"What is true, and I'm actually being serious here, is that there is footage and records of objects in the skies that we don't know exactly what they are. We can't explain how they move, their trajectory. And so I think that people still take seriously, trying to investigate and figure out what that is." Barack Obama, May 17, 2021, the "Late Late Show with James Corden."
Since 2017, UFOs are no longer considered fiction. Declared a "serious subject" by the Pentagon, they have now entered public debate on American, German and Japanese news channels.
Passionate about ufology since his childhood, Egon Kragel is a great French specialist on the subject. He has dug up more than 150 UFO cases, some of which are fascinating and have captivated the international press, while others are more frightening and still raise questions.

You'll read about:
- The hairy cone of Vins-sur-Caramy
- The wave of foo fighters from the Second World War
- The Belgian wave
- Kenneth Arnold, the father of saucers
- The Flatwoods monster
- Malmstrom: deactivated missiles
- The encounter of Herb Schirmer
- The UFOs of the Hudson Valley
- UFOs: Abductions in the sky
- Betty Cash and Vickie Landrum: A scathing remake of Apocalypse Now
- Colares: Deadly encounters in the Amazon
- UFOs and Pilots: A two-step in the sky

Egon Kragel is one of the great specialists in ufology in France. His work is recognized throughout the world, notably by his friend Jacques Vallée who inspired the director Stephen Spielberg for the film E.T. He wrote his first book Ovnis, enquête sur un secret d'Etat. He participates in numerous conferences, appears regularly on television, and takes part in radio programs and podcasts. Lire la suite Fermer

"Outside. Outside of society. That's where I want to be. If you're looking, that's where you'll find me." This is what Patti Smith sang back in 1978. Where is she in 2015? With all the fame and recognition. With thirteen original albums released, her poetry regularly reprinted, her paintings and photographs on show in galleries around the world, an induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a National Book Award for her first prose work, Just Kids. Is she still outside? Is she still the iconic, rebellious, rock'n'roll figure of her youth? Patti Smith has lived a rock'n'roll life, a life of words and sounds, of poetry and images. She has slept on doorsteps, on park benches. But perhaps she never meant to be outside. Perhaps she did not want to be a rebel. Perhaps being outside is only a price she had to pay.
These are the issues addressed in this collection of essays, not from a historical or sociological angle, but through her artistry. An attempt at locating Patti Smith by assessing her trajectory, her complex, unpredictable moves. "Oh I just move in another dimension," she sings on "Ain't It Strange", before inviting us to come and join her. We have tried and followed her. Lire la suite Fermer

The united Nations exercice a worldwide responsability and, yet, too often is little known by the general public. When and why was the United Nations founded ? What are its ideals, its goals and the means at its disposal for reaching them ? What is its structure ? How does it function ? What are the problems it faces day-to-day and in the long term ?
How can the men and women who head the organization and work for it, set aside the conflicts their own countries are involved in and devote their energies to the realization of mankind's loftiest goals: the establishment of a just and lasting peace for all in the world ?

Outstanding specialists of International relations and prominent personalities provide in depth pluralist analyses of the current alternative visions and main geopolitical trends within a heterogeneous world; a world made even more uncertain following the pandemic. Europe is a player, not a playing field. Therefore, the red thread of this multidisciplinary research is: how to combine its values with its own language of power.

Contributions by:
D. Viviers, M. Telò, J. Ikenberry, Qin Y., M. Zürn, M. Calmy-Rey, F. Mogherini, R. Tombs, A. Gamble, M. R. Djalili, P. Goldschmidt, A. A. Yusuf, N. Schrijver

The crisis faced by the European project today is above all a crisis of meaning. After the disappearance of the narratives about peace and prosperity, the reason for Europe is now the one given by millions of Europeans. Together we must therefore explore a Europe whose institutions are a means but not an end, remain open to discovery, attentive to stories and critical of common ideas.
This six-month journey is dotted with eleven stops, eleven letters from eleven cities in nine European countries, from Russia to Sweden, Portugal to Bulgaria. They give rise to eleven debates on major issues such as defence, youth, the wounds of the past and solidarity, all of which are explored via the stories of dozens of Europeans met along the way. Lire la suite Fermer

