- US intelligence chief says China has a sense of 'manifest destiny' about its role in the South China and East China seas.
- Journalists describe the conditions in Sochi's hotels. Shades of Carry on Abroad.
- 'By next year China will spend more on defense than Britain, Germany and France combined'.
- Why did Max Baucus express wariness about China's call for a 'new type of great-power relationship'?
- I really need to read the Robert Gates memoir, as so many good stories and important insights are emerging from it.
- 'Who are the most over-rated economists?', asks Tyler Cowen.
- 222 miles south of Tokyo, Aogashima is a volcanic island home to 165 residents, Japan's smallest village.
- Why is the Syrian opposition disappearing from Facebook?
- A passionate denunciation of The Guardian's treatment of the Snowden leaks:
In one corner are governments asking editors not to publish highly sensitive information. In the other corner is a person who never served in the armed forces, has no training in assessing intelligence material, and has strong motives to publish the information for glory or gain. Are these the kind of people to be entrusted with making the final decision about what will or will not cause “unnecessary harm”?