By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – George W. Bush gave a speech on Thursday widely interpreted as an attack on Trump in which he deplored the rise of white nationalism and bigotry in the past year. “Bigotry,” he lamented, “seems emboldened.” George W. Bush may or may not personally be a nice […]
Archives for October 2017
Are China and N. Korea biggest Winners from Trump dissing Iran Deal?
Neil Thompson | (Informed Comment) | – – The recent move by President Trump to unilaterally decertify Iran under the 2015 nuclear agreement has predictably caused tensions between Iran and the West to rise. Trump’s unilateral jettisoning of the Obama-era deal (which has been sent back for 60-day congressional review in a bid to renegotiate […]
Why is Saudi Arabia suddenly so paranoid?
By James L. Gelvin | (The Conversation) | – – In the past, Saudi Arabia depended upon its enormous oil wealth and the United States for its security. It used the former to buy friends and pay off enemies and potential enemies. It used the latter to guarantee its survival. With a few exceptions, Saudi […]
Kirkuk Kurds Anguished about Future of Province
By Shalaw Mohammed | (Niqash.org) | (Kirkuk) | – – People in the northern city of Kirkuk have lived through a lot, including attacks by the Islamic State. But for many, last weekend was the last straw. In the middle of the night of October 16, the people of Kirkuk were glued to their televisions […]
Beyond the “Me Too” campaign: Sexual harassers and adult bullies
By Gail Ukockis | (Informed Comment) | – – His name was Jesse. I would have considered him to be handsome but for his dark eyes, which looked at me in a predatory manner. Dressed in his blue security guard uniform at the downtown Denver library, he looked official and authoritative. I was only sixteen, […]
Iran’s Khamenei: We’ll observe Deal if Europe does, despite “Charlatan,” Trump
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Iran’s clerical Leader, Ali Khamenei, said on Wednesday that he did not intend to engage in a tit for tat with Donald Trump, who had attacked Iran in a speech last week. “Naturally, I do not want to spend time right now in replying to the […]
Volcano-driven Climate Change Defeated Egypt’s Ptolemies
By Steven Young | ( The Watchers) | – – Around 245 BCE Ptolemy III, ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom in Egypt, made a decision that still puzzles many historians: After pursuing a successful military campaign against the kingdom’s nemesis, the Seleucid Empire, centered mainly in present-day Syria and Iraq, Ptolemy III suddenly decided to […]
Is racial bias driving Trump’s neglect of Puerto Rico?
By Lauren Lluveras | (The Conversation) | – – The morning after Hurricane Maria blasted through Puerto Rico, I emailed my aunt to ask if she was safe. That was Sept. 21. I heard back from her on Oct. 10. She was fine, she assured me, but “Puerto Rico is destroyed.” After that, my tia […]
Burma: New Satellite Images Confirm Mass Destruction of Rohingya
Human Rights Watch | – – 288 Villages, Tens of Thousands of Structures Torched (New York) – Newly released satellite images reveal that at least 288 villages were partially or totally destroyed by fire in northern Rakhine State in Burma since August 25, 2017, Human Rights Watch said today. The destruction encompassed tens of thousands […]
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