The deck of the aircraft carrier Intrepid was an ironically perfect setting for the September 7 “Commander-in-Chief Forum” debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. What was originally a World War II flattop is now a museum, and hovering in the background of the set was a Vietnam-era A-4 jet, and a good deal of the discussion was framed by the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Trump and Clinton are almost certainly the final “Baby Boomer” presidential candidates, and the ghosts of the generation haunted the evening.

On Wednesday, August 24, Turkish forces launched a major ground assault into Syria, spearheaded by a battalion of Leopard tanks and Special Forces troops and supported by U.S. airpower. The attack was aimed at the town of Jarablus, astride the Euphrates River. The town was speedily liberated from militants of the Islamic State, who had held it for nearly two and a half years. 

As the Rio Olympics reach their mid-way point, it is instructive to reflect on the ancient martial origins of the games and how they have been used throughout history to reflect the power of cities and states through the lens of champion athletes.

Donald Trump’s threat—pay or perish—as delivered to the Baltic states, is foolish, but not new. Indeed, it is almost as old as the Atlantic Alliance. The Europeans, runs an ancient mantra, were always paying too little for their defense. They certainly did not when compared to the United States. While the U.S. postwar historical average was around 5 to 6 per cent of GDP, with sharp spikes during the country’s post-1945 wars, the Europeans devoted about one-half as much, with Britain and France as notable exceptions.