US Wars and Military Action

Iraqi army vehicle

Why Do All of the Pentagon’s ‘Successes’ in Iraq Look More Like Failures? Why Do All of the Pentagon’s ‘Successes’ in Iraq Look More Like Failures?

The only thing the US military has succeeded at is believing its own propaganda.

Jan 21, 2016 / Nick Turse

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Russian officials.

The Secret Diplomacy That Could End the East-West Confrontation Over Ukraine The Secret Diplomacy That Could End the East-West Confrontation Over Ukraine

Though scarcely reported in the US media, all leaders involved in the epicenter of the new Cold War have launched a concerted campaign to end the Ukrainian civil (and US-Russian pr...

Jan 20, 2016 / Stephen F. Cohen

Who Runs the Pentagon?

Who Runs the Pentagon? Who Runs the Pentagon?

Not Defense Secretary Ashton Carter—while he may be more than a figurehead, “the building” has no boss.

Jan 20, 2016 / Feature / Andrew J. Bacevich

ISIS Fighters

How Saddam Hussein’s Execution Contributed to the Rise of Sectarianism in the Middle East How Saddam Hussein’s Execution Contributed to the Rise of Sectarianism in the Middle East

He was a brutal tyrant, but he remains an important symbol of strength for disillusioned Sunnis throughout the region.

Jan 15, 2016 / Mohamad Bazzi

US Troops Afghanistan

The Pentagon’s New Base Plan Will Achieve the Exact Opposite of Its Goal The Pentagon’s New Base Plan Will Achieve the Exact Opposite of Its Goal

We’re building bases to prevent terrorism, but local terror groups are recruiting in reaction to our bases.

Jan 14, 2016 / David Vine

US and Kuwaiti soldiers close a gate between Iraq and Kuwait in December 2011.

Is It Time for the US to Pull Out of Iraq and Syria? Is It Time for the US to Pull Out of Iraq and Syria?

Five years after the Arab Spring began, four experts debate a pressing question that remains unsettled on the left.

Jan 14, 2016 / Jeff Faux, Muhammad Idrees Ahmad, Phyllis Bennis, and Sherle R. Schwenninger

Obama’s Last State of the Union: Wonderful Rhetoric, Messy Realities

Obama’s Last State of the Union: Wonderful Rhetoric, Messy Realities Obama’s Last State of the Union: Wonderful Rhetoric, Messy Realities

He hit all the right notes, but wouldn’t it have been wonderful if he could have used the past tense to describe the crisis of inequality?

Jan 13, 2016 / Sasha Abramsky

Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and US Secretary of State John Kerry

The New US-Russian Cold War Originated in the 1990s The New US-Russian Cold War Originated in the 1990s

Today it threatens to destroy Ukraine, undermine the European Union, and result in nuclear war.

Jan 13, 2016 / Stephen F. Cohen

Ted Cruz’s Poll Numbers Rose After He Proposed Carpet Bombing

Ted Cruz’s Poll Numbers Rose After He Proposed Carpet Bombing Ted Cruz’s Poll Numbers Rose After He Proposed Carpet Bombing

How do we explain Americans’ lack of empathy for those on the other end of our bombing campaigns?

Jan 11, 2016 / Rick Shenkman

Visualizing the Four Freedoms: FDR’s Fighting Artist, Arthur Szyk

Visualizing the Four Freedoms: FDR’s Fighting Artist, Arthur Szyk Visualizing the Four Freedoms: FDR’s Fighting Artist, Arthur Szyk

We all know about Norman Rockwell. But it was Szyk who best conveyed the life-or-death urgency of the struggle against fascism.

Jan 8, 2016 / Allison Claire Chang

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