U.S. and the World
Biden Gives Go-Ahead for “Friendly Dictators” to Murder Opponents
As Biden prepares to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who ordered the murder and dismemberment of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Blinken explained to Biden that other dictators have reached out to the State Department to find out if they too can be excused if they murder and dismember their opponents.
“What’s good for our Arab allies should be good for our allies in other parts of the world,” Biden is alleged to have told Blinken.
read more
Another Way of Looking at the French Election: Le Pen Lost to None of the Above
Final Results
Emmanuel Macron: 18,779,812
Abstentions: 13,655,960
Marine Le Pen: 13,297,719
Blancs and Nuls: 3,018,999
read more
Why I’m Not Going to the Beijing Winter Olympics
I have attended 19 Olympics, Summer and Winter, usually as a radio or television commentator. The last one I missed was the Calgary Winter Games in 1988. I was granted access to the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, but I will not be going. I am not going because I do not feel comfortable with the intrusive “surveillance bubble” imposed on visitors by the Chinese government. read more
Why Do They Hate Us? A 20-Year Update
In the days following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, many people I spoke with simply could not understand why anyone, anywhere, would not like Americans, even if it was just a few dozen fanatics. In one form or another, they asked: Why do they hate us? Back in 2001, I tried to address this question in a short essay I wrote one month after the attacks. read more
Biden Announces U.S. Invasion of Grenada
President Joe Biden announced that United States troops were launching an invasion of the Caribbean island nation of Grenada. Considering that Grenada does not have an army, Pentagon officials predicted that complete takeover of the island would go quickly and without U.S. casualties. Democratic members of Congress praised the invasion. “It worked for Reagan,” said one Democratic spokesman who requested anonymity, “so why shouldn’t it work for Biden?” read more
JPMorgan Chase’s Soccer Super League
Twelve of the richest teams from England, Spain and Italy have announced the formation of a breakaway Super League (without consulting the players, of course). Each team would be guaranteed revenue of at least $250 million. Where would this enormous sum of money come from? From the United States. Specifically from JPMorgan Chase, the largest U.S. bank. read more
USA Passes Italy and UK in Covid-19 Deaths Per Million
The United States now has more Covid deaths per million than Italy. Remember when Americans sneered at the Italians and the Chinese because they were experiencing so many deaths? Now, in other countries, they shake their heads and wonder how the United States could have gotten it so wrong. Italy and China were caught by surprise, and deaths rose quickly. The U.S. has no such excuse. read more
Trump’s Obsession with Venezuela and Iran in One Chart
Of all the dictatorships in the world, President Donald Trump has zeroed in on creating regime change—by economic sanctions and/or war—in just two: Venezuela and Iran. He and his team have tried to convince Americans that these two countries are the biggest threats to U.S. national security. This is a real stretch, particularly in the case of Venezuela. So, what is really motivating Trump? Take a look at this chart read more
Omar al-Bashir, World’s Worst Dictator, Overthrown at Last
Back in 2006, I wrote a book called Tyrants: The World’s 20 Worst Living Dictators. I gave the dubious honor of first place to Omar al-Bashir of Sudan. Now, 13 years later, Bashir has finally been overthrown. Unfortunately, the man who led the military coup that overthrew Bashir is General Awad ibn Ouf, who, since 2006, has been financially sanctioned by the U.S. government for his role in the genocidal attacks carried out in the Darfur region of Sudan. read more
Trump Cancels Sanctions Against Iran and Venezuela
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Bahram Ghasemi, explained the sudden change. “We offered Trump land to build a residential tower in Tehran and a second one in Isfahan with a promise that the tenants would not be allowed to change the buildings’ names from Trump Tower for ten years upon threat of death." read more
Many Countries Recognize Nancy Pelosi as Interim U.S. President
“Why should we treat the United States differently than we do Venezuela?” asked German Chancellor Angela Merkel? She added that it was time for Trump to “do the right thing and call for new elections.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez told reporters, “We are working for the return of full democracy in the United States: human rights, fair elections, and no more imprisonment of children.”
