Free Republic

Fallujah and the Politics of WarAndrew Sullivan, one of the great pioneers of the blogosphere, has been increasingly critical of the conduct, if not the aims, of the war in Iraq. Frankly, as much as I admire him, he's getting a bad case of CLS (Chicken Little Syndrome). It is true that a number of mistakes have been made in the war, but the sky is not falling. This insurgency has almost none of the attributes necessary for success. The only way that they can win is if we lose our will. Unfortunately, Sullivan's CLS contributes to a loss of...

Another Hierarchy Bites The DustIf anyone was foolish enough to doubt the power of the blogosphere, then they are on notice to start dismantling that fantasy. CBS, in its venerable 60 Minutes program, had the breathtaking audacity to present some almost-certainly forged documents on the air as part of their endless campaign to drive Bush from the White House. The documents in question purported to be memoranda prepared by Col. Killian, one of George W. Bush's commanding officers in the Air National Guard. The memoranda implied that Bush had deliberately defied a direct order to take his physical exam, and...

The Powell Delusion Shortly after Gulf War I, Gen. Colin Powell (then head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), articulated a formula for future U.S. military interventions that has since become known as the Powell Doctrine. Broadly speaking, the Powell Doctrine stated that the United States would deploy military forces only under the following conditions: 1). There must be a clear threat to US national security. 2). All non-military options must be first exhausted. 3). Overwhelming force should be deployed against the opponent. 4). There must be widespread public support for the military intervention. 5). There must be a clear...

Leftist Fallacy #2: "Iraq Is A Distraction From The War On Terror: Part III" I've let this subject lie fallow for a few days, so I'd like to do a quick recap. Folks on the Left like to claim that the invasion of Iraq was mistake, as it diverted scarce American military resources (thank you, Bill Clinton) from Afghanistan, and only serves to enrage the "Arab street". In order to adequately address this critique, it is necessary to determine the ends and means of the War on Terror. Only then can one see whether or not invading Iraq is an...

Vichystan Much abuse and scorn has recently been heaped upon our erstwhile French allies. Sadly, a great deal of this abuse is richly deserved. As a disclaimer, I have to admit up-front that I have visited France many times, and I love the country and its people. Nevertheless, when evaluating their actions on the world stage, it is very tempting to conclude that they are, well...jerks. It is only right that one asks why the French insist in behaving in such a despicable manner. The answer is two-fold. One aspect has to to with France within the context of long-term...

Well, I tried to avoid the temptation of setting up my own blog. After all, I don't really have the time for one. Then again, that never stopped me before from doing something that I shouldn't do. I've long been an admirer of folks like Andrew Sullivan (http://www.andrewsullivan.com) and Glenn Reynolds (http://www.instapundit.com). The wonderful work that they do, in addition to the work by countless other bloggers out there, should have been enough for me, but it wasn't. What sent me over the edge and into the abyss? Why jump from the frying pan into the fire? Two words: Bill...

In light of the recent bombings in Madrid, the French government has decided to raise the national secuirty alert level from "Run" to "Hide". This represents a significant increase in the threat level, as the only higher alerts are "Surrender" and "Collaborate".