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Media Clips -- 2008

People Watching
Jane's Defence Weekly, 11/19/2008
Adjunct Fellow Ben Sheppard, Ph.D. -- "Seven years on from the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States, few would dispute the dramatic effects they had on accelerating US homeland security technologies and strategies."

The Iskander Effect
24 Saati, 11/18/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told the Federal Assembly on November 5 that he will deploy SS-26 Iskander short-range semi-ballistic missiles in the heart of Central Europe."

We Conservatives Blew It
Washington Times, 11/06/2008
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington's commentary -- "The Obama victory shouldn't surprise anybody -- most of all the 'Reagan Republicans and Democrats' among us. Nevertheless, it's instructive to examine how it all happened."

A Modest Proposal for a Real 'Fairness Doctrine'
The Examiner, 11/05/2008
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington -- "According to some media observers, interim 'Meet the Press' host Tom Brokaw has been showcasing - reluctantly, as he clearly covets a return to network news - candidates for the late Tim Russert's media chair."

Indignation or Ignominy
24 Saati, 11/05/2008
"The European Union stepped closer last week to resuming the partnership talks with Moscow that it suspended in the wake of Russia’s August invasion of Georgia. Never mind that Russia remains in flagrant violation of the EU-brokered ceasefire agreements of August 12 and September 8." -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

Syria After the U.S. Helicopter Raid
Middle East Times, 11/03/2008
Professor Yonah Alexander, Director of the International Center for Terrorism Studies at the Potomac Institute -- "There is an old Arabic proverb stating that 'he who gets fat, will get thin, and he who goes up in the air will come down.' The simple meaning is that nothing is static in the affairs of life and each epoch has its beginning and end."

The New 'People'
Washington Times, 10/30/2008
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington's commentary -- "While both candidates have formed 'transition teams' to manage their takeover of the executive branch of government from the Bush administration next year, little is known or written about most of the 'people' around the candidates."

Business as Usual
24 Saati, 10/27/2008
"There was good and bad news last week about western efforts to end Russian aggression against Georgia..." -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

Geneva: 1936, 2008
24 Saati, 10/21/2008
"A Russian diplomatic landmine exploded international talks on the future of the Georgian territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia last week in Geneva." -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

On Shores of Lake Geneva: Integrity or Partnership with Aggression?
24 Saati, 10/13/2008
"Russian occupation forces withdrew from parts of Georgia last week in partial fulfillment of their obligations under the ceasefire agreements of August 12 and September 8. In violation, the Russian army remains in Akhalgori, Perevi and Upper Abkhazia. Europe offered mixed reactions. Washington mumbled that it will make an assessment this week." -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

European Monitors Must Head into Abkhazia, South Ossetia
24 Saati, 10/06/2008
"Is deployment of the European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) in Georgia the beginning of the end or the end of the beginning of Russia’s occupation?." -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

Iran, China Make Neuroscience Advances
Washington Times, 10/02/2008
Dr. Dennis McBride, academic president of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, is quoted in an article about a new report commissioned by the Pentagon which states that while Iran and China are developing the ability to use sophisticated neuroscience, U.S. intelligence officials find themselves ill prepared to monitor scientific advances that could threaten U.S. interests.

Ex-Weapons Hunter: Iran 2-5 Years from Nuke Bomb
Washington Times/Associated Press, 10/01/2008
Senior Fellow David Kay says Iran is two years to five years away from being able to produce a nuclear weapon. However, the former head of the U.S. weapons-hunting team in Iraq adds that the U.S. should not consider bombing Iranian nuclear facilities unless the weapon was about to be transferred to a terrorist group.

It Should Be So and it Will Be So!
24 Saati, 9/29/2008
"Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili addressed the 63 rd Session of the United Nations last week.  Georgia, Saakashvili told heads of government and ambassadors of the 192 member nations, was 'invaded by our neighbor.'" -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

Wake Up: Gassiev is Calling!
24 Saati, 9/22/2008
"Although most believe that Russia’s invasion was disproportionate and contemptibly brutal, many also believe that Georgia triggered it. Worse than false, this notion enables western leaders to wallow in analysis and sophistry instead of looking Russian aggression squarely in the eye." -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

Where Was America?
Originally published in Italian, Dov’era l’America? Limes: Rivista Italiana di Geopolitica QS 3/08, September 2008 pp. 67-72.

