Via Meadia has steered clear of the various ephemera dominating news coverage of the campaign season (such as the current hubbub over Ann Romney’s alleged Hitlerian overtones on motherhood). Over at BuzzFeed, Rebecca Elliot, writing about Americans Elect, reminds us why we feel so comfortable ignoring the punditocracy.Americans Elect bills itself as a grass-roots organization that […]

The budget crises that have been wreaking havoc on state finances for years now may have just reached a new low: Many states are now taking money from homeowners to cover other budget shortfalls. In a recent settlement with the states, five of the country’s largest banks have agreed to pay a settlement of about […]

Being a religious minority in the Middle East is an extremely tough assignment. Whether it’s the Copts in Egypt, other kinds of Christians in Iran and Iraq, Shiites in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, or Sunnis in Iran, minority faithful often find themselves persecuted and under siege. Add the Bahai to that list.Writing in the Chronicle […]

In the words of “Monty Python and the Flying Circus”—now for something completely different:When I started writing this blog, I had no preconceived idea about the frequency or schedule of its postings. After a while it became clear to me that once a week was about the right frequency (since there are a few other […]

Recently, Via Meadia wrote that, while the Obama administration’s “pivot” to Asia is in part a continuation of some of the policies of the Clinton and Bush years, Washington’s deepening commitment to the Asia-Pacific region represents the biggest geopolitical event since 9/11: The legacy press, still befuddled from drinking too much of the ‘US in […]

Remember when Occupy Wall Street was sweeping the nation? The media branded it the left’s answer to the Tea Party, the start of a grand national mobilization; depending on who you ask, half of America once supported the OWS protestors, double the amount who back the Tea Party. The Huffington Post even launched a separate […]

For many Poles and Jews it came as a pleasant surprise when the United States announced on April 23 that it was awarding Jan Karski (1914–2000) the Presidential Medal Of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States. While Karski was indeed one of the greatest heroes of the 20th century, his accomplishment—risking his […]

I’m really happy to announce that my latest book, Political Writing: A Guide to the Essentials, is being published today by M.E. Sharpe.Before anyone gets too excited about this (yes, that’s a joke….) let me note that this book is not like Telltale Hearts (1995) or Jewcentricity (2009). It is more of a “how to” book: […]

In my most recent post on Syria, I wrote that one “likely result” of a salafi Sunni political surge in Syria would be “a new [Lebanese] civil war, with a beginning epicenter most like in and around Tripoli.” I didn’t realize how soon this would become apparent.Apparently, according to the Associated Press, battles broke out Saturday […]

According to the Washington Post, the FDA is currently considering approval of a new home HIV test, which could be purchased over the counter and administered within 20 minutes by performing a simple gum swab.There are still some hurdles to clear before this test pops up in your neighborhood pharmacy. Its false negative rate, 7 […]