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News
- I cannot ignore Republican Idiocy on Iran (NYT). David Ignatius has one of the most reasoned demolitions of this folly, GOP senators’ letter to Iran is dangerous and irresponsible (The Washington Post). These are not serious people. American public office is open to those who aspire from all walks of life, even those who seek office only to protest or damage government. Many who assume high office then seek to rise to the ideals and challenge of the office, becoming statesmen (and women) in the proper sense of the word. These 47 have not. Turning every issue into a partisan battle, and foolishly embarrassing and undermining the country in its foreign affairs is inexcusable.
- While the US Senate fiddles on Iran, Sunni ISIL is busy destroying Iraq’s tangible cultural heritage (UNESCO). As a student in Hong Kong in spring of 2001 I got a dark premonition of things to come when the Taliban turned attention to Afghanistan’s Giant Buddha’s at Bamiyan. Will this culminate in a march on Mecca itself and how will Saudi Arabia react when forced to reap what it has sown?
- How We Learned to Kill (NYT). A puzzle of humanity I cannot fathom, why and how do we kill?
- Burger Chain Creates Huge 14-Layer “Tokyo Tower Burger” (JapanCRUSH). Leave it to the Japanese to take Americans excesses and out-do them.
- Scientists have figured out what makes Indian food so delicious (The Washington Post). The secret, suggested by Indian fashion, is in garish clashes.
- How Chinese and Americans Understand Culture (The Diplomat). Sometime I will write my take on the ‘face’ scam and how it is manipulated.
- China Corruption Crackdown Deals Macau a Rough Hand (WSJ). Fewer corruption man purses on the streets.
- Mummified Chinese monk found inside ancient Buddha statue (Shanghaiist). Didn’t they turn the crank to see if he would pop out?
- Japan’s economy is steadily recovering, the Nikkei Index hitting 15-year highs (The Japan Times).
- Bikram Yoga Founder’s Sexual Assault Cases Are Catching Up with Him (Vanity Fair). I know nothing about this other than that mysticism, hot temps, skimpy clothes and suggestive poses seem ripe for mischief.
- Nobody Puts Nouri in the Corner (Foreign Policy). Speaking of mischief, Iraq’s desposed recent leader may be plotting a comeback.
- With Hendrick Motorsports Dominant, Sprint Cup Is Becoming a One-Team Race (NYT). I get the whole boys with toys thing, though never have been able to see motor racing as a sport. Intense competition, yes, but not sport.
- Shale Gas Project Encounters Determined Foes Deep in Algerian Sahara (NYT).
- Cyprus Signs Deal to Let Russian Navy Ships Stop at its Ports (WSJ). Does not seem like a good idea no matter how much Russian money ends up on that island.
- Business Is Booming at Abu Dhabi’s Great Arms Bazaar (Foreign Policy).
- A rare look inside a Saudi prison that showers terrorists with perks (The Washington Post).
- Why U.S. Expats Should Never Own Foreign Mutual Funds (WSJ Expat).
Travel:
- Obama to give free parks admission to fourth graders (USA Today). I can hear the cries now, “Get Obama and the government out of my national parks!”
- Cruise Critic names the best ships for 2015 in the 5th Annual Cruisers’ Choice Awards (Travel Daily News).
- Viking Cruises look at St. Paul as port of call (Star Tribune). I always post on my home state, Minnesota.
- Back in the land of futility, New York, Fixing Broken Penn Station Escalator Will Take Weeks (WSJ). And De Blasio’s ferry plan for New York: It’s a bad idea. Ferries almost always are (Slate).
- Hiking the Great Wall of China, the wild and free way (The Washington Post). My best and solitary Great Wall experience was out in Ningxia province.
- Japanese Banks to Link More ATMs to Global Grid (WSJ). Would be nice to have more options than Japan Post and Seven Bank for foreign ATM cards.
- Is Purchasing a Tourist Card Worth It? (Frugal Travel Guy). Seems every city in Europe has them, they always seem to exclude the best sites, though can be great deals and means to skip lines.
- How to Get a Vietnam Tourist Visa – Faster and Cheaper (The Reward Boss). Vietnam on my upcoming business travel calendar. The NYC consulate can do same-day visas and even better are pre-cleared visa on arrival, though both still require a Letter of Invitation and as the consulate warns, there are many shady providers.
- Indian Tourist Visa on Arrival – In Practice (Will Run For Miles). Even India can cut down on bureaucracy!
- Map Happy has two great female-focused pieces, Does Makeup Count as Liquids When Flying? and How To Protect and Pack Bras for Travel.
- Everybody Hates a Tourist visits Dacchau.
- Amsterdam is expensive, Loyalty Traveler shares his self-catering choice in My best friend in Amsterdam is Albert Heijn.
- Lion Air To Improve Services After Delay Chaos (WSJ Indonesia Real Time). Chaos is what they always are. Last time at least they canceled my flights several days in advance rather than stranding me day of travel.
- From Freddies to Skytrax: Making Sense of Airline and Airport Awards (Skift).
