Ezra Klein recently wrote: Fairly few political commentators know enough to decide which research papers are methodologically convincing and which aren’t. So we often end up touting the papers that sound right, and the papers that sound right are, unsurprisingly, the ones that accord most closely with our view of the world. In response, Daniel […]
I had one of the best 4th of July weekends ever. I got to go on long scenic bike rides with friends, hang out at barbeques, and top off the weekend experience by watching a fireworks show which for reasons unknown to me was paid for by BP. Go figure. In spite of the fun, […]
The U.S. has a time-inconsistency dilemma with North Korea. In a time-inconsistency dilemma, someone’s preferences change over time. The concept is usually applied to behavioral economics, but it also applies to security situations. Take terrorism. The U.S. may want to negotiate with a terrorist to prevent him from committing future attacks. But negotiating might encourage […]
We’ve been waiting since mid-June to find out what consequences will follow from North Korea’s presumed sinking of a South Korean warship, since the Obama administration has repeatedly said that such a wanton act cannot be allowed to stand without consequences. As yet the UN Security Council has not adopted tougher sanctions to punish the […]
A while ago I read the book, The Marketplace of Revolution, in which T. H. Breen writes of the British Empire: Eighteenth-century writers seemed uncertain how best to describe Britain’s relation to its many overseas possessions. Only tepidly did they employ the concept of “empire,” since for them it carried uncomfortable intellectual baggage from ancient […]
In chess, zugzwang is when a player has no good moves. Anything he does will weaken his position. However, since it is his turn, he must move. Therefore, he is forced to weaken his position. This is America’s current situation in Afghanistan. Should the U.S. continue fighting a long and costly war or withdraw? Last […]
I’m back. Just in time to go away again for the holiday weekend. Take a moment to re-read the Declaration of Independence, why don’t you? All men are created equal. They are endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights. Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Good stuff. But even better is Jeremy Bentham’s […]
Mr. President, you can’t have it both ways. You can’t have General Petraeus come in and save your Afghan policy at the same time as you have been associated with MoveOn.org, which called him “General Betray Us” on the pages of the New York Times in 2007. I don’t want to be the guy always criticizing […]
Just wanted to add a few more thoughts to my earlier blog on General McChrystal before I head out for my daily tasks. Stratfor put out an excellent article on the situation but I disagree with some of the points made. In the article, Stratfor indicated the Rolling Stone article portrayed “McChrystal and his inner […]
Today is my birthday and having just returned home after spending two weeks away dealing with a family emergency, I had hoped to spend a quiet day contemplating personal goals for the next year and ending the day overeating with friends at one of my favorite restaurants. The best laid plans…I kept turning on the […]
Insubordination by top military officers to civilian authority is unacceptable in America. As presidential biographer Robert Dallek argued in today’s NYTimes, McChrystal’s defiance of his civilian masters may warrant dismissal. However, there is another important issue here: how hubris on the campaign trail can lead to sub-par policy choices. President Obama’s decision early in his administration […]
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