RSSArchive for June, 2005
Colonel Sanders Keeps His Head
Published in the sadly departed Japanese food culture magazine Eat in May 2001
This time around, the Colonel kept his head. Local police in China’s Hunan province had been braced for the worst during the Hainan spy-plane standoff earlier this year, remembering how angry crowds vandalized two Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets after the 1999 […]
Lipstick Jihad!
Five reasons why you should buy my friend Azadeh’s book
1) Because she’s supersmart, writes with delightful wit and levity, and has an acute eye for the telling detail and irony that best convey a broad observation - her recent Time piece Fast Times in Tehran will give you a taste;
2) Because, in the finest […]
The Globalization of Footie
A version of this story was published on TIME.com in July, 2004
Fenian, moi? Celtic’s Guinean defender Bobo Balde
Visitors to Ibrox Park, home of Glasgow Rangers, might have been more than a little gobsmacked recently to see the home fans flying the Israeli flag. The Star of David is an unlikely standard for the fans of […]
Bin Laden as a Brand
First published March 2004 in South Africa’s Sunday Times
It’s a safe bet that Osama bin Laden has no significant following in Mexico.
So there was something incongruous about hundreds of soccer fans from that overwhelmingly Catholic country recently urging on their national under-23 team with chants of “Osama! Osama!”
The Jihad is but a T-shirt away
Their chant […]
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A Skeptical Read
Rosner, Haaretz's Itchy Beard
The right-wing nationalist blogger always seemed a little out of step with his paper's editorial line. Now, Carter's visit has provoked him to growl menacingly at the editorsA Wondering Jew
Healing Israel's Birth Scar
With the 60th anniversary of Israel's birth -- and of the Palestinian Nakbah (catastrophe) -- which are, of course the same event, almost upon us, I was reminded this week that April 9 was also the 60th anniversary of an event that has long epitomized the connection between the creation of an et...99c Blogging
All Hat, No Cattle #7682
President Bush loves playing the Bad Cop, but anyone vaguely familiar with the routine knows not to take the Bad Cop seriously.The 51st State
A Teachable Moment in Basra
It should come as no surprise that Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's disastrous offensive against the Mahdi Army of Moqtada Sadr in Basra has had the exact opposite effect of that intended -- strengthening rather than weakening Sadr, and making clear that he, and the Iranians, have far greater in...Futures Market
Will Russia Partition Kosovo?
Why my tea-leaf reading suggests that Moscow has a nasty surprise in store for Washington in the BalkansGuest Columns
Iraq and U.S. Faith in Violence
Guest Column: Alastair Crooke warns of a dangerous fantasy that persists in Western capitals in which the West faces an "onslaught" from "radical Islam." The problem is that this intersects all too tragically with a the persistent belief in Washington and elsewhere that by applying its overwhel...Cuisine
Yummy yummy Umami
Why a leftover lamb bone turned a bean stew into an ecstatic eventGlancing Headers
Spare Us More 'Globalization & Football'
The claim that Egypt's Cup of Nations win "proves" that stronger domestic leagues make stronger international sides is not born out by football's bigger picture. In fact, the teams that do best internationally are those with weaker domestic leaguesShameless Cronyism
Is Israel-Iran Enmity Irreversible?
No, it isn't. Two of my favorite commentators, Daniel Levy and Trita Parsi, explain whyHousekeeping
'Lost' Entries on Rootless Cosmopolitan
Previous entries that now register as "not available" are ones that got left behind in a server migration. We're working on retrieving themUnholy War
U.S. Pours Gasoline on Gaza Fires
Once upon a time, Israelis and Palestinians looked to the U.S. to intervene at moments of heightened confrontation to mediate between the two sides and contain the damage. The Bush Administration, however, has proved entirely incapable of playing this role, because its own interventions are hidebou...The Whole World's Africa
South Africa's Racist Present
Guest Column: Sean Jacobs. What to make of the racist torture incident at a South African campusFeatured Analysis
Obama and the 'Jewish Vote'
The problem with Obama, for the Zionist establishment, is that they can't be sure he hates the Palestinians enough. The deeper problem for the Zionist establishment, of course, is that Jewish Americans are flocking to Obama despite their coded warningsAnnals of Globalization
Honey, I Shrank the Superpower
In a snide reference to Bill Clinton's 1992 promise to "build a bridge into the 21st century," Barack Obama recently quipped that what Hillary Clinton really offers is a bridge back into the 20th century. Yet, a bridge back into the last century may be what all the major candidates are offering when...Could Die Laughing
Mearsheimer, Walt and the Erudite Hysteria of David RemnickNew York Moments
The Debka Made ‘Em Do ItFrom Tony's Archive
A Playground Lesson for BushRebellion Into Money
The Rebel Grace of Patti Smith
