Regular readers will know that I have kind of a soft spot for Oman, so despite my, let's say, general bad attitude when it comes to absolutist monarchies, it makes me sorry to read things like this: The prolonged absence of Oman's Sultan Qaboos, who has not returned since travelling overseas for medical tests six … Continue reading Trouble on the horizon

By one measure, the Central African Republic has been tearing itself apart for well over two years now. In August 2012 a faction of the country's largest Islamic militia, the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace, joined forces with a number of other Islamic rebel groups, and the combined group, calling itself the Séléka … Continue reading Tentative good news from the Central African Republic

I suppose I'm not their target audience and so I just don't get it, but does it ever occur to hate groups that say America is in "crisis" because THE GAYS are getting married that, you know, there's not actually a crisis? Maybe the gays getting married is itself the crisis, but the argument always … Continue reading Still waiting for the crisis

Yoav Galant is a Major General in the IDF and formerly the head of its Southern Command, the unit that oversees operations in and around Gaza. He's also a recent recruit to run for Knesset on the slate of the Kulanu Party, the new and maybe centrist-ish party that was founded by former Likud cabinet … Continue reading This is how Benjamin Netanyahu campaigns for re-election?

Boko Haram has apparently set its sights on Maiduguri, assaulting the city on Sunday in an attack that killed at least 200. At the same time, they were able to overrun the nearby city of Monguno, which contained a key army barracks. Maiduguri is the provincial capital as well as the largest city in Borno, … Continue reading More trouble in Nigeria, potentially a lot more

A reporter with the Buenos Aires Herald named Damian Pachter, who was apparently the first to report the death of prosecutor Alberto Nisman has now fled the country, claiming that his life is in danger. Normally you'd see a story like this and figure the guy is being paranoid, but here I'm not so sure. … Continue reading Stranger and stranger

Big news from Greece, where it's possible that the anti-austerity coalition of leftist parties called SYRIZA (ΣΥΡΙΖΑ) appears to be the big winner in today's parliamentary elections, and may even have won an outright majority in the new parliament. Official results from 17.6 percent of polling stations counted showed Syriza with 35 percent and Samaras' … Continue reading Eur-uh-oh (I’m sorry)

Bob Menendez may be backing off of his plan to kill the Iran talks: Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) is considering delaying the introduction of his Iran sanctions bill until March, which would give him more time to gather support from wavering Democrats, according to a recent interview. The bill, co-authored with Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), … Continue reading Positive news on the sanctions front, maybe

Without suggesting in any way that Ukraine's civil war ever really stopped, because it never really did, it seems clear now that it's back on in a big way. It's one thing for the army and the Donbas rebels (and the Russians?) to still be struggling over control of the Donetsk Airport, but it's quite … Continue reading Ukraine’s non-ceasefire is officially over now, right?