Outside the Beltway

Rolling up your sleeves is hard if you’re a Marine.

Hamid Karzai’s refusal to sign a new security agreement may result in all U.S. troops leaving Afghanistan by the end of the year.

Poking the eye of the institution that passes your budget is a bold choice.

One in ten Army helicopter pilot is a woman, yet men account for 97% of injuries in helicopter accidents.

If something is going to be done about an out of control National Security State, it’ll be because the American people demand it.

The Cold War may be over, but the negative opinions in the U.S. regarding Russia and its leadership seem to have continued.

My latest for The National Interest, “The U.S. Military’s Ethics Crisis,” has posted.

President Obama’s new rules for killing Americans with drones are proving inconvenient.

Ten months ago, a group of people attacked a power substation in California. Who they were and why they did it remains a mystery.

Sergeant First Class Leroy Petry, recipient of the Medal of Honor for gallantry in Afghanistan, is medically retiring from the Army.

Just when it became safe to keep your shoes and tablets on, a new threat to the friendly skies has emerged: toothpaste.

The US military needs to cull and standardize its bloated award system.

Most Americans now see America’s decade of war as a failure.

Why do we persist in going to war?

Former SecDef Robert Gates is among those who believes that the Iraq War unduly diverted attention from fighting the War On Terror.

A new book by former SecDef Robert Gates is making political waves in Washington power circles, but will it matter to ordinary Americans?

The Iraqis need to learn to govern themselves, and conservatives blaming President Obama for renewed violence need a history lesson.

The IDF has finally put a woman in command of a battalion. They’re decades behind American forces.

If you’re still not convinced that we lost the war in Iraq, this should settle the argument.

The Marine Corps’ plan to make women take the same fitness test as men has hit a wee snag.

The “paper of record” joins the call for some kind of deal with Edward Snowden.

The New York Times Benghazi report raises as many questions as it purports to answer.

.Many have tried to justify N.S.A. data mining on the theory that it could have prevented 9/11. Is that true?

The “good war” no more.

More details.

Another Federal District Court ruling on the Constitutionality of the NSA’s data mining program, this time more favorable to the NSA.

In a new interview, Edward Snowden explains his motives for absconding from the country with NSA secrets.

Newly disclosed details about the US role in Colombia.

Michelle Howard has become the highest ranking woman in the history of the US Navy–and the US military, period.

Does a determination that NSA data collection practices are likely unconstitutional mean that Edward Snowden’s actions were, in some sense, justified?

A potentially big legal setback for a big National Security Agency program.

Without a deal of some kind, it’s quite likely that Edward Snowden will remain beyond the reach of U.S. law enforcement or some time to come.

Apparently, the security at Tuesday’s memorial for Nelson Mandela was so lax as to be nearly non-existent.

For veterans who get in trouble with the law, *when* they commit a crime can have profound implications on their future. Does this make sense?

Some 2000 veterans of World War II were lobotomized by the VA. That’s awful but not outrageous.

Democracy was nice while it lasted.

There are many choices in dealing with Iran’s nuclear program there are many choices, but some are better than others.

The U.S. position on China’s new air defense zone is exceedingly clear. The question is where it goes from here.

You know the Defense budget is getting tight when we can’t spare a few measly fighter planes to escort an imaginary character.

A new poll finds the American public far less supportive of the idea of the U.S. as the world’s policeman.