2.27.2006

The sheik behind the port deal

Here's a thoughtful take on the recent uproar surrounding the aquisition of several U.S. ports by a firm owned by the UAE.

"The anxiety is that America is losing its place at the forefront of the global economy. We're suffering, experts say, from a bad case of economic insecurity that is rooted in America's long-standing inclination toward isolationism."

2.18.2006

Genius

Do yourself a favor and watch this trailer:
Brokeback to the Future

2.10.2006

Don't Despair Over Hamas Gains

Forbes has a summary of a meeting held yesterday at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars with the Israeli and Egyptian Ambassadors as well as the PLO representative to the U.S.

To me, the central issue for the United States is how to reconcile support for "free and fair" elections in Palestine--observed by the U.N. and the National Democratice Institute--with the coming to power of a political group the U.S. has labeled a terrorist organization. How do we allow citizens to choose their own leaders and then reject the outcome? If the U.S. chooses to decrease or cutoff aid to Palestine, which is currently being discussed on Capitol Hill, we are sending a hypocritical message to the Palestinian people. It would seem to me that in so doing we would only be fostering further resentment toward the U.S. and its foreign policy.

This brings me to another point. For all of Bush's talk on bringing democracy too the Middle East and focusing on U.S. national security, Iran's position continues to get stronger. First we took out their religious and political opposition in Iraq, then we facilitated the coming to power in Palestine of an organization whose stated objective--the destruction of Israel--coincides directly with President Ahmadinejad's own interests. Obviously, U.S. government officials had no way to predict the outcome of Palestinian elections, yet it's hard for me to see how these recent developments have furthered U.S. interests in the region.

2.09.2006

Will Globalization Make Hatred More Lethal?

An interesting essay by Robert Wright, Schwartz Senior Fellow, discusses the implications of new developments in technology on the ability of terrorists to plan and carry out attacks.

Here's an excerpt (italics added):

"Why has terrorism become public enemy number one? The most common answer--the rise of a brand of radical Islam that uses terror as its weapon—-is true insofar as it goes. But the reason this weapon is so scary is that something deeper has changed: technology now makes it possible for clusters of intensely hateful people to cause thousands, even millions, of deaths without using the political or military machinery of a state. Yes, the hateful people most likely to exploit this fact today are radical Muslims, but even if this threat subsides, the generic threat will remain: hatred is more lethal than it used to be. And the underlying technological trends will persist over the next three decades, making it more lethal still."

2.05.2006

Here we go Steelers


Michael Imbroscio has a great article in today's Post:

"Because of its proximity to Pittsburgh -- four hours by car-- Washington and its suburbs are a hotbed of transplanted "Yinz-ers" -- a name derived from a quirk of the Pittsburgh dialect in which other people are referred to not as "you" or even as "you all," but as "yinz." Thousands of Yinz-ers, now in their thirties and forties -- such as myself -- call the Washington area home."