Drone Porn: The Newest YouTube Hit

Keith Thomson, 12.30.2009

Reporter and author

Recently, a group of high-level Al Qaeda members convened in a secret location in the Hindu Kush mountains in central Afghanistan. "It's okay to ta...

The Keystone Cops Meet the Parents; And Let's Not Invade Yemen

Leon T. Hadar, 12.29.2009

Journalist and foreign affairs analyst

So before airport security screening start to feel like your annual medical check-up and American troops head into Yemen, here are some common sense ideas aimed at preventing anti-American terrorism.

It's Only an Act of Terror If it Terrorizes

Charles Karel Bouley, 12.29.2009

Talk Show Host, Entertainer, Author, Reporter, Comic

Last weekend America had the chance to be in the driver's seat, in a position of power. Instead, American media, and officials, chose the victim route focusing on our vulnerability rather than our resilience.

2010: Year of Reckoning?

Michael Brenner, 12.28.2009

Senior Fellow, the Center for Transatlantic Relations

With would-be terrorists -- however inept -- scattered around the planet, we keep pushing the Sisyphusian boulder up the slopes of the Hindu Kush.

Money isn't everything; it's the only thing

David Isenberg, 12.28.2009

Author, Shadow Force: Private Security Contractors in Iraq

When I was overseas earlier this year I had the pleasure of meeting Jake Allen. He is a former Marine Corps infantry officer and has worked as a priva...

Avatar and Public Diplomacy

John Brown, 12.29.2009

Adjunct Professor of Liberal Studies, Georgetown University

Watching it last Saturday morning, I reflected -- as a former foreign service officer involved in public diplomacy -- about paraplegic Marine Jake Sully's ventures into Pandora.

Up with Avatar: The Aughts & 2009 In Capitalist Perspective

Michael B. Laskoff, 12.26.2009

"...content against obedience..." W.S.

As the year and the decade draw to a close, I'm strangely optimistic. True, there are many reasons for pessimism. But over the past week, I have found reasons to at least be cheerful in popular entertainment.

My 2009 "McLaughlin Awards" [Part 1]

Chris Weigant, 12.26.2009

Author, Political Commentator, and Blogger (ChrisWeigant.com)

Welcome once again to our year-end wrap-up and awards ceremony. Honesty dictates that I immediately genuflect to The McLaughlin Group, from whom I have stolen all these award categories.

U.S. Soldiers Die in Iraq of Suspicious Electrocution - Wife of Adam Hermanson Wants Answers

Gina Furia Rubel, 12.23.2009

Gina Furia Rubel is a citizen journalist, attorney and publicist, a.k.a. The PR Lawyer

The Army Criminal Investigation Division's inquiry into Air Force veteran Adam Hermanson's death is ongoing: Hermanson is the 19th American to be fatally electrocuted in Iraq since the war began.

Making His List, Checking It Twice

Bruce Kluger & David Slavin, 12.23.2009

Regular contributors to National Public Radio’s All Things Considered

Just when Barack Obama thought his toughest decisions were behind him--his Afghanistan strategy, tackling unemployment, what to say to Tiger Woods i...

Good and Evil in a Troubled World

Craig Barnes, 12.21.2009

Author, playwright, trial lawyer, negotiator, frequent commentator on public radio

Nobody seems happy. Not the democrats who want to get out of Afghanistan; not the Republicans who want to bomb devils and wipe out evil.

Why Everyone Hate Tony Blair

Ben Cohen, 12.21.2009

Editor of The Daily Banter.com

Tony Blair has hit back at his critics saying that 'not everyone' hates him, and that abroad, he remains highly popular. Blair has been mercilessly at...

(Taps Shoulder): Excuse me, Mr. President?

Melissa Hapke, 12.21.2009

Remember me? I'm the little people you promised to serve for two years on the campaign trail. I'm the person who walked the neighborhood convincing p...

Fair Representation News: Proportional voting in American cities and around the world

Rob Richie, 12.19.2009

Executive director of FairVote

Here's an excerpt from the FairVote Reformer for December 2009 focused on proportional voting and other alternatives to winner-take-all elections. Fa...

Foreign Affairs Roundup

Christopher Herbert and Victoria Kataoka Rebuffet, 12.18.2009

Editors of Simple Intelligence

This Week's Top Stories in Foreign Affairs: End of START and A New Beginning for Disarmament SI Analysis: An agreement on a follow-up treaty to the 1...

It's Official! Tiger's Affairs Are More Important Than 9-11

John Milewski, 12.18.2009

Host of "Dialogue" (Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars)

A new exploitative media low was reached this week when the New York Post featured a front page story on Tiger Woods for something like the 19th strai...

Bush Intentionally Let Osama bin Laden Escape, Asserts Congressman Hinchey

Kathleen Wells, J.D., 12.17.2009

A blogger on politics and law who draws upon her political science and legal background

Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) is a progressive Democrat serving his ninth term in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is a member of the powerf...

Tiger, Letterman, Madoff And More: Eight Lessons From The Decade's Biggest Flameouts

Robbie Vorhaus, 12.16.2009

Communications, crisis and reputation advisor

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2009's Top News Stories

Pamela Tom, 12.15.2009

Broadcast and online journalist in the San Francisco Bay

If you're anything like me -- living in this mad, mad world of information overload -- it may be difficult to look back at 2009 and remember the big news stories that defined this year.

Magi 2009

August J. Pollak, 12.15.2009

O. Henry meets Obama. To see more of August J. Pollak's cartoon "Some Guy With a Website," check out the archive....

Keeping the Wheels on the Obama Presidency

Lincoln Mitchell, 12.15.2009

Assistant Professor in the Practice of International Politics, Columbia University

Because he cannot provide peace and prosperity, Obama needs to pass some meaningful legislation to demonstrate that he is doing something positive. Just getting a health care bill passed will mean nothing to many Americans.