We mentioned in an earlier post that, yes, it has become a little cliche to gawk at Muammar Gaddafi’s sartorial decision-making. Unlike other publications, we even deliberately refrained from publishing our amassed photos of the now-isolated Libyan dictator’s wardrobe while security forces in his employ gunned down ordinary Libyans. …
Conflict
Global Briefing, Feb. 28, 2011: Ten Stories to Start Your Day
Not in Bloom — TIME’s Austin Ramzy chronicles the ‘sad farce’ of China’s would-be Jasmine revolution.
The Palin Doctrine — Foreign Affairs asks what Tea Party populism means for American foreign policy.
The Right’s Might — A flagging Europe is at risk of a fascist renaissance, warns Ian Kershaw in the National …
Africa’s Feeble Response to Libya
Why has Africa’s response to the Libyan regime’s shooting of protesters – and hiring of African mercenaries to actually pull the triggers – been so weak? So far, the continent’s reaction amounts to this: the African Union has condemned “the disproportionate use of force against civilians,” which pretty much implies that cracking down on …
Ambassadors Blast Sarkozy’s Foreign Policy Monopoly
Torn between backing long-time dictator allies and supporting the surging popular revolts seeking to bring those regimes down, few Western governments have sparkled in their tormented responses to protests sweeping the Arab world. But few nations have appeared as dumbly frozen in those headlights as France—where the government of …
Winds of Libyan Change Envelop British Government in Stench
Tony Blair’s 2004 meeting with Muammar Gaddafi was momentous by any standards. Blair’s arrival in Libya marked the first visit to the country by a British prime minister since 1943, and proceeded against protests by some relatives of the Lockerbie dead. His purpose was to encourage Gaddafi’s perceived desire “to make common cause with us …
Algeria Rescinds Emergency Powers–But Isn’t Bending To Popular Unrest
Was the lifting Thursday of Algeria’s 19-year state of emergency a sign the country’s corrupt, authoritarian regime is responding to the growing public unrest that brought down the rulers of Tunisia and Egypt—and now looks set to topple Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi? Without any doubt. Yet it would be naïve to interpret the repealing …
In Liberia, a Peace Activist Becomes a Mayor
This terrific video comes via TIME’s Multimedia Director Craig Duff, who offers the following introduction:
If peacemakers are indeed blessed, as a famous sermon once said, then Etweda Cooper can think big. As a founder of the Liberian Women’s Initiative, Cooper – who is better known as ‘Sugars’ Cooper – led demonstrations and …
France’s Iconic “Moderate Muslim” Becomes Target of Islamophobe Aggression
In the decade since 9/11 forced the world to update its views of Islam and look for ways to dissuade its practitioners from drifting towards extremism, Western societies have placed a high premium on the moderate Muslim: those modern, sensible examples of how Islam can be practiced and honored harmoniously within predominately non-Muslim …
Can Facebook Rescue the Palestinian Authority?
Israel’s deputy foreign minister meant it as a put-down a couple of months ago when he said the Palestinian Authority was on its way to establishing a “Facebook state.” At the time a flurry of governments, many of them South American, were giving a calculated boost to Palestinian aspirations by upgrading PA diplomatic missions …
South African Airways: Flying High?
South African Airways is once again scrambling to contain the damage after yet another crew member was arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling. Nonnie Nyoba, 44, who had worked for the airline for 12 years, was arrested in Sao Paulo on Feb. 15 as she prepared to board an SAA flight to South Africa after Brazilian customs officers seized …
From Recruitment Camps in the Sahara, Libya’s Mercenaries Emerge
Very early on in the course of the uprising in Libya, an iconic image appeared: that of spent ammunition casings. This has been a revolution of chaos and attrition, with anti-government protesters pitted against a repressive and volatile state, one, which at times has seemed on the brink of collapse and, in other moments, appeared steely …
No News Isn’t Good News
Travel broadens the mind—unless your destination is a news-free bubble.
In London I supplement a daily fix of print, online and broadcast news by talking to primary sources including politicians and their back-room teams, in person, on the phone, by email and via Twitter and Facebook. During the past week I’ve been in California, a …