Stanza 21 of the first edition of Edward FitzGerald’s translation of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám continues with the theme of the shortness of life and the finality of death, but introduces new emotions, of grief for lost loved ones and nostalgia for the past. These poignant lines have sometimes made me cry. We get […]
Archives for October 2025
Major Israeli Violations of Gaza Ceasefire, With Extensive Bombardment, killing 51 Palestinians
By Brett Wilkins | – ( Commondreams.org ) – Gaza officials said that at least 51 Palestinians, including numerous children, were killed across the strip on Sunday. Attacks include but are not limited to a double-tap drone and missile strike on a café west of Deir al-Balah that killed five people, all of them reportedly […]
A Matter of Life and Death: Trump, RFK Jr. and Lies that Kill
By David Rosner and Gerald Markowitz ( Tomdispatch.com ) – The Senate Finance Committee hearing with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was explosive. The Secretary of Health and Human Services was accused of “reckless disregard for science and the truth,” and senators from both parties were openly hostile as they questioned him extensively on his vaccine […]
Ypsilanti, named for a Greek Freedom Fighter against Tyranny, Rallies against Trump on “No Kings” Day
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – In the 1820s Greece waged a successful war of independence against an authoritarian king, the Ottoman Emperor Mahmoud II. The American public, enthralled with this saga of a quest for liberty, idolized the revolutionaries, who were led for a few years by Demetrios Ypsilantis. They took his name for the […]
Our Fourth Amendment Rights Are Endangered Like Never Before
Trump is trying to disappear the part of the Constitution that stops the government from searching your house — or seizing you — without a warrant. By Mitchell Zimmerman | ( Otherwords.org ) – Suppose the police want to get illegal drugs off the streets. So they begin stopping pedestrians at gunpoint, shoving them against […]
As Gaza rebuilds, what Lessons can be learned from Nagasaki in 1945?
By Gwyn McClelland, University of New England (The Conversation) – At first, there might not seem to be any immediate similarities between a devastated Nagasaki after the US atomic bombing in 1945 and Gaza today, aside from massive destruction. But in considering Gaza’s recovery from war – should the current ceasefire hold – much may […]
Infectious Diseases “Spiraling out of Control” in Gaza as Israel Cuts Aid Entry in Half
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The terms of the Trump ceasefire in Gaza required Israeli authorities to allow 600 trucks of food and medical aid into the Strip daily, in a full court press by the United Nations and NGOs to flood the zone with nutrition after the Israeli blockade provoked famine in parts of […]
Can Netanyahu Survive Peace?
By John Strawson, University of East London (The Conversation) – Now a ceasefire has come into effect in Gaza, Israel’s long-serving prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, faces the dilemma of how to campaign ahead of the next national elections. These elections must be held, at the latest, in one year’s time. In a meeting at the […]
The Trump Administration’s steps toward a Military Occupation of America
( Tomdispatch.com ) – Earlier this month, President Donald Trump threatened to unleash the armed forces on more American cities during a rambling address to top military brass. He told the hundreds of generals and admirals gathered to hear him that some of them would be called upon to take a primary role at a […]
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