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The War in Context    alternative perspectives on the "war on terrorism" Endangering US security Katrina vanden Heuvel and Stephen F. Cohen, The Nation, April 15, 2002 Barely six months after Russian President Vladimir Putin became the Bush Administration's most valuable ally in the war against terrorism in Afghanistan, the promise of a historic US-Russian partnership is being squandered. Indeed, this second chance to establish a truly cooperative relationship with post-Communist Russia--after the lost opportunity of the 1990s--is being gravely endangered by Bush's own policies. [The complete article] Azmi Bishara’s ethical resistance Rime Allaf, The Daily Star of Lebanon, March 30, 2002 Bishara [an Arab-Israeli member of the Israeli parliament] described how a South African delegation he once accompanied in the Occupied Territories took offense at his comparison of Israel’s practices with those of South Africa’s apartheid period: “No, in South Africa, it wasn’t so bad!” [The complete article] Please, America, listen to your foreign friends Shirley Williams, IHT, March 29, 2002 Please, America, to whom we have looked for enlightened and wise leadership now for three generations: listen to the voices all around you. Remember the just war is defensive, proportionate, and avoids civilian casualties. Today war and peace are in your hands. [The complete article] Bush's "nuclear offensive" for peace? David Corn, AlterNet, March 29, 2002 Days ago, The Washington Post reported the Bush administration's recently-drafted nuclear posture review -- the master plan for developing and structuring the U.S. nuclear force -- notes that nuclear weapons will be part of the U.S. "offensive deterrence." Offensive deterrence? Is this Orwellian, or merely Stragelovian? [The complete article] At 18, bomber became martyr and murderer Graham Usher, The Guardian, March 30, 2002 Aayat al-Akhras, 18, yesterday became the third and youngest female suicide bomber of the Palestinian intifada. She blew herself up, killing two Israelis, in a supermarket in suburban West Jerusalem. Her "martyrdom" came within 48 hours of a suicide bombing in the seaside town of Netanya that left 22 dead and more than 100 wounded, the worst Palestinian atrocity in Israel in 18 months of fighting. It gave chilling testimony to an even bleaker future prophesied yesterday by the speaker of the Palestinian parliament, Ahmed Korai: "Israel is pushing us more and more. If it continues, there will be a million suicide bombers." [The complete article] Iraq diary Pepe Escobar, Asia Times, March, 2002 Part 1: Baghdad glued to Beirut From the point of view of both Amman and Baghdad, and for a number of not necessarily the same reasons, it is fair to assume that increasingly the Arab world is going to rely on Europe. Arab diplomats, including those present at the Arab League summit that began in Beirut on Wednesday, are convinced that Washington's interest in the Middle East revolves around one issue only: oil. And they have also seen how Washington has simply ignored the EU collective criticism of the Bush administration's obsession on attacking Iraq. [The complete article] Part 2: The vanishing middle class Abil and Tahir are survivors. They are now part of a vanishing group: the Iraqi middle class. They cannot exercise their chosen profession. They don't have the "connections" to obtain an exit visa and try a new life, maybe in Jordan, maybe in the Gulf, maybe in Europe. They are bewildered when told that Iraq is going to be attacked - again - by the United States, and they ask, "Has the decision been made? Is it inevitable?" [The complete article] No stopping the Intifada Fawaz A. Gerges, Los Angeles Times, March 29, 2002 The suicide bombing that killed at least 20 Israelis celebrating Passover reflects the dramatic changes that have occurred in Palestinian society since the outbreak of the intifada 18 months ago. [The complete article] Live from Palestine Electronic Intifada Residents of the occupied Palestinian territories provide accounts of the latest developments on the ground. The lies leaders tell when they want to go to war Robert Fisk, The Independent, March 30, 2002 How much longer can Ariel Sharon pretend that he's fighting in the "war against terror"? How much longer are we supposed to believe this nonsense? How much longer can the Americans remain so gutlessly silent in the face of a vicious conflict which is coming close to obscuring the crimes against humanity of 11 September? Terror, terror, terror. Like a punctuation mark, the word infects every Israeli speech, every American speech, almost every newspaper article. When will someone admit the truth: that the Israelis and Palestinians are engaged in a dirty colonial war which will leave both sides shamed and humiliated? [The complete article] MEDIA BIAS AND PEACE MAKING COMMENT -- In the United States, while conservatives never tire of claiming that the mainstream media has a liberal bias, few commentators - conservative or liberal - are willing to talk about the pro-Israeli media