Choosing Energy Vassalage
24 Saati, 9/16/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith examines the relationship between Russia and Europe's energy independence.

When Flight 77 Struck
Washington Times, 9/11/08
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington's commentary -- "The morning of Sept. 11, 2001, I was in my office at the Pentagon on the 'E Ring,' next to the second corridor facing the south parking lot. Terrorist-hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 slammed into the building around the southwest corner from the third corridor..."

Georgia’s Human Chain Stronger than Russian Tanks
24 Saati, 9/03/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith reports from Tbilisi -- "On Monday, Georgia came to a halt or, rather, it came to life. A massive human chain gripped the avenues of Tbilisi, the streets of Russian-besieged Poti, the squares of every city, the lanes of every village and the country roads that connect them."

Lessons for Terrorists
Washington Times, 9/02/08
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington's commentary -- "In the great Western movie, 'Unforgiven,' William Munny, a
reformed alcoholic and retired gunfighter grieving the loss of his loving wife, sets out (for a reward needed to start a new life with his children) to avenge the mutilation of prostitutes by corrupt Sheriff 'Little Bill' Dagget..."

Alea Iacta Est
24 Saati, 9/01/2008
"Do not expect much from the heads of European governments meeting in Brussels today to decide how to respond to Russian aggression against Georgia..." -- Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith

Assad to Jerusalem: Dream or Reality?
Middle East Times, 9/01/2008
Prof. Yonah Alexander reports on a recent trip to Syria and his conversations with leaders there.
Middle East Times Editorial published in response: Will Syria's Assad go to Jerusalem in Quest for Peace?

Iran's Perfect Storm
Washington Times, 8/31/2008
Prof. Yonah Alexander analyzes new satellite launching technology and Tehran's intentions in an Op-Ed in the Washington Times.

NATO Confronts the Bear and Mosquitoes
Washington Times, 8/20/2008
Prof. Yonah Alexander -- "The Russian-Georgian crisis, the latest tug-of-war for regional dominance, and the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan have once again underscored NATO 's old-new challenge in the 21st century. After all, NATO was initially created to confront the 'Russian Bear' as a strategic alliance that guaranteed its members military support in the case of aggression by a third country."

Health Insurance Disinformation
Washington Times, 8/18/08
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington's commentary -- "The odds are poor that Americans will be allowed to figure out the critical issues associated with health care and health insurance any time before the election in November."

Iran's Mistake
Washington Times, 8/07/08
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington's commentary -- "Aggressively pursuing its so-called 'nuclear rights' with thousands of new gas centrifuges now online, Iran is concentrating on producing the weapons-grade material it needs to build nuclear bombs and warheads."

Reports from Georgia after the Russian Attack
The Guardian Weekly, 8/07/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith interviews Malkhaz Akishbaia.

Clueless Candidates?
Washington Times, 7/31/08
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington's commentary -- "With both presidential candidates out to show that they are foreign policy and national security experts, it's a good time to interject some political reality into the debate: The candidates are both United States senators and - while perhaps counterintuitive - know surprisingly little of what actually goes on at senior levels in the national security/foreign policy departments."

Frank Discussion of Mugging and Robbing
24 Saati, 7/29/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith analyzes recent developments in the management of the joint British-Russian energy company TNK-BP, after CEO Robert Dudley fled Russia last week.

Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith
24 Saati, 7/22/2008
"In his G-8 Summit debut, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stunned his seven colleagues by supporting sanctions on Robert Mugabe’s thuggish regime in Zimbabwe."

Jet Fighters, Toy Soldiers and Juvenile Delinquency
24 Saati, 7/14/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "As American Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice anticipated receiving Bulgaria's Stara Planina Medal just before heading to Tbilisi, four Russian fighter jets buzzed Georgian territory."

Institute Senior Fellow Offers Alternative Thoughts on Oil Prices
Washington Times, 7/14/2008
Dan Gallington's commentary on gas pump prices, the issue du jour for most Americans and oilman T. Boone Pickens.

Guest Editorial: Rice Visit Could Galvanize Action on Abkhazia
The Messenger, 7/10/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is in Tbilisi, focusing welcome international attention on the explosive conflict in the Georgian territory of Abkhazia."

