Photo courtesy whitehouse.govThis is just a quick followup to my post last week about the risks of escalation in the current Middle Eastern conflict.Israel is apparently ending its incursion into Gaza , but there is very little good news emerging from the region.US...
Yassar asks the kind of question academics both love and hate: "What is exactly the thesis of your book?" We love it because, well, we like to talk about our work. We hate it because, well, we kind...
Current events are depressing.My book manuscript looks at religious warfare and state collapse in early modern Europe. It is depressing.So some depressing-but-exciting escapism seems in order....
Two very interesting pieces by Robert Kaplan in the past two days.First, Kaplan reviews a new book by Richard H. Shultz Jr. and Andrea J. Dew. The book, Insurgents, Terrorists, and Militias: The...
I'm becoming a fan of Amazon's "search inside" feature. Much like Google's variant, it provides a quick way to check the accuracy of citations. But it also can turn up some rather random stuff. Forgotten stuff.Here's Martin Gardner in his collection, Did Adam and Eve Have Navels?: Debunking Pseudoscience:The Skeptical Inquirer published in its March/April 1997 issue two angry letters from readers who accused me of unfair attacks on John Dewey and Thomas Kuhn. One of them, Daniel Nexon, was so furious that he cancelled his subscription as a protest against my "crossing over the line" from...
I fail to understand why this concept is so hard to get one's head around. Like Steve Clemons says, taking issue with the Iraq conflict (and leaders who supported it)"has nothing to do with being 'anti-war', it has everything to do with being 'anti-Iraq War' and trying to prevent the same kind of dangerous calculus from being followed in the future."Seems pretty simple to me.Maybe we ought to use smaller words to get the point across.Filed as: Iraq War
As you've seen and heard, North Korea tested its missiles. They launched the Taepo-Dong 2 multi-stage missile as well as 6 short and medium range Nodong missiles and Scud variants.What first strikes me as interesting about this is the sheer number of missiles launched--7 overall. The first volley included 5 short / medium range missiles along with the Taepodong 2. Then, a few hours later, they fired off a 7th missile, also of the short-range variety. All the missiles came down in the sea of Japan (click here for estimated landing zones). The Australians are reporting that more tests maybe...
Via FP Passport, a view inside the weapon system procurement process. You'll notice that in the upper right-hand corner of the chart that this is a classroom aid for students at the Defense Acquisition University--yes, there is a university dedicated to the subject. That should tell you all need to know. FP Passport has a link to PDF versions of the front and back (oh yes, there is a back, and it 'clarifies' the chart on the front).Filed as: Defense Procurement
With the (failed) test launch of the Taepodong-2--along with a few other Scud-like missiles)--some uncertainty regarding North Korea's capabilities has been cleared up--the DPRK lacks the capability to credibily threaten an "annihilating strike" (or any strike for that matter) against the United States. However, by going forward with the test launch, North Korea has put the United States in a position where it must now reveal just how much it really believes what it says about the importance of its reputation.As Dan notes, the US (along with Japan) has been making all sorts of noise...
UPDATE: news reports now suggest North Korea launched at least seven missiles. Why so many? The Glittering Eye is taking suggestions.Top story on Reuters:TOKYO (Reuters) - North Korea launched up to four missiles on Wednesday, including a long-range Taepodong 2 that appeared to fail in flight, a U.S. official and media reports said.A Pentagon official in Washington told Reuters two of the missiles launched by Stalinist and secretive North Korea appeared to have been small Scud-type models.Experts say the Taepodong 2 is a multi-stage missile with a possible range of 3,500 km to 4,300 km,...
Wishing my fellow members of the Duck and all our readers a safe and happy 4th of July.In between burgers and dogs I would recommend giving E.J. Dionne, Jr.'s column a read. Hopefully we will never forget that 1776 was merely a starting point and that great work remains to be done.Filed as: Independence Day
In honor of Independence Day, a little game of "spot the performative contradiction."The First Amendment to the United States Constitution:Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.Courtesy of the Washington Post, the VA's response to Sgt. Patrick D. Stewart's widow's request that a brass plaque bearing the symbol of his Wiccan faith -- a pentacle -- be installed in...