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Le point
| Le Nouvel Observateur | L'Express |
Outlook India |
The Spectator |
The Nation | La Rivista dei Libri | Reportajes | Die Weltwoche | Ozon | Magyar Narancs |
The New York Times Magazine
Le Point, 01.12.2005 (France)
France
is coming to blows over what Le Point last week called the
"vague iconoclaste" or as the Nouvel Observateur calls them this week,
the "neo-reactionaries". They are referring to
intellectuals such as Alan Finkielkraut, Marcel Gauchet, Luc Ferry and
various politicians and groups of activists whose comments on the riots
in the banlieues and on Islam in France have turned the time-worn
division of left and right on its head. The debate was essentially triggered
by an interview with Alain Finkielkraut in the Israeli
newspaper Haaretz in November, in which he focused
on the "ethnic and religious" nature of the riots, pinpointing the cause as a general "hatred of the west". After
Le Monde printed extracts from the interview all hell broke loose in the media, and Finkielkraut was branded a
racist. In an attempt to distance himself from incident, Finkielkraut
subsequently gave two more interviews. This week in Le Point Elisabeth Levy
summarises the reactions from his critics and advocates and goes on to
defend him: Evidently many intellectuals are no longer capable of
"distinguishing between criticism of a belief and criminalising any
opinion that differs from the norm."
Le Nouvel Observateur, 01.12.2005 (France)
For the Nouvel Obs Finkielkraut and his cronies are just
"neo-reacs". After decades of the "dominance of progress" these
"intellectuals from the new Right" support a "shift" in the current
mainstream and risk exacerbating the rifts within French society. In
his introductory article Laurent Joffrin lists the theories and
arguments of the group in full and states that "like the neo-cons in
the USA, the neo-reacs are intellectual forerunners of a policy, which
is significantly stronger than the Gaullist centrism of Chirac or
Villepin."
Pascal Bruckner, on the other hand, writes
that in some passages of the interview Finkielkraut may have overshot
the mark, but he has nonetheless hit a nerve and prefers to express his
views rather than kowtow to the dictates of political correctness,
which "has been playing into the hands of the Front National for the
last twenty years." Like Finkielkraut, Bruckner also doubts the youth
revolts can be explained simply by the racism thesis: "I thought the
world vision opposing an automatically guilty Europe to an innocent and
untouchable South was done with. To hear today, in 2005, that France is
experiencing a 'colonial fracture', that is, that it remains a colonial power in its own territory and occupies the banlieues like a foreign army, leaves one speechless."
Claude Askolovitch sees things differently, however. "The leaders of the Front National are now reading Finkielkraut, and bragging about it!"
L'Express, 05.12.2005 (France)
Star French journalist Pierre Pean, who attained celebrity when he uncovered the Vichy past of Francois Mitterrand, has written a book, "Noires fureurs, blancs menteurs", about the attack on Ruandan president Juvenal Habyarimana in 1994, after which hundreds of thousands of Tutsis were slaughtered by Hutus. Pean contests that the events amounted to genocide. He explains in an interview: "I have this to say: there were no death squadrons such as described by the witness Janvier Afrika,
and as often alleged by the adherents of the 'official truth'." Pean is
not convinced the mass killings were planned: "There were death lists
on both sides. That's not what I call planning." Pean also contests
that the French army bears part of the responsibility. "The
French army cannot be accused of complicity in genocide. That's a
despicable allegation. France's attitude was entirely respectable."
Outlook India, 12.12.2005 (India)
The nineteen year-old Indian tennis player Sania Mirza is a Muslim.
Islamic clergy have passed a fatwa against her tennis outfits (examples here and here). She's a
"national treasure" protests Vinod Mehta in his weekly column, and she
should be left in peace. "Instead of interrogating Sania on her weak
second serve or poor backhand, we quiz her on intricate theological
matters. Soon, we will be asking her to pronounce on the Rushdie fatwa,
or whether archangel Gabriel was a Muslim or Jewish saint, or if the
Sharia permits divorces through sms. For god's sake, she plays tennis,
she is not an imam at Deoband Islamic university."
The Spectator, 03.12.2005 (UK)
The Spectator is still preoccupied by Bush's alleged proposal to blow up
the headquarters of the Arab news channel Al-Jazeera in the Qatari
capital Doha. After talking to the "affable" managing director Wadah
Khanfar, Richard Beeston has the impression that far from being a
"rabble rouser of the Arab masses", the channel is increasingly
becoming a stabilising element in the region. "Al-Jazeera is becoming
richer, bigger and more a part of the establishment that it once loved
to undermine."
