online archive
12:30PM
JUL 23 2007
Book reviews, politics and philosophy and academia
A review of The Rosetta Stone: And the Rebirth of Ancient Egypt by John Ray. A review of The Art of Forgetting: Disgrace and Oblivion in Roman Political Culture by Harriet I. Flower. Dieing as they lived: A review of Death in Ancient Rome by Catherine Edwards. A review of The Monk and the Book: Jerome and the Making of Christian Scholarship by Megan Hale Williams. A review of Machiavelli: Philosopher of Power by Ross King. As often sunk as sinking in: A review of On the Wealth of Nations by P J O'Rourke (and more). A review of Henryk Grossman and the Recovery of Marxism by Rick Kuhn.
From Telos, the Permanent State of Exception and the Dismantling of the Law: A review of Global War on Liberty by Jean-Claude Paye (and part 2 and part 3). A review of Consent in Law by Deryck Beyleveld and Roger Brownsword. How the ballot box left the brain behind: A review of The Myth of the Rational Voter: Why Democracies Choose Bad Policies by Bryan Caplan. A review of Black Mass: Apocalyptic religion and the death of utopia by John Gray.
Here's a video of Jurgen Habermas on The Kantian Project of Cosmopolitan Law. Paul Weithman reviews Justice and the Social Contract: Essays on Rawlsian Political Philosophy by Samuel Freeman. Thinking Cheerfully: Putting an untroubled face on some extreme-seeming ideas was perhaps Richard Rorty’s defining philosophical coup. An interview with Ophelia Benson, co-author of Why Truth Matters.
From Spiked, when education becomes about turning young people into obedient, healthy-eating, environmentally aware conformist-citizens, then it is not really education at all: A review of The Corruption of the Curriculum. A Digital Education: The Internet puts you a few clicks away from the best college lectures in America. Can the US really be that stupid? Americans aren’t as ignorant as portrayed in the host of polls showing many of them failing tests of general knowledge and history. The first chapter form The Last Freedom: Religion from the Public School to the Public Square by Joseph P. Viteritti. A review of Parts Per Million: The Poisoning of Beverly Hills High School by Joy Horowitz.
12:30PM
JUL 23 2007
The war on terror, crime and justice and more
From The American Conservative, How to Win in Iraq: Rapprochement with Iran and neutrality toward Iraq’s Shi’ites is the only way America might yet salvage victory. Form NYRB, Peter W. Galbraith on Iraq: The Way to Go. A look at how the National Intelligence Estimate reveals a faltering war on terrorism. Policing Terrorism: David Rieff on the case for the British way of fighting violent Islamists. Dumb Bomb: Tim Harford on why most terrorists are so incompetent. The other war, Iraq veterans bear witness: Chris Hedges and Laila Al-Arian reveal disturbing patterns of behavior by US troops in Iraq—brutal acts that often go unreported and almost always go unpunished. Their War: Less than 1 percent of the U.S. population serves in our military. In a time of war, what should that mean to the rest of us?
From City Journal, Judith Miller on the front line in the War on Terrorism: Cops in New York and Los Angeles offer America two models for preventing another 9/11; and Cop Killers in High Places: When newspapers and black leaders assault the police, small wonder that criminals follow suit. From Boston Review, why are so many Americans in prison? Glenn C. Loury on race and the transformation of criminal justice. Newark to New Orleans, the Myth of the Black Sniper: Forty years have passed since the Newark riots, but not much has changed when it comes to black suffering and white fear. A review of Governing Through Crime: How the War on Crime Transformed American Democracy and Created a Culture of Fear by Jonathan Simon. A review of Running for Judge: The Rising Political, Financial, and Legal Stakes of Judicial Elections.
From History & Policy, an essay on historical myth-making in juvenile justice policy. Michael Dorf on the new Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: Same as the old rules? How accurate are juries? The Numbers Guy investigates. How can you distinguish a budding pedophile from a kid with real boundary problems? It can be difficult, but research is showing that when it comes to sex crimes, youths are not just little adults. So why does the law tend to treat them that way? Three for Thought: What you need to read about kids who kill. The widow of Dr Benjamin Spock – author of the Bible of parenting guides: Baby and Child Care – says he would be horrified by today’s avalanche of advice for mums and dads. Kids on the Plane? It doesn’t take much to upset the fragile social equilibrium of a crowded airplane at 37,000 feet.
