Inasmuch as foreign affairs issues are simmering all over the place right now, I pass along the following items that I’ve come across recently:

In this Investorís Business Daily article, Claremont Institute President Brian Kennedy evaluates the US missle defense capabilities and explains why it is wholly indequate. Most interestingly, Kennedy describes an admittedly “fanciful” scenario under which North Korea would hit Seattle with a nuclear missle and an aftermath that is foreboding. The Claremont Institute is also maintaining this site that updates America’s vulnerability to ballistic missile attack as the proliferation of ballistic missile technology increases.
We haven’t checked in with Victor Davis Hanson in awhile, so this National Review op-ed provides a welcome contrary view to the gloom and doom of most media reports regarding the current Israeli-Hezbollah conflict.
For up-to-the-minute updates on the situation in the Middle East, the Truth Laid Bare provides this useful page of bloggers categorized by region and this NY Times article passes along several online diaries from the front of the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict.
Finally, Foreign Affairs magazine is providing this excellent online forum on the question of “What to Do in Iraq.” Take a few minutes to review the give-and-take from the various experts particpating in the forum.