The New York Times commemorated Al Haig’s death by reprinting this 1989 op-ed he wrote thinking through counterterrorism strategy after the U.S. got caught in a spate of Hezbollah/Israel hostage-taking. (Background.) Your task is to tell me what this means: [A]s in any war, a commander in chief must also know that military operations can [...]

… is not caring one bit about hockey, even if it is for a gold medal. Do we really come out worse for not beating the Canadians in their national sport? Congratulations to Canada.

Audible gasp: “Why does the country need an independent Air Force?” the senior civilian assistant to Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, the service’s chief of staff, had written. For the first time in the 62-year history of the Air Force, the answer isn’t entirely clear. Rob, you magnificent bastard. Seriously, read the article, as it’s a [...]

The Unicorns — or their management company or their record label — have sold “I Was Born A Unicorn” to Crayola. Sigh. I shouldn’t care. So what. Is it such a bad thing that little kids hear a great song that recalls youthful joy? Dear God, enough.

I wondered in January if Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, a/k/a Abu Dujaanah al-Khorasani, the al-Qaeda double agent who killed seven CIA & Blackwater operatives at FOB Chapman in Khost Province, was tortured by the Jordanians during his crucial moment in their custody in early 2009. According to a new as-Sahab “martyrdom” video of Khorasani — [...]

This is Tareq al-Fadhli, a Yemeni who’s lived a picaresque life, one that included a stint fighting the Soviets beside Usama bin Laden. He’s against the Yemeni government and wants to ingratiate himself to the Americans, but I don’t care about that right now. I care about broadcasting this far and wide. “When I fought [...]

IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 156-10 February 26, 2010 DOD Identifies Army Casualty The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. William C. Spencer, 40, of Tacoma, Wash., died Feb. 25 at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds sustained Feb. 20 while supporting combat [...]

This “Gitmo Nine” fucking bullshit is beneath the dignity of all thinking people. There is not a single shameful thing about representing a Guantanamo detainee. And singling out Neal Katyal — only a fucking tool or a racist will deny the racial overtones in suggesting that brown man at the Justice Department is a terrorist [...]

The first thing I did this morning when I saw that civilian aid workers in Kabul came under assault from the Taliban was Skype my friend Una to make sure she’s OK. Hours later, she confirmed that she is. She was very close to one of the blast sites and wrote about it for War [...]

I got about ten minutes into my friends Marcy Wheeler and Chris Hayes’ podcast about the OPR report before I realized that the rest of the media is obsessing over the resignation of the White House social secretary. I’m all set to go on a self-righteous rant about how journalism is a trust and an [...]