Fear, Threat Inflation, and Public Choice

In Foreign Affairs, Micah Zenko and Michael A. Cohen argue that despite the constant fear-mongering and threat inflation in America, we are actually very secure and face very few, very minor external threats. And one of the reasons we have a system that fuels...

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It is Dangerous to Be in the Military

In Arizona, where seven Marines were killed late Wednesday in a collision of two helicopters near Yuma, Ariz., during night training exercises. Of course, there are many other reasons to stay out of the military as well.

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WSJ Iran Propaganda Is As Simple As That

Today in the news section I wrote about a speech yesterday from Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. The title chooses what is the most pertinent part of the speech: Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei: We Will Never Seek Nuclear Weapons. “The Iranian nation has never...

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Against Military Intervention in Syria

At his Foreign Policy blog, George Washington University professor Marc Lynch points to a report he wrote for the Center for  a New American Century arguing forcefully and persuasively against any kind of military intervention in Syria, including arming the...

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Bangkok’s $54 Plot

Officials are still hard at work trying to blame the Iranian government for it, but revelations about the Bangkok bombing plot show an extremely cheap effort to blow something up, which hinged entirely on the ability to hail a cab in the Thai capital. The surveillance...

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US on War With Iran: Irrational All Around

Peter Beinart observes what I've been writing here for some time now: the military and intelligence community understands that launching a war on Iran is irrational, but the hysterical political debate is making war more and more likely. The problem with his analysis...

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Civil War vs. Non-Violent Resistance in Syria

While U.S. officials continue to publicly advocate arming and aiding the armed groups in Syria, others say the opposition's turn to violence has stymied a revolution and strengthened the Assad regime. Hugo Dixon from Reuters: The Assad regime probably likes the fact...

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The Real US Military Budget: $1 Trillion

From Steve Clemons at the Atlantic: A Republican, numbers-compulsive defense wonk at the Center for Defense Information, Winslow Wheeler, has published a great summary of what America's defense budget 'really' is. Wheeler offers a chart of the budget figures for both...

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