Category Archives: War & Peace

Dyer & Friedman on Netanyahu’s Impending Victory & Israel’s Loss of Democracy

[NOTE: I recall a year ago when Gwynne Dyer confidently predicted that Vladimir Putin would not be so irrational and foolish as to launch a war against Ukraine. Dyer was right about the war’s folly, but not alone in badly misjudging Putin’s state of mind and resolve. Still, I respect Dyer’s experience, breadth of strategic/historic … Continue reading Dyer & Friedman on Netanyahu’s Impending Victory & Israel’s Loss of Democracy →

Threefer Thursday: Briefs About Everything (Well, Almost)

[Midday wrap-up: Three short but trenchant items (with an extra about the boreal Forest), covering wars (present and maybe future); climate change tipping points; and not least, why confronting Gov. Ron DeSantis’s racist war on “woke” head-on is a big progressive mistake. Check them all out!] # 1-Wars & Rumors of War: Looking to the … Continue reading Threefer Thursday: Briefs About Everything (Well, Almost) →

Pope Francis: Wanted Dead, Or If Alive, Then Retired & Silent

I wonder: what’s it like to be Pope Francis, waking up each morning in the Vatican knowing he’s surrounded by people praying fervently, and that many of them are begging God to make him die before noon? Not everyone around him wants him dead, of course. Francis has fans and supporters too. And even … Continue reading Pope Francis: Wanted Dead, Or If Alive, Then Retired & Silent →

Gwynne Dyer & Tom Ricks: Two Outside Experts on Ukraine’s New Tanks and Modern Warmaking

Ukraine: Will Western tanks bring victory? Gwynne Dyer — Jan 27 2023 Gwynne Dyer is a UK-based Canadian journalist and historian who writes about international affairs. OPINION: On Tuesday they reset the Doomsday Clock to 90 seconds before midnight. How did they know that Germany would agree to give Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine on Wednesday?

Time to Close Gitmo, Says Its First Commander

[NOTE: First, a reflection: Quakers are known, in part, for a devotion to losing causes. This penchant was deftly satirized by Doug Gwyn, a renowned scholar/songwriter, in his ditty, “Yonder Stands the Quaker”: “Yonder stands the Quaker, Looking quaint as a box of Quaker Oats . . . Yonder stand the Quakers, On the far … Continue reading Time to Close Gitmo, Says Its First Commander →