2+ hour, 22+ min ago  (622+ words) The largest Jewish community in the world is defined by its deep integration into America's national story, its liberal traditions and scepticism towards Israeli governments. Why, then, are American Jews an example of exceptionalism in American politics? And why are…...

6+ hour, 28+ min ago  (229+ words) In a culture shaped by acceleration and instant gratification, democratic systems are struggling to meet the demand for speed. Acceleration, as Rosa has demonstrated, has been a major theme of the last two centuries. Alongside rapid social change, we have…...

2+ day, 1+ hour ago  (545+ words) Venezuela is Trump's acid test for reordering the Western Hemisphere, but pursuing regime change in Cuba presents a far greater challenge. Successfully changing the Cuban and Venezuelan governments is crucial for cementing Trump's hemispheric vision, removing the "long-standing obstacles to…...

2+ day, 7+ hour ago  (373+ words) Britain's wartime prime minister was heroic and courageous, but his virtues and vices belong to a different age. It is time to find new heroes for the British national pantheon. My concerns are not even about Churchill's views on race…...

3+ day, 8+ hour ago  (907+ words) Maggie O'Farrell's 'Hamnet' and its 2025 film adaptation draw extensively on Virgil's 'Georgics', showing how the classical tradition continues to illuminate enduring human questions. The film's version of Shakespeare's tutoring scene improves on the Latin of the novel. Instead of incarcerare,…...

5+ day, 9+ hour ago  (1164+ words) Engelsberg Ideas The civilising wonders of wine The decline in alcohol consumption in Western societies suggests a gradual weakening of a shared civilisational inheritance. The last story is particularly worrying as it used to be that the definition of an…...

1+ week, 7+ hour ago  (163+ words) The successful 1936 Montreux Convention, a grand diplomatic bargain over the Turkish Straits, shows why geopolitical chokepoints need a strong and reliable status quo power to act as gatekeeper. The havoc that has been unleashed along the Strait of Hormuz " which…...

1+ week, 10+ hour ago  (1418+ words) Engelsberg Ideas Why the war in Iran is not a gift to China The notion that Beijing is the chief beneficiary of the US-Iran conflict is wide of the mark. Benjamin Franklin is credited with saying that the only two…...

1+ week, 1+ day ago  (1284+ words) Engelsberg Ideas Writing the history of classical music Robin Holloway's monumental 'Music's Odyssey' and Tom Service's 'A History of the World in 50 Pieces' offer sharply contrasting visions of how the story of western classical music should be told. "It's basically…...

1+ week, 1+ day ago  (742+ words) During the 1950s, US strategy in East Asia displayed a judicious combination of flexibility and realism, crafting a security order acceptable to America's allies, while avoiding costly conflicts and commitments. In their own critique of the scenario, the New Zealand Chiefs…...