read more
Trump and Iran: The Big Winner is Vladimir Putin
As analysts try to determine who were the big winners and losers in President Donald Trump’s decision pull out of the Iran nuclear deal, most of them seem to have overlooked one of the biggest winners of all…Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin gained a triple victory. read more
Oscars 2018: Foreign Language Films Part Three—The Best of the Non-Nominees
When someone asked what became of Ayla, director Can Ulkay said, “She’s right here,” and asked her to join him in front of the audience. I have been going to the movies since I was four years old, and I have never witnessed such a dramatic moment. As the audience members collectively gasped in surprise, a shy, elderly woman dressed in traditional Korean clothing walked to center stage. read more
Oscars 2018: Foreign Language Films Part Two—The 5 Nominees
The winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, The Square is a fascinating compilation of set pieces that are held together through the life of Christian (Claes Bang), the curator of an art museum. The film was originally pitched as a satire of the art world, and this is certainly the crux of the plot. But on a more personal level, the message is that you can be intelligent, handsome, sophisticated and well-respected, and still make really stupid decisions—frequently. read more
Oscars 2018: Foreign Language Films Part One—Bad Films and Obscenities
This year a record 92 countries entered films in the foreign language category of the Academy Awards. I saw 90 of these films. Give credit to the Motion Picture Academy for allowing the entry of films that are not allowed to be shown in their country of origin. The two most notable examples come from Venezuela and Syria. read more
Which Countries have been Killing Americans? The Trump 7 vs. the Rest of the World
These are the seven countries from which President Donald Trump halted entry to the United States: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
Including all terrorist acts committed by terrorists who were foreign-born or whose parents were born abroad, the total number of Americans killed by terrorists from the Trump 7 is…zero.
On the other hand, terrorists from other countries have killed 2, 689 Americans. Here are some examples.
read more
U.S. and the World
Biden Gives Go-Ahead for “Friendly Dictators” to Murder Opponents
As Biden prepares to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who ordered the murder and dismemberment of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Blinken explained to Biden that other dictators have reached out to the State Department to find out if they too can be excused if they murder and dismember their opponents.
“What’s good for our Arab allies should be good for our allies in other parts of the world,” Biden is alleged to have told Blinken.
read more
Another Way of Looking at the French Election: Le Pen Lost to None of the Above
Final Results
Emmanuel Macron: 18,779,812
Abstentions: 13,655,960
Marine Le Pen: 13,297,719
Blancs and Nuls: 3,018,999
read more
Why I’m Not Going to the Beijing Winter Olympics
I have attended 19 Olympics, Summer and Winter, usually as a radio or television commentator. The last one I missed was the Calgary Winter Games in 1988. I was granted access to the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, but I will not be going. I am not going because I do not feel comfortable with the intrusive “surveillance bubble” imposed on visitors by the Chinese government. read more
Why Do They Hate Us? A 20-Year Update
In the days following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, many people I spoke with simply could not understand why anyone, anywhere, would not like Americans, even if it was just a few dozen fanatics. In one form or another, they asked: Why do they hate us? Back in 2001, I tried to address this question in a short essay I wrote one month after the attacks. read more
Biden Announces U.S. Invasion of Grenada
President Joe Biden announced that United States troops were launching an invasion of the Caribbean island nation of Grenada. Considering that Grenada does not have an army, Pentagon officials predicted that complete takeover of the island would go quickly and without U.S. casualties. Democratic members of Congress praised the invasion. “It worked for Reagan,” said one Democratic spokesman who requested anonymity, “so why shouldn’t it work for Biden?” read more
JPMorgan Chase’s Soccer Super League
Twelve of the richest teams from England, Spain and Italy have announced the formation of a breakaway Super League (without consulting the players, of course). Each team would be guaranteed revenue of at least $250 million. Where would this enormous sum of money come from? From the United States. Specifically from JPMorgan Chase, the largest U.S. bank. read more
