Son Chingaderas

There’s a video of Dr. Alia Brahimi of the London School of Economics greeting Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi as “Brother Leader” at the school three months ago, and presenting him with an L.S.E. cap — a tradition, she says, that started when the cap was handed to Nelson Mandela. It may be possible...

When the remains of a Vietnam War soldier buried in the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery were identified in 1998 using DNA, Pentagon officials proudly said that the days of interring service members as “Unknown” could well be over. But now, for the first time in decades,...

It is a truth universally acknowledged that education is the key to economic success. Everyone knows that the jobs of the future will require ever higher levels of skill. That’s why, in an appearance Friday with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, President Obama declared that “If we want more good...

Samuel Huntington was one of America’s greatest political scientists. In 1993, he published a sensational essay in Foreign Affairs called “The Clash of Civilizations?” The essay, which became a book, argued that the post-cold war would be marked by civilizational conflict. Human beings, Huntington...

If there is a lesson from this week’s resignations of two scandal-tainted European ministers it’s this: Once a leader loses trust, it’s best to exit quickly. France’s now departed foreign minister, Michèle Alliot-Marie, and Germany’s departed defense minister, Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg,...

IN the last two months, the editor of French Vogue has resigned; the president of Yves Saint Laurent said she will leave her dream job to run the vanity label of Reed Krakoff, the Coach creative director, whose one dream is apparently to be successful. Gucci Group cut its chief executive loose. The...

Future historians will long puzzle over how the self-immolation of a Tunisian street vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi, in protest over the confiscation of his fruit stand, managed to trigger popular uprisings across the Arab/Muslim world. We know the big causes — tyranny, rising food prices, youth unemployment...

When an officer was commended to his attention, Napoleon is reported to have inquired: “Is he lucky?” Luck is half the game. It’s no good having it and being incapable of using it. On the other hand, great striving may come to naught without luck. My sense is that President Barack Obama is a...

El terremoto político árabe no nos queda lejos. México está sentado hoy sobre el mismo polvorín en que se incubó y produjo el movimiento transformador de un planeta robado a millones de jóvenes impacientes y desesperados. Las calles de las principales ciudades del norte de África y el Medio...

IN BENGHAZI, LIBYA When Benghazi fell into the hands of the opposition a week ago, Saleh Zayani grabbed two sound mixers and a microphone and headed to the radio transmission building. His friends were too afraid to join him, so Zayani went with an armed guard, plugged in his equipment and began to...