Category: Culture

How bad is it?

 If you’re wondering what Prince George has wrought in the hinterland, far from his royal throne, read the following guest editorial that appeared in our local paper last Saturday.  It was written by a federal government employee, the current superintendent of Hot Springs National Park (http://www.nps.gov/hosp/). I’m still mulling over a response, but I already …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2007/05/17/how-bad-is-it/

Pistachios and other nuts

 July 12, 2010 update:  This Haaretz article, titled “On one thing they agree: ‘Allahu akhbar’,” was the beginning of a years-long email conversation with Janna.   Sometimes heated but always interesting… http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/on-one-thing-they-agree-allahu-akhbar-1.219670 or http://bit.ly/9UfSj6 or http://tinyurl.com/3ayjus7 The article was about the interaction of Jewish and Muslim worshippers at an ancient shrine regarded as Joshua’s grave, located in the heart of the Palestinian village of Kifl …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2007/05/05/pistachios-and-other-nuts/

Mercenaries?

 Dear Mr. Spencer: I am tardy in responding to your interesting comments about the historical role of Gurkha units in the British Indian Army. In referring to the Gurkha as “mercenaries”, I most assuredly did not intend to impugn their honor or integrity in the slightest — or, in particular, the steadfast loyalty that they …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2007/05/04/750/

War games

 Fisk on the death of journalism: http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-we-are-now-in-the-firing-line-sadly-446522.html or http://bit.ly/bnqdXg or http://tinyurl.com/38h6k57 And here’s one on how surgingly swell things are for the British in Basra: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/serving-british-soldier-exposes-horror-of-war-in-crazy-basra-446395.html or http://bit.ly/bA4W72 or http://tinyurl.com/32duxzw  And, if you can find it, the farewell telegram from Sir Ivor Roberts as he left his job as Rome ambassador is quite interesting.  Sir Ivor got in trouble …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2007/04/28/war-games/

Full-court press

 Today’s Washington Post features a defense of the war by Michael Chertoff, secretary of homeland security, that begins with “As the rubble of the Twin Towers smoldered in 2001…”  Talk about connecting the dots…  He attacks Brzezinski for being critical of the “war on terror,” then dredges up the Ayatollah’s “revolutionary fanaticism” of the 1970s, …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2007/04/22/full-court-press/

Lebanon (1890-1900)

Thanks Fadwa.  What a beautiful country!  Whenever I see pictures like these and read accounts from the same time period, I wish I could have walked the countryside paths and ridden on four-legged beasts instead of whizzing around in noisy cars and airplanes.  Imagine the time they had back then, to think, to see and …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2007/04/18/lebanon-1890-1900/

Tastes like chicken

 The crawl on CNN just revealed that scientists have analyzed genetic material from a 168-million year old dinosaur and now have conclusive evidence that Tyrannosaurus Rex is related to the modern chicken. +++ Natural selection hardly seems to be a good thing when you go from being an animal that eats everything else, to being …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2007/04/13/tastes-like-chicken/