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Articles by Patrick James
The Soulful Swagger of 4-Wheel Roller Skates
Laced Up and Let Loose Before inline skates got slick and speed became king, there was rhythm. There was bounce. There was glide. And it all sat on four chunky wheels, spread wide like a Cadillac’s stance on the street. You weren’t rollerblading. You were skating. And damn if it didn’t feel like flying.
The Carbon Budget is Bankrupt - And We’re Still Buying Jet Skis
As Earth barrels past the 1.5°C threshold, world leaders trade promises while the planet collects interest on a debt of denial. They told us we had time. They told us we could innovate our way out. They told us the market would adapt, that the invisible hand would give the Earth a friendly pat on the back. And yet, here we are — three years out from blowing the world’s last chance to stay within the relatively safe confines of 1.5°C of warming.
5 elections to watch in 2025 - USC Dornsife
Experts on politics in Canada, Germany, Chile, Belarus and the Philippines — including USC Dornsife Professor Emeritus of Political Science and International Relations Patrick James — weigh in on what to expect as each country’s voters prepare to head to the ballot box. The coming 12 months can’t promise the bumper crop of elections we saw during 2024, when countries home to about half the world’s population headed to the polls.
Donald Trump’s Shadow Looms Over Justin Trudeau’s Resignation Announcement
It can’t escape notice that the resignation comes just weeks ahead of a Trump administration – and after a barrage of personal slights and threats of punishing tariffs directed at Canada by the incoming Republican president. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and US president-elect Donald Trump at a dinner at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
Trudeau taps out: How Trump’s taunts and tariff threats added to domestic woes confronting Canada’s long-standing PM
After weeks of speculation over his future, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his intention to resign on Jan. 6, 2025. kAmk6>mw:D 56A2CEFC6 H:== 3C:?8 k2 9C67lQ9EEADi^^E964@?G6CD2E:@?]4@>^;FDE:?\ECF562F\BF:ED\9@H\9:D\7@4FD\@?\D@4:2=\A@=:4J\H:==\36\9:D\=6824J\acefb_Qm2? 6?5 E@ >@C6 E92? 2 564256 @7 A@H6Ck^2m 7@C E96 AC@8C6DD:G6 A@=:E:4:2? 2?5 @?46\52C=:?8 @7 E96 =:36C2= =67E] xE 7@==@HD :?7:89E:?8 :? 9:D @H?
Trudeau taps out: How Trump’s taunts and tariff threats added to domestic woes confronting Canada’s long-standing PM Original
After weeks of speculation over his future, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his intention to resign on Jan. 6, 2025. His departure will bring an end to more than a decade of power for the progressive politician and once-darling of the liberal left. It follows infighting in his own party and a slump in Trudeau’s popularity to the point where he trails the leading opposition candidate by over 20 percentage points.
Historic buildings are never in stasis. Why would it be any different for landscapes?
We need to approach landscape conservation with the same nuance and care that we show to buildings, write Patrick James and Dorian Proudfoot For those who work in the historic built environment, it’s easy to treat buildings in isolation from related plants and landscapes.
"The most essential blog in opera!" - New York Times | Where opera is king and you, the readers, are queens.
Voices from far and wide across the opera world, including your writers, are excited to fête this bittersweet milestone and look forward to the next 30 years of the box! Michael Anthonio: To Parterre Box on Your Thirtieth (A Sonnet of Gratitude) Even though thirty in age you are To the opera world and online To near and far queens of various sign You’re undoubtedly the greatest star Although La Cieca has now gone far Her passion still radiates so fine Cover us all like a bright sunshine To...
By Scott Gartner, Chin-Hao Huang, Yitan Li and Patrick James
Co-authored by four high-profile International Relations scholars, this book investigates the implications of the global ascent of China on cross-Strait relations and the identity of Taiwan as a democratic state. Examining an array of factors that affect identity formation, the authors consider the influence of the rapid military and economic rise of China on Taiwan’s identity.
