Monthly Archives: October 2009

October 29, 2009

ESSAY

In Bed With Warlords

It should be no surprise, I write today, that American officials desperately working to stave off military defeat and political collapse in Afghanistan find themselves cutting dirty deals with nasty people—like Hamid Karzai’s brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai. In Afghanistan,  a … Continue reading →

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October 28, 2009

ESSAY

Carpet Bombing

There’s a beautiful kilim on the blogging room floor here at the stately Mead manor in Jackson Heights; I bought it in Peshawar about three years ago when I was giving a series of lectures on American foreign policy across … Continue reading →

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October 27, 2009

ESSAY

Happy Birthday to Sam

Sam Ayres, the official intern here at Team Mead, is turning 23 years old today. In lieu of an actual gift, which would only turn his attention to material things and away from the intangible rewards of interning, I’m posting … Continue reading →

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October 24, 2009

ESSAY

Felled By the Flu

Apologies to all who are checking this space, but posting has been slow for the last few days, and will be slow for at least a couple more.  Whether it’s the flu formerly known as swine or something even less … Continue reading →

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October 21, 2009

ESSAY

Giant Man Eating Spider Discovered in Madagascar

Well, not man-eating exactly and a giant only in relative terms, but this 4.7 inch spider is definitely more Shelob than Charlotte’s Web.  This BBC story tells the whole ghastly tale; my appetite for nighttime bush walks in Maputaland and … Continue reading →

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October 20, 2009

ESSAY

Sleep NATO!

Giving advice to the rising generation is always fun and sometimes even useful.  The most interesting piece of advice I ever heard was from a woman working as an American diplomat in Beirut.  My research associate was traveling with me … Continue reading →

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October 17, 2009

ESSAY

Blowing Hot and Cold

I was a little surprised to read on the BBC website that the world’s temperature appears to have fallen over the last ten years and that the debate among scientists has shifted from whether this global cooling is happening to … Continue reading →

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October 11, 2009

ESSAY

Bloggest Thou on the Sabbath?

“Six days shalt thou labor and do all thou art able,” as Herman Melville summed up the whaler’s version of the Fourth Commandment (for most Protestants and Jews; it’s Number Three for Roman Catholics), “And on the seventh the same, … Continue reading →

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October 10, 2009

ESSAY

Five Dollar Tie On National TV

Yesterday was one of those days when the phone calls don’t stop and halfway through the day I learned that I would be on the PBS Newshour with my old friend and sparring partner Zbigniew Brzezinski. Not having worn a … Continue reading →

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October 9, 2009

ESSAY

A Lucky General?

Historical rumor has it that a subordinate once asked Napoleon, “What kind of generals do you want?” “I want lucky ones,” he replied.  Luck is important, and it does nothing to belittle Obama’s intelligence and hard-earned achievements to say that … Continue reading →

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October 7, 2009

ESSAY

Dean’s List

In early 2004 Howard Dean was running for the Democratic presidential nomination and went on a tour of the Holy Land to shore up his foreign policy credentials and squash speculation that he was a secularist who couldn’t connect with … Continue reading →

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October 3, 2009

ESSAY

Hanging Together

Walking down 68th Street yesterday between Lexington and Third Avenues – the spot where, historians think, Nathan Hale was hanged in September of 1776– I felt the world change. A sidewalk vendor was selling pretty decent neckties for $5 each. … Continue reading →

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October 1, 2009

ESSAY

Hold the Danish

When I was a young kid living in South Carolina, you would still sometimes see mule-drawn wagons on country roads.  You also saw advertisements for Burma Shave: typically a series of six to eight small road signs at short intervals … Continue reading →

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