James Lileks offers his take on the 1920s. As usual with Lileks, it’s both interesting and fun. It’s always kind of strange to imagine what is was like to live in a decade we’ve heard about but weren’t around for. … Continue reading →
…but it’s not such a big deal, although my saying that may surprise you. First of all, let me state that I have disagreed, and continue to disagree, in the strongest possible terms with Obama’s actual foreign policy, which can … Continue reading →
General Norman Schwarzkopf has died at the age of 78 of complications from pneumonia. Those of us who were around during the 1991 Gulf War remember him as a television personality explaining it all, and a man who was popular … Continue reading →
…nominates Massachusetts Democratic Senator John Kerry for the post of Secretary of State. I’ve written about this choice before (including earlier, when Kerry was being considered for Secretary of Defense). So I’ll just quote myself: …[T]his would be another example … Continue reading →
And I fear we never shall. When I was in school, World War I was hardly touched on in my history classes, so eager were the teachers to get to World War II before the year was over. It was … Continue reading →
A reader has alerted me to the news that the tunnel “Harry” featured in the movie “The Great Escape” has been found (not the movie set tunnel; the real deal). If you’ve loved that movie for many decades, as I … Continue reading →
Thomas Friedman surprised me by offering an interesting take on the state of the Middle East today. I’d summarize it as: Iraq is at present the most stable country in the Arab Middle East, at least relative to the others. … Continue reading →
Rumor has it that John Kerry is being considered for the post of Secretary of Defense. If true, this would be another example of what a keen sense of humor Obama has. For what better way to enrage the majority … Continue reading →
Remember back in June when it was the 40th anniversary of the “napalm” girl photo that so shockingly depicted some of the civilian casualties in the Vietnam War? I wrote this piece in PJ for the occasion, in an attempt … Continue reading →
I had never heard of chemist Fritz Haber until a couple of days ago, when I watched a TV dramatization of his story that was so melodramatic that I thought it was surely an exaggeration. But surprisingly, when I looked … Continue reading →
…on Securitygate: What I call “Securitygate” ”” the release of the most intricate details about the cyber war against Iran, the revelations about a Yemeni double-agent, disclosures about covert operations in and against Pakistan, intimate details about the Osama bin … Continue reading →
Yesterday was the 41st anniversary of the Pentagon Papers’ publication. A year ago on the 40th anniversary, Daniel Ellsberg took a moment to air a few regrets that he didn’t release the Papers sooner, and to encourage the current possessors … Continue reading →