Many writers started their professional lives in very diverse fields before embracing writing, or on the contrary have turned away from writing. The present volume seeks to explore the complex relationship between that `other life' and writing. The aim is to determine whether a writer's `other life' appears in, influences or even shapes his/her work, and to what extent. What is the part of gestation and that of rupture? A diversity of writers is examined: Patrick Chamoiseau, J. M. Coetzee, Jan J. Dominique, Janet Frame, Amitav Ghosh, L. K. Johnson, Wilson Harris, Dany Laferrière, Yannick Lahens, NourbeSe Philip, Emmelie Prophète, Arundhati Roy, Edward Said, but also Bartolomé de las Casas and E. L. Grant Watson. Unpublished autobiographical essays and a poem are included, especially written for the volume by Marie-Célie Agnant, Cyril Dabydeen and Fred D'Aguiar. Lire la suite Fermer

La Revue Internationale de Philosophie a été fondée en 1938 avec, entre autres, le soutien de Karl Popper et de Bertrand Russell. Elle a été dirigée par Chaïm Perelman jusqu'à sa mort, en 1984, et elle est depuis lors, entre les mains de Michel Meyer.
Le but de la Revue n'est pas seulement de célébrer par des numéros spéciaux les dates anniversaires des grands philosophes et de leurs oeuvres, mais aussi de traiter de tous les thèmes qui retiennent l'attention de la philosophie: la violence, la religion, le théâtre, le roman, l'histoire, la politique, la bioéthique, la logique, l'épistémologie, la rationalité, le cinéma ou en général, l'esthétique, parmi d'autres sujets.
Les plus grands philosophes contemporains ont été honorés par la Revue, et y ont même souvent contribué, de Popper à Foucault et à Sartre, de Carnap à Derrida, de Bourdieu à Putnam et à Dworkin, de Gadamer à Rawls, Habermas ou Searle.
Ainsi, la Revue Internationale de Philosophie publie chaque fois des volumes qui traitent des sujets ou des auteurs différents, en plusieurs langues le plus souvent, mais surtout en français et en anglais. Les auteurs sont invités par une personnalité marquante du domaine traité, qui a la responsabilité du volume. Lire la suite Fermer

Has Vladimir Putin become the master of the game? Why and how did the Russian President decide to attack Ukraine? Did he seek to prevent Ukraine from associating with Europe? Does he seek to reconstitute the USSR? Did NATO promise not to expand east after 1990? Is the Nord Stream 2 project the sinews of war? Is Ukraine's neutrality the only solution? Has Russia ever lost or won the war?...
Based on the files of the intelligence services and official reports, Jacques Baud thus reviews the events of the recent history of Russia, which led to the war with Ukraine; it analyzes the various disputes between the West and Russia, and sheds light on the role that Putin plays today on the international scene.

Jacques Baud is a former member of Swiss strategic intelligence, a specialist in Eastern European countries and head of United Nations peace operations doctrine. He was engaged in negotiations with top Russian military and intelligence officials right after the fall of the USSR. Within NATO, he participated in programs in Ukraine and in particular after the Maidan revolution in 2014 and 2017. He is the author of several books on intelligence, war and terrorism, and in particular Governing by fake news and The Navalny affair, published by Max Milo. Lire la suite Fermer

The book presents the results of several qualitative research project with different actors that put migration policies into practice. It shows the different ways in which day-to-day activities of organisations shape migration policies on the ground. This book offers a comprehensive exploration on how different migration policies are implemented day by day. Such an approach allows to show the different ways in which migration policies on the ground take a life of their own when compared to the letter of the law. The book shows the need to understand the specific logics and workings of the implementation of policies, while taking into account the continued role played by politicians and the judiciary, non-state actors and migrants. Qualitative research with different public institutions implementing migration policies are combined with an exploration of the role of NGOs, supranational institutions and the migrants themselves. Bringing together the results of several research projects with fieldwork in Belgium, the UK, France, Morocco and Malta, the book covers the different stages of the migratory career. It follows the potential trajectory of a migrant from visa obtention (both in general and for students specifically) to border controls, asylum (including resettlement and gender and sexuality-based asylum), access to residence (with a specific focus on marriage-based residence), healthcare and nationality, or to detention and managed return migration. Through its chapters it shows the day-to-day logics, routines and tactics that bureaucrats and other actors adopt, within the constrains of laws, social interactions, and ideas about policies.
À PROPOS DES AUTEURS
Djordje Sredanovic est chargé de recherche F.R.S.-FNRS au laboratoire GERME de l'Université Libre de Bruxelles. Sociologue spécialisé dans les études de la nationalité, citoyenneté et migrations, il a conduit recherches sur les expériences et l'implémentation des politiques migratoires.
Federica Infantino est Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow au Migration Policy Centre à l'Institut Universitaire Européen à Florence est Maitre de Conférence à l'Université Libre de Bruxelles.  Lire la suite Fermer

