There has been a revolution in Egypt, but we still don't know what kind it is, how far will it go, and who stands to gain. Last week, deposed president Husni Mubarak and his two sons were arrested and are facing judicial interrogation. Egyptians are jubilant. Few Egyptians believed the man they called "Pharaoh" would... Read More

Japan’s nuclear calamity has shown once again the remarkable courage, patience, and stoicism of that nation’s people. As a visitor to Japan for the past 36 years and former columnist for one of its leading newspapers, Mainichi Daily News, the giant earthquake and ensuing tsunami that savaged northern Japan filled me with anguish and sorrow.... Read More

Muammar Gadaffi's Libya may not be sinking yet, but it's low in the water and springing new leaks by the day. Italy, a key player in North Africa, sniffed the winds of change, then decided to abandon old ally Gadaffi and recognize the revolutionary junta in Benghazi. Last Wednesday, Libya's Foreign Minister, Moussa Koussa, dressed... Read More

Libya, in spite of its oil treasures, is strictly a sideshow in the great game of nations. We should be keeping our eyes on highly strategic Syria, a potentially combustible nation of 22.5 million that lies at the very heart of what we call the Mideast. Sizeable demonstrations have erupted in the Syrian port city... Read More

The finest strategic thinker of the 20th century, Britain’s Maj. Gen. J.F.C. Fuller, wrote the object of war is achieving political goals, not military victory. Politicians keep forgetting Fuller’s dictum. The last examples of wars without defined political objectives were Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Welcome a fourth: Libya. US foreign policy is becoming permanently militarized.... Read More

The US government just decided Islamic shariah law is not so bad after all – at least not in the case of jailed CIA agent Raymond Davis. The burly Davis, an ex-US Special Forces soldier, former Blackwater gunman, and now CIA “contractor” (jargon for mercenary) was jailed in Pakistan after shooting dead two Pakistanis, who... Read More

With déjà vu we see US cruise missiles being launched from the sea, Libyan AA firing helplessly into the night sky at invisible B-2 heavy bombers, and the burning wreckage of armor and vehicles on desert roads. Here we go again! It's Iraqi-style shock and awe for Libya. Let's get that nasty Saracen, Muammar Gadaffi,... Read More

I recently wrote that Libya's "Leader," Muammar Gadaffi, had used up all of his nine lives. After being written off by great powers and world media, Gadaffi, the dictator we love to hate, is still in power and making rude gestures at his assorted foes. We should call Gadaffi Mr. Lucky. As the western powers... Read More

The US media, perfectly described by Israeli thinker Uri Avnery as "a mixture of propaganda, news and entertainment," is steaming with righteous indignation over the awfulness of Libya's wicked Colonel Muammar Gadaffi, and is once again baying for his blood. "On to Libya! Down with the Tyrant of Tripoli!" That's the latest hue and cry... Read More

Watching Col. Muammar Gadaffi deliver a bombastic, defiant speech last week from the ruins of Tripoli's Bab al-Azizia barracks brought me back to 1987 when Libya's leader led me by the hand through this same wreckage of his former residence. On 14 April, 1986, US aircraft attacked Libya after a Berlin disco frequented by US... Read More

The black comedy of the Iraqi defector codenamed "Curveball" has just resurfaced. It tells us much about how the US has made such a mess in the Mideast and why Washington can’t understand or deal with the historic revolution now flaring across the Muslim world. Take equal parts of ignorance and arrogance, the standard recipe... Read More

"Plus a change,” say the cynical French, “plus c'est la mme chose." Many thoughtful Egyptians will be recalling this "bon mot" as the watch one ruler, the ousted Husni Mubarak, replaced by a military junta led by Field Marshall Mohammed Tantawi. Egyptians are getting more Mubarakism, sans Mubarak, at least for now. This is not... Read More

