Tag Archives: History

Reviews: Best Books On Foreign Affairs Of 2024

Foreign Policy Magazine (December 8, 2023): The Best of Books 2024  on international politics, economics, and history that were featured in the magazine this year, selected by Foreign Affairs’ editors and book reviewers.

Underground Empire: How America Weaponized the World Economy

by Henry Farrell and Abraham Newman

In a revelatory book, Farrell and Newman describe how the United States has turned its control over information networks into a hidden tool of economic domination—and warn of the risks of Washington’s weaponization of data power for ordinary people, as well as for the global financial system.read the review

To Run the World: The Kremlin’s Cold War Bid for Global Power

by Sergey Radchenko

In a major reconsideration of Cold War history, Radchenko examines the Soviet Union’s competing ambitions for revolution, security, and legitimacy—and how Soviet leadership, blinded by its own hubris and aggression, set the stage for the downfall of the USSR. read the review

Freedom From Fear: An Incomplete History of Liberalism

by Alan S. Kahan

Kahan argues that what unifies liberals across the centuries, including those involved in building and defending liberal democracy today, are their efforts to build societies free from the fear of arbitrary power. He sculpts a masterful and beautifully written history of liberalism’s long intellectual journey. read the review

Tyranny of the Minority: Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point

by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt

In this sobering study, Levitsky and Ziblatt demonstrate how the United States’ enduring constitutional order—one forged in a pre-democratic age—increasingly thwarts the will of an expanding multicultural majority in favor of a shrinking rural white minority.read the review

Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World

by Anne Applebaum

Focused on the sophisticated and networked world of autocracy, dictatorship, and tyranny, Applebaum argues that what separates hardcore autocratic states, such as China and Russia, from softer illiberal and authoritarian regimes, such as those in Hungary, India, and Turkey, is the ruthlessness and reach of their dictatorial power and their deep hostility to the Western-led democratic world.read the review

The New York Times — Sunday, December 8, 2024

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Assad Flees Syria As Rebels Claim Damascus

Assad Has Resigned and Left Syria, Russia Says

How Notre-Dame Was Reborn

It took about 250 companies, 2,000 workers, about $900 million, a tight deadline and a lot of national pride.

The Silicon Valley Billionaires Steering Trump’s Transition

The involvement of wealthy investors has made this presidential transition one of the most potentially conflict-ridden in modern history.

Fraud and Fakery at the Country’s Largest Chain of Methadone Clinics

Acadia Healthcare falsifies records at its methadone clinics and enrolls patients who aren’t addicted to opioids, a Times investigation found.

The New York Times Magazine – Dec. 8, 2024

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THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE (December 7 2024): The 12.8.24 Issue features William Langewiesche on the secret Pentagon war game how nuclear escalation spirals out of control; Daniel Bergner on a mysterious gap in psychosis rates; Alexis Okeowo on an endless war in Ethiopia; and more.

The Secret Pentagon War Game That ​Offers a Stark​ Warning for Our Times

The devastating outcome of the 1983 game reveals that nuclear escalation inevitably spirals out of control.

The Interview: Tilda Swinton Would Like a Word With Trump About His Mother

The Academy Award-winning actress discusses her lifelong quest for connection, humanity’s innate goodness and the point of being alive.

Ethiopia’s Agony: ‘I Have Never Seen This Kind of Cruelty in My Life’

A rare look inside a region still reckoning with the toll of war crimes, even as new conflicts roil the nation. By Alexis Okeowo

America’s Hidden Racial Divide: A Mysterious Gap in Psychosis Rates

Black Americans experience schizophrenia and related disorders at twice the rate of white Americans. It’s a disparity that has parallels in other cultures. By Daniel Bergner

Read this issue

The New York Times — Saturday, December 7, 2024

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TikTok Faces U.S. Ban After Losing Bid to Overturn New Law

The law will ban the video app in the United States by Jan. 19 if its owner, ByteDance, does not sell it to a non-Chinese company.

As Syrian Rebels Advance, Iran Grows Nervous and Neighbors Close Their Borders

The rebels’ gains prompted Lebanon and Jordan to close border crossings and Iran to begin withdrawing personnel from Syria.

How One of the World’s Richest Men Is Avoiding $8 Billion in Taxes

The chief executive of Nvidia, Jensen Huang, has taken advantage of popular loopholes in the federal estate and gift taxes, which have quietly been eviscerated.

How Childhood Tragedy Shaped the Doctor Trump Picked for Surgeon General

At the age of 13, Dr. Janette Nesheiwat said she accidentally knocked over a box in a darkened room. A handgun went off, leaving her father dead.

The New York Times — Friday, December 6, 2024

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Syrian Rebels Storm Another Major City

Opposition forces advanced on the city of Hama as their startling offensive moved quickly in the direction of the capital, Damascus.

Pete Hegseth’s Troubles at Work Raise Questions About Leadership

President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice for defense secretary led two nonprofits into debt, and episodes of drinking continued into his days as a Fox News personality.

Images of Unmasked Suspect Emerge as the Police Track C.E.O.’s Killer

The man sought in the killing of Brian Thompson wore a hood and a smile in surveillance photos. Investigators visited a hostel on the Upper West Side as they mapped his movements.

Pam Bondi’s Journey From Traditional Republican to Warrior for Trump

The president-elect’s choice for attorney general is known for her charm and fealty to him.

The New York Times — Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024

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As Hegseth Vows to Fight, Trump Considers DeSantis for Defense Secretary

The president-elect appeared to be having serious conversations about picking Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida as Pete Hegseth, the current selection, dismissed the allegations against him.

