Nation-Building

The Associated Press has faced considerable critique about its horrific story about six Shi'a men being burned alive by Sunnis in Baghdad. The critique hinges one the claim by the US military that the AP's source, a police captain Capt. Jamil Hussein, misrepresented himself. From a letter written by Lt. Michael Dean to the Associated Press: We can tell you definitively that the primary source of this story, police Capt. Jamil Hussein, is not a Baghdad police officer or an MOI employee. We verified this fact with the MOI through the Coalition Police Assistance Training Team. Also, we definitely know, as we told you several weeks ago through the MNC-I Media Relations cell, that another AP-popular IP spokesman, Lt. Maithem Abdul Razzaq, supposedly of the city's Yarmouk police station, does not work at that police station and is also not authorized to speak on behalf of the IP. The MOI has supposedly issued a warrant for his questioning. [...] Unless you have a credible sour...

By now everyone has piled on to the draft idea floated by Sen. Rangel. To be honest, I don't think it's such a terrible idea. Not that I'd neccessarily support it, but I can see the merits. Israel, Switzerland, and numerous other countries have much the same thing. The thing is that there are indeed benefits to military training and there owuld be a net positive social impact. So it isn't an idea I would easily dismiss. Now, there's already one diary on the rec list about why the draft proposal is good politics, but let's actually talk about the draft in the context of policy instead. The problem with Rangel's proposal is that it's too comprehensive. There are about 8,000,000 people in the US of age between 18 21, and paying them their salaries alone would be a quarter of a trillion dollars a year. But it's a good starting point for a debate about what a draft can look like and what purpose it could serve. Let's first and foremost remember that...

Ali Eteraz has launched a new Scoop-based site for muslim bloggers - the "Dailykos of the Islamsphere", essentially. In my diary at that site, I have written an exclusive essay, a contemplation of the Israeli-Palestine conflict and the outlines of what is required for lasting peace. Do drop by and take a look. And keep an eye on Eteraz.org! This is one to watch.

George Monbiot takes on the widely acclaimed debunking of climate change by Christopher Monckton. Real Climate also weighs in .

Joe Katzman is flummoxed by the choice of Gates for Secretary of Defense. In a nutshell, his argument is that he is tainted by his previous roles during previous administrations. He concludes, Gates has shown that he's a capable man - but that doesn't make him the right man. but why not? His history in the 80s and early 90s are steeped in the realpolitik of the day but that was during the Cold War . nuff said. As far as today, Gates' major change will be to treat Iran and Syria as the rational actors they are. Classic Westphalianism. Neither Iran nor Syria are served by anarchy in Iraq, a breakup into three nation states (which would guarantee Turkey's meddling in their domain as well as a hostile Sunni state on their doorstep). In fact if anything stability in Iraq might well lead to more freedom in Iran and a weakening of the mullah's grip (economic prosperity is directly correlated with liberty. See Zakaria's "Future of Freedom"). And once we dangle...

fantastic diary by NuevoLiberal in defense of Gore's liberal credentials, policy acumen, and general awesomeness (yeah I am biased ok?). Lots of links. A must-read. FWIW the conventional wisdom is that Gore will run in 08 despite his denials. Especially since Warner (the centrist) and Feingold (the progressive) have opted out. Joe Trippi has a piece in the WaPo about the frontrunners (written prior to Feingold's statement). Heres the items of particular interest to me: Front-runner: Hillary Rodham Clinton She has it all -- the ability to raise the money; a political team that's among the best, if not the best, in the party; a strong base of support; and an uncanny ability to avoid political mistakes. And I don't care what anyone says -- her husband is one of two rock stars in the Democratic Party and a huge asset. Ironically, the problem with Clinton's candidacy arises from her strength. Front-runners have something to lose, so they almost always run cautious, safe...

An excellent proposal for a to-do item for the new Democratic majority: Daily restore the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment . Fixing all the ways in which the GOP majority damaged the apparatus and infrastructure of sound policy and governance is going to take a long time. But this would be a great start.