There’s a storied tradition in show business that involves two seemingly incompatible but ultimately inextricable buddies — it’s almost always two men, by the way — who turn out to be far more entertaining when they’re together than when they’re apart. Laurel and Hardy, Abbot and Costello, Hope and Crosby, Penn and Teller, Gibson and Glover (for those who enjoy Gibson’s stock, “unpredictable crazy guy” characterizations) and on and on. At the risk of oversimplifying the ineffable chemistry that makes stars of some folks and also-rans of so many others, the dynamic driving these unlikely partnerships can be roughly represented as “straight man and clown,” with laughs arising, in large part, from the obvious friction between the near-lunacy (or idiocy) of the latter and the long-suffering patience of the former. Read More...
A long-simmering debate about the future of natural gas has been forced to a head in Europe this month, as the E.U. considers classifying some projects involving the fossil fuel as sustainable investments in official advice for the private sector due to be published by the end of January.
Burning natural gas produces carbon dioxide—but around 50% less than burning coal. The E.U. gets 22% of its energy from natural gas, and to meet its ambitious climate targets, the European Commission says it needs to cut use of the fuel by 37% by 2030. Read More...
He was a soldier who loathed war.
He was a politician who abhorred politics. He was a hero who despised heroics. Yet there was nothing inconsistent about Dwight David Eisenhower. As much as any other American of today or yesterday, he was the storybook American. A man of luminous integrity and decency, of steadfast courage and conscience, he embodied in his wide smile, high ideals and down-to-earth speech all the virtues of a simpler and more serene America. Read More...
