A bridge over the Ganges River in India. From National Geographic.
The Slump Goes On: Why? (Robin Wells and Paul Krugman) from the New York Review of Books
"Proposals for positive action to dig us out of the hole we’re in are few and far between. In what follows, we’ll provide a relatively brief discussion of a much-belabored but still controversial subject: the origins of the 2008 crisis."
Changing Course in Moscow from Foreign Affairs
"Guided by President Dmitry Medvedev, Russia appears to be slowly refashioning its foreign policy to favor better relations with the West. Moscow would like to exchange closer ties for investment and technology -- a trade that Washington would be wise to support."
The Presidency, Chained to the World (Matt Bai) from the New York Times
"While Mr. Obama is facing a more acute economic crisis moment than his predecessors, characterized by a near depression, the truth is that every president going back to Jimmy Carter, at one point or another, has had to campaign or govern in an environment dominated by the same cyclical and stubborn factors — recession, unemployment, rising energy costs. And so perhaps Mr. Obama’s presidency, as it reaches its midway point, is best understood not in isolation, but rather as part of a longer and still undefined political moment."
Why Do Terrorists Blow Themselves Up? (Riaz Hassan) from Yale Global
"Analysis of more than 1500 suicide attacks between 1981 and 2008 by author Riaz Hassan reveals far more complex motivations. Instead, altruism emerges as one of the major driving forces among young terrorists who previously demonstrated exemplary conduct."
Everything You Wanted to Know About Obama's (Very Important) Infrastructure Banks But Were Afraid to Ask (Alexander Hart) from the New Republic
"President Obama’s new plan to create an infrastructure bank didn’t get a lot of attention this week. ... The Europeans already have a similar institution, called the European Investment Bank (EIB), and it’s been highly successful. Instead of ignoring or dismissing the concept, it might be worth examining how and why that bank works—and whether Obama’s version would work the same way."
Washington, We Have a Problem (Todd Purdum) from Vanity Fair
"A day in the life of the president reveals that Barack Obama’s job would be almost unrecognizable to most of his predecessors—thanks to the enormous bureaucracy, congressional paralysis, systemic corruption ..., and disintegrating media. Inside the West Wing, the author talks to Obama’s top advisers about the challenge of playing the Washington game, ugly as it has become, even while their boss insists they find a way to transcend it."
God and Politics, Together Again (Sam Tenenhaus) from the New York Times
"IT took only a day for a massive exercise in unity to become the latest salvo in the culture wars."
Why a Fearful America Worries Minorities (Joel Dreyfuss) from The Root
"On the ninth anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks, a sense of vulnerability still prevails in this country. That's not good for black Americans, Japanese Americans or Arab Americans, who know that fear fuels our worst behavior as a nation."
Poli Sci 101: Presidential Speeches Don't Matter, and Lobbyists Don't Run D.C. (Ezra Klein) from the Washington Post
"I asked the assembled political scientists what they wished politicians knew about politics. Here are some of their best answers."
Glenn Beck: Tea Party Pooper? from Mother Jones Magazine
"Saturday's big anti-government "March on DC" is looking like a bust. Here's why the Fox host may be to blame."
HISTORY NUGGET!!
David M. Kennedy Discusses how FDR’s Concessions Saved the Social Security Act from American Heritage Magazine
"Compromise upon compromise whittled FDR’s dreams down considerably but enabled him to pass his Social Security Act, perhaps the most sweeping social reform of the 20th century"
MIDDLE EAST CULTURE NUGGET!!
In Search of Gay Tehran from PBS's Frontline Program
"If I grew up there, I wondered, how would I live? Would I have social outlets and how would I find them? In Iran, circumstances are tougher for people with my profile -- female, young, and homosexual -- than for most other demographics. It turned out that in Iran I could still be each of these things, but with varying degrees of visibility and boldness."
STRANGE ADOPTIONS NUGGET!!
Cat Adopts Baby Squirrel, Teaches It to Purr (VIDEO) from the Huffington Post
"Rocky may turn out to be the only squirrel who grows up thinking he's a cat, as he's picking up their habits quite fast."
No comments:
Post a Comment