In his new book, Boiling Point, journalist and historian Stephen Kinzer traces decades of US involvement in Ukraine, which helped start one of the deadliest and most consequential conflicts in the 21st century. By John P. Ruehl The narrative surrounding the Ukraine war often marks its beginning on February 24, 2022, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion. But the rivalries and political decisions that brought the two countries into conflict stretch back centuries. The s

Neanderthalian (Homo neanderthalensis) skulls from three different periods, at the Natural History Museum in London, England -- Emőke Dénes, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Peter Sahlins Why are we so obsessed with a group of prehistoric humans who disappeared some 40,000 years ago? Ever since the discovery of the first named Neanderthal fossils in 1856, scientists have struggled to make sense of them in tens of thousands of books and articles. But the never-ending Nea

A man walks amidst the rubble in the wake of an Israeli airstrike on the Beirut neighbourhood of Bachoura on 18 March 2026 -- Megaphone, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Vijay Prashad As the United States farcically walks away from the negotiations with Iran in Pakistan, it was always a matter of concern whether Israel would abide by any such agreement. This was particularly the case with Lebanon and with the Palestinian territories, where Israel seemed absolutely hell ben

Today’s war rhetoric is often dismissed as “childish,” likened to video games and online bravado. But the issue is not immaturity—it is adaptation. As political communication adopts the language of spectacle, war is increasingly encountered as sensation before meaning—altering the sequence through which violence is felt before it is judged. Francisco Goya, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Martina Moneke A word keeps appearing across political commentary and media criti