100 Treatises

Archives 2010

News, Analysis and Commentary from around the internet
Dealing with Politics, Economics and Secularism/ Religion
Handpicked and Updated Regularly

News from 2010

Week of December 19, 2010

• The Bitcoin triples again. Jack Hough, Smart Money.
• Atheists have the best sex lives, claims psychologist. Susan Donaldson James, ABC News.
• 16 US cities that could face bankruptcy in 2011. Gus Lubin, Business Insider.
• Should Americans still fret over attacks from al-Qaeda? Brett Michael Dykes, Yahoo News.
• Obama signs “don’t ask, don’t tell” repeal. Pauline Jelinek, AP.
• Teen birthrate hits new low amid overall drop. Reuters.
• We’re all conservatives now. Stanley Fish, New York Times.
• Census shows slowing US growth, brings GOP gains. Hope Yen, AP.
• A tough season for believers. Ross Douthat, New York Times.
• The captive Arab mind. Roger Cohen, New York times.
• South Korea ends firing drills from border island. Hyung-Jin Kim, AP.
• Why Italy still has Berlusconi. Christopher Caldwell, Financial Times.

Week of December 12, 2010

• Senate repeals “Don’t ask, Don’t tell.” Carl Hulse, New York Times.
• America must start again on financial regulation. Henry Kaufman, Financial Times.
• In France, civil unions gain favor over marriage. Scott Sayare, New York Times.
• Pope calls Christians the most persecuted. Frances D’Emilio, AP.
• Heroic, female and Muslim. Nicholas Kristof, New York Times.
• Intelligence report offers dim view of Afghan war. Elisabeth Bumiller, New York Times.
• Afghan report sees July troop pullouts despite perils. Helene Cooper, New York Times.
• Black segregation in US drops to lowest in century. AP.
• Americans clamor to cut the budget. But cut what? Phil Pruitt, Yahoo News.
• Health care law ruled unconstitutional. Kevin Sack, New York Times.

Week of December 5, 2010

• Obama’s budget anarchism. Christopher Caldwell, Financial Times.
• How west can reverse a decade of decline. Gordon Brown, Financial Times.
• China provinces “to be bigger than Russia.” Ranjit Lall, Financial Times.
• Why are Chinese schoolkids so good? Henry Mance, Financial Times.
• Ireland to spare no one in austerity drive. Carmel Crimmins, Reuters.
• Cables suggest Mideast resists US on cutting terrorists’ cash. Eric Lichtblau, New York Times.
• What if the US goes into retreat? Gideon Rachman, Financial Times.

Week of November 28, 2010

• The skinhead terrorists. Charles Clover, Financial Times.
• Cables describe scale of Afghan corruption. Scott Shane, New York Times.
• Organised crime in Brazil: Conquering Complexo do Alemao. The Economist.
• A history of the present in 250,000 cables. Philip Stephens, Financial Times.
• Europe is edging towards the unthinkable. Wolfgang Munchau, Financial Times.

Week of November 21, 2010

• Tony Blair, Christopher Hitchens debate religion. Charmane Noronha, AP.
• USS George Washington visit poses dilemma for China. Christopher Bodeen, AP.
• Iceland elects ordinary folk to draft constitution. Alda Sigmundsdottir, AP.
• Rome protects its views on love. Christopher Caldwell, Financial Times.
• Vatican: condoms for HIV prevention a good idea for everyone. Victor L Simpson, Huffington Post.
• North and South Korea exchange fire, killing two. Mark McDonald, New York Times.
• Children safer in Kabul than in London or New York, NATO envoy says. CNN.
• Breaking the glass ceiling at home. Lucy Kellaway, Financial Times.
• A paralyzed, diminished America. Clive Crook, Financial Times.

Week of November 14, 2010

• Scope or grope? The wrong approach to homeland security. William Astore, Huffington Post.
• Pope: condoms can be justified in some cases. Nicole Winfield, AP.
• Why a forlorn Karzai is breaking with the West. Ahmed Rashid, Financial Times.
• Why the Irish crisis is going global. Rick Newman, US News and World Report.
• The threat of persistent poverty. Marian Wright Edelman, Huffington Post.
• Netanyahu pushes for Israel settlement freeze after US offers incentives. Karin Laub, AP.
• Karzai: US should reduce intensity, stop night raids in Afghan war. Deb Riechmann, AP.

Week of November 7, 2010

• San Francisco circumcision ban could be on ballot next November. Huffington Post.
• GOP’s rural white guys: the night they drove New Dixie down. Donna Trussell, Politics Daily.
• Can liberalism save capitalism from conservatism? Michael Lind, Salon.com.
• Release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi brings hope to Myanmar. Luisita Lopez Torregrosa, Politics Daily.
• For Catholics, interest in exorcism is revived. Laurie Goodstein, New York Times.
• The Christian Right in context: building a Christian America. Richard T Hughes, Huffington Post.
• Mormons soften language on gays. Peggy Fletcher Stack, Religion News Service.
• History lessons for a world out of balance. John Plender, Financial Times.
• Islam and the West: reaching intercultural understanding. Madeleine Albright, Huffington Post.
• Boys’ self-esteem problems. Lisa Wolfe, The Daily Beast.
• Why China and Japan are oceans apart. David Pilling, Financial Times.
• Specter of trade war looms as G-20 nations gather. Jean H Lee, AP.
• Report: Pentagon study finds little risk to lifting gay ban. Liz Goodwin, Yahoo News.
• Deficit targets: social security, mortgage breaks. Andrew Taylor, AP.
• Iraqi PM to stay on as political deadlock ends. Rebecca Santana, AP.
• Christian woman sentenced to death in Pakistan “for blasphemy.” Rob Crilly, Telegraph.
• Obama backs India for security council seat. Sheryl Gay Stolberg, New York Times.
• Pope rails against same-sex marriage in Spain, gay activists stage “kiss-in” to protest. Nicole Winfield, AP.

Week of October 31, 2010

• Study: long term unemployment has disastrous effects on health and longevity. Laura Bassett, Huffington Post.
• The more money you make, the more likely you voted Republican. Lynn Parramore, Huffington Post.
• Think this economy is bad? Wait for 2012. Greg Ip, Washington Post.
• Tea party winners take ambitious promises to DC. Nedra Pickler, AP.
• 10-year-old in Spain is not the first or youngest child mom. Time.
• Shift in Washington stirs economic jitters abroad. Liz Alderman, New York Times.
• Al Qaeda in Iraq threatens attacks on Christians. Sinan Salaheddin, AP.

Week of October 26, 2010

• A presidency heading for a fiscal train wreck. Nouriel Roubini, Financial Times.
• High time to legalize marijuana. Financial Times.
• Big ideas are emerging from small countries. Jeffrey Fankel, Japan Times.
• Parts of Obama coalition drift toward GOP, poll finds. Jim Rutenberg, New York Times.
• Ben Stein: Alaska senate hopeful Joe Miller a “stupid clown.” Yahoo News.
• China can no longer plead poverty. Gideon Rachman, Financial Times.
• Serving two masters: Shariah law and the secular state. Stanley Fish, New York Times.

Week of October 17, 2010

• Emerging markets at risk from a gigantic bubble. Peter Tasker, Financial Times.
• Sharia in America: how religious laws change. Sherman A Jackson, Huffington Post.
• NATO official: Bin Laden living comfortably in Pakistan. Zachary Roth, Yahoo.
• “Evangelical Atheists”: pushing for what? Chris Stedman, Huffington Post.
• Japan goes from dynamic to disheartened. Martin Fackler, New York Times.
• Income inequality: too big to ignore. Robert H Frank, New York Times.
• Op-classic 1991–Healthcare for everyone. Peter Diamond, New York Times.
• How religion is killing our most vulnerable youth. Bishop Gene Robinson, Huffington Post.
• Republicans struggle to say how they would pay for tax cuts. Amanda Terkel, Huffington Post.
• Angela Merkel: German multicultural society has “utterly failed.” Melissa Eddy, AP.
• Poll: those craving for change now look to the GOP. Liz Sidoti, AP.
• Why 13% of Germans would welcome a “Fuhrer.” Robert Marquand, Christian Science Monitor.

Week of October 10, 2010

• Israel’s settlement building. The Economist.
• How the Cold War reshaped Protestantism in America. The Economist.
• Murdoch defends US political donations. Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, Financial Times.
• French General mixes formula for a bit of Afghan calm. Alissa J Rubin, New York Times.
• US aids Taliban to attend talks on making peace. Thom Shanker, New York Times.
• Britain’s austerity apostles duck the debate. Robert Skidelsky, Financial Times.
• 11 freedoms that drunks, slackers, prostitutes and pirates pioneered and the Founding Fathers opposed. Thaddeus Russell, Huffington Post.
• UK cleric: rape is impossible within marriage. MSNBC.

Week of October 3, 2010

• Scientific case for masturbation. Sharon Begley, Newsweek.
• Test your savvy on religion. Nicholas Kristof, New York Times.
• Poll: More Republicans support strip club over mosque near Ground Zero. Amanda Terkel, Huffington Post.
• Angle: Muslim law taking hold in parts of US. Cristina Silva, AP.
• Israelis, Palestinians signal deal on settlements. Josef Federman, AP.
• Everyone hates the deficit–but likes the spending. Lisa Todorovich, Yahoo.
• Southern Baptist leader on yoga: Not Christianity. Dylan Lovan, AP.
• Suburbs take hit as US poverty climbs in downturn. Hope Yen, AP.
• We’re not on a “road to serfdom.” David Frum, CNN.
• The Times and the Tea Party: What is this thing Hayek called “the rule of law”? The Economist.
• Effective tax rates. The Economist.
• Barbarians at the gates of complexity. John Kay, Financial Times.
• Taliban in high-level talks with Karzai government, sources say. Karen DeYoung, Washington Post.
• The very useful idiocy of Christine O’Donnell. Frank, Rich, New York Times.
• Voters will rebuke Washington itself. Clive Crook, Financial Times.
• Key NATO supply route hit again in Pakistan. Zarar Khan, AP.
• Third party rising. Thomas Friedman, New York Times.

Week of September 26, 2010

• Israel: Principal faces hearing over textbook. Matti Friedman, AP.
• Protesting police throw Ecuador into chaos. Tatiana Coba, AP.
• Why patriotism is indispensable for democracies. Bruce Thornton, Right Network.
• Flaws in GOP’s pledge to balance budget. Edward Luce, Financial Times.
• China’s quiet power grab. Anne Applebaum, Washington Post.
• Theoretical egalitarians. Timothy Noah, Slate.
• Portugal drug decriminalisation “a resounding success.” Will Britain respond? No. Tom Chivers, Telegraph.
• Do atheists know more about Christianity than Christians? Heather Horn, The Atlantic Wire.
• 10 signs the US is losing its influence in the western hemisphere. Business Insider.
• Survey: Americans don’t know much about religion. Rachel Zoll, AP.
• Census data: Weddings in 2009 at record low level. Hope Yen, AP.
• Your neighbors are killing job growth. Joe Mont, The Street.
• The Fox primary: complicated, contractual. Jonathan Martin, Politico.
• Israeli building slowdown ends; settlers celebrate. Aron Heller, AP.
• Egyptian Islamic body criticizes bishop’s remarks. Salah Nasrawi, AP.

Week of September 19, 2010

• Widespread fraud seen in latest Afghan elections. Alissa J Rubin, New York Times.
• Fair pay isn’t always equal pay. Christina Hoff Sommers, New York Times.
• In dispute, China blocks rare earth exports to Japan. Keith Bradsher, New York Times.
• As Palin goes, so goes the GOP: growing number of candidates oppose abortion in cases of rape, incest. Amanda Terkel, Huffington Post.
• Book unearths divisions over Obama war plan. Anne Gearan, AP.
• Maldives rehabs extremists with “true spirit of Islam”. Vishal Arora, Religion News Service.
• God’s emotions: why the Biblical God is so human. Valerie Tarico, Huffington Post.

Week of September 12, 2010

• Montana GOP Policy: Make homosexuality illegal. Matt Volz, AP.
• Born-again anti-Catholicism. Christopher Caldwell, Financial Times.
• National interests collide in the new world disorder. Philip Stephens, Financial Times.
• Recession raises poverty rate to a 15-year high. Erik Eckholm, New York Times.
• NC teen: Nose ring more than fashion, it’s faith. Tom Breen, AP.
• Census: 1 in 7 Americans live in poverty. Hope Yen, AP.
• Gates: surge seems to be working in Afghanistan. Anne Gearan, AP.

Week of September 5, 2010

• Florida minister cancels burning of Qurans on 9/11. Antonio Gonzalez, AP.
• Report: Castro says Cuban model doesn’t work. Paul Haven, AP.
• Iran woman’s stoning suspended after global outcry. Robin Pomeroy, AP.
• Pressure rises on pastor who wants to burn Quran. Mitch Stacy, AP.
• How can a democracy solve tough problems? Joe Klein, Time.
• How Pakistan’s floods have made women too visible. Rania Abouzeid, Time.
• Stephen Hawking, science and God: Did science find God? Jose Rodrigues dos Santos, Huffington Post.
• Petraeus condemns Dove World Outreach’s plan to burn Qurans: “It could endanger troops”. AP/ Huffington Post.
• Future hiring will mainly benefit the high-skilled. Christopher S Rugaber, AP.
• Vatican: stoning in Iran adultery case “brutal.” Frances D’Emilio, AP.

Week of August 29, 2010

• Experts see trouble ahead for developed world. Dan Perry, AP.
• Is believing in God evolutionarily advantageous? Aliz Spiegel, NPR.
• God did not create the universe, says Hawking. Michael Holden, Reuters.
• Is the Tea Party becoming the new Grand Old Party? Liz Sidoti, AP.
• The billionaires bankrolling the Tea Party. Frank Rich, New York Times.
• We owe the troops an exit. Bob Herbert, New York Times.
• In South Korea, a model for Iraq. Paul Wolfowitz, New York Times.
• Poll: Most Republicans think Obama “sympathizes” with Islamist goals. Holly Bailey, Yahoo News.
• US wasted billions in rebuilding Iraq. Kim Gamel, AP.
• Glenn Beck vs. Christ the Liberator. Rev. James Martin, SJ. Huffington Post.

Week of August 22, 2010

• Afghan militants in US uniforms storm 2 NATO bases. Robert H Reid, AP.
• Do we need a tax bracket for the super-rich? Nathaniel Cahners Hindman, Huffington Post.
• Migrants turn to the sea to enter US illegally. Elliott Spagat, AP.
• Bikini-clad strippers protest church in rural Ohio. Jeannie Nuss, AP.
• Fears Taliban expanding in Afghan north, west. Robert H Reid, AP.
• Key Karzai aide in corruption inquiry is linked to CIA. Dexter Filkins, New York Times.
• Poll: public doubts Islam more prone to violence. AP.
• The conservative counter-revolution. Martin Wolf, Financial Times.
• Some 200 women gang-raped over 4 days near Congo UN base. Michelle Faul, AP.
• The consensus in favor of Swedish thinking. Ralph Atkins, Financial Times.
• Iran inaugurates nation’s first unmanned bomber. Nasser Karimi, AP.

Week of August 15, 2010

• Crime (sex) and punishment (stoning). Robert F Worth, New York Times.
• Too long ignored. Bob Herbert, New York Times.
• Obama a Muslim! Lincoln a Catholic! FDR a Jew! Why Americans don’t like their President’s God. Bruce Feiler, Huffington Post.
• US matches Indian call center costs. James Lamont, Financial Times.
• The world population continues to grow at an alarming rate. Yahoo News.
• On Facebook: Israeli soldier posed with bound Arab. Diaa Hadid, AP.
• Media failing to ask tough questions on Afghanistan war… again. Derrick Crowe, Huffington Post.
• Japan, checking on its oldest, finds many gone. Martin Fackler, New York Times.
• Secret assault on terrorism widens on two continents. Scott Shane, New York Times.
• Teen sex not always bad for school performance. Alicia Chang, AP.

Week of August 8, 2010

• Algebra for dummies: mathematical “proof” of the inferiority of homosexuals. Bill Black, New Deal 2.0
• Bad for the Jews. Paul Krugman, New York Times.
• Zero tolerance and Cordoba House. Basharat Peer, Financial Times.
• How the Cheonan really sank–and what happens to the Koreas now? Bill Powell, Time.
• US Muslims prep for Islamic holiday–around 9/11. Rachel Zoll, AP.
• Study looks at tax cut lapse for the rich. Jackie Calms, New York Times.
• The joke about intergenerational equity. Dean Baker, Huffington Post.
• Richard Dawkins likens burqas to trash bags. Curtis M Wong, Huffington Post.
• Taliban execute pregnant woman. Huffington Post.
• Israel cannot be both Jewish and democratic. Ahmed Moor, Huffington Post.
• US economy is increasingly tied to the rich. Robert Frank, Wall Street Journal.

