Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – On Saturday, IRNA reports, Iran and China signed a 25-year cooperation agreement. The signatures were affixed in Tehran by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a ceremony on the 50th anniversary of the establishment of modern diplomatic relations between Iran and China. […]
Scotland is First Industrialized country to generate 97.4% of Electricity From Wind and Solar
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – In 2011, Scotland’s government, urged on by visionaries like Richard Dixon, set itself the ambitious goal to get 100% of its electricity from renewables by 2020. At that time, it only only got about a fourth from clean energy sources, and a lot of that was hydro. The report card […]
Why the Suez Canal, now blocked, is so Important to the Global Economy and World History
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The super-super tanker Ever Given is stuck kitty-corner in the Suez Canal, having apparently run up on a sand bar. It is blocking dozens of other ships from going through the canal. The ship, one of the largest in the world, is a quarter of a mile long and can […]
It doesn’t have to be this Way: England has 33 gun Homicides per Year (equiv. 182); US has 10,258
Revised We are reeling from back-to-back mass shootings, in Atlanta and Boulder. The main similarities of the two are that the young alleged murderers easily bought firearms just before their horrific killings and that neither of them ought to have been anywhere near a firearm, clearly having severe emotional problems. The US policy of constantly […]
A New History of the Prophet of Islamﷺ – Juan Cole interviewed by Hamza Yusuf
Juan Cole interviewed by Hamza Yusuf at Renovatio about the book: Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires Available at Nicola’s Books in Ann Arbor And Hachette And Barnes and Noble And Amazon Renovatio writes: Can those working in the field of modern academic historical method contribute to new ways of viewing an […]
White Nationalist TV News: Even Networks and CNN are falling for ‘Border Crisis’ Propaganda
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The media frenzy in the US around the alleged border crisis with Mexico could have several roots. It could be an attempt to appear even-handed, in that anchors are criticizing a Democratic administration. It could be that Republican talking points are simply being given a hearing. It cannot be that […]
America is ‘Can-do’ again: Biden’s $3 trillion infrastructure Plan includes $500 bn for Green Energy and Transit and Massive Innovation
Jeff Stein and Tyler Pager at WaPo report that $500 billion of the proposed $3 trillion Biden infrastructure plan, or 16 percent, will be devoted to dealing with climate change. They write, “The infrastructure component is expected to include $400 billion in spending to combat climate change, including $60 billion for infrastructure related to green […]
Israelis cancel VIP Pass for Palestinian Foreign Minister for consulting with Int’l Criminal Court
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Naila Khalil reports at al-`Arabi al-Jadid (The New Arab) reports from Ramallah that Israel has withdraw the VIP Pass from Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki. The government of Binyamin Netanyahu was apparently angered that al-Maliki and other Palestine officials conducted talks in the Hague this past Thursday with Fatou Bensouda […]
Tens of Thousands Protest “Crime Minister” Netanyahu in Israel as his Political Survival hangs in Balance
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Thousands of Israelis demonstrated Saturday at various places against Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who is being tried for corruption, as the country goes to the polls Tuesday. This was the 39th consecutive weekly demonstration against the beleageured prime minister, who polls suggest faces an extremely close election. If he […]
© 2025 All Rights Reserved