I'm in China right now. Beijing has over a dozen subway lines with trains running every two to three minutes. A station for another line is going in just down the street. The railroad map in my guidebook from two years ago is out of date. The high-speed rail lines are expanding by the year. One can go the equivalent of New York to Chicago in under six hours in a train that is quieter than a car on an expressway and whose ride is so smooth that your tea does not slosh. China just finished building a railroad in Kenya to replace the one the British built before World War I. We are selling weapons to Saudi Arabia. They are now shipping cargo by rail to Europe and are planning high-speed rail lines connecting Asian countries to Europe. They are building--railroads, clean energy, international connections. We're using our best talent figuring out ways to move money around.
The Indianapolis Airport, Vice-President Elect Pence's home airport, has the nation's largest airport solar farm. The solar panels were manufactured in China.
You missed former governor of Indiana Mitch Daniels whose paternal grandparents were Syrian. Pence, the current governor of Indiana, has tried to exclude Syrian immigrants.
Muslims are disproportionately socially conservative small business people--a natural Republican constituency. In 2000 the Muslim-American political leadership made a decision to collectively back Republicans as a way of getting their influence as a voting block recognized.
A Palestinian taxi driver took me to visit Hebron one day, a Saturday, and I remember the Palestinian shopkeepers in the bazaar nervously closing their shops as the settlers prepared to march through the center of the market, protected by Israeli soldiers.
On the way there I had asked if we would see settlers chopping down olive trees. "No," he said sourly, "it's the sabbath."
The difference between in-depth coverage of Tunisia and, say, Wolf Blitzer's memories of Desert Storm is that sending reporters to Tunisia costs more--and maintaining a permanent bureau in North Africa costs a lot more. That's a big reason why we don't get in-depth coverage of foreign (or even Midwestern) news.
And, of course, more people are interested in Kate Middleton's dress.
I'm in China right now. Beijing has over a dozen subway lines with trains running every two to three minutes. A station for another line is going in just down the street. The railroad map in my guidebook from two years ago is out of date. The high-speed rail lines are expanding by the year. One can go the equivalent of New York to Chicago in under six hours in a train that is quieter than a car on an expressway and whose ride is so smooth that your tea does not slosh. China just finished building a railroad in Kenya to replace the one the British built before World War I. We are selling weapons to Saudi Arabia. They are now shipping cargo by rail to Europe and are planning high-speed rail lines connecting Asian countries to Europe. They are building--railroads, clean energy, international connections. We're using our best talent figuring out ways to move money around.
The Indianapolis Airport, Vice-President Elect Pence's home airport, has the nation's largest airport solar farm. The solar panels were manufactured in China.
Whoosh!
You missed former governor of Indiana Mitch Daniels whose paternal grandparents were Syrian. Pence, the current governor of Indiana, has tried to exclude Syrian immigrants.
Muslims are disproportionately socially conservative small business people--a natural Republican constituency. In 2000 the Muslim-American political leadership made a decision to collectively back Republicans as a way of getting their influence as a voting block recognized.
Times do change.
A Palestinian taxi driver took me to visit Hebron one day, a Saturday, and I remember the Palestinian shopkeepers in the bazaar nervously closing their shops as the settlers prepared to march through the center of the market, protected by Israeli soldiers.
On the way there I had asked if we would see settlers chopping down olive trees. "No," he said sourly, "it's the sabbath."
Congressman West is right. The Muslims agreed in 2000 to vote as a block--for Republicans.
The difference between in-depth coverage of Tunisia and, say, Wolf Blitzer's memories of Desert Storm is that sending reporters to Tunisia costs more--and maintaining a permanent bureau in North Africa costs a lot more. That's a big reason why we don't get in-depth coverage of foreign (or even Midwestern) news.
And, of course, more people are interested in Kate Middleton's dress.