The Globalist (February 9, 2024): We head to Islamabad for the latest on Pakistan’s general election.
Plus: Tucker Carlson interviews Vladimir Putin, a round-up of aviation news and the design of the Paris Olympic and Paralympic medals is revealed.
The Globalist (February 9, 2024): We head to Islamabad for the latest on Pakistan’s general election.
Plus: Tucker Carlson interviews Vladimir Putin, a round-up of aviation news and the design of the Paris Olympic and Paralympic medals is revealed.
Justices across the ideological spectrum expressed skepticism about several aspects of a ruling from the Colorado Supreme Court, but there was little discussion of the Jan. 6 riot or Mr. Trump’s role in it.
After an inquiry concluded that President Biden was “well-meaning” but had “a poor memory,” he angrily fired back in an attempt at political damage control.
In a two-hour interview, President Vladimir Putin of Russia was more direct than usual about how he sees his Ukraine invasion ending: not with a military victory, but a deal with the West.

The Economist Magazine (February 10, 2024): The latest issue features ‘Who Is In Control?’ – Xi v the markets…

They are reshaping the balance between humans and technology in war

Investors at home and abroad no longer trust China’s policymakers
The arsenal of hypocrisy

Their cynicism over Ukraine weakens America and makes the world less safe

The Guardian Weekly (February 8, 2024) – The new issue features ‘Final Straw’ – What’s eating Europe’s Farmers?; Joe Biden’s Middle East masterplan; Can anything stop the AI deepfakes? and The Pet Shop Boys are back in town…
If you live in France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland or Greece, you may well have already run into one of the numerous roadblocks or protests formed in recent weeks by furious farmers. If you’re in Spain and Italy, take cover – because they are coming to you soon, if not already.
In this week’s cover story, we explore what has proved to be the final straw for Europe’s farmers. A combination of rising costs, environmental rules and grievances over EU policies, coupled with more localised complaints, seem to be the factors driving the convoys of tractors. But far-right and anti-establishment parties, who could make major gains in forthcoming European parliament elections, have also picked up on the protests as part of their agenda against EU influence.
Paris correspondent Angelique Chrisafis and Europe correspondent Jon Henley delve into the protests (if not the piles of steaming dung being dumped on the continent’s roads, as illustrated wonderfully by Neil Jamieson on this week’s cover), and ask what can be done to placate them.
The Globalist (February 8, 2024): We discuss German chancellor Olaf Scholz’s trip to Washington, as he tries to bolster US support for Ukraine.
Plus: Dutch coalition talks, fashion news and the UAE’s luxury property boom.
The Israeli prime minister said that the proposed deal would leave Israel vulnerable to attack and that its forces were preparing to expand their operations.
American officials concede there is nothing on the horizon that could match the power of a new, $60 billion congressional appropriation to support its war against Russian aggression.
The relationship became closer during protests over police brutality, but brings political risks, like straining the alliance between African Americans and Jews.
The king has let people know more about his health than other monarchs, but a decision to keep private the form of cancer he has is leading to speculation in lieu of facts.
The Globalist (February 7, 2024): We discuss the bill worth $118bn (€109bn), which will be debated by the US Senate today.
Plus: protests in Senegal after parliament delays the presidential election, Marine Le Pen meets with the Alternative for Germany party and we catch up with J A Bayona, director of ‘Society of the Snow’.
The ruling answered a question that an appeals court had never addressed: Can former presidents escape being held accountable by the criminal justice system for things they did while in office?
An analysis of social media videos found Israeli soldiers filming themselves in Gaza and destroying what appears to be civilian property. The footage provides a rare and unsanctioned window into the war.
As Israel and Hamas inch closer to a deal to free hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and a cease-fire, the military disclosed that at least 30 of the captives still in Gaza have been confirmed dead.
In a stunning defeat, the House rejected impeachment charges against the homeland security secretary, as rank-and-file lawmakers balked at what they considered a misuse of the process.
The New York Review of Books (February 6, 2024) – The latest issue features:
The Supreme Court must decide if it will honor the original meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment and bar Donald Trump from holding public office or trash the constitutional defense of democracy against insurrections.
In Dürer’s Lost Masterpiece, Ulinka Rublack traces the global connections of the merchants who were the creative agents of the European art market in the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries.
Dürer’s Lost Masterpiece: Art and Society at the Dawn of a Global World by Ulinka Rublack
In 2017, the Brazilian journalist Eliane Brum moved from São Paulo to a small city in the Amazon. Her new book vividly uncovers how the rainforest is illegally seized and destroyed.
Banzeiro Òkòtó: The Amazon as the Center of the World by Eliane Brum, translated from the Portuguese by Diane Whitty