As the first few days of 2012 slide by, there is very little indication that the new year will bring much relief from the political tensions and turmoils that embroil humanity from one side of the globe to the other.   The simmering tensions between the religious sects in Iraq continue to  heat up, the war between the Taliban and the government forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan continue to be  more explosive and destructive than ever, the much sought-after political reforms in Egypt, Libya and Bahrain continue to be elusive, and …

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Reacting to threats by the European Union to strengthen sanctions against Iran, President Ahmadinejad continued to “rattle his saber”, and expressed his usual contempt for those countries that stand in the way of Iran’s nuclear weapons ambitions. Ahmadinejad’s bellicose behavior comes as no surprise to either the EU or to the United Nations, both of which have repeatedly threatened to punish Iran for it’s uranium enrichment program. The unfortunate truth is that sanctions are unlikely to work over the long run because of Russia’s and …