Dean Esmay has linked to my second post on Cronkite and Tet, and a commenter there named “mikeca” called what I had to say “revisionist history.” His comment was identical to one he posted on this blog as well, which … Continue reading →
[Part I here.] In his introduction to that Cronkite interview featured in Part I, Dick Gordon writes: It was February 1968, and in a three minute editorial essay on the CBS Evening news Cronkite quite simply changed the course of … Continue reading →
While Bush formulates a new plan for Iraq, and others say all is lost there no matter what, I’m reminded of a famous “all is lost” moment from that ever-festering sore of history, the Vietnam War: Walter Cronkite’s editorial on … Continue reading →
I’ve been reading a book by Robert Kagan entitled Dangerous Nation, about the history of America’s international relations. Kagan’s thesis is that, from the start, the US was more involved and interventionist, and less isolationist, than conventional wisdom would indicate. … Continue reading →
[Part I can be found here.] Shelby Steele, a supporter of the war in Iraq, discusses the semantic and conceptual problem we face when we have no clear definition of victory: Without a description of victory, a war has no … Continue reading →
The ISG report has branded our efforts in Iraq “grave,” “deteriorating,” and “not working.” The American people aren’t too happy with the situation, either. Results of recent polls indicate: Just 9 per cent expect the war to end in clear-cut … Continue reading →
[Please see this post on forgetting Pearl Harbor.] We’ve all learned about Pearl Harbor, but here are some details that I found especially interesting in light of 9/11. Despite having a lot of information that a Japanese attack was coming … Continue reading →
Sixty-five years ago today Pearl Harbor was attacked. That’s long enough ago that only the elderly remember the day and its aftermath with any clarity. Several generations–including my own tiresome one, the baby boomers–have come up since then, and the … Continue reading →
Varifrank has written about our modern way of warfare and our attempt to wage it with greater respect for human life. Please take a look. Respect for human life is a good thing, right? I would be the first to … Continue reading →
[Part I here] Whatever your opinion of President Nixon’s politics and policies, I think most of us can agree he was a strange and duplicitous man. I was not a fan, to say the least. I watched many of his … Continue reading →
Wars tend to be hard on Presidents as well as on nations. Lincoln barely survived the Civil War before he was assassinated. Wilson’s health permanently deteriorated in the immediate aftermath of WWI, when he undertook a grueling speaking tour in … Continue reading →
Saddam Hussein has been sentenced to hanging. Nothing is likely to save him, not even the antics of lawyer Ramsey Clark, who was thrown out of the courtroom yesterday for disrespect. But despite all the charges against him, no one’s … Continue reading →