First, let me say that I respect Sonny Bunch. A lot. I rarely agree with Sonny, but he is clearly and genuinely interested in engaging those with whom he disagrees. That said, the posts (and subsequent responsive comment) with which E.D. and Mr. Schwenkler take issue is emblematic of something that has been particularly frustrating [...]

[...] imagine if an American operative out of uniform were captured by the Iranians tomorrow. Imagine he were put into a coffin for hours with no light and barely enough air to breathe, imagine if he were then removed and smashed against a plywood wall by a towel tied around his neck thirty times, imagine [...]

This could anger a lot of folks on the left, but I think it’s an incredibly dangerous precedent to prosecute folks for following orders. More from AP: WASHINGTON -Attorney General Eric Holder says the government won’t prosecute CIA officials for using waterboarding and other harsh interrogation tactics on terror suspects. The decision comes as the [...]

President Obama has decided to relegate the term “enemy combatant” to the waste bin of the Bush era. The Obama administration is abandoning one of President George W. Bush’s key phrases in the war on terrorism: enemy combatant In court filings Friday, the Justice Department said it will no longer use the term to justify [...]

I found this interview through Little Green Footballs, and I have to ask one question: What was Sean Hannity thinking? Look, I understand that Hannity and his ilk make tons of money off of scaring people. But for this Martin Mawyer guy to suggest assert that this Muslim  group has WMDs… without any shred of evidence [...]

Really the only way to guarantee a ceasefire is to wait until your enemy runs out of bullets. So it’s baffling what the nutcake negotiators from Israel and Hamas are trying to achieve with these “temporary” ceasefire proposals. The latest scoop from Israel’s Haaretz newspaper: “Hamas’ Gaza spokesman Ayman Taha, meanwhile, has said recently that [...]

As we move within 24 hours of inaugurating a new president, most of America’s attention is focused on the future, with a great many Americans hopeful about Barack Obama and his coming presidency. But what about the guy packing up the White House? Does he deserve more than a passing goodbye after eight years? Bush [...]

It’s been said before that “the point of torture is torture,” but I don’t think we fully understand the extent to which this is true, nor the extent to which the moral and utilitarian arguments against torture are intertwined. The easiest way to explain what I’m getting at here is through a hypothetical. In this [...]

“Terrorism is a deadly tactic, not an institution or an ideology.” – British Foreign Secretary David Miliband on the limits of the phrase “War on Terror” Here’s more… The foreign secretary wrote that since 9/11 the phrase “war on terror” had “defined the terrain” when it came to tackling terrorism and that although it had [...]

I’ve written at length about my opinions of extraordinary rendition, Guantanamo Bay, etc., but the idea that people will vigorously defend policies that put a completely innocent man through 6 years of hell still leaves me completely baffled. Seriously. This is one of those issues for me where there’s absolutely zero common ground because I [...]

I’ve been pretty harsh on philosophical neo-conservatism over the last year or so. In fact, it’s safe to say that of all the various (actual) political philosophies that form a significant portion of our governing political coalitions, I have consistently held neo-conservatism in by far the most contempt. And without a doubt, the basic tenets [...]

The International Herald Tribune has an opinion piece in it highly critical of the CIA. It makes one wonder if the guys in that agency have a mindset that much different from the automakers in Detroit. All have plenty of money to throw at a problem, but they seem to fail wherever they turn. First, [...]

This is Lagan from ANP, We sat down with James Risen, the New York Times national security corespondent who broke the domestic wiretapping stories, to talk about the dilemmas Obama faces with the unparalleled executive power he will inherit. Dick Cheney recently said that Obama would appreciate all of the power they are handing over, [...]

10:40 a.m. ET to be exact. We all know the names by now. Gen. Jim Jones for National Security Adviser. Robert Gates for Defense Secretary. And Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State. CNN has the other names… Also, two sources close to the transition said Obama will nominate Susan Rice as United Nations ambassador, Arizona [...]

Nicholas Kristof shares his findings from the troubled country, and it’s not pretty. In short, Obama better keep his eye on this nuclear power…or else. After watching this I can’t help but think that, regardless of what this panel says, the incoming administration realizes the unique position Pakistan has on the world stage. After all, [...]

According to current reports, this could be Barack Obama’s national security/foreign affairs team: Secretary of State: Hillary Clinton Secretary of Defense: Robert Gates Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security: Janet Napolitano National Security Advisor: Gen. Jim Jones, a retired 4-star Marine Corps general who actually supported John McCain but is considered pragmatic and very [...]

I still can’t believe we justified holding people indefinitely without access to council or hope for trial. And the following case shows just how egregious that practice was since 4 out of the 5 men ordered released weren’t even “enemy combatants.” From Wash Post: For the first time, a federal judge ordered the release yesterday [...]

The Arizona Governor came out early for Obama, and she’s certainly known as a “no bull” type of politician, so this could be a good fit. Still, taking over the troubled DHS is not an enviable position and she’s definitely got her work cut out for her. From Politico: Napolitano brings law-and-order experience from her [...]

And no, it wasn’t a mistake. From AP: DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) – U.S. military helicopters launched an extremely rare attack Sunday on Syrian territory close to the border with Iraq, killing eight people in a strike the government in Damascus condemned as “serious aggression.” A U.S. military official said the raid by special forces targeted [...]

No sooner did I write this post about the two memes I think will be the Republicans’ bread and butter for the next four years, than I see this editorial from UK’s The Spectator. Melanie Phillips attempts to make the “America Is Losing Its Superpower Status” argument against Obama… The impact of the financial crisis [...]