Tag Archives: Foreign Policy

Last Presidential Debate Live-Blog

Posted on October 22, 2012 by nickgb

Just to kick stuff off, this image is probably the best I could hope for:

Posted in 2012, Foreign Policy, Politics | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Make sure we use sans-sharif fonts for all the maps, too

Posted on August 8, 2012 by nickgb

I would like to think that we’ve learned our lesson about the importance of actual qualifications, but clearly we haven’t. As RE was pointing out, the “character issue” is one of complete fabrication, an issue to cover up the fact … Continue reading →

Posted in 2012, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

My Final Offer Is This: Nothing

Posted on September 7, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

Former Bush Jr. and Obama Defense Secretary Robert Gates sums up the advantages to the US of its relationship with Israel, according to this column by the wildly erratic Jeffrey Goldberg. As with this morning’s post about the decline and … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy, Politics | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

He Said/She Said

Posted on August 24, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

Many good points, one wildly errant generalization, in this Foreign Policy Watch post by Jeb Koolger: Anderson Cooper grilled the Syrian ambassador to the UN, Bashar al-Jafari, in a long and hostile 14-minute interview earlier this week. Every question is tough, combative, … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Dictators And Rational Behavior

Posted on August 16, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

Sean Patrick Hazlett has an engaging post on how dictators might view their best courses of action in light of recent events. He points out that Tunisia’s Ben Ali and Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak allowed protests to continue before being deposed, … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy, News and Current Events | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Character Issue

Posted on August 4, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

This, via Freddie, is rather chilling: Forty lawmakers from both the coalition and opposition Wednesday submitted a proposal to the Knesset for a new Basic Law that would change the accepted definition of Israel as a “Jewish and democratic state.” … Continue reading →

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Attacking Iran, Or, The Tacit Alliance Among The World’s Conservatives

Posted on June 14, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

After Osama bin Laden attacked the US on September 11, George Bush got a 35-point boost in his approval ratings, which he spent the rest of his presidency squandering.  Bush’s most potent political ally became Bin Laden specifically, and terrorism generally, … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy, Politics | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Kennan On Vietnam, Or Afghanistan

Posted on June 9, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

From Democracy Arsenal, a few bits of wisdom from George Kennan: On prolonging a conflict to prevent a blow to American prestige, Kennan said: “There is more respect to be won in the opinion of this world by resolute and … Continue reading →

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No Permanent Allies But Fear Itself

Posted on June 2, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

Some are trying to attribute Netanyahu’s decision to pick a fight with his most important ally for no reason to his permanent siege mentality: Netanyahu interprets Jewish history as a series of tragedies and near-annihilations of our civilization. While not inaccurate, it … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy, News and Current Events | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Mission Accomplished

Posted on May 26, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

From an NYT article about the reception of Netanyahu’s trip back at home: The praise here for Mr. Netanyahu’s oratory skill on Tuesday in Congress was overwhelming, even from his enemies. Disputes about his performance were limited to how many times he … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy, News and Current Events, Politics | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Jeffrey Goldberg: Doing A Lot Of Leg-Work For Hamas

Posted on May 25, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

Via dedc, Jeffrey Goldberg, whose devotion to Israel’s security cannot be legitimately questioned, writes: If I were a Palestinian (and, should there be any confusion on this point, I am not), and if I were the sort of Palestinian who … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreign Policy, News and Current Events, Politics | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Son, You’re Playing with Fire/The Kid Will Live and Learn

Posted on April 25, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

The unrest in Syria today, which includes military attacks by the regime against civilians, leads Andrew Sullivan to ask, ”So we have a fully fledged unprovoked military attack on civilians in their homes. How long before we are informed it is a … Continue reading →

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Unconstitutional Moment, or Epoch?

Posted on March 26, 2011 by reflectionephemeral

Bruce Ackerman argues that the US’s military action in Libya violates the Constitution: After the Vietnam War, Congress passed the War Powers Resolution, which granted the president the power to act unilaterally for 60 days in response to a “national … Continue reading →

Posted in Law, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments