It seems odd to be arguing whether Nathan Cirillo’s murder and the assault on Parliament was terrorism without any effort to discuss what terrorism is. Terrorism isn’t just a word for extreme badness. It’s a particular kind of evil, with particular methods and goals. Click here to read the rest.

What causes radicalization? It’s clearly a question we can’t afford to ignore. Click here to read the rest.

So we’re off to Iraq, or back to Iraq, after all. My my. Nothing quite like geopolitics to drive home Philip K. Dick’s dictum “Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, it doesn’t go away.” Click here to read the rest.

The bad guys are on the move. From Iraq to Libya to Ukraine to Beijing the separate crises are starting to roll into one. Click here to read the rest.

With Israel winding down its incursion into Gaza, we search through the physical and mental rubble for lessons. As usual, an air of unreality permeates the exercise. Click here to read the rest.

Are you enjoying your newfound global tranquility? If so you can thank Barack Obama. At least, that’s what he says. Click here to read the rest.

The mess in Iraq is graphic proof that hard choices don’t get easier if you avoid them. Partition into Shi’ite, Sunni and Kurdish countries is still the least awful option. And while it would be a lot harder than eight years ago, no one said geopolitics would be easy. Click here to read the rest.

Heartbleed scares me. Internet weaknesses really are big news, unlike a lot of things that get headlines. So our reaction scares me even more. Click here to read the rest.