Unlock the more straightforward side of Schindler's Ark with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!
This engaging summary presents an analysis of Schindler's Ark by Thomas Keneally, which tells the true story of the actions of the German businessman Oskar Schindler during the Holocaust. When the Nazis occupied Poland during the Second World War, the country's Jews were first forced into ghettos, then deported to concentration camps where few survived. However, Schindler offered hope to thousands of Polish Jews by employing them in his factories, at considerable personal risk, to save them from deportation and almost certain death. The Australian author Thomas Keneally brings his story to life in this thrilling novel, which won the 1982 Man Booker Prize and was adapted into the Academy Award-winning film Schindler's List.
Find out everything you need to know about Schindler's Ark in a fraction of the time!
This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you:
o A complete plot summary
o Character studies
o Key themes and symbols
o Questions for further reflection
Why choose BrightSummaries.com?
Available in print and digital format, our publications are designed to accompany you on your reading journey. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.
See the very best of literature in a whole new light with BrightSummaries.com!
Lire la suite Fermer

Has the US strategy in Ukraine reached an impasse? What is the Russian conduct of military operations? When will the Ukrainian counter-offensive take place? Does Western weaponry really make a difference in Ukraine? Who are the winners of this war? What changes in the world are we witnessing since February 24, 2022? What is the reality of the losses on the Ukrainian and Russian sides? Can Western industry compete with Russian industry in Ukraine? Why is a negotiated solution not being sought? How is our perception of the con?it serving Ukraine?

To answer these questions and many others, Jacques Baud relies on information from Western intelligence services and American documents that were leaked in April 2023. After the best-sellers Putin, Game Master? and Operation Z, both works praised world-wide, Baud returns to the war in Ukraine by analyzing the facts and nothing but the facts. Whether one is for or against the position of Ukraine, one must nevertheless deal with the field of operations and to analyze what is happening there. This is the only way to find a path to peace-because peace will not come by relying on illusions.

Jacques Baud was a member of the Swiss strategic intelligence, a specialist in Eastern European countries and a former head of the United Nations peace operations doctrine. In NATO, he was involved in programs in Ukraine, including after the Mayan revolution in 2014 and 2017. In addition to his major works on the con?it in Ukraine, he is the author of several books on intelligence, war, and terrorism, including Governing by Fake News, Defeating Jihadist Terrorism, and The Navalny Affair, all published by Max Milo. Lire la suite Fermer

What are Islamic State is seeking to create a civil war in France; that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad used chemical weapons; that Vladimir Putin is trying to destabilise our democracies; that terrorism has struck France, not for what it does, but for what it is; that the genocide in Darfur has claimed 400,000 victims... Literally none, but these assertions are enough to establish the foreign policy of Western countries.
The author, a former agent of the Swiss strategic intelligence service, reviews the main contemporary conflicts that Western countries have managed with fake news over the last thirty years.
Jacques Baud, a colonel, chemical and nuclear weapons expert, trained in counter-terrorism and counter-guerrilla warfare, designed the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) and its Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA). In the service of the United Nations, he served as Chief of Doctrine for Peacekeeping Operations in New York, and was engaged in Africa. In NATO, he led the fight against the proliferation of small arms. He is the author of several books on intelligence, asymmetric warfare and terrorism. Lire la suite Fermer

Since the early 1990s, terrorism and its victims have increased exponentially. Without any action strategy or exit solution, through political and military incompetence, stupidity and ideological blindness, Western interventions have only contributed to its development. We eliminate terrorists, but not terrorism. The solution lies in a more holistic, more subtle, more intelligent and less dogmatic approach.
Terrorism is not an ideology. It is a method that takes many forms, including jihadist terrorism. Each form of terrorism is fought with a specific strategy. Based on the original texts of jihadist strategists as well as on their own analyses of attacks in France, Belgium, Great Britain and the United States, Jacques Baud explains the reasons for Western failure. He uses the analyses of Western intelligence services to decipher the mechanisms of jihadist terrorism, in order to extract strategies of action likely to avoid it or to fight it effectively and durably.
The author is a former head of Swiss strategic intelligence and former head of UN peace operations doctrine. In the course of his missions in Africa and Central Asia, the author has had several encounters with jihadists in the field. Lire la suite Fermer

