Commentary

Buried more than 150 feet below the Swiss and French countryside, on September 10 a monstrous machine rumbled to life.  This is the world's biggest and most advanced scientific instrument, supported by more than eight thousand physicists from over eighty-five countries.  It is also a machine that some scientists fear may destroy the world.

Every day brought new rumors. Soldiers had become more active, and the night before bricks had mysteriously disappeared from many abandoned buildings. And now, people were saying a wall would soon be built. Fearing the worst, Hasso pleaded with his friend that they should escape the city. His friend, skeptical of the rumors, encouraged Hasso to "Relax. Enjoy...

As one who has walked through the aftermath of many disasters – having represented insurance companies for decades as a claims adjuster – my attention was really grabbed by the pictures of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Ike, and other recent storms.

Last week I was in Kenya.  The troubles and violence of January 2008 have subsided since the opposing political parties stitched together a workable compromise in the Parliament.  A sense of national unity has arisen out of the shame of the six weeks of mayhem that took place early in 2008. Every day Kenyans are still recovering from the shock that such naked...