BLOGS
Bad Moon Rising
Bad Moon Rising I see a bad moon rising. I see trouble on the way. My favorite definition of strategy, taken from John Lewis Gaddis’s landmark On Grand Strategy , is “doing the best you can with what you have.” Donald Trump’s targeted killing of the Iranian...
Portraying Drugs and Thugs in Literature
As the world progresses, literature also becomes more diverse and daring. To be clear, literature has always been bold. It has been an avenue for social commentaries, propagandas, and even revolutions. However, what distinguishes new literature from the old one is...
Navy SEALs: Jedi Knights or Pirates?
Navy SEALs have been fighting the nation’s enemies for a long time. Most famously, they killed Osama bin Laden in 2011. But the war against Islamist terrorism, now in its 18th year, has taken a heavy toll. SEALs have gotten very good at war… perhaps...
Who is a terrorist and who is not?
President Trump wants to label Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations. Is this a good idea or a bad idea? On one hand, the designation would open the way—legally—for American military and CIA personnel to attack drug traffickers south of the...
The Bias of the American War on Terror
For a long time, terrorism has been looming large in the shadows of America. Its threat peaked in the early 2000s when the United States suffered from the intensity of the 9/11 attacks carried out by Al Qaeda. These deadly terrorist attacks killed a total of 2,977...
Jungle Rules Explained
Jungle Rules Explained I was first introduced to the term “Jungle Rules” as a young athlete. Playing by these rules meant playing by no rules at all. As a child, I pushed back against all rules, and roughness in sports seemed a natural way to win (and...
Christian Terrorists?
Now there’s an oxymoron! How is it that a Christian (or any religious person) can justify using violence as a means to create a better world? The “Christian Identity” movement reached a crescendo in the 1990s, but splinter groups still exist across the...
Why Strong Female Characters are Necessary for Thrillers
The representation of women in thriller novels has been quite improving over the years. This is in comparison to the old face of thrillers that was entirely masculine, full of machismo and violence against female characters. Women, by then, remained voiceless. They...
Novels About White Nationalist Terrorism
Americans, since 9/11, have become quite familiar with the threat of terrorism from fanatical Muslims around the world. They are less knowledgeable—and the American government appears less concerned—about the terrorist threat from its own citizens. For...
Fighting Back Against Terrorism | Paul Shemella
The academic works listed on this website include a book entitled Fighting Back: What Governments Can Do About Terrorism. The other non-fiction books also discuss how governments might deal with such political violence. The threat of terrorism plagues most...
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