Alex Skopic

1 week ago | currentaffairs.org | Alex Skopic

According to our elected leaders, we should be very scared of the possibility that Iran could get a nuclear bomb. But Israel already has them, and its government is increasingly unstable and belligerent. Among U.S. politicians, there’s one consistent narrative you’ll hear repeated over and over. Iran, the story goes, must not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran is unstable and untrustworthy; Iran is theocratic; Iran is evil.

2 weeks ago | currentaffairs.org | Alex Skopic

Horses and dogs don’t understand why they’ve been conscripted into human law enforcement. Forcing them to inflict violence on people, and get hurt in return, just isn’t right. In the third season of the BBC crime drama Peaky Blinders, there’s a crude joke that’s taken on new relevance this week. “What animal has got a prick halfway up its back?” asks John Shelby, one of the show’s gangster protagonists. “A cavalry horse!,” comes the punchline.

2 weeks ago | currentaffairs.org | Alex Skopic

The viral pistachio-filled candy bar is everywhere—but there’s nothing sweet about the United Arab Emirates and its human rights record. If you’ve been shopping recently, or even if you’ve just been scrolling your Instagram feed, you may have noticed that “Dubai chocolate” is suddenly everywhere. They’re selling it at Walmart, Target, Costco, and Trader Joe’s now, and big European chocolate companies like Lindt and Godiva are producing their own branded versions.

3 weeks ago | currentaffairs.org | Alex Skopic

Originally published in our magazine’s hallowed print edition Details For Peter Thiel, JD Vance, and other figures on today’s far right, the works of J.R.R. Tolkien have become a cultural touchstone. Pity they don’t understand the first thing about them. In the annals of English literature, certain lines of criticism have left a lasting sting.

4 weeks ago | currentaffairs.org | Alex Skopic

The media and education system have tried to erase their legacies, but some of the world’s greatest artists, leaders, and thinkers were—and are—firmly on the Left. History, as the old cliché goes, is written by the victors. In practice, this tends to mean history is written by people with money—the victors in our current economic system.