Christian Lowe is a defense and military affairs journalist who contributed extensively to The Weekly Standard from 1999 to 2017. His reporting covered U.S. military operations, defense policy, the Pentagon, and geopolitical security issues including the Iraq surge and China's military rise. He has also been known for his work with Military.com and other defense-focused media outlets.
As new information continues to emerge from the horrific shooting in Las Vegas that reportedly killed 58 and wounded more than 500, one aspect of the crime seems clear.
Before we start, let's just get one thing straight: A renewal of the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban will not crumble under fire from the "lobbying" power of the NRA.
Sure, Sen. Bernie Sanders beat the odds and pulled off a significant primary win against Hillary Clinton in Tuesday's Michigan primary. But while most pundits credited disaffected white union workers and starry-eyed millennials with the Vermont senator's win, another issue could have pulled in many…
It’s a safe bet that more Democratic voters were watching the series finale of Downton Abbey rather than the debate between Sen. Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton on Sunday. But one of the most intense exchanges in the highlight reels posted Monday showed a clear deception aimed at voters to help…
There's more than one problem with the lawsuit brought by the families of Sandy Hook Elementary School murder victims against Remington Outdoor Company and its subsidiary Bushmaster Firearms, and it's not just with the safeguards granted by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which…
It was one of those insider deals that give the defense industry a bad name, conjuring up images of smoke-filled negotiations between the brass and corporate fat cats in plush leather chairs. By the time it was over, two fat cats were in jail, a top Pentagon official had been forced to resign, a…
army.mil-2007-08-21-092020.jpg A Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle is loaded onto a
ON MAY 17, 2006, outspoken Bush critic and erstwhile Iraq war opponent John Murtha (D-Pa.) shocked the world with a dramatic revelation.
IT'S TRUE THAT INSURGENT violence is on the rise in Afghanistan, with a surging Taliban taking up tactics first used against U.S. forces in Iraq, including suicide bombs, improvised explosive devices, and vehicle-borne IEDs. Afghan civilians and national security forces are being killed in greater…
IT MAY NOT BE the most dramatic operation going on to defeat the insurgency and weed out al Qaeda operatives in Iraq, and it may not grab the biggest headlines. But one Marine general is waging his counterinsurgency fight by attacking the battlefield of the mind, rather than kicking in doors and…
WHILE DEMOCRATIC CONTROL of Congress poses new challenges to the Bush administration's handling of Iraq and the war on terrorism, former CIA Director Robert Gates's appointment as secretary of Defense is expected to create a less contentious atmosphere with lawmakers than existed under his…
YOU COULD HEAR the tension over the radios.
AS CHINESE PRESIDENT HU JINTAO sits down with President Bush at the White House this week, much of the discussion will focus on economic developments, international relations, human rights, and the global war on terrorism. But as China's economy continues its booming growth and modernization, a…
ON FEBRUARY 24, a tectonic shift took place in the shadowy world of special operations. It was an event years in the making, but it probably wouldn't have happened at all if not for the al Qaeda attacks on September 11.
THE IMAGES OF MISTREATMENT and outright sadism that emerged from the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq last year shocked America and the world. The cruel acts illustrated by the photos reflected poorly upon the U.S. military: How, many wondered, could America win support for the war on terrorism--a war…
AS THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION has faced growing pressure to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq, the Pentagon has claimed that as greater numbers of Iraqi forces are able to assume the task of defending their own country, American troops will be able to leave.
CRITICS BEGAN USING the "Q" word to describe the war in Iraq two years ago, well before the Sunni insurgency and al Qaeda franchise-leader Abu Mussab al Zarqawi began inflicting serious casualties on U.S. and coalition forces.
IRAN'S RECENT PUBLIC DECISION to halt its uranium enrichment program could be the first move in a gradual opening of its society and an attempt by Iran's moderate factions to integrate Tehran into the world's economy. Could the pursuit of nuclear weapons be merely a bargaining chip for greater…
AS JUDGMENT DAY for the terrorist hotbed of Falluja approaches, anxiety is building over what could be one of the bloodiest battles of America's war on terrorism. Insurgents holed up in the city speak of widespread violence across Iraq should U.S. forces assault and Sunni religious leaders warn…
WHILE ALL EYES are focused on enemies who present clear and present dangers, such as those in Iraq, Afghanistan, and North Korea, another country whose military was a chief concern during the '90s has faded to the background.
Khost, Afghanistan
A LOT OF PEOPLE are calling it the "forgotten war," but nearly 10,000 U.S. troops are still stationed in Afghanistan hunting after al Qaeda foot soldiers and their Taliban supporters--trudging through the craggy hills and dusty bazaars of what used to be considered the front line of America's war…
FROM THE LOOKS OF THE PRESS RELEASE accompanying the review copy, I thought I was in for yet another harsh critique of America's Iraqi "quagmire."
