Worthwhile reading from other sites – 2018

So onto year three of the new look rascott.com and here are some things that I have read and found interesting – and think that you might as well….

December 2018

Who owns Britain? Open Democracy

Yemen on the brink: how the UAE is profiting from the chaos of civil war Guardian

Inside China’s audacious global propaganda campaign Guardian

November 2018

The paranoid fantasy behind Brexit The Guardian

What the Lion Air Pilots May Have Needed to Do to Avoid a Crash NYT

How the Camp fire overwhelmed Paradise Washington Post

FAA evaluates a potential design flaw on Boeing’s 737 MAX after Lion Air crash Seattle Times

Emirates Group announces half-year performance for 2018-19 Emirates

New Questions Swirl Over Boeing on Updated 737 Model That Crashed NYT

All hail the UAE Tolerance Summit…or else Middle East Eye

100 years on, Asia has largely forgotten the ‘Great War’ Nikkei Asian Review

We have no excuses now. Our eyes are wide open. Washington Post

How a Saudi royal crushed his rivals in a ‘shakedown’ at the Ritz-Carlton NBC

Why Mohammed bin Salman is now circling the wagons Middle East Eye

Thailand’s Rap Against Dictatorship New Mandala

HOW THE WAR IN YEMEN BECAME A BLOODY STALEMATE — AND THE WORST HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN THE WORLD NYT magazine

The Last Gasp of Northern Ireland NYT

How the killing of Jamal Khashoggi affects Turkish-Saudi relations Economist

How to scout a football team FT or Watford FC

October 2018

Venice flooded by high tide – in pictures Guardian

The Rise and Fall of Thailand’s Print Media Newnaratif

The Midterm Elections Are a Referendum on Donald Trump The New Yorker

The Enduring Fantasy of the Modernizing Autocrat NYT

Bangkok Best East 2018 BK magazine

At stake in Khashoggi affair: control of the Arab world’s narrative Christian Science Monitor

How the man behind Khashoggi murder ran the killing via Skype Reuters

Hong Kong’s troubled mega-bridge – counting the human, environmental and financial cost Hong Kong free press

Khashoggi the pawn in a Mideast showdown over the Sunni Muslim world Globe and Mail

Jamal Khashoggi: murder in the consulate The Guardian

Why Democracy Has Failed in Thailand Asia Sentinel

On Jamal Khashoggi, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Saudi Arabia Brookings Institute

More Insulting Lies From Saudi Arabia NYT

A President Kowtowing to a Mad Prince NYT

What Damage Control Looks Like in Saudi Arabia Bloomberg

Obituary: Rachel Whittaker The Baron – Rachel came from Reuters London to IP Sharp Associates in Toronto as HR Director.

HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER IN THAILAND Andrew MacGregor Marshall on CX700Z

Audio Contains Gruesome Details of Khashoggi Killing, Turkish Official Says NYT

In the Wake of Khashoggi’s Disappearance, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Is Pushed to the Brink The New Yorker

Jamal Khashoggi: details of alleged Saudi hit squad emerge The Guardian

It took a while, but ‘The Death of Hong Kong’ has arrived  Inkstone News

Jamal Khashoggi: A red line has been crossed Al Jazeera

Saudis are said to have lain in wait for Jamal Khashoggi Washington Post

Jamal Khashoggi dragged from consulate office, killed and dismembered Middle East Eye

Apple Watch, hired jet, mystery vehicle figure in search for missing Saudi dissident Reuters

Thomson Reuters Outlines Steps to Complete the Return of US$10 Billion to Shareholders and Announces Dividend Increase PRN newswire

Read Jamal Khashoggi’s columns for The Washington Post Washington Post

Turkey Believes Prominent Saudi Critic Was Killed in Saudi Consulate in Istanbul NYT

