John Tirman
Cognoscenti contributor
John Tirman is executive director and principal research scientist at the MIT Center for International Studies. He is the author of "The Deaths of Others: The Fate of Civilians in America’s Wars."
Recently published
The Origins Of America's Gun Obsession
The frontier and the gun are deeply encoded in the nation’s DNA, writes John Tirman.
The Muslim Ban And A Constitution In Peril
The crisis over President Trump's immigration ban, writes John Tirman, has emerged from its unconstitutionality as well as from the way the government has flouted court orders blocking parts of...
The Wall And The Ban: Can Trump Really Accomplish Either?
The two trademark ideas of Trump’s candidacy remain dicey propositions, writes John Tirman.
Why Paris?
France was the epicenter of the Enlightenment that fairly defines Western civilization. And the jihadis, in their reckless, apocalyptic pathology, detest above all such values.
Can We Measure The Human Cost Of War?
These American wars contain an element of Greek tragedy, beginning with hubris and ending with an unconscious, Oedipal urge to blind ourselves to the horror of what we’ve done.
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Undocumented Immigrants And The Paradox Of 'Sanctuary Cities'
Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez had been deported five times and had a rap sheet many felonies long. Why was he a free man?
Unpacking Republican Opposition To Immigration Reform
In an increasingly diverse America, opposing immigration reform is a losing proposition for political candidates. So why are Republicans so reluctant to budge on the issue?
The Second Great Migration
We should begin to understand who our immigrant population is -- where they came from and why, their aspirations, their contributions to American society -- in order to help this...
Past Lessons, Current Threats: Assessing Obama’s Case For War Against ISIS
Rarely has a major military initiative by a president been greeted with such ambivalence. It’s not hard to understand why.
Gaza, Iraq, Syria And The Construction Of Empathy
Why do we care about some conflicts more than others?