USA Passes Italy and UK in Covid-19 Deaths Per Million
The United States now has more Covid deaths per million than Italy. Remember when Americans sneered at the Italians and the Chinese because they were experiencing so many deaths? Now, in other countries, they shake their heads and wonder how the United States could have gotten it so wrong. Italy and China were caught by surprise, and deaths rose quickly. The U.S. has no such excuse. read more
Trump’s Obsession with Venezuela and Iran in One Chart
Of all the dictatorships in the world, President Donald Trump has zeroed in on creating regime change—by economic sanctions and/or war—in just two: Venezuela and Iran. He and his team have tried to convince Americans that these two countries are the biggest threats to U.S. national security. This is a real stretch, particularly in the case of Venezuela. So, what is really motivating Trump? Take a look at this chart read more
Omar al-Bashir, World’s Worst Dictator, Overthrown at Last
Back in 2006, I wrote a book called Tyrants: The World’s 20 Worst Living Dictators. I gave the dubious honor of first place to Omar al-Bashir of Sudan. Now, 13 years later, Bashir has finally been overthrown. Unfortunately, the man who led the military coup that overthrew Bashir is General Awad ibn Ouf, who, since 2006, has been financially sanctioned by the U.S. government for his role in the genocidal attacks carried out in the Darfur region of Sudan. read more
Trump Cancels Sanctions Against Iran and Venezuela
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Bahram Ghasemi, explained the sudden change. “We offered Trump land to build a residential tower in Tehran and a second one in Isfahan with a promise that the tenants would not be allowed to change the buildings’ names from Trump Tower for ten years upon threat of death." read more
Many Countries Recognize Nancy Pelosi as Interim U.S. President
“Why should we treat the United States differently than we do Venezuela?” asked German Chancellor Angela Merkel? She added that it was time for Trump to “do the right thing and call for new elections.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez told reporters, “We are working for the return of full democracy in the United States: human rights, fair elections, and no more imprisonment of children.”
read more
Trump and Iran: The Big Winner is Vladimir Putin
As analysts try to determine who were the big winners and losers in President Donald Trump’s decision pull out of the Iran nuclear deal, most of them seem to have overlooked one of the biggest winners of all…Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin gained a triple victory. read more
Oscars 2018: Foreign Language Films Part Three—The Best of the Non-Nominees
When someone asked what became of Ayla, director Can Ulkay said, “She’s right here,” and asked her to join him in front of the audience. I have been going to the movies since I was four years old, and I have never witnessed such a dramatic moment. As the audience members collectively gasped in surprise, a shy, elderly woman dressed in traditional Korean clothing walked to center stage. read more
Oscars 2018: Foreign Language Films Part Two—The 5 Nominees
The winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, The Square is a fascinating compilation of set pieces that are held together through the life of Christian (Claes Bang), the curator of an art museum. The film was originally pitched as a satire of the art world, and this is certainly the crux of the plot. But on a more personal level, the message is that you can be intelligent, handsome, sophisticated and well-respected, and still make really stupid decisions—frequently. read more
Oscars 2018: Foreign Language Films Part One—Bad Films and Obscenities
This year a record 92 countries entered films in the foreign language category of the Academy Awards. I saw 90 of these films. Give credit to the Motion Picture Academy for allowing the entry of films that are not allowed to be shown in their country of origin. The two most notable examples come from Venezuela and Syria. read more
Which Countries have been Killing Americans? The Trump 7 vs. the Rest of the World
These are the seven countries from which President Donald Trump halted entry to the United States: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
Including all terrorist acts committed by terrorists who were foreign-born or whose parents were born abroad, the total number of Americans killed by terrorists from the Trump 7 is…zero.
On the other hand, terrorists from other countries have killed 2, 689 Americans. Here are some examples.
read more