Mothers and Soldiers: Healing the bonds destroyed by war

Christian Avard, 11.10.2009

Staff reporter Deerfield Valley News, Dover VT

The bonds established between mothers and children are sacred. Mothers provide unconditional love, caring and support, teaching their children to...

Hunting as a Means of Therapy

Reedu Taha, 11.10.2009

Director, United Action for Animals

"Who would have thought that an article about hunting could bring soldiers and animals in need, together," said Jennifer Panton, President of United Action for Animals.

Obama's (In)Decision on Afghanistan

Malou Innocent, 11.10.2009

Foreign Policy Analyst at the Cato Institute

Obama's decision on Afghanistan could define his presidency. If an escalating military strategy leads only to thousands of more deaths, then that is a bitter legacy indeed.

Movie review: The Messenger delivers

Marshall Fine, 11.10.2009

Author and film critic, www.hollywoodandfine.com

The Messenger, as powerful and restrained a drama as you could wish for, could have used any war as its context and made the same point: that all war ends tragically for too many.

Veteran's Day Special: Coming Down to Earth with "Occupation: Dreamland"

Carol Smaldino, 11.09.2009

Psychotherapist

The massacre at Fort Hood is a stark reminder of the need to guard against becoming numb against the horrors our soldiers face in war. Fortunately, the film "Occupation: Dreamland" fills that void.

Strange Bed Fellows: Health Care Reform and the Stupak Amendment

Michelle Kraus, 11.09.2009

Veteran of the political blogging community.

How did women’s reproductive rights become the bargaining chip for health care reform in this country? Federal funding for clinics is essential ...

House Representatives Vote No on Women's Rights, Yes on War

Allison Kilkenny, 11.08.2009

Radio host, writer, allisonkilkenny.com

Many of the Democrats who voted in favor of the Stupak amendment will surely boast they did so because they are the sentinels of human life. Of course, these Democrats are only concerned with protecting certain types of life.

Why Negative Thinking Makes the World a Better Place

Christina Patterson, 11.07.2009

Writer and Columnist for "The Independent"

Some years ago, I went on a "positivity" course. My sister had died, my father had died, and I'd had cancer, and a broken heart, and I wasn't, quite frankly, feeling that cheerful.

A War Tax: A Strategic, Fiscal and Political Imperative

Paul Abrams, 11.06.2009

Physician, entrepreneur, biotechnology, law, economics, politics, professional iconoclast

Without a draft, and without a war tax, 99.9% of Americans do not have to sacrifice at all to continue the war. It is too easy for war to become, for 99.9% of us, more like a video game played out on television.

After Fort Hood: Count All the Dead

Aaron Glantz, 11.06.2009

Author, The War Comes Home: Washington's Battle Against America's Veterans

The most depressing aspect of Thursday's shoot-out at Fort Hood is that none of the 11 people who died in the melee will be counted as casualties of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Our National Journey? Get Out A Map

Jeffrey Shaffer, 11.04.2009

While media attention in Iraq and Afghanistan focuses on car bombings and combat casualties, other disturbing events in the region are slipping through the news cycle almost unnoticed.

Admit It: We Don't Really Think About the Troops

Douglas MacKinnon, 11.04.2009

Former press secretary to Sen. Bob Dole

For us, the troops are invisible. They don't exist. They don't count. For the folks I speak with from the military, it really has come down to, "Let us go big or let us come home."

What Obama Is Up Against

Russ Baker, 11.04.2009

Editor, whowhatwhy.com, Author "Family of Secrets" explosive Bush history (2009)

We Americans harbor a quaint belief that a new president takes charge of a government that eagerly awaits his next command. But that's not how things work at the top, especially where "national security" is concerned.

The Best We Can Do

Lance Simmens, 11.04.2009

Has spent the last three decades involved in a variety of public policy issues.

Why is it that it is easier to take the country into war without justification than it is to ensure that every American is entitled to health care?

One Year After Election Day: The Verdict on Obama

Andy Ostroy, 11.03.2009

New York City-based political analyst

Has President Obama done a good job in office, or is he destined to suffer the same fate of Jimmy Carter and George H. W. Bush, as unmemorable, ineffective one-term chief executives?

The Myth of Collateral Damage: Truth, Consequences and a Challenge to 'Say It Plain'

Luis Carlos Montalván, 10.30.2009

Freelance Journalist, Veteran

The Iraqi refugee tragedy continues to unfold. It is time for proactive policy and action, for Americans to make friends of the people we were seeking to help by doing the right things.

McChrystal Method

Mike Bonifer, 10.30.2009

Mike Bonifer is the author of Gamechangers -- Improvisation for Business in the Networked World

A character like Stanley McChrystal cannot afford to show vulnerability to his enemies, and by enemies I mean anyone who would prevent The 40,000 from going into production with him as its star.

Mapping Congo's Militarized Mines

David Sullivan, 10.30.2009

Enough Project

The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 has been making news because of all the things left out of it, including billions of dollars in cuts to expensive weapons systems.

President Obama: Afghanistan Needs More Than a Military Solution

Patricia DeGennaro, 10.29.2009

The news media has an annoying tendency to focus on the symptoms, not the disease.

R.I.P. Shane Ratliff, Halliburton Whistleblower

Kerry Candaele, 10.29.2009

Author, filmmaker

His story sketched out the coordinates of greed that connected Houston to Baghdad, and ran through Washington D.C., during the Bush reign.

Basic Truths in Hoh Resignation Letter Were True When He Took His Job

David Quigg, 10.30.2009

Ex-Reporter, Avid Photographer, and Blogger at davidquigg.com

The basic grim truths that Matthew Hoh wrote about in his much-quoted resignation letter were all basically true when he took his job a few months ago.