Things Noted Here and There

Democracy Now, 28 December, interviews our colleague, Manan Ahmed, and Tariq Ali about the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and Pakistan's future. Here, Manan comments on the American blogosphere's obsession with how Bhutto died and reports the hair-raising experience of a friend amidst the riots in Karachi.

"Noble or Savage?" Economist, 18 December, argues that, for all its problems, the shift from hunter/gatherer to agrarian societies was a move away from aggression. Hattip.

Eric Foner,"Forgotten Step Toward Freedom," NYT, 30 December, recalls the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade and considers why it has had so much attention in Great Britain and so little in the United States.

Garry Wills,"Romney and JFK: The Difference," NYRB, 17 January, argues that there are more differences than similarities in Mitt Romney's and John F. Kennedy's statements about their candidacies and their religious commitments.

David Brooks hands out the Sidney Awards for the best magazine essays of 2007 here and here. Hat tip.

Finally, Ian Pindar,"Welcome to the China Syndrome," Guardian, 29 December, looks at what books historians will have on offer in 2008. Hat tip to Mary Dudziak at Legal History Blog.