Religion in Iceland and Rubbish in Rio: The Week in Global-Affairs Writing
The highlights from seven days of reading about the world
Why Nice was an unsurprising location for a terrorist attack
The Economist
“With its ornate churches and palm-tree-fringed beaches, Nice is best known as a tourist destination. Less well-known is the fact that it faces one of France’s most intractable problems of Islamic radicalisation outside the Paris region.”
The ISIS Correspondent
Isaac Chotiner | Slate
“I had thought of these jihadis—you know Osama bin Laden, all of these people—as just black and white, almost caricatures of evil. And suddenly, I’m seeing a shade of gray, that they are more complex than we give them credit for.”
In Paris, Where Food Is King, Refugee Chefs Show What They Have To Offer
Eleanor Beardsley | NPR
“The kitchen is hopping and hot at L'Ami Jean restaurant in Paris, as chef Stéphane Jégo gets lunch underway. Jégo, who has been at this small Paris bistro for 14 years, is joined on this day by Mohammad El Khaldy, a chef from Damascus in Syria.”
The Beautiful Joke of Zuism
Isaac Würmann | Roads & Kingdoms
“I’m with the leaders of Zuism, one of Iceland’s newest religions. Although its numbers still pale in comparison to the Lutheran state church, it is fast becoming one of the country’s largest faiths. Followers say it is an offshoot of Sumerian beliefs, a nature-worshipping religion that evolved in Mesopotamia more than 5,000 years ago. But the group’s elders, as they call themselves, make clear that there is nothing truly religious about Zuism. Instead, it might be more accurately described as an anti-religion—and as a protest of Iceland’s parish tax, which has drawn the ire of many as a growing number of Icelanders turn away from the church.”
The American Who Accidentally Became a Chinese Movie Star
Mitch Moxley | The New York Times Magazine
“China’s booming movie market grew by nearly 50 percent last year and is expected to surpass North America’s as the largest in the world by next year. These days, Hollywood studios hardly greenlight a blockbuster without first asking, ‘How will this play in China?’ The rewards are too vast. ‘Furious 7,’ for example, earned $390 million in China — more than it made in the United States — and was for a time the highest-grossing film ever in the country.”
The Mad Dash to Clean Up Rio’s Guanabara Bay Before the Games
Eric Niiler | WIRED
“Olympic sailors pride themselves as a hardy bunch, but floating furniture, fridges, and TV sets do get them on edge. During last year’s test event in Rio, sailing officials were forced to move the course out to sea to avoid floating garbage.”