Is it possible that the U.S. government’s response to the 9/11 attacks has served al-Qaeda interests? The “War on Terror” has inflamed many in the Islamic world who had previously been unsympathetic to violent jihad. Despite the hype, U.S. law-enforcement officials have found little evidence of serious terrorist activities inside the country, compelling them to escalate their use of prosecution and entrapment to justify their enormous budgets. Sorting out the real effects of the “War on Terror” is an urgent challenge. Please join us as political scientist Ian S. Lustick, national security expert Ivan Eland, and journalist and historian Gareth Porter explain how America’s enemies have used our own strength against us. Copies of the new policy report, Our Own Strength Against Us, by Ian S. Lustick, will be available.
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Did the United States test an anti-satellite weapon when it “shot down” an out-of-control spy satellite earlier this month? Or was it a precautionary measure to protect people on the ground who might have been hit with a fuel tank filled with a poisonous gas? If the 1967 space treaty—which designated space as a peaceful place—has become outdated, how can the U.S. ensure the safety of its assets without leading the charge toward a new cold war? Please join us for a policy forum featuring Dr. Peter Hays, Associate Director, Eisenhower Center for Space and Defense Studies; Theresa Hitchens, Director of the Center for Defense Information; Jeff Kueter, President of the George C. Marshall Institute; and Mike Moore, author of Twilight War: The Folly of U.S. Space Dominance. The forum will be moderated by Ivan Eland, Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute.

For decades, efforts to end world poverty have focused on redistributing wealth, rather than creating it. This approach, however, has done little to foster long-term economic progress. In Africa, for example, average gross domestic product fell by more than 16 percent from 1975 to 2000, despite billions of dollars in foreign aid. Critics charge that government development assistance suppresses local enterprises and markets and is too often squandered by oppressive regimes.

Fortunately, a growing body of research points toward a simple, but often overlooked, approach that some countries have been using with remarkable success. Why are so many countries foundering economically while others are prospering? What is the “secret” to economic growth that can lift more countries out of poverty? Please join us as Benjamin Powell, Alvaro Vargas Llosa, and George Ayittey uncover the secrets to making poor nations rich and ending the abject poverty affecting billions of people worldwide.

The 1967 Outer Space Treaty designated space for peaceful purposes as “the province of all mankind.” Virtually all spacefaring nations now favor a new treaty to accommodate major changes in geopolitics and military technology. The United States, however, has blocked negotiations, citing potential threats to U.S. “rights, capabilities, and freedom of action.” Some self-proclaimed “space warriors” even argue that U.S. military dominance in orbital space will be the only guarantee for international peace. But in Twilight War: The Folly of U.S. Space Dominance, Mike Moore, former editor of The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, argues that such American exceptionalism, “Will not guarantee American security; it will guarantee conflict, and possibly, a new cold war.” Come join us for a stimulating forum on what could be the most crucial national security issue of this century.