Week of August 1, 2010

• Putting our brains on hold. Bob Herbert, New York Times.
• Across nation, mosque projects meet opposition. Laurie Goodstein, New York Times.
• Sectarian clashes surge in a city in Pakistan’s heartland. Salman Masood, New York Times.
• Congregations gone wild. G Jeffrey MacDonald, New York Times.
• Steal this movie [on Israel and Palestine]. Thomas Friedman, New York Times.
• Chinese missile could shift Pacific power balance. Eric Talmadge, AP.
• Israel: a not very secular shift. Tobias Buck, Financial Times.
• Court rejects same-sex marriage ban in California. Jesse McKinley, New York Times.
• Flare-up over tree accents Israel-Lebanon tension. Mark Lavie, AP.
• Divide Afghanistan at your peril. Ahmed Rashid, Financial Times.

Week of July 25, 2010

• The great (double) game. Thomas Friedman, New York Times.
• Catholic patriarch blasts Israel for allowing gay parade. Michele Chabin, Religion News Service.
• Four deformations of the apocalypse. David Stockman, New York Times.
• The end of (military) history? The United States, Israel, and the failure of the western way of war. Andrew Bacevich, Huffington Post.
• Study: same-sex couples can thrive as adoptive parents. Daniel de Vise, Washington Post.
• Somali lessons for Afghanistan. Gideon Rachman, Financial Times.

Week of July 18, 2010

• America must give the south to the Taliban. Robert Blackwill, Financial Times.
• The gray and the brown: the generation mismatch. Ronald Brownstein, National Journal.
• The Big Mac Index, The Economist.
• Is the Tea Party unbiblical? Alfredo Garcia, Religion News Service.
• Israel puts off crisis over conversion law. Ethan Bronner, New York Times.
• The moral naturalists. David Brooks, New York Times.
• Embracing Israel, justice and peace. Rabbi Sid Schwarz, Huffington Post.
• North Korea threatens “physical response” to US moves. Andrew Quinn, Reuters.
• Anti-mosque protests on the rise, say Muslim advocates. Liz Goodwin, Yahoo News.
• Lesbian gets $35,000 settlement over canceled prom. Shelia Byrd, AP.
• Today’s Keynesians have learnt nothing. Niall Ferguson, FT.

Week of July 11, 2010

• Where has all the greatness gone? The Economist.
• 10 Most horrifying, absurd things in the GOP state platforms. Tana Ganeva, Alternet.
• Spanish parliament to consider banning Islamic veils in public. Harold Heckle, AP.
• Rethink Afghanistan because nation building is not working and we’re not winning. Nicholas Graham, Huffington Post.
• Man with neo-Nazi ties leading patrols in Arizona. Michelle Price, AP.
• Afghans to form local forces to fight Taliban. Alyssa J Rubin, New York Times.
• Economics behaving badly. George Loewenstein, New York Times.
• SEC settling its complaints with Goldman. Sewell Chan, New York Times.
• Supreme Court gun decision doesn’t mean domestic violence offenders can own handguns. Sophia Tareen, Huffington Post.
• Al-Shabab leader threatens more Ugandan attacks. Mohamed Olan Hassan, AP.
• Vatican: ordination of women a “grave crime.” Nicole Winfield, AP.
• Russian exorcism tragedy: 4-year-old boy dies during ritual. Huffington Post.
• Sarah Palin in 2012? Why she’s for real. Mark Halperin, Time.
• Federal Reserve: continued high unemployment threatens Fed policy of pursuing maximum employment. Shahien Nasiripour, Huffington Post.
• Argentine senate considers same-sex marriage law. Bridget Huber, AP.
• The class war we need. Ross Douthat, New York Times.
• Veiled threats? Martha Nussbaum, New York Times.