bias. Eric Alterman (self-described as a critical supporter of Israel) had the courage to add up the numbers in assigning pundits and media outlets to one camp or the other. His conclusion, not surprisingly, is that there really is only one camp and that, "It remains to be seen whether unqualified support for all of Israel’s actions is really in that tortured nation’s best interest in the long run." But in as much as the partisan nature of the US media reflects a national pro-Israeli bias, the larger question has to be: in the Middle East, how can the United States ever be perceived by both sides of the conflict as an honest peace broker? And, if this is a role that the United States is unqualified to fulfill, is the world's only superpower capable of mustering the humility to hand over this urgent task to the European Union, the United Nations or any other party capable of being trusted by both Israelis and Palestinians, Jews and Arabs? Intractable foes, warring narratives While much of the world sees Mideast conflict through Palestinian eyes, in America, Israel’s view prevails Eric Alterman, MSNBC, March 28, 2002 Stepping back from the horrific headlines of the day, it is clear that the conflict over Israel/Palestine is all about competing narratives. Both sides inflict inhuman cruelties on one another. Both sides blame the other for forcing them to do so. The Israelis kill far more Palestinians than vice-versa, with far more deadly and effective weapons; but the Palestinians, unlike the Israelis, deliberately target innocents for murder. The Israelis say the conflict will end when the Palestinians renounce their commitment to terrorism and accept Israel’s “right to existence.” The Palestinians claim it will end when Israel ends its illegal occupation of Palestinian lands and compensates the millions of refugees it created, either by returning them to their homes or giving them the funds necessary to build new ones. [The complete article] Mideast fractures cause global stress Peter Grier, The Christian Science Monitor, March 29, 2002 Israeli-Palestinian violence may have reached the point where it is threatening the geopolitical foundation of the US war against terrorism. [The complete article] FREEDOM OF THE PRESS Profiles in media courage Norman Solomon, Media Beat, March 28, 2002 The Committee to Protect Journalists, a careful mainstream group based in New York, has included this assessment in its new report: "The actions taken by the Bush administration seemed to embolden repressive governments around the world to crack down on their own domestic media. In Russia, a presidential adviser said President Vladimir Putin planned to study U.S. limitations on reporting about terrorists in order to develop rules for Russian media." Actually, Uncle Sam is quite a role model for how avowedly democratic nations can serve rather explosive notice on specific news outlets. The Pentagon implemented a devastating Nov. 13 missile attack on the Al-Jazeera bureau in Kabul. Months later, the Committee to Protect Journalists seems skeptical of the official explanations. "The U.S. military described the building as a 'known' Al Qaeda facility without providing any evidence," the report says. "Despite the fact that the facility had housed the Al-Jazeera office for nearly two years and had several satellite dishes mounted on its roof, the U.S. military claimed it had no indications the building was used as Al-Jazeera's Kabul bureau." That's one of many ways for governments to "dispatch" news. The styles and methods vary considerably, but effective media control is an ardent desire of self-proclaimed democrats, steely autocrats and religious fanatics alike. [The complete article] The price of propaganda Democracy lessons from the Middle East Frank Smyth, Tom Paine.com, March 21, 2002 Not many Americans have heard of Spozhmai Maiwandi, but many Afghanis have. A native of the Central Asian nation, she ran the Pashto service of the Voice of America for over a decade. VOA is the paid broadcast arm of the U.S. government, but Ms. Maiwandi is a journalist, and she aired more than just American propaganda. She reported the news, and, in a broadcast shortly after September 11, included the remarks of the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar. That raised hackles in the Bush administration, and she quickly became a target. Soon, under Bush-appointed director Robert Reilly, VOA turned on Ms. Maiwandi. First she found insulting notes slipped under her door by anonymous coworkers, she said, producing a note that simply read: "This is no longer your office. Move your big [expletive removed] out of here." Then she was fired from the Pashto service, although in an Orwellian twist Reilly claims he gave her a promotion. "You are being given a temporary promotion," VOA's department of human resources wrote to Ms. Maiwandi. "This action is not a reassignment from your current position. Your position of record remains Chief of the Pashto Service," the note added, even though she would no longer run the service. [The complete article] Uzbekistan conjurs up