“One of the first meetings I want to have is with President Xi of China, President Putin of Russia,” US president Donald Trump said on February 13. “And I want to say, ‘let’s cut our military budget in half.’ And we can do that. And I think we’ll be able to.” Trump...
What Would You Say This War Is About, Tom Knapp?
Bakhmut, 2023. State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. More than 40 years after its release, an exchange in the opening scene of Warren Beatty’s Academy Award-winning film Reds floats to the front of my mind...
The Big Question About the UN Security Council’s Gaza Ceasefire Resolution
On March 25, the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 2728 , regarding the ongoing war in Gaza, by a vote of 14-0. The United States abstained rather than – as it usually does when the Israeli regime dislikes a resolution – using its “permanent member”...
Foreign Military Aid: $95.3 Billion Sounds Like a Lot of Money. So Does Your Cut.
On February 13, the US Senate passed a bill including $95.3 billion in taxpayer handouts the Ukrainian, Israeli, and Taiwanese regimes. Inter-, intra-, and bi-partisan wrangling in the Senate, House, and Biden administration will likely change the exact size and...
In the New Year, Thank You for Your Service
As 2023 ends and 2024 begins, I’d like to take the opportunity to thank billions of you, in America and around the world, for your service. No, I’m not talking to military veterans — or at least not to military veterans AS military veterans. Whenever I’m thanked for...
War: Thanks But No Thanks
The Battle of Missionary Ridge, fought the day before the “Thanksgiving Day” proclaimed by Abraham Lincoln. When I think of Thanksgiving, I seldom think of the Pilgrims and Wampanoag people dining together (likely sans turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie) in...
Which Country Are Ron DeSantis and Opponents Running for President of Again?
“The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations,” George Washington wrote in his farewell address as first president of the United States, “is in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible. … it is...
‘Collateral Damage’ Is a Confession, Not an Excuse
“Civilians are not collateral damage,” the World Health Organization’s Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean tweeted (or whatever it’s called now on X, formerly Twitter) on October 27. “Patients are not collateral damage. Health staff & health facilities...
Congress Tries to Wish Away Israeli Racism and Apartheid
On July 18, the US House of Representatives passed a resolution by the kind of lopsided vote (412 for, 9 against, 1 present) normally reserved for proclamations lauding members’ hometown Little League programs. Unlike most legislation, Concurrent Resolution 57 is...
Classified Documents Leak: Who Should Go to Prison
As I write this, Politico reports that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation has made an arrest in the matter of “classified” government documents found circulating on social media after allegedly being posted on an Internet game chat server over a period...