The Observer, in short

Lead article Carmen Musat salutes the efforts of the National Book Center and the Romanian Cultural Institute while calling for a broader mix of private and public initiatives in the domain of Romanian cultural promotion abroad. Politics Bedros Horasanagian leads a master class in lamenting the political class’s habitual lack of responsibility. Ciprian Ciucu writes about the Educational Pact and the (un)likelihood of sustained change. Michael Shafir distinguishes between reforming the electoral system and reforming the political class. Latest Cristian Cercel comments on a bi-lingual, German language poetry event at the Romanian Cultural Institute. Nora Iuga and friends Jan Koneffke and Joachim Wittstock read excerpts from Koneffke’s Iubire la Tibru (Love on the Tiber, Bucharest: Humanitas, 2007,) and Wittstock’s Dumbrava morilor (Forest of Mills, Bucharest: Romanian Cultural Institute Publishing, 2007), both in Iuga’s translation. The reading took place at ICR on March 6. Mihai Plamadeala compares Bucharest’s museums to art palaces around the world. Public/private partnership emerges as the Observer’s theme of the week as Plamadeala notes that the city’s museums—long on content and curatorial inventiveness—stand in need of state support and/or private sponsorship. Debate How well do the national theaters do their job? The Observer opens a debate on […]