new rule on media Government calls on journalists to give advance notification if they intend publishing critical articles Bobomurod Abdullaev, IWPR, March 27, 2002 After coming under the media spotlight during the US-led war against terrorism in Afghanistan, the authorities have tried to present an outwardly less harsh face. State officials were even told to make themselves more available to the press. Now the authorities are telling journalists to provide descriptions of their future articles. [The complete article] Bush's foreign policy blueprint A grand global plan Jim Lobe, Tom Paine.com, March 26, 2002 Since Sept. 11, the Bush administration has aggressively deployed U.S. troops around the globe, promised military aid to dozens of countries, and has unilaterally undermined the global arms-control regime -- all in the name of a "war on terrorism." In just a few months, Washington has pledged or provided new military aid -- from training, equipment or, most significantly, advisers -- to some two dozen countries, among them Armenia, Azerbaijan, Colombia, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Georgia, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Yemen, not to mention Afghanistan, where the United States intends to build a national army. [The complete article] Tribal leaders in Pakistan warn the U.S. to keep out Raymond Bonner, New York Times, March 25, 2002 Tribal leaders from the treacherous mountainous areas along the border with Afghanistan have an unambiguous message for American commanders who have suggested that they might enter the region in pursuit of Al Qaeda fighters: Don't. [The complete article - registration required] The US twists arms in the Middle East In return for supporting a new Gulf war, Turkey could get Iraqi oilfields Dan Plesch, New Statesman, April 1, 2002 In 1995, 35,000 Turkish troops attacked the Kurds in northern Iraq, an act ignored by the British and US governments who had made much of their protection of the Kurds from Saddam Hussein. As the Turkish troops withdrew, President Suleyman Demirel said: "The border on those heights is wrong. Actually, that is the boundary of the oil region. Turkey begins where that boundary ends. Geologists drew that line. It is not Turkey's national border." He retracted these statements after Arab protests. But Turkish interest has continued, and today the Turkish national oil company is drilling new wells in the Khumala field as part of a UN-sanctioned oil-for-food programme. Turning this commercial presence into a guaranteed supply of cheap oil, courtesy of a new puppet regime in Baghdad, may be the carrot that the US is offering Turkey. [The complete article] Another bloody passover Joel Beinin, AlterNet, March 27, 2002 Increasing numbers of Israelis are now returning to the previous understanding of the Israeli peace movement -- that there is no military solution to the conflict with the Palestinians, and that seeking to enforce one requires those serving in the Israeli armed forces to engage in systematic, unconscionable violations of human rights. [The complete article] Are we truly free? David Newman, Jerusalem Post, March, 27 2002 We are surrounded - here in Israel - with so many groups who do not experience freedom, politically, economically or spiritually. Politically, we continue to rule over another people who are not free. The fact that they hate us, send their suicide bombers into out shopping malls and bus stations, does not change that basic fact. [The complete article] Bush comes to shove Nato was being counted out a few months ago. Now the US is using it to control the new Europe Simon Tisdall, The Guardian, March 28, 2002 While Britain and other member states ponderously plod towards agreement on the EU's eastern enlargement, the Bush administration is steaming full speed ahead with the reunification of Europe - under US auspices, on US terms, and primarily for US purposes. [The complete article] NUCLEAR THREAT Comment -- While politicians and the public have been alarmed by the possibility of terrorist attacks on nuclear power facilities, a more immediate danger was already present in many of these ageing reactors. US nuclear plant was close to disaster David Usborne, The Independent, March 27, 2002 The safety of ageing nuclear reactors dotted across the United States has been thrown into doubt by the discovery of severe corrosion at a plant in Ohio that could have triggered a massive failure. [The complete article] Car crash heightens unease over Kyrgyzstan's ties to U.S. Cholpon Orozobekova, IWPR, March 27, 2002 A recent traffic accident in which an American soldier hit two women has renewed debate over the immunity status of foreign military personnel. Reports in local newspapers claimed the driver had been drunk at the time. The real controversy began, however, when it emerged that the Kyrgyzstan interior ministry and US embassy personnel had not allowed automobile inspectorate officials to test the US driver for alcohol. [The complete article] Empty American promises embitter an Afghan village Jeffrey Gettleman, Los Angeles