Manhunt Enters Second Day After Health Executive Is Gunned Down in Manhattan

Brian Thompson, the chief executive at UnitedHealthcare, was shot in the back in Midtown Manhattan by a killer who then walked coolly away.

Lawmakers Move to Impeach South Korean Leader After Failed Martial Law Bid

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s attempt to break a political deadlock by imposing military rule collapsed within hours, leaving him with few defenders. A vote to impeach him could come as soon as Friday.

Supreme Court Inclined to Uphold Tennessee Law on Transgender Care

The justices heard arguments on Wednesday over whether Tennessee can ban some medical treatments for transgender youth. More than 20 other states have similar laws.

The New York Times — Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024

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South Korea President Declares Martial Law, Then Backs Down

Soon after President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration on Tuesday, lawmakers voted to defy him, prompting the president to say he was lifting his order.

Justice Dept.’s Apolitical Tradition Is Challenged by 2 Presidents

The post-Watergate norm that political leaders should steer clear of criminal cases is being tested from opposite ends of the political spectrum.

Inside the Supreme Court Ethics Debate: Who Judges the Justices?

In private meetings and memos, the justices made new rules for themselves — then split on whether they could, or should, be enforced.

Supreme Court Returns to a Culture War Battleground: Transgender Rights

On Wednesday, the justices will hear the marquee case of the term, a challenge to a Tennessee law banning several forms of medical care for transgender youths.

Country Life Magazine – December 4, 2024 Preview

Country Life Magazine (December 3, 2024): The latest issue features ‘The Full English’ – Why our homegrown style is back….

London Life

  • Richard MacKichan finds Sir Paul Smith rockin’ around Claridge’s Christmas tree
  • Catriona Gray meets the movers and shakers of the capital’s art world
  • All you need to know this month in the capital

Caroline Moorehead’s favourite painting

The author selects a portrait that shows the ‘very essence of what it was to be Sicilian’

The world turned upside down

Carla Carlisle—wife of a farmer and a diversifier extraordinaire— offers an insider’s view on the Government’s ‘Great Betrayal’

What to look for in winter

Now is not the time to hibernate, suggests John Wright, as he encourages us to appreciate the countryside’s stark, intricate beauty in these colder months

Putting in a Good Word

Lucy Denton delves into the remarkable history of Stationers’ Hall, the central London home of the Worshipful Company of Stationers for the past 400 years

The legacy

Amie Elizabeth White hails Henry Cole, inventor of Christmas cards

The rocky-pool horror show

John Lewis-Stempel loves to be beside the seaside as he examines the enduring appeal of England’s glorious coastline

Bowler me over

Matthew Dennison tips his hat to the rural origins of the bowler as he celebrates its 175th birthday

A touch of frost

Beware an ill wind blowing us into 2025, warns Lia Leendertz

Piste de résistance

Joseph Phelan finds a business on an upslope when he visits the last ski-maker in Scotland

Eyes wide shut

Sleep in art is often drunken, deadly or the stuff of nightmares, but rarely is it peaceful, as Claudia Pritchard discovers

Size matters

Charles Quest-Ritson cranes his neck to take in the sheer scale of the specimens at West Sussex’s Architectural Plants

Kitchen garden cook

Melanie Johnson on sprouts

Travel

  • Life in Grenada quickly grows on Rosie Paterson
  • Catamarans and cabanas
  • Jamaica’s Blue Mountains are heaven for Steven King
  • Fine dining is the holy grail for Pamela Goodman

Culture: The American Scholar – Winter 2025

THE AMERICAN SCHOLAR (December 2, 2024): The latest issue featuresFrom Atop The Magic Mountain’ – One-Hundred years later, Thomas Mann’s epic remains as prophetic as ever.

Under a Spell Everlasting

Thomas Mann’s Magic Mountain, published a century ago, tells of a world unable to free itself from the cataclysm of war By Samantha Rose Hill

Aging Out

Many of us do not go gentle into that good night

The Fair Fields

Only rarely did the outside world intrude on an idyllic Connecticut childhood, but in the tumultuous 1960s, that intrusion included an encounter with evil

Australia Design: Burnt Earth Beach House Tour

The Local Project (December 3, 2024): Located in Anglesea on Victoria’s surf coast, Burnt Earth Beach House is an architect’s own home inspired by nature. Architect John Wardle designs a holiday home deeply embedded in its landscape, grounded in an enduring love of terracotta, a fascination with ceramics and the unique beauty of bricks.

00:00 – Introduction to the Architect’s Own Home 01:48 – Walkthrough and Layout of the Home 03:18 – The Material Palette 04:48 – The Bathing Spaces 06:12 – Unique and Favourite Moments 07:16 – Creating A Special Place

As an architect’s own home inspired by nature, Burnt Earth Beach House reflects the hues and tonality of the ochre-coloured cliff edges of Anglesea just beyond. “It was very important that we do something here that would transcend time but do so in a way that is completely different from our homes in Melbourne,” says John Wardle, founding partner of Wardle. The home’s facade is expressed through an invented brick developed alongside brickmaker Klynton Krause.

The process involved extrusion and hand tearing the brick surface prior to cutting, which exposes a raw, uneven surface, making every brick unique. Approaching the architect’s own home inspired by nature, a courtyard acts as an informal living zone and is bordered by a kitchen that houses a vast square central terracotta island bench. The space then bends around into the dining area with a reading nook that looks into the courtyard. Upstairs, a study appears to float overhead, enveloped in a hand-knotted screening from Vietnam.

#Architect #Nature #Home