More evidence that our ancestors were not stupid: Where and how did medieval mapmakers, apparently armed with no more than a compass, an hourglass and sets of sailing directions, develop stunningly accurate maps of southern Europe, the Black Sea and North African coastlines, as if
Michael Gerson offers a memorable quotation: After the British army conquered the Sindh region of what is now modern-day Pakistan in the 1840s, Gen. Charles Napier enforced a ban on the practice of Sati — the burning of widows alive on the funeral pyres of
The actual subject of Michael Gerson’s column, quoted above, is the vogue in a number of European countries to ban the burqa, the Islamic garb that swaths women so that their bodies cannot be seen. After criticizing the practice, Gerson criticizes the atempts to outlaw
OK, maybe China won’t bury us economically after all: Quick: Think of a Chinese brand name. Japan has Sony. Mexico has Corona. Germany has BMW. South Korea? Samsung. And China has . . . ? If you’re stumped, you’re not alone. And for China, that
Sunday was Pentecost, commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit 50 days after Easter and thus the birthday of the Church. Something I learned from Sunday’s service: The Holy Spirit was accompanied by miraculous language, which was not just words but powerful, life-changing words that
The Lutheran Church Missouri-Synod is doing good work in Haiti that is attracting attention. This from WORLD MAGAZINE: The LCMS has been in Haiti since the quake, providing for the immediate needs of the survivors: food, water, medical supplies and temporary shelter. They realize, however,
The Korean War of the 1950s has never officially ended. Now South Korea, after decades of restraint, is getting tough with its Stalinist neighbor to the North, responding to a deadly torpedo attack on one of its ships that killed 46 South Koreans: South Korean
SPOILER ALERT! So Lost ends with the sacrifice of someone with bloody hands and feet and a wound in his side. Whereupon everyone, including everyone who died in the series, ends up in a church–complete with a statue of Jesus–where they forgive each other, are
Richard Cohen says that America just doesn’t have much effect on world events anymore. He starts with the President’s visit to the oil spill. . . Everyone knew that Obama was merely showing that he was not George W. Bush. He was not going to
In a high culture that no longer believes in beauty or meaning, art becomes reduced to interesting gestures. Consider this “work,” as described by art critic Blake Gopnik: On Saturday evening, in the back room at Postmasters Gallery in Chelsea, veteran dealer Magdalena Sawon gave
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