Times, March 26 2002 One icy night in mid-October, a U.S. military advisor who called himself "Baba John" rounded up villagers in this guerrilla fighters' paradise and asked them what they wanted when the war was over. A school. A clinic. Roads that wouldn't turn to mud when it rained. Pens. Pencils. Grain. "Baba John offered so many things," recalls Azim Naim Zada, a community elder. "He told us that if we fought hard against the Taliban, we'd get so much food we'd grow fat, like him." The villagers did fight hard, and helped drive the Taliban out of this rocky canyon about 75 miles south of Mazar-i-Sharif. It was a key battle in the ground war leading to the capture of the strategic northern city, and it triggered a Taliban retreat across the country. But five months later, the people here are still hungry. Waiting. [The complete article] Terrorism fears push Maryland toward wider police power Matthew Mosk, Washington Post, March 25, 2002 As Maryland delegates met in committee to craft the [anti-terrorism] legislation, concerns about security ultimately outweighed fears about the potential for police abuse. "I realize that this bill basically says you can tap someone's phone for jaywalking, and normally I would say, 'No way,' " said Del. Dana Lee Dembrow (D-Montgomery). "But after what happened on September 11th, I say screw 'em." [The complete article] Afghans mistakenly held by U.S. Fighters recount unanswered pleas, beatings -- and an apology on their release John Ward Anderson, Washington Post, March 26, 2002 When U.S. tanks and helicopters surrounded a walled compound in this tiny desert outpost on March 17 and arrested more than 30 men suspected of belonging to the al Qaeda network, the Pentagon depicted the operation as a good example of how U.S. forces would finish rooting out terrorists from Afghanistan. But last week, after four days of imprisonment, all of the suspects were released. U.S. officials had discovered that the compound was a security post manned not by al Qaeda or Taliban forces, but by fighters from the U.S.-backed Northern Alliance hired by the government of Kandahar to help control crime. Eighteen of the men said in interviews that they quickly surrendered and tried to explain that they were U.S. allies as their small compound was surrounded by eight to 10 U.S. tanks and dozens of American soldiers at about 3 a.m. that day. But they said their explanations were either not understood or ignored and that they were tied up, punched, kicked and kneed by the soldiers and then held in cages at a U.S. military base for four days before being released with an apology. [The complete article] Rights groups condemn new Indian law on terrorism Kalyani, OneWorld, March 27, 2002 Lawmakers in India gave decisive support Tuesday to an anti-terrorism law which activists said would pose a threat to democratic norms in the subcontinent. [The complete article] Sharon deals fatal blow to Saudi peace bid Israeli PM's demand for US to sanction Arafat's exile has strengthened the hand of Arab radicals Suzanne Goldenberg, The Guardian, March 27, 2002 A rare opportunity for reconciliation with the Jewish state was fast disappearing ahead of today's Arab League summit, buried beneath Ariel Sharon's increasingly vitriolic confrontation with Yasser Arafat. [The complete article] Rant against Bush becomes US top seller Duncan Campbell, The Guardian, March 27, 2002 It accuses President Bush of being the "thief-in-chief, a trespasser on federal land, a squatter at the Oval Office" and calls for the marines to be sent in to evict him. It claims that the United States is a country that "goes out of its way to remain ignorant and stupid". And this week it became the number one bestselling book in the land. [The complete article] Suicide bombers are the appalling but inevitable result of decades of despair Sa'id Ghazali, The Independent, March 25, 2002 The international media focuses its attention on every twist and turn of the US-led ceasefire efforts and on preparations for this week's Arab League summit, where the Saudi peace proposal will be debated. It does not discuss why an unprecedented tide of men is entering Israel, knowing that they will not return home, willing to commit an act of savage brutality in the name of their cause. [The complete article] US paves way for war on Iraq Attack base to be moved into Qatar to bypass Saudi objections Julian Borger, The Guardian, March 27, 2002 The US Air Force has begun preparations to move its Gulf headquarters from Saudi Arabia to Qatar, to bypass Saudi objections to military action against Iraq, according to Saudi analysts and businessmen involved in the relocation. [The complete article] Anti-terror war worries press watchdog Jim Lobe, OneWorld, March 26, 2002 Journalists around the world are facing a "press freedom crisis" in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks against New York and the Pentagon (news - web sites), according to a new report released in Washington Tuesday by the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). [The complete article] The complete text of the