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Kate Palmer

• Pakistan Kicked Me Out. Others Were Less Lucky. By Nicholas Schmidle, Washington Post, Jan. 3. Freelance writer (and FP contributor) Schmidle recounts his recent expulsion from Pakistan, which happened shortly after he reported about the Taliban's resurgence there. It's a powerful reminder of the perilous state of press freedom in Pakistan.

Mike Boyer

• The Pentagon: A History, by Steve Vogel. Vogel provides a fascinating history of how the Pentagon came to be and, along the way, hints at what it tells us about ourselves. 

Carolyn O'Hara

• The God Delusion, by Richard Dawkins, a book that deserves all the praise it has received and more. 

Blake Hounshell

• U.S. Rules of Engagement for Iraq. Wikileaks got a hold of the U.S. military's complex guide to the troops on when to shoot and when to hold fire. The big news? Hot pursuit into Syria and Iran was OK as of 2005, as long as the higher-ups signed off. 

Prerna Mankad 

• Der Spiegel interview with UAE Economics Minister Sheikha Lubna al-Qasimi, who speaks candidly about exploited workers, the country's rapid growth, how she got her job, and more.

Preeti Aroon

• Will Wall Street's Flu Make India Sneeze? in Tehelka. An analysis of what the U.S. recession could mean for India's economy.

Caitlin Wall

• Social Conflict: Escalation, Stalemate and Settlement, by Dean G. Pruitt and Sung Hee Kim. An overview of how psychology governs conflict, from a typical argument about who gets to use the family car, to the most rancorous and intractable violent conflicts around the world.