Alan Dowd

Alan Dowd

Alan Dowd is a contributing editor with Providence and a senior fellow with the Sagamore Institute, where he leads the Center for America’s Purpose (www.sagamoreinstitute.org/cap).

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Lessons & Leftovers of the Great War
Lessons and Leftovers of the Great War

A century after the Great War’s end, we still have much to learn from its lessons and still wrestle with its consequences and leftovers.

The World Finally Sees Xi’s China as It Is
The World Finally Sees Xi’s China as It Is

After years of wishful thinking, America and its allies in the Indo-Pacific are returning, finally, to what President Franklin Roosevelt called “armed defense of democratic existence.” Given Beijing’s actions both at home and abroad, one wonders what took them so long.

Mobs and Monuments: Distinguishing between the United States and Confederate States
Mobs and Monuments: Distinguishing between the United States and Confederate States

King recognized that for nations, as for individuals, the measure of goodness is not perfection, but rather direction. America was born headed in the right direction—and continues to build a “more perfect union” dreamed up by imperfect men.

The “Good Old Days”: Comparing 1968 and 2020

Our world is broken and bending toward chaos, as it was in 1968, as it has been since the Fall, as it will be until Christ returns to make all things new.

Xi’s Regime Recasts Itself as the Good Samaritan
Xi’s Regime Recasts China as the Good Samaritan during Pandemic

Beijing’s public relations push is deflecting attention from its criminal malfeasance in response to COVID-19, airbrushing history and recasting the People’s Republic of China as a global Good Samaritan

Blame Xi Jinping Regime COVID-19 China
Blame Xi Jinping’s Regime for Mishandling COVID-19

Donald Trump should use the Oval Office or East Room to underscore the gravity and seriousness of what Xi Jinping’s regime has done.

Lessons Learned, Relearned, and Unlearned in Afghanistan
Lessons Learned, Relearned, and Unlearned in Afghanistan

In the almost-19 years since they dispatched their military to Afghanistan, US policymakers and the people they represent have learned, relearned, and unlearned several lessons.

NATO is Finally Waking Up, Trying to Deter Russia
NATO is Finally Waking Up, Trying to Deter Russia

After years of crossing their fingers and hoping for the best, NATO members are rebuilding their military capabilities, preparing for worst-case scenarios, and posturing the alliance for deterrence.

Obama and Trump’s Mistakes in Syria: Green Lights and Red Lines
Obama and Trump’s Mistakes in Syria: Green Lights and Red Lines

As we continue to sift through the shrapnel of President Donald Trump’s decision to pull US troops out of Syria and green-light Turkey’s long-planned operations against Syria’s Kurds and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria, we need to keep in mind that what transpired in October represents only the short-term consequences.

Implications of Trump-Zelensky Phone Call
Foreign Policy and Moral Implications of the Trump-Zelensky Phone Call

Trump is not the first president to put conditions on aid to a foreign land, but he may be the first to do so in order to score petty political points.