August 28th, 2006

Iraq war has Bush Doctrine in tatters

Analysts across the political spectrum say the Bush Doctrine--preventive war, choking the roots of terrorism by planting democracy, and brandishing power to force others into line--has failed. Bush's lofty goals, shared even by his critics, have been set back, perhaps decades, by the Iraq occupation. CISAC's David Holloway is quoted in this news analysis by Carolyn Lochhead in the San Francisco Chronicle. Read more »

May 8th, 2006

Congress appoints Perry to Iraq Study Group

William J. Perry, co-director of the Preventive Defense Project at CISAC and 19th secretary of defense, has been chosen to serve on the congressionally mandated Iraq Study Group to generate new ideas on Iraq. The group is co-chaired by former Secretary of State James A. Baker III and Lee H. Hamilton, vice chair of the 9/11 commission investigating U.S. intelligence failures and former U.S. representative from Indiana. Read more »

CISAC fellow: U.S. civil rights movement shows way to Middle East peace

One century after America's Civil War, the descendants of slaves daily faced the twin terrors of homicide and arson. Yet only 15 years after the rise of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the back of segregation and neo-Confederate violence had been broken. Can Palestinians likewise mount a successful, nonviolent movement toward peaceful co-existence with their former adversaries? CISAC science fellow Jonathan Farley, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, suggests they can. Read more »

February 28th, 2006

Iraq now - headed for civil war or already there?

Is civil war likely to break out in Iraq? It already has, according to CISAC faculty member James D. Fearon, a political science professor who studies recent civil wars. "By any reasonable definition," Fearon said, "there has been a civil war in progress in Iraq at least since the Coalition Provisional Authority formally handed over authority to the Iraqis in 2004." Fearon is among four experts Time asked to comment on what's going on in Iraq. Read more »

January 20th, 2006

Math shows long-term consequences of condoning torture

Few of us will ever be asked to torture. But, indirectly, all of us have to make a choice: to support, as citizens, those politicians who back torture, or those who seek its prohibition. This decision seems a purely moral question. But what would be the long-term consequences to society if we were to make this radical break with the past? CISAC science fellow Jonathan Farley provides some mathematical insights. Read more »