FAO Quotables

"But being right, even morally right, isn't everything. It is also important to be competent, to be consistent, and to be knowledgeable. It's important for your soldiers and diplomats to speak the language of the people you want to influence. It's important to understand the ethnic and tribal divisions of the place you hope to assist."
-Anne Applebaum

Monday, June 8, 2015

What I Read Last Week: Trolls, Pirates, Wine Wars, $100 a Paris, Kidnapping and Arab Baptists

The Agency
Wow. Just wow.  This article reads like a twilight zone political thriller.  Incredible reporting that delves into the quasi-state Russian sponsored global troll/pseudo-news network.  This will blow your mind a little bit.

My 977 days held hostage by Somali pirates
Mandatory reading.  An unfathomable account of a kidnapped journalist tale of survival amidst Somali pirates--and an interesting thought piece on paying ransoms.






















The Wrath of Grapes A band of upstart winemakers is trying to redefine what California wine should taste like — and enraging America’s most famous oenophile in the process.
Who knew that the wine world got down like this...

A $1000 Day in Paris for $100
Love me some Paris insider information.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: My Father’s Kidnapping
One of the best writers today tells the heart-breaking tale of her father's kidnapping in Nigeria.   It's one of those pieces that sticks with you and can you give the reader more insight into a country than 20 pieces of political analysis.  Adiche fails to mention, HOWEVER, that she and her father are dual-citizens (US and Nigeria) and she leaves out just who helped get her father back--a glaring omission.

One church’s sunset means a new day for another
An Egyptian Arab Baptist revival in the Bible belt--a fascinating piece.  I'd be curious to get more background on the Arab Baptists--are they all Muslim converts or are some Coptic Christian Baptist crossovers?

WIRLW Archive:


No comments:

Post a Comment