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Dollar vs. Dollar: U.S. Consumers Battle U.S. Taxpayers in Global Drug War
The Huffington Post Posted: February 3, 2010 By Sanjeev Bery Although the reporting has improved in recent years, U.S. media coverage of the “war on drugs” continues to ignore the economic realities of just who is fighting who in the conflict. The drug war is best understood as a battle of dollar versus dollar —…
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“Pretend Secrecy” Shields the White House from a Drone Missile Debate
The Huffington Post Posted: November 5, 2009 By Sanjeev Bery It is time to set aside the notion that U.S. drone missile attacks in Pakistan are some kind of secret. The pretense of secrecy has saved Obama Administration officials from having to publicly defend the military tactic. But when Pakistani college students, think tank scholars,…
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An interview worth reading: “The Real Problem in Afghanistan”
From Tufts Journal, September 23, 2009: It’s a situation Andrew Wilder, F89, F96, knows all too well. A research director for the Feinstein International Center since early 2007, he managed humanitarian aid and development programs in Afghanistan and Pakistan for 10 years … Born and raised in Pakistan, Wilder came to the United States to…
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The State Department is keeping track…
The U.S. State Department is now tracking the number of emails received opposing U.S. drone missile attacks in Pakistan. What will the final number be? 50? 500? 5000? After emailing the State Department to oppose drone missile attacks, I received the message below. You may have as well. This means that senior State Department officials…
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Misreading “Anti-Americanism” in Pakistan
The latest news on US-Pakistan relations shouldn’t surprise anyone. According to the Associated Press, former Pakistani dictator Pervez Musharraf used billions of dollars in US military aid for everything but the paymasters’ intended purpose: fighting Taliban militias. None of this news, however, is likely to generate much Pakistani sympathy for American taxpayers. What American officials…
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A response to Mr. Finel
Below is the text of my posted comment at ForeignPolicy.com responding to Bernard I. Finel’s Ten Questions about Afghanistan. America’s Moral Responsibility in Afghanistan Mr. Finel, Thank you for posing some tough questions that deserve deeper discussion. To complicate matters, I would like focus a bit more on your question six — the nature of…
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Good questions on Afghanistan
Over at ForeignPolicy.com, Bernard I. Finel at the American Security Project asks Ten Questions about Afghanistan that deserve discussion. Here’s one: Many proponents of escalation in Afghanistan highlight the American moral obligation to the Afghan people, in particular to Afghan women certain to be oppressed by a Taliban resurgence and the large number of men…