LOG LADDER - A U.S. Army soldier climbs onto some logs to look for anything suspicious during a reconnaisance mission near the village of Lagar Jay Kalha, Jaghato district, Wardak province, Afghanistan, July 14, 2010. The soldier is is assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Battalion, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Russell GilchrestHype And Reality Over Rules Of Engagement -- Max Boot, Commentary Magazine
Having recently returned from more than two weeks in Afghanistan, I was struck by how overblown the whole debate over “Rules of Engagement” has become. Back home, bloggers are becoming apoplectic, claiming that, as one website put it, “Obama’s Rules of Engagement in Afghanistan Costing Our Troops Lives.” From such hyperbolic reporting, you would think that American soldiers and Marines are routinely being killed in firefights that they might have won had they been able to summon air or artillery support. Not so. The biggest killer of our troops is IEDs, which no amount of bombing can stop. In fact, too much expenditure of firepower can make it harder for our troops to uncover these deadly booby traps, because it alienates the population — the prime source of intelligence.
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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials
Why Not to Attack Iran (Yet) -- Barry Rubin, The Diplomat
Nuking Westphalia: Obama’s Deep Convictions Point to War With Iran -- American Interest
Gathering Storm: America and China in 2020 -- Ian Bremmer, World Affairs
Top 10 Events Shaping Russia’s Foreign Policy -- Fyodor Lukyanov, Moscow Times
China's Billion-Dollar Aid Appetite -- Jack C. Chow, Foreign Policy
Rwanda's Democracy in Danger -- Wall Street Journal editorial
Clowns or killers in al Qaeda -- Gene Healy, Washington Examiner
Guantanamo is no venue for a civilian jury trial -- Michael B. Mukasey, Washington Post
New Terror Threat On Mexico Border -- IBD Editorial
Assassination in Athens: Did a left-wing group kill an investigative journalist? -- Iason Athanasiadis, Global Post
