Donald Trump and the Fourth Great Shattering

by John Feffer When the historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., published his bestseller The Disuniting of America in 1991, he didn’t seriously entertain the worst-case scenario suggested by the title. At the time, the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia were imploding, while separatist movements… Continue Reading

David Petraeus Finally Answers His Own Question

by Tom Engelhardt It took 14 years, but now we have an answer. It was March 2003, the invasion of Iraq was underway, and Major General David Petraeus was in command of the 101st Airborne Division heading for the Iraqi… Continue Reading

Permanent Warfare as Normality

by Paul R. Pillar The newest issue of Foreign Affairs features the theme of “America’s Forgotten Wars,” with a cover illustration that juxtaposes a carefree scene of Americans enjoying a picnic with that of American soldiers fighting and incurring casualties… Continue Reading

Risks of Ejecting the Taliban’s Office from Qatar

by Giorgio Cafiero In 2013, with support from the American, Afghan, and Qatari governments, the Taliban opened an office in Doha. The office was to serve as a platform to engage the Taliban’s representatives in talks to bring peace to… Continue Reading

Syria: The West’s Three Biggest Blunders and How to Fix Them

by David Keen and Larry Attree The Syrian war is entering new phase. The Islamic State (ISIS or IS) has been pushed out of Raqqa amid disturbing scenes of carnage and destruction. An unrepentant Bashar al-Assad regime, with the help… Continue Reading