Thomas Flichy de La Neuville

During the period of relative peace which took place during the second half of the eighteenth century, authoritarian seducers vegetated at the periphery of power, contenting themselves with satiating their appetites on female prey. Seduction, the artificial deception of others, had sometimes the attractive face of persuasion. Yet, a sovereign desirous of reigning with justice…

Present times are marked by a striking contrast between tremendous technological acceleration and the paralysis of decision-makers. How can we explain this gap?

When we examine the heart of power, we can distinguish three strata.

The diplomatic offensive that has just been led by Vladimir Putin in the Central African Republic, which takes the form of an arms donation to Central Africa, accompanied by training actions, raises the question of its longevity.

The first question that arises about the protests in Iran is that of the organizing brain. A riot is indeed never spontaneous when bellies are full. Now, is the brain located inside or outside?

Because it has been chosen as the theater of universal redemption, Jerusalem has an infinitely more varied fate than any other city in the world. Events seem to take place there with acute intensity, alternating periods of magnificence with others of massacre.

In 1627, New Atlantis, a picturesque fairy tale originally written in Latin by Francis Bacon was published. It was quickly translated into French and English, and attracted considerable attention. Bacon’s dream might be very amusing and colorful; we are nevertheless lucky that it never became reality.  

It has been much debated whether Utopia’s peculiar chapter on war expressed the naivety of Sir Thomas or his cynicism. The discussions on this topic have been uninterrupted since 1516 and were particularly fierce in the 1930’s, dividing British scholars from German academics.

The recent events in Catalonia, as well as the desire of several Central European countries to regain control of their borders, remind us of a similar historical episode: that of the great crisis of the third century which shook the Roman Empire between 235 and 284 AD.

In recent months, the United States and North Korea have seemed poised for full-on warfare. The issue at hand is whether the United States can live with a nuclear-armed North Korea.