Special Coverage: ForeignPolicy

The Iraq Supplemental: A Three-Ring Circus

Erik Leaver, AlterNet. May 8, 2008.
Congress thinks it's being cute in dealing with all of the funding for Iraq this year in one fell swoop.

Marketing Ethnic Cleansing: Israel Parties Like It's 1948 on its 60th Birthday

Linda Mamoun, AlterNet. May 8, 2008.
The frenzy around Israel Independence Day is an attempt to freeze history in 1948 when public support of Israel was unequivocal.

The Military's Pricey Restaurant Tastes: Gone Are the Days of Grunts Peeling Potatoes

Nick Turse, Metropolitan Books. May 8, 2008.
Judging by the Pentagon's own accounting, the army, navy, air force and marines have been very hungry -- and they've been chowing down.

Big Oil Strike in Brazil has Tongues Wagging, but We Continue Towards Peak Oil

Pedro Prieto, Tlaxcala. May 7, 2008.
Since the 1980's, the world has discovered less oil than it has consumed every year.

Poll: Americans Don't Like Our Current Trade Policy

Holly Shulman, Eyes on Trade. May 5, 2008.
As people's economic pain grows, their trust in U.S. trade policy shrinks.

Profiteers Squeeze Billions Out of Growing Global Food Crisis

Geoffrey Lean, Independent UK. May 5, 2008.
Speculators blamed for driving up price of basic foods as 100 million face severe hunger.

The IMF's Going Down -- Is that a Bad Thing?

Mark Weisbrot, AlterNet. May 1, 2008.
Thanks to disasters of its own making, the agency is losing money and influence.

What We Can Learn From Woodrow Wilson

Ted Widmer, MIT Center for International Studies. April 30, 2008.
Wilson's idealistic vision of democracy and self-determination around the world should serve as a model for the Democrats' foreign policy.

The RAND Corporation: America's University of Imperialism

Chalmers Johnson, Tomdispatch.com. April 30, 2008.
For decades these self-professed saviors of the Western world helped precipitate U.S. foreign policy disasters like the Vietnam War.

The Democrats' "Free Trade" Divide

Mark Engler, Foreign Policy in Focus. April 29, 2008.
Today, trade policy plays an important role in the battle for the soul of the Democratic Party.

Corporate Vultures Lurk Behind the World Food Crisis

Anuradha Mittal, AlterNet. April 29, 2008.
The IMF, WTO and the rest of the neoliberal world are still pushing more trade as a cure for what ails us.

Half of Vets Suffering Brain and Mind Injuries Go Untreated, But Pentagon Pretends Nothing's Going on

Penny Coleman, AlterNet. April 29, 2008.
An activist travels to the DoD's annual suicide prevention conference, only to find the military brass living in a parallel universe.

Carter was Right But Bush, Media Ignore Hamas' Overtures Towards Peace

Ira Chernus, AlterNet. April 28, 2008.
If the U.S. or Israel were to accept Hamas' willingness to negotiate, they would tacitly acknowledge that Hamas is a player in the game.

Ominous Signs That White House Advisers Want More Wars

Jim Lobe, IPS News. April 28, 2008.
Is there a resurgence by the remaining hawks in the Bush administration?

Workers' Rights: a Good Reason to Oppose Colombia Trade Deal

Maria McFarland Sanchez-Moreno, The Hill. April 26, 2008.
Congress can show that it's serious about workers' rights by pressing Colombia to change the pattern of violence and paramilitary influence.

12 Reasons Why Leaving Iraq Is the Only Sane Thing to Do

Tom Engelhardt, Tomdispatch.com. April 24, 2008.
Since the press doesn't bother to ask key questions, here's an attempt to unravel the situation in Iraq.

Step Aside Dollar, Is Rice the New Global Currency?

Otto Spengler, Asia Times. April 24, 2008.
China is exchanging its depreciating reserves of the greenback for things of value, notably rice, with deadly consequences for U.S. foreign policy.

Surging Towards Gaza: How the U.S. is Reproducing Israel's Flawed Occupation Strategies in Iraq

Steve Niva, Foreign Policy in Focus. April 23, 2008.
Through its awful Iraq strategy, the U.S. is re-creating itself in the image of a country permanently at war with the Arab and Muslim world.

Sending a Son off to War: a Mother's Anguish

Penny Coleman, AlterNet. April 21, 2008.
"How will I survive the wait and the not-knowing, and will I survive at all if my worst fears are realized?"

Jimmy Carter Was Right to Meet With Hamas

Joshua Holland, AlterNet. April 21, 2008.
What separates Carter from the neocons is his genuine desire to negotiate a Middle East peace settlement, and that means talking to everyone.

Defeated in Iraq: How America Lost the War

Suzi Steffen, AlterNet. April 19, 2008.
Jonathan Steele on why -- and how -- the U.S. and Britain screwed up the Iraq project.

Can Iraq's Parliament Fight Back?

Maya Schenwar, TruthOut.org. April 18, 2008.
Maliki concedes that a treaty with the U.S. must be ratified.

Soldiers of the 'War on Terror' Speak Out

Cynthia Orange, Michael Orange, AlterNet. April 18, 2008.
If all of America were to hear these voices, the occupation of Iraq would already be over.

The Ever-Shifting Rationale for the Occupation of Iraq

Laurent Lozano, Middle East Online. April 17, 2008.
The point of the occupation is the occupation itself, and the justifications will always keep coming.

1776: The Greatest Counter-Insurgency Failure Ever

Andrew Exum, Comment Is Free. April 16, 2008.
Would General Petraeus have been able to keep the colonies in the fold?