Week of July 4, 2010

• Is there a God or is there nothingness? New scientific paradigm. Robert Lanza, Huffington Post.
• Presbyterians: end Israel aid over settlements. Patrick Condon, AP.
• Pakistan suicide bombing death toll jumps to 102. Riaz Khan, AP.
• How can a nation that could soon be a nuclear power still legally stone women to death for adultery? Richard Pendlebury, Daily Mail.
• Income gap between rich and poor is highest in decades, data show. Laura Bassett, Huffington Post.
• Bill Kristol must resign. Ann Coulter, World Net Daily.
• Companies brace for end of cheap made-in-China era. Elaine Kurtenbach, AP.
• Federal gay marriage ban is ruled unconstitutional. Denise Lavoie, AP.
• Iran launches holy war on haircuts. Lara Setrakian, ABC News.
• Tax-exempt funds aiding West Bank Settlements. Jim Rutenberg, New York Times.
• Sakineh Mohammadie Ashtiani, Iran mother, could be stoned to death at any moment. Nicholas Sabloff, Huffington Post.

Week of June 27, 2010

• Illinois stops paying its bills, but can’t stop digging hole. Michael Powell, New York Times.
• Rise of the Religious Left. Charles Blow, New York Times.
• A voice in Egypt for an Arab age of reason. Michael Slackman, New York Times.
• As oil industry fights a tax, it reaps billions from subsidies. David Kocieniewski, New York Times.
• Myths of austerity. Paul Krugman, New York Times.
• Michael Steele says Afghanistan was “war of Obama’s choosing,” not something the US “wanted to engage in.” Nick Wing, Huffington Post.
• 21 killed in massive Mexican gang shootout near US border. AP.
• The Asian century calls for a rethink on growth. Kevin Brown, Financial Times.
• The Catholic church: Popeshuffle. The Economist.
• Spiritually bankrupt. Dan Rather, Huffington Post.
• Atheist billboard defaced on North Carolina’s Billy Graham Parkway. Yahoo News.
• The third depression. Paul Krugman, New York Times.
• The only way out of Afghanistan. Ross Douthat, New York Times.
• Hard truths about Afghanistan. Taylor Marsh.

Week of June 20, 2010

• Consciousness and the end of the war between science and religion. Deepak Chopra, Huffington Post.
• Against the super-asinine, the gods themselves contend in vain. Paul Krugman, New York Times.
• It is time to rethink the west’s Afghan strategy. Ahmed Rashid, Financial Times.
• Sharron Angle’s fringe third party sponsored virulently anti-gay flier in the ’90s. Justin Elliott, Talking Points Memo.
• US indirectly funding Afghan warlords: House report. Joanne Allen, Reuters.
• Montreal mother charged in “crime of honor.” CBC News.
• Saudi crucifies murderer. AFP
• What Israelis really think should be done about Gaza. Karl Vick, Time.
• New Jersey battles over tax on millionaires. John Hurdle, Reuters.
• Canada’s economy is suddenly the envy of the world. Rob Gillies, AP.
• Countries with the most millionaires 2010. Vanessa Wong, Business Week.

Week of June 13, 2010

• Global organized crime  becoming new superpower: UN. Louis Charbonneau, Reuters.
• Ultra-orthodox Jews protest school ruling. AP.
• UN says 400,000 uprooted in Kyrgyzstan. Sasha Merkushev, AP.
• At home with Alvin Greene: will the carnival act get serious? Michael Scherer, Time.
• Letter from Istanbul. Thomas Friedman, New York Times.
• State of denial: Reactions to a modest plan to increase the retirement age show how hard reform is in France. The Economist.
• UN urges Kyrgyzstan to stamp out ethnic bloodletting. Alexei Anishchuk, Reuters.
• Obama’s fool’s gold in Afghanistan. Jacob Heilbrunn, Huffington Post.
• Why we are moving toward a recessionary era, and why Keynes is being exhumed. Robert Reich.
• A decade later, human genome project yields few new cures. Nicholas Wade, New York Times.
• US identifies vast riches of minerals in Afghanistan. James Risen, New York Times.
• The year of the (pro-life) woman. Ramesh Pnnuru, New York Times.
• New Theory for life’s first energy source. Zoe Macintosh, Live Science.

