U.S. Presidents & Foreign Policy, 1789 to the Present

ABC-CLIO has just published a textbook entitled U.S. Presidents & Foreign Policy, 1789 to the Present and I've written the chapter on Fillmore. It's so easy to say that Fillmore was a boring president that it's now officially boring just to say it. So don't. Fillmore was predictably accommodating to the South and offered no great profile in courage, but I found a few things to admire in his foreign policy: he refused to involve the U.S. Navy in a private scheme to steal valuable bird guano from some Peruvian islands, and he also declined to provide any aid, legal or military, to a pro-slavery filibuster that botched an attempted invasion of Cuba. POTUS 13 also laid the groundwork for Perry's expedition to Japan. Grand Theft Guano, a Victorian Bay of Pigs, and a cameo by Matthew Perry---who can call this guy boring?

Shrtst dstnc btwn 2 pnts

work begins on arctic seed vault

To paraphrase Bob Ney (R, OH), "Elections are like sausage; it's best not to see how they're made."

Praise the Lord, and pass around the Kool Aid

built by bacteria: Stromatolites in Australia show evidence of oldest life on Earth

INDEX for Free Expression

Great site. btw, Art Spiegelman's encyclopedic survey of offensive cartoons in latest HARPER'S is also a must-see.

CIA helped hide Eichmann

Who knew? Real meaning of Tom & Jerry exposed by Iranian gov't official

Holy Shit.