Spanish square to be named after British punk rocker
It’s not often that British punk rockers name-drop a place like Granada, Spain, or sing about the Spanish Civil War.But that’s exactly what The Clash did in the band’s seminal 1979 album, “London...
View ArticleNew book paints distinctly different picture of British soldiers in American...
They were well-trained professional soldiers, sent to fight an unpopular war on a different continent.They were volunteers, who’d enlisted for a mix of reasons. Some were seeking economic advantage;...
View ArticlePrairie dogs could be saviors of Mexico's former prairies
Cattle ranching spread across North American prairies in the 1800s, stretching from Canada to Mexico. But as the ranchers moved in, the black-tailed prairie dogs were forced out.Gerardo Ceballos, an...
View ArticlePope Benedict XVI set to resign at month's end, citing decline in strength
Pope Benedict XVI, the 85-year-old leader of the Roman Catholic Church, announced on Monday that he would resign his post after less than eight years — an unprecedented step in the modern papacy.The...
View ArticleWhen the United Nations was new, cities fought for right to host it
As World War II shuddered to a close, the challenge was how to preserve a hard-won peace. A new body, the United Nations, was conceived.The center of world power had shifted to the United States, so it...
View ArticleMali's last master calligrapher escapes violence in Timbuktu with ancient...
Boubacar Sadek is believed to be the last remaining master calligrapher in Mali.He fled Timbuktu with rare documents and now makes a living in the nation's capital, Bamako, copying old manuscripts for...
View ArticleSome Americans return to old tradition of home funerals
A small, but growing, they say, group of Americans are choosing to say no to involving funeral homes and undertakers in the funerals of their loved ones, choosing instead to take matters into their own...
View ArticleBest picture winner Argo, nominees Lincoln and Zero Dark Thirty draw criticism
Argo, the winner of this year's Academy Award for best picture, and fellow nominees Lincoln and Zero Dark Thirty, all told stories ripped from the pages of the history book.Or, at least inspired by...
View ArticleBulgaria chooses new religious leader -- with complex past
In what should have been a solemn occasion, Bulgarian Church officials this past weekend picked a new leader. In a special election, the Bulgarian Holy Synod had made a choice.“For the first time in...
View ArticleLong-lost Jimi Hendrix concert recording finds new life
By Clark Boyd Guitar great Jimi Hendrix continues to inspire legions of music fans more than 40 years after his death.In the coming months, there will be a new release of some of Hendrix’s recordings,...
View ArticleAcademy Award-nominee Life of Pi inspired by much older book by Brazilian author
A friend recommended I read The Life of Pi. Never a spoiler, she described the plot in broad strokes.“Wait a minute,” I said. “I’ve read that.”I hadn’t, but ever since I read The War in Bon Fim, about...
View ArticleNew play about Isaac Newton tells story of time he supposedly put a needle in...
Most plays about historical events and figures take liberties with the facts — you probably couldn’t write a good play if you didn’t.Audiences, though, can be distracted by wondering whether some...
View ArticleProvocative artist Charles Krafft goes public as Holocaust denier
A story that broke last month in Seattle’s weekly, The Stranger, got a lot of people in the contemporary art world asking this question about the sculptor and painter Charles Krafft.Krafft, 65, has...
View ArticleAs Turkey's economy booms and Greece's sputters, former enemies find...
In Istanbul’s trendy Cihangir neighborhood, the Smyrna cafe uses the old Greek name for the Turkish city now known as Izmir.With a booming economy and cosmopolitan energy, Istanbul is becoming...
View ArticleJapanese photographers volunteer to help tsunami, earthquake victims find...
When a disaster hits your country, it’s natural to want to help.Yuko Yoshikawa, who runs a photo agency in Tokyo, felt that impulse two years ago, in the months after a massive tsunami and earthquake...
View ArticleIn former Soviet countries, Stalin surprisingly popular
Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin was one of the most murderous dictators of the 20th century.During his 30 year rule, tens of millions of Soviet citizens were arrested, deported or executed. And yet, a...
View ArticleArgentina's Dirty War revisited after new pope is elected
The new leader of the Catholic Church, the former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, is a precedent breaker in many ways.Pope Francis is the Vatican's first Jesuit leader and the first pope...
View ArticleRenowned Holocaust denying artist addresses provocative art, beliefs
Seattle-based artist Charles Krafft is a painter and sculptor whose work is both provocative and respected — it's been collected by major museums and prominently reviewed.Krafft has received grants...
View ArticleNew York exhibition documents Iraq War invasion through Marine's diary
Lt. Tim McLaughlin led a Marine tank platoon in 2003 during the invasion of Iraq.He kept a handwritten diary of those days, which forms the centerpiece of a new exhibition in New York.“There are two...
View ArticleEducator explains historical blind spots in U.S. education system
History is yesterday's news. Literally.Unfortunately, according to one professor, the American educational system is leaving history behind and American school kids today don't understand how all of...
View Article
