portfolio: foreign affairs
Trigger Point: Burma's Uneasy Standoff
(Newsweek) The junta and the democracy movement are in an angry war of wills, in which neither side trusts the other -- nor seems to be able to defeat or engage the other ... more >>
In Cuba, Life on the Edge
(Insight) "You steal something from the factory, you buy your ration of cigarettes and resell them," says a diplomat in Havana. "It's how people get by" .... more >>
For China, Getting Rich is Glorious -- But Slow
(Insight) Is Mao Zedong turning in his casket? China is going through its biggest revolution yet -- toward full-throttle capitalism ... more >>
Haiti: Near the Brink ... Or Over?
(Insight) Rule by the gun is nothing new in Haiti, and installing a democratic regime there may be impossible -- even with the most skillful diplomacy ... more >>
Much Smoke, Little Fire in US War on Drugs
(Asia Times) "The US was providing about 80 percent of the funding for fighting drugs," says one expert. "So when that money dried up, opium production increased. But rather than admit their error, the US is blaming the junta" ... more >>
investigative reporting
Body Brokers: The Global Trade in Human Organs
(Insight) Squatting in an alley in the Indian slum, the man runs his finger along the scar below his rib cage. "This is where they cut me open to get the kidney out," he says ... more >>
The Murder of Rio's Street Kids
(Insight) On the mean streets of Rio, kids as young as 5 and 6 years old have taken to crime. Now death squads are imposing their own, brutal system of justice ... more>>
Awash in Scandal, Greece Wrestles its Political Furies
(Insight) Major scandals having been breaking over the past year, revealing just how corrupt Greece's ruling Pasok party really is ... more>>
The Dirty Business of Money Laundering
(Insight) In the war on illegal drugs, the best strategy may be to follow the money trail ... wherever it may lead ... more>>
In the Land of China White
(Insight) A river of heroin runs from the opium fields of Burma to the streets of North America, and more is coming in every day ... more>>
the arts
Off The Wall: The Global Epidemic of Art Crime
(Insight) A self-portrait by Picasso just went for $48 million, and Sotheby's sold a 5,000-year-old marble head for $2 million. Where that kind of money goes, thieves will follow ... more >>
At the Sackler: Portugal's Haunted Empire
(The Washington Post) Vasco da Gama and other Portuguese explorers created the first global trading empire -- but at a cost that the artworks they collected reveals .... more >>
An Unexpected "Legacy" at the National Portrait Gallery
(The Washington Post) Spain had a deep but secretive role in the American War of Independence, as an intriguing exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery reveals ... more >>
Photography: Tim Hall's Golden Faces
(Asia Times) When Tim Hall's portraits work, they work very well. Almost all are powerfully graphic, and a few -- like a portrait of a Hindu holy man -- storm electrically across the frame ... more >>
architecture
Cambodian Modern: The Architecture of Vann Molyvann
(Modernism Magazine) Phnom Penh is undergoing a renewal, but many worry that the great architectural buildings of the 1960s may not survive ...
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Architecture: Crumbling Rangoon Debates a New Look
(Asia Times) If Rangoon wants to keep its distinctive character, it must find ways to modernize without destroying the past -- and time is running out ... more >>
classical music
The Post-Classical Ensemble, Storming the Ramparts
(The Washington Post) Is the symphony orchestra dead? The most unusual chamber orchestra in Washington thinks so, and its out to create the alternative ... more>>
Is the Classical Guitar Ready for its Closeup?
(The Washington Post) Long neglected in the classical world, the guitar is heading into bold new territory, say guitarists -- and the instrument may never be the same ... more>>
"The Universe Resounds": Mahler's Final Triumph
(The Washington Post) Passionate, transcendental and unabashedly joyous, Gustav Mahler's Eighth Symphony is a full-throttle affirmation of life ...
