In journalism,”dumb” questions often get smart answers. In Tripoli in recent days, I have repeatedly asked Libyans if they think Moammar Gadhafi or his politically ambitious sons can one day make a comeback. People look at me with incredulity, as if the foreigner has a learning disability. Impossible, never, he is a criminal, are some […]

In the last 24 hours, I drove with two VOA colleagues from southern Tunisia through the desert and mountains to Tripoli, Libya, on the Mediterranean. Troops loyal to Col. Moammar Gadhafi still control the coastal road. Leaving Tunisia’s Djerba Island, we stopped at Tatouine to stock up on necessities before crossing into Libya. We loaded […]

Over dinner at a Kyiv restaurant, Oksana, a Ukrainian journalist remarks, in Russian, that if she ever had to visit Moscow, she would address people in Ukrainian. At another gathering, Yulia, a visiting Russian, innocently suggests to Anna, a gallery manager, that it might be useful to have two passports – one Ukrainian and a […]

Let’s shake off August doldrums, and play a mind stretching game. Let’s imagine democratic, free market Georgia as . . . the Cuba of the Caucasus. For both countries, whether in the Caribbean or in the Caucasus, threat numero uno is the Colossus of the North. This Northern Empire has a long history of interfering […]