Cafe Politics

The basic idea of human rights is that each one of us, no matter who we are or where we are born, is entitled to the same basic rights and freedoms. That may sound straightforward enough, but it gets incredibly complicated as soon as anyone tries to put the idea into practice. What exactly are the basic human rights? Who gets to pick them? Who enforces them-and how? Benedetta Berti explores the subtleties of human rights.

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Jose Mujica, nicknamed Pepe Mujica, was President of Uruguay from 2010 to 2015. A former Tupamaros freedom fighter in the 60s and the 70s, he was detained, like a hostage by the dictatorship between 1973 and 1985. He advocates a philosophy of life focused on sobriety: learn to live with what is necessary and fairest.

Why does February only get 28 days when all the other months get 30 or 31? The answer is part superstition, part politics, and parts astronomy.

The NHL's Nashville Predators might have creamed the Toronto Maple Leafs on the ice Tuesday night, but ahead of the game, there was a technical difficulty for the U.S. side. The microphone cut out while a woman was singing "The Star Spangled Banner." Instead of taking a moment to fix the sound system, the fans in the Canadian arena barely missed a beat at filling in the rest of the U.S. national anthem.