Paul Lay

I am delighted to announce that my chapter on espionage in Central Asia and the Great Game has been published as part of this wonderful collection, ‘Spies in History’.

It will be up on @engelsbergideas.bsky.social soon. A big thank you to @paullay.bsky.social and Lars Molin for the opportunity.

The key to grand strategy A close examination of the history of statecraft reveals that grand strategy works best when competing ideas collide, and rigorous processes challenge prevailing orthodoxies.

The key to grand strategy | @wdjames.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/essays/the-k...

Joseph Wright’s age of enlightenment The English painter captured an emerging world of industry and innovation, discovery and dissemination, against the background of the Industrial Revolution.

Joseph Wright’s age of enlightenment | @paullay.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/jose...

I've written a piece for @engelsbergideas.bsky.social on the sources of grand strategic ideas. Best enjoyed over the weekend with a brew ☕

Thanks to @jackfdickens.bsky.social, @paullay.bsky.social, and the EI team for publishing.

How the Oslo Accords unravelled The assassination in 1995 of Yitzhak Rabin was a watershed moment in the gradual disintegration of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, paving the way for greater bloodshed in the Middle East.

How the Oslo Accords unravelled | Colin Shindler

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/how...

I am very keen to read this book of @georgiosvarouxakis.bsky.social, because as I discussed some months ago with @paullay.bsky.social, it’s up against a tide of fashionable academic critique (of which I am deeply sceptical)—including 1 of David Graeber’s (who I did greatly admire) last essays—

Blitz, the victory of style over substance The Blitz club’s influence on eighties fashion proved to be far greater than its influence on music.

The Blitz club’s influence on eighties fashion proved to be far greater than its influence on music.

Blitz, the victory of style over substance | @paullay.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/blit...

The madness in Rousseau’s method The 18th-century philosopher Thomas Day, a fanatical believer in the virtues of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's educational methods, tested his theories to destruction.

The 18th-century philosopher Thomas Day, a fanatical believer in the virtues of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's educational methods, tested his theories to destruction.

The madness in Rousseau’s method | Nigel Andrew

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...

The forgotten queen of crime fiction Josephine Tey's early death denied her a rightful place among the pantheon of crime writers.

Josephine Tey's early death denied her a rightful place among the pantheon of crime writers.

The forgotten queen of crime fiction | @alecmarsh.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/portraits/th...

Why politicians need to show, not tell The West's political institutions should strive to do less, but better.

The West's political institutions should strive to do less, but better.

Why politicians need to show, not tell | Eliot Wilson

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/why...

Werner Herzog's truth All Werner Herzog's works are mysterious; they never quite resolve into a simple idea or conclusion. His latest book explains why.

Werner Herzog’s truth | Bryan Appleyard

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/wern...

From Stalin’s 1941 May Day parade in Moscow to Xi’s Tiananmen Square display, military spectacles have long been used to project power and mask vulnerability.

The politics of a military parade | Peter Caddick-Adams

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...

On time and on budget? Whaaat? Make this man prime minister immediately www.ft.com/content/639a...

The end of Pax Britannica A mercantilist, multipolar geopolitical system appears to be emerging from within the liberal world order, destined to replace it. The experience of Britain's imperial past suggests that this transfor...

The end of Pax Britannica | Graeme Thompson

engelsbergideas.com/essays/the-e...

Black Ribbon Day's new urgency Black Ribbon Day, which commemorates the millions of victims who suffered under Nazism and Stalinism, acts as a poignant reminder of the dangers of totalitarianism.

Black Ribbon Day, which commemorates the millions of victims who suffered under Nazism and Stalinism, could serve as a poignant reminder of the dangers of totalitarianism.

Black Ribbon Day’s new urgency | Keith Lowe

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/bla...

The writer's bookshelf: Paul Lay Eight questions about writers, books, and reading…

New on the Writer’s Bookshelf: eight questions about writers, books, and reading with the great @paullay.bsky.social.

Who remembers Henry J. Kaiser? The industrialist Henry J. Kaiser played a pivotal role in the lightning mobilisation of American industry that took place after Pearl Harbor, a contribution that deserves wider recognition.

