Whatever Else Happens, This Matters Most There are several narratives about the current invasion of Ukraine, even opposing views about who is “winning.” There are also deeper issues to address. Why Ukraine Matters Most Of course other news stories matter. But their importance is on a national, or even personal, level. Some have simple…

Many People Are Asking This Now — At an informal summit in Versailles on 10–11 March 2022, European Commission President, Ursula Von Der Leyen (above) and EU Council President Charles Michel both condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine. They praised the unity of 27 EU nations in “adapting unprecedented sanctions” against Russia immediately after its invasion on…

They Look Beautiful, But Have a Terrifying Secret If someone told you some African lakes were dangerous, you might think of crocodiles, hippos, or other wildlife. Maybe drowning. But at least three lakes are dangerous for themselves, because what lurks at the bottom is not a living thing but a…

Selena Quintanilla Had Everything, Including an Enemy Selena´s songs are still very popular all over Latin America. I first heard her music when I lived in Cuba. Then I found out what happened to her. Her story should not have ended so soon, or so badly. A Natural Talent Selena Quintanilla Pérez was…

Vladimir Putin Would Like This Forgotten… — Cold War competition with the United States drained the Soviet Union´s defense resources. Their navy had many accidents, but in 2000 post-Soviet Russia was more open than before, or since, so we know more about this one. The Submarine Named after a famous Soviet World War II victory, K-141 Kursk was a…

A Surprisingly Enjoyable Time Most of Us Didn´t Know Was Coming What Life Really Involves As a child, you are pushed around by your parents, who have ideas about how you should turn out. When these ideas don´t appeal to you, they are best ignored. You can move on and leave no forwarding address…

Natural Disaster Comes to an Elegant European Capital The first of November is All Saints´ Day in the Catholic Church. In 1755, the people of Lisbon had no reason to expect this holiday in to be any different from others. …

Environmentalists Have Some Puzzling Priorities — You might recognise this situation, if you tried to get involved with an important issue, but it didn´t work out well. I did some MOOCs; online courses to update my knowledge of various topics. These included environmental issues. Different Priorities I was sorting out some course notes, from 2017 to 2019, which…

How the Dutch Turned a National Tragedy into an Engineering Triumph — On the night of 1 February 1953, a combination of high spring tides and a massive North Sea storm flooded the Netherlands south-western provinces of Zeeland, Zuid-Holland (South Holland) and Noord-Brabant (North Brabant). This became known as “Watersnoodramp” — disastrous flood. Water broke through the country´s dykes. 1,836 people died…