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Academic Insights for the Thinking World
In this first installment of the OUPblog bookclub, Lee Epstein and Jeffrey Segal answer questions on the Miers nomination and the future of the Judiciary branch under Bush’s picks. Enjoy! 1) Much was made during the Roberts confirmation hearings over his ideological beliefs and their possible effects on American law. But, what effect might Roberts […]
The question, “Where should my story begin?’ is, as every storyteller knows, both immensely important and immensely difficult to answer. ‘Once upon a time’, as the fairy-tale formula has it; but once upon a time there was – what? The opening governs the way you tell everything that follows, not only in terms of the […]
A Q & A with Kerry Emanuel, author of Divine Wind: The History and Science of Hurricanes. 1.) Q: Is global warming causing more hurricanes? A: No. The global, annual frequency of tropical cyclones (the generic, meteorological term for the storm that is called a tropical storm or hurricane in the Atlantic region) is about […]
Jack M. Balkin, of Balkinization blog fame, gave a lengthy review of Advice and Consent by Lee Epstein and Jeffrey Segal today, tying it all to the upcoming struggle to confirm Harriet Miers. From the Balkinization post: Hence the Bush Administration has two basic strategies to secure her nomination. The first is to counteract the […]
If [Ty] Cobb’s base-running was often, as one observer described it, “daring to the point of dementia,” it was also successful more times than not. He left everybody stunned at Hilltop Park in New York when he crossed up Highlander first-baseman Hal Chase, who, though only in his third big-league season, was already widely regarded […]
This is the last of four excerpts from The Fall of Rome by Bryan Ward-Perkins. The first excerpt, “The Disappearance of Comfort,” can be found here: LINK The economic change that I have outlined was an extraordinary one. What we observe at the end of the Roman world is not a ‘recession’ or – to […]
We were remiss in not mentioning last week that Eric Alterman had selected A Brief History of Neoliberalism by David Harvey for his ‘Altercation bookclub.’ His post includes a juicy excerpt from the book and promises a vigorous ‘argument.’ Here is just one part: The financial crises that have so frequently preceded the predatory raiding […]
We had it for you last week. LINK
Simon Blackburn appeared on “Talk of the Nation” today to discuss his book Truth: A Guide. The discussion ranges from the battle between relativism and absolute truth to contemporary theology, censorship, and James Baldwin’s thoughts on the role of education. It is a smorgasbord of philosophical tastiness not to be missed. LINK
Kerry Emanuel continues to be the go-to-guy for all things hurricane. From yesterday’s edition of The New York Times: A month ago, Kerry Emanuel, an atmospheric scientist who has spent decades studying how hurricanes reach their peak strength, “had this terrible feeling of dread” when he saw that Hurricane Katrina’s track in the Gulf of […]
Who’s Next As the Senate prepares to ratify John (meet the new boss) Roberts to the position held by William (same as the old boss) Rehnquist, it’s time to start considering some of the candidates who might be nominated next. Emilio Garza. Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit. Would be first Hispanic named to the Court, […]
Kerry Emanuel’s companion website to Divine Wind is now up at www.divinewindbook.com! It is packed with additional reading material and links to online hurricane sources. Don’t miss the“Figures” page which contains all of the images from the book – graphs, satellite photos, wind models and photos taken by “hurricane hunters” from within the eye of […]
This week in his ‘Dear Economist’ column over at the Financial Times, Tim Harford responds to an anonymous questionner from Limerick, Ireland: Dear Economist, I recently won more than €100m on the lottery. I am terrified that the money will come between me and my friends, or that I shall make a mess of spending […]
Bob King of the Palm Beach Post is an excellent source for all hurricane-related news and today he speculates on the potential size and path of Rita. Rita is currently a Category 4 storm – but it may go higher: The hurricane center says: “It would not be a surprise if Rita became a category […]
Eric Alterman, of “What Liberal Media?” fame and noted blogger on MSNBC.com gave a short review of Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore by James T. Patterson today. He essentially defers to the judgment of his “old adviser” Paul Kennedy who wrote this review in The Washington Post Book World […]
The Triple Frontier, referred to as the Triborder Area by the United States State Department, has an Arab immigrant population exceeding 25,000 and is described as “teeming with Islamic extremists and their sympathizers, [where] businesses have raised or laundered $50 million in recent years” (Rother, NYTimes, 2002). A map of the area was found in […]