Middle East
Maternal Lessons in Politics from a Jewish Iraqi-American Ping Pong Champion
Whenever I would whine about some minor inconvenience while growing up in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio, my mother would say, “You should try living in Iraq for a while.” It was a subject she knew something about. She was just four months old when about 200 of her fellow
Revisiting Kirkpatrick
The concept of freedom has been deeply embedded in the American tradition since the country’s founding. Not only did classical liberal values profoundly shape governance at home, but they also manifested themselves in foreign policy as the United States emerged as the world’s predominant power. In 1917, President
The Philologist, the Iraqi Girl, and Me
I hadn’t bargained on the climate, especially not in the summer and especially not on the coast. That didn’t stop me from going ahead and doing what every self-respecting American college kid visiting Israel, such as Bernie Sanders, did back then—a stint of physical labor on a
Could an Invisible Military Laser Steal Your Privacy?
In early 2006, I sat in the Pashtun tribal areas on the Af/Pak border. When not rinsing grit out of my teeth from the thick fog in the air, I awaited information from capricious “allies,” on whether their informant could identify a senior al Qaeda leader who I’ll
Will Biden Resurrect the Iran Deal?
President Elect Joe Biden has stated his intention to return the United States to the multilateral deal hatched during the Obama administration to constrain Iran’s nuclear program in return for sanctions relief for Iran. The terms of the deal were laid out in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action
The Coming Post-COVID Global Order
The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated economics in the West, but the harshest impacts may yet be felt in the developing world. After decades of improvement in poorer countries, a regression threatens that could usher in, both economically and politically, a neo-feudal future, leaving billions stranded permanently in poverty. If this
The End of the Islamic Republic of Iran?
The recent explosion in Beirut was like the most recent episode in a tragic decline. Beirut used to be known as Paris in the Levant and the bride of Middle Eastern cities. It was once beautiful, cultured, and exotic. No longer. Last year, hyperinflation, shortages of food and energy, unaccountable
My Military Jail-Time in Israel
I have never done time in a civilian prison. But military jails are another matter. During my long service in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)—during 1967–1969 as a conscript and, thereafter, until 1990, as a reservist—I spent three stints, as far as I can remember, under lock