Jamal Khashoggi: A different sort of Saudi Middle East Eye

Rush to finish Istanbul airport leads to deaths and protests Irish Times

Entire GCC Crumbles Like A Pack of Cards: 19 Banks Merge, Etihad, Mubadala Can’t Pay Back Debt, Aramco Can’t Pay Salaries, UAE/Saudi Halt 3 Projects of $243 Billion, $11 Billion Bail Out For Bahrain & Jordan Voice of the markets

Saudi Crown Prince Discusses Trump, Aramco, Arrests: Transcript Bloomberg

Trump Engaged in Suspect Tax Schemes as He Reaped Riches From His Father NYT

How Aung San Suu Kyi Lost Her Way The Atlantic

September 2018

One thousand and one Arabian slights Chatham House

British cave divers also rescued four trapped Thai rescuers in Tham Luang Cave Darkness Below

Emirates Seeks Etihad Takeover to Create World’s Largest Airline Bloomberg

Don’t buy the Brexit hype: it’s a border in the Irish Sea or the customs union Guardian

Emirates-Etihad Sibling Rivalry Won’t Have a Happy Ending Bloomberg

For Valentino Dixon, a wrong righted Golf Digest

A Chinese Company Reshaping the World Leaves a Troubled Trail Bloomberg

A Viking farewell for Alastair Cook, England’s unflashy seducer of crowds Guardian

‘Under Swami’s spell’: 14 tourists claim sexual assault by guru at Thai yoga retreat Guardian

33 HOURS OF DEFIANCE: THE THAI AIRMEN WHO RESISTED AN EMPIRE Khaosod English

Saudi’s losing gambler: The raw truth about Mohammed bin Salman Middle East Eye

I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration NYT

Read Senator John McCain’s Farewell Statement NYT

Britain’s shared spaces are vanishing, leaving us a nation of cliques The Guardian

Want to solve the world’s problems? Try working together across disciplines AP – The Conversation – Olin College

August 2018

The Exclusionary Turn in GCC Politics Arab Center Washington DC

Gulf grapples with ‘silent’ economic crisis Asia Times

NIKON STRIKES BACK AT SONY WITH FIRST FULL-FRAME MIRRORLESS CAMERAS The Verge

Hothouse Earth Is Merely the Beginning of the End Rolling Stone

An island of wellbeing in a tide of democratic disintegration SMH

Thailand’s Prayut running on a false sense of security Asia Times

The Blowup With Canada Is the Latest Saudi Overreach. Will They Ever Pay a Price? The Intercept

No deal is often better than a bad deal. Not with Brexit The Economist

July 2018

Hong Kong’s fight to save its neon shimmer – a photo essay Guardian

Emirates outlines 2Q19 service reductions for Dubai Airport runway upgrade project Routes online

Faye Wong’s new music video on Chinese reality TV show recorded in one take – watch it here SCMP

Subverting British democracy: The UAE’s reach and influence revealed The New Arab

China and the Middle East: Why the UAE is deepening ties with Beijing Middle East Eye

Theresa May’s Impossible Choice The New Yorker

Holland’s Struggle With Its 9/11 Anna Holligan is the BBC’s correspondent in The Hague – she is writing about MH17.

The full story of Thailand’s extraordinary cave rescue BBC

When will the Saudis learn that Trump is toxic? Middle East Eye

‘Still Can’t Believe It Worked’: The Story of the Thailand Cave Rescue NYT

The Thai Cave Rescue, Before Its Triumph, Teetered on the Brink of Disaster WSJ

Cave rescue: Key questions answered BBC

Stateless and Poor, Some Boys in Thai Cave Had Already Beaten Long Odds NYT

Thailand’s Caves Are Dangerously Alluring The Atlantic

Boris Johnson Has Ruined Britain NYT

Thai villagers are stunned when they wake up and discover a BOEING 747 in a field near their homes Daily Mail (I know – I am sorry – but it is an airplane story!)