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On the Vietnam visa, while its not necessary for you given the business nature of the trip, is far simpler to get in other parts of Southeast Asia if you are on a larger trip, when we were there 4 years ago, the Lonely Planet recommended getting them in Cambodia, which is what we did. The embassy in Phnom Phen did ours next day, and the Consulate in Sihanoukville is supposed to do them same day.
@Muerl – I hear the visa on arrival line can rival Indonesia, which makes me shudder.
Yes, I second divide and conquer! And even all efforts fail eventually , President Obama still have the silver bullet! He shall send Carrie Mathison back to Iran. Though Broody was long gone, I won’t mind she teams up with Quinn.
Love Will Ford’s Great Wall climbing article. It is funny and insightful. I went to Shimatai Great Wall in 2010. That was indeed an unique special experience to interact with local people. They might be poor but they were friendly. I was told it is remodeled as Disney style resort which is a shame.
@abby, you are the one that needs to do some research and not follow the so-called mainstream media which is a cheerleader to these aggressive policies. Sure, Saddam’s regime was a brutal one that didn’t discriminate against its political opponents, be it Arabs, Kurds, or Persians. During the time in question, the Kurds were helping the Iranians during the Iraq-Iran War by smuggling the Basij across the border to encircle and attack Iraqi forces from the rare, and, thus, brutal Saddam exacted his revenge on them. The US assisted Saddam in acquiring such chemical weapons through US companies such as… Read more »
@abby – and I picked the NYT piece because the headline was apt.
@Joey – sorry, when I was copying and pasting I cut out the oversize burger, it is back in. @robert, @abby – I attempted to separate the substantive issues of what and how is possible in foreign policy in the region from the particular action of this letter. There is no easy solution to the substance. I can’t imagine the blowback if a Democrat Congress did this to a Republican president. Some issues, most indeed, are too important, to let partisan folly and domestic point scoring intrude on policy-making. I have been to Iran and found the most warm welcome… Read more »
Methinks Obama (governing by decree) is hardly in a position to rebuke another branch of government. As one newspaper columnist wrote “The 47 senators who signed that letter are not just afraid of a nuclear Iran. They are afraid of our president.” Why? Search some of his many prior comments on Iran such as “The danger from Iran is grave, it is real, and my goal will be to eliminate this threat.” His many deceits about Obama Care, his mother being denied cancer treatment, the terms of immigration law and on and on, are becoming the stuff of legend.
@Cool Breeze – we are not in a ground way in Egypt, Libya, Syria, Iran or Ukraine at this point, all of which we might very well be. I am not diminishing the potential threat from Iran, I am taking issue with undermining of our governance and putting us at further risk. Divide and conquer, anyone?
Congress undermining the president in the middle of foreign policy negotiations is a step further than I thought we could possibly go in demonstrating the brokenness of our democracy. I’m flabbergasted that 47 (!) senators could’ve signed onto a letter like that. What happened to the republicans that I used to respectfully disagree with? I keep thinking OK, now we’ve reached a new low, they’ve learned their lesson in the election and we are going to move on to trying in good faith to run our government for the good of the country. oops, wrong again.
Where’s the link for the 14-layer burger? Or was that just written there for clickbait? hehe
@abby, are you saying you’ve been to Iran or that you know someone who is Iranian? ‘coz I’ve been to Iran…and so has RTC. You say you are centrist, but what the Republicans did with that letter is outright stupid if not treacherous. Iran will become a threshold state if it wants. Do you really believe it will be possible to stop Iran from becoming one if it wanted? It’s really not that hard to become one. I mean Pakistan shares a long porous border with Iran and could probably be enticed to share in its spoils at the right… Read more »
you might want to keep out of political news you know nothing about. i have good friends who are Iranian and who live in Iran. The religious fanatics who run the country and kill those who protest do not represent the vast majority of Iranians. All the Iranians I have met are warm, generous and peaceful people. Persians are proud and nationalistic- they love their country, but not their leaders. the Ayatollahs and their muscle, the Republican Guard, are cut from the same cloth as ISIL. They sponsor terrorism. They are now fighting ISIL- not to be good global citizens,… Read more »
I salute you for posting about the Republican idiocy on Iran. This reminds me of the NEOCONS beating the drums of war prior to the war on Iraq and the resulting quagmire because of imaginary WMDs. The same group of people who said they couldn’t trust Saddam are saying it about Iran. And we all know how that one is still unraveling.
Thanks again!
Your ignorance of the Iran situation, the senators letter, the risks of President Obama’s policies and politics overall is shocking. Your limited knowledge of travel is not worth your intellectually insulting rants. Removing you from my daily “favorites” list and from my facebook account. Good luck in your left wing fantasy land.
@Kevin R – interesting way to have a debate. And if roles and parties were reversed you would approve this letter?
Mr. Chai, I usually read your musing with great interests, or at least with a grain of salt, but if you think this buffoon of a president is capable of handling foreign diplomatic relations then I’m not sure those years you spent in China don’t have you wearing red. There is no way any sane person would ever trust Iran’s leaders. And why wouldn’t Congress get involved, the current president has demonstrated he will disregard the law and the Constitution to do what he wishes.