Practice to pitch: The relationship between force-velocity profiles and match-day performance of semi-professional rugby union players
Ormond R. Heather1*, Patrick J. Lander1 and Russell J. Rayner1* 1Eastern Institute of Technology, New Zealand The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon. This exploratory study assessed the relationship between athlete neuromuscular performance derived from force-velocity profiles (FVPs) from four common resistance exercises and rugby performance indicators (RPIs).
In Memoriam: Michael Brecher
Hostname: page-component-568fdb559-fzg8h Total loading time: 0.318 Render date: 2022-06-07T15:24:28.118Z Has data issue: true Feature Flags: { "shouldUseShareProductTool": true, "shouldUseHypothesis": true, "isUnsiloEnabled": true, "useRatesEcommerce": false, "useNewApi": true } Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 June 2022 Show author details Rights & Permissions[Opens in a new window] Abstract An abstract is not available for this content.
Fall Baseball Takeaways: Standouts, Key Newcomers, Spring Questions
Pat James has covered the North Carolina baseball program for most of the last eight seasons, primarily at The Daily Tar Heel and GoHeels.com. In March, he launched Boshamer Bulletin, where he provides in-depth coverage of the team, both in print and podcast form. Subscribe for free today. ***** For as much of an eye-opening experience as his first season as North Carolina’s head baseball coach was in 2021, Scott Forbes knows it was even more the case for his young team.
Finding His Voice: Joshua Ezeudu's Journey
Joshua Ezeudu sat down and scanned the Brady Bunch-like grid of faces staring back at him, his mind racing with thoughts of what would happen next. Never in his three years in Chapel Hill had he spoken with the media. And now that he was about to on a Zoom conference call, the North Carolina offensive lineman was overwhelmed with fear, unsure if the words rolling around in his brain would make it past his lips – or even how they’d sound.
Father's Day - [PANK]
They didn’t tell me right away. First there were greetings and cookies. My husband chatted with his father in the kitchen, where I slid the cooler onto a counter, moving down the stairs to call the boys up from the basement. Let’s wash our hands, I said, and we went through the motions. Out of sheer exhaustion and annoyance, I no longer sing the ABCs while we’re scrubbing. Normally wary of disposable products, I was glad to see paper towels. I wouldn’t have to worry about contamination.
How “Ruger” is telling us that Ruger is the new miracle in afrobeats | By Adedimeji Quayyim Abdul-Hafeez
There is no doubt that bliss has been created in the Jonzing World’s newest wonder kid, Ruger, in his new single, “RUGER”.
Police brutality: A moment of thought | By Ajíbádé Abdullah Adéwálé
“Many of the older generation do not understand your fight against suppression because they are mini oppressors. They dictate to their children whom they should marry, what course to read and whether they should go to protest or not” – Aisha Yesufu Should we put on rags like a madman before we can be safe from police brutality? How do I break the news to the world that jimoh isiaq was murdered in broad daylight by the constitutional boko-haramic SARS with legal jurisdiction to carry guns?
How Ben Kiernan Found His Calling
Walking the hallways of Raleigh’s Wakefield High in early December 2018, Ben Kiernan was on his way to his fourth-period math class when his phone buzzed. One of the country’s best high school punters, the Dublin, Ireland native had recently completed his final season with the Wolverines and, in turn, turned his attention to his recruitment. Several schools were showing interest.
The Top 10 Biking Cities In America, Mapped By How People Commute
John Nelson is the designer behind the maps visualizing all varieties of transportation in the Seattle metropolitan area, which have lately caught the eyes of people around the Internet (including ours). As the maps grew in popularity, Nelson started fielding inquiries from cyclists (especially Portlanders), wondering what their hometowns might look like in one of his maps. Those requests got him wondering about the best cities across the country for biking and walking.
Why Military Brass Should Not Rant About George Floyd On Facebook
On June 1, Air Force Chief Master Sergeant Kaleth O. Wright took to Facebook to voice his thoughts on the death of George Floyd. Wright is exceptionally popular with airmen and on social media. He has a podcast on leadership, gives talks around the country, and has used his time as CMSAF to boost the morale and welfare of the regular rank-and-file. Wright’s “mic-drop” on Facebook comes just a few months before his retirement.