Phuket boat tragedy shows our indifference. Bangkok Post

‘Where Have You Guys Been?’: Thai Cave Challenge Quickly Became a Trap WSJ

Ailing Thai media grow dependent on junta’s financial support Nikkei Asian Review

Thailand tourist boat sinking: At least 33 confirmed dead off Phuket BBC

Disaster cave to be next tourist attraction Bangkok Post

Colin Byrne: Farcical US Open set-up twists the knife further for golf The Irish Times

Etihad Announces Details Of Their Radical Restructuring One Mile at a Time

Myth and politics in Thailand’s cave rescue operation New Mandala

Thailand Cave Search Turns to How to Rescue Trapped Soccer Team NYT

British divers at heart of Thai cave rescue among best in world The Guardian

June 2018

The revival of Thailand’s death penalty New Mandala

Thailand’s Leader Promised to Restore Democracy. Instead He’s Tightening His Grip Time

US quits UN human rights council – ‘a cesspool of political bias’ Guardian

Detainees held without charges decry Emiratis’ sexual abuses AP

Saudi Moves Forward With Plan to Turn Qatar Into Island Bloomberg

Trip Report: Quest Kodiak Series II Aviation Industry News

This Is What Trump’s Impulsive Diplomacy Looks Like Time

Laura Bush: Separating children from their parents at the border ‘breaks my heart’ Washington Post

Thai King Now Holds Crown Property Bureau’s Billions in Assets Blooomberg

How Russia won the World Cup Guardian

This should have been the real headline of the Trump-Kim summit Washington Post

Etihad claims overhaul progress but losses remain high FlightGlobal

The Irresistible Rise of Afghanistan’s Cricket Team NYT

Trump Was Outfoxed in Singapore NYT

Finally, a president with the guts to stand up to Canada Washington Post

Qatar says it is taking UAE to International Court of Justice FT

Qatar says it files case against UAE at UN’s highest court AP

UAE rights activist Ahmed Mansoor sentenced to 10 years in prison Al Jazeera

Free Ahmed Mansoor Amnesty International

The imperial nostalgia of a ‘Small Island’ The UK in a changing Europe

In Cambodia, stalled Chinese casino resort embodies Silk Road secrecy, risks Reuters

Ten years for a tweet: UAE’s shameful imprisonment of Ahmed Mansoor Middle East Eye

Washington’s Pax Americana Cartel The American Conservative

Europe to Britain: Eat your cake and go Politico

UN accuses Saudi Arabia of using anti-terror laws to justify torture Guardian

The Gulf Impasse’s One Year Anniversary & the Changing Regional Dynamics Gulf International Forum

What life is like for ordinary North Koreans Economist

Brexit Britain is an island nation, but it’s never been alone Guardian

QATAR CRISIS CREATES ‘NEW’ GULF WITH NO WINNERS, EXPERTS WARN WAU

Unseen shots from Tiananmen 1989 – When Beijing’s students dared to dream of change Hong Kong Free Press

Qatar World Cup weathers Gulf crisis but fresh storms brew France24

May 2018

In Britain, Austerity Is Changing Everything NYT

How did google get so big CBS News

OH SPARE US THIS WOKE MONARCHY Spiked

Forget the Markles – who in their right mind would want to marry into the royal family? The Independent

In Thailand, No Justice 8 Years After Crackdown HRW

Trump Jr. and Other Aides Met With Gulf Emissary Offering Help to Win Election NYT

Oh Oh: Emirates Cutting Pilot Staffing On Some Longhaul Flights Due To Pilot Shortage One Mile at a Time

The Definitive Story Of How Trump’s Team Worked The Trump Moscow Deal During The Campaign Buzzfeed

Kushners Near Deal With Qatar-Linked Company for Troubled Tower NYT

Thailand’s ruling junta is preparing to hold an election—and to win it The Economist

