The Europeans say that for them, the argument is not theoretical.

Al Qaeda threat has analysts split into 2 opposing camps

Al Qaeda and the Taliban are doing a far better job of expanding their insurgency than the United States and its allies are of trying to stop it.

Militants' rise in Pakistan points to opportunity lost

He worries that the Air Force has taken a big hit while other services have remained largely unscathed for more serious violations. "I think there is a balance issue here."

Shake-up may lead to deeper overhaul

A mere six months ago, it seemed a good bet that Hillary Clinton would win the Democratic presidential nomination. It didn’t turn out that way. The Op-Ed page asked 13 political experts to explain why they thought her campaign didn’t live up to expectations.

What Went Wrong?

Life is stranger than fiction for Leonardo DiCaprio. It is a familiar trend for Leo, he played Howard Hughes in The Aviator, Frank Abagnale in Catch Me If You Can, and Tobias Wolff in This Boy’s Life. And Leo’s also attached to films in development about Wall Street felon Jordan Belfort and James Bond creator Ian Fleming. Well, portraying real people on screen has continued, as the Oscar-nominated actor-producer has pressed the play button. Leo just become attached to star in “Atari,” a pitch that writers Brian Hecker and Craig Sherman sold to Paramount on Friday about the godfather of the video game industry, Nolan Bushnell.

Leo DiCaprio as the founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese?

The easiest pub quiz question in the world: name a river that flows through London. Answer: the Thames. A somewhat more difficult question: name another river that flows through London. A few might know of the river Lee (or Lea) that springs near Leagrave in Bedfordshire and joins the Thames at Leamouth in the London borough of Tower Hamlets. But how about: name a third river that flows through London? And a fourth, a fifth, a sixth?

London’s Lost Rivers

David Sedaris has a new book.

Trying to make coffee when the water is shut off, David considers using the water in a vase of flowers and his chain of associations takes him from the French countryside to a hilariously uncomfortable memory of buying drugs in a mobile home in rural North Carolina. In essay after essay, Sedaris proceeds from bizarre conundrums of daily life -- having a lozenge fall from your mouth into the lap of a fellow passenger on a plane or armoring the windows with LP covers to protect the house from neurotic songbirds -- to the most deeply resonant human truths. Culminating in a brilliant account of his venture to Tokyo in order to quit smoking, David Sedaris's sixth essay collection is a new masterpiece of comic writing from "a writer worth treasuring."

When You Are Engulfed in Flames

Environmentalism has replaced socialism as the leading secular religion. Some would say this is exactly the kind of music people would pay good money to be able to silence. By invoking emotionally volatile imagery, The Forever War, Science Fiction Version, reads exactly like Chinese propaganda. Remember: You can't beat the Axis if you get VD. Also, beware the temes.

Although we weren't meant to suffer this much, what we have in America is a nation of places not worth caring about. We must subvert the status quo, and we must reconsider the necessity and wisdom of the blanket, indiscriminate classification.

What we have here is a family of concrete dinosaurs, making an epic journey of neurodiscovery. Despite the tendencies of the 'uneducated', at some point, they will come to recognize the value of loitering -- not to be confused with The Forever War, Real World Version.

A recap of the last thirty days.

This trip was going to be different.

I for one, have never updated my will before any other trip. And I wasn't alone. Out of the five of us that were going, three updated their wills and/or life insurance policies in the weeks before we left.

Where were we going?

Angola

An epic bike journey through Africa.

Angola, it's not like they said. - ADVrider

Susan Blackmore studies memes: ideas that replicate themselves from brain to brain like a virus. She makes a bold new argument: Humanity has spawned a new kind of meme, the teme, which spreads itself via technology -- and invents ways to keep itself alive

TED | Talks | Susan Blackmore: Memes and "temes" (video)