Foreign Affairs – BZ Maestro Eats

The Straw Man of the Ukraine War

One of the unfortunate consequences of the highly politicized and fractured nature of current American public discourse is the extent to which many serious issues are framed in black and white terms. In most cases, looking at the shades of gray between the two extreme positions would be more productive. I bring this up nowContinue reading “The Straw Man of the Ukraine War”

Our Long Weekend in Virginia: Part 1

My wife and I hit the road for the first time in a while this past weekend. Our destination was Virginia, where we spent a night in Staunton before heading southwest to Richmond, the state capital, for a couple more days and nights. Those of you who have read some of my old travel postsContinue reading “Our Long Weekend in Virginia: Part 1”

Potential Consequences of Digging In on Ukraine

I’ve written about Robert D. Kaplan, a favorite writer and international affairs analyst of mine. One of his favorite sayings is that in order to avoid tragedy, leaders must think tragically. That’s what renowned foreign affairs Realist, Professor John J. Mearsheimer of the University of Chicago, does in the piece linked to below. He examinesContinue reading “Potential Consequences of Digging In on Ukraine”

Robert Kaplan Returns to a Familiar Theme

I just came across the latest piece by Robert D. Kaplan and thought it worth sharing. Its central theme is one of those that I focused on in my essay about his work; that being the error that many westerners make in placing too much emphasis on democracy and too little on good governance andContinue reading “Robert Kaplan Returns to a Familiar Theme”

Robert Kaplan on the Ukraine Situation

I thought those of you who read my recent post on Robert D. Kaplan might be interested in what he has to say about the current situation. He has a new piece out in which he returns to some of the themes he wrote about in his book, The Revenge of Geography: The Ukrainian Pivot:Continue reading “Robert Kaplan on the Ukraine Situation”

Robert D. Kaplan: A Mind Apart

By Barry Zukerman With all due respect to Jonathan Goldsmith, who plays “The Most Interesting Man in the World” in Dos Equis beer commercials, I submit that Robert D. Kaplan is truly deserving of that title. Among today’s writers and commentators on international affairs, he has an increasingly rare willingness to put aside partisanship andContinue reading “Robert D. Kaplan: A Mind Apart”