Archive for January, 2008

Confucian Communism

Staying with Time magazine’s “Person of the Year” issue (yesterday’s post was from the same magazine and covered a road trip through Russia), today’s topic looks at Time‘s portrait of Chinese President Hu Jintao. Specifically, at the way Hu is trying to blend the ancient Chinese wisdom of Confucianism with modern economics and a Communist governing philosophy. [...]

January 10, 2008 politics/law, religion 0 Comments

The idea of Russia

It’s been two weeks since Time magazine named Vladimir Putin its “Person of the Year.” Now that the holiday craziness has ended, I finally got around to reading that issue of the magazine. In it, there is a fascinating portrait of Putin, but also an intriguing article about Russia itself (“In Search of Russia’s Big Idea”), which is the [...]

January 9, 2008 countries & regions, Europe, politics/law 0 Comments

More hotspots for 2008

Looking for a few more appealing travel destinations for 2008? Here is a top ten list from MSNBC. A sampling of their recommendations: * Bhutan. Cradled by the majestic Himalayas in a remote corner of Southern Asia, the “Land of the Thunder Dragon” has long held steadfast to its rich culture and Buddhist heritage. Though [...]

January 7, 2008 'Best of' lists 0 Comments

Obama and America’s image in the world

Well, everyone knows now that Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee won their respective party caucuses in Iowa yesterday. The media coverage, in fact, has already moved on to speculation about next week’s New Hampshire primary and the evolving strategies of the top contenders. There is obviously a long way to go in this race and no [...]

January 4, 2008 how we live 1 Comment

Outsourced pregnancies

Well, almost everything else is being outsourced these days, why not pregnancies? According to this Associated Press story, there is apparently a growing industry in India for commercial surrogacy, with local women serving as surrogate mothers for women in other countries who have been unable to conceive a child. Although surrogate pregnancies take place and are legal [...]

January 3, 2008 how we live 0 Comments

Exotic Yemen

I’ve never really considered Yemen a must-see travel destination, but Tom Downey’s recent story in the NY Times presents an intriguing picture of a mysterious country. An excerpt: As I sipped strong coffee on the rooftop of my hotel, the Old City came alive seven stories below. There were satellite dishes in view, a lone [...]

January 2, 2008 Middle East/N.Africa 1 Comment

New Year’s traditions

Here we go. The first day of 2008. A good time, perhaps, to look at some of the many New Year’s traditions around the world, courtesy of Alyson Chapman of the Daily Times of Texas. *Baby New Year. The tradition of using a baby to signify the new year began in Greece in approximately 600 BC, [...]

January 1, 2008 how we live 0 Comments
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