Outside the Beltway

Some principles transcend political borders.

My latest for The National Interest, arguing that the talk of crisis in Europe is overblown, is up. Naturally, they’ve titled it “Crisis in the EU.”

As if the Gulf Oil Spill weren’t enough, there are now allegations that BP played a role in the release of the only man convicted in the murder of 190 Americans.

Since 9/11 there has been a steady trickle of stories about jihadists hooking up with Latin American drug cartels and the like. Here is a guide of story points that can help you identify when such a story is almost certainly bogus.

There is an al Qaeda link to yesterday’s terrorist attack in Uganda.

Switzerland will not extradite scumbag Roman Polanski.

What exactly is it about air conditioning that has some people so upset ?

We need to ask ourselves some tough questions on Afghanistan.

It turns out that Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi isn’t dying after all, at least not any faster than any other human being.

NATO should resist preemptively declaring cyber attacks “an attack on all” members under Article 5.

America’s energy habit is getting people killed! What should we do about it?

Israel and Turkey held secret, informal talks recently. This is interesting, given the recent flotilla incident. What is more interesting is that the Israeli Foreign Minister learned of the event via the press.

Africans are rallying around the Ghanaian World Cup team, putting aside stark differences. Should we be surprised?

Ten Russian agents posing as Americans and living in the suburbs of DC, New York, and Boston for a decade to glean valuable intelligence have been arrested by the FBI.

President Obama’s powers of persuasion were severely lacking at the G-20 Summit this weekend.

“It’s illogical to hunt a species to extinction.” – Spock

Contrary to popular belief, Adolf Hitler didn’t come to power by democratic means or because of his ability to whip the public into a frenzy.

Will we ever eliminate or sharply reduce drug supply and demand?

The UNODC has released the latest World Drug Report. Shockingly, there are a lot of drugs out there and a lot of money to made trafficking in them.

A comedian’s farcical run for mayor of Reykjavik ended in victory. It’s as if Stephen Colbert’s 2008 presidential bid had worked. Or Al Franken got elected to the Senate!

The European drive — led by Germany, naturally — to tighten spending to get their fiscal house in order and the Obama administration’s insistence on Keynesian stimulus will make for tense negotiations at the G20 Summit.

The odds that David Petraeus will be able to pull off a miracle in Afghanistan like he did in Iraq are very slim.

General Stanley McChrystal has not only likely ended his career but seriously damaged the already dimming chances of success in Afghanistan.

General Stanley McChrystal is opening his mouth again and, this time, it could cost him his job.

China has pledged to allow their currency to fluctuate. Don’t get too excited.

Christian Bleuer provides a 10-step solution for victory over the Taliban.