Did you catch the President tonight? I cannot believe he did not specifically address the issue of domestic spying, though I realize it was the subject of Saturday's radio address. Before long, he may regret both yesterday's defiance and today's silence. We'll see.In any case, the President did make some interesting comments. For example, it is noteworthy that despite appearances, Bush apparently doesn't mind criticism -- so long as the critics...

More outrage from conservatives and liberals alike. Tony Arend rounds out some of the legal issues. It becomes more clear by the hour that Bush's actions were illegal, despite the spinning (and weaving, and dodging) of his defenders (hit tip: LGM).The current line of counterattack is twofold. First, impugn the integrity of the New York Times (not the most difficult task these days). Second, call the people who are leaking information about our...

President Bush acknowledged this morning that he ordered illegal surveillance of US citizens.In a rare live radio address, Bush defended the practice as a "vital tool" in defending the United States against another such attack.The presidential order was first reported in The New York Times on Friday. The report said the order allowed the National Security Agency to track international telephone calls and e-mails of hundreds of people without...

So many things going on in the world right now that I'd like to comment on, but can only link to. On top of grading and writing it looks like my sister-in-law could be having her first child any minute now. With that in mind I thought I would recommend some reading this morning. Enjoy.Pelosi Hails Democrats' Diverse War Stances: Democratic House leader Pelosi is ethused by the lack of a coherent position on an Iraq War exit strategy by...

Reuters:Say what?Did Bush say, in effect, "I'm to blame for the bad intelligence"? Is he taking the blame for using bad intelligence? I know he didn't take the blame for Iraq's enduring struggle against poor intel.Turns out, none of the above:"It is true that much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong. As president I am responsible for the decision to go into Iraq, and I am also responsible for fixing what went wrong by reforming our...

Holiday preparation, grading and related work has seriously cut into the hard-hitting, serious analysis of international political events that I would like to do right now (and I suspect that goes for my fellow members as well as posting has have been a bit slow lately). So for the time being I am forced to vent on that warrior of Christ, Bill O'Reilly.The Daily Show just did a typically hysterical bit on the conservative pundit's 'War on...

It appears Rob and I have much in common. From the Which Historic General Are You test (via Curzon at Coming Anarchy):You are...Julius CaesarYou scored 53 Wisdom, 73 Tactics, 59 Guts, and 45 Ruthlessness!Filed as: diversion

Chilling story in the Washington Post this morning on the lack of free speech in Afghanistan four years after the US invasion and toppling of the Taliban regime. What's so disturbing is that it's the type of story I expected to read before we brought down the Taliban.Additionally, Rodger has a post on the seemingly delusional Senator Mitch McConnell who stated that the transition in Iraq has been "rather smooth". Rather smooth? Compared to...

From my fellow Quakers over at The Apollo Creed, a must read on the fallacious 'War on Christmas'. Check it out.Filed as: War on Christmas

On the topic of why the secularization of politics is not such a bad thing.Short, eloquent, and to the point.Filed as: secularism and sectarianism

Now certainly we can all agree that many of the most inflamatory, anti-Israeli statements from Iran's newest President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have been targeted towards a certain segment of his domestic audience and possibly segments of the Arab world. This is quite common for politicians of all types, since their continued power relies in part on their ability to maintain support from relevant actors, and this is done through signaling....

A friend of mine emailed me a link to Barry Posen's "Exit Strategy: How to Disengage with Iraq in Eighteenth Months", which appears in the next issue of the Boston Review. Posen argues, citing familiar evidence, that the occupation is not going particularly well. The insurgency shows no evidence of diminished strength and the Iraqi government shows no signs of being able to take over crucial administrative responsibilities. At the same time,...