September 7, 2005: Lessons From Katrina - "I'm not suggesting that terrorism isn't a major problem, but efforts focused on terrorism cannot dwarf all of the other necessities of our government."

August 30, 2005: Oil Slipping Away - "If anything were to happen to disrupt the flow of Saudi oil, the impacts from Katrina would be like a nursery school exercise."

August 24, 2005: A Time Out for Israel and the Palestinians - "Now that this Gaza withdrawal has been completed, the question is what happens next with respect to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?"

August 17, 2005: The Disintegration of Iraq - "Once we leave Iraq, the cracks will turn into fissures, and then -- a full-scale division."

August 10, 2005: Leadership in the Middle East - "Unless Abbas moves quickly, there will be a mess in Gaza after the Israeli pullout."

August 3, 2005: Baghdad Is Not Philadelphia - "Will Iraqi versions of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Ben Franklin please come forward? We desperately need you right now."

July 27, 2005: The India Gamble - "The Middle East is only a sideshow. The real action will be with China."

July 20, 2005: Plamegate Is Not Watergate - "Some in the media love to go to the mat on anything that allegedly impinges on their absolute freedom."

July 13, 2005: Ungrateful in Baghdad - "In our precarious economic situation, we can't risk all of that Iraqi oil falling into hostile hands."

July 6, 2005: A Wake-Up Call - "The United States is in this mess because we as a country have failed miserably to reduce our dependence on foreign oil."

June 29, 2005: Iraq Is About Oil - "The time has come for the President to state publicly what most of Washington has long been discussing. The Iraqi war is about oil."

June 22, 2005: A Sham Election - "By way of background, the idea of Iranians electing a president is a sick joke."

June 16, 2005: Race Against Time in Iraq - "The recruitment results and the national poll have an obvious link -- the President is losing the American people."

June 8, 2005: China on My Mind - "We're acting like a horse on a track, trotting along unaware that we're in a race for our economic survival."

June 3, 2005: No U.S. of Europe - "The French government never made an effective case that their personal lives would be improved by full integration with twenty-four other nations."

May 25, 2005: Democracy in Egypt? - "With a country as pivotal as Egypt at stake, it's not surprising that the Bush administration isn't criticizing Mubarak for making a sham of democracy."

May 18, 2005: European Failure - "The US remained on the sidelines as France, Germany and Britain undertook negotiations with Iran."

May 11, 2005: Roller Coaster Ride In Iraq - "This week, the roller coaster turned upward again. A hundred insurgents were killed and their infrastructure was damaged."

May 4, 2005: The President as a Beggar - "At this rate, whatever social security payments we receive will all end up going for electricity and gasoline."

April 27, 2005: Mirage in the Middle East - "We're no longer in the 1930s, when an Asian war could remain only in Asia."

April 21, 2005: Russian Roulette in Asia - "We're no longer in the 1930s, when an Asian war could remain only in Asia."

April 13, 2005: Bush's Support For Sharon - "In the face of incredible opposition, Sharon has managed to dominate the Israeli political system."

April 6, 2005: April in Paris - "The single most important policy of President Jacques Chirac's government has been to push for an expansion of the European Union."

March 30, 2005: Thugs in Damascus - "With a strong show of French force, the Syrians are likely to back down. The world is waiting to see what Chirac will do."

March 23, 2005: Iraq After Two Years - "Now is an opportune time to take stock of what the United States has gained -- and what it has lost from this war."

March 16, 2005: Enigma Within an Enigma - "For the United States, China and Japan, Taiwan could easily be the flashpoint for a war that none of the parties want. "

March 9, 2005: Window of Opportunity - "Spring is here. There is no baseball in Israel. But peace is in the air."

March 2, 2005: Shifting Sands in Asia - "The United States and Japan have begun to realize how powerful China is likely to become, both economically and militarily, as this century proceeds -- and both are terrified by that prospect."

February 23, 2005: Syrian Strangle Hold - "It was a classic case of the bodyguard taking over the house and terrorizing the family. I think that there was a Broadway play with this storyline once. If there wasn't, there should be."

February 16, 2005: Congressional Mischief - "Nothing's quite as bad as Congress legislating in reaction to public pressure. The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 is a prime example."

February 9, 2005: Consequences of the Iraqi Election - "Bottom line, spring came early to Washington this year. On January 30th, to be precise. When Iraqis turned out in huge numbers to vote."

February 4, 2005: Hopeful Signs in the Middle East - "We understand that Rome wasn't built in a day, but some expect Iraqi democracy to be."

January 26, 2005: Program For Iraqi Elections - "The fact that many Iraqis are voting for their leaders is a tremendous accomplishment. It's a long way from Saddam Hussein's torture and chemical warfare."

January 19, 2005: A Ticking Time Bomb - "Early in the Bush administration, we put on blinders and hoped the problem would go away. Not a wise tactic in the long run."

January 13, 2005: Get Tough With Syria - "What we have to do is to stop the insurgency by cutting it off at its roots."

January 5, 2005: Russian Nuclear Cloud - "These weapons may become a critical part of the arsenal for Czar Vladimir the Great."

