Pat Lang — Lebanon is still a mess.

Backgrounder. You can't tell the players without a scorecard.

Sic Semper Tyrannis
Lebanon is still a mess.
Col. W. Patrick Lang, US Army (ret.), former military intelligence officer at the US Defense Intelligence Agency

Alastair Crooke — Lost on the ‘Dark Side’ in Syria

The full story of how the U.S. ended up allied with some Sunni extremists in Syria – while at war with others – is a convoluted tale dating back to President George W. Bush’s neocons venturing off into Vice President Cheney’s “dark side” to work with violent jihadists, writes British diplomat Alastair Crooke.

Jaw-dropper if you aren't already aware of the history. The US was up to its eyeballs in facilitating jihadism in furtherance of its perceived interests from 1979, as Zbig admits. This is bipartisan politically in the US, just as is the deep state. Even those who are aware of the history may have something to learn, too. Quick summary: snakepit with US fingerprints all over it.

Consortium News
Lost on the ‘Dark Side’ in Syria

Alastair Crooke