Why did Ukraine lose the war against Russia? How do the two sides think and conduct their operations? What mistakes were made on both sides? How did the West contribute to Ukraine's defeat
To answer these questions and many others, Jacques Baud draws on official information, American, Western and Russian documents that analyse Russian (and Soviet) strategies and tactics over the last 50 years. He explains how Russia understands and conducts war, and shows how our ignorance of this reality has pushed Ukraine towards defeat.
Following on from the bestsellers Putin, the master of the game, Operation Z and Ukraine between war and peace, whose analytical work has been acclaimed the world over and whose books have been translated in several countries (United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Russia, and soon Italy and Spain), the author returns to the war in Ukraine and more specifically to Russian operational art over the last two years, during the Second World War and the war in Afghanistan.
Jacques Baud was a member of Swiss strategic intelligence, a specialist in Eastern Europe and former head of the United Nations peace operations doctrine. During the Cold War, he worked on Soviet military art and the war in Afghanistan. Within NATO, he was involved in programmes in Ukraine, particularly after the Maïdan revolution between 2014 and 2017. In addition to his major works on the conflict in Ukraine, he is the author of several books on intelligence, war and terrorism, including Governing by fake news, Defeating jihadist terrorism and The Navalny affair, all published by Max Milo. Lire la suite Fermer

Was Navalny deliberately poisoned? Does the evidence we have justify sanctions against Russia? Was the recording with the KGB agent a set-up? Is Navalny really the "main opponent of Vladimir Putin"? Does his film about "Putin's Palace" reflect reality?
This book is the first investigation of the Navalny case. It is based on official American, British, Russian, French and German documents. Written by an ex-agent of the Swiss secret service who fought for ten years against the Soviet Union, this account highlights a new way of practicing foreign policy: passionate, disordered, without hindsight or constructive purpose. The immediate application of sanctions while the facts remain unclear removes all space for diplomacy.
The Western unison around this affair and the censorship against dissenting voices reveal a disturbing evolution of society and its growing vulnerability to manipulation. We create realities out of our prejudices: this is the definition of conspiracy, which has become the main weapon of Western countries. We do what we reproach the autocrats for.

Jacques Baud, a colonel in the Swiss army, is an expert in chemical and nuclear weapons, and trained in counter-terrorism and counter-guerrilla warfare. In the service of the United Nations, he was head of doctrine for peacekeeping operations in New York, and engaged in Africa. At NATO, he led the fight against the proliferation of small arms. Lire la suite Fermer

This 15th edition of the Agricultural Outlook edition presents the outlook for commodity markets during the 2009 to 2018 period, and analyses world market trends for the main agricultural products, as well as biofuels. It provides an assessment of agricultural market prospects for production, consumption, trade, stocks and prices of the included commodities.

This edition of the Outlook was prepared in a period of unprecedented financial market turmoil and rapidly deteriorating global economic prospects. Because macroeconomic conditions are changing so quickly, this report complements the standard baseline projections with an analysis of revised short-term GDP prospects and alternative GDP recovery paths. Lower GDP scenarios result in lower commodity prices, with reductions in crop and biofuel prices about one-half those for livestock products. A sensitivity analysis to highly uncertain crude oil prices shows the important links between energy and agricultural prices. The Outlook also reports on a survey of various actors in the agri-food chain in terms of the current impacts of the global economic crisis and credit market constraints.
The issue of food security and the capacity of the agricultural sector to meet the rising demand for food remains very high on the international political agenda. This report provides a brief overview of critical factors such as land availability, productivity gains, water usage and climate change, and suggests that agricultural production could be significantly increased, provided there is sufficient investment in research, infrastructure and technological change, particularly in developing countries. Lire la suite Fermer

Cost-benefit analysis (CBA) is indispensable for making good decisions on what transport projects to fund. It essentially aims to figure out which projects offer the best value for money. However, the practical relevance of CBA does not always live up to its appeal in principle. One problem is that there is sometimes disagreement over what to include in CBA, both on the cost side and the benefits side of the analysis. As a result, value for money is not always fully transparent. More politically, value for money is only a partial criterion for decision-making, leading to disagreement about the relative importance of the results from CBA compared to other inputs to the decision-making process.
This report examines the extent to which these shortcomings can be addressed. In terms of what to include in CBA, discussion focuses on equity and distributional impacts, productivity effects, agglomeration benefits and external costs. The focus then turns to how best to present guidance on project selection to decision makers. The report includes papers on the way CBA is used in three countries - France, Mexico and the United Kingdom - and how it is evolving in response to changing policy priorities. Lire la suite Fermer

