Why did the United States feel the need to admit Baltic and Eastern Europeans who at times exceeded the Nazis in brutality? Lost count of the sordid episodes in America’s past? In Useful Enemies: John Demjanjuk and America’s Open-Door Policy for Nazi War Criminals (Delphinium Books, 2013), Richard Rashke chronicles one that few of us […]
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The Rest is Noise (6)—Descent into the Maelstrom
It’s been leading up to this, the past several months, as we have tracked the descent of the twentieth century into its mid-century madness through the course of its music. Alex Ross’s book is quite clever in this—but it seeks to illuminate the music of the century through its intellectual and social history. The focus […]
Blatter “appalled” by racist abuse of Balotelli: hey Sepp – less talk, more action
Racist abuse of AC Milan striker Mario Balotelli by AS Roma fans in yesterday’s Serie A match caused the official to briefly suspend play. After an PA announcement warning the offending supporters to cease and desist, the game was resumed. While these things are hardly uncommon in Italian football (or throughout the rest of Europe, […]
Would Pakistan respond to India’s use of conventional weapons with nukes?
Theoretically Pakistan is poised to respond to Indian military retaliation for a terrorist strike with tactical nukes. It’s debatable how much nuclear weapons add to national security. But what’s undeniable is that they add layer upon layer of complexity, sprinkled with convoluted and even counterintuitive thinking (such as how missile defense systems are seen as […]
Next step for Assad – exile to a rump state?
Syria has become the weak leg of its tripod with Iran and Hezbollah. “A Syrian official called an attack Sunday on the nation’s military research facility a ‘declaration of war’ by Israel,’” reports CNN. In an interview with CNN, Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al Mekdad said the attack represented an alliance between Islamic terrorists and Israel. […]
Boston Marathon bombing: tragedy, bigotry and hope
First and foremost, my thoughts are with Boston today. I hope your friends and family were as lucky as mine were to avoid any harm, and my prayers are with those who were not as lucky. Watching the news was horrific for anyone who turned on a television or browsed the Internet yesterday. But apart […]
Emphasis added: the foreign policy week in pieces
Mental Illness a Prerequisite to Run for Public Office It’s unbelievable what people would do to be in power. I know: It happens everywhere. I can’t believe that normal people in their right mind would run for elected position. There has to be something wrong in their value system to go through what they have […]
TunesDay: Phoenix and Aline are making 2013 a big year for French Indie Pop
We haven’t historically regarded the French for their rock & roll. Wine and cuisine, sure. Beautiful women, absolutely. But Europe’s greatest pop music has always tended to emerge across the channel. Then, in 2009, a little band from Versailles called Phoenix blowed up with Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix and one of the year’s hottest Indie singles, “Lisztomania.” Phoenix […]
Climate and agriculture: Wheatless in Hampstead
According to an article in yesterday’s Independent, the weather in Britain, especially England, has been so lousy that the UK is set to go from a wheat exporter to a wheat importer for the first time in a decade. The culprit here, if there is only one, appears to be the long spell of cold […]
Traveling to Istanbul (III)–In the heart of the country?
Thursday started out in a bit of frustration, but turned out okay after all. The plan was to head out by tram to the Naval Museum, then double back to one of the university museums to see a map show, and then wander around the Galata area. The first two were a bust, sadly. First […]
Traveling to Istanbul (II)–the Harem and other delights
Whenever I want to learn about a place, or a different time, I usually go the mystery route—find some good mysteries about whatever I want to know about, and read them. Sometimes this is more a happy accident than by design. Such was the case with Jason Goodwin’s series about Istanbul in the 1830s, with […]
Traveling to Istanbul (I)
This is farther east and still in Europe than I’ve ever been, outside of Moscow—farther than Bucharest, farther than Athens. A lot like both, though—even though the place has been Islamic for five hundred years, it still feels pretty Orthodox as well—you can’t just disappear that 1,300 years of Christianity. What it mainly feels like, […]
Lone Star Funds president Ellis Short hires avowed fascist Paolo di Canio to manage his football team
UPDATE: It’s official. _____ English Premiership side Sunderland AFC is considering hiring Paolo Di Canio to be its new manager. Di Canio would replace Martin O’Neill, who was turfed after Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Manchester United. Providing negotiations proceed smoothly, club officials hope to announce his appointment on Monday morning. It remains unclear whether he […]
Emphasis Added: The Foreign Policy Week in Pieces (4/1)
War: Not Just Hell, But the Tenth Circle Thereof War is obscene. I mean that in every sense of the word. Some veterans will tell you that you can’t know war if you haven’t served in one, if you haven’t seen combat. These are often the same guys who won’t tell you the truths that […]
What does Italy hope to gain by re-trying Amanda Knox?
And, were she found guilty again, would the United States extradite Amanda Knox? As you’ve no doubt heard by now an Italian appellate has court overturned a lower court decision that acquitted Amanda Knox in the Perugia murder of her housemate Meredith Kercher. Two questions immediately present themselves: 1. If she’s found guilty, would the […]
How do Buddhist attacks on Muslims help Burma’s government?
Cognitive dissonance aside, Buddhists — including monks — take up arms against Muslims in Burma while the government stands by. Global Post reports on another outbreak of sectarian violence in Burma this week that left “thousands homeless and more than 50 people confirmed dead. Video footage and photos taken at the scene by the local […]
S&R Honors
Click here to learn more about past honorees...- “Where Girls Grow Strong” – and Boy Scouts follow
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- I-5 bridge collapse: reflecting on our crumbling infrastructure
- UPDATED: Pope Francis says atheists can go to heaven: Sweet Jesus! The College of Cardinals done elected a hippie
- Magic Hat vs. West Sixth brewhaha: will MH win the battle that costs them the war?
- Mystery Unraveled: How a white, moderate, married, churchgoing, middle-class, middle-aged woman could vote for Obama
- An open letter to Burt Rutan, regarding his WSJ commentary on human-caused climate disruption
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- Climate scientists still besieged
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Frank Dilatush: If I accept your premise that the majority of poor…
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elfkat: Reblogged this on Adventures and Musings of a Hedg…
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Bret Higgins: You know me, mate, I checked out every link!…
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Samuel Smith: I hear you. I'm reminded of the WC Fields edict: I…
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