Brokaw's Blind Spot on Vietnam

Fred Branfman, Truthdig. April 16, 2008.
How is it possible to write a book about the '60s without an in-depth discussion of the Vietnam War?

How New Energy Order Will Dramatically Change our Daily Lives

Michael T. Klare, Tomdispatch.com. April 16, 2008.
Get ready for a new world order in which energy will govern what we eat, where we live, and if and when we travel.

Making History: Fast-Track for Corporate Legislation is Dead

Todd Tucker, Eyes on Trade. April 15, 2008.
End of an era?

The Bush Admin's How-to Guide for Using Religious Warfare to Destroy Iraq

Joshua Holland, AlterNet. April 15, 2008.
Using a mixture of cultural ignorance, incompetence and a touch of cronyism, the U.S has turned a patriotic nation against itself.

Jimmy Carter: 'I'll Meet Hamas Because Someone Has to'

Ron Bousso, Middle East Online. April 14, 2008.
No peace deal can be reached without Hamas having a seat at the table.

Many Iraqis Feel They've Gone From One Dictator to the Next

Dahr Jamail, Ali Al-Fadhily, IPS News. April 14, 2008.
After five years of occupation and suffering, many Iraqis have become skeptical of all political and religious leaders.

In Basra Battles, Media Quislings Offered Barely Half the Story

Ramzy Baroud, Middle East Online. April 12, 2008.
Muqtada al-Sadr reflects the views of most Iraqis; October's elections could position him as a new nationalist leader, and a unifying force.

Conflict of Interest Redefined: U.S. Politicos Invested in Iraq, Afghanistan

Abid Aslam, IPS News. April 11, 2008.
Political class stands to rake it in by continuing occupations.

The Petraeus-Crocker Show: Best Song and Dance Team to Hit Washington in Years

Ali Gharib, IPS News. April 11, 2008.
Iraq may be calmer on the surface, but strife simmers beneath.

How San Francisco Became Beijing for a Day

Josh Schrei, AlterNet. April 10, 2008.
Police roamed the streets, first amendment rights were ignored. Were San Francisco officials taking notes from the People's Republic of China?

A Torture Debate Among Healers

Amy Goodman, King Features Syndicate. April 10, 2008.
Why is the American Psychological Association still allowing its members to participate in torture?

If Dems Talk About 'Winning' in Iraq, Everybody Loses

Ira Chernus, AlterNet. April 10, 2008.
The Petraeus hearings trapped Democrats into talking about whether the 'surge' is working, not that the U.S. has no right to be there.

Iraqi Ministry Doctors Figures on Power Output

Isam al-Khalisi, Azzaman. April 10, 2008.
The entire enterprise is built on falsehoods.

Who Are Iraq's 'Outlaws'?

Azzaman. April 9, 2008.
Sadr's militia refuses to disarm; issue further dividing Parliament.

Busting Paranoid Right-Wing Fantasies of Dissolving the Mexico-U.S.-Canada Borders

Manuel Pérez Rocha, Sarah Anderson, AlterNet. April 9, 2008.
It's time to call BS on the idea of a mythical North American Union.

Don't Betray Us, General: Admit That Iraq Keeps Getting Worse and That the Surge Failed

Tom Engelhardt, TheNation.com. April 8, 2008.
Gen. David Petraeus ought to level with the American public about the dire state of affairs in Iraq in his testimony to Congress this week.

Embarrassed U.S. Tries to Distance Itself from Disastrous Basra Attacks

Gareth Porter, IPS News. April 8, 2008.
The effort is an indication that the operation was viewed as a major embarrassment just as Gen. David Petraeus is about to testify before Congress.

General William Odom on Iraq: Immediate Withdrawal the Only Option that Makes Sense

General William Odom, AlterNet. April 7, 2008.
"Those who link instability with a US withdrawal have it exactly backwards."

U.S. Attempt to Control Iraq's Oil and Economy Continues Behind the Scenes

Maya Schenwar, TruthOut.org. April 7, 2008.
The coming months may be crucial in determining what kind of "friends" the US and Iraq are going to be over the long haul.

Those Who Control Oil and Water Will Control the World

John Gray, Comment Is Free. April 7, 2008.
New superpowers are competing for diminishing resources. The outcome could be deadly.

Blackwater Iraq Contract Renewed

Middle East Online. April 7, 2008.
State Department extends contract with private security firm for one year despite civilian killings.

Immoral: Ignoring the Routine Killings of Civilians in Terror Wars

Adil E. Shamoo, Bonnie Bricker, AlterNet. April 5, 2008.
Imagine the world's reaction if Palestinians had killed 120 Israelis, or if the Iraqi "insurgents" had killed 120 Americans.

Report From Iran: Should We Really Bomb These People?

AlterNet. April 5, 2008.
The author explains, "Iranians are among the most gracious and hospitable people I've ever met."

Obama and Hillary Spin a 'Big Lie' About Iraq

Joshua Holland, AlterNet. April 5, 2008.
The two Dems lie every time they discuss Iraq on the campaign trail, but the media refuse to call them on it.

Clinton, Obama and McCain Advisers Clash Over "War on Terror"

Ali Gharib, IPS News. April 4, 2008.
The campaigns' views of the world are worlds apart.

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Auditing Conventional Wisdom

In partnership with the MIT Center for International Studies, AlterNet is pleased to present these Audits of the Conventional Wisdom.

This ongoing series of essays tours the horizon of conventional wisdoms that animate U.S. foreign policy and puts them to the test of data and history.

By subjecting particularly well-accepted ideas to close scrutiny, the series aims to re-engage policy and opinion leaders on topics that are too easily passing such scrutiny.

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