(hitting more than casual nerves in New York)

As the "Ground Zero Mosque" controversy continues, even ABC Radio National's Late Night Live program devoted some time to it last week. Phillip Adams did an interview with Parvez Ahmed regarding the deep divide in opinion on the Mosque and how Pop-culture politicos like Sarah Palin are making hay out of the mayhem with recent comments via Twitter.

Parvez Ahmed: “What’s kind of puzzling and troubling about her (Sarah Palin’s) Tweet is that she is trying to kind of whip up this frenzy against the mosque when it is completely unnecessary. And yet she, herself does not repudiate even people that she associates with who harbor obvious Islamophobic views, like a member of her Tea Party who says Muslims worship a Monkey God. And she never comes out repudiating those kind of Islamophobic attitudes and statements but she comes out with this Tweet fanning the flames that are already kind of raw and people’s emotions are on kind of a heightened alert. You would think that a political leader at such a time would exercise prudence and try to bring people together and calm people down and not throw fuel to the fire.”

But as Adams quipped, prudence and Palin don't go together.

I'm afraid this story is not destined for a happy or even satisfying end.

(A metaphor)

If all the predictions are true, China will overtake American economy in roughly thirty years. At the rate things are going I would have thought that may have already happened, but that's why I'm not in charge. But all of that is significant because the balance of power is changing in Asia. China has already overtaken Japan as an economic power and the only one standing in the way at the moment is India.

As part of ABC Radio National in Australia's Late Night Live show, Philip Adams devoted a goodly chunk of an hour last week (July 26th) interviewing John Mearsheimer, professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. As an International Relations Theorist, Mearsheimer offered a few insights as to what the current state of affairs is shaping up to look like and what the future may hold.

John Mearsheimer: “The question I often pose to people is ‘why do you think that the United States and India have become close friends over the past twenty years?’ And most people will say ‘that’s because they’re both democracies’. But the fact is that both countries were democracies during the cold war, and we had very cold, if not hostile relations with India during the Cold War.”

Philip Adams: “Well more than that, they were spectacularly non-aligned.”

Mearsheimer: “Correct. And they were deeply resentful of American behavior around the world. So there was no close relationship. But that all changed over the past twenty years and especially in the last ten years, and you see it in this recent nuclear deal between the United States and India. So the question is what’s going on there? And basically, this is the beginning of an alliance between India and the United States that’s aimed at China.”

And you thought all of this was a coincidence? 'Fraid not. Remember that the next time you call Tech Support.

Since Mearsheimer also has a few words about the current state of the Middle East and nuclear capabilities, I just let the whole interview roll. Mearsheimer is not particularly well regarded amongst the cabal of neocons. This might offer some insight.

Lots of ground covered. Sad we don't get those kinds of interviews here.

Continuing our World survey of Election 2012, the always pithy and relevant ABC Radio National Australia program Late Night Live weighs in on the latest goings on with the Republican Presidential race and looks at the aspirations of Ron Paul. Assisting host Phillip Adams is writer Guy Randall, talk show host Michael Essany and political correspondent Bruce Shapiro.

Safe to say Oz is just as baffled as many of us are, only they come right out and say it.

As always, it's lively and highly informative. It just happened earlier today so it's direct from the microphone to your ears.

And have I told you lately that if you have any kind of interest in knowing what's really going on in the world ABC Radio National in Australia is essential listening? Just sayin'.

The news of the passing last night of Christopher Hitchens came with its own cloud of sadness. Knowing full well how these situations usually end, as they have so often in the past, it still came as a shock when word came of the passing of one of the all-too-few eloquent and articulate observers of our life and times.

Hitchens detractors and critics are legion - they run the political gamut. He was loved and hated, often by the same people. The thing was, Hitchens had the gift and ability to articulate in ways that, even if you passionately disagreed, you found yourself listening to and understanding. Maybe not agreeing, probably not changing minds, but understanding.

Sadly, and this is an indictment of our society and its failure at civil discourse, there are too few Hitchens' around to pick up the slack. The playing field of intelligent social commentary has shrunk immeasurably over the years. Christopher Hitchens presence, particularly with mainstream media, was more of an anomaly than a common occurrence, and for that we are the poorer.

During his tour promoting Hitch-22, he was interviewed by Philip Adams of the Late Night Live program from ABC National Radio in Australia, shortly before he was diagnosed with the Cancer that eventually took his life. I originally ran it as part of my World Week posts for the week of May 27th, 2010. I thought I would re-post it as a way of tribute to the man and his gift.

He'll be missed.

(Alfred W. McCoy, author of A Question of Torture, interviewed on Late Night Live - ABC Radio National, Australia. March 15, 2006)

Note: This is a re-post from May - considering the current events in the torture issue, it seems apropos to take another look at it now.

I'm always amazed at how, in order to get any information about my own country, I have to listen to the radio or watch the news from another country in order to find out what's going on.

If you aren't familiar with it, ABC Radio National is Australias public Radio network - it's the equivalent to the BBC in the UK and CBC in Canada. Like the other two, ABC National offers a massive amount of information and news that just doesn't make the mainstream media here.

Case in point - I ran across this episode of Late Night Live, while downloading a group of podcasts from 2006. It features torture/interrogation expert Alfred W. McCoy. He explains at length our history in the field of torture, the techniques used and the reasons why most of them don't and haven't worked.

It was conducted in March of 2006, shortly after the revelations of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo. There are some fascinating insights to be found, especially in light of recent developments and soft peddling to the contrary.