Author Archives: George Maschke

Krzysztof Skubiszewski, R.I.P.

By George Maschke | Published: 9 February 2010
On Monday, 8 February 2010, Dr. Krzysztof Skubiszewski, the president of the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal (where I work) died in Warsaw at the age of 83. He had served as an arbitrator since 4 December 1993, and as president of the Tribunal since 16 February 1994. Last year, I had the pleasure of showing [...]
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Google Chrome Advertising Campaign in the Netherlands

By George Maschke | Published: 9 January 2010
I don’t recall ever seeing advertisments for a web browser in public spaces before. But now at bus stands in The Hague one sees these posters for Google Chrome. I also saw a very large billboard advertising Chrome by the freeway on the way to Delft today. I rather like Chrome–in particular the speed with [...]
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Gareth Porter on the Alleged Iranian ‘Nuclear Trigger’ Document

By George Maschke | Published: 5 January 2010
In “Iran: New Revelations Tear Holes in Nuclear Trigger Story,” Gareth Porter follows up on his earlier report that “U.S. intelligence has concluded that the document published recently by the Times of London, which purportedly describes an Iranian plan to do experiments on what the newspaper described as a “neutron initiator” for an atomic weapon, [...]
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Typography Casts Additional Doubt on Authenticity of Alleged Iranian “Nuclear Trigger” Document

By George Maschke | Published: 28 December 2009
On 14 December 2009, The Times of London trumpeted what it claimed were notes produced in early 2007 “from Iran’s most sensitive military nuclear project” documenting Iranian plans to build and test a neutron initiator, a key component of an atomic weapon. The article received widespread international attention and called into question the US intelligence [...]
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Announcement by Mir Hossein Mousavi on Election Results

By George Maschke | Published: 13 June 2009
Last night, Iran’s official news agency declared Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the landslide winner of Iran’s presidential elections, reportedly carrying nearly two-thirds of the votes. This morning, amid widespread allegations of electoral fraud, Iranian presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi issued a brief statement that I have translated to English here: In the Name of God [...]
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How to Watch Al Jazeera English Live, On-line, for Free

By George Maschke | Published: 6 January 2009
Attention Americans: Al Jazeera Is Not a Mouthpiece for Terrorists The independent Doha, Qatar-based television news network, Al Jazeera, has been so castigated by Bush Administration officials that given a word association test, many Americans would probably say “Al Qaeda” upon hearing “Al Jazeera.” And yet Al Jazeera is hardly a mouthpiece for terrorists. Rather, [...]
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Summer Soltice in The Hague: Sunrise & Sunset

By George Maschke | Published: 25 June 2008
Although the summer solstice actually occurred on 21 June 2008 at 01:59 hours Central European Daylight time, the 20th was the longest day of the year, and I decided to bike out to the dunes along the North Sea coast to greet the sunrise and bid the sun farewell on that day:
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George W. Bush in The Hague

By George Maschke | Published: 7 June 2008
The Hague’s Stadhuis, or city hall, regularly hosts free art exhibitions. Passing through the cathedral-ceilinged atrium today, I encountered what appeared to be a colossal representation of the lifeless head of U.S. President George W. Bush. Sure enough, it’s a vinyl-covered nylon fabric sculpture by contemporary American artist Paul McCarthy titled “Bush” (2007):
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The High Cost of Gasoline Is Relative

By George Maschke | Published: 11 May 2008
As American drivers come to grips with $4.00-a-gallon gasoline and presidential hopeful John McCain suggests a temporary “tax holiday,” it’s worth noting that in some places, it’s been a long time since gas was so cheap as that. The photo you see here shows fuel prices at my neighborhood gas station in The Hague, The [...]
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A music video to watch while you skip church this Sunday…

By George Maschke | Published: 11 May 2008
A clever parody of the bizarre fusion between evangelical Christianity and nationalism in America:
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