The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan was, among other things, a horrible political miscalculation, lasting nine bloody years and resulting in the…
The Palmer Case and the Changing Role of Women in the Foreign Service
There have been a number of prominent women who have served in the State Department over the past century: Francis…
“Like Star Wars and Fiddler on the Roof” — Life with the Sinai Field Mission
The relative peace between Israel and Egypt, particularly on the Sinai, has been one of the few bright spots in…
The Bhopal Chemical Disaster
On December 3, 1984, a gas leak began at a pesticide plant owned by Union Carbide located in Bhopal, India. …
The Collapse of Order in the Middle East
Will Rogers once observed that “when you get into trouble 5,000 miles from home, you’ve got to have been looking…
The Birth of NATO
After the devastation of World War II and the ensuing Cold War with the Soviet Union, nations across the globe…
The U.S. Invades “A Little Island Called Grenada,” Part II
Planned in secret and executed quickly, the U.S. intervention garnered a mixed and fervent reaction. For the most part, the…
The Achille Lauro Hijacking — “These sons of bitches must be prosecuted”
On October 7, 1985, four men, including mastermind Muhammad Zaidan, aka Mohammed Abul al-Abbas, from the Palestine Liberation Front (PLF)…
Dealing with a Reunified Germany
With the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989, the long-awaited reunification between East and West Germany began. A…
Scotland, A Land Apart
Scotland can trace its links to the United Kingdom to more than 400 years ago, when James VI, King of…