Soviet Union

This Film is an Idiot's Version of Naomi Klein's Masterpiece

Johann Hari | Posted 10.22.2009 | World


Johann Hari

Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine is one of the most important political books of the past decade. But Michael Winterbottom's "adaptation" for film is garbled and mumbled to the point of meaninglessness.

I Agree With George Will

John Burton | Posted 10.21.2009 | Politics


John Burton

California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton announces his organization's desire for a speedy American withdrawal from Afghanistan.

34 Years

Yoani Sanchez | Posted 10.20.2009 | World


Yoani Sanchez

Since I left home in Cuba, I have learned to value autonomy, to distrust the subsidies and all these "gifts" that they constantly throw in the faces of citizens.

Death of a Superpower: Twenty Years After

David Calleo | Posted 09.29.2009 | Politics


David Calleo

The root cause of our present predicament lies in our failure to understand that the end of the Soviet Union pointed not toward a "unipolar" world under American hegemony but toward a plural world of several great powers.

Reigniting America's Human Rights Mojo

Rabbi Abraham Cooper | Posted 09.27.2009 | Politics


Rabbi Abraham Cooper

In Cairo, President Obama rightly said that the U.S. should not be in the business of imposing democracy, but can we be indifferent to those who seek to embrace it?

Remembering the Nazi-Soviet Pact After Seventy Years

Robert Gellately | Posted 09.24.2009 | Home


Robert Gellately

On August 23, 1939 Stalin's agreement with Nazi Germany gave Hitler the green light. That signal was important at the time and seventy years later there is no reason for Russians to deny it.

Americans Want Universal Access to Graveyards

Julia Gorin | Posted 09.18.2009 | Comedy


Julia Gorin

I've often been astounded to hear the following sentence from Americans after they've learned that I escaped from the Soviet Union: "But at least everyone had medical coverage there."

Has Islamophobia Run Amok in America?

Sheldon Filger | Posted 09.18.2009 | Politics


Sheldon Filger

As America becomes increasingly seen as hostile to Muslims irrespective of who they are, while China is perceived as welcoming, these trends will translate into economic realities.

The Red Dawn Remake: The Chinese Are Coming! The Chinese Are Coming!

Disgrasian | Posted 09.10.2009 | Entertainment


Disgrasian

Remakes are generally never as good as their originals, but what really worries me about the Red Dawn remake is that the foreign invaders this go-around are apparently going to be...Chinese.

The (Im)moral Logic of the Show Trial

Scott Atran | Posted 09.08.2009 | World


Scott Atran

Moussavi courageously denounced the "show trials" and "torture" in Iran but his calls for reform can probably only be achieved by the regime's collapse, which is what the trials are designed to forestall.

Another '60s Anniversary: The Ur-Action Blockbuster Goldfinger

William Bradley | Posted 08.21.2009 | Entertainment


William Bradley

Though Goldfinger looks almost sedate compared to today's jittery, mashed-up action pictures, editor Peter Hunt's work 45 years ago, emphasizing fast hard cuts, was an innovation.

US-Russia Thaw Worries Eastern European Countries

AP | VANESSA GERA | Posted 08.16.2009 | World


WARSAW, Poland — A group of prominent former Eastern European leaders wrote to President Barack Obama on Thursday that their region is gripped b...

Obama Does Moscow, and Vice Versa

William Bradley | Posted 08.08.2009 | World


William Bradley

Unlike most of the rest of Europe, Russia is hardly in the grips of Obamamania. He's certainly more popular than George W. Bush or John McCain, but that's damning with faint praise.

Decrease Stockpiles, Increase Security

Lt. General Robert G. Gard Jr. (USA, Ret.) | Posted 08.06.2009 | Politics


Lt. General Robert G. Gard Jr. (USA, Ret.)

If Obama and Medvedev strike up a personal and political rapport, it could unfreeze a relationship that became icy in the final years of the Bush and Putin administrations.

Think Again: Chiller, Socialist Theater

Eric Alterman | Posted 07.19.2009 | Media


Eric Alterman

In conservative world, this administration is leading a march on socialism. Just last week alone, Media Matters counted more than 143 mentions of the word "socialism" on the cable news shows.

Soviet Submarine That Sank With Full Crew Found In Baltic Sea

AP | KARL RITTER | Posted 07.10.2009 | World


STOCKHOLM — After a decade-long search, a team of Baltic Sea divers has discovered the wreckage of a Soviet submarine that sank with dozens of s...

Remembering America: Obama's D-Day Speech and Two Days in June

William Bradley | Posted 07.09.2009 | World


William Bradley

On Thursday in Cairo, Obama gave his rhetorical best to reposition a mostly peaceful America in the future of the Muslim world. On Saturday in Normandy, he reminded of America's glittering past.

Four Myths About World War II

Eric Margolis | Posted 07.09.2009 | World


Eric Margolis

World War II was not won just at D-Day, as popular myth has it. Germany's army and air force were broken on the Eastern Front's titanic battles.

Do We Really Want a Mini Cold War?

Deepak Chopra | Posted 07.09.2009 | World


Deepak Chopra

Either Iran will be treated like a mini-Soviet Union, a nation of bogeymen with deeply evil intentions, or we will find another way.

The U.S. and the Afghan Tragedy

Stephen Zunes | Posted 07.07.2009 | World


Stephen Zunes

American policies in Afghanistan in the 1980s intentionally initiated the way to drag young Afghans towards extremism and war.

The Student of History Needs to Go to Summer School

Mark Levine | Posted 07.07.2009 | World


Mark Levine

For all its well-intentioned rhetoric, President Obama's speech was, sadly, conceptually flawed, empirically challenged, and politically blind to the daily realities that drive hundreds of millions of Muslims to increasing despair.

Poland's Democracy Turns 20

AP | MONIKA SCISLOWSKA and RYAN LUCAS | Posted 07.05.2009 | World


GDANSK, Poland — European leaders on Thursday hailed Poland's first semi-free vote as an inspiration for movements that brought down regimes acr...

East Germany Photo 'Treasure Trove' A Look Back In Time

Spiegel | Posted 06.29.2009 | World


They wanted to clean up the basement but found a treasure trove of photos instead. After Berlin teacher Manfred Beier died, his sons stumbled across 6...

The Annan Plan

Jaime Pozuelo-Monfort | Posted 10.04.2009 | World


Jaime Pozuelo-Monfort

A Marshall Plan for Africa would fight and stop the expansion of heartless capitalism in Subsaharan Africa and increase agricultural output beyond pre-independence levels.

Medvedev Interview: Russian President Breaks From Putin In Landmark Interview With Opposition Newspaper

Huffington Post | Stuart Whatley | Posted 05.16.2009 | World


Breaking with the tone established by his predecessor Vladimir Putin, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev stated outright in an interview with a well-kn...