A Farewell to Arms, The Atlantic

South African dockworkers refusing to unload 3,080 cases of weapons and ammunition from a Chinese vessel, headed to Zimbabwe, possibly to crush Mugabe’s opponents made for a stirring story of labour action, but The Atlantic has some reservations: the job of stopping ‘wicked’ shipments belongs to customs agents, not the moral whims of unions, warns Graeme Wood.

And lastly, a glimpse into some of the advice column exchanges this week:

• 'My husband constantly upstages me...takes credit for my ideas, insinuates himself into my work life, appropriates my friends - what's going on?' Cary Tennis at Salon unhelpfully suggests seeking out the structural patterns in the relationship.

• Slate's Prudence is kinder to ‘Curry and French Fries’, an Indian-American whose parents won't accept his white girlfriend.

• This week's Shifting Careers advice column in The New York Times tackles long-distance business relationships, and how it's worth getting dressed up for that video-conference.

• Frugal Kitchen at iVillage has tips for American women worried about spiralling grocery costs (up 35 per cent in Belzoni, Mississippi) including the reminder that other countries pay a larger proportion of their income on food.

• The Washington Post's Carolyn Hax counsels ‘Frustrated Baker’ whose boyfriend often says ‘BLECH’ and spits out her offerings, even though others queue around for more. ‘I say ‘DON'T WASTE A PERFECTLY GOOD CUPCAKE’...I don't spit out his, or anyone else's recipe failures’, complains the justifiably hurt Baker.