Robert Farley

A fleet of European warships operating under the aegis of the European Union is headed for the Horn of Africa: Britain is to lead an armada of EU warships to the Gulf of Aden next month to tackle the escalating problem of piracy, in a mission expected to last 12 months. The naval fleet, under […]

Andy McCarthy’s dissatisfaction with the Iraq SOFA agreement has been earning some contempt, but like Eric Martin I found it rather refreshing. Unlike so many of his conservative brethren, McCarthy realizes that what the Bush administration has wrought is defeat; no permanent bases, a democracy that’s shaky at best, an Iraqi populace that despises the […]

I received approximately 600 messages yesterday about this story: A hijacked Saudi-owned supertanker carrying more than $100 million worth of crude oil is believed to have anchored off Somalia and its owners are working toward “the safe and speedy return” of the 25 crew, the owners said Tuesday. A statement from Vela International, a subsidiary […]

NYT: A high-ranking Chinese military official has hinted that China’s fast-growing navy is seeking to acquire an aircraft carrier, a move that would surely stoke tensions with the United States military and its allies in Asia. China has been floating rumours of aircraft carrier construction for at least the last ten years. As such, it’s […]

In the worst days of the Iraq War, the Pentagon launched a media campaign designed to convince the world that Iran was smuggling arms to Iraqi insurgents. Some of the claims strained credulity, such as the idea that Iran would supply Sunni insurgents fighting against its Shia allies. In particular, Iran was supposed to be […]

Auto123 thinks that the new presidential limo has been spotted: With so much armor being added, it appears GM may have needed a medium-duty truck chassis like the Topkick platform. We observed the limo testing along with two regular Topkick trucks and the wheels and tires on the limo appeared to be the same size […]

A group of Somali pirates ran afoul of the frigate HMS Cumberland: Pirates caught redhanded by one of Her Majesty’s warships after trying to hijack a cargo ship off Somalia made the grave mistake of opening fire on two Royal Navy assault craft packed with commandos armed with machineguns and SA80 rifles. In the ensuing […]

The Supreme Court rules for the Navy in a dispute over the use of sonar: Courts must be wary of second-guessing the military’s considered judgments, the Supreme Court said Wednesday in lifting judicial restrictions on submarine training exercises off the coast of Southern California that may harm marine mammals. In balancing military preparedness against environmental […]

The people of the United States like cocaine and heroin. Consequently, entrepreneurs in Latin America produce cocaine and heroin. However, the government of the United States has determined that the people of the United States should be prohibited from using cocaine and heroin. In spite of this prohibition, Latin American entrepreneurs continue to deliver product […]

I can believe that Bill Kristol is reviving PNAC as an outpost for neoconservatives in exile. PNAC would also serve as a laboratory for developing narratives about the “success” of neoconservatism during the Bush administration, and accounts of how Bush failed because he wasn’t neoconservative enough. I’d be surprised, however, if the neoconservative cabal really […]