The crisis in Senegal, the one country in West Africa that has never had a military coup, has passed. Few people outside Africa were paying close attention to it, but I’m sure you will be pleased to know democracy has survived. Read More
There are three incipient famines in the world today, and politics is at the root of all of them. That’s not unusual, actually: famines are almost always political events. Read More
I'm not a church-goer, but I identify as Lent-curious. During the years, I've watched people make some disciplined sacrifices, abstaining from temporal temptations such as sweets, alcohol or complaining. Lent seems like a better version of a New Year's resolution, one that comes with a 40-day trial and concludes with a deeper spirituality, and a bacchanal of sugary treats. Read More
Nobody planned it, hardly anybody realized it was happening, and suddenly there it was. During less than two years, the entire senior leadership of Great Britain has become non-white. Read More
It may seem that the violence and chaos that have gripped Haiti are finally being addressed. The unelected acting president nobody wanted, Ariel Henry, has resigned. An international police force may soon arrive in the Caribbean island to restore order. There is even talk of a free election. But nothing is fixed, and the violence isn’t over. Read More
There has been a ten-year war within the geological community over what to call the epoch in which we live right now, and an international panel of two dozen senior geologists finally has delivered its verdict. We are not living in a new geological epoch after all. The Anthropocene (the Human era) is now, in George Orwell’s terms, "oldspeak." Read More
Every March, when my grandmother was alive, our family gathered to watch the Academy Awards. Those who couldn’t make it would still send their ballots, vying for bragging rights. The in-memoriam segment was particularly poignant; my Baba would rhyme off actors from the Golden Age before their names came up on the screen. Read More
What if the answer to something complicated really is pretty straightforward, simple and relies on some rather basic common sense? Read More
If your social media chambers resonate with any echoes overlapping mine, odds are you've been hearing a lot about Nex Benedict, the 16-year-old Oklahoma student who died after a fight in a school bathroom. Read More
Neutrality used to be a European thing, but it is now in steep decline. If it were an animal, we’d have to declare it an endangered species. Read More