Twenty-five years after his cult TV series, Kir Royal, director Helmut Dietl has now come released a sort of ?sequel? for the big screen. Zettl focuses on the high-flying career of a ruthless media man in Berlin. As satire, however, the frigid figures in Zettl fail to warm up to viewers. ...
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The London Review of Books is concerned about second-hand journalism in Britain. Prospect fills us in on the Chinese intellectual scene. Al Ahram explains why Egyptians prefer their flags made in China. Caffe Europa asks: where was Tariq Ramadan when Milan Kundera's book was banned at the Cairo Book Fair. And Gazeta Wyborcza examines the self-confidence of the Polish worker.
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A healthy selection this week! Nigerian women should be punished, because they've only got oil on the brain, The Atlantic discovers. Nepszabadsag is amazed: Jan T. Gross has avoided offending the Turkishness of the Poles by the skin of his teeth. Columbian Hector Abad Faciolince sees the human face of Swiss conservatism. The precariat is today's working class, Telerama announces. Al Ahram introduces the first beauty salon for veiled women. And Denis Johnson discovers Paul Wolfowitz's wet dream in Iraqi Kurdistan.
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The New York Review of Books sees the future of America in a Harlem hairdressers. In the Gazeta Wyborcza, Serbian historian Slavenko Terzic declares Kosovo's independence illegal. The London Review of Books considers the links between Modernism and liberalism, or the lack thereof. In the Novel Obs, Edgar Morin explains how he became a radical anti-Stalinist. Zanan is dead, long live Zanan! cries Al Ahram. The New York Times portrays the Turkish-Kurdish politician Abdullah Demirbas who wanted to ease the pressure on the Kurds and Armenians to assimilate in Turkey.
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Why do Germans like Nicolas Gomez Davila, asks Semana. Le Monde diplomatique goes on a cruise with some Park Avenue ladies. The Spectator buries Venice. Nepszabadsag looks for real Hungarian liberal democrats. In Edge.org, Kevin Kelly looks to the future of the culture industry in the internet. And Portfolio has seen the nemesis of the culture industry in the internet.
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The Blätter für deutsche und internationale Politik warns about Google the monster snoop. Merkur has a transcendental experience with Gerhard Richter and Swarovski. Prospect worries about traditional book reviewing. In Nepszabadsag, historian Dusan Kovac looks into the likelihood of Hungarian-Slovakian reconciliation. And the New Statesman searches for the mild Anglican God.
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The New York Review of Books is fascinated by bloggers. The Independent celebrates the free market of ideas on the web. In ADN cultura we witness the birth of a literary canon. In Nepszabadsag Csaba Gombar ruminates on dog-whistle politics. In Outlook India Arundhati Roy mentally accompanies Harant Dink's coffin through the streets of Istanbul. In Odra, Ludwik Tomialojc shivers at the thought of a nuclear power plant in Poland. In Espresso Umberto Eco has the function of political opposition explained to him. And The Economist watches Rupert Murdoch fail in China.
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In the Chronicle of Higher Education, Laurie Fendrich talks about introducing students to Rousseau's views on women and the theatre. In Nouvel Obs, Abdelwahab Meddeb is hopeful about Iran. The New Republic is up in arms about the anti-Semitic views of Irene Nemirovsky, who was killed in Auschwitz. In the London Review of Books, Eric Hobsbawm gets very excited about the Weimar Republic. Il Foglio describes the close links between pop and drug cartels in Mexico. And Przekroj discovers Polish expats in Ukraine.
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In the Nouvel Obs, Algerian writer Boualem Sansal sees only a fine line between Islamism and Nazism. Nueva Sociedad embarks on an odyssey through Mexico City. In Elet es Irodalom, theologian Tamas Majsai wants to see the Church taking a stand against the Hungarian Guard. As long as skirts are being worn short in Indonesia, The Economist reassures us, there's no need to fear Islamism. Philosopher Frederic Worms recommends Henri Bergson as "an antidote to depression" in Le Point. In the New York Times, Steven Pinker dwells on morality and lifestyle.
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In Outlook India, Taslima Nasrin feels like the living dead. The New York Review of Books introduces an Iraq blog. In Le Nouvel Obs, Catherine Millet remembers the cold, intellectual eroticism of Simone de Beauvoir. Plus-Minus takes its hat off to Sweden's treatment of foreign cultural treasures. The Guardian shines a torch into the world of bibliotherapy. In Die Weltwoche, General Petraeus puts us in the loop about al-Qaeda's anti-smoking strategy. And Folio uncovers plans to create a second Jewish land.
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Il Foglio tells a Catholic tale of heroism from Siberia. Prospect describes the spin-offs of new Irish wealth. Literaturen asks writers about living from the pen. ADN cultura introduces the blogging writers from Brazil. Elet es Irodalom shines a light into the darkest corners of the Hungarian debate. ResetDoc debates Islam and the western left. And the London Review of Books kindly demystifies the credit crunch.
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Elet es Irodalom and HVG would like to see more civil courage in the face of the anti-Roma demonstrations of the Hungarian Guard. In The American Interest, Mario Vargas Llosa celebrates Latin American mestizaje. In Itogie, Boris Akunin finds the peaceful life in France. The Economist has observed Sarkozy's verbaholic tendencies. Przekroj patrols the EU's new eastern border. Plus - Minus speculates about dead French kings in aeroplanes. And in the New Statesman, Richard Dawkins wishes us all a "Happy Newton Day!"
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In Outlook India, Priyamvada Gopal asks the left: why are you silent at the persecution of Taslima Nasreen? In The New York Times, Ayaan Hirsi Ali asks moderate Muslims: why are you silent when a 20-year-old rape victim is sentenced to lashing? In L'Espresso, Umberto Eco tells the Pope: religion is the cocaine of the people. In The New Republic, James Wolcott demands thunder and illumination from literary criticism. In Nepszabadsag, Imre Kertesz explains what he means by atonal prose. Gazeta Wyborcza comments on the decline of Stalinism in North Korea. And The Spectator sips Indian wine.
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Outlook India depairs for its country as the Taslima Nasreen narrative continues. The New Yorker marvels at the vanity of diary writers. Garry Kasparov explains his guerilla tactics against the Kremlin in the Nouvel Obs. Europa warns of the dangerous beast called Russian nationalism. Merkur defends the free society. Nepszabadsag wants to root out the evil in Hungarian politics. Portfolio describes how free Internet downloads are giving the porn industry a run for its money. The Economist tries to sip at the firehose of Internet data, and gets blown away by useless information. And Il Foglio celebrates Poesia magazine, an Italian miracle.
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In the Boston Review, Abbas Milani gives the ultimate lowdown on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Outlook India scrutinises the new men's movement against ex-wives. In Literaturen Daniel Kehlmann celebrates the elastic grammar of Heinrich von Kleist. Nepszabadsag and Elet es Irodalom ruminate intensively on the crisis in Hungary. Al Ahram is amazed by Islamic life in New York. In the Nouvel Obs, Anthony Giddens declares the European social model kaput. And the New York Times searches for suicide bombers in the Moroccan city of Tetuan.
In the Gazeta Wyborcza, philosopher Michael Sandel comes down hard on affected neutrality. John Banville investigates pulp fiction in Bookforum. In L'Express, Garry Kasparov updates the old list of Russian oligarchs. Il Foglio notes an increase in dowry murders among Indian IT experts. Outlook India explains why so many women throw themselves in front of trains in London‘s Southall district. In Elet es Irodalm, Philosopher Miklos Tamas Gaspar reflects on the posthumous workings of Romania's Securitate. And The New York Times scrutinises the Sleep-Industrial Complex.
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