Names are more than just labels—they are steeped in histories and tangled in identities. When a name changes, where does its history go? Does it disappear in the shadow of its past, buried in the grave of its former identity? Or does it stay, trail...
A few months ago, Asaad al-Shaibani was a jihadist. Now, he is Syria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and a fierce champion of the free market. “We need the help of the international community to support us in this new experiment,” al-Shaibani tol...
Fifty years ago, on April 13, 1975, the Lebanese Civil War officially began. The war devastated Lebanon’s economy, infrastructure, and social structure, and culminated in a sectarian model of democracy that persists to this day. Unless Lebanon disc...
In 1993, the United States launched a series of raids on Mogadishu, Somalia so disastrous and publicly humiliating that they would redefine presidential decision-making for the next decade. Now, in the wake of America’s exit from Afghanistan, a...
In 1993, the United States launched a series of raids on Mogadishu, Somalia so disastrous and publicly humiliating that they would redefine presidential decision-making for the next decade. Now, in the wake of America’s exit from Afghanistan, a...
One year ago, I wrote an article about the history, culture, and economic potential of pumpkin cultivation in Ukraine. At the time, my intentions were lighthearted—I discussed the Ukrainian marriage tradition in which women reject proposals by hand...
One year ago, I wrote an article about the history, culture, and economic potential of pumpkin cultivation in Ukraine. At the time, my intentions were lighthearted—I discussed the Ukrainian marriage tradition in which women reject proposals by hand...
In 2019, Chilean citizens took to the streets in one of the largest anti-government protests in the nation’s young democratic history. One of their key motivations was a request to rewrite the Chilean constitution. The existing document is one of a...
In 2019, Chilean citizens took to the streets in one of the largest anti-government protests in the nation’s young democratic history. One of their key motivations was a request to rewrite the Chilean constitution. The existing document is one of a...
On September 8, 2022, Mexican deputies voted to pass a constitutional amendment granting the Ministry of National Defense control over the National Guard until 2028. Not only is the amendment corrupt by giving the executive branch unchecked power, bu...
On September 8, 2022, Mexican deputies voted to pass a constitutional amendment granting the Ministry of National Defense control over the National Guard until 2028. Not only is the amendment corrupt by giving the executive branch unchecked power, bu...
It may be forever unknown whether a London barrister named Sir Cyril Radcliffe, sketching a map in the summer of 1947, pondered the words written a century earlier by a fellow countryman: “The pen is mightier than the sword.” Still, the lines Rad...
It may be forever unknown whether a London barrister named Sir Cyril Radcliffe, sketching a map in the summer of 1947, pondered the words written a century earlier by a fellow countryman: “The pen is mightier than the sword.” Still, the lines Rad...
Stories of valiant archeologists who discover and expropriate ancient and powerful artifacts out of dangerous locales have long captured public imagination. Be it Indiana Jones or Laura Croft, the heroes often encounter violent insurgent groups that ...
Stories of valiant archeologists who discover and expropriate ancient and powerful artifacts out of dangerous locales have long captured public imagination. Be it Indiana Jones or Laura Croft, the heroes often encounter violent insurgent groups that ...
Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. Take ‘The Line’—a megacity under construction with two parallel skyscrapers stretching 170 kilometers horizontally through the Arabian desert. Or ‘Hyperloop’—Elon Musk’s proposed high-speed tran...
Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. Take ‘The Line’—a megacity under construction with two parallel skyscrapers stretching 170 kilometers horizontally through the Arabian desert. Or ‘Hyperloop’—Elon Musk’s proposed high-speed tran...
“A village boy has become the president of Kenya,” William Ruto proclaimed during his September 13 victory speech. A crowd of tens of thousands, sporting the bright yellow of Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA), erupted in cheers. Alt...
“A village boy has become the president of Kenya,” William Ruto proclaimed during his September 13 victory speech. A crowd of tens of thousands, sporting the bright yellow of Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA), erupted in cheers. Alt...
As a grotesque, albeit limited, conflict in Ukraine sows fear across the West, some are wondering who could be capable of sparking all-out war across Europe. It might well be Aleksander Vučić, the current President of Serbia. Standing at 6’6”, ...
As a grotesque, albeit limited, conflict in Ukraine sows fear across the West, some are wondering who could be capable of sparking all-out war across Europe. It might well be Aleksander Vučić, the current President of Serbia. Standing at 6’6”, ...
“It has been a long time since we last met, and I hope it will be a long time before we have to part.” In his address to the 2018 Boao Forum for Asia, Chinese President Xi Jinping quoted this line from an old Hainanese folk song. Less than a week...
“It has been a long time since we last met, and I hope it will be a long time before we have to part.” In his address to the 2018 Boao Forum for Asia, Chinese President Xi Jinping quoted this line from an old Hainanese folk song. Less than a week...
Switzerland is best known for its cheese, chocolate, and unwavering commitment to maintaining neutrality in geopolitical conflicts. However, the mountainous nation recently broke its long-standing tradition of neutrality when, on February 28, the Swi...
Switzerland is best known for its cheese, chocolate, and unwavering commitment to maintaining neutrality in geopolitical conflicts. However, the mountainous nation recently broke its long-standing tradition of neutrality when, on February 28, the Swi...
Today’s energy crisis harkens back to the 1973 oil shock, during which Arab petrostates instituted an oil embargo against Western countries that led to skyrocketing prices and astonishingly long lines at the gas pump. Since then, oil importers have...
Today’s energy crisis harkens back to the 1973 oil shock, during which Arab petrostates instituted an oil embargo against Western countries that led to skyrocketing prices and astonishingly long lines at the gas pump. Since then, oil importers have...