The New York Times Magazine
October 22, 2006
In a classic Mexican standoff, two men point guns at each other’s heads. Neither wants to shoot, but each knows the downside of not pulling the trigger first. It is an inherently gripping situation, and Quentin Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs” ...
The New York Times Magazine
December 18, 2005
More than 35 years ago, an offshore drilling rig spilled approximately three million gallons of oil into the waters near Santa Barbara. A massive slick covered hundreds of square miles and killed thousands of birds, seals and dolphins; the white beaches ...
The New York Times Magazine
August 21, 2005
The largest oil terminal in the world, Ras Tanura, is located on the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia, along the Persian Gulf. From Ras Tanura’s control tower, you can see the classic totems of oil’s dominion — supertankers coming and going, row ...
The New York Times Magazine
May 1, 2005
In a country of tough guys, Adnan Thabit may be the toughest of all. He was both a general and a death-row prisoner under Saddam Hussein. He favors leather jackets no matter the weather, his left index finger extends only to the knuckle (the rest was sliced off ...
The New Republic
January 31, 2005
A cheery sign at the waterfront of Elem Sangama says “Sea Side Lane,” and, on first glance, the village seems a bright spot in the otherwise unpleasant Niger Delta. In addition to its paved walkways, Sangama has a health clinic and a water tower, rarities ...
Mother Jones
January 2005
The red dirt of the jungle meets a paved road on the outskirts of Ebebiyin, where a national celebration is about to begin. Women are singing and swaying in an African rhythm that is hard to resist, even though their lyrics are not of a can’t-stop-dancing variety: “We ...
Popular Science
October 2004
After weeks in the Iraq desert covering the war for the New York Times Magazine, I can say confidently that it is not the place to be lost or hungry. Fortunately, my Thuraya Hughes 7101 satellite phone prevented both.
I’ll get to the culinary trick in a moment, but ...
Los Angeles Times
August 15, 2004
(Review of The Stone Fields: An Epitah for the Living. By Courtney Angela Brkic)
It used to be that a young American, seeking adventure or enlightenment, would join the Peace Corps and, after two years in a distant locale, return home with an abundance of exotic memories ...
The New York Times Magazine
August 2, 2004
Pity, if you can, the richest man in Russia. With a fortune estimated at $15 billion, Mikhail Khodorkovsky is on trial for fraud, embezzlement and tax evasion and faces a 10-year jail term. His oil company, Yukos, has been hit with a tax bill of $3.4 billion, ...
Gizmodo
May 3, 2004
Although we started out aiming for other topics, Gizmodo being what it is, we tended toward the technical, and ended up asking accomplished war correspondent Peter Maass something very much like “What’s in your Gadget Bag?” Which is fine, but it’s the stories ...