[img caption="Photo by Sgt. Lisa Jendry: Stryker infantry carrier vehicles at the Rodriguez Range Complex in South Korea, Aug. 4, 2003." float="right" width="400" height="262" render="<%photoRenderType%>"]8839[/img] AFTER NEARLY A YEAR in the Iraqi hornets' nest, 130,000 U.S. troops continue to…
THE IRAQI GOVERNING COUNCIL is in trouble, or so it seems as Iraqi Coalition Provisional Authority chief L. Paul Bremer abruptly canceled his meetings in Iraq November 11 and headed home for a hastily arranged powwow with Rumsfeld, Cheney, Rice, et al, to try to put their "democratization" effort…
THE LATEST CONCERNS at the Guantanamo Bay prison camp is a sharp reminder that America can't take security for granted--even at its most remote outposts. The capture of Ahmed Fathy Mehalba is even more unsettling because it involved a former Army soldier and naturalized U.S. citizen (by way of…
U.S. FORCES IN IRAQ trying to lock down security in Iraq's "Sunni Triangle" are battling enemies beyond disgruntled Baathist and unemployed Fedayeen. The triangle--the region around Baghdad and west to Ramadhi, then north to Saddam Hussein's ancestral hometown of Tikrit (and sometimes as far north…
IT KILLED 35 troops during Operation Desert Storm and was considered one of the biggest problems facing U.S. forces on the battlefield. A decade later, little has changed. The U.S. military calls it "blue on blue"--but most people know it as "friendly fire" or "fratricide." The problem of friendly…
Baghdad
Baghdad
WHEN IT COMES TO WEAPONRY, America's prowess is unmatched. Precision-guided bombs and missiles that can target a specific window in a specific building in downtown Baghdad have become the symbol of U.S. combat power. But America's greatest military advantage lies in its unparalleled ability to…
IT'S THE TOUGHEST kind of battle imaginable. A sniper around every corner. Ambushes on all sides. Booby traps and mines at every step. It's hard to tell friend from foe. Casualties are the rule, not the exception. Welcome to urban combat.
[img_assist|nid=323|title=|desc=Marines from the 3rd Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company call in close air support from AH-1 Cobra helicopter gunships during an exercise at the Mountain Warfare Training Center in Bridgeport, Calif. (Photo by Christian…
WATCHING OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM unfold, one might be left wondering what's going on with the coalition's air operations. Why is it that so many helicopters, several carrying precious human cargo, have crashed? Coming in just the first five days of the war, the crashes have even more of an impact…
Last night, we saw the fruits of the Pentagon's new "embed" relationship with journalists which allows the scribes to live and work freely amongst the troops and cover them in real time as they roll into battle. On-the-scene footage from CNN and FOX showed Army M2 and M3 Bradley fighting vehicles,…
WHEN PRESIDENT BUSH asked Donald Rumsfeld to come up with a plan to invade Afghanistan and kick al Qaeda out of its hiding places, Rumsfeld and General Hugh Shelton, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he'd have to wait a while. Though the CIA had been pursuing al Qaeda leads in the…
IN A TIME OF WAR AND TENSION, the reality show has become America's great escape--a vicarious adventure into others' quest for fame and fortune. Shows like "Joe Millionaire," "American Idol," "Married by America," and "The Bachelor" appeal to the most banal human desires by parading a tawdry crop…
AS 150,000 U.S. TROOPS prepare for a war with Iraq, the soldiers, sailors, Marines, and airmen of America's legions aren't the only ones packing bullet-proof vests and kevlar helmets into their backpacks. In newsrooms and editorial offices around the country an army of journalists is also gearing…
THEY WAGE THEIR BATTLES wearing camouflage uniforms or the native shawal kameez and pakul hat, M-4 assault rifles slung over their shoulders, 9mm pistols strapped to their thighs. Some are qualified to jump out of aircraft and infiltrate villages deep in enemy territory. Others are trained to call…
FOR MANY, it may seem like the news of the day is "All Iraq All The Time." But don't forget the United States is still waging a fierce war against al Qaeda and other terrorist groups around the globe. President George W. Bush reportedly still keeps a running tally of the 22 Most Wanted terrorists…
THE 1991 AIR WAR over Iraq introduced Americans to the wonders of precision-guided munitions. Who can forget the "slam-cam" footage of television- or laser-guided bombs homing in on a targeted air duct on a specific building in the middle of downtown Baghdad--announcing its bull's-eye hit with the…
LAST WEEKEND'S attack by an unmanned RQ-1A Predator drone on a group of six al Qaeda terrorists was the first known strike by an unmanned aerial vehicle outside Afghanistan. The strike, which killed a top al Qaeda operative who was suspected of having been a key player in the October 2000 attack on…
IS SOMALIA NEXT? Reports from the region suggest U.S. Special Forces teams have been in the Somali countryside scouting possible al Qaeda sanctuaries and drumming up local support. Yet the mere suggestion our troops could go back into that wasp's nest provokes anxiety. Some of the U.S. military's…
IF YOU’VE SEEN THE PREVIEWS or read the Hollywood hype, then you know that this summer’s latest blockbuster, Planet of the Apes, is a movie that asks its viewers deep, deep questions. Across America, we’ve been warned for months that director Tim Burton—famous for his lushly dark versions of Batman…
IT NEVER FAILS. Once several high-profile, fatal crashes of a new airplane grab the attention of the mainstream media, questions emerge about whether the effort is worth the risk. Doubts are raised about continuing the program, and a search for blame begins. That's what's happened to the Navy's new…
The Sword and the Shield