Commodities Chaos
The massive commodities sell-off stumped everybody. Financial analysts are still looking for clues as to what caused it. Oil and silver were hardest hit, seemingly without reason. Has the bubble burst or was the market just clearing out the “froth”?
Omara Portuondo and Chucho Valdés
On tour in Europe to promote their new album, simply entitled “Omara and Chucho”, the legendary Cuban musicians had the audience jumping out of their seats when they performed at Rome’s Auditorium Parco della Musica.
Devouring Venice
Fleeing the rapacious hordes of Attila the Hun, refugees from nearby Roman cities took refuge on the islets of the Venetian lagoon during the 5th century, laying the foundations of what was to become the great and powerful city of Venice. These days the “Serenissima” is overrun by hordes of a different kind.
Wicked Company
Philipp Blom’s new book “Wicked Company” recounts the life of Baron d’Holbach’s intellectual salon of free thinkers, the “epicenter of intellectual life in Europe”, in 18th century Paris. His salon was regularly attended by Diderot, Rousseau and a steady stream of eminent visitors from the 1750s right up until the French revolution.
Banking on Rural India
A new breed of financiers is offering alternatives to micro – and bank – finance to rural India’s entrepreneurs. These financial organisations are innovating in the way they provide finance and integrated start-up support including incubation, mentoring and management training.
The Scramble for China
Interview with Robert Bickers, the author of the recently published “The Scramble for China, Foreign Devils in the Qing Empire 1832-1914”. In 1832, British ships sailed into forbidden Chinese waters, thus beginning China’s century of national humiliation.
Fukushima and Nuclear Politics
The tragedy that we all saw unfolding recently in Japan has obliged the world to rethink its nuclear policy. At Fukushima we witnessed one of the most catastrophic nuclear accidents that has ever taken place.
ECB and the Fed: Parting Company?
The European Central Bank and the Federal Reserve Bank appear to have parted company on policy. Europe has decided that inflation is the real danger, while the US is still struggling with sluggish growth and unemployment. Different banks, different demons to fight?
Sex Mob and Way Beyond….
TGD catches up with Steven Bernstein, trumpeter, slide trumpeter, arranger/composer and bandleader from New York City. He is best known for his work with Millennial Territory Orchestra, Sex Mob, Spanish Fly and The Lounge Lizards. And much more…
Why the West Rules For Now
Eminent Stanford polymath, Ian Morris, speaks to The Global Dispatches about his new book, explaining why the paths of development differed in the East and the West and predicting when the West’s lead will come to an end.