Italian cultural institute

Sign up to get our new weekly column as a newsletter. We're looking back at the strongest, smartest opinion takes of the week from CNN and other outlets. (CNN) "There are men of character in the U.S. Congress, both House and Senate. There are women of character, too. But the evidence for 'character' needs to be something other than the iteration of the word itself," writes Marjorie Garber in her book "Character: The History of a Cultural Obsession." That is a useful frame for trying to make sense of the dramas that proliferated on Capitol Hill this week as Congress took up multiple nominations to President Joe Biden's Cabinet and held its first hearing on the January 6 insurrection. As Garber notes, the translation of individual traits into a "national character" most often occurs at "times of stress, as a marker not so much of social progress as of social and cultural anxiety." We saw this. Conviction and commitment (and the lack of same), and in darker terms, … [Read more...] about Biden’s tricky tango with Congress

Cracks are emerging in the firewall that until now has protected some of the world’s powerful nations from being scrutinized and called to account for gross violations by the U.N. Human Rights Council. The executive director of Human Rights Watch, Kenneth Roth, called them the “untouchables.” “By that I mean governments that have managed to avoid any real critical scrutiny in the form of a resolution by the council.  And the foremost untouchables that I have in mind are China, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Russia,” he said. Addressing the untouchables, Roth said, is not only the biggest challenge facing the council, but is critical to its credibility.  He said efforts are underway to draft critical statements on Egypt and Saudi Arabia.  He added pressure is growing on Russia because of its alleged poisoning of opposition activist Alexey Navalny. However, of greatest interest, he says are emerging signs that China may no longer be untouchable. “It has been seen as politically … [Read more...] about Powerful Countries Come Under Fire at UN Human Rights Council

Critics are slamming Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) over his handling of a winter storm that ripped through the state this week, shutting off power and heat to millions for more than three days and counting during a record-setting cold snap. In a statement issued on Tuesday, Abbott blamed the Electric Reliability Council of Texas for not being properly prepared for the storm and pledged reform. "The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has been anything but reliable over the past 48 hours,” Abbott said . “Far too many Texans are without power and heat for their homes as our state faces freezing temperatures and severe winter weather. This is unacceptable." ADVERTISEMENT But it was Abbott's comments during a Fox News interview earlier this week that drew the ire of the governor's harshest critics. "This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America," Abbott said while appearing on Sean Hannity Sean Patrick Hannity Grenell … [Read more...] about ‘Get off TV’: Critics blast Abbott over handling of Texas power outages following winter storm