Premise: If Gaddis wants to blame Stalin and authoritarian rule for the Cold War, he must explain why the confrontation lingered on so long after the old brute's death in 1953.

Hypothesis: Gaddis does not blame Stalin for the cold war.
Answer: no

Premise: Long ago, had not Whittington asked: "Who's been blabbing?

Hypothesis: Whittington himself is the culprit.
Answer: it is not possible to tell

Premise: Y'all always do the same, says the white mayor of 60 percent black Selma, Ala., at the end of their interview.

Hypothesis: You behave a different way, said the major.
Answer: no

Premise: They later rebuilt it to bolster their own prestige, only to burn it down once again in a fit of pique when the Meiji Restoration of imperial power abolished their shogunate in 1868.

Hypothesis: The Meiji Restoration of imperial power abolished their shogunate in 1868, which prompted them to burn it down.
Answer: yes