The idea that the information contained in the SSCI report is so volatile, so outrageous, so intolerable that it could actually inspire attacks on Americans and American interests overseas is, if true, an argument not to do the things mentioned in the report. It's not an argument for burying the report and pretending we never … Continue reading One more thought on torture

Pretty slow news day, huh? Yep, not too much to talk about today I guess. Well, I guess there is that report the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence released about some program or another, enhanced something something? I guess I could Google that and see if it's gotten any attention... (Hours pass) Well, uh, I … Continue reading Tortured report

Over the weekend, as you've undoubtedly heard by now, an attempt to rescue U.S. photojournalist Luke Somers from Yemen, where he was being held hostage by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, failed. Somers was kidnapped in September 2013 and appeared in a recently released video in which AQAP pledged to murder him within three … Continue reading Real life is not an episode of “24” (Yemen)

Colum Lynch's mysteriously disappeared "U.S. Accuses Iran of Secretly Breaching U.N. Nuclear Sanctions" exclusive is once again online this morning, with no explanation why it was posted and then pulled on Friday. The obvious explanation is that Foreign Policy wanted to run a juicy exclusive like this on Monday, when lots more people are reading … Continue reading Foreign Policy’s disappeared Iran article reappears

I'm pretty addicted to Feedly, as I've probably mentioned before. So I was catching up on my newsfeed last night when I see blaring at me, via Foreign Policy's RSS feed, the headline: U.S. Accuses Iran of Secretly Breaching U.N. Nuclear Sanctions I read the entire article, because for some reason FP's RSS feed has been … Continue reading Foreign Policy’s Incredible Disappearing “Iran Is Breaching U.N. Sanctions” Article

After Michèle Flournoy and Sen. Jack Reed both said "thanks, but no thanks" to the chance to become Barack Obama's fourth defense secretary, the last top candidate standing was Dr. Ashton Carter, who previously served as Obama's (2011-2013) Deputy Secretary of Defense and (2009-2011) Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics, and before that was … Continue reading Obama nominates hawkish Ashton Carter as next Secretary of Defense

I'm just gonna leave this here, since, well, you know. I will add, though, that while I'm actually in agreement with John McCain (I know) on this, he could have been slightly more...diplomatic, let's say, about expressing his thoughts: Orbán is pretty authoritarian, though "neo-fascist" might be going too far, but he's not a dictator, … Continue reading How do you say “Days of Our Lives” in Hungarian?

So Tuesday's story wasn't entirely accurate: "Dulaimi is not Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's wife currently. She has been married three times: first to a man from the former Iraqi regime, with whom she had two sons," he said. "Six years ago she married Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi for three months, and she had a daughter with him. … Continue reading Turns out Lebanon is detaining EX Mrs. al-Baghdadi (maybe)

It's hard not to give in to laughter sometimes: Letters from disillusioned French fighters in Syria published by a French newspaper this week have revived a contentious debate in Europe about what to do with radicalized recruits to foreign wars who wish to lay down their arms and return home. In the excerpts, published by Le … Continue reading “MOOOM, this jihad is SOOOO lame, can I come home now????”

A group of Chechen insurgents seized control of buildings in the Chechen capital city of Grozny on Wednesday night, then engaged in a gun battle with police that appears to have killed at least 19, 9 fighters and 10 police officers (nobody with the Chechen Republic seems prepared to say whether there were any civilian … Continue reading Is Russia on the verge of a new Chechen conflict?