The Nation, 19.12.2005 (USA)
Jeremy Scahill is full for praise Al-Jazeera, calling it a journalistic
role model. "Al-Jazeera's real transgression during the 'war on terror'
is a simple one: being there. While critical of the Bush Administration
and US policy, it is not anti-American--it is independent. In fact, it
has angered almost every Arab government at one point or another and
has been kicked out of or sanctioned by many Arab countries. It holds
the rare distinction of being shut down by both Saddam and the new
US-backed government. It was the first Arab station to broadcast
interviews with Israeli officials. It is hardly the Al-Qaida mouthpiece
the administration has wanted us to believe it is. The real threat
Al-Jazeera poses is in its unembedded journalism--precisely what is
needed now to uncover the truth about the Bush-Blair meeting."
La Rivista dei Libri, 01.12.2005 (Italy)
In
the Italian version of the New York Review of Books Sandro Barberas
discusses two new books about the German philosopher Paul Ree. Both
Hubert Treiber, who published Rees complete works, and Domenico Fazio, who has written a book on the philosopher, attempt to free Ree and his philosophy from the
shadows of his friend Friedrich Nietzsche, who held Ree in
high regard in his own arrogant way: "Ree was Nietzsche's preferred
confidant, particularly once he had manoeuvred himself into a state of virtual
isolation after breaking off contact with the Wagners." Nietzsche describes the relationship between the two in a letter to
his mother Franziska in 1884: "You cannot imagine
how agreeable Prof. Ree has been over the past years – faute de mieux
(for want of better) naturally."
Reportajes, 04.12.2005 (Chile)
Moises Naim, the former director of the World Bank and current
editor in chief of Foreign Policy magazine, portrays a rather
sobering image of modern-day Latin America in an interview: "Latin
America was always considered the backyard of the USA. But since the
attacks on September 11th this backyard has turned into a new Atlantis,
a lost continent. No one in Washington or on Wall Street is the
slightest bit interested in Latin America. The problem with this part
of the world is not globalisation, but that it is being consistently
marginalised. Latin America is undergoing deglobalisation. What no one
could have foreseen is that the most influential person in Latin
America nowadays is not Bush but Fidel Castro.
In the same vein Alvaro Vargas Llosa (more) comments on the meteoric ascent of
the Peruvian "national, populist" presidential candidate, Ollanta
Humala, according to the latest surveys. Vargas Llosa's analysis
couldn't be more sombre: "It may be too early to give a real prognosis
for the elections. But one thing is certain: Peru is backing
barbarity once again. Self-satisfied barbarity."
Die Weltwoche, 05.12.2005 (Switzerland)
In conversation with the Viennese physics professor Anton Zeilinger,
Mathias Plüss attempts to find out why the human race will have to
spend at least a thousand years carrying out more research before it can even beam a
coffee cup. And Zeilinger is a world heavy weight in this arena. "Last
year we managed to teleport light particles under the river Danube across a
distance of 600 meters. The theoretical range is unlimited. I always
say that when the Americans really start their Mars mission, the
280-day journey will be deadly boring
for the astronauts. They might be interested in taking part in a
few teleportation experiments on the way, and reduce their trip by a
hundred million kilometres or so."
Ozon, 01.12.2005 (Poland)
Since the word has been out that Volker Schlöndorff is making a film
based on the biography of the 'Solidarnosc' co-founder Anna
Walentynowicz, increasing numbers of voices in the Polish press are
warning about a false representation of Polish history. "Actually, it's
more than we could ever have dreamed of – a world famous director is
making a film about an icon of Polish opposition, which reminds the
world that the fall of Communism began in Gdansk not Berlin," writes
Wojciech Duda-Dudkiewicz. But it's not only Walentynowicz, who first
heard about the project through the media, who is disappointed:
"Riddled with clichees and ignorance about reality at the time, some
claim. It's a pity that a film like this is not being made in Poland.
Instead we are in the midst of controversy over the vision of a
foreign film maker."
