Austin Bay Austin Bay is author of three novels. His third novel, The Wrong Side of Brightness, was published by Putnam/Jove in June 2003. He has also co-authored four non-fiction books, to include A Quick and Dirty Guide to War: Third Edition (with James Dunnigan, Morrow, 1996). Bay writes a syndicated column on international affairs for Creators Syndicate. He is a commentator on National Public Radio's Morning Edition, covering foreign affairs but often addressing issues in Texas that have a national interest. Bay has appeared as a guest commentator on Fox News Channel, CNN, C-SPAN, MSNBC and ABC News' "Nightline," as well as on numerous regional radio and TV shows. As a journalist, he has filed reports from throughout Europe, Central America, Africa, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. He is a contributing editor to FYEO, an Internet foreign affairs newsletter found at www.StrategyPage.com, and writes a weblog on his home page, www.austinbay.net. Bay, who has had two commercial wargames published, worked for four years as a special consultant in wargaming in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (1989-1993). He is a colonel (retired) in the U.S. Army Reserve. In 2004, he was recalled to active duty and served in Iraq as chief of strategic initiatives, Multi-National Corps-Iraq (May-September 2004). He received the Bronze Star for meritorious service in Iraq. Bay also served on active duty in the Pentagon during Operation Desert Storm (1991). On active duty in the 1970s, Bay served in Germany as a tank platoon leader in the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment and as an assistant operations and chemical/nuclear defense officer in the headquarters of 1st Infantry Division's forward brigade group. (Goeppingen, Germany). While with 1st Infantry Division, his duties included liaison work with NATO allied units - in particular with West German, Canadian, and French forces. In 1995, the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization sent him to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to observe anti-ballistic missile training exercises. In 1999, Bay accepted a special reserve tour in Guatemala, where he was deputy commander of a Hurricane Mitch recovery operation and medical relief mission. In October 2001, Bay served a two-week tour with Central Command headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. Bay has a bachelor of arts from Rice University (1973) and has a Ph.D. in English and comparative literature from Columbia University (1987). He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff School and the U.S. Army War College. He currently teaches a course in strategy and strategic theory for the University of Texas' PLAN 2 undergraduate honors program. Recent projects include organizing a micro-development aid project for the Episcopal Church's Diocese of Texas. Bay is a member of The Authors Guild, Mystery Writers of America, The Modern Language Association, The Reserve Officers Association, The National Conference of Editorial Writers and The Society of Professional Journalists. http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay http://media.townhall.com/TownHall/icons/TH-feed-icon-128x128.gif http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay TownHall.com, Where your opinion counts. 128 Copyright (c) 2008 Townhall.com, A Salem Communications Web. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED jim.dearras@townhall.com (Jim De Arras) Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:01:00 GMT Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:01:00 GMT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ A Vietnam vet friend of mine argues that maintaining a democracy requires three things: a passion for freedom, tolerance for diversity and intolerance for threats. A letter from a reader, responding to a column on... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/07/02/the_hard_thing_of_democracy 95184995-5354-4605-a477-65307865d851 Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:01:00 GMT The Internet won't solve the U.S. government's "synergy crisis." However, the State Department's innovative Economic Empowerment in Strategic Regions (EESR), which leverages Internet connectivity, may well help Third... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/06/25/the_state_department_confronts_the_synergy_crisis b9765b68-b0a2-47c3-ba23-5d8a456a7f1a Wed, 25 Jun 2008 04:01:00 GMT "Frankly obscene," Australia's foreign minister said. Australia's Stephen Smith was referring to Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe's appearance at a U.N. food conference earlier this month. Yes, a dictator who... