Pat Robertson is 723 years old, so maybe it's unfair to note when his brains don't work too good, but really? In comments made on his show "The 700 Club" on ABC Family that were then posted on YouTube by Right Wing Watch, Robertson replied: "You know those who are homosexual will die out because … Continue reading Area man sure gays must have all died out centuries ago

People who really understand Pakistan are trying to make some sense of Tuesday's horrific school attack by the Pakistani Taliban (TTP). Ostensibly the attack was meant as retaliation for a recent Pakistani military campaign in Waziristan that has reportedly killed hundreds of Taliban fighters (and, undoubtedly, a considerable number of children in its own right). … Continue reading The TTP’s internal weakness and the Peshawar school attack

In case you missed it, and you almost certainly did, the last chance to make any progress in the P5+1-Iran talks before the new Congress scuttles the whole negotiating process came and went this week with little fanfare. This round of negotiations was conducted in Geneva at the deputy foreign minister level, which explains the … Continue reading Come and gone

Well, today was a real downer if you're a fan of decades-long, body-laden exercises in Latin America-based futility. Along with the announcement that the U.S. and Cuba would begin normalizing relations, the Colombian Marxist paramilitary group Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, or FARC, declared an indefinite, unilateral ceasefire in its fifty year long rebellion against … Continue reading FARC (tentatively) ends 50 year rebellion in Colombia

As I type this, President Obama is filling everybody's TV screens with Important Foreign Policy News. Apparently, after negotiating a prisoner release/swap with Havana, Obama is prepared to announce that the U.S. is taking steps toward normalizing relations with Cuba, putting us on a path to ending an embargo that took effect over 54 years … Continue reading On Cuba, and the role of sanctions

There's a lot of buzz being invested in a new WAPO-ABC poll on the idea of torturing detainees in the name of fighting terror. A majority of Americans believe that the harsh interrogation techniques used on terrorism suspects after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks were justified, even as about half the public says the treatment … Continue reading Cherry picking polls

Apparently some men will never take women seriously, even if those men are trained diplomats and the woman in question is the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power: Here is what happened, according to Osnos' story: Gérard Araud, the current French Ambassador to the US and at the time French ambassador to the UN, sent … Continue reading Seriously, what the hell is wrong with men?

How can you process something like this? Militants from the Pakistani Taliban have attacked an army-run school in Peshawar, killing 141 people, 132 of them children, the military say. Officials say the attack in the north-western city is over, with all the attackers killed. Seven militants took part in all, according to the army. 132 … Continue reading Pointless atrocities

I don't know about you, but I've been pretty glued to the news coverage from Sydney, well into the night last night and for most of the day today. There are no words to express the tragedy at the loss of the two hostages who were killed during the ordeal, or the mental anguish that … Continue reading Please don’t let Sheikh Haron win

Does Fox News employ anyone who might broadly be considered a "fact checker"? Because it never really seems like it: Seated in front of a glittering backdrop of New York City, Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly began a “Taking the Religion Out of Christmas” segment on her prime time show, “The Kelly File.” “Well, it … Continue reading Happy Sparkle Day to Megyn Kelly and Fox News!