(By Juan Cole) Among the charges in former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates’s memoirs against Barack Obama is that the latter did not trust his generals, did not adopt the Afghanistan War as his own, and was skeptical of the Pentagon plan for a troop escalation and a big counter-insurgency push. It is now forgotten […]
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Asia
Top Ten Things Bob Gates was Wrong about, Some Criminal
(By Juan Cole) Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates in his new memoir is said to have slammed Vice President Joe Biden for having been consistently “wrong” on foreign policy matters over the past four decades. Gates’s petty gossip about his former colleagues should put an end to the pusillanimous Democratic Party tradition of appointing […]
The Year in Drone Strikes: As Many as 35 Civilians Dead, 5 Children
(By Alice K Ross and Jack Serle) In 2013 the number of drone strikes to hit Pakistan fell to the lowest levels of Obama’s presidency: 27 strikes reportedly hit the country’s tribal areas, down from a peak of 128 in 2010. And for the first time since Pakistan strikes started in 2004, there were no […]
The Failure of the Trillion Dollar National Security State
(By Tom Engelhardt> In a 1950s civics textbook of mine, I can remember a Martian landing on Main Street, U.S.A., to be instructed in the glories of our political system. You know, our tripartite government, checks and balances, miraculous set of rights, and vibrant democracy. There was, Americans then thought, much to be proud of, […]
“Zariya”: A. R. Rahman, Jordan song, Nepal Buddhist Hymn
India’s MTV program “Coke Studio” (sponsored by Coca Cola) presents: Published on Aug 1, 2013 Giving a whole new spin to the term ‘world music’ — A.R.Rahman spins his magic on an absolute scorcher, featuring Jordanian singer –Farah Siraj along with Nepalese Buddhist Nun Ani Choying. With the traditional Nepalese Buddhist hymn forming the base […]
The Politics of War Casualty Counts, from the “GWOT” to Syria
(By Michael Munk) Counting the casualties of war is a highly political exercise. We recall the competition for promotion and decoration between US military commanders in Vietnam for Vietcong “body counts.” When these were widely exposed as false or misleading (labeling civilians as fighters), the same military announced “we don’t do body counts” in the […]
Former Pakistan Dictator suffers “heart problem” on Way to Treason Trial
(by AFP) Musharraf suffers ‘heart problem’ on way to treason hearing (via AFP) Pakistan’s former military ruler Pervez Musharraf was rushed to hospital Thursday after suffering a “heart problem” on his way to court, in the latest dramatic twist in his treason trial. The 70-year-old had been summoned to the special tribunal in… — […]
Tagore’s “The New Year” (Poem of the Day)
(By Rabindranath Tagore) The New Year LIKE FRUIT, shaken free by an impatient wind from the veils of its mother flower, thou comest, New Year, whirling in a frantic dance amid the stampede of the wind-lashed clouds and infuriate showers, while trampled by thy turbulence are scattered away the faded and the frail in an […]
17% of Americans Support Afghanistan War: CNN (Video of the Day)
(By Juan Cole) A CNN/ ORC International poll has found that only 17% of Americans support the war in Afghanistan. That is down from 52% in 2008. 82% of Americans are against the war. Other recent polls found that 57% of Americans think the US was wrong to go into Afghanistan in the first place, […]