Outside the Beltway

If the United Nations has its way, E.T. will be meeting an obscure Malaysian astrophysicists if he arrives.

If it’s September, it must be time for Mahmoud Ahmadinjad to stand up before the United Nations General Assembly and say something completely insane.

According to a new book from Bob Woorward, American policy in Afghanistan is the result of a decision making process that can only be described as chaotic at best.

Ted Koppel thinks our actions since 9/11 have helped Osama bin Laden fulfill his goals. He couldn’t be more wrong.

The Glad Handing Edition OTB Caption Contest^TM is now over.

Fidel Castro is back in the public eye, but he’s singing a slightly different tune now.

The plan by one fringe church in Gainesville, Florida to burn copies of the Koran on September 11th is igniting fires of protest across the Muslim world.

Will Israel attack Iran ? You’d better hope not.

President Obama didn’t use the words “Mission Accomplished” last night, but the message was the same.

Not surprisingly, Radical Islamists are taking notice of the tone of debate in the United States over the so-called “Ground Zero Mosque.”

Glenn Greenwald argues that the “Ground Zero Mosque” debate is about more than just a “mosque” near Ground Zero. He’s right, but that also means the debate is likely to get uglier.

America’s mission in Iraq is shifting from an active combat role to a smaller security presence. But the war that gripped our attention for years is now off the radar screen.

Once again, an American President is stepping into the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and, once again, he has no idea how to accomplish the goals he’s established.

Why are people’s views about Islam so screwed up ? Mostly because the only things they know about it tend to be the worst possible aspects of all.

The New York Times is reporting that the Obama Administration has convinced Israel that Iran is much further away from developing nuclear weapons than Tel Aviv fears, but there seems to be something else going on here.

According to John Bolton, Israel has a deadline of August 21st to attack Iran’s nuclear program. This is the fourth deadline he’s set in the last three years.

Barack Obama has significantly widened his predecessor’s global war on terrorism, even if he’s no longer calling it that.

Bill Kristol and friends are trying to make it politically toxic to criticize Israel.

The American Family Association has ramped up the nation’s anti-Muslim sentiment yet again.

Every new report out of Iran seems to bring us closer to the moment when Israel has decided it’s heard enough. What happens if that day actually happens ?

Of the U.S. military’s 10 combatant commands, only three are held by Army or Marine generals.

Hezbollah can tolerate the restoration of a synagogue, but many Americans are apoplectic about a Muslim community center and mosque two blocks from where the WTC once stood.

This year’s Zogby poll of public opinion in the Middle East exhibits a marked shift on the Obama Administration, Iran.

Saddam Hussein’s closest adviser in the 1990s, Tariq Aziz, is talking to reporters, and he wants American troops to stay in Iraq.

Today’s outrage of the day comes in the form of a new report claiming that the United States supported the release of the only man accused. But the report itself proves that isn’t what happened.

Since 9/11 there has been a steady trickle of stories about jihadists hooking up with Latin American drug cartels and the like. Here is a guide of story points that can help you identify when such a story is almost certainly bogus.

America’s energy habit is getting people killed! What should we do about it?

Israel and Turkey held secret, informal talks recently. This is interesting, given the recent flotilla incident. What is more interesting is that the Israeli Foreign Minister learned of the event via the press.