Monthly Archives: January 2005

Are We Not Men?

1/27/2005 – 1:21 pm

Because we’re used to getting our way, Americans often credit our beliefs as having the force of facts. The fact that Saddam Hussein was not hiding weapons of mass destruction – a fact supported by the observations of UN weapons inspectors – was not enough to prevail against George Bush’s belief that he was. Even […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)

Four Freedoms

1/20/2005 – 11:33 am

January is the month for presidential oratory. In January 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered both inaugural and State of the Union addresses. America was pulling itself from a decade of economic depression and was sobered by looming war on two oceans. President Roosevelt’s State of the Union address to Congress that year is remembered […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)

The Second Tsunami

1/13/2005 – 1:11 pm

Motivational speakers are fond of saying the Chinese word for “crisis,‿ combines the words “danger‿ and “opportunity.‿ Chinese speakers are tired of pointing out that this represents a poor understanding of their language. Linguistics aside, there is truth to the notion that both danger and opportunity are present in times of crisis. Small fishing communities […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)

By the Book

1/6/2005 – 1:39 pm

On August 4, 1914, the Imperial German Army kicked the First World War into high gear by invading Belgium, a neutral nation that posed no threat to Germany. Although this was a violation of international treaty (Germany had pledged to protect Belgium’s neutrality), Kaiser Wilhelm and his generals hoped to convince Belgians that resistance was […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)