Committee to Protect Journalists report Attacks on the Press in 2001 Amnesty International report: Crackdown against Uighurs intensifies Jim Lobe, Inter Press Service, March 26, 2002 The Chinese government is using the US war against terrorism to intensify its decade-long crackdown against ethnic Uighurs in the far-western Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR), Amnesty International says. Beijing has detained several thousand people over the past six months, closed mosques, and required key community leaders, including some 8,000 imams (Islamic clergy), to attend political-education classes, the rights watchdog said in a 33-page report. [The complete article] Top military officers deny British Government claims over Iraq Kim Sengupta and Nigel Morris, The Independent, March 26, 2002 Downing Street was facing an embarrassing rift last night after its claims of a "marriage" of evil between Saddam Hussein and al-Qa'ida were contradicted by senior military officers. They disputed an assertion by Tony Blair's spokesman that the Baghdad regime was supplying Osama bin Laden's terrorists with chemical and biological weapons. [The complete article] The next world order The Bush Administration may have a brand-new doctrine of power Nicholas Lemann, The New Yorker, March 25, 2002 In September, Bush rejected Paul Wolfowitz's recommendation of immediate moves against Iraq. That the President seems to have changed his mind is an indication, in part, of the bureaucratic skill of the Administration's conservatives. "These guys are relentless," one former official, who is close to the high command at the State Department, told me. "Resistance is futile." The conservatives' other weapon, besides relentlessness, is intellectualism. Colin Powell tends to think case by case, and since September 11th the conservatives have outflanked him by producing at least the beginning of a coherent, hawkish world view whose acceptance practically requires invading Iraq. If the United States applies the doctrines of Cheney's old Pentagon team, "shaping" and expanding "the zone of democracy," the implications would extend far beyond that one operation. [The complete article] Finally, a not-so-bad Bush doctrine: Poverty breeds terrorism David Corn, The Nation, March 25, 2002 At the confab in Monterrey, Mexico, Bush said the United States would gradually increase its assistance to poor nations by 50 percent--which would mean in several years a $5 billion boost over current levels. "We fight against poverty because hope is an answer to terror," he declared. With that sentence, Bush seemingly recognized that terrorism is not irrational behavior unattached from the surroundings in which it arises. And he was acknowledging that "draining the swamp" for terrorists--as Secretary Donald Rumsfeld calls the military action in Afghanistan--requires more than armed force. Bush was saying the United States and the other wealthy nations must counter conditions that can cause people to turn to terrorism or to cheer on terrorists. [The complete article] China and Iran threaten test ban treaty Julian Borger and John Gittings, The Guardian, March 26, 2002 China and Iran have withdrawn their contribution to monitoring nuclear tests, apparently in protest at Washington's hostility towards the comprehensive test ban treaty, raising the fear that the treaty may collapse before it has come into operation. [The complete article] Should we go to war against these children? John Pilger, New Statesman, March 25, 2002 The column inches now devoted to Iraq, often featuring unnamed manipulators and liars of the intelligence services, almost always omit one truth. This is the truth of the American- and British-driven embargo on Iraq, now in its 13th year. Hundreds of thousands of people, mostly children, have died as a consequence of this medieval siege. [The complete article] Snapshot of an immigrant's dream fading A legacy of Sept. 11 sweeps Pakistani to the point of no return: deportation Hanna Rosin, Washington Post, March 24, 2002 Even five minutes before the INS agent showed up with handcuffs, Ansar Mahmood was convinced it wouldn't happen. He had put on his Domino's uniform, called his boss -- "I'll be there in half an hour" -- and then waited a bit in his attorney's Albany office, just in case he was wrong. At that moment in January, it seemed like forever since Mahmood had fallen under the shadow of Sept. 11, since the days of the anthrax attacks, when local police picked him up for having his snapshot taken near a water treatment plant. Within 48 hours, the FBI had cleared Mahmood of all suspicion that he was a terrorist, reducing this very slight and shy Pakistani's brush with the law to an unlikely nickname at work ("Hey, Big Terrorist Guy, get me some Cheesy Bread"). Plus, Mahmood had a green card, and wouldn't that guarantee any immigrant a happy ending? Yet it was enough to end his immigrant's luck. Six months after Sept. 11, Mahmood faces the same problem as most of the 1,200 detainees picked up in the two months after the terrorist attack. All but a small number have been