More things.

• There is a classic scene in Monty Python’s film The Life of Brian where the hero sets off in search of a secret band of insurgents. “Are you the Judean People’s Front,” he asks a group of malcontents. “The Judean People’s Front!” they reply in disgust. “We’re the People’s Front of Judea … The only people we hate more than the Romans are the f***ing Judean People’s Front … And the Judean Popular People’s Front. Splitters!”
  
  This is how a recent post on Reuter’s Africa news blog started. The post continues by discussion how insurgent factions in Sudan’s strife-torn west keep on fracturing. First, it is a short but great read. Second, it made me think of Eastern DRC where groups also constantly split, and the groups' names consistently - and humorously - include words such as “Liberation”, “Democratic”, etc. Third, why do rebels groups splinter? Is it possible that groups split because a lower ranking leader now earns X but can earn X+Y if he splits. Is it likely that these days it is no longer about 'winning the war'; i.e. growing as large and powerful as possible.

• Jason Stearns recently posted the following photo of Bukavu in 1932. Fantastic!

• If you don’t know TED yet, please change this and check out their website and especially their videos. In one word: Brilliant! A friend of mine recently send the following video I hadn’t seen yet. The story that comes with the video: "Mark Roth studies suspended animation. The art of shutting down life processes and then starting them up again. It's wild stuff, but it's not science fiction. Induced by careful use of an otherwise toxic gas, suspended animation can potentially help trauma and heart attack victims survive long enough to be treated."

• A long time ago I was a PhD student in economics (after my coursework I swapped to political science) and one of the videos that went around those days at Tiburg University is this video by Yoram Bauman - the world’s only stand-up economist. Mankiw’s Principles of Economics are translated. It is great.