University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit. It confirms that the rising trend in [...]

“Just like the Tea Party”

“They’re not that different from some of the protests that we saw coming from the Tea Party.” — Barack Obama on Occupy. According to the San Jose Mercury News, “Occupy Oakland protesters broke into City Hall, stole an American flag from the City Council chamber and set it on fire Saturday night, punctuating a wild [...]