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Opera: Taking a Chance on Sophie's Choice
(The Washington Post) William Styron's searing novel is nothing if not operatic. The story is almost unbearably tragic, careening through passion, cruelty and death ... more >>
Leila Josefowicz: The Dharma of the Violin
(The Washington Post) Is it possible to be a top model for Chanel, and one of the great violinists of the day? Leila Josefowicz has managed both with aplomb ... more>>
composers
Roger Reynolds: The Oracle in the Sanctuary
(The Washington Post) Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Roger Reynolds turns his attention to the origins of music -- and transforms the National Gallery of Art ... more>>
Mason Bates: Bringing Techno to the Concert Hall
(The Washington Post) During the day, Mason Bates is one of the most accomplished young composers in the country. But by night, he heads for the dance clubs of San Francisco, where he spins electronica as the DJ "Masonic" ... more >>
In Conversation: Jefferson Friedman
(The Washington Post) In the latest section of his trilogy on outsider artists, composer Jefferson Friedman delves into the strange, disturbing world of Henry Darger ... more>>
Composer Mark Adamo, Wild at Harp
(The Washington Post) He's the fastest-rising opera composer in the country. So why is Mark Adamo back at the Kennedy Center, premiering a harp concerto? more >>
Matmos, Electronica's Glamour Couple
(The Washington Post) From performing with Björk to collaborating with the Kronos Quartet, the electronic duo known as Matmos are breathing new life into musique concrète ... more>>
Del Tredici's "Final Alice" Returns
(The Washington Post) Composer Dave Del Tredici turned the music world on its ear in 1976, with an utterly contemporary work that was also utterly ...tonal? ... more>>
essays & reportage
The Day Pierre Cardin Came to Rangoon
(Asia Times) One stern young reporter asked, "Do you not agree that the mode of dress reflects the moral habits of a people?" The French designer had to stop and think for a moment ... more >>
Welcome to Marlboro Country
(Asia Times) It was high noon, and a hot, dusty wind was blowing down the streets of Mandalay. I shook the tumbleweeds out of my spurs and had a look around ... more >>
Notes from Underground
(Asia Times) He reached into the grave and pulled out a skull; it was reddish brown, and still had a few teeth in it. "Gaung kun", he said. The head bone ... more >>
Lights! Camera! Neo-colonialists!
(Asia Times) The musket exploded and fake blood burst from the belly of the swordsman. "Run! We have been betrayed!" he gasped, as he pitched slowly into the dust ...more >>
Water on the Brain
(Asia Times) The annual water festival is a pressure valve for Burma's ultra-repressed society -- the one time of the year when people abandon their inhibitions. Sensible people leave town ... more >>
op-ed & commentary
Drowning in Love
(Asia Times) Aung San Suu Kyi has been canonized as a champion of democracy while pursuing a path of increasing irrelevance -- and one has led directly to the other .... more >>
Economic Sanctions: Que Sera, Sera
(Asia Times) When the US imposed sanctions on Burma, diplomats suggested that the move reflected America's failure to come to grips with realities in the region ... more >>
Economic Disneyland
(Asia Times) The similarities between Haiti and Burma are striking -- and suggest that sanctions are likely to be counterproductive ... more>>
Burma, ASEAN and the Politics of Responsibility
(Asia Times) Washington's romanticism towards Burma is increasingly clashing with ASEAN's more hard-headed pragmatism ... more>>
Sanctions Realities
(Asia Times) When the US imposed sanctions on Burma, was it supporting human rights -- or merely playing domestic politics? ... more>>
business, economics & trade
The Next War in Vietnam
(Insight) Vietnam's shift to a free market has drawn in global investors expecting an economic boom. But American business, warn some advisors, is getting shut out … more>>
Advertisers Target New, Improved Myanmar
(Asia Times) As Burma's long-neglected economy slowly develops, a strange and disturbing phenomenon is starting to appear: advertising ... more>>
In Global Trade Talks, a Fight Over Farming
(Insight) When the world's top negotiators met in Montreal to hammer out a new trade agreement, Europe and the United States ended up in a food fight ... more>>
In Unsettled Burma, Banking Goes Underground
(Asia Times) Myanmar's restricted banking system forces much of the economy underground -- and into the arms of black market bankers ... more>>
people & personalities
Anne-Sophie Mutter, Reluctant Goddess
(The Washington Post) "I look pretty grim and gruesome when I play," admits the violinist. "But I'm not in the mood to smile while I'm playing. I'm there to transmit the music!" more >>
Patrick Robert Reinvents the World
(Architectural Digest) Patrick Robert is looking up into a mango tree and laughing. "Burma is the only country," he says, "where the chickens live in the trees" ... more >>
Imelda Marcos, Back On the Warpath
(Insight) Acquitted of corruption charges, former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos is quietly plotting her return to the political stage ... more>>
In Conversation: Eartha Kitt
(The Washington Post) She's been setting men on fire for more than fifty years -- but the original sex kitten, now 80, shows no sign of slowing down ...
