The other factor, besides no food, no oil, firebombed and nuked cities, was a million strong Red Army ready to destroy the Japanese Army in Manchuria. (View Post)

As Ayatollah Khomeini said when Iran faced economic hardship back in the 1980s, we did not fight this revolution for watermelons. For religious hardliners, austerity is a lesser concern than the need… (View Post)

Anecdata: my Dubai moles report only occasional noise nuisance from the neighbouring war zone but are worried about the long term consequences for investment into the emirate. Meanwhile, horseracing … (View Post)

That is the paradox. High oil prices are bad for American consumers (and voters) but excellent news for American squillionaires who rub shoulders with the president and bankroll Republicans. (View Post)

That is what they did. He was put on oxygen while they did the other tests. No point in having the tests come back positive if he is already dead by then. (View Post)