cleared, but being cleared has turned out to be fairly meaningless. [The complete article] INFIGHTING ON THE RIGHT Bush-bashing by Bill Bennett Pat Buchanan, Townhall.com, March 25, 2002 "Your words can be interpreted in such ways that they hurt national resolve," thundered William J. Bennett at Jimmy Carter's remark that President Bush's "axis of evil" phrase was unhelpful. Imputing a near lack of patriotism to war critics, Bennett that day launched his Americans for Victory over Terrorism, AVOT. Mission: Stalk and shame the war critics. "Our goal," said Bennett, "is to fortify public opinion in the war against terrorism." Only days later, a perfect AVOT target came into view. Under the contemptuous headline -- "Where Bush Rewards Terror" -- some wretch had accused our president of making "concessions to terrorism" and "ceding ... lands to dictators." Stunned by this attack on our commander in chief on the op-ed page of The Washington Post, I wondered: "Where is AVOT? Where is Bill?" Then I noted the name of the miscreant who had savaged our president. It seemed familiar. Indeed it was -- "William J. Bennett"! [The complete article] The invisible war Raymond Whitaker, The Independent, March 24, 2002 When the Northern Alliance swept through Afghanistan, the world's media were with - or even ahead - of them. Four months later, the Americans are calling the shots: journalists are being kept away from the action and their questions about casualties and tactics are being dismissed. [The complete article] Israel plans big assault if truce talks fail Army and government back aggressive action Lee Hockstader, Washington Post, March 25, 2002 As the United States tries to mediate a truce in the Middle East, Israeli military planners are preparing for a major assault on Palestinian cities, towns and refugee camps that would be broader and deeper than the offensive undertaken earlier this month, according to Israeli officials. [The complete article] Relearning to love the Bomb Raffi Khatchadourian, The Nation, April 1, 2002 As the US-led wars in Serbia and Afghanistan have shown, conventional US military force has become so overwhelmingly powerful that Pentagon planners no longer "need" atomic explosives to create the "tremendous shock" required to obliterate hostile regimes. Yet within the US military establishment, nuclear weapons do not appear to be irrevocably sliding down the path to extinction. Quite the contrary--over the past several years there has been a growing push both within and outside government to make nuclear weapons more "usable," or pertinent, in a world troubled by terrorism, rogue dictators, crumbling Russian might and ascending Chinese power. [The complete article] Gunmen atttack Afghan security chief Kathy Gannon, Associated Press, March 24, 2002 Many Afghans in Khost blame the rising tension here on the United States for having recruited warlords as allies in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaida. The warlords are paid for their services -- something that has triggered clashes among Afghan groups eager to win support and patronage from the Americans. [The complete article] Iran presents quandary for U.S. Walter Pincus and Vernon Loeb, Washington Post, March 24, 2002 Viewed last fall as a potential ally in the U.S-led war on terrorism, Iran is presenting an increasingly complex problem for the Bush administration's anti-terrorism policies in Afghanistan and the Middle East, according to U.S. officials and analysts. [The complete article] We make war; keeping peace is for others David Corn, AlterNet, March 22, 2002 Future historians might gaze back at mid-March 2002 and determine this was when the Bush Administration decided to write off Afghanistan. [The complete article] This Afghan war is young; it may get a lot messier Fergal Keane, The Independent, March 23, 2002 The first account of a major battle between the American-backed South Vietnamese regime and the Vietcong would make uncomfortable reading for General Tommy Franks. The battle of Ap Bac erupted in the Mekong Delta in late 1962 when 350 Vietcong tied down an army four times their number, backed by jet aircraft and artillery and with helicopter support. [The complete article]  HOME September 11 and the declaration of a "war on terrorism," has forced Americans to look at the World in a new light. No one can afford any longer to define the limits of their concerns by refusing to look beyond this nation's borders. If the freedom that every American cherishes, is not to become a freedom bound within a fortress, then every American will need to understand and respect the needs and concerns of the rest of the World. To this end, The War in Context invites anyone with interest and an open mind to listen to the critical discourse in which the policies and actions of the Bush administration are now being questioned. This debate, which is engaging inquiring minds inside and outside America, will hopefully inform the development of a sustainable new world order - a world order in which America is as much shaped by the World as is the World shaped by America.