Rumors are flying that Russia may be trying to topple Syria’s President Bashar Al-Assad, or at least to force him to accept a new constitution that would significantly limit his power. Moscow unexpectedly started criticizing its only ally in the Middle East, which has raised questions on the future of Russia’s involvement in the Syrian […]
Archives for May 2020
Climate Social Distancing: As sea levels rise, are we ready to live behind giant walls?
By Hannah Cloke | – Climate change, it’s fair to say, is complicated. And it’s big. One of the main challenges of responding effectively is simply getting your head around the scale of the problem. This is not unique in the study of the physical world, of course. Scientists and economists spend a lot of […]
Washington Irving, “Legend of the Arabian Astrologer”
Washington Irving, Tales from the Alhambra (New York: Lea and Carey, 1832). Legend of the Arabian Astrologer. IN OLD times, many hundred years ago, there was a Moorish king named Aben Habuz, who reigned over the kingdom of Granada. He was a retired conqueror, that is to say, one who having in his more youthful […]
If only we Had that $6.4 Trillion we wasted on Iraq and Afghanistan to Lift the Economy and Fight Coronavirus
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Wouldn’t it be nice if the richest country in the world had some resources stored up to deal with the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression and the worst health crisis since the 1918 Influenza Pandemic that killed 600,000 Americans? I mean, we had a $21 trillion a year […]
Mother’s Day for Palestinian Women in Gaza Means Children Maimed, Jailed, Killed or Living under Israeli Blockade
By Eman Abusidu | – ( Middle East Monitor ) – While families around the world have celebrated Mother’s Day, Palestinian mothers in the Gaza strip continue to remember their missing motherhood, which is all too often cut short by Israel’s military occupation. Mother’s Day itself is no different to any other under occupation and […]
Neoliberalism starved our Classrooms of Resources for 50 Years, and then Covid-19 Budget Cuts Hit
By Belle Chesler | – ( Tomdispatch.com) – Do you hear that silence? That’s the absence of footsteps echoing through our nation’s public school hallways. It’s the silence of teaching in a virtual space populated with students on mute who lack a physical presence. It’s the crushing silence of those who are now missing, who […]
Fleas to flu to coronavirus: how ‘death ships’ spread disease through the ages
By Joy Damousi | – One of the haunting images of this pandemic will be stationary cruise ships – deadly carriers of COVID-19 – at anchor in harbours and unwanted. Docked in ports and feared. The news of the dramatic spread of the virus on the Diamond Princess from early February made the news real […]
Your Crazy Uncle Sam strikes again, Vetoing Global Peace to own the ChiComs
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Under Trump, America has officially become the world’s crazy uncle Sam. On Friday, the US used its veto power to block a United Nations resolution calling for a global ceasefire during the coronavirus pandemic. The resolution had been called for by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The move left all the […]
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam: Why some Sufis drink Wine
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam: Quatrain of the Day A search for good times isn’t why we drink: Wine’s not for going rogue or faithlessness. We sip to bring ourselves to selflessness; that is the secret of my drunkenness. trans. Juan Cole, (Whinfield 66) می خوردن من نه از برای طربست نز بهر فساد و ترک […]
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