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07 Sep

...war, its Sunni, Shi'ite and Kurdish allegiances divided up and bound to everything but the central government and the State. We effectively created a breeding ground and training camp for disaffected Muslims to become adept in the means of violence toward the attainment of their immediate political goals and long term political ends. We re-enforced long-standing stereotypes about the US and its closest allies in the region, thereby linking imperialistic-like and hegemonic behavior with 'democracy' and its virtues in a manner that will hurt long-term prospects for organically grown democratic...
07.09.06 | |

28 Jul

...the war on terror–any more than the executive branch has been well served by its go-it-alone posture domestically. The book focuses on domestic law not because I don’t think international law is important but because it’s something over which the United States has less short-term control. In other words, in the long run, I believe that the international community will need to significantly rethink and supplement the law of armed conflict as pertains to this kind of asymmetric warfare. And the more I think about it, the more I suspect...
28.07.08 | |

18 Nov

...tradition will reveal the unequivocal failure of al-Qa’ida militants who resort to terrorist tactics on behalf of their short-term goals and long-term aims to conform with the minimal ethical and legal requirements of jihad within the legal schools. In other words, based on an ethical and legal assessment using the normative criteria common to this tradition, these militants are not entitled to characterize their actions within the rubric of jihad: “The most important weakness in the militant claim to represent true Islam is the contradiction between the end professed and...
18.11.09 | |

05 Nov

...the United States. Soft power was a term coined by Joseph Nye to describe non-military dimensions of a state’s international influence: culture, values, law, and ideas. Post 9/11, the idea was expanded and refined under the term “smart power,” which incorporates soft power into decisions about how, why and when to deploy force against state and non-state enemies. There is serious policy content to and strategic thinking behind soft/smart power. But I want to set aside the policy content of an Obama administration (they’ll be plenty of time to focus...
05.11.08 | |

01 Apr

Interesting discussion of innovative ways to deal with Haiti’s long-term problems. Haiti is very close to a failed state. So it’s time to think big. Here are four out of the box choices: 1) A New Haitian Constitution; 2) UN Trusteeship; 3) U.S. Protectorate; 4) U.S. annexation and status as a territory. Read the whole article. I actually think that in a free and fair election, options 3 and 4 might prevail. And I think option 4 might achieve the best results long term for Haiti. But getting the U.S....
01.04.10 | |

05 May

...second periodic report.(1) The briefing updates Amnesty International’s concerns with regard to US "war on terror" detention, interrogation and related policies, as outlined in its preliminary briefing of August 2005, and provides additional information on domestic policies and practice.' I quote from Section 10 of the briefing: 10. Long term isolation in super-maximum security confinement. Thousands of prisoners, many of them mentally ill, continue to be held in long-term isolation in "super-maximum security" facilities, sometimes referred to as Security Housing Units (SHU Units) or Extended Control Units (ECU).(121) At least...
05.05.06 | |

14 Sep

Eric Mortensen, from Oslo, Norway Because few governments can actually point to a country where foreign aid has been successfully applied to generate long-term or even short-term growth. Foreign aid on the scale 0.7% of GDP simply doesn't work. Actually, it's harmful because it entrenches corrupt regimes. It's not about not wanting to help the poor, it's about not wanting to help corrupt regimes. BTW, if you go to Europe and listen to most people talk about foreign aid, invariably they talk as if more always equals better. America is...
14.09.05 | |

17 Jul

I'm not sure what is to be gained by appealing. In terms of why I don't think the OTP can appeal, the Rome Statute conceives of admissibility in terms of cases, not situations. See in particular art. 17(1). The Rome State also does not bestow the OTP with the opportunity to challenge admissibility under art. 19 although it does allow the OTP to "seek a ruling from the Court regarding a question of jurisdiction or admissibility" which can likely only take place after the OTP indicts a specific person. Thank...
17.07.15 | |

22 Mar

parents and born on U.S. soil. No Congress or Supreme Court can undo or change 'natural law.' The original authors of the U.S. Constitution did not intend that a majority decide on a legal definition, they did not intend that members of Congress determine the definition -- they determined that it should be a universally accepted definition. Harold Gielow Lack of federal clarity on the natural born citizen issue permits room for the state to act to enforce state law requiring candidates be legally qualified for the office they seek....
22.03.15 | |

29 Apr

...and children’s conventions, and the ICC (with Koh as legal adviser leading the charge), on the probability that they’ll require less in the way of political capital. Maybe the Supreme Court will get back on its internationalist tracks. As some conservative elements begin to see IL as a valuable tool for advancing their own agenda, anti-internationalism won’t even work as a unifying agenda item within the rump Republican party. Maybe we’ll witness Bricker’s final interment and a shift in the political culture towards broad support for international law and institutions....
29.04.09 | |

24 Aug

...of will, or browbeating - that is really what the term brainwashing is meant to convey.You paint yourself a tad hypocritical when from the western secular humanist tradition you claim that a person within an incompatible value system is "brainwashed". If you desire that a person question their own values and strive to understand, sympathize, and partially adopt your own, you should present the argument for why Humanism and not Muslim values are compelling.The term "brainwashing" is insulting, and it is a judgement call on whether formative values were taught...
24.08.05 | |

12 Apr

...commitment. This explains why it was pushing for it so adamantly. Furthermore the US has radically changed its nuclear weapons policies since 2001 to erase the sharp line that traditionally existed between nuclear and non-nuclear weapons. It now "integrates" both types of weapons in its military strategy, and envisions the use of nuclear weapons against underground facilities, preemptively against countries "intending" to use WMD's against US forces, and "for rapid and favorable war termination on US terms". Several scenarios like that, that apply specifically to the Iran scenario, were made...
12.04.06 | |