Peace and Security
Here’s What You Can Do for Middle East Peace
While news swirled around health care and climate rules last month, another potentially momentous development slipped through the cracks. It was the Senate's quiet confirmation of David Friedman to serve as the new U.S. ambassador to Israel. That vote threatens to...
Are You Watching Iraq? You Should Be.
In a desolated patch of Mosul, Iraq, people are still digging through the rubble. Rescuers wear masks to cover the stench, while anxious family members grow desperate about missing loved ones. The full story of what happened in the al-Jidideh neighborhood isn't yet...
Right Now, Trump Can Start a Nuclear War
Right now, Donald Trump could start a nuclear war on a whim, and no one could stop him. Under any circumstances, the prospect of nuclear war is terrifying, the deadly consequences irreversible. Yet with a single order, the president — any president — could effectively...
Getting That Secure Feeling Yet?
Millions of Americans are feeling uneasy, disgruntled, and insecure. That message sounded loud and clear throughout our turbulent election year. The Trump administration's latest budget proposal isn't likely to change that. It comes down to this: lots more money — $54...
Russian Dolls
There Was Nothing Moderate About Trump’s Speech
Donald Trump began this recent speech to Congress with a line seemingly designed to appease his critics. "As we mark the conclusion of our celebration of Black History Month," he said, "we are reminded of our nation's path toward civil rights and the work that still...
The Real Danger of Trump’s Alleged ‘Pee Party’
The week leading up to the presidential inauguration brought streams, if not floods, of pee jokes. You might even say it was the number one opportunity for scatological humor since the poop cruise of 2013. My heart goes out to parents who have to find an appropriate...
Why I Answered the Call for Veterans to Go to Standing Rock
I lay among friends, huddled and cold in our sleeping bags. We listened to the lashing wind and the drums and prayer chants coming from the sacred fire, and we reflected on why we, four Iraq War veterans, were here. Police floodlights shone from the drill site of the...
No More Holiday Gifts for Repressive Regimes
While the world has been transfixed on the epic tragedy in Syria, another tragedy — a hidden one — has been consuming the children of Yemen. Battered by the twin evils of war and hunger, every 10 minutes a child in Yemen dies from malnutrition, diarrhea, or...
Foreign Meddling in Our Vote? Remember How This Feels.
Even in an election year as shot through with conspiracy theories as this one, it would have been hard to imagine a bigger bombshell than Russia intervening to help Donald Trump. But that’s exactly what the CIA believes happened, or so unnamed “officials brief on the...
