Obiter Dicta

CSA

Intelligence Agencies’ Origins Date Back to American Revolutionary War

Intelligence Agencies’ Origins Date Back to American Revolutionary War

This year marks America's 250th birthday, a nation born in war. Factors that led to the U.S. victory over the British Empire during the Revolutionary War included an effective intelligence network. Gen. George Washington, commander of the Continental Army, established a light infantry unit in 1776 known as Knowlton's Rangers. The unit specialized in espionage and reconnaissance. The unit is...

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Recent Articles

When Killing Becomes Commonplace

"It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets." — Voltaire (1694-1778) Last week, when the Pentagon resumed its attacks on small boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean, the media...

Barney Frank Speaks

Republicans are dancing on the grave. They really were afraid of losing the House and with reason. Their leader, the president, is sinking like a rock. That should hurt them, but only so much. The decision of the Virginia Supreme Court to throw out the new map enacted...

News From Around the South, 5/4 to 5/11

SOUTH CAROLINA: USC students are studying Southern history through barbecue A University of South Carolina course is using smoked pork and sauce traditions to teach students about Southern history, culture and civil rights. The semester wrapped up Wednesday at a West...

The Comey Indictment and Free Speech

In 200-plus years of interpreting the free speech clause of the First Amendment, the courts have narrowed and expanded its scope. The Supreme Court employed a particularly narrow approach during much of the last century, through two world wars and then the Red Scare...

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