The industrialist Henry J. Kaiser played a pivotal role in the lightning mobilisation of American industry that took place after Pearl Harbor, a contribution that deserves wider recognition.

Who remembers Henry J. Kaiser? | Gordon F. Sander

engelsbergideas.com/portraits/wh...

The Druze, no friends but the mountains Syria’s Druze have often been caught between their commitment to national independence and a wariness of Sunni domination.

Syria’s Druze have often been caught between their commitment to national independence and a wariness of Sunni domination.

The Druze, no friends but the mountains | @jackfdickens.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...

A window into Hitler's soul Reading Mein Kampf, 100 years on from its first appearance, can help us better understand a historical moment which still so profoundly structures our world, as it fades into the distance.

A window into Hitler’s soul | Samuel Rubinstein

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/a-w...

A paean to the Paris Métro Unveiled 125 years ago, the Métropolitan marked Paris’s leap into modernity at the turn of the century, with Guimard’s once-controversial station entrances now enduring emblems of the city's spirit.

A paean to the Paris Métro | @agnescpoirier.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/a-p...

Top marks to @paullay.bsky.social for suggesting putting Bede on a bank note.

BBC Radio 4 - Moral Maze, Is it time to ditch historical figures as heroes? Is the time up for heroes and heroines on banknotes and in society in general?

This is a sharp, incisive & learned BBCRadio4 Moral Maze discussion of a classic culture war topic: *heroes*. Responses from witnesses @paullay.bsky.social @maddyfryabides.bsky.social Simon Goldhill @elliscashmore.bsky.social
I’m with PL. 🙂
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

School of War History Podcast · Updated Weekly · This podcast seeks to learn what war teaches. There has been a steady decline in the study of military history and its associated theoretical discipline, strategy.Th...

Weekend listen: Cogent and entertaining review of the English Civil War and Oliver Cromwell’s Protectorate by “Providence Lost” author @paullay.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

Nietzsche's manifesto for reading Nietzsche did not write for the distracted, the hurried, or the comfortable. He believed that a book should demand effort, provoke resistance, and leave a mark.

Nietzsche’s manifesto for reading | @chountisdefabbri.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/nie...

Erik Satie, prophet of the aurally overloaded world The composer Erik Satie would have understood our era of atrophied attention spans and mass-produced music.

The composer Erik Satie would have understood our era of atrophied attention spans and mass-produced music.

Erik Satie, prophet of the aurally overloaded world | Richard Bratby

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/eri...

The unravelling of the rock festival Despite the peace signs and pat slogans of togetherness and diversity, the rock festival, like the genre it celebrates, has, from its beginnings, had issues with ethical consistency.

The unravelling of the rock festival | @paullay.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...

Under the spell of William Blake William Blake, the poet-painter who created a mythology all his own, is also the central figure in biographer Philip Hoare’s private cosmos. Such a personal obsession is a major flaw of this bewilderi...

Under the spell of William Blake | Michael Prodger

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/unde...

In conversation with Fiona Hill on Donald Trump’s nuclear nightmares Fiona Hill, distinguished adviser to several US presidents on foreign affairs, spoke to EI’s Jack Dickens about Donald Trump’s fear of nuclear Armageddon, how this fear has shaped Trump’s worldview, a...

“Trump is a bit sympathetic to the idea of ‘nuclear zero’. He would, if he could, abolish nuclear weapons and get rid of them all.”

Fiona Hill on Donald Trump’s nuclear nightmares | EI in conversation

engelsbergideas.com/essays/in-co...

How monks shaped Christendom A subtle and profound history explores how monasticism shaped Christendom for over a millennium, providing places where heaven met earth and flawed human spirits might soar, however briefly, upwards t...

How monks shaped Christendom | @mathewlyons.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/how-...

China and America, the great decoupling The current trade war is a consequence of successive American presidents' failure to stand up to China as it returned to hardline state control of the economy. The global economy is now paying the pri...

China and America, the great decoupling | Michael Sheridan

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/chi...