Just back from Ukraine, I follow TV reports of the election protests in Kiev, the capital. Via e-mail, friends have described the situation in Odessa, where I lived, as much calmer. Odessa is neither in …
Go Abroad!
Odessa Impressions
Orrecchiette Alla Barese
This is a typical southern Italian dish served in the winter, and it's one that I personally like. The sausage with the broccoli is common in Italy. It was usually served as a sandwich, but …
December 23, 2004
Sour Pickle Soup
In the aftermath of World War II, small Jewish communities came to life again in Eastern Europe. The Jews who rebuilt them had survived the Holocaust by using aliases, escaping concentration camps, or fleeing to …
November 18, 2004
Chinese flies
Matt: In school there was a rumor that Chairman Mao convinced the population of China that everyone should participate in the Great Leap Forward and kill ten flies every day to help rid the country …
September 30, 2004
Ultimate Warrior
In the spring of 2003, the United States Marines led the invasion of Iraq. At the point of the spear was the First Reconnaissance Battalion out of Camp Pendleton. The platoons of "First Recon" rotated …
August 12, 2004
Nothing Like the Movies
We are on-track for Iraqi sovereignty to occur on July 1, 2004, as scheduled. Every day, we are building more capacity for the Iraqis to provide their own security, including police and armed forces.
March 18, 2004
Who invented skyjacking?
Heymatt: Who hijacked the first airplane? Just curious. Not planning anything. -- Nameless, of course Jetjacking is an art we've been perfecting for 74 years. The first recorded incident was in Peru in 1930, when …
March 11, 2004
Lê Thi Diem Thúy’s The Gangster We Are All Looking For
“Linda Vista, with its rows of yellow houses, is where we eventually washed to shore. Before Linda Vista, we lived in the Green Apartment on Thirtieth and Adams, in Normal Heights. Before the Green Apartment, …
February 5, 2004
Best of 2003: Best Argentine Empanadas
Tango Grille Argentine Steakhouse 635 Broadway (at J), Chula Vista 619-420-0384 Argentina's best-known contribution to world cuisine is probably its empanada, a savory turnover (like a "Hot Pocket") -- very handy for a gaucho to …
December 25, 2003
Invasion's End
A couple of weeks ago Jay Leno did a gag about how the Japanese had offered to send troops to help out in Iraq. "Great timing," he said, the message being that the Japanese had …
July 3, 2003
Cooking the Books
It's been highly amusing to watch the flow of charges and countercharges over cooking the intelligence books on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. "The administration deliberately bent the data to make 'the Merkin people' …
June 12, 2003
Special Forces, Then and Now
Awhile back, a friend asked me what the differences are between the Special Forces of my day and this generation of Green Berets. After careful thought I have decided that the spirit is identical, the …
May 22, 2003
Plenty of Time to Fret
Shouldn’t this money be earmarked for our own people? How is my life improved by forcing the Iraqi people to accept our form of government? It’s hard to make sense out of this when you’re 17.
May 8, 2003
It's Not Your Father's M16
'If you think the M16 is bad in the jungle, you should see it with sand in it," said my friend Samir. The topic under discussion was why he carried an AK47. He was showing …
May 1, 2003
Left in Hell
"They were careless people...they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the …
April 17, 2003