Magyar Narancs, 01.12.2005 (Hungary)
More European films should be shown in Europe, Claude Miller, chairman
of Europa Cinemas, demands in an interview. "European film makers
occasionally discuss why it is that around 80 percent of all films
shown in Europe's cinema's come from the USA." It's up to politicians
to solve the problem at a legal level. "It worked in Korea. Ten years
ago, 95 percent of all the films shown there were from the USA. Today
this figure cannot legally exceed 50 percent. Korean films suddenly
became not only the most popular in their own country but in Japan
and China too, and some Korean film makers have become internationally
famous."
The New York Times Magazine, 04.12.2005 (USA)
Peter Schneider's article in the New York Times Magazine paints a
grisly picture of the "honour killings" in Germany's parallel Muslim
society from the perspective of Berlin. "There is a new wall rising in
the city of Berlin. To cross this wall you have to go to the city's
central and northern districts - to Kreuzberg, Neukölln and Wedding -
and you will find yourself in a world unknown to the majority of
Berliners. Until recently, most Berliners held to the illusion that
living together with some 300,000 Muslim immigrants and children of
immigrants was basically working."
RSS
The New York Times investigates the new hunger for reality. In Salon, Andrzej Stasiuk sees only individual realities. In the Gazeta Wyborcza, the ethnologist Tomasz Rakowski describes the reality of the Polish poor mines. Sometimes you can turn reality on its head, El Pais reads in the Financial Times. Le Monde diplomatique gives the low-down on the ACTA talks. And the New Yorker dreams of less polish and a bit more grit.
In Magyar Narancs Agnes Heller demands more civil courage of the Hungarians. Mohammed Ali Atassi explains in Qantara, why conservatives in Egypt see women as candy: either wrapped or covered in flies. Oliver Roy outlines in Resetdoc, why's there not so much as a hair's breadth between the Christian right and the secular left. In Magazin, the philosopher Ludwig Haslar tells the Swiss that if they want mediocrity today, they cannot expect the superman tomorrow. Jonathan Safran Foer tells Prospect why he neither wants a chicken in his bed nor on his plate. The NYT embarks on a human-flesh search and finds a kitten killer.
The New Yorker tells the story of how corrupt podiatrists almost brought down the US health system. In Polityka, the Kapuscinski biographer Artur Domoslawski explains how he thinks the legendary reporter should be read. In Tygodnik, Zygmunt Bauman calls for more understanding for Kapuscinski. Magyar Narancs celebrates the ban on Holocaust denial in Hungary. In Le Point, Jorge Semprun asks whether Claude Lanzmann is the only person who's allowed to talk about the Holocaust. Wired describes how Google learned how to tell the difference between a hot dog and a poached pooch.
In Eurozine, the Transylvanian-Hungarian-Armenian writer Kinga Kali tells the story of a "virgjinesha". Prospect celebrates the next art superstar, Argentinian painter Guillermo Kuitca. The Gazeta Wyborcza explains how young people use the web. The New Yorker sends out a message to the depressed: stay away from psychiatric literature. Outlook Indian learns to play Carnatic music online. The London Review swims with the salmon sages.
The Atlantic finds out why the Chinese are not enemy number one in cyberspace. Elet es Irodalom asks why no one in Hungary is interested in former informers. In New Statesman, Tariq Ramadan can't tell us what a moderate Muslim is. The Guardian hearkens to the ticking bomb in Emily Dickinson's bosom and links it to the shards of crockery on the floor. And if it can't smoke, El Pais Semanal wants everything painted black.
In Prospect, Tim Berners-Lee invites the world to play with the British government's data. England, not Nigeria belongs on the terrorist list, literary Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka informs The Daily Beast. In Rue 89, Beppe Grillo explains why Sarkozy is more dangerous than Berlusconi. In Tygodnik Powszechny, Stefan Chwin mourns for the Polish idealist. Polityka reveals where a Pole turns to when he's not allowed to marry. Olga Tokarczuk walks her Polish tangle around Amsterdam for Salon. And the Guardian thinks about Armenian women rubbing their soft breasts on a stone.
In Wired, Chris Anderson celebrates the next industrial revolution - taking place in garages near you. The Boston Globe serenades the camel - Nabati style. In El Pais Semenal, the sociologist Edgar Morin complains about European lethargy. Outlook India asks why the Australians hate the Indians. Odra and Tygodnik are still debating the impact of freedom on literature. In OpenDemocracy, Salome Zourabichvili mourns for the wilted petals of the rose revolution. In Prospect, Martin Amis divides the literary sheep from the goats, according to the pleasure principle. The NYT profiles a dyed-in-the-wool jihadist from Alabama.