December 22, 2004: Egyptian Israeli Thaw - "Will the Iraqis move from chaos to a democratic nation? Will the Palestinians finally get their act together and start behaving rationally after Yassir Arafat's death?"

December 15, 2004: Intelligence Nightmare - "Placing so much power in the hands of a single individual, who is not elected by the people, is dangerous. It is a threat to our democracy."

December 8, 2004: The Shifting Sands of Iraq - "It's time to recognize that the United States is in the middle of what's headed toward a bloody civil war. We need a Plan B for Iraq."

December 1, 2004: An Eye on Asia - "Let's not delude ourselves into believing that Asia is Western Europe. The powder kegs left behind in 1945 could easily be reignited."

November 24, 2004: Dumping the Dollar - "Politics always follows the money. It's a variation of the golden rule that he who has the gold, rules."

November 17, 2004: The Election Dilemma - "Democracy may be making inroads in the Arab world, however slow and painful."

November 10, 2004: No Dignity in Death - "Arafat has never been part of the solution to the Israel Palestinian conflict. He has consistently been part of the problem. "

November 3, 2004: Europe in Turmoil - "As one British commentator expressed, 'We're not about to cede our prerogatives to a bunch of cone-headed bureaucrats in Brussels.'"

October 27, 2004: Coping With the Intifada - "In contrast to the Israeli situation, there is only gloom and despair on the Palestinian side. The Intifada has meant misery for Arafat's people without any offsetting benefit."

October 20, 2004: Iraqi Elections? - "Policymakers in the Pentagon should consider taking out a fifty billion dollar insurance policy on Allawi's life."

October 13, 2004: Election Season - "Until the Afghan election, the idea of free elections in Middle Eastern countries seemed like a delusion on the part of some American idealists."

October 6, 2004: Showdown Over Iran - "If Saddam Hussein was a great source of pain in the Middle East, then the Iranian government is a cancer."

September 30, 2004: Blame It on the Vodka - "How is it that a country that has spawned so many talented scientists, writers and musicians can't develop a responsive system of government?"

September 21, 2004: Turkey on the Edge - "If the EU votes no, this will confirm the view of hardliners in the Muslim world that a war is being waged by Christians against Islam."

September 15, 2004: Revolutionizing Presidential Elections - "The ballot will contain a proposal to replace the state's winner-take-all approach with a new procedure to divide up Colorado's nine electoral votes in proportion to each candidate's popular vote."

September 1, 2004: The Dismemberment of Iraq? - "If our objective is a single democratic secular nation in the territory that was Iraq, then we have suffered a setback."

August 25, 2004: The Germans are Upset - "They're not concerned that they'll be exposed to a military threat without the American shield. Rather, their concern is economic."

August 19, 2004: How High Will it Go? - "The price of low sulfur crude, the most widely watched oil price, closed at a record high level of $46.58 a barrel."

August 11, 2004: Goodbye Iraqi Democracy - "We shouldn't be shedding any tears for the abandonment of Iraqi democracy. Not when the result would have been another Islamic theocracy."

August 4, 2004: Where Are the Arabs? - "It is almost criminal that the Arab nations are refusing to come to the aid of the Iraqi people."

July 28, 2004: Arafat Should Step Down - "There is only one good thing he can now do for the Palestinian people: resign."

July 21, 2004: The Kurdish Complication - "The Kurds want a veto over the enactment of important laws. Otherwise, the Kurds believe - and history supports - that the Arab majority will trample their rights."

July 15, 2004: The Iraqi Endgame - "Let's forget about democracy for Iraq as we know it in the United States. Iraq will never be like Ohio."

July 7, 2004: Democracy in the Middle East - "This remarkable decision is an incredible example of a Middle Eastern country functioning as a genuine democracy and upholding the rule of law."

June 30, 2004: Politics and Foreign Policy - "The time has come to end the bitter hostility on Iraq in the United States, regardless of what people thought of the war."

June 23, 2004: The Energy Project - "The United States should launch a massive national scientific effort to develop alternative sources of fuel along the lines of the Manhattan project during the second World War."

June 14, 2004: Strains in the Atlantic Alliance - "The bitterness that began in the days preceding the war in Iraq has intensified at the government level."

June 2, 2004: Good News for Bush - "Our beleaguered president has finally received some good news and achieved a significant victory."

May 26, 2004: Agony At The Pump - "At this time next year, Americans will yearn for the [gas] prices they are now paying."

May 19, 2004: Who Will Try Saddam Hussein? - "Six weeks before June 30, our game plan seems to be that we don't have a game plan."

May 12, 2004: The Sharon Plan Is Not Dead - "As we have seen in other contexts, when Bush is personally committed on a course of action, he does not back away."

May 5, 2004: The Fragmentation of Iraq - "Turning military control over to Saddam's former generals may achieve stability in the north. But at an expensive price."

April 28, 2004: Is the 9/11 Commission a Mistake? - "It would be tragic if our intelligence agencies are weakened and less able to do their jobs because of the 9/11 Commission."