Royal-Wedding Fever: The View from Windsor The New Yorker

A political standoff in the Indian state of Karnataka Economist

Four years after coup, Thais tire of corruption and democratic delays Reuters

Exposing Victoria’s Secret—and the NCPO’s graft New Mandala

EDITOR REMOVED FOR MISMANAGEMENT – NOT JUNTA PRESSURE: BANGKOK POST Khaosod English

Excess, Hubris and the Fall of Najib Razak, Malaysia’s ‘Man of Steal’ NYT

Thailand Junta’s Constitutional Masterpiece Asia Sentinel

China buys up flying schools as pilot demand rises FT

The Moral and Intellectual Bankruptcy of the Thai Middle Class Asia Sentinel

Thailand’s military junta dictating its term and future in political office Chiang Rai Times via Straits Times

Poll without people power holds no promise Bangkok Post

The Brazen Bootlegging of a Multibillion-Dollar Sports Network NYT

What Is Wrong With Malaysia? NYT

Concerns grow for whereabouts of Dubai princess following failed escape Guardian

Cambodia’s last independent paper sold to Malaysian PR firm owner FT

Why Saudi and the UAE shouldn’t bet on Trump #Trump Middle East Eye

‘Deny, distract and blame’: how Russia fights propaganda war The Guardian

Mueller Has Dozens of Inquiries for Trump in Broad Quest on Russia Ties and Obstruction NYT

Hacked messages show Qatar appearing to pay hundreds of millions to free hostages Washington Post

Inside Rex Tillerson’s Ouster The New Yorker

April 2018

Meet the Saudis Remaking the Kingdom’s Image in Washington Bloomberg

Taiwan: little island with a big heart FT

Trump likely to scrap Iran deal amid ‘insane’ changes of stance, says Macron The Guardian

An FA with a shred of decency would stop Leeds United from going to Myanmar New Statesman

Jürgen Klopp: ‘I have this helping syndrome. I really care about people’ Guardian

Ahmed Mansoor: UAE wants the world to forget about its ‘million-dollar dissident’ Middle East Eye

Richard Flanagan: ‘Our politics is a dreadful black comedy’ – press club speech in full Guardian

The continuing blockade of Qatar makes no sense FT

A decade of change The Baron (on Reuters)

Michael Cohen and the End Stage of the Trump Presidency The New Yorker

UAE rights activist Ahmed Mansoor put on trial in Abu Dhabi Al Jazeera

Ahmed Mansoor taken to court after a year in arbitrary detention Gulf Center for Human Rights

CULTURE CLASH AND CHAOS AT SILOM SONGKRAN (ACTION PHOTOS) Khaosod English

They Documented a Massacre. Their Prize Is a Prison Cell in Myanmar NYT

Under Construction: Photographs of Dubai and its fast-changing landscape Creative Boom

Statement from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons on the Salisbury attack: 4 April 2018 Acting UK Permanent Representative to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

A Saudi Prince’s Quest to Remake the Middle East The New Yorker

March 2018

What’s with the sanctimony, Mr Waugh? ESPN CricInfo

Bucket tipped on Aussie sledgers Sydney Morning Herald in 2002

The Ten: Hysterical Overreactions Wisden

Mailey to Murray Mints: Seven ball-tampering confessions from the past ESPN CricInfo

Australians are finally waking up to their cricketing hypocrisy The Spectator

Top Trump donor sues Qatar over leaked emails Middle East Eye

Britain’s Response to the Salisbury Attack: A Net Assessment Chatham House

Malaysia proposes up to 10 years’ jail, fines for publishers of ‘fake news’ Reuters

Mueller probe witness secretly backed UAE agenda in Congress AP

‘Only death’: How Mohammed bin Salman has torn up the rules of kingship Middle East Eye

