The Book, the Bomb, and Stalin

David Holloway. Stalin and the Bomb: The Soviet Union and Atomic Energy, 1939–1956 . New Haven.     

After Crossroads: The Fate of the Atomic Bomb Target Fleet

The atomic tests at Bikini Atoll left a submerged archaeological legacy in the form of sixty-one shipwrecks at or near Bikini, Kwajalein, the California coast, and in two other lesser cases off Oahu and the coast of Washington State. Together they comprise a unique maritime cultural landscape of the Cold War, and the naval aspects of that conflict.     

The International Lenin School: A Response to Cohen and Morgan

This paper challenges the methods and conclusions of an articleon British students at the International Lenin School by GidonCohen and Kevin Morgan published in a recent issue of TwentiethCentury British History. It questions their model of relationsbetween the Comintern and its national affiliates, and theirassertion of the prominence and total nature of the Lenin Schoolas a control mechanism of the former over the latter. Afterdemonstrating the inadequacy of their data and methodology,it indicates significant deficiencies and omissions in theirhandling of qualitative evidence relevant to the influence ofthe school on its students. It concludes by showing that theauthors underestimate the scale and duration of the impact ofthe school's graduates upon the apparatus of the Communist Partyof Great Britain.     

Israel: Divided by Religion and Education

Israel is a democracy splintered by religion and education. Two of its fastest growing religious groups, ultra‐Orthodox and Muslim Israeli Arabs, are not learning democratic principles or marketable skills that enable them to assist in the economic development of the country. Even Israelis who are attending secular and religious Israeli government schools are academically behind in mathematics as measured on 2011 international achievement tests of PISA and TIMSS. The history of religion and education from 1928 to 1955 built the foundation for the current divisions. The impact of the Ottoman and British occupation on citizens is particularized thorough the experiences of Elias Tuma, who lived under British and Israeli government systems. Today's educational system in Israel reinforces religious and sectarian conflict among its citizens. Educational and religious structural suggestions are provided for readers to consider. The implications of this work for future research are provided.     

Building an Alliance and Building a Bomb

Books reviewed in this article:
Abraham Ben-Zvi, Decade of Transition: Eisenhower, Kennedy, and the Origins of the American-Israeli Alliance
Avner Cohen, Israel and the Bomb     

Israel and the International Legal Arena

Israel considers the international legal arena as another battlefield where the country's legitimacy is challenged. Jerusalem's apprehension in regard to its international standing further increased in 2002 following the establishment of the International Criminal Court at The Hague. Developments in the case against Prime Minster Ariel Sharon in Belgium between June 2001 and September 2003 strengthened the Israeli government's conviction that an anti-Israel agenda could percolate into the legal process. Similarly, the International Court of Justice's advisory opinion in regard to the “wall” (security fence), issued on 9 July 2004, reinforced Israel's distrust of the international legal arena. This article follows the anti-Israel offensive in the international legal arena and analyzes Israel's counter actions.