World War Ii

Afghanistan: In War, Winners can be Losers

Lawrence Wittner | Posted 12.21.2009 | Politics


Lawrence Wittner

Supporters and opponents of President Obama's Afghanistan decision focus on whether it is possible to secure a military victory in the conflict; however, in war, even a winner can be a loser.

Review: Inglourious Basterds on Blu-ray

Bryan Young | Posted 12.17.2009 | Entertainment


Bryan Young

If you're on the fence about purchasing a Blu-ray player, movies like Inglourious Basterds should be all the convincing you need.

Obama's Nobel More Deserved Than Teddy Roosevelt's?

James Bradley | Posted 12.10.2009 | Books


James Bradley

Theodore Roosevelt won the Peace Prize for bringing the Russians and Japanese to the negotiating table to end the bloody Russo-Japanese War. In fact, Roosevelt did little to abet peace.

9/11 in the Shadow of Pearl Harbor

Caroline Myss | Posted 12.07.2009 | World


Caroline Myss

If ever there was a war where the lines between good and evil and right and wrong were clearly defined, it was World War II. Is Afghanistan the new face of American war?

Vladimir Putin Praises Stalin's Achievements

Times Online | Tony Halpin | Posted 12.04.2009 | World


Joseph Stalin sent millions to their deaths during his reign of terror, and his name was taboo for decades, but the dictator is a step closer to rehab...

"Monuments Men": Saving Historic Structures in Wartime

Robert M. Edsel | Posted 12.01.2009 | Books


Robert M. Edsel

I am driven by my passion to tell the story of a group of men and women who volunteered for service during World War II to save the greatest structures and other priceless works of art from destruction.

An American Arab Thanksgiving

Ray Hanania | Posted 11.25.2009 | Living


Ray Hanania

Food has a special place in our hearts as Arabs, so Thanksgiving was the American holiday we most loved. Food symbolizes the essence of freedom, the ability to feed your family without fear.

Astoria Characters: The Octogenarian Activists

Nancy Ruhling | Posted 11.24.2009 | New York


Nancy Ruhling

On the emerald green front door of Stanley and Kathleen Rygor's 1890 cottage, there's a Claddagh knocker whose well-worn brass shows that it's no stranger to visitors.

The Irregulars: An Engaging Bio of Roald Dahl During the War That Flags When the War Ends

Alex Remington | Posted 11.19.2009 | Books


Alex Remington

Jennet Conant's recent book The Irregulars is the perfect Washington summer read: it's a breezy society tale about British spying on America before and during World War II.

Will Obama Help Change Asia's Racism?

David A. Love | Posted 11.21.2009 | World


David A. Love

President Obama's visit to Asia showed how long a journey it's been since the 1955 Bandung Conference, the historic meeting of African and Asian states striving for self-determination.

Astoria Characters: The Grandson of Mom-and-Pops

Nancy Ruhling | Posted 11.17.2009 | New York


Nancy Ruhling

Gary got his counter spot at Bartunek Hardware from his father, Edward, who was born the same year as the store and who waited on customers until earlier this year when he died at age 84.

Jewish Liberation From The Ghetto: Excerpt From "Emancipation"

GlobalPost | Michael Goldfarb | Posted 11.13.2009 | Books


Michael Goldfarb GlobalPost An excerpt from Michael Goldfarb's new book, "Emancipation: How Liberating Europe's Jews from the Ghetto Led to Revolutio...

Great Houses of New York: River House, the Best Address, Part IV

Michael Henry Adams | Posted 11.12.2009 | New York


Michael Henry Adams

As late as 1970 no apartment sale in New York had ever exceeded $1,000,000. At today's River House, indeed, there is none for less.

The Great Atomic Film Cover-Up

Greg Mitchell | Posted 11.12.2009 | Media


Greg Mitchell

This country rushed into the nuclear age with its citizens having neither a true understanding of the effects of the bomb on human beings, nor why the atomic attacks drew condemnation around the world.

Astoria Characters: The Veteran Bookseller

Nancy Ruhling | Posted 11.09.2009 | New York


Nancy Ruhling

There's no bookstore in the Ditmars section of Astoria. We don't need one. Harry puts the words out on the street -- his bookstand has been in the same spot for nearly a quarter century.

From The Pentagon To Monty Python: The Internet Turns 40

Chris Weigant | Posted 10.29.2009 | Technology


Chris Weigant

Technology has grown by such leaps and bounds since 1969 that it's hard to conceive how things were before we all had access to computers.

Obama Asked To Visit Hiroshima Or Nagasaki, Japanese Atomic Bomb Cities

AP | MALCOLM FOSTER | Posted 10.27.2009 | World


TOKYO — A speech and a Nobel prize have raised hopes in Japan that Barack Obama will become the first sitting American president to visit Hirosh...

The Twin Brother of Annihilation

Robert Koehler | Posted 10.22.2009 | World


Robert Koehler

The argument: In a world held hostage by nuclear weapons, there are smaller aggregate numbers of war dead; therefore, God bless nukes. Or maybe not.

Networking Governments

Gary Hart | Posted 10.22.2009 | World


Gary Hart

More can be done in linking national research laboratories, networking financial regulatory regimes, linking universities, networking environmental protection efforts, and the list goes on.

The Last Poet To Win The Nobel Prize

John Lundberg | Posted 10.16.2009 | Living


John Lundberg

I've been trying to track down English translations of poems by Herta Muller, the newest Nobel Laureate in Literature, but they are awfully hard to come by (if they even exist).

Auschwitz Memorial Launches Facebook Page To Reach Young People

AP | MONIKA SCISLOWSKA | Posted 10.15.2009 | World


WARSAW, Poland — To try to reach young people around the world, the memorial museum at Auschwitz has launched a page on Facebook, the social net...

Super Poems: Other Comic Books Inspired by Verse

Sophie Pollitt-Cohen | Posted 10.13.2009 | Comedy


Sophie Pollitt-Cohen

In a plot line inspired by Robert Frost's poem "Road Not Taken," fictional character Archie Andrews has already proposed to Veronica and will propose to Betty next month. I wonder what it would be like if other comics were inspired by poems...

If Pearl Harbor Were Attacked Today Could We Afford to Defend Ourselves?

Paul A. London | Posted 11.29.2009 | Business


Paul A. London

Many Republicans know this "deficits will kill us" stuff is bull. The country can afford to spend money to put Americans back to work, just as surely as it could afford to spend money to fight World War II.

"Happy" Anniversary, Iceland

Iris Erlingsdottir | Posted 11.28.2009 | World


Iris Erlingsdottir

This has been a very rough year for Iceland, and it's not likely to get better anytime soon. The public's anger continues to grow, and it would not be surprising if this winter sees a repeat of last winter's uprising.

Can We Finally Tell the Truth About Britain's Vile 'Queen Mother'?

Johann Hari | Posted 11.24.2009 | World


Johann Hari

William Shawcross has won the favor of his fellow monarchists by taking the Queen Mother's curdled life and presenting it as the best of British.