Peace and Security
What Trump and Suu Kyi Have in Common
Gun Control Shouldn’t Be This Hard
Before the gun lobby or its sycophants in Congress bring out their usual talking points for why we can't ever have common sense gun reform, I'd like to shoot one of them down. No pun intended. We just saw what happens when a bad guy with a gun is met by a good guy...
A Well-Regulated Militia
Who’s Really in Charge of the Afghanistan War?
In June, our Tweety Bird president tweeted this message to members of the U.S. Army: “Proud to be your commander-in-chief.” Actually, Trump is only the delegator-in-chief — he's passed to subordinates a president's most solemn duty of guiding our nation's war...
A U.S. Soldier Died in Niger. What on Earth Are We Doing There?
In our military-revering culture, it’s a strange thing for a president to start a war of words with the grieving families of slain soldiers. Strange, yes. But from Donald Trump’s campaign season feud with the parents of Humayun Khan, who died protecting fellow...
The Sad State of Disaster Relief
Five former U.S. presidents recently came together to raise money for hurricane relief for the victims of hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria. This generous, bipartisan act is one of true generosity and statesmanship. And yet, as former presidents, all five men know...
Me Too. And You. And You.
"Me too." I posted those words on Facebook recently, along with what seems like every woman I know. A post went viral asking each woman to write the words “Me too" if she'd been sexually assaulted or harassed. A man exposed himself to me once. Ten years ago. He was in...
Mourning in Vegas
Bernie Sanders Thinks War Is Overrated, And He’s Right
When Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) was a candidate for president, he seemed uninterested in talking about foreign policy. Instead, Sanders cast himself as a progressive populist and focused almost exclusively on domestic issues, particularly speaking out against the...
Lessons on North Korea from the Cuban Missile Crisis
Nearly 55 years ago, in October 1962, I was a college student who'd just turned 20. The Cuban Missile Crisis began the day after my birthday, and it seemed entirely possible that I (along with tens of millions of other people) might die in nuclear fire and fury before...