Week of June 6, 2010

• To save Africa, reject its nations. Pierre Englebert, New York Times
• Karzai is said to doubt West can defeat Taliban. Dexter Filkins, New York Times.
• Studies show Jews’ genetic similarity. Nicholas Wade, New York Times.
• The Courage to Leave. Bob Herbert, New York Times.
• Ethnic riots sweep Kyrgyzstan, government begs for help. Sasha Merkushev, AP.
• Schumer says it “makes sense” to “strangle [Gaza] economically” until it votes the way Israel wants. Zaid Jilani, Think Progress.
• Report: China, Cuba more peaceful than US. AP.
• Stephen Hawking on religion: “science will win.” Nicholas Graham, Huffington Post.
• Sharon Angle: Nevada candidate already providing treasure chest of goodies for Harry Reid. Sam Stein, Huffington Post.
• Liberty endures in two-system China. Gideon Rachman, Financial Times.
• 10 foreign troops killed on deadly Afghan day. Rohan Sullivan, AP.
• Turkey is making a play for regional power. Josef Joffe, Financial Times.
• South Korean leader urges peace with North Korea. William Foreman, AP.

Week of May 30, 2010

• Houston: model city. Joel Kotkin, Forbes.
• Long-term unemployment now 46 percent of unemployed, highest percentage on record. Jeannine Aversa, Huffington Post.
• Lessons to be learnt from Kazakhstan. Gillian Tett, Financial Times.
• The Palestinians cannot be hammered into submission. Philip Stephens, Financial Times.
• Did 2004 Olympics spark Greek financial crisis? Derek Gatopoulos, AP.
• Afghan child brides escape marriage, but not lashes. Rod Nordland, New York Times.
• Why is the Obama administration siding with the Vatican? Christopher Hitchens, Slate.
• Eurozone: state of the union. Ralph Atkins, Financial Times (may require free subscription).
• At least 10 are killed as Israel halts flotilla with Gaza aid. Isabel Kershner, New York Times.

Week of May 23, 2010

• Indonesian authorities distribute long skirts as ban on revealing women’s clothing takes effect. Dallas Morning News.
• House votes to allow repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” law. David M Herszenhorn, New York Times.
• Fighting rages in eastern Afghanistan. Amir Shah, AP.
• A blame game at globalization’s unraveling. Harold James, Financial Times (may require free subscription)
• Two theories of change. David Brooks, New York Times.
• Europe’s deflation torture is a gift to the far-left. Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, Telegraph
• Ask Rand Paul what he would cut. Chris Weigant, Huffington Post.
• Jamaica declares emergency in capital after attacks. Horace Helps, Reuters.
• Two Koreas snarl at each other. Jack Kim, Reuters.
• The inept financial reform bill. William M Isaac, Forbes.
• Kiss your middle cl…ass goodbye? Les Leopold, Huffington Post.
• Crime rates down for third year, despite recession. Pete Yost, AP.
• The “Randslide” and its discontents. Frank Rich, New York Times.
• Europeans fear crisis threatens liberal benefits. Steven Erlanger, New York Times.

Week of May 16, 2010

• Astronomer Copernicus reburied as hero in Poland. Vanessa Gera, AP.
• A Nigerian witch-hunter defends herself. Mark Oppenheimer, New York Times.
• Senate passes financial overhaul bill. David M Herszenhorn.
• Specter loses in Pennsylvania, Paul wins in Kentucky. David Espo, AP.

Week of May 9, 2010

• Bangkok descends from bustling city to war zone. Martin Petty, Reuters.
• Greece, debt and a lesson for the US. Leon Hardt, New York Times.
• Afghan war costs now outpace Iraq’s. Richard Wolf, USA Today.
• Britain’s David Cameron becomes PM. David Stringer, AP.
• At least 99 killed in attacks across Iraq. Saad Abdul-Kadir, AP.
• America has good reason to worry about Greece. Clive Crook, FT (may require free subscription)
• Suburbs losing young whites to cities. Hope Yen, Huffington Post.

Week of May 2, 2010

• Meet the unemployable man. David Wessel, Wall Street Journal.
• Older, unmarried, educated moms on rise. Leanne Italie, AP.
• Riots erupt in Athens, 3 bank workers killed. Derek Gatopolous, AP.
• Must large capital inflows always end in crisis? Martin Wolf, Financial Times.
• Why Africa is religious. Leo Igwe, Lusaka Times.
• Parents don’t think own teens are having sex. Jeanna Bryner, Live Science.
• Europe’s choice is to integrate or disintegrate. Wolfgang Muchau, Financial Times (may require free subscription)
• Narcos, No’s and Nafta. Thomas Friedman, New York Times.

