Michael Gottsegen, at The Blogs

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Oct 18, 2015, 9:14 AM

Between a Knife and a Hard Place

The past two weeks have brought home the stark reality of daily life in Israel where two peoples, who don't want to live together, are jumbled together in one land. We are also catching a glimpse of what the...

Jul 23, 2015, 5:18 AM

The Long Train of (Likely) Consequences

For good or ill, Monday's UN Security Council vote rendered the debate over whether this is a good deal or a bad deal a matter of strictly historical interest. The deal has now been done and the US Congress's...

Jul 20, 2015, 10:03 PM

Today’s Vote by the UN Security Council: A Dark Day for US Democracy

I have not decided definitively on the merits of the Iran Deal but am inclined to support it despite its manifest shortcomings. This being said, I am flabbergasted that Team Obama permitted the deal to be submitted to, and...

Jul 15, 2015, 12:12 AM

15 Years is no small thing; accept the deal, but watch Iran very closely

The Iran deal will not be defeated by Congress. The President has enough votes to block an over-ride of his veto, should it prove necessary, and I do not think it will prove necessary. The devil is in the details...

Apr 8, 2015, 8:51 PM

Obama Acknowledges that by Year 13 of the Pending Agreement with Iran, Iran will be Just One Screwdriver Turn Away from a Nuclear Bomb

In Obama's interview with NPR yesterday, he affirmed that under the terms of the pending deal with Iran, Iran will be permitted to engage in nuclear fuel cycle r&d to such an extent that by the time the deal...

Apr 6, 2015, 10:55 PM

Why the Obama Administration Ought to Try to Satisfy Israel’s Objections to the Terms of the Pending P5+1 Deal with Iran

Obama's interview with Tom Friedman merits close study. At one point, in response to a question about commonalities in Obama's pro-engagement approach to Cuba, Iran and Burma, Obama talks about the risk versus reward calculation in each of these...

Mar 23, 2015, 11:01 PM

What’s Up With That? Or, Why is the Obama Administration Giving Bibi Such a Hard Time?

I find myself increasingly perplexed by the Obama administration's continuing frontal attacks on Netanyahu. Did Bibi say hateful and troubling things in his election campaign? Yes. Did he try afterwards to undo some of the damage? Yes. Typically, close allies...

Mar 19, 2015, 12:12 AM

Elections are One Thing, Governing Another

It is clear that to govern effectively when the country itself is so divided, Bibi needs to tack toward the center in forming his governing coalition. And to this end, I think that his, and the country's, best bet...

Mar 17, 2015, 8:41 PM

Adversity Tests One’s Mettle: And Now We Know What Bibi is Really Made Of

Politicians who fear electoral defeat are among the most shortsighted of all human beings and will say stupid things when they fear that their political lives hang in the balance. Focused on the immediate goal of reelection which they...

Mar 4, 2015, 10:11 AM

Bibi’s Achievement is Undeniable

A friend asked me to take off my analyst's hat for a moment and to say what I think about Bibi's decision to accept Boehner's invitation to address the Congress, and what I thought of Bibi's spech today. I think...

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About Me

Trained as a political theorist at Columbia University and in Religious Studies at Harvard, Michael Gottsegen (Ph.D., 1989) has worked in and out of academia since the early 1990s, having taught at Columbia and Brandeis before coming to Brown. A book based on his thesis, "The Political Thought of Hannah Arendt," was published in 1994.