Writing The Apocalypse: Talking to Halley Gross of The Last of Us Part II
The Last of Us is a series about choice and darkness. From the studio that brought us Nathan Drake, it was a change of pace, a game that pushed the limits on what narrative in games could look like. Exploring the true horror people will put each other though in order to survive. While it was a game about sacrifice and struggle, it was also one filled with hope things can be better.
Death Stranding PC Release Delayed To July 14
Kojima Production and publisher 505 Games have decided to delay the PC release of Death Stranding from its original date of June 2, now hitting stores July 14, 2020. In a Tweet from developer Kojima Productions they outlined: “Following the temporary closure of KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS, we have had to delay the PC launch of DEATH STRANDING to July 14, 2020, to allow more development time amidst the current work-from-home orders in place.
Logitech G915 Keyboard Review
Mechanical keyboards have long been the gold standard for PC gaming. They feel more responsive, have a satisfying click, and altogether feel better to type on. While there have been many low-profile mechanical keyboards in the past, few have felt truly “game ready”, at least until now with the new Logitech G915 Keyboard. This wireless low profile keyboard offers everything you could hope for from a modern peripheral, and save for the price, is pretty close to perfection.
3 Tips for Creating Attraction in 3 Seconds or Less
People decide what they think of you within 3 seconds of meeting you. Patrick James shows you how to make that impression a good one. — Have you ever gone to a networking event and wondered what kind of an impression you were making on others? Last weekend I did just that. I went to Las Vegas for an event where I was sure to meet hundreds of like-minded entrepreneurs.
Like a prayer
It was quite a pleasure—a privilege, really—to see John Dexter’s legendary production of Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites last night at the Metropolitan Opera. In light of the parade of tiresome, soft-minded ideas that have become de rigueur at the house, Dexter’s razor-sharp direction is a reminder of how imagination and creativity still trump extravagance. After more than 40 years, his vision has aged very well. Austere, stark, seething—it goes down like shot of top-shelf vodka.
Jest you, jest me
Friday night’s Rigoletto at the Metropolitan Opera revealed once again a predictable dissonance between the performances on stage and Michael Mayer’s production. The performers—musically fresh, alive and on their game—seemed out to sea dramatically, detached, and maybe a little bit confused. They did their best to illuminate their characters’ interior lives, but without much success.
Strangers in the night
Michael Grandage’s production of Don Giovanni for the Metropolitan Opera is possibly the worst production I’ve ever seen at the house. It represents the very nadir of conservatism. Neither rudely provocative nor richly traditional, its listless laziness snuffs out the opera’s incendiary potential. It is startlingly unimaginative, managing, in its ineptitude, the rare achievement of insulting western culture.
Oh my goddess!
As the Met continues its steadfast march through Wagner’s magnum opus Der Ring des Nibelungen, the second installment (Die Walküre) crystallizes the cycle’s questions, ideas, and stakes. As Wotan’s political infrastructure continues to crumble, certain choices are made; and, consequently, various figures within the intricate narrative take on deeper significance, deploying rhetorical strategies in order make their cases heard.
Domino theory
The Metropolitan Opera delivers on the promise of Wagner’s Gesamtkunswerk in a revival of Robert Lepage’s Ring Cycle. The first installment, Das Rheingold, initiates one into ancient mythology and the composer’s harmonic landscape with conservative elegance. Indeed, accepting Wagner’s text at face value is not a poorly considered approach. Such a large tapestry of topoi and plot demand precision and clarity—something Lepage’s production delivers.
Exactly the kind of boy he had always wanted to be
“Paul’s Case,” the short story by Willa Cather, is excellent material for an opera. It has a simple, linear plot; but its straightforward narrative belies complex ideas—ideas that become galvanized upon dilation. (Like those odd little toys you find in drugstores. Just add water and watch it expand!) Published in 1905, and since then perennially anthologized, the story is taught widely in high schools across the country.