Vladimir Putin’s politics of eternity Guardian

Qatar asks U.S. to investigate UAE bank for ‘financial warfare’ Reuters

Crown Prince of Disorder Foreign Policy

Kidnapped Royalty Become Pawns in Iran’s Deadly Plot NYT

MH370: mystery of private company behind renewed search for missing plane SCMP

Facebook data harvester’s links to US and UK counter-extremism campaigns Middle East Eye

Four Seat Piston Singles Plane and Pilot

Southeast Asia’s megacities have a choice: Shangri-La or slum South East Asia Globe

UK-US Open Skies talks hit Brexit turbulence FT

The Memory of the Embassy (British Embassy in Thailand) Read the Cloud

Blind spots in Prayuth’s election promise Asia Times

Fire and Fury in the Gulf International Policy Digest

February 2018

Qatar: Beyond the Blockade | Featured Documentary Al Jazeera

Expo 2015: what does Milan gain by hosting this bloated global extravaganza? Guardian – with a lesson for Dubai Expo 2020

This is my neighborhood in Tokyo. Medium

Hate speech, atrocities and fake news: the crisis of democracy in Myanmar FT

Chinese Tourists Are Taking Over the Earth, One Selfie at a Time Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia could be next on Fifa’s list after Peru and Spain AS.com (English)

A Chinese Empire Reborn NYT

Rakhine state: Hatred and despair in Myanmar’s restive region BBC

Special Report: How Myanmar forces burned, looted and killed in a remote village Reuters

Wat Gate, the Multi-Religious Community Chiang Mai CityLife

Is the GCC dead after the Qatar crisis?  Gulf State Analytics

A guide to the Nunes memo Economist

The wrong impact Reuters on the Abraaj healthcare fund

Abraaj Group Denies It Misused Healthcare Funds Forbes

False portraits do not do justice to the UAE The National in response to HRW’s 2018 report.

United Arab Emirates Events of 2017 HRW 2018 report

Cape Town faces Day Zero: what happens when the city turns off the taps? Guardian

From dusk till dawn: in search of old-school Bangkok Guardian

Raffles Still Looms Large over Post-colonial Singapore The News Lens

AP Exclusive: AP confirms Myanmar massacre and 5 mass graves AP

Cash-strapped Foreign Office sells Bangkok embassy for £420m Guardian

Yemen’s fast rewind into politics of the past Al-Bab

Blackstone bets big on Wall St. information business with Thomson Reuters deal Reuters

January 2018

Exclusive: Blackstone in talks to buy majority stake in key Thomson Reuters unit – sources Reuters

Thailand’s corruption ranking drops from 76th to 101st in 2016 CPI Thai PBS

Anti-Qatar Embargo Grinds Toward Strategic Failure Baker Institute

Thailand: Forced Labor, Trafficking Persist in Fishing Fleets HRW

HRW World Report 2018 HRW

Thailand denounces Human Rights Watch Prachathai

Tiny, Wealthy Qatar Goes Its Own Way, and Pays for It New York Times

Why Test cricket is a game in decline New Statesman

Thailand’s heartland is surprisingly keen on the military junta Economist

Hawaii missile alert: How one employee ‘pushed the wrong button’ and caused a wave of panic Washington Post

Cyrille Regis: a pioneer on the pitch and the leader of a generation The Guardian

Blockchain Is Changing Our World: Here Are The Best Practical Examples Of How It Is Used In 2018 Forbes

Thailand in 2018: no neat exit strategy for junta New andala

China’s great firewall is rising Economist

How I fell for the blockchain gold rush Guardian

“You Can’t Make This S— Up”: My Year Inside Trump’s Insane White House Hollywood Reporter

Why Is Steve Bannon Torching the Trump Administration? National Interest

Donald Trump Didn’t Want to Be President New Yorker

The UAE is determined to punish Tunisians for the sin of democracy Middle East Eye

Beijing is cultivating the next generation of African elites by training them in China Quartz

2017: The year that shook Hong Kong’s democracy Al Jazeera

Will Thailand return to electoral democracy in 2018? Nikkei Asian Review