Category Archives: Middle East

The War Nerd: Gray Wolves — The Fascists Nobody Wants To Talk About

Examination of the history and practice of the Uurkish Gray Wolves as classic fascists, tolerated due to Turkey’s NATO role.

What Did You Miss While You Were Following the US Elections?

Since the US elections weren’t the only recent event of importance, an international news smorgasbord.

Who Is Michèle Flournoy, Biden’s Rumored Pick for Pentagon Chief?

Rumor, as in press reports, has it that Biden plans to install uber hawk Michèle Flournoy as Secretary of Defense.

How Kurdistan Is Taking Advantage Of Iraq’s Oil Crisis

Iraq is in bad enough shape that the Kurds look able to score a rare win.

The East Mediterranean Crisis Could Ignite a Greek-Turkish Proxy War

Greek-Turkish relations are more rocky than usual. A look at some of the drivers.

Why Saudi Arabia May Be Forced To Start Another Oil Price War

Poor oil price prospects may lead to another race to the bottom.

The Bahrain-Israel Mutual Recognition

A take on why Bahrain followed the UAE in recognizing Israel.

The Rotten Alliance of Liberals and Neocons Will Likely Shape U.S. Foreign Policy for Years to Come

How the Democrats have become Republicans in all but name, now with their love affair for neocons.

Saudi Arabia Refuses To Learn From Its Two Failed Oil Price Wars

The oil situation has developed not necessarily to Saudi Arabia’s advantage, but MbS appears not to have gotten the memo.

Major General Dennis Laich: Pentagon Needs a Bad Guy

Retired General Dennis Laich gives some insight into America’s permanent war policy.

Contagious Protests

Street protests propagate across borders. The results point to social media as a vehicle for contagion.

Yanis Varoufakis: Interview with Léa El Azzi on Capitalism After the Pandemic, Europe, Greece, Lebanon & the IMF

A discussion of the state of capitailsm, with a European/Lebanase slant.

Pentagon Porks Up as Covid-19 Bleeds Economy

Quelle surprise! Pentagon grifting continues apace, even in the face of a full-bore domestic crisis.

How Covid-19 is Creating a Social-Distancing Version of War

Covid-19 meets the US military and the Pentagon yields.

The War Nerd: How Many Dead Yemeni Nobodies Does It Take to Equal 1 Wapo Contributor?

It’s not easy to get a real-life scientific-type test of the relative weight of a WaPo writer’s death and the deaths of “enemy” civilians. Well, we’ve got such a test now. I just found it at the BBC News site.