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travel & adventure
For a Cultural Vacation with Kids, Think Outside the Frame
(The Washington Post) Spending four days exploring contemporary art in New York with kids in tow may seem like madness. But it doesn't have to be ... more>>
Angkor Wat: Just Add Water
(The Washington Post) The temples of Angkor may be among the wonders of Asia, but they're being overrun with tourists. The solution? Visit when the rains come ... more>>
Feet Accompli in St Michaels, Maryland
(The Washington Post) Shamed into getting the first pedicure of his life, one writer discovers a cold-weather getaway on Maryland's Eastern Shore ...
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An Unlikely Paradise on the Bay of Bengal
(Asia Times) After eight long hours on the road from Yangon, Chaung Tha is a delight. Palm trees sweep along the beach, and the only sound is the cursing of enraged Belgians .... more >>
First Ascent: Ozaki Summits Burma's Highest Peak
(Asia Times) Japanese alpinist Takashi Ozaki has conquered some of the toughest mountains in the Himalayas. But he has one thing to say about Hkakabo Razi: Never again ... more >>
crime & punishment
Battling the Tomb Raiders of Latin America
(Insight) Looters, antiquities dealers and corrupt officials are fast draining Latin America of its antiquities -- and soon "there may be nothing left to dig," say archaeologists ... more >>
Artful Deception
(Insight) Art forgers have been around for centuries. But with the entry of naive new buyers into the art market, forgers are having a field day ...
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Chinese Mafia Takes Vice Abroad
(Insight) Well-organized Chinese gangs, known as triads, are spreading into lucrative new markets in the West ... more>>
Long Days on the Fake Money Trail
(Insight) Counterfeiting US currency is a global, multi-billion dollar business, and it may be about to get even bigger ... more>>
funny ha ha
Lunching With Imelda (or, Life in the Food Chain)
(Asia Times) One of the great things about living in the late twentieth century is that you get to share it with Imelda Marcos. I realize that not everyone agrees with me on this .... more >>
Marathon Man(Manager) Thousands of people spill over onto the sidewalk, and I press myself into the fence. Some of the runners see me and shout, "Hello! Where are you going?" ... more >>
the media
Brutal Junta Kidnapped by Aliens!
(Asia Times) Is Koo Stark carrying the Dalai Lama's baby? Ok -- it sounds a little far-fetched. But if Burma's military dictatorship says it's true ... more >>
Reading Between the Lines
(Asia Times) It's written with all the flair of a Russian tank manual, but the official newspaper of Burma's secretive military junta provides odd clues to what's really going on ... more >>
All's Fair in the Image War
(Asia Times) In the media battle over Burmese politics, says democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, "We sometimes think we have a secret friend in the government" ... more >>
global culture
Salif Keita: From Outcast to Icon
(The Washington Post) After making his name in Paris over the pats two decades, Afropop superstar Salif Keita has returned to his native Mali to fight for the rights of Africa's albinos ... ... more>>
(The Washington Post) The music of African political revolution pioneered by Fela Kuti is having a surprising revival -- in white, suburban America ... more>>
In Burma's Spirit World, The Pwe's The Thing
(Asia Times) Preening daintily, the chubby transvestite minces across the floor. "You're going to find something you've lost," she lisps to a well-dressed woman ... more >>
In Trinidad, Beating the Steel Drums of War
(Insight) Popular "pannists" enjoy the status of rock stars, the tabloid headlines scream rumors about their romances, and at Carnival time the excitement turns into fever ... more >>
In the Strange Church of the Dictatorship
(Asia Times) For anyone really interested in understanding Burma, the Defense Museum is a direct look into the conflicted heart of the the military junta that runs the country ... more >>
In Mandalay, An Artist Keeps Vanishing Worlds Alive
(Asia Times) As his chalk moves quickly over the canvas, dragons and winged elephants appear, dancing girls cavort in gardens, and celestial beings beam down from the clouds .... more >>
wildlife & conservation
Saving the Tigers of Southeast Asia
(Asia Times) In the remote and nearly inaccessible jungles of the Hukaung Valley, Alan Rabinowitz is setting up the largest tiger preserve in Asia -- virtually single-handed ... more >>
From Kenya to Hong Kong, a Secret Trail of Illegal Ivory
(Insight) Africa's elephants are being decimated by thriving international traffic in illegal ivory -- and there may be little that conservationists can do about it ... more >>