A reader writes: Thanks for your provocative Gathering Storm post, which was scary and sad but a great assessment. An exhausting fight between Sunni and Shia thugs with their Al Qaeda and Iranian allies will set some of our enemies upon one another. The tragedy, of course, is that thousands more innocent Iraqis will die … Continue reading Zarqawi’s Fruit
As I wrote yesterday, I wrote extensively about the Pope’s remarkable recent address on reason and faith and Islam as soon as the text was released. You can read my analysis here and here. I do not believe that the issue is an inflammatory quote or some unfortunate misunderstanding. Benedict said something in his own … Continue reading The Pope and Islam
One facet of the foiled London bombing is that the Brits succeeded. They succeeded through good intelligence – not dumb torture or invading countries. And this raises a broader question that deserves wider debate. A reader writes: I generally agree with your post regarding the lack of a clear Democratic proposal to reform the Middle … Continue reading After London
I trusted this president after 9/11. How can anyone trust him if Ron Suskind’s account is true? From Bart Gellman’s review today: One example out of many comes in Ron Suskind’s gripping narrative of what the White House has celebrated as one of the war’s major victories: the capture of Abu Zubaydah in Pakistan in … Continue reading A Question of Trust
One caveat about the Zarqawi killing. For a while now, various sources knowledgeable about Iraq have warned me not to take some claims made about Zarqawi too seriously. He was never a close or comfortable ally with Osama bin Laden, and the Atlantic profile has a fascinating account of the two monsters’ first meeting: As … Continue reading The Zarqawi Mythology
It remains to be seen, of course, what effect the killing of Zarqawi will mean for the future of Iraq. The insurgency, alas, is more than him; but he was a critical, central part of the Jihadist element that has wrought some of the most appalling violence. This then cannot be a bad thing on … Continue reading From the Jaws of Near-Defeat
I caught the trailer of United 93 online and found myself once again with a lump in my throat and a lurch in my stomach. My feelings about the movie opening tonight are complicated. Of course, I have no issue with someone’s First Amendment right to make such a movie, even after so short a … Continue reading Leave Them Alone
I‚Äôm sorry, but I can only bring myself to skim today‚Äôs reports on the playing of the cockpit voice recorder from Flight 93 for jurors in the Moussaoui trial. The pleading, the struggling, the creepy chanting about Allah as the hijackers prepared to slaughter a planeload of people. I know it‚Äôs important for everyone to … Continue reading Killing’s too good for him
The news from Iraq today is about as good as one can hope for right now. Some Sunni leaders have been enticed to support the Constitution on the understanding that they have a few months to finesse it after the vote. It’s a messy, fraught and unsatisfying compromise, which is to say it’s politics. Politics, … Continue reading THE HOPEFUL MESS IN IRAQ
Another mass-murderer gets his come-uppance. Some mild rejoicing is in order. There is evidence that we are making some gradual progress against the insurgency, although so much depends on the political developments of the next few months. My hope is that the experience of voting might prompt many Sunnis to abandon the Jihadist and Baathist … Continue reading GOOD NEWS IN IRAQ
