Twenty-Eight Years Later, it’s Finally 1984
The year 1984, by Gregorian reckoning, came and went, and Americans seemed to have dodged the Nineteen-Eighty-Four bullet. We weren’t being interned for reeducation by a Ministry of Love. Although conservative, constitutionalist, limited-government ideas came under relentless attack in the mainstream media and the academy, those who expressed the ideas remained free to do so. (They in fact became freer with the lifting under Reagan of the genuinely Orwellian-named “Fairness Doctrine.”) In 2012, the atmosphere has changed.
Divide-istan: Straight Talk about Breaking up the USA
The impetus for a break-up depends mostly on how badly "RED" America wants to escape the repressive policy overreach of "BLUE" America.
The Shakiest Nukes in the West
Nukes aren’t something you wave around like a drunk brandishing a knife.
J.E. Dyer: Reflections on Ambassador Shapiro’s ‘We’re ready to attack’ comments in Israel
For the United States, issuing attack threats in the manner of Hugo Chavez is not a convincing posture. I don’t know if the Israelis will find it reassuring; I suspect the Europeans and Iranians will find it annoying, and decide to ignore it.
J.E. Dyer: This is What ‘Forward’ Looks Like
For many people, especially younger ones, ideas about which government rules and “services” we can happily do without will be new and startling. But it is possible to slip the surly bonds of the Regulated Man construct and envision a better future. Wisconsin has taken an important step toward that future. Walker’s Wisconsin is what “Forward” looks like.
Team Obama: ‘Too Politically Sensitive’ to Evacuate US Personnel in Iraq
There is now NO possible explanation for not evacuating at least non-essential personnel from the U.S. embassy and consulates in Iraq.
How Veterans Remember Nancy Reagan
Nancy Reagan's support for Vietnam vets was described, “She cared when it seemed nobody else did”
GOP: Polls and the Hinge Points of History
There may no longer be a unifying “center” to hold the GOP together.
Why Obama is Likely to Blow Debate No. 2
The short answer is: because he’s got nothing. There is no record to run on, no argument to make for four more years. The ideology that drives him is outdated and bankrupt. He has, in fact, implemented his policies – Republicans have had little means of stopping him – and those policies are the problem. But there’s a slightly longer answer too.
An Iranian Nuclear Weapons Program in What was Formerly ‘Syria’
Remnants of Assad’s nuclear program are alive and well, under the control of Hezbollah and Iran
Dead in the Water: Obama’s Military and Iran
It is unconscionable of Obama to handle the sequestration threat the way he has - crippling our ability to readily strike Iran.
J.E. Dyer: Implications of the New ‘Tax-Mandate’ in Obamacare
This is what a tax now looks like? This is an open invitation to “tax” via whatever mandate sounds good to you. What sort of unequal-before-the-law mandate would not fit this definition of a tax? Congress can do anything it wants, by the logic of this decision, with the judicial precedent set that levying mandates equals using the power to tax.
VP Pence Hints Who’s Behind Migrant March; Media Mum
the timing of the migrant caravan tells its own story. If we look at it as a move by Russia and Iran, in particular, it can be logically recognized as part of a campaign to attack U.S. interests on a broad front. The motive is to increase the pressure on the Trump administration across the board, partly but significantly because Trump is shifting his strategy in Syria toward going for Tehran’s solar plexus by kicking Iran out of it.
Rock, Hard Place, Syria
We're asking U.S. troops to go into Syria without an overwhelming advantage, and without minimizing our risks.
2016: Effective, Well Done, a Caveat or Two
Dinesh D’Souza’s film, 2016: Obama’s America, is very good at putting the viewer in the milieu of Jakarta or Nairobi, which continue to feel “different” enough to engage the American viewer’s sense of distance and wonder. Conveying the difference of Barack Obama’s childhood and his idea of cultural roots – the difference from American life – is the movie’s most effective accomplishment.
On Purim, the Spiking of Iran’s Land Bridge Across Mesopotamia
It has been clear for some time now that Iran has been eyeing the Golan as a gateway to military leverage over Israel. With U.S. recognition of Israeli sovereignty in the Golan, the vector of geomilitary momentum will shift significantly.
The Maersk Tigris Game Change
Iran stands unopposed by the “international community” and is racing to assert regional dominance.
J.E. Dyer: Strategic Ambiguity Watch – The Maritime Version
Iran is making full use of strategic ambiguity on the high seas to advance its interests and dictate outcomes. Unless each new measure is directly challenged, strategic ambiguity would be a lot more fun for Iran than for the rest of us.
Why Ted Cruz Speaks for Me
He gets that we can’t just sit still, paralyzed by bad press and Democratic talking points.
Israel, Iran, Hamas, and Why it’s Not 2014 Anymore
Hamas' purpose was to attack the unity of the de facto Middle East coalition – a coalition against radical Iran – forming through the Abraham Accords. The premise of the attack was that framing the conflict as a response to an outrage against Al Aqsa, and forcing Israel to strike back hard, would peel away the Arab partners to the Abraham Accords.
Are Drone Strikes Analogous to the Civil War?
To advance our objectives in the War on Terror there was and will be nothing to justify the extra-judicial, standoff-distance execution of a US citizen.
J.E. Dyer: Ceramic Pig Watch – Offensive Speech in Britain
Ever since the case of the offensive ceramic pigs in 1998, the British have been assiduously refining their methods for dealing with offenses to Islam.
J.E. Dyer: Syria – Going, going, gone?
A solution in which the Syrian people are empowered to operate more freely in a true multi-party government, under the aegis of multinational protection against both Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood, would be the most desirable, achievable outcome. It is not possible to broker this outcome while ignoring Russia.
Obama’s Campaign Against Israel
Obama is transparent, if you read his oracular signs with the right key.
With Syria, at Least Israel Seems Ready
This is the second time reports have surfaced that Israel hit Syria's Scientific Studies and Research Center.
J.E. Dyer: You’re Killing Me, Mitt
When Romney speaks of the US auto industry recovering, he is speaking in the language of big, dirigiste government, accepting at face value the short-term effect of a bailout process that has served mainly to perpetuate unprofitable but politically entrenched conditions. It guarantees that more subsidies will be needed down the road.
ObamaCare: The Propaganda Machine Revs Up
Many readers are no doubt aware of the millions in taxpayer dollars that the Obama administration has contracted out to PR firms for the purpose of hawking Obamacare to a reluctant public.
Port in Turkey, Israel Bombing Iraq, U.S. Embedding Along Land Bridge
Shadow battle with Iran continues
J.E. Dyer: America – This time, it’s personal
The period of the Obama tenure, and now the 2012 election, are forcing Americans to reconsider, in a way I’m not sure we have for a good 200 years, what the vote means, and what politics means to our lives. Since 1792, the sense has gradually crept upon us that when we elect a president, we are electing our collective future. That sense took a giant leap forward with the FDR presidency, and frankly, it took another one when Reagan entered office.
US Marines Off the Coast of Gaza?
Why are we sending an amphibious readiness group (ARG) with a Marine expeditionary unit (MEU) embarked to sit off the Levantine coast? U.S. officials say it’s to be prepared for any eventuality, including the need to evacuate American citizens, as the conflict between Hamas and Israel heats up.