Week of April 25, 2010

• 5 terrifying parallels between what’s going on now and the Great Depression. Megan McArdle, Business Insider.
• Thai standoff may worsen to civil war: crisis group. Bill Tarrant, Reuters.
• Economics: How to cure a sick discipline. Ian Fletcher, Huffington Post.
• British judge: Christian beliefs have no legal standing. Al Webb, Religion News Service.
• It’s as if the more Japan’s ancient printing press keeps churning, the more prices keep deflating. Vincent Fernando, Business Insider.
• Illegal immigrants plan to leave over Arizona law. Amanda Lee Myers, AP.
• UK foreign policy: shrunken ambitions. Philip Stephens, Financial Times (may require free subscription)
• Arizona immigration law divides Republicans and conservatives. Liz Goodwin, Yahoo News.
• Why should you be freaked out about Greece? Remember, the Great Depression had two parts. Megan McArdle, Business Insider.
• Separate Truths: It is misleading–and dangerous–to think that religions are different paths to the same wisdom. Stephen Prothero, Boston Globe.
• Why can’t women keep up with men? Try the curse of the good girl. Rachel Simmons, Huffington Post.
• US says no G8 split with Canada over abortion. Richard Woodbury, Reuters.
• Debt ratings are lowered for Portugal and Greece. Jack Ewing, New York Times.
• Central Asia: Tinderbox of trouble. Isabel Gorst, Financial Times (may require free subscription)
• Young Lebanese demonstrate for secularism in Beirut. Natalia Antelava, BBC.
• Christianity must adapt: Why McLaren has the future of the faith in his palms. Alex Wilhelm, Huffington Post.
• New Arizona law forcing hard choices on migrants. Tim Gaynor, Reuters.
• US Fiscal Policy: Unless we ra
• ise taxes or cut spending, we’re screwed. Henry Blodget, Business Insider.
• The importance of getting Wall Street out of Washington, and Washington out of Wall Street. Robert Reich.
• Who cares if Iran goes nuclear? Michael Hughes, Huffington Post.

Week of April 18, 2010

• The case against the VAT. Bruce Bartlett, Forbes.
• What Evangelicals and atheists have in common. Skye Jethani, Huffington Post.
• The sickening abuse of power at the heart of Wall Street. Simon Johnson, Huffington Post.
• Most French want burqa law, but not total ban. Reuters
• US’s toughest immigration law is signed in Arizona. Randal C. Archibold, New York Times.
• Bombs kill 64 in Iraq after al Qaeda deaths. Muhanad Mohammed, Reuters.
• Legal skirmish colors national day of prayer. Adelle M Banks, Religion News Service.
• Greek workers strike, challenge EU/ IMF talks. Renee Maltezou, Reuters.
• Faith-based treatment ordered for Christian cult mother who killed her son. The Freethinker
• Ten US cities in free fall. Francesca Levy, Forbes.
• Army considers rescinding invitation to evangelist. Dan Elliott, AP.
• Greek debt woes erase jobs, stoke social discontent. Harry Papachristou, Reuters.
• Begging for security in Pakistan. Taha Gaya, Huffington Post
• Saudi Arabia announces nuclear plant, and it could have huge consequences for US-Iran relations. Gregory White, Business Insider
• Church pedophilia scandal grows in Latin America. Tales Azzoni, AP.
• Faith leaders criticize Arizona “anti-immigrant” bill. Adelle M Banks, Religion News Service.
• Tea Party: party of moochers. Scott Janssen, Huffington Post.
• Non-government workers of the world unite! Bernie McSherry, Forbes.
• Are evolution and religion compatible? Kevin Dixon, Humanist Life.
• Immortality isn’t unethical. Alexander Chisholm, Guardian UK.
• The religious lobby and women’s rights. Rahila Gupta, Open Democracy
• Let the Koreans take care of the Koreas. Doug Bandow, Huffington Post
• Actually, Wealthy Americans Pay A Larger Share of Federal Taxes Than Ever Before. Vincent Fernando, Business Insider

Week of April 11, 2010