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Taiwan's 2008 Elections: A New Direction for the 'Other China'?

… In an election watched anxiously in both Beijing and Washington, as well as in other regional centers in Asia, … definition of "Taiwanese," to be sure. I remember the days when "Taiwanese" only meant those whose ancestors were … or people's livelihood) as its ideological guide and a Leninist party structure in 1924 (the year before Sun died), …

Russia and the Race for the Arctic

… collapse of the USSR in 1991. Known as North Pole-32, it was the thirty-second drift monitoring station Russians had … the scientists stayed at the outpost until March 2004, when the ice destabilized, shooting up huge ridges, … pictures of them were held up alongside of likenesses of Lenin, Stalin, and Mikhail Kalinin. Even in the U.S., the

A Century of Sanctions

When confronted with foreign challenges, President Donald Trump has preferred one response above all others: economic sanctions. Trump has tightened embargoes on … trade networks and the global financial system has become Washington’s foreign policy tool of choice. Indeed, the few …

The Long Legacy of World War I

the war’s consequences continue to shape our world today. When ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi announced to the world … Force landed in Europe early in the summer of 1917 but it wasn’t until late October that they saw sustained fighting … of memorials to soldiers, the Soviets put up homages to Lenin and other revolutionary leaders that can still be …

Beyond 'Tribes': Violence and Politics in Kenya

… whom I have known for years. I wanted to find out how they were faring in the midst of the turmoil that has … family is familiar with political defeat: the elder Odinga was bested by Kenya's first post-independence president, … pressures have exerted significant influences. When Nobel Prizewinning author Ngugi wa Thiong'o says that …
Print of "Galveston's Awful Calamity".

Galveston 1900: 125 Years After the Storm

… “If we had known then what we know now of these swells, and the tides they … the storm which these swells...told us in unerring language was coming.” —Dr. Isaac Cline Today, the National Weather … did not. It collapsed, as did a majority of other houses, when struck by tons of debris carried by the storm surge, …
Depiction of the Battle of Bosworth Field by the eighteenth-century painter, Philip James de Loutherbourg.

The Battle of Bosworth Field

… King Richard III of England (r. 1483-1485) died fighting in the Battle of Bosworth Field. The victor, Henry Tudor, was promptly crowned King Henry VII (r. 1485-1509).   This … to see Henry and Richard as polar opposites, especially when the literature after the battle categorized the kings …
Detail of an 8th-century silk painting depicting Wu Zeitan.

Wu Zetian: The Only Woman Emperor in Chinese History

… CE; r. 690–705) is a study in ambition, resilience, and the ability to bend an entire society’s rules to her will. Her current appellation, Zetian, was her posthumous title. Her official given name was Zhao, … and cousins, Wu Zetian grew determined to escape her fate. When a eunuch arrived looking for candidates to serve as …
US Senator Mitt Romney of Utah.

The “Wall of Separation” Has Preserved Religion — Including Mormonism

… recent, quasi-confessional speech about his religion and the role of religion in the town square, Romney said: … wants to join, tells a story of moral decline: America was once great and righteous and true, and now we have slid … of this separation to William Penn’s Philadelphia. When he founded the City of Brotherly Love in the 1680s he …
North College Hill, Ohio, USA, Memorial Day parade, 2004, by Rick Dikeman.

A Vanishing American Remembrance?

The city of Yonkers, N.Y., has canceled its Memorial Day … the observance is fading as an American holiday. A sad fact when you remember the history of its placement on the U.S. … to exhume and reinter scattered Confederate remains in the Washington, D.C. area in a special section of Arlington and …
First edition dust jacket cover of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson's 1973 book Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72. The book conveys Thompson's experience covering the 1972 US presidential election, particularly the (ultimately unsuccessful) campaign of Democratic nominee George McGovern.

Democrats Must Beware the Curse of 1972

… Now that the Obama-Clinton battle is over, the Democrats face another fight that could split the party. In July, when the 186 members of the platform committee meet, they’ll … antiwar stance, in the primaries he charged that McGovern was too weak to stand up to America’s enemies. After …
dollar bill with image of capitol building in front of it

Deeper Than the “Deep State”: Follow the Money

… executive Elon Musk, has been reshaping and reducing the government.  A colleague in Germany wrote to me with … to monitor the public and elected officials. This was managed by what  David Wise and Thomas Ross called in … . He observes that these militant measures first emerged when fear of Communism justified what he calls …
The United States Army Drill Team.

Should the Military Take Charge in Emergencies?

… of Americans in a recent poll expressed support for the use of our military as part of law enforcement during … political convictions of our founders. “No standing armies” was one of the rallying cries of the American Revolution. … Always, though, the posse was composed of civilians. When the sheriff wanted people with military experience, he …
President Bush makes remarks in 2006 during a press conference in the Rose Garden about Iran's nuclear ambitions and discusses North Korea's nuclear test.

After 50 Years, a Great Military Debate Resumes

… In the final weeks of the presidential campaign, an unexpected … This difference revives a debate that most of us thought was settled nearly 50 years ago. In the early 1950s, it was … remained largely a historical curiosity until this year, when the Bush campaign began promoting its own version of …
A portrait of Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

… drifter and petty criminal, raised a bathroom window at the rear of Bessie Brewer’s Rooming House on South Main … Model 760 rifle across the street at the Lorraine Motel . When he saw Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. step onto the … at St. Joseph’s Hospital pronounced Dr. King dead. He was 39. As word of the tragedy spread throughout Memphis, a …
Aurangzeb in a pavilion with courtiers below.

Aurangzeb: Mughal Emperor

… Though his name is barely known in the West, the Emperor Aurangzeb (r. 1658-1707) stands out as … and committing genocide.  To some South Asian Muslims, he was an exemplary orthodox ruler, whose conquests brought … of earlier generations and current political movements. When Aurangzeb took power, the Mughal Empire had ruled large …
Charles E. Wilson being sworn in

Beyond Civil Rights

When President Clinton named historian John Hope Franklin to chair the Advisory Board of the President’s Initiative on Race in … “To Secure These Rights,” released 50 years ago on Oct. 29, was a political bombshell, calling for the “elimination of …
Eight women in US politics

Women in American Politics

… As we near the centennial of the 19 th Amendment—and with the possibility of America’s first female president on the … thing, as a new voting group, women's turnout at the polls was much lower than men's and it remained, it remained lower … politics.   Dr. Susan Hartmann  But they didn't renew it, when they realized they passed it. I think, because they did …