April 21, 2004: An Historic Event - "The pronouncements on April 14 prove that Arafat lost. President Bush does not reward terrorism."

April 14, 2004: Iraq is Not Vietnam - "Those Americans who care deeply about our young men and women dying in Iraq should do something other than throw their hands up in despair and chastise the American government."

April 7, 2004: Old Enemies; A New Round? - "It seems inevitable that a military clash over oil will eventually occur between [China and Japan]."

March 31, 2004: Dark Clouds Over Asia - "Chen Shui-Bian is behaving like a blackjack player who has decided to double down with a pair of sixes."

March 24, 2004: Give Them Part of Spain? - "[The Europeans] may despise Bush ... but they're in this battle with us whether they like it or not."

March 17, 2004: A Double Victory for the Terrorists - "Implicit in the message of the Spanish voters [to the terrorists] was, 'attack someone else'."

March 10, 2004: Hold the Applause for Iraq - "The Shiites have one objective right now: to get the Americans out of Iraq so they can begin to transform the country into a theocracy. "

March 3, 2004: Two Down and Two To Go - "The Syrian ruler is smart enough to recognize threats and bluster with nothing behind them to punish noncompliance."

February 25, 2004: A Federation for Iraq - "The day the U.S. withdraws from Iraq is the day the bloody civil war will start."

February 18, 2004: Same Old Russia - "Given Russia's long history of authoritarianism, we must all have been delusional to believe the zebra could eliminate its stripes."

February 11, 2004: That's the Trouble with Democracy - "The experience of the thirteen American colonies forging the United States contains some valuable lessons for Chirac and Schroeder if they took time off from wielding a sledgehammer and read history."

February 4, 2004: Suspend the Finger Pointing about Iraq - "It's time as a nation we stopped whining about how we got to where we are and move on to figuring out how to fulfill our objectives."

January 28, 2004: Crusaders in the Classroom - "Chirac, who tried to present himself as "the good guy" to the Arab world in contrast to "cowboy Bush," is now presented as perhaps an even bigger villain."

January 21, 2004: The Delusion of Democracy in Iraq - "The time has come to abandon the concept that Iraq can be a democracy anything like the United States, England or France."

January 14, 2004: Turmoil in Asia - "With so much of our military committed to the Middle East, at this point in time we don't have the resources for a major military effort elsewhere in the world."

January 7, 2004: Israel's Security Fence: Everyone's a Winner - "It's time to recognize the benefits of the fence and stop quibbling about a few kilometers here or there."

December 23, 2003: The Resurgence of Japanese Militarism - "The twenty-first century will be a struggle between the United States and China for supremacy in the world. Economic and otherwise."

December 17, 2003: Tough Times for Democracy - "Personally, I had serious doubts even when the war was being fought whether it would ever be possible to have a democratic Iraq in the sense that we have a democratic United States. It seemed a little like making a pig fly."

December 10, 2003: Cracks in the EU - "The Western European nations were marching in tandem, joined more recently by their Eastern European brethren toward a new reality: A United States of Europe. But now, fundamental issues have arisen which cast doubt on the structure's foundation."

December 4, 2003: War Over Taiwan? - "Taiwan is playing a dangerous game by baiting China. The likelihood of a miscalculation is huge. After all, hardliners in Beijing have been looking for an excuse to attack Taiwan for years. It makes no sense to provide one to them at this time."

November 26, 2003: Why Turkey? - "There may be some extremists who view Turkey as a battleground in their New Crusade. You can bet the Turkish army won't let it happen."

November 19, 2003: Who Will Succeed the House of Saud? - "The time has come to cultivate and expand our relationships with Saudi officers. An interim rule by the military on the way toward a more democratic Saudi Arabia is the best horse the United States can ride in this race."

November 12, 2003: Is It Really a New China? - "A powerful Taiwanese military will be the only real deterrent stopping a hard-line leader in Beijing from launching those missiles."

About Allan Topol Allan Topol is a partner in a large Washington-based international law firm. He has a science and engineering degree from Carnegie Mellon, and a law degree from Yale University. For almost 40 years, he has been involved in issues at the height of the Washington power structure. He is also a national bestselling novelist, using the thriller genre to explore international geopolitical and military issues. His new novel, ENEMY OF MY ENEMY, dealing with an American pilot shot down over Eastern Turkey and Russian nuclear weapons, was released February 1, 2005. His 2001 novel, SPY DANCE, is about a former CIA agent on the run and Saudi Arabian oil. His 2003 novel, DARK AMBITION, deals with the corruption of power in Washington and China's threatening posture toward Taiwan. In January 2004, his new novel CONSPIRACY was released dealing with a foreign leader's attempt to influence an American presidential election and the possibility of renewed militarism in Japan. Allan Topol contact info: Allan Topol Website Email Allan Topol Allan Topol Books: Spy Dance Dark Ambition Conspiracy Discussion Board Have an opinion on this article? Sound off. © 2005 Allan Topol. All opinions expressed in these articles are the author's and do not necessarily reflect those of Military.com.