The Calvinist Reformation is characterized above all by a focus on church discipline enforced by church courts known as consistories. The Geneva consistory served as the model and mother institution throughout the Calvinist world. In this book, Robert M. Kingdon surveys the theoretical underpinnings of the Calvinist emphasis on discipline and how theory was put into practice by John Calvin in Reformation Geneva. Professor Kingdon looks in turn at how the Geneva consistory and the pastors and councilors who staffed it reformed religious practice, religious education and marriage practices. Finally, Robert M. Kingdon uses the emotion of hatred as a lens to examine how Calvin and his colleagues attempted to reform emotions. He delves into the way in which Calvin and his colleagues employed the consistory to attenuate interpersonal hatred, while employing propaganda to whip up interconfessional hatred. Lire la suite Fermer

The Western Balkan region benefits from a cost-competitive labour force and geographic and cultural proximity to EU markets. However, cost competitiveness as a source of differentiation is not sustainable. Cost levels are increasing gradually in some sectors, reducing firms' profitability. In order to sustain competitiveness, the Western Balkans needs to move up the value chain, from investing in automated technology to producing higher-quality goods and enhancing its human capital. This report examines the apparel manufacturing, automotive components and business process and technology outsourcing sectors, focusing on market competitiveness factors, industry key success factors and policy recommendations.

For decades scholars in diverse fields have examined problems in the history of mobility. Their diversity was their strength but also their limitation, as disciplinary boundaries impeded the exchange of ideas that lets scholarship flourish. Since 2003 the International Association for the History of Traffic, Transport and Mobility (T2M) has served as a free-trade zone, fostering a new interdisciplinary vitality in a now-flourishing field. Now, with the publication of its first yearbook, T2M has surveyed these gains in the form of a comprehensive state-of-the-art review of research in the field. Here, twenty-seven scholars in the history of mobility, from sixteen countries and five continents, present synopses of recent research. Besides reviews of research in thirteen countries, contributions also include thematic reviews relating mobility to the environment, automobile fetishism, race, gender, and other transnational themes. All in all, more than sixty scholars within and beyond T2M cooperated in this project, making it a truly collective work. Lire la suite Fermer

Drawing on a wide range of data sources, this publication constructs and analyses different indicators of child well-being across the OECD. These indicators cover six key areas: material well-being; housing and environment; education; health and safety; risk behaviours; and quality of school life. They show that no one OECD country performs well in all areas and that every OECD country can do more to improve children's lives.
How much countries are spending on children and when is also closely considered, the first time such a comparative exercise has been undertaken across the OECD. Additional chapters offer detailed examinations of countries' policies for children under age three, the impact of single parenthood on children and the effect of inequalities across generations. The publication concludes with broad policy recommendations for improving child well-being. Lire la suite Fermer

The North Atlantic (NORA) region is a transnational area comprising the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, and the coastal counties of Norway. These territories are linked by shared characteristics and challenges, as well as by historical, institutional and cultural links. Improving accessibility to the region, ensuring sustainable development of its fisheries, enlarging and diversifying its economic base, and meeting the challenges of climate change are key issues. Strengthened regional co-operation can help these territories address them by exchanging know-how and best practices, pooling resources and reaching economies of scale, improving the efficiency of public sector provision, and increasing the "voice" of the region.
However, transnational co-operation in the NORA region faces some barriers, as it involves territories that compete in their main economic activities, are separated by large distances, and have strong institutional and economic links with other countries and regions. In order to get the most from transnational co-operation, this report recommends that the NORA territories: focus co-operation efforts on targeted themes and issues; draw up a regional development strategy; promote greater awareness of the benefits of co-operation; develop a "variable geometry" approach to regional co-operation; and enlarge and refine the role of the NORA institution as a facilitator of co-operation. Lire la suite Fermer

OECD's periodic survey of Brazil's economy. This 2009 edition features chapters on looking beyond the economic crisis, reaping the benefits of macroeconomic consolidation, reforming indirect taxes and labour levies, and making government operations more effective.

This Review of Corporate Governance in Slovenia describes the corporate governance setting including the structure and ownership concentration of listed companies and the structure and operation of the state-owned sector. The Review then examines the legal and regulatory framework and company practices to assess the degree to which the recommendations of the OECD Principles of Corporate Governance and the OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-Owned Enterprises have been implemented.