Articles I've Written

Being a broadcaster for a couple of years gave me some pretty good contacts in the media world.  As a result, I have been able to write some opinion articles from time to time in various newspapers and magazines. I currently write on a fairly regular basis for the excellent, yet oddly named TechCentralStation.

This is the archive for all those articles.

WMD Whining: Funny, but none of the people criticizing George W. Bush over Iraqi WMDs had any trouble believing it when a Democrat was president.

Supply-Side Suspicions: When the Supply-Siders speak, one should listen very carefully.

Constitutional Cynicism: The selection of Federal Judges has become a political blood sport. Which is precisely what it shouldn't be.

Chirac's Folly: Jacques Chirac's government is the perfect illustration for Barbara Tuchman's book, The March of Folly.

Back to Top

Everybody's a Critic: Critics of military battle plans should ensure that their criticisms actually reflect the objective reality of the battlefield.

A Sense of Perspective: The media needs to take a pill and relax over progress in Iraq.

On Our Own: The War Against Terror may be a very long and lonely one.

Shock and Awe: What war will mean for the Iraqi Army.

The Policy of France: France, it seems, has odd notions about what it means to be our ally.

Class Warfare Rhetoric: It makes for good sounds bites, but bad tax policy.

An Unbiased Jury: Powell's presentation before the UNSC was strong. But was it strong enough?

Communism & Totalitarianism: Why is it that Communism, with its calls for universal brotherhood and equality, has invariably ended up creating the most repressive, brutal regimes in modern history?

Democrats and National Security: The country is ill-served when one of its two major parties are unable to provide serious national security policy suggestions.

French Unilateralism: To France, unilateralism means "anything we don't like".

No Good Options: Dealing with North Korea isn't an easy problem.

Arrogance and Power: It is not arrogant to point out that a peaceful international order must be enforced.

Brutal Urban Combat: Urban combat can be tough. But nothing says we have to engage in it.

Morality and Politics: Political issues and moral ones are often entirely different. The Left seems to have forgotten this.

A Bellicose Acceptance: Iraq has accepted new inspections. But, they're certainly not happy about it.

Proliferating Proliferation: WMD manufacture is getting easier to implement and hide. We'd better figure out how to deal with that reality.

One Year On: Reflections on the Anniversary of 911.

Back to Top

Brazilian Bombshell: Brazil's new president is a man who bears watching.

Equity vs. Justice: The saga of Bob Torricelli highlights the central tension in the law today.

Appeaser's Framework: Appeasement is a failed policy. Yet, on the matter of North Korea, all some can offer is more of it.

Reflections on an"Election": The very fact that dictatorships hold "elections" is a sign that liberal values are subverting totalitarianism.

The Legitimacy of the UN: Just how legitimate is the UN when it comes to telling us when we may defend our own interests?

The Disappearing Alliance: The Europeans may be our allies now, but the future is looking darker.

Politicizing the Issue? Good!: War is supposed to be a political issue. That's why we elect these people.

Crazy Like a Fox: Saddam Hussein May be crazy, but he's not stupid.

Why Containment Won't Work: One-man dictatorships can't be contained, because the very nature of such states makes it so difficult.

Who Needs Permission: Some people argue that President Bush doesn't need congressional permission to take out Saddam. They're wrong.

Liberal, Not Democratic: The thing that makes western democracy a system of freedom is 2500 years of classical liberalism, not democracy.

Transformation Training: Proper modernizations will ensure that our enemies, rather than our sons, worry about the lethality of our weapons.

A Shield, Not a Sword: The moral imperative for creating a Ballistic Missile Defense system.

Not If, But When: Saddam Hussein's days are numbered. The only question is how big the number is.

Democracies and Warfare: Many people say democracies don't go to war against other. But they certainly have in the past.

Back to Top

Europe and Power Politics: Given the history of Europe, the EU is a remarkable achievement. Europeans have begun to believe that its model of diplomacy and security can be exported to the rest of the world. They're wrong.

Embracing Russia: It's hard to break the habits of a lifetime. But they aren't the enemy anymore, and our policy should show it.

The Necessity of Nation-Building: We must remember at all times the unpleasant strategic prospects that await us if we leave the war on terror half finished.

Getting NATO Back on Track: What the Euros have to do to fix NATO.

A Policy of Pre-Emption: President Bush's policy of taking pre-emptive action against terror may be a good idea, but it wont work without some important pre-requisites.

The Problem with Iraq: Eliminating Saddam Hussein would be a good thing. But it may not be as easy as some people think.

Star Wars: Attack of Indifference: OK. I've seen Episode Two. Big deal.

Harsh Lessons: This isn't the first time we've had to worry about suicide bombers.

A Clash of Civilizations: The sad truth is that 9/11 was just the beginning.

The Dangers of Moral Relativism: Sure, all people everywhere may be just the same. But our people don't strap 20 kilos of explosives to themselves, then go blow other people up.

Some Thoughts About the Second Amendment: A look at some constitutional questions about the right to keep and bear arms.

Ferreting Out the Truth: A less charitable person might call the California Department of Fish and Game a nest of lying weasels. But not me. Apart from anything else, it's very unfair to weasels.

Response to the California Waterfowl Association: Being involved the ferret legalization fight in California, albeit only peripherally, I get irked by the opponents of legalization. Especially opponents like the CWA, who argue that Ferrets would endanger the state's waterfowl population. This is a pretty odd argument for an organization who's main interest in waterfowl is killing them themselves.

The Naked Gun:  Gun control sounds great!  But why does the evidence indicate it doesn't work?

Hyping Linux:  It is a really cool, new operating system for PCs.  All the Geeks love it.  Unfortunately, they seem to be the only ones who know about it.

Back to Top

The Real "Menace" is Boredom:  My review of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

A Few Thoughts About Impeachment:  Reflections on a historic and troubling day.

The Arguments of Moral Cripples:  A good lesson in how to defend a guilty person...if you don't care about the truth.

 Gilligan's Island: A Darker View:  I wrote this in October of '97.  I don't remember what psychotropic drug I was on, but it made sense at the time.  (P.S.  For the dim and/or humorless members of the population, this article is satire.)

 Buchanan is No Conservative:  I didn't exactly call Pat Buchanan a Fascist here, but I came as close to the pond as I could without getting wet.

I Got Rights!:  And my rights are more important than yours, so there!

Wanted: A True Conservative:  This one will get all the Democrats mad.  Republicans won't be any happier.

In Over Their Heads:  This one is a military history paper I wrote in competence in leadership.  As far as I know, it's still required reading for all US Air Force Medical Corps personnel--Officers and Enlisted--who go to Red Flag Training in Texas.

PX Porn:  The chicks at NOW will love this one.

 Latin American Free Trade:  As you can tell from this one, I'm not currently a Union member.

A History Lesson:  Saddam Hussein and the whole Iraqi mess.  It's past time for him to go.

Safety Nazis:  They care more about my safety than I do.  Either that means I am way too reckless, or they have too much free time on their hands.

Elders Has Got It Right:  I thought Joycelyn Elders was pretty wacky most of the time, but I agreed with her on this.

Where's Father Flannigan When We Need Him?: Maybe it IS time to think about orphanages.

Politics and the Budget Debate:  A lesson in cynicism from the masters of the craft.

Top