Most essays previously published between Nov. 2002 and April 2003, primarily on slate.com. "A Slate book." Arabic collection.

Introduction: Twenty-Twenty Foresight March 18, 2003: Arguments for war1 -- Machiavelli in Mesopotamia November 7, 2002: The case against the case against "regime change" in Iraq 17 -- "Armchair General" November 11, 2002: The ugly idea that non-soldiers have less right to argue for war 20 -- Terrorism November 18, 2002: Notes toward a definition 23 -- Anti-Americanism November 27, 2002: Varieties right and left, foreign and domestic 27 -- Imperialism December 10, 2002: Superpower dominance, malignant and benign 30 -- Multilateralism and Unilateralism December 18, 2002: A self-canceling complaint 34 -- "WMD" and "Inspection" December 26, 2002: Are Saddam's weapons really so unconventional? 37 -- "Evil" December 31, 2002: Scoff if you must, but you can't avoid it 40 -- Prevention and Preemption January 8, 2003: When is starting a war not aggression? 43 -- "Regime Change" January 14, 2003: From evasion to invasion 46 -- Exile and the Kingdoms January 21, 2003: Iraq's neighbors want Saddam to flee. Should we? 49 -- Chew on This January 22, 2003: Saddam's crimes, al-Qaida massacres, Kurdish freedom, oil worth fighting for ... and a few other things Seattle's potlucking peaceniks might want to think about 52 -- "Cowboy" January 27, 2003: Bush challenged by bovines 57 -- "Recruitment" February 5, 2003: Will an Iraq war make our al-Qaida problem worse? Not likely 60 -- Rat That Roared February 6, 2003: On France, the French, Chirac, and the difference between them 63 -- Inspecting "Inspections" February 13, 2003: The United Nations is still playing Saddam's game 66 -- "Drumbeat" February 24, 2003: Bush rushing to war? Nonsense 69 -- Not Talking Turkey March 4, 2003: An ally we're better off without 73 -- Pious Nonsense March 10, 2003: The unholy "Christian" case against war 77 -- (Un)Intended Consequences March 17, 2003: What's the future if we don't act? 80 -- Giving Peace a Chance April 9, 2003: The war critics were right--not in the way they expected 83 -- Oleaginous April 18, 2003: People who prefer Saddam Hussein to Halliburton 85 -- Epilogue: After the Fall ... April 16, 2003 89.