12:30PM
JUL 23 2007
The Middle East, Islam and American politics
From The Economist, a series of articles on Iran: An uncompromising Iran and an uncomprehending America may be stumbling to war. From Forward, the next American president to try a hand at fostering Arab democracy would do well to heed the lessons of the Bush administration’s many mistakes. Here are 10 preliminary thoughts on the lessons to be learned. The Fundamentalist Moderate: Religious scholar Javed Ahmad Ghamidi has become a popular figure in Pakistan for his strict reading of the Koran — which, he says, dictates against gender discrimination, terrorist jihad, and other favorites of modern Islamists.
A review of The Great Arab Conquests: How the Spread of Islam Changed the World We Live In by Hugh Kennedy and Armies of God: Islam and Empire on the Nile, 1869-99 - The First Jihad of the Modern Era by Dominic Green. The Islamic Optimist: A review of In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad, To Be a European Muslim, Western Muslims and the Future of Islam, and Islam, the West and the Challenges of Modernity by Tariq Ramadan; The Heirs of the Prophet Muhammad and the Roots of the Sunni-Shia Schism by Barnaby Rogerson. A review of Muslim Identity and Islam: Misinterpreted in The Contemporary World by M. G. Hussain. A review of In the Words of Our Enemies by Jed Babbin.
The antiwar, anti-abortion, anti-drug-enforcement-administration, anti-Medicare candidacy of Dr. Ron Paul: The most radical congressman in America is a Republican from Texas. And he’s running for president. Paul the apostate: Is this would-be president brave or crazy? Would voters elect a president who believes in the Book of Mormon? What about one who venerates Muhammad, or Buddha? (and a graphic). Todd Gitlin on Nader's dead end: When the Democrats enlarged their tent to include leftist activists, Ralph Nader was left in the cold. MoveOn.org's issue-driven primary may not end up naming a winner, but it's shaping up to be more substantive, thoughtful and participatory than the actual presidential primary. What will the outcome of the 2008 election mean for the Supreme Court? Why one outcome could change the Court profoundly; the other, not at all.
12:30PM
JUL 23 2007
Literature, music and art
From NYRB, a review of At the Same Time: Essays & Speeches by Susan Sontag and The Road from Danzig: Timothy Garton Ash reviews books by Gunter Grass. An interview with JT LeRoy, the woman behind the most audacious literary hoax of all time. Form TNR, Andrew Delbanco reviews Edith Wharton by Hermione Lee, and a look at how Harry Potter explains the world. Before Harry, there was Little Nell: Mass hysteria over a fictional character's fate long predates today's media-industrial complex. A review of Reading Life: Books for the Ages by Sven Birkerts.
Why print is still king, amid the multimedia din: An issue with electronic data viewed on screens is that humans instinctively see it as unstable, "nervous" – because it is. It’s made up of some brilliant elements: celebrity-on-celebrity interviews, stunning candid photographs, thick, turnable pages. Even the advertisements are tasteful. So what’s preventing Interview from becoming the next Rolling Stone? The current issue of Rolling Stone, in celebration of the magazine's 40th anniversary, is devoted to the year 1967 — the music, the culture, the whole scene, man. At the back of the magazine, there is a list of the top 40 singles for that year. It makes for depressing reading. A review of All that glitters: Living on the Dark Side of Rock and Roll by Pearl Lowe. A review of Love is a Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield.
A review of History of the Art of Antiquity by Johann Joachim Winckelmann. Essad Bey at Positano: Lev Nussimbaum spent the second half of his life as a refashioned Muslim prince—before meeting an early end in Italy. In Positano, Elizabeth Kiem visits an artist at rest. From Sign and Sight, Poison in the air: Why German artists should keep their hands off Hitler. Activism Illustrated: A review of Visions of Peace and Justice: San Francisco Bay Area: 1974-2007. Over 30 Years of Political Posters From the Archives of Inkworks Press. Art for Less: Local fund-raisers. New approaches to art fairs. With prices rising faster than ever, savvy collectors are shifting their strategies for nabbing deals. Where to find the next bargains.
