By Chris Homewood, University of Leeds What do The Amazing Spider-Man 2, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and Godzilla have in common? Aside from belonging to the summer blockbuster class of 2014, they all feature China in some form or another. Many of these Chinese moments are fleeting – the future X-Men, for example, mount […]
How are Iran’s Special Forces intervening in Iraq?
By Golnaz Esfandiari To help Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s government battle militants of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), Iran could potentially offer significant assistance through its powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), which reportedly has been active in Iraq during the past decade, analysts say. What Can Iran Offer? Afshon […]
Unitarians divest from Fossil Fuels: Clear Commitment on Climate Change
By Robyn Purchia In some good new in the fight against climate change, the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) passed a resolution calling for divestment of their $175 UUA Common Endowment Fund from fossil fuel companies at their 2014 General Assembly in Providence, Rhode Island, over the weekend. “The UUA has a long-standing history of fighting […]
Inside the Mosul of the ‘Islamic State’: Manhunts, Salafi Coercion and Fired Christians
Niqash | Special Correspondent | Mosul | It has been several weeks since Sunni Muslim extremists took over the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. Locals continue to adapt to their new circumstances; tensions are rising because of fighting outside the city, fuel and food stocks continue to dwindle and the Sunni militia are starting to […]
Algerian Soccer/ Football and the Black Box of French History
By Francis Ghilès Senior Research Fellow, CIDOB When Algeria qualified for the knockout stage of the World Cup by winning against Russia, the Algerian press celebrated their team’s qualification as the greatest victory ever. In France large street celebrations were accompanied by the usual firecrackers and Algerian flags and were followed by clashes between groups […]
If you read Boing Boing, the NSA considers you a target for deep surveillance
By Cory Doctorow via Boing Boing In a shocking story on the German site Tagesschau (Google translate), Lena Kampf, Jacob Appelbaum and John Goetz report on the rules used by the NSA to decide who is a “target” for surveillance. Since the start of the Snowden story in 2013, the NSA has stressed that while […]
Can Meditation Slow Ageing? One Nobelist thinks So
By Jo Marchant It’s seven in the morning on the beach in Santa Monica, California. The low sun glints off the waves and the clouds are still golden from the dawn. The view stretches out over thousands of miles of Pacific Ocean. In the distance, white villas of wealthy Los Angeles residents dot the Hollywood […]
As Israeli Vigilantes pursue revenge killing of Palestinian Children, Troops Go on Unlawful Rampage
Via Human Rights Watch (Jerusalem) – Israel’s military operations in the West Bank following the abduction and killing of three Israeli teenagers have amounted to collective punishment. The military operations included unlawful use of force, arbitrary arrests, and illegal home demolitions. During raids on Palestinian towns, refugee camps, and villages, Israeli forces have shot and […]
Rumi on the Environment: Behind the Beauty of the Moon is the Moon-Maker
[For more of Rumi see 53 Secrets from the Tavern of Love: Poems from the Rubiayat of Mevlana Rumi -ed. ] By Aisha Abdelhamid Rumi: “Behind The Beauty Of The Moon Is The MoonMaker” Rumi’s eloquent relationship with the natural environment is his signature — his elegantly simple expressions reflect appreciation for both Creation and […]
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