Colonial Legacies — Does Sarkozy’s push for military action in Ivory Coast and Libya constitute a return to the bad old days Françafrique? asks the New York Times.
Truth or Truthiness — The American television show 60 Minutes says they’ve found inconsistencies in Greg Mortenson’s AfPak memoir, Three Cups of Tea. The …
After Gaddafi— The strongman’s departure is not necessarily the end of the Libyan crisis, writes Aryn Baker in a dispatch from Tripoli. “Unless it is done right,” she says, “it might be just the beginning.”
Dictator Dilemmas — In an essay for AJE, Dani Rodrik mulls the ethics of advising the likes of Gaddafi and his sons. We …
War Crimes — The case against alleged WWII criminal John Demjanjuk could be derailed by a once-secret FBI report claiming the ID card used to prove he was a Nazi guard was actually forged, writes Tristana Moore from Berlin.
‘Moscow to Mecca’ — North Caucasus, a territory which stretches from the Black Sea to the Caspian, is in …
One year ago today, an earthquake hit the northeastern edge of the Tibetan plateau, leveling a small, majority-Tibetan town. The magnitude-6.9 temblor shook buildings from the hills and pulled monasteries and mud-brick homes to the ground. The first images from the scene showed crimson-robed monks digging though the rubble by hand. They …
Bahrain, Divided — A crackdown by the ruling Sunni government on Shi’ite protesters is eroding the social fabric of the island kingdom, finds Karen Leigh in Manama. “It’s like there’s an invisible shield between us,” one man says.
He’s No Chicken —China blogger ‘Peking Duck,’ also known as Richard Burger, blasts the Global …
Revolution, Interrupted — Two months after the uprising, the Egyptian revolution is having trouble figuring out what to do next. Abigail Hauslohner explains why its old friend, the army, may be getting in the way.
Fatwas and Facebook— In a Tom Friedman-esque essay for Newsweek, Niall Ferguson argues that social media help …
One Month On —Four weeks after disaster hit Japan’s northeast coast, the crisis continues and questions mount, reports Krista Mahr; In an essay for TIME, Hannah Beech reflects on the tug-of-war between the country’s technological heart and its natural soul.
Prisoners of Conscience — In the New Yorker, Henrik Hertzberg rebukes the …
When an earthquake hit the Japanese town of Niigata in October 2004, Yo Yasuhara, an elderly monk, wrote these words:
It’s cold and wet/camping outdoors/aftershocks multiplying the misery
The poem, originally written in Japanese, so stirred survivors that it was carved in a memorial stone. Today, one month after the Great Tohoku …
Stalemate — Libya is deadlocked. TIME’s Tony Karo offers five reasons western intervention is unlikely to continue and mulls what come next.
On Language — The Economist parses the results of a massive (but not satistically controlled) study of English-language ability, linking fluency to factors like wealth and export …
New Lineup — Obama’s is about to shake up his ‘war team,’ reports the New York Times. Find out who’s out (Gates) and who might be in (Patraeus? Panetta? Another dude with ‘p’ name?).
Hold Your Fire — Should Mexico call for a cease-fire with the drug cartels? asks Ioan Grillo. Watch our video on narco-rappers, here.
Imperial …
Missing Persons — A state-run newspapers blasted Ai Weiwei today, warning that he’ll “pay the price” for his choices. TIME’s Austin Ramzy explains why that’s definitely bad news for the missing Chinese artist.
Tough Guys — What’s French for ‘muscular’? Because that’s what the New York Times is calling France’s military posture. …
A weekend raid at a club in Shanghai was a stark reminder of what can happen when homophobia meets the all-too-heavy hand of the law. Shanghaiist reports:
Early Sunday morning, police stormed into Q Bar in the middle of a gogo boy performance, turned the lights on, and shoved about 70 bar employees and patrons (save the foreigners)
…
Forcing the Issue — “Employing U.S. military power to overthrow Gaddafi would do Libya more harm than good,” argues Romesh Ratnesar.
After Unrest — In the New Yorker, Dexter Filkins chronicles the uprising in Yemen and considers what comes next; Read TIME’s account of the country’s ‘Bloody Monday’ here.
Battle Lines — …