Das Magazin reports on the dramatic increase in the number of pupils who have threatened to gun down their classmates. The Spectator warns City bankers about gun-wielding dominatrices in Switzerland. In Sinn und Form, Marc Fumaroli remembers the man whose name shall not be mentioned: Mario Praz. In the New Humanist, Laurie Taylor remembers the holy men who sexually abused him as a child. The Guardian asks why Theo von Doesburg slipped into avant garde oblivion. And in the NYRB, Garry Kasparov asks why computer chess programmers are so uninspired?
OpenDemocracy explains why a novel called "Paranoia" suddenly disappeared from Belarussian bookshops. Prospect fears that a ban on Islam4UK could undermine British democracy. The Gazeta Wyborcza explores Polish-Jewish relations. Le Monde diplomatique watches the carving up of Africa. In El Pais Semanal, maths whizz Marcus du Sautoy explains the sex appeal of suduko. And Gerhard Richter manages to surprise the Nation.
The New Yorker buries itself in the Arab novel. In Le Monde, Bernard-Henri Levy heaps scorn on the state-run caricature of a debate. Qantara points to the person responsible for all the misery in the Arab world: Daddy. In L'Espresso, Umberto Eco takes a pin to the overblown daily paper. The Nation has earmarked 30 billion dollars to save journalism. In Tygodnik Powszechny, the writer Wojciech Albinski explains what makes Poland exotic. And the Spectator waves a tear-stained old hanky as shabby chic fades into the past.
In Merkur, art historian Wolfgang Ullrich defines a new type of artist: the contractor. In Nepszabadsag, writer Peter Nadas considers the crisis in Hungary and how it might end. In NouvelObs, Francis Ford Coppola explains why DVDs should be free. Eurozine introduces Lithuanian literature. In the New York Review of Books, Wyatt Manson asks why Pleiade is omitting Celine's anti-Semitic trilogy from the collected works. In Express, Philippe Gavi reminds us that Mohammed was not a crazed killer. A Californian marvels in NZZ Folio, at the reincarnation of an Indian factory worker. And confronted with the recent proliferation of literary cuddling, the New York Times yearns for a bit of Philip Roth.
Wired tracks James Cameron's 32-year quest to out-Lucas Lucas. In Nouvel Obs, Alain Finkielkraut and Alain Badiou tear each other apart over immigration and national identity. Tygodnik Powszechny introduces the pioneering artist Miroslaw Balka. Andras Bozoki asks why Hungarians are undermining democracy. In The New Statesman, Leo McKinstry explains why the bombing of Coventry was an inspiration to the British Air Staff.
Vanity Fair goes in search of a superpartner. Elet es Irodalom reads a new collection of essays by Imre Keresz. Outlook India complains about journalistic corruption. The New Yorker reads a new Koestler biography. Nepszabadsag foresees the next French revolution. Rue89 wonders about the provenance of prawns. And in the New Republic, Moshe Halberthal celebrates the sublime humility of Amartya Sen.
In Wilson Quarterly, the economist Tyler Cowen sings an ode to multitasking. Prospect has seen the monsters of the left. The Boston Globe follows James C. Scott to the new Shangri-La in the mountains of Tibet. Weltwoche is up in arms about the criticism of Switzerland's anti-minaret vote. In the Novel Obs, Pierre Nora applies his mind to the bestseller. New Criterion knows why the Pop art bubble won't pop. NZZ Folio examines the chicken nugget. Al Ahram asks what political Islam wants. The Walrus mourns for the first victim of the C-58. In Resetdoc, Joseph Massad explains why Arab homosexuals are an invention of the West.
Slovenian poet Ales Debeljak argues for a fusion of cultures in Eurozine. Umberto Eco agrees in Le Monde. The Nation portrays the Salvadorian author Horacio Castellanos Moya, who himself explains in Babelia why 200 years after independence there's nothing to celebrate in a number of Latin American countries. Polityka lies Poland down on the couch. La vie des idees reads a book on Jews and the resistance in France. Americans read more than Europeans, writes historian Peter Baldwin in Merkur. And in The New York Review of Books Robert Darnton makes two bold proposals for a new Book Settlement.