Cliopatria

• Apr 10, 2005
  

  Throne vs. Camilla .... Throne & Camilla

  by Cliopatria

  The 23-year-old Prince Charles left his lover Camilla for full-time Navy service in 1971. It's not clear to me if at that time he actively decided not to marry her. (I'm no royals buff.) She married in 1973.
  
  It seems quite clear that the Saxe-Coburg-Gothas (er, Windsors) found Camilla unsuitable then, and that Charles felt unable to marry her with family approval.
  
  So Charles drew two history lessons. Like his great uncle, Edward VIII, he could not expect to be king
  

• Apr 10, 2005
  

  Some Things of Note ...

  by Cliopatria

  Reading John Carey's"Dr. Johnson's Dictionary by Henry Hitchings," The Sunday Times, 10 April, I fell in love, again, with Samuel Johnson, his eccentricity and his penetrating criticism of all around him, including foremostly himself. Thanks to Sharon Howard for the tip.

  

• Apr 10, 2005
  

  2.35 Billion People...

  by Cliopatria

  China and India are trying to figure out how to relate to each other, economically, culturally, militarily. I'm not going to make predictions off the top of my head, because both countries are changing so rapidly that extrapolation from their direct pasts is a pretty weak tool ("more of same" only gets you so far when tectonic shifts are involved), they are very different countries outside of some superficialities (developi
  

• Apr 9, 2005
  

  "My personal notes are to be burned."

  by Cliopatria

  This is a line in the late Pope's last will and testament. Harlan Ellison has a similar standing order: all unfinished works and drafts are to be destroyed on his death (there may be others, of course). Obviously, as an historian, I have deeply mixed feelings about this: as an historical figure, the late Pope's personal pap
  

• Apr 9, 2005
  

  David Brooks Is Right

  by Cliopatria

  David Brooks is right. In a column in the NYT the other day he observed that liberals generally are indifferent to debates about public philosophy. He recalled that a year ago he had phoned "the head of a prominent liberal think tank to ask him who his favorite philosopher was. If I'd asked about health care, he could have given me four hours of brilliant conversation, but on this subject he stumbled and said he'd cal

  

• Apr 9, 2005
  

  Various Watches ...

  by Cliopatria

  DeLay Watch: If you have a taste for C. S. Lewis, loved his Screwtape Letters, and give a damn about the health of the republic, you may want to read Marshall Wittmann's"Secret Memo Revealed."

  Columbia Watch: This New York Times editorial about Columbia's report on complaints about the University's Middle Eastern studies p

  

• Apr 9, 2005
  

  April 15th -- Date of Destiny

  by Cliopatria

  Three significant events converge on April 15th this year:

  • First, it is US Tax Filing Deadline Day. How is it that you can live almost identical lives from year to year, and the forms still look too complicated?
  • Second, it is the date of the Sixth History Carnival, which I will be hosting at Cliopatria. Send your nominations (self or other) to me at dresner AT hawaii DOT edu, with"History C
  

• Apr 9, 2005
  

  More Noted Things ...

  by Cliopatria

  DeLay: At Slate, Nicholas Thompson is keeping score on"The Tom DeLay Scandals." Pardon my monomania about this, if you will. It's important because he is both corrupt and ruthless.

  The Funeral: I'll be watching the live broadcast of the funeral for John Paul II this morning, between 4:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. edt. As the BBC's Peter Gould observes, it is being compared with

  

• Apr 8, 2005
  

  When Has the Flag Been Lowered in Honor of Other Leaders?

  by Cliopatria

  By Liz Glass
  Ms. Glass is an HNN intern.

  This week, President Bush issued a proclamation ordering the United States flag to be flown at half-mast in honor of Pope John Paul II, whose death on April 2nd has drawn millions of pilgrims to Rome to pay their respects. While many would assert that the gesture is warranted, it has raised some controversy within the U.S., and caused people to wonder how often the U.S. has honored religious and foreign leaders in t

  

• Apr 8, 2005
  

  Of Short Memories and "Short Pants"

  by Cliopatria

  It is a new South Africa indeed. Here is the short version: Marthinus van Schalkwyk, the former leader of the New National Party (the kinder, gentler version of the national party – yes, THAT National Party) has been accused of racism.

  Well what is so noteworthy about that, you ask? The accusations being levied at the man with the nickname of “Kortbroek” (Afrikaans for “short pants,” and no, that is not a compliment) come from white South Africans. Schalkwyk is the Minister of Environmenta

  

• Apr 7, 2005
  

  Pope John Paul II

  by Cliopatria

  Pope John Paul II has passed, and Rebunk has been noticeably reticent thus far. Only two of us are Catholics, only Tom is a halfway decent one, and so perhaps we felt that it was enough to let others speak. And as with the passage of any important figure, there has been no lack of words written about a man who was, if nothing else, vital.

  I come neither to bury nor to praise the Pope. When any historical figure dies, there is an inevitable wave of hagiography followed by the similarly ine

  

• Apr 7, 2005
  

  A General Election Primer

  by Cliopatria

  Yep, we'reoffand running. Our Heroic Leader (albeit slightly delayed) has been
  

• Apr 7, 2005
  

  Some Noted Things ...

  by Cliopatria

  Question: Why does Tom DeLay? Resign!

  Google Map: You may have seen Google Map. Using the view from the sky feature, I could focus in so closely on our house here in Atlanta that I could see the light burning in my study.

  Bellow: Scott McLemee's"Bellow's Gift" at Inside Higher Ed