September 11 Attacks (9/11)

The connection between al Qaeda and Iran was hardly recognized until the discovery of documents in Bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan

The Reaper combines mission effectiveness and non-combatant immunity that is unachievable in many, if not most, battlefield scenarios.

Threatening the US-Saudi partnership over of Saudi Arabian crimes would risk more American lives, cause greater conflict, and increase injustice and human suffering.

“The Afghanistan Papers” by Craig Whitlock is modeled on the Pentagon Papers, which charged that the Johnson administration systematically lied to Congress and the public about the Vietnam War. This book makes the same charge against the Bush and Obama administrations.

In her 2003 book Just War Against Terror, Jean Bethke Elshtain argued for a new paradigm for a just war: the fight against global terrorism, particularly terrorism perpetrated by followers of militant Islam. Twenty years after 9/11, this claim is due for revisiting.

Early on, President Joe Biden’s rhetoric promised a rejection of isolationism and a return to engagement. But his actions in Afghanistan speak volumes.

One adjective that should never be used to describe the US retreat from Afghanistan is “surprising.” In fact, what happened in Kabul in 2021 was the natural next step on the inward-turning path Americans began walking in 2009.

So, should we stay indefinitely in places like Afghanistan and Iraq? The answer depends on whether the costs are worth the benefits compared to American interests in other parts of the world.

History may not repeat itself, as Mark Twain is credited with saying, but it does indeed rhyme sometimes. Sadly, the American people and their leaders are not interested in the rhymes or lessons of history.