It is admittedly a bit far from local politics in Massachusetts, but since one of your trusty correspondents finds himself in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan today, a country recently in world news, we thought BMG readers might enjoy a post from a bit farther afield.My girlfriend and I are on an extended trip overland from Xian, the ancient capital of the Chinese empire, through Central Asia to Istanbul, capital in its time of no less than three great empires (Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman, for history fans).We are staying in an apartment in a comfortable middle-class neighborhood of this landlocked capital. It’s a bit like staying on the Upper West Side in Manhattan, except that there are no streetlights. Since the city is heavily forested, that means
