Understanding the Differences Between Terrorism and Guerrilla Warfare or ‘Freedom Fighting’ The terms terrorism, guerrilla warfare, and freedom fighting are often used interchangeably in popular discourse, yet they embody distinct concepts with unique characteristics and implications. This essay explores the differences between these three terms, focusing on their methodologies, objectives, and the ethical considerations that […]
Terrorism vs Guerrilla Warfare or ‘Freedom Fighting’
Terrorism vs Guerrilla Warfare or ‘Freedom Fighting’
19 Feb 2025 1 Comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, war against terror, West Bank
Interesting piece of history
10 Feb 2025 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economic history, International law, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left
Natasha Hausdorff gives better than she gets at the Oxford Union debates
07 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, laws of war, liberalism, Marxist economics, war and peace Tags: free speech, Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, political correctness, regressive left, war against terror
The most recent Oxford Union debate was both odious and raucous, and you can read about it in a piece by Niall Ferguson at The Free Press (archived here). An excerpt: Something is rotten in the state of Britain. It was epitomized by a recent [Nov. 28] event at the Oxford Union, the 201-year-old debating […]
Natasha Hausdorff gives better than she gets at the Oxford Union debates
Guest Post: Response to Max Harris
24 Nov 2024 1 Comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, politics - New Zealand, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, war against terror
A guest post by Lucy Rogers: On 8 November 2024 Max Harris wrote an op ed for The Dominion Post on the Israel – Lebanon conflict. Harris’ article was profoundly misleading in numerous respects and I immediately wrote a response which was submitted to the editor of the Post on 9 November. To that email […]
Guest Post: Response to Max Harris
Two senior minister firings: Germany and Israel
14 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in politics Tags: Germany, Israel
The past week saw the heads of government in both Israel and Germany dismissing a senior member of their coalition cabinet. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz fired the Finance Minister, Christian Lindner, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Both Scholz and Netanyahu head coalition governments. The result of the dismissal in […]
Two senior minister firings: Germany and Israel
Politics of identity politics proved
05 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in liberalism, Marxist economics, politics Tags: British politics, free speech, Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, political correctness, regressive left, war against terror
The UK Conservative Party has a new leader : . . . On Saturday the Conservatives elected Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke Badenoch as their leader to propel them to victory at the next general election. . . Born in Wimbledon, southwest London in 1980, after her parents decided she should be born in Britain with the best […]
Politics of identity politics proved
Vegas, CSICon, sex and nooz
27 Oct 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, discrimination, gender, law and economics, politics - USA, property rights, war and peace Tags: Age of Enlightenment, free speech, Gaza Strip, Iran, Israel, Middle-East politics, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination, war against terror

I’ve been busy at the CSICon conference, which included giving my own 30-minute presentation this morning. I had to modify it to take into account the misguided views of Steve Novella, who gave a talk yesterday about “When Skeptics Disagree.” It turned out to be largely a diatribe about how sex in humans is not […]
Vegas, CSICon, sex and nooz
IDF reports that Yahya Sinwar is dead “with high likelihood”
18 Oct 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, war against terror

UPDATE: The verification is almost complete. From the Times of Israel: Channel 12 publishes what it says is a police document showing that one of the identification tests conducted earlier today regarding the body of a dead terrorist, apparently on the basis of photographic dental comparisons, found a “full match” to Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. […]
IDF reports that Yahya Sinwar is dead “with high likelihood”
The greatest intelligence operation in recent history
10 Oct 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, war against terror
The details of the Mossad operation against Hezbollah is so incredible, you would think it would be implausible as a film plot. They include. All forms of warfare result in some casualties of people who are not military targets. For example 500,000 German civilians died in WWII. But this operation probably saw one of the […]
The greatest intelligence operation in recent history
Bernie Sanders prepares resolutions to punish Israel
28 Sep 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, International law, law and economics, laws of war, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, useful idiots, war against terror

Forgive me if I put up two pieces on Israel’s wars today (i’m not sure what I’ll write about next), but it’s not only on my mind, it’s the main news besides the American election. (See the daily “Nooz” for this other stuff). I don’t like to use the words “self-hating Jew,” for I don’t […]
Bernie Sanders prepares resolutions to punish Israel
Will Israel Collect The Reward?
01 Aug 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: 2024 presidential election, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, war against terror

After all, the Yanks were offering one, $5 million, for the Hizballah opertive Fuad Shukr (also known as Hajj Mohsin) because he was connected to the 1983 Beirut bombing that killed 241 people, mainly US Marines as it targeted their barracks. And now the Israelis have taken him out because he’d ordered a drone attack […]
Will Israel Collect The Reward?
Doctors Without Borders Accused of violating its own policy of political neutrality to impugn Israel, and my cessation of donations
24 Jul 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, health economics, laws of war, liberalism, Marxist economics, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, war against terror

A while back I was a big fan of Doctors without Borders (or “MSF”, for “Médecins Sans Frontières”). It was put in my will to get a big bequest, and when I auctioned of a copy of Why Evolution is True, autographed by many famous scientists and nonbelievers, and illustrated and illuminated by Kelly Houle, […]
Doctors Without Borders Accused of violating its own policy of political neutrality to impugn Israel, and my cessation of donations
Guest Post: Will John Minto condemn Hamas for refusing to free the hostages?
19 Jul 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left
A guest post by Lucy Rogers: I woke up this morning to initial elation at the news that Israel and Hamas are apparently close to a ceasefire deal. The proposal involves the return of 33 hostages and Hamas’ removal from power, in exchange for the release of several hundred Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, Israel’s […]
Guest Post: Will John Minto condemn Hamas for refusing to free the hostages?
Natasha Hausdorff on the legality of everything about the war
17 Jul 2024 1 Comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, war and peace Tags: free speech, Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, political correctness, regressive left, war against terror
One of the biggest lacunae on Wikipedia is its lack of an entry on Natasha Hausdorff, a London barrister and expert on international law who happens to work with the UK Lawyers for Israel. She has a sterling background: She holds law degrees from Oxford and Tel Aviv Universities and was a Fellow in the […]
Natasha Hausdorff on the legality of everything about the war
The (ignored) war crimes of Hamas
15 Jul 2024 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, liberalism, Marxist economics, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics
We hear a lot about the “war crimes of Israel and the IDF”; in fact, that’s about all we hear on campus regarding the war. And it is these “war crimes” that have brought the world’s opprobrium down on Israel, even though they are not war crimes. Yes, an odd IDF soldier might commit a […]
The (ignored) war crimes of Hamas

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