Kissinger in a World Not Yet Restored
24 Saati, 7/09/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- Further NATO enlargement, writes former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

Courage, Loyalty, Dignity
24 Saati, 6/30/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "Last Friday, the Georgian Coast Guard (GCG) celebrated its 10 th anniversary, marking a decade of success. That success is so impressive, so important for Georgia that this column today will take a break from the vicissitudes of power politics to recognize the achievement of the men and women of the Coast Guard."

COMMENTARY: The 'Test'
Washington Times, 6/09/2008, Senior Fellow Dan Gallington

COMMENTARY: Misguided
Washington Times, 6/09/2008, Senior Fellow Dan Gallington

UN: Russia Downed Georgian Aircraft!
24 Saati, 6/02/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "On April 20, 2008, a Russian fighter aircraft destroyed a Georgian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), concludes a May 26 United Nations (UN) report."

Ethnic Cleansing in the Caucasus
TDN, 5/31/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "On the evening of May 21, Georgians gathered around their televisions to glean information about the day's parliamentary elections or to watch the Chelsea-Manchester United football match." 

Opinion: Getting the Message Across About Georgia
Abkkhazia, 5/29/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "On April 20, 2008, a Russian fighter aircraft destroyed a Georgian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), concludes a May 26 United Nations (UN) report."

Human Decency Will Defeat Ethnic Cleansing
24 Satti, 5/26/2008
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "On the evening of May 21, Georgians gathered around their televisions to glean information about the day’s parliamentary elections or to watch the Chelsea-Manchester United football match."

Ethnic Cleansing and Honor
24 Saati, 5/19/08
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "On a vote of 14 to 11, the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday passed a resolution recognizing the right of refugees, internally displaced persons and their descendants, regardless of ethnicity, to return to Abkhazia."

Feith's Version
Washington Times, 5/18/08
"Doug Feith's new book - War and Decision - is the best and most objective account to date of the high-level and inside policy dynamics that led to the war in Iraq." -- Senior Fellow Dan Gallington

'Head in Sand' Torture
Washington Times, 4/29/08
"As one of the very few think tankers who has written in support of the Bush administration's use of coercive interrogation techniques on terrorists — provided they were 'non-U.S. persons,' located overseas and not entitled to POW status — I have also noted that, to be lawful, the activity had to be authorized by the 'appropriate level of authority.'" -- Senior Fellow Dan Gallington

Use Money Transfers to Stop Illegal Immigrants
Examiner, 4/05/08
'Mexican workers in the U.S. send an estimated $23 billion back home every year, typically in small amounts. Officially, these transfers are called 'remittances' – just for some current perspective, it's more than Mexico's total annual tourism revenue, and until recently it was larger than their annual oil revenue." -- Senior Fellow Dan Gallington

ZOG+2
24 Saati, 4/30/08
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "NATO's failure to grant Membership Action Plans (MAP) to Georgia and Ukraine at the April 2-4 Bucharest Summit proved an instant geopolitical blunder."

The Shaken Baby Syndrome: An Odyssey -II Origins and Further Hypothesis
Neurol Med Chir (Tokyo) 48, 4/23/08
Ronald H. Uscinski and Dennis McBride -- "Subdural bleeding in the so-called 'shaken baby syndrome' is recognized as a hallmark of this syndrome, and is often noted as chronic in nature, indication an earlier time of origin than clinical presentation."

No Time to Go Wobbly!
24 Saati, 4/21/08
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "Western reaction to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s April 16 grab for the Georgian territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia was stiffer than he apparently expected."

Mood Indigo
Washington Times, 4/16/08
"In a nutshell, our politics- but mostly our politicians- have failed us. Accordingly, we are all unhappy, Democrat, Republican, and Independent alike." -- Senior Fellow Dan Gallington.


"Talking MAD"
Defense News, 3/31/08
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- "A discussion of U.S.-Russia relations, the principle of mutually assured destruction, and the recent visit to Moscow by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice."

"Are They Ready?"
24 Saati , 3/31/08
Senior Fellow Ambassador David Smith -- Examination of the prospects for Georgia's membership in NATO.

"Iraq and the Election"
Washington Times, 3/29/08
Senior Fellow Dan Gallington -- An incisive commentary on the future of Iraq and the decisions confronting the next president.