Barry Eisler

Heart of the Matter – 11/15/10

How to Argue The strangest thing about the low quality of Internet argument is that effective argument isn’t really so difficult. Sure, not everyone can be Clarence Darrow, but anyone who wants to be at least competent at argument can do it. Here are a few guidelines. I’ll start with a hint: note the qualifier … Continue reading

Heart of the Matter – 11/01/10

The Definition of Insanity Earlier this month, the Washington Post published an op-ed by Jack Devine, former CIA deputy director of operations and chief of the CIA Afghan Task Force. When I read it, I thought it was perhaps the most insane op-ed I’d ever come across. But leave it to David Broder, “Dean of … Continue reading

Heart of the Matter 10/21/10

The Overton Window: More Poodle Than Panther I’m pleased to announce that At the Tea Party: The Wing Nuts, Whack Jobs and Whitey-Whiteness of the New Republican Right… and Why We Should Take It Seriously is available today! Edited by GritTV’s Laura Flanders, it includes essays from an amazing lineup of writers: Max Blumenthal, Alexander … Continue reading

Heart of the Matter – 10/03/10

This is Your Brain on War Andrew Sullivan’s defense of President Obama’s claimed power to have American citizens assassinated nicely reveals much of the illogic behind, and many of the dangers inherent in, America’s Forever War. Let’s examine it point by point. 1. Assassination of American citizens, even if arguably extreme, has only been ordered … Continue reading

Heart of the Matter – 08/06/10

Militarization and the Authoritarian Right Yes, former Bush administration speechwriter and current Washington Post columnist Marc Thiessen’s demand that “WikiLeaks Must Be Stopped” is, as his colleague Eva Rodriguez notes, “more than a little whacky.” But it’s useful, too, because an infatuation with the notion of using the military in non-military operations, particularly domestic ones, … Continue reading