There will be no handshakes and back-patting on the White House lawn, and no turn-on-a-dime lionizing of this Palestinian leadership by the pillars of the world Jewish community...

Just a reminder to all readers to check out my/our new blog, "Fair Policy, Fair Discussion", which now has five or six posts that are quick takes on what we've been doing on our CNI study tour ("political pilgrimage") around the Middle/Near...

In some countries, mine included, today is remembered as "Veterans' Day" or "Armistice Day." Juan Cole sensibly wrote earlier today that "The most patriotic way to honor future veterans of foreign wars is not to create any unnecessarily." Fellow...

The BBC this morning carries a curious item about Iran moving its capital city away from Tehran. It's not a particularly new idea, and a geo-physical argument exists to support such a dramatic change. Yet recent political earthquakes may also be...

MTV (Music Television) "University" has selected Simin Behbahani, "the poet who never sold her soul or her pen," to be its second poet laureate. For a visually challenged 82-years-young Iranian, how cool is that? Beginning Monday, Nov. 2nd...

For the foreseeable future I'll be doing all or most of my Middle East-related blogging over at the new blog I've launched on behalf of the CNI Foundation. It's called Fair Policy, Fair Discussion. As veteran bloggers will probably recognize, at...