Monthly Archives: January 2013
Those Iran Sanctions? Not Exactly Having A Deterrent Effect
From the NYT: The diplomat, based in Vienna, the headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency, cited a letter from Iranian officials to the I.A.E.A. saying it wants to upgrade its main enrichment plant at Natanz. The upgrade could speed … Continue reading
US Transports, Tankers Boost French Offensive in Mali
From the NYT, today: In Washington, Pentagon officials said that as of Tuesday 17 sorties by United States Air Force C-17 cargo jets had flown 500 French troops and 390 tons of equipment into Bamako. In addition, there has been … Continue reading
Drone Wars: West African Chapter Begins?
From today’s NYT: The United States military command in Africa is preparing plans to establish a drone base in northwest Africa to increase unarmed surveillance missions on the local affiliate of Al Qaeda and other Islamist extremist groups that American and other Western officials … Continue reading
Mali: Deeper Into The Growing Quagmire
From today’s NYT: WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is debating how much more aid it can give the French military forces who are battling Islamic militants in Mali, weighing the benefit of striking a major blow to Qaeda-linked fighters in … Continue reading
US Role In Mali Escalates
From the AP: U.S. Africa Command says American planes have begun transporting French troops and equipment in support of the country’s mission in Mali And so it begins.
The Martin Luther King You Won’t Hear About Tomorrow
There will be many tomorrow–politicians, academics, pundits, clergy–who will reference King’s “Dream” speech. Far fewer will likely cite passages from his April 1967 address at Riverside Baptist Church, but it’s the speech every person of conscience should reference, particularly in … Continue reading
The Scanners That Just Won’t Die
From the NYT, on the TSA’s decision to pull Rapiscan’s dangerous, ineffective “back scatter” x-ray machines out of airports: Rapiscan will be required to pay for removing the scanners. In a statement, Deepak Chopra, the company’s president, said the decision … Continue reading
The Missing Headline This Week
A record of the main gun firing missions performed by the USS Wisconsin, as seen on her second 16-inch main gun turret. (Author’s collection) It seems the folks at USA Today are the only ones at the national level to … Continue reading
“A Difficult Slog”
Today’s NYT, on the situation in Mali: Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, traveling in Spain, said that France faced a difficult task in taking on the extremists and that the Pentagon remained in talks with the French about what sort … Continue reading
A Grim Milestone Hagel Must Reverse
From NPR: The number of suicide deaths in the U.S. military surged to a record 349 last year — more than the 295 Americans who died fighting in Afghanistan in 2012. The numbers were first reported by the AP; NPR … Continue reading
Long Strange Journey 