Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- December 24, 2014

Did ISIS Shoot Down A Fighter Jet? -- Jamie Dettmer & Christopher Dickey, Daily Beast

The Islamic State, or ISIS, claims it has shot down a Jordanian fighter jet and captured its pilot. Will this undermine the kingdom’s bedrock role as an ally in the war?

Islamic militants scored a significant propaganda coup today, displaying the captured pilot of a Jordanian warplane they claimed to have shot down over northern Syria with a shoulder-fired missile. The Jordanian F-16 is the first plane flying with the U.S.-led coalition to be lost in territory controlled by the self-styled Islamic State since air strikes began against the militants in September. The incident will complicate the air campaign against the jihadists and likely force a re-thinking of ground-attack tactics.

Jordanian authorities were at first reluctant to confirm the warplane had been shot down by a MANPADS, short for Man Portable Air Defense Systems. They suggested at first that the F-16 may have had mechanical problems, but later the country’s information minister, Mohammad Momani, told Associated Press the aircraft was struck by “ground fire.” He declined to provide further details.

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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- December 24, 2014

Pakistan’s New Strategy to Beat the Taliban -- Omar Waraich, Time

No, North Korea Didn’t Hack Sony -- Marc Rogers, Daily Beast

Is North Korea Really Responsible for Sony Hack? -- Doug Bernard, VOA

Sony vs. North Korea: Send in the Clowns? -- Kathleen J. McInnis, War On The Rocks

The Sony Hack and the Rise of Cyber Ransoms -- Katie Benner, Bloomberg

2014 Saw Intensification of Boko Haram Insurgency -- Anne Look, VOA

Fallout from Obama’s Russia Strategy Is Spreading through Europe -- Patrick Smith, Fiscal Times

How Putin Stopped the Ruble's Collapse -- Leonid Bershidsky, Bloomberg

Putin is winning the oil war: Katusa -- Nicole Goodkind, Yahoo Finance

Is OPEC Washed Up? -- Geoffrey Styles, Energy Outlook

The Next Shale Revolution? The astonishing promise of enhanced oil recovery -- Samuel Thernstrom, Weekly Standard

Can arms trade be regulated? -- Inside Story/Al Jazeera

The Timid Generation: Try to imagine Franklin Roosevelt or Ronald Reagan caving in to North Korea. -- Victor Davis Hanson, NRO

What makes Hawaii home for Obama? Seven ways he's enjoying vacation. -- Francine Kiefer, CSM

Expats, Here’s the Best Country for You -- Wall Street Journal