The Global South, it seems. According to a BBC poll published on the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, “opinion about the disintegration of the Soviet Union is sharply divided. Europeans overwhelmingly say it was a good thing: 79% in Germany, 76% in Britain and 74% in France feel that way. But outside […]
Inside sources in the Obama administration have let it be known that an Afghan strategy has been chosen, but we won’t officially hear about until the week of November 16, after Obama is back from his Asia tour (where he will meet with another dictator). Until we hear more I’ll have you enjoy some ex-football […]
My last post chronicled the large numbers of people (45% of Russians and up to 62% of Ukrainians) made worse off by the fall of the USSR. But what about the rest? One man who certainly did not figure among them was Misha, the hero of a vivid, at times zany, groteque and poignant fictionalised […]
I would just like to highlight this amazing story: A British Army explosives specialist who became a legend by risking his life to defuse more than 60 Taliban roadside bombs was killed in Afghanistan during his final mission before he took leave, the Times of London reported Tuesday. The specialist’s name was Staff Sergeant Olaf […]
After twenty years of post-Communism, it’s time to ask: cui bono? According to a sweeping Pew Research Center poll of Eastern Europeans released yesterday, “the prevailing view in Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Hungary is that people were better off economically under communism. Only in the Czech Republic and Poland do pluralities believe that […]
Would be presidential runoff challenger Abdullah Abdullah is out and Hamid Karzai is staying in. Everything is now all cleared up. Right? What? There are issues still left to settle? Even solve?!? The near and long term future hold the answers to….President Obama’s new Afghan strategy decision and implementation? Will a second term Karzai be […]
Terrified German officers called them Night-Witches. ‘Night’ because of the way they idled their engines to glide silently over German cities in daring night-time bombing raids. And ‘witches’, because they were women. Today, the BBC aired an unmissable documentary about the legendary Soviet 46th Night Bombers Guards Regiment, the first female combat fighter pilots in […]
The hilarious fake newspaper The Onion has a breaking news story….”US Continues Quagmire-Building Effort in Afghanistan“ Though I can normally read Onion pieces and just let myself go and enjoy the hysterical satire, but I couldn’t quite relax fully while reading this one. Here’s an excerpt: “We’ve spent a lot of time and money fostering […]
With a neo-con editor who believes that “with the Russians, if you don’t demand and threaten a little, you get zero”, the New Republic is the last place to find a reasoned view on Russia. Or on Iran for that matter, considering this famously faux-liberal magazine’s hawkish anti-Islamic stance. So imagine my surprise at finding […]
In the past week or so there have been growing signs that the Obama administration is likely to choose an Afghan strategy closer to McChrystal’s counterinsurgency plan than VP Joe Biden’s counterterrorism stance. However, most of these signs do not come directly from the administration as they have been rather tight-lipped and mainly just voiced […]
Turkey’s dream of becoming the energy hub of the region, benefiting from all the pipelines either up and running or on paper, in Eurasia, is one step closer to reality. Oil companies from Italy, Russia and Turkey have signed an agreement to move ahead with the South Stream gas pipeline on the seabed of the […]
An interesting (fake?) discussion took place between top oligarch Boris Deripaska and Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday. According to veteran rogue journalist John Helmer, the exchange went as follows: Deripaska told Medvedev that it is impossible to get a fair ruling from the law courts without paying bribes. “The courts have become overgrown with the institutution […]
Dexter Filkins’ ‘Stanley McChrystal’s Long War‘ is an excellent profile of America’s top commander in Afghanistan and clearly showcases the challenges of going ‘all-in’ and ‘getting out’. McChrystal comes off as vibrant, smart, and worthy General, but the task ahead of him is depicted as seemingly insurmountable. Here are some choice bits… McChrystal on counterinsurgency: […]
“The party of power gained the result it needed by discrediting political institutions and the very party itself…the elections turned into a mockery of the people and showed a deep disrespect for their voices”. This is how Mikhail Gorbachev, once a qualified supporter of Putin, summed up the results of the recent regional elections in […]
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave an official interview this weekend where she largely discussed American policy in Afghanistan. Here are some of the highlights: Regarding the Afghanistan’s Electoral Commission coming report about a possible runoff in the presidential election: “…we’re not positive what the election commission will recommend. But clearly, whatever their recommendation […]