News Abroad

Japan's Prime Minister is a Far-Right Nationalist

by Tessa Morris-Suzuki

Is it possible that the best way to win future wars is to avoid them altogether?  As simple as that question is, you will rarely hear it asked in the halls of power in Washington.

The Making of the U.S. Surveillance State, 1898-2020

by Alfred W. McCoy

Sadly, Mark Twain was right when he warned us just over 100 years ago that America could not have both empire abroad and democracy at home. 

Demystifying the NSA Surveillance Program

by John Prados

The NSA scandal is fast becoming the most serious diplomatic disaster in recent American history. For a host of reasons the surveillance needs to stop right now.

Writing About the Military Will Screw with Your Life

by Nick Turse

 “Why the officer stopped you is beyond me, but what the officer discovered is something of interest, especially for national security... It’s not every day you see someone traveling with information like this.” 

The Intricacies of Egyptian Coup d'États

by Daniel Pipes

Was Morsi the democratically elected president of Egypt? Every press account affirms he was but that is wrong. 

Still Preparing for Nuclear War

by Lawrence S. Wittner

Unless there is a substantial public mobilization to end the American government’s reliance on nuclear war, it seems likely that U.S. officials will continue to prepare for it.

The Danger in Egypt is Real

by Juan Cole

Egypt’s future stability and prosperity now depends on whether the officer corps and youth are mature enough to return to pluralist principals and cease persecuting the Muslim Brotherhood just because Morsi was high-handed.

How "Game of Thrones" Mirrors Modern Geopolitics

by Scot Faulkner

Washington politicians would learn more from following HBO fantasy dramas than cable talk shows.

What Turkey's Riots Mean

by Daniel Pipes

 To assess the future of Islamism in Turkey, watch the economic indicators.

Just What is the Pentagon Up To in Africa?

by Nick Turse

After 10 years of U.S. operations to promote stability by military means, the results have been the opposite. Africa has become blowback central. 

The Information Age Has Given Birth to a Global Security State

by Tom Engelhardt

You may have secrets, but you are not a secret -- and you know it.

What Obama and Xi's Shirt Sleeves Summit Means

by Jeffrey Wasserstrom

Though Xi loosened his tie in California, he’s shown no signs of loosening up on human rights issues back home.

Top Ten Conclusions from Iran’s Election

by Juan Cole

Those who believed that Khamenei would try to fix this election for Jalili as he is accused by the Green ovement of doing four years ago were mistaken. 

Yes, PRISM Really is a Big Deal

by John Prados

The truth is that the terrorist threat is much diminished from what it was when the Patriot Act was adopted in 2001, or even from 2008, when amendments to that law opened the door to PRISM.

How Did Rob Ford Get Elected Mayor of Toronto, Anyway?

by Bert S. Hall

Credit: Wiki CommonsNow that allegations that Toronto mayor Rob Ford was videoed smoked crack in his drug dealer’s apartment have propelled him into headlines around the globe (though sadly the video, which was being offered to the highest bidder by his dealer, has for the moment disappeared), it seems an apropos moment to take a look back at Ford's storied career.

Is Erdogan Really a Dictator?

by Juan Cole

Originally posted on Informed Comment.

Much Ado about Islands

by Gavan McCormack

Credit: Wiki Commons.This article is a condensed version of a longer essay which appeared in JapanFocus.More than six decades from the San Francisco Treaty that purportedly resolved the Asia-Pacific War and created a system of peace, East Asia in 2013 remains troubled by the question of sovereignty over a group of tiny, uninhabited islands. The governments of Japan, China, and Taiwan all covet and claim sovereignty over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands.The islands, known in Japanese as Senkaku and in Chinese as Diaoyu, are little more than rocks in the ocean, but they are rocks on which there is a real prospect of peace and cooperation in the region foundering.The Long View

How We Name Our Wars Matters

by Andrew J. Bacevich

Clockwise from top: Buffalo Soldiers in the Spanish American War; a Soviet officer in World War II; Canadian troops in World War I, and dead Confederate soldiers in the American Civil War.Originally posted on TomDispatch.com For well over a decade now the United States has been “a nation at war.” Does that war have a name?

Women and the Language of Peace Protest

by Ruth Rosen

The Jeannette Rankin Brigade. Photo from Life magazine.Cross-posted from openDemocracy's 50.50 blog

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Obama's Terrorism Speech

by Juan Cole

Originally posted on Informed Comment.Here are the good, the bad and the ugly things in President Obama’s important speech on counter-terrorism Thursday, and in the off-stage steps he has announced that mysteriously did not appear in the speech:The Good: