All Commentaries
Are Nonproliferation and Disarmament, Once Joined at the Hip, Headed for Divorce?
Love and marriage, love and marriage, nonproliferation and disarmament go together like a horse and carriage. But have they become a house divided against itself?
Make 1325 Real for Women’s Peace and Security
October 31 marked the tenth anniversary of the momentous UN resolution on women, peace and security—UNSCR 1325. This set a new international standard that requires all parties—the UN, states, and armed militias—to ensure that women participate fully in peace negotiations and post-conflict reconstruction. If this really worked, it would transform our militarized world.
Republican Senate Rejection of START Could Actually Work in Disarmament’s Favor
The Obama administration could punish Republicans, were they to reject new START, by withholding promised funds for the nuclear weapons industry.
Tea Party at the Pentagon?
It’s a cold morning in January 2011. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and Rand Paul (R-KY) wake up early to put on their Revolutionary War costumes. They’re joined by a miscellaneous group of anti-government protestors, libertarian activists, and all-around hotheads. With their supporters in tow, the tea party movement’s Adam and Eve drive to the Pentagon and use their congressional passes to get into the building. They proceed to the office of Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics, where the Pentagon plans the future of the huge weapons systems that dominate military spending.
Yemenis More Sensitive to Disinformation Than Americans
Many Yemenis believe that al Qaeda’s presence in their country is a bogeyman conjured up by their government for its own agenda.
Housing Demolition in East Jerusalem
The most recent East Jerusalem protest ensued on October 25th after the Israeli police gave 231demolition orders to Palestinian families all across East Jerusalem, including Silwan, an Arab neighborhood in close proximity to the Old City. According to Human Rights Watch, Israeli demolitions of Palestinian homes peaked this year, reaching 141 in July. This is the largest number of demolitions per month since 2005. Meanwhile, the Israeli government subsidizes Jewish settlements all over the occupied territories and in East Jerusalem as well.
Though Israel places most its inexcusable violent measures under the banner of “security,” this particular form of destruction is purely discriminatory and does not fall into the category of Israeli defense. If Israel intends to continue the peace process, it must stop demolishing Palestinian homes and building Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem.
Metropolitan Diary (Apologies to Times): Military Groupies Merrily Convene in D.C.
The convergence of a military conference and green conference paint an Army chaplain in an unflattering light.
Ballot Box Blues: The Most Dispiriting Election of a Lifetime (Mine)
By the time you read this, I’ll already have voted — the single most reflexive political act of my life — in the single most dispiriting election I can remember. As I haven’t missed a midterm or presidential election since my first vote in 1968, that says something. Or maybe by the time you’ve gotten to this, the results of the 2010 midterm elections will be in. In either case, I’ll try to explain just why you don’t really need those results to know which way the wind is gusting.
60 Second Expert: Cancun Talks
Following the failure of world leaders to arrive at any binding agreements during the last climate talks at Copenhagen, there appears to be little hope for meaningful action at the November/December climate change talks in Cancun, Mexico. In place of climate change skepticism, debunked by overwhelming scientific evidence, leaders are now relying on market-based mechanisms and technological fixes to further drag their feet and avoid confronting the economic model responsible for the crisis.
Election Was Missed Opportunity to Convince Voters to Abandon Current Afghanistan Strategy
Americans forget that the $3 billion a week it spends on Afghanistan and Iraq makes the bank bailout and stimulus look like chump change.