Skeleton key
It makes so much sense for the Metropolitan Opera to program Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta alongside Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle. Both pieces use themes of vision and revelation to ask compelling questions about knowledge, responsibility, and gender.
Reach out in the darkness
In the riveting Tchaikovsky/Bartók double-bill that has returned to the Met one heroine struggles toward light—and love–while the other descends into a nightmare of eternal midnight. My sole concern, however, is Iolanta, the rarely staged yet rapturously beautiful fairy tale which was crowned on Thursday evening by Sonya Yoncheva’s haunting portrayal of the blind title character.
Discomfort zone
I primarily returned to Sir Richard Eyre’s production of Carmen at the Met to hear Roberto Alagna. After his misfire earlier this season, in Samson et Dalila, I wanted to see how he fared in repertoire with which I’m a bit more familiar. And indeed, his over-the-hill Don José was worth a revisit to the ubiquitous opera.
Shrieking violet
When Diana Damrau debuted at the Metropolitan Opera as Zerbinetta in Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos, her silvery instrument seemed inexhaustible. Gorgeous! Youthful! She could do anything with that athletic, vibrant sound. She twisted out the most flexible, ornate phases. Her instrument was bright, yet cultivated. It moved. It spun. It gracefully leapt into stratospheric tessitura. It worked with a wide palette of color.
War horses
With a performance of Il Trittico that showed every instant of its age, the Met celebrated both the centennial of the opera’s premiere at the house and Plácido Domingo’s 50th season with the company. Perhaps in the spirit of the latter honoree, the proceedings took the virtue of longevity too much to heart; the night stretched on interminably. To start with, Il Tabarro failed to find its groove.
Atonement
As readers of parterre box may know, I am not inclined to write sympathetically of Sondra Radvanovsky. I have found her voice tinny, ugly, and often unhinged and intractable. And in a recent review of Aida at the Met, I compared her unfavorably to Anna Netrebko. But now I must eat my words. And I am happy to do so, because there’s nothing better than a diva asserting her authority, shoving her relevance down my throat.
Bland date
With a program of Schumann, Wagner, Ravel and de Falla, mezzo-soprano Elina Garanca and pianist Kevin Murphy delivered a underdone performance at Carnegie Hall on Tuesday night. The problem was not the mezzo’s talent; she is an artist with a prodigious instrument, adept technique, and an expert musicality. It was, instead, a refusal to fully engage with the material on an artistic level. She did not deploy her extensive capabilities at their full effect.
Back in black
He returned. He sang. He didn’t get hanged. After more than four long years and a recent saloonful of publicity, the world’s most famous tenor performed again at the Metropolitan Opera. It wasn’t a triumph; neither was was it a flop. But it was very good to have Jonas Kaufmann back Wednesday night even in a lackluster if occasionally touching revival of the aging elephantine production of La Fanciulla del West.
The 12 biggest movie releases coming your way
It’s less than six months until the 2015 Oscars and we’re already excited about the incredible line up of films that will be coming our way before the awards season.October will see the release of the most hyped film of year, Gone Girl, starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike, and Fury, the WWII drama starring Brad Pitt and Shia LaBeouf.· Hot new movies this weekend · Movie Advisor: Magic in the Moonlight · Robin Williams: his 20 greatest roles rememberedIn November, The Dark Knight Rises...
American beauty
It’s surprising to read that, as of this writing, La fanciulla del west has only had 105 performances at the Metropolitan Opera. Just compare that amount with the company’s 1,323 performances of La bohème. It begs the question: why doesn’t the opera have a more prominent place in the company’s repertory?
Goddess, defined
How to describe Anna Netrebko’s performance in Aida without slipping into hyperbole? Impossible, but I’ll try. If the Metropolitan Opera’s golden curtain wasn’t already bipartite in structure, I suspect her singing would’ve rent it in two. Or, think of the climactic scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark—when the Nazis open the eponymous container, and their faces melt as they gaze upon the countenance of God.
MSI GS65 Stealth Thin Review
It used to be expected that if you wanted a laptop that can play the latest games, it would have to be a beast. Even five years ago the idea that a laptop could be thin and offer desktop level performance was a fantasy. Thankfully this is no longer the case. Laptops can push the envelope on portability without sacrificing power and performance. The new MSI GS65 Stealth Thin does all this while being one of the most stunning laptops to come out in the past few years.
Scots house prices treble since our last World Cup
House prices have nearly trebled since Scotland last took part in the World Cup in 1998, according to new research from Bank of Scotland. The research shows average house prices across Scotland have risen from £63,559 in 1998 to £174,712 in 2018. Inverness has seen the biggest house price increase of 259% or £137,420. A house in Inverness in 1998 would have cost £53,118 on average, but prices have now reached £190,537.
Painful progress
The world is always falling apart. That’s just one of many lessons surfacing in Tony Kushner’s epic Angels In America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes. And even though it’s already 2018, twenty five years since the first Broadway production, we are still approaching Millennium with a capital M: oceans rise, coherent systems spin wildly into chaos, vulgarity and power make for intimate bedfellows, and a celebrity sits in the Oval Office.
Scots housing market tops £161bn in last 10 years
The sixth annual Registers of Scotland’s Property Market Report shows that the total value of the residential sales market in Scotland from 2007-08 to 2017-18 was £161.3 billion. Registers of Scotland’s business development and information director Kenny Crawford said: “The Scottish property market is a significant component of the Scottish economy. “In 2017-18, the total value of residential sales alone was £17.9 billion, an increase of 7.8 per cent when compared with 2016-17.
Speaking ill of the dead
The Metropolitan Opera honored the anniversary of Shakespeare’s death (four hundred and two years ago on Monday) with a revival of Bartlett Sher’s production of Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette. However, with a libretto that stunts Shakespeare’s genius dramatic structure, it was hard to see the opera as an appropriate homage. And that’s despite a capable cast and functional direction. Jules Barbier and Michel Carré’s libretto is overwritten.
The perfect use of an imperfect medium
The perfect use of an imperfect medium Rogers and Hammerstein’s Carousel is a work of inarguable genius, so perfectly crafted that it almost feels impossible to mess up. If you don’t believe me, then head on down to the Imperial Theater, where Carousel is receiving a Broadway revival in a simple, cautious production that still manages to pack an emotional wallop.
I want magic
The Metropolitan Opera has neglected Cendrillon far too long. An exquisite, sumptuous score and a highly efficient libretto make this work, in my opinion, superior to Massenet’s other operas. That being said, the arrival of Laurent Pelly’s competent production at the Met (by way of Santa Fe and Covent Garden) is reason enough to celebrate—if not, perhaps, for the merits of its design and direction, then for its ability to highlight this long overlooked work.
Cabal me by your name
Cabal me by your name It’s fortunate that the Met’s production of Luisa Miller featured the incomparable Piotr Beczala in the role of Rodolfo. Otherwise it would’ve been difficult to engage with such an unlikable protagonist—narcissistic and petulant to a fault, pulling his lover into his self-destructive mayhem like quicksand. This, in combination with a cynical plot, which buckles under the weight of its own grief, can make for a severely depressing evening.
Italian dressing
E.M. Forster asks in his novel A Room with a View, “Have you ever noticed that there are people who do things which are most indelicate, and yet at the same time—beautiful?” This profound question—on its own terms, a unique aesthetic thesis—practically sums up the transformative effects of Italian culture on English sensibilities. Robust, reckless, and full-blooded, the stereotypes of Italy stand in stark contrast to the reserved and sensible notions of English gentility.
The help
I’m sure I’m not the first to say it, but thank God for Kelli O’Hara. At this point the Broadway veteran and Lincoln Center darling is becoming a national treasure. And as Despina in the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of Così fan tutte, she makes her case, injecting much needed vitality into an otherwise lethargic evening.
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