Towards a New Cold War?
Thursday, August 28th, 2008I always hesitate to comment on foreign affairs, but surely there most be others who are also worried about our – and Washington’s –response to the Georgia crisis.
The US policy of installing missiles and bases in ex-soviet territory was always going to cause trouble. Did we really think the Russians would acquiesce to these states [...]
The Decent Candidate Bows Out With Style
Thursday, January 31st, 2008For me the most impressive candidate in the US Presidential Primaries was John Edwards. Of course, Edwards was never going to win but his insistence of running a principled - and clean - campaign was admirable.
Over the last five years Edwards has devoted himself to the cause of poverty relief and, especially, to tackling the [...]
US Primaries: Seconds Out ….
Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008I have to admit to feeling sorry for Barack Obama. With all respect to John Edwards (who I rather like) Barack is facing two formidable opponents and they’re both named Clinton.
Looking around the blogs - and around Facebook - it would appear that the Labour organising classes are beginning to openly back Hillary, a mirror [...]
New Trouble in the Balkans?
Monday, November 19th, 2007One of the best books I’ve read over the last decade has been Mish Glenny’s, The fall of Yugoslavia, which not only dealt with the collapse of the old Yugoslavia state but traced the development of the area since the fall of the Ottoman Empire.
This was an wonderfully detailed, scholarly and knowledgeable book. But Glenny [...]
Subsidies for Afghan Farmers
Sunday, November 11th, 2007At last, some sense regarding Afghanistan. I don’t know about you but I worry silly about all of the suggestions -emanating from the military - that Iraq is a disaster but that Afghanistan is going well. There can be no military solution in Afghanistan.
Providing subsidies to farmers so that they can diverse from poppies, seems [...]
