Departments

;

Cliopatria

  • Feb 12, 2008

    The Afghan air menace

    by Cliopatria

    [Cross-posted at Airminded.]

    Not a phrase I ever expected to come across, but here it is, in David Omissi's Air Power and Colonial Control, the context being the introduction of one the most successful aircraft of the interwar period, the Hawker Hart:

    The Hart was soon found to be suitable for India; fifty-seven aircraft were accordingly fitte
  • Feb 12, 2008

    More Noted Things

    by Cliopatria

    An early modern edition of Carnivalesque goes up at Mercurius Politicus on Saturday 16 February. Send nominations of the best in history blogging between ca 1450 and 1800 CE since 17 December to mercuriuspoliticus*at*googlemail*dot*com or use the form. The next Military History Carnival goes up at Battlefield Biker on Sund
  • Feb 11, 2008

    Modern Notes

    by Cliopatria

    Dana Goodyear,"The Archaeology of Hunger," NYT, 3 February, reviews Ethan Rarick's Desperate Passage: The Donner Party's Perilous Journey West.

    Kevin Jackson,"Saint or Charlatan?" New Statesman, 31 January, reviews Colin Grant's Negro with a Hat: The Rise and Fall of Marcus Garvey and his Dream of Mother Africa. At

  • Feb 10, 2008

    Maine Caucus News

    by Cliopatria

    My parents braved the weather today and caucused in Scarborough (I voted absentee, along with a record 4000 others). Scarborough is a Republican-leaning suburb of Portland, which had a record turnout and went to Obama 401 to 283 (31 state delegates to 22). Demographically, it's the sort of town that Obama would need to prevail today--he carried the town over the opposition of state senator Peggy Pendleton, who, along with most of the state's party leadership, endorsed Clinton.<
  • Feb 9, 2008

    Saturday Notes

    by Cliopatria

    Adam Kirsch,"Imperial Appetite," NY Sun, 6 February, reviews John Darwin's After Tamerlane: The Global History of Empire Since 1405.

    Jonathan Keates,"The Paladin of Panache," Literary Review, February, reviews Ishbel Addyman's Cyrano: The Life and Legend of Cyrano de Bergerac.

    Robert J. Richards,"

  • Feb 8, 2008

    HS Heroes

    by Cliopatria

    An interesting item in USA Today, first mentioned below by Ralph Luker, about a poll of high school students, asking them to name the 10 most famous Americans, outside of Presidents. Number one on the list, unsurprisingly, was Martin Luther King, Jr. (67 percent). The remainder of the list, however, was revealing as to the type of American
  • Feb 7, 2008

    New Mexico News

    by Cliopatria

    The latest in what has to be the worst-run presidential primary in recent memory: the New Mexico Democratic Party is now recounting all ballots--and only then will begin counting the 17,000 provisional ballots."There is still no word," according to Albuquerque station KOB, on when to expect an announcement on who actually won the primary (Clinton leads Obama by around 1000 votes).

    Because of the closeness of t
  • Feb 7, 2008

    Maine & Obama

    by Cliopatria

    It’s always difficult to determine whether public remarks about pending political matters from the Clinton campaign represent anything beyond spin. That said, as a longtime resident of Maine, I’m baffled by the campaign’s current line that Barack Obama is the favorite in every contest until those of March 4. With the exception of a post in today’s Fix, the Clinton version seems to have become conventi
  • Feb 7, 2008

    Wednesday Notes

    by Cliopatria

    Helen Castor,"Holy Smoke," Guardian, 2 February, reviews Jonathan Phillips's The Second Crusade: Extending the Frontiers of Christendom.

    M. E. Yapp,"America and the Barbary states," TLS, 5 February, reviews Michael B. Oren's Power, Faith, Fantasy: America in the Middle East, 1776 to the

  • Feb 6, 2008

    Super Tuesday Reflections

    by Cliopatria

    Michael McGerr’s The Decline of Popular Politics is a remarkable work of political history, showing how seemingly unrelated technical changes in ballot and election codes, as well as a politics that stressed issues over symbolism, had the effect of depressing voter turnout. Even seemingly innocuous tinkering with the political system can have far-reaching, and often unintended, consequences.

    One event from last night’s elections reminded me of McGerr’s thesis. The John

  • Feb 6, 2008

    More Noted Things

    by Cliopatria

    My neighbor, Stephen ("Comments," Big Tent, 5 February), got a query from the AHA office about renewing his membership. In reply, Stephen unloads his mind about that and his friend, Jeff, chimes in.

    Richard Overy,"A Short, Sharp War," Literary Review, February, reviews Adam Zamoyski's Warsaw 1920: Lenin's Failed Conquest of Europe.

    Brent Holm

  • Feb 5, 2008

    It's Primary Day in Georgia

    by Cliopatria

    So, I'm sitting here in my pj's yesterday, with my cup of coffee and little stack of cookies, staring at the computer screen. One way or another, good news just kept rolling in. First, there were the telephone calls. Would you believe that I got telephone calls from both Mike Huckabee and Hillary Clinton in the same day? I felt comfortable talking with Mike. He's down-home enough that my informal dress didn't bother me. I was a little uncomfortable talking to Hillary that way, tho. We've
  • Feb 5, 2008

    Priorities

    by Cliopatria

    [Cross-posted at Airminded.]

    Bentley Priory

    A historic building which once played a key role in saving the free world is about to be lost to posterity, with barely a whimper of protest.

    The story i