American Dove makes pragmatic case for a dovish foreign policy. The use of force is a terrible foreign-policy instrument: it’s expensive and hardly ever works.
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No More Vietnams? Reforming the Selective Service
When I was young, I dreamed of Italy. Once in a while, my father would pull out the slide projector and show us pictures from his life on a mountain near Colle Isarco, not far from Italy’s border...
Why Do People Buy #Pizzagate?
Pizzagate, the conspiracy theory started by alt-right Twitter which alleged that John Podesta's emails exposed some members of the Democratic party as being part of a DC pizzeria-based child-sex...
A Plea for Cease Fire in the New American Civil War, Part I—A Trump Unity Agenda
Before the election, I offered that I would write three posts on bridging the sharp divides that have us in warring camps--one on a unity agenda, the second on changes in the tone of our public...
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Mid-Week Linkage
Syria New evidence of mass atrocity in Syria sets a bitter tone as peace talks kick off in Geneva. IRC's David Miliband in WAPO on why humanitarian issues must be a priority at Geneva. Speaking to the NYT, HRW's Kenneth Roth concurs. Stephen Heydman in FP on whether justice could undermine peace at Geneva. Human Security Locals and expatriates in Kabul commemorate the loss of Kamal Hamade, whose iconic Kabul restaurant was destroyed by a suicide bomber last week. AidDatablog: new and improved methods for adjudicating conflicting reports on the efficacy of development aid. Nicholas Kristof:...
Are CIA Drone Pilots Likelier to Comply With International Law?
That is the justification made by senior lawmakers last week for adding a secret provision into appropriations bill that would block President Obama's efforts to place the CIA's drone program back under military control. As reported in the Washington Post: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Appropriations Committee, said last year that she had seen the CIA “exercise patience and discretion specifically to prevent collateral damage” and that she “would really have to be convinced that the military would carry it out that...
Public Opinion in the Midst of the Syrian Civil War
I have been an admirer of Sam Whitt’s work for some time. He has always done interesting research, being one of the first to study and publish on Katrina and run surveys/experiments on divided post conflict societies. Whitt and his colleague Vera Mironova, conducted a survey of civilians and rebels in Syria during the Civil War. This fascinating study points out many problems and issues the international community will face as it tries to push for a peaceful solution to the Syrian Civil War. Moving beyond the civil-military gap and also the more modern socio-military gap, Mironova and...
Monday Linkage – MLK Day Edition
Good mornin' Ducks! Here are your links: Oliver Steunkel discusses "The Death of IMF Reform?" at the Post-Western World Blog. The US Congress' rejection an IMF funding request by the Obama administration "... leaves the 188-nation group without additional resources and blocks an increase in voting power for China, India, Brazil and other emerging markets." Stephen Harner explains "Why China's ADIZ is Necessary" at the China-US Focus blog. He argues, "The calculation and timing of China’s move may also evidence a reluctant realization that military-to-military dialogue with the United...
France’s Re-Emergence as a Major Power
If there is an Obama Doctrine in the realm of foreign affairs, it comprises robust multilateralism—being multilateral when the U.S. can, unilateral when it must. Subjected to scrutiny, however, the Obama Doctrine can only work if the U.S. has capable and willing partners. Yet under conditions of widespread fiscal austerity among western allies—and the political austerity of skeptical western citizens—meeting the challenge of securing their joint interests is formidable. While the U.S. has begun to shore up the security of its allies in Southeast Asia via its rebalance to Asia, despite...
Belated Thursday Links – It’s Still Thursday Somewhere Right?
So, your humble blogger found himself subsumed by first week of class duties and fell behind on the job! To make amends, I've flagged some stories that caught my eye, which should make for some welcome weekend reading. My eye this week was mostly trained on energy and environment stuff (U.S. greenhouse gas emissions on the rise again - boo!), with a dash of global health (spending up by USG on global health up slightly - yay!) with a side of Springsteen and Fallon (Christie may not be born to run - classic!) Enjoy. U.S. Energy and Environment Aside from the chemical spill that contaminated...
OAIS Blogging Awards Voting Begins
We're a week behind, but the nominees are in and voting is now open. We sent out ballots today to those who registered for voting. If you did not receive one or if you haven't registered yet, please email us for a ballot. Voting runs through February 7. As with last year, we will use a Borda-count process to create a list of finalists and then proceed to a second round in which a panel of judges (last year's winners and Duck permanent contributors) will determine the winners in each category. We ask voters to choose three (3) finalists for the Best Blog category, six (6) for the Best...
Friday Nerd Blogging
The new and quite awesome-looking Season 4 trailer promises "war, death, hell," or as the Christian Post puts it, "action and intrigue." Duh. But it also hints at many more diversions from the books to come. Here is a breakdown. For Game of Thrones book fans, this may be appropriate: