Climbing Paris: Four Monuments and an Epiphany

The article:

STAIR MASTER

I Climbed 1800 Stairs in a Day for the Perfect View of Paris, and Found It In a Surprising Place

Sacré-Coeur, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, and the colonnade on top of the Pantheon all unlock secrets to this magical city.

Pictures and videos:

• #Paris4MonumentClimb: My Pantheon
• #Paris4MonumentClimb: My Trocadero and Eiffel Tower...
• #Paris4MonumentClimb: My Arc de Triomphe
• #Paris4MonumentClimb: My Sacré-Coeur

Sometimes I take a photograph that just makes me feel good ...

#paris #france on the way home from #balletclass on the #bus #boulevardsaintgermain #today ... She was about seven, I think. Danced half the length of the bus.

A post shared by Christopher Dickey (@csdickey) on Oct 14, 2017 at 4:22am PDT

The Macron Files: Superstar, Shooting Star, or Black Hole?

France's new president, Emmanuel Macron, has made quite an impression since his election less than three weeks ago. But his greatest accomplishments have been on the proscenium of international politics, upstaging Presidents Trump and Putin. At home he's already facing scandals that seem to give the lie to his promise of squeaky clean government. So, it's too early to tell if he'll remain a superstar, is just a shooting star, or like his predecessor François Hollande will become a black hole in the French political firmament. But here, for the record, are several of my pieces about him from the last couple of months. 

Macron #tao #taormina #G7 #cartolinedag7taormina @elysee @francoislafite @poc17

A post shared by Nomfup (@nomfup) on May 28, 2017 at 6:09am PDT

Macron Handed Putin His A**, These Outlets Tried to Save It
At 64, Putin's a quarter century older than Macron, and he looked lost and frustrated next to the outspoken 39-year-old French president.

ANNA NEMTSOVA
CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Macron Gets Under Putin's Skin, Shows Up Trump
Like Donald Trump, if Vladimir Putin thought the new boyish French president would roll over, he was in for a big surprise when they met for the first time at Versailles on Sunday.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Here's How World Leaders Are Learning to Handle Donald Trump
Small concessions, flattery, simple language, cultivation of his advisors, a united front, and low expectations are key to managing the U.S. bull in the global china shop.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Macron's Man on Terrorism
The professor Marine Le Pen loathes and the jihadists want to kill hopes that France can break out of the cycle of fear and hate promoted by both ISIS and xenophobic populists.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Emmanuel Macron Vanquishes Marine Le Pen
An Obama-friendly centrist has just crushed a pro-Trump right-winger to become the next French president. But ... who is this outsider with all the inside connections?

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Did Macron Outsmart Campaign Hackers?
While it's still too early to tell, so far the big document dump by hackers of the Macron campaign has not been damaging.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Le Pen Vanquished in Final French Debate
The final French presidential debate—the only head-to-head between centrist Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen—ended in a clear defeat for the far-right populist.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Fighting Back Against Putin's Hackers
Emmanuel Macron isn't just fighting a neo-fascist in his race for the French presidency. He's battling some of Vladimir Putin's most savvy hackers, too.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

France's Centrist Candidate Bans RT
The centrist running against Marine Le Pen to become the next president of France has denied credentials to Moscow's 'propaganda organ' as reports of Russia's efforts to undermine him grow.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

French Far Right and Center Face Off
Trump's tacit endorsement of France's far right may have backfired, as France's centrist candidate took the lead in the first runoff. But Le Pen is still standing.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY

Paris Attack Could Put Le Pen in Power
A cop shooting on the Champs-Élysées is claimed by ISIS, which hopes to tilt French elections in favor of anti-immigrant extremist Le Pen. Objective: civil war.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY
ERIN ZALESKI

The French Elections Could F*ck Us All
After a year of high-stakes electoral surprises, France may bring us the most important, disturbing, and dangerous one yet.

CHRISTOPHER DICKEY
ERIN ZALESKI

Recent articles, including: Angels of the Resistance (and a Serial Killer) in Nazi-Occupied Paris

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  Did France Hate Left, Or Just Hollande?

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Christopher Dickey

World News Editor - The Daily Beast

Contributor - NBC/MSNBC News

Twitter and Instagram @csdickey

My Recent Essays on Cuba, Slave Spies in the Confederacy, the Capture of a Terrorist, and The Phantom Palace of Paris

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  Black Spies in a Confederate White House

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My latest: An exclusive interview with Bob Gates about Obama, Trump and Madman Theory, plus other columns from the last three months

Dear Friends, 

The columns, stories and essays below run from last November to this week.

I found fascinating Gates's take on the bully, Trump, and on the role of emotion in international affairs that No Drama Obama seems to miss. (On that score, also take a look at the obituary for Benedict Anderson, whose writings about Indonesia may hold the real key to Obama's personality.)

I am also quite proud of the "Have Terrorists Won" story, which centers on an interview with Gilles Kepel (the answer is no, but the West could still lose); and the stories in the aftermath of the November 13 attacks. 

I think the articles about Le Pen go a way toward helping us understand the woman who may be the next president of France, and the essay on guns and slavery in America, which grew out of solid research for my book, Our Man in Charleston: Britain's Secret Agent in the Civil War South, surprised and shocked many readers. 

All the best, Chris

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  ISIS Targeted Muslims in Paris

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  The so-called caliphate has a special hatred for 'apostate' Muslims who adopt Western ways—and... MORE