Browser Daily Newsletter 1219
Turkey: The Fakir And The Pharaoh
Christopher de Bellaigue | New York Review Of Books | 27th January 2014
Turkish prime minister Tayyip Erdogan saw off last year's challenge from liberal protesters occupying Gezi Park relatively easily. His new power struggle, with "exiled spiritual leader" Fethullah Gulen, is more intimate and more dangerous. Gulen's five million followers include top officials in the police and judiciary. Gulen can paralyse Erdogan's government, and it is hard to see how Erdogan can stop him
Lessons From Bar-Fight Litigation
Burt Likko | Ordinary Times | 21st January 2014
A lawyer writes: "In a previous phase of my career I got to defend rather a lot of cases arising from bar fights. You might think a bar fight is most commonly started between two guys fighting over a woman. That’s not so. Ejection seems to be a more precipitating event. More than half the bar fights I had to sort out started when a too-drunk patron was asked to leave and refused to do so"
Seven Questions About Bob Dylan
Tom Junod | Esquire | 23rd January 2014
How does Bob Dylan manage to remain the world's most private public figure — or, perhaps, the world's most public private figure? Jeff Tweedy explains: "We played with McCartney at Bonnaroo, and the thing about McCartney is that he wants to be loved so much, he has so much energy, he gives and gives and gives, he plays every song you want to hear. Dylan has zero fucks to give about that. And it's truly inspiring"
It’s A Service World
Manu Rekhi | Pando Daily | 24th January 2014
Google's acquisition of Nest stands astride two big trends: The rise of the "internet of things", and the shift towards service contracts in place of ownership. By bundling Nest's smart thermostats into service contracts priced at $1.99 per month or even free, Google can place Nest's devices at the heart of "millions of homes". It's a business model for a future in which consumers will own nothing, lease everything
Scenarios For Ukraine
Edward Lucas | CEPI | 23rd January 2014
Yanukovych has "dipped his hands in blood" by killing protestors — perhaps in response to a demand from Putin that he burn his bridges with the EU and America and make integration with Russia his only available option. If the crackdown succeeds, Ukraine becomes "another Belarus, with a demoralised and marginal opposition". If it fails, "we could have something close to civil war on the borders of the EU"
Video of the day: Magnus Carlsen Plays Bill Gates
Thought for the day:
"A theory should not attempt to explain all the facts, because some of the facts are wrong" — Francis Crick
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