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/06/18/mugabe_the_obscene f40462b4-3b02-42d1-9752-92215da6dec7 Wed, 18 Jun 2008 04:01:00 GMT The classic World War II-era poster reminded talkative dock workers that "loose lips sink ships." Well, loose nukes present an even more imposing problem, one with continent-cracking possibilities. Last week, when... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/06/11/behind_gates_decision_to_fire_up_the_air_force 1e4f3962-dfb6-4d15-81f8-54f8d6a080bd Wed, 11 Jun 2008 04:01:00 GMT I have yet to encounter a "surgical" weapon. A weapon exists to kill or damage living beings and material objects. "Surgical" is a questionable word, anyway, when applied to a weapon. It yokes scalpel and dagger.... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/06/04/the_cluster_behind_the_cluster_munitions_ban a249bed4-6989-419d-a7ba-a001afe133b4 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 04:01:00 GMT Considering the violent threats, fractured politics and bitter history it confronts, Iraq's democratic government has accomplished much in two short years. For a variety of reasons -- most self-serving, a few... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/05/28/iraqi_democracy,_two_years_on fab39a58-9d9f-403e-9ce6-fe3830e05226 Wed, 28 May 2008 04:01:00 GMT "We're a military at war, not a nation at war," the lieutenant colonel said ever so quietly but harshly as he leaned across the table at an Austin, Texas-area Rotary Club luncheon. "We're a military at war, not an... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/05/21/memorial_day_2008 37dbfbce-0281-40ef-93cb-a419ba3df3aa Wed, 21 May 2008 04:01:00 GMT How many people have died in Burma (Myanmar) since Cyclone Zargis struck the South Asian nation on May 3? Last Tuesday, Burma's dictatorship officially put the death toll at 34,000, with another 30,000 missing. The... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/05/14/limited_options_in_burma 061bd2e2-b7bd-4a0d-b8d2-d6efb8a39eb9 Wed, 14 May 2008 04:01:00 GMT Michael Yon is one of those unusual Americans who emerge in wartime to do the jobs that need to be done. The job he is doing is covering combat in Iraq at the gritty, confusing and valiant level of close combat,... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/05/07/michael_yons_moment_of_truth_in_iraq 18156c32-3b67-4fdc-80ea-b755b169afa2 Wed, 07 May 2008 04:01:00 GMT So far, theatrical protests of the Beijing Olympics by Hollywood stars and sign-waving demonstrators have failed to stop the genocide in Sudan's Darfur region or restore Tibetan independence. The sensationalist... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/04/30/darfur_facing_the_peacekeeping_conundrum 387adfd6-7aff-4e9c-a3a0-6812c869ee44 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 04:01:00 GMT Remember the Iraqi government's Basra offensive, launched a month ago and quickly declared a failure by an overwhelming majority of the talk show and editorial commentators? "Basra Blunder" was the headline of a column... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/04/23/back_to_basra_challenging_the_blunderbusses 735b0f53-ab56-492f-897b-78fed8089f36 Wed, 23 Apr 2008 04:01:00 GMT I enjoy baking, and "scratch" cornbread is my favorite kitchen oeuvre. I use stone-ground corn meal, and the product is gluten-free -- nix on the cup of wheat flour you'll find in many recipes. My cornbread hobby... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/04/16/food_crisis_the_maze_behind_maize 150f86fe-9fd7-4deb-b9a2-eb04af09a657 Wed, 16 Apr 2008 04:01:00 GMT It's a shame Sen. Carl Levin failed to take the time to call public attention to Gen. David Petraeus' "Anaconda Strategy" chart. Petraeus briefly referred to the chart during his initial testimony this week before... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/04/09/petreaus_anaconda 809d0cc4-c1ae-4038-9b7d-1610ebd21b14 Wed, 09 Apr 2008 04:01:00 GMT After his outlaw militiamen raised white flags and skedaddled from their latest round of combat with the Iraqi Army, radical Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr declared victory. He always does. He understands media... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/04/02/whittling_away_at_sadr 6a877bb0-5f97-4c57-8901-84817e751e71 Wed, 02 Apr 2008 04:01:00 GMT John Kerry's "Christmas in Cambodia" yarn ignited the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Whatever your memory of the 2004 presidential campaign, Kerry's sudden silence about a wartime Christmas "seared" in his memory was a... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AustinBay/2008/03/26/war_stories_and_cameras b1ea3339-9f06-43c1-aad1-a7025a68051f Wed, 26 Mar 2008 04:01:00 GMT