Sultans and Scarves
Three weeks ago, an Egyptian Muslim mother and wife, four months with child, was stabbed to death in Dresden, the civilian city bombed to the ground by the allies during World War II. She was stabbed in full view of her son and husband, and when her husband rushed to...
Obama In Cairo
Well, here he was. Massive hype, of course, an event touted as a game-changer for American/Arab relations and something that a lot of people were eagerly expecting. Even before the event, certain facts were being highlighted within the region - Unlike most, if not all, US Presidents of the last...
The Clinton Provides A Pass
Despite the supposedly promising move of making George Mitchell the Middle East Envoy – it appears that any work he attempts will be under the glowering shadow of none other than second of the two infamous Clintons, good old Hillary. Consider if you will, the article at Reuters entitled “Clinton...
Open Letter To Barak Obama
Mr. Obama, President Elect – you have won, and the people cheer – and in huge neon letters, or so the media would have us understand – the world itself now sees the words ‘Hope’, ‘Change’, ‘Obama’ all writ large pnto some bright fantastical chimera. My skepticism is founded mainly...
Hell
Hell is a darkness aborting the light and declaring itself to be true. It is cold and it is numb to the touch, and unyielding with certitude. It is a devouring un-tempered by kindness or grace, and it is absolute. Hell is the poverty of the slum in the City...
Good Night & Good Luck This Ain’t : ABC News…
As usual, the local satellite channel MBC 4 continues to broadcast ABC News – featuring the effervescent Katie ‘Da Man’ Couric. Joy. Well, first of all – we’d all like to remind Katie that, generally speaking, ‘magnate’ is not best pronounced the same way you’d pronounce ‘magnet’… Moving on… Good...
Half-Full.
Having pointed out the true story behind the web of lies portrayed in Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan to somebody – I was taken aback by the response. The person I pointed things out to asked my why I would do such a thing to start with. Why, he asked, would...
Like A Rolling Stone…
I received an email yesterday informing me that the Rolling Stones are planning a concert in Israel, and asking me to include my name among people who are asking the Rolling Stones to boycott Israel; as various other artists and academics have. I replied to the email, included my information...
Bush’s Veto or How To Dismantle A Cretin…
Having just read the text of Bush’s veto statement, I thought it might be worth a quick step-by-step deconstruction, for the benefit of any polar bears on a random island somewhere that may not have given it the once-through. It reeks. “Tonight”, says The Bush, in reassuring tones, “I will...
WorldMapper: Take A Look At The World…
In case you haven’t run into it, WorldMapper is an absolutely wonderful resource. It is, to quote the blurb, “a collection of world maps, where territories are re-sized on each map according to the subject of interest. 366 maps and PDF posters will be finished by February 2007.” – It’s...