1776: The Musical (1969; movie 1972) “Waiting for the chirp, chirp, chirp. Of an eaglet being born. Waiting for the chirp, chirp, chirp. On this humid Monday Morning in this Congressional incubator.” The Guardian, probably rightfully, declared that 1776 was “[f]ar too long and mostly terrible, but hilarious.” Now, the real question–why would anyone ever decide to make the Second Continental […]
Why is it that the media in the West seem to fixate on some stories while completely ignoring others? The strategic analysis firm Stratfor recently sent their subscribers a report by Robert Kaplan that contained the following quote that provides an insightful answer: The media love people stories; they love to humanize everything about a […]
Media reports on the disappearance of Jordanian Al Arabiya TV journalist Baker Atyani and his two local crew members in the Philippines have published conflicting information in the last two days. According to the most recent reports, the crew was possibly kidnapped while working in the southern Philippines. The Philippine Star says of the case: […]
The following piece was originally published in on the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. by R. Scott Kemp R. Scott Kemp is an associate research scholar with the Program on Science and Global Security at the Woodrow Wilson School for Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. Before this, he was science advisor in the Office […]
I just watched a fascinating video from Reuters TV about a tiny town in Afghanistan named “Little America.” Located in the Helmand Province in Southern Afghanistan, “Little America” was the largest development project in Afghanistan’s history. First populated by Americans during the Cold War, it was developed to counteract Soviet influence in the region. The US spent hundreds […]
Someone wished me a “happy Memorial Day” in passing and I wondered if they understood what the holiday was really all about. What is it really all about? The photo above was taken at the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery and Memorial in France. According to the American Battle Monuments Commission, the cemetery contains the largest number […]
The U.S. is preparing both carrots and sticks for Iran heading into the P5+1 talks with Iran today in Baghdad. There is an art and a science to good negotiating and it’s clear that Team Obama is making a conscious effort to to define the parameters of this unfolding narrative. Take, for example, this report […]
The US-South Africa bilateral relationship over the past eighteen months has been a diplomatic minefield. Issues include everything from military equipment and nuclear energy/weapons to oil, communication companies and the global north versus the global south. The most recent, and the most serious issue regarding US-SA relations is Iran. According to a press release sent […]
Whether it is lack of political will or capacity, the Nigerian government has failed to address the threat that the Islamist insurgency Boko Haram poses to its country’s security. The past week has been a particularly bloody one for Nigeria. Simultaneous attacks against This Day newspaper offices in Abuja and Kaduna killed nearly a dozen […]
One year after their untimely deaths while working in Libya, a special tribute to Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros called “Liberty and Justice (for All)” features the work of 68 photographers. The tribute includes work of some of the world’s best photojournalists, and explores the concepts of liberty and justice. More information can be seen […]
The scandal over the conduct of Secret Service agents in Colombia seems to be receding as the media moves on to new stories and new scandals, though the politics of the scandal appears to be in no danger of going away. Opponents of President Obama have used the scandal to question his management style while […]
Like after a good first date, expectations can get a little out of hand when it comes burgeoning alliances between states. In the late 90’s relations between the US and India began to thaw (agreed to date), through the 2000s, as the two sides’ interests began to mold so did their relationship (going steady), and […]
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