APRIL 2012 ISSUE of Vanity Fair

THE WRATH OF PUTIN

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/politics/2012/04/vladimir-putin-mikhail-khodorkovsky-russia

The Tall Stranger

Riding the High Country

Thematically, what is the western all about? That’s a big question, bearing in mind the breadth and endurance of the genre. So many themes have been encompassed over the decades and plots have woven all types of ideas into the fabric of the genre. I frequently return to the notion of redemption and it naturally crops up time and again, but I’m inclined to think the western is all about searching. Sure John Ford made one of the greatest movies of all time with that word and idea helping to form its title, but the concept of groups and individuals forever ranging towards a mythical west in search of something is at the root of so many stories. Even that is a nebulous comment and open to all kinds of interpretations so I’ll try to nail it down a bit. I reckon the western is primarily about seeking out a…

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Dreyfus Affair and Belle Epoque – Five Books Expert Recommendations

https://fivebooks.com/best-books/dreyfus-affair-belle-epoque-ruth-harris/

Arm Ukraine now or face war on NATO territory, Khodorkovsky warns

https://www.euronews.com/2022/06/23/arm-ukraine-now-or-face-war-on-nato-territory-khodorkovsky-warns

Arm Ukraine now or face war on NATO territory, Khodorkovsky warns

https://www.euronews.com/embed/1973286

Mikhail Khodorkovsky: we must win the struggle for the minds of the Russian people | Financial Times

https://www.ft.com/content/61bb9bad-e7e8-4328-858c-77562e7bfae1

Mikhail Khodorkovsky: ‘Putin has embarked on a route that is going to lead to his demise’ | Financial Times

https://www.ft.com/content/8b58a54e-6b0b-49c7-bfff-6189affa4449

Mikhail Khodorkovsky: ‘Putin has embarked on a route that is going to lead to his demise’ | Financial Times

https://www.ft.com/content/8b58a54e-6b0b-49c7-bfff-6189affa4449

Spirits of the Past

https://samf.substack.com/p/spirits-of-the-past?s=r

The Anticlimax of the Jan. 6 Hearings

“This was only reinforced by the Iran-contra hearings the following decade. The hearings themselves were compelling; the tenor and quality of questioning can feel like a transmission from a lost world of verbal dexterity and mental acumen compared with today’s ponderous gasbagging, and one of the underlings went to prison, but many of those most responsible escaped any serious penalties. This tendency continued through the next decade, as the Whitewater investigation and impeachment of Bill Clinton devolved into little more than a tawdry exercise in erotic fiction, and he emerged from his congressional acquittal more popular than he was before the impeachment and trial.”

https://www.brown.edu/Research/Understanding_the_Iran_Contra_Affair/gallery.php

Permanent Pandemic

by Justin E. H. Smith

Will COVID controls keep controlling us?

https://harpers.org/archive/2022/06/permanent-pandemic-will-covid-controls-keep-controlling-us/