"Get out, now!" President Barack Obama ordered Egypt's embattled dictator, Husni Mubarak, reminding us of Henry Kissinger's famous quip that it's often more dangerous being America's ally than its enemy. But after some confusion and foot-stamping by Israel, a clearly confused Secretary of State Hillary Clinton proclaimed it would be good to keep Mubarak in... Read More

The last thing earthquake and poverty ravaged Haiti needs is "Baby Doc," aka Jean-Claude Duvalier. But he's back! Being the son of an iron-fisted dictator would be tough for anyone – especially when your father was Haiti's fearsome "Papa Doc." But "Baby Doc" is no "Papa Doc." I met Haiti's "President for Life," Dr. Francois... Read More

China used to be one of the world’s leading naval powers. But in the 1400’s, the isolationist Ming Dynasty ordered China’s large fleets dismantled and its ports closed. The next time Chinese warships put to sea was during the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 when they were quickly demolished by the Imperial Japanese Navy. Now, China... Read More

Sudan is about to face a dangerous political storm that may tear asunder that vast nation and send tremors across Africa. A referendum is scheduled on 9 January in which southern Sudan’s eight million inhabitants may vote to separate from the 34 million citizens of northern Sudan and create their own new nation – South... Read More

After nine years of war in Afghanistan, costing over $100 billion in taxpayer money and 700 American lives, the full truth about this murky conflict remains elusive. The government and media have colluded to paint the picture of a noble, patriotic, heroic, flag-waving American crusade in Afghanistan that is, alas, very far from reality. As... Read More

President Barack Obama’s stirring vows to bring peace to the Mideast and oversee creation of a viable Palestinian state have turned to ashes in the face of Israel’s adamantine opposition, and with them the president’s dignity and credibility, and America’s national interests. For dismaying comparison, think back to 1956. Britain, France and Israel colluded to... Read More

They seek him here, they seek him there, The G-Men seek him everywhere. Is he in heaven, or is he in hell? Where’s that damned elusive Pimpernel? (with apologies to Baroness Orczy) The famed fictional Pimpernel, Sir Percy Blakeney, Bart., enraged revolutionary France by snatching aristocrats from the jaws of the guillotine. Our modern version,... Read More

Those wacky, dangerous North Koreans are at it again, but not without some help from their "brotherly" South Korean neighbors. After South Korea staged provocative live fire exercises in coastal waters claimed by North Korea last Tuesday, the North’s heavy guns pounded a small South Korean island, killing four and sparking worldwide alarm. South Korean... Read More

According to the US government, 41.8 million Americans now receive food stamps. Meanwhile, Washington is spending $7 billion monthly on its nine-year old occupation of Afghanistan, not to mention billions more on trying to build an obedient Afghan army and to pay of Pakistani politicians and general. Last weekend, the US and its NATO allies... Read More

Getting out of the Washington goldfish bowl is also good for American presidents, particularly after an electoral shellacking. It must have been a relief for President Barack Obama to see smiling Indian officials on his visit to Delhi rather than snarling Republicans back home. India is a hugely important nation by any measure, so it... Read More

Fierce debate has raged in these mid-term elections over job losses, the nation's growing $12 trillion debt, mandatory health care, socialism — not to mention childish name-calling and even witchcraft. Sarah Palin, the patron saint of lower IQ Americans, has hovered over this sordid contest like an evil Halloween wraith. Democrats expect a drubbing. What... Read More

PARIS — Strikes, demonstrations, and blockages of fuel deliveries continue here in Paris, and across France. However, the protests and strikes this week are not as intense as the ones over past weeks. But are promised this month and until year end. More disruptions of ground, underground and air travel are threatened. A third of... Read More

PARIS — Britain's mighty Royal Navy ruled the waves until World War II, fully 25% of the globe. There are few greater epochs in history than the stirring saga the Royal Navy, Britain's famed "wooden walls." As a boy, I thrilled to the glorious adventures of Britain's sailors, such as Sir Francis Drake, the renowned... Read More