U2: One Tree Hill Live at Soldier Field | July 6th, 2011
Here’s a vid I got at last night’s show. The audio quality’s pretty lacking, but it was cool hearing a song that they rarely play live.
Here’s a vid I got at last night’s show. The audio quality’s pretty lacking, but it was cool hearing a song that they rarely play live.

“Hi, USA? It’s your old buddy, Pakistan!
“Osama bin Laden in our country? As if! Hmm, it’s really a mystery where he is … don’t you guys hate Iran? I mean he’s gotta be there, right? The guy’s an icon of religious tolerance; surely he could have overcome the centuries-old Sunni/Shi’a divide.
“No, of course that’s not ridiculous. Which one of us lives in this part of the world? Come on, trust me.
“That enormous secured compound built four years after 9/11 in the sizable city of Abbottabad, which also has a huge Pakistani army base and military academy? You mean the compound where they burn their trash, and some tall guy in a camo jacket keeps ordering dialysis treatments? What can I say, you know these kids and their McMansions! It’s like a regular fraternity party in there. Imagine the heating bill for that place, am I right or what?
“By the way, can you spare a few billion dollars again for military aid? It would totally help me out in fighting these terrorists, bro. For real, I got your back.
“You know, because you’re such a great friend, I’m going to treat you to a special deal at our new venture, ISI Used Cars — I just got this shipment of ’83 Yugos that purr like a kitten, and they have your name written all over them. Consider it a favor for letting those drone strikes slide!
“Alright, I gotta get going to my meeting with the Taliban … oh jeez, did I say Taliban? I meant to say Talleyrand — I’ve really gotten into Bourbon Restoration re-enactment, so I’m going to this conference for Congress of Vienna enthusiasts. Should be a ton of waistcoats up in there.
“But for real, bro — you’re my ace and I love you like a brother. We are totally tight allies, for real. Catch you on the flip – Pakistan out!”

G and I just got back from a week in the cité, during which approximately 12 pounds of croissants and pain au chocolat were consumed by each one of us. Some observations:
That said, the Musée de l’Armée is a pretty out-there perspective on France in World War II — the Resistance was only 5% of the population, and the Vichy government actively fought against the Allies, but you’d be hard-pressed to discover either of those things in their WWII exhibit. I get the need for national psychological redemption, but wow.
Honorable mentions: Modern art at the Pompidou is still more interesting than the popular older stuff; Emmental cheese on a croque monsieur is delicious enough to blow up the Death Star; remembering French from high school was a huge benefit; French-style mussels marinière are better in America than in France; Kronenbourg 1664 (the macrobrew of France) is pretty solid; we met a few rude waiters but they’re in the minority; the Catacombes are one of the ghoulishly best things to see; I could drown in onion soup and die a pleasantly savory death; and the Hôtel Caron de Beaumarchais is a phat place to stay if you’re in Paris.
My new favorite cooking site is Manjula’s Kitchen, which from a digital professional’s point of view is ideally organized and contains all the content you could want for Indian cooking info. But I like it even better for the videos, which are clearly just Manjula’s husband taping her in her kitchen and forgetting to edit cues like “OK, go.” It’s an endearing mix of professional organization and homemade goofiness, plus dal.
But may everyone have a meat-and-tea filled day honoring the nation that thought this up:

Here’s a thoughtful piece that should be obvious but too often isn’t: just why it is that military occupation makes people angry, no matter how well-intentioned it may be.
“Why They Hate Us: Lessons from Civil War Reconstruction”, ForeignPolicy.com, Nov. 23, 2009
Although as the first commenter pointed out, the question is when it’s worthwhile to occupy another nation anyway. That’s the tricky part.
Things I don’t like about the G20 in Pittsburgh today:
Things I like about the G20 in Pittsburgh today:

As much as it’s feasible in light of the enormous deficits on the horizon, this is a cool idea:
U.S. to Forgive Indonesian Debt in Exchange for Conservation Plan, Wall Street Journal
The more forest that’s protected to suck in CO2, the better, and obviously a poor nation’s government benefits when the debt evaporates.