Peace and Security
Remembering Saul Landau, 1936-2013
By divine intervention, Saul Landau entered my life 12 years ago and taught me how to write, film, and live with dignity. We instantly bonded over having fathers from the "old country" — his father from Ukraine, mine from Syria — and being Semites with prominent...
Reasons to Steer Clear from a Syrian Attack
My wife Sanaa is from Syria. Her family, most of whom are who are Alawite farmers, still lives there. As a former U.S. senator of Middle Eastern descent, I oppose any kind of U.S. attack on Syria and hope that Congress does too in its upcoming vote on the matter. As...
The Syrian Miracle
Considering the recent wave of poor relations between Moscow and Washington, the U.S.-Russian cooperation on Syria seems miraculous and is worthy of the support and encouragement of our people. The fact that both parties have strategic reasons to need a non-violent...
The Off-the-Cuff Breakthrough on Syria
John Kerry may have just accidentally earned himself a Nobel Peace Prize. In off-the-cuff remarks to reporters, the Secretary of State reiterated his support for a U.S. attack on Syria, saying Bashar al-Assad could only ward off a U.S. strike by turning over his...
The Russian-American Beat Must Go On
The Edward Snowden drama has skipped from Washington through Hawaii and Hong Kong and into Moscow. Now, the storyline is back to Washington. Thanks to Russia's decision to grant Snowden asylum for a year, Obama canceled a bilateral meeting with President Vladimir...
Confessions of a Repentant War of 1812 Reenactor
It began innocently enough. I volunteered on a museum's boat-building project — a replica of a longboat of the type used by Commodore Perry in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. Before I knew what was happening, there I was in period military attire,...
The Legacy of 9/11
The 9/11 attacks comprise one of those events that you remember where you heard of it and how, like the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor was for old-timers and JFK's assassination was for middle-timers. I had recently retired (for the first time) and was sitting at an...
Haiti’s Hard Place
Americans are optimistic sorts. That makes it hard to fathom Haiti's grim circumstances, even though the country is just 700 miles from Miami. Business there is controlled by a handful of elite repressive families, the infrastructure doesn't support serious...
Idaho’s Reclusive Promised Land
I haven't heard such enthusiastic, downright raucous applause since Texas Gov. "Oops" Perry suggested in 2009 that his state just might withdraw from the union. Unfortunately for him, the applauders weren't Texans. They were the people of the other 49 states. This...
If Obama Hadn’t Drawn a Red Line, Would We Be Talking about Bombing Syria?
Can anyone say with a straight face that if President Barack Obama hadn't asserted one year ago that the use of poison gas would be a "red line" for military intervention, we would now be discussing a unilateral U.S. missile attack on Syria? They can dress this up as...
