Quatrain no. 25 in the first edition of Edward FitzGerald’s translation of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám is about the futility of metaphysical teachings in the face of certain death. XXV. Why, all the Saints and Sages who discuss’d Of the Two Worlds so learnedly, are thrust Like foolish Prophets forth; their Words to Scorn […]
In the Spirit of H. Chandler Davis: Activism and the Struggle for Academic Freedom
Juan says: I’m honored to have an essay in this volume on threats to academic freedom and to free speech in the United States since 2023. I look at the crisis as it unfolded in is first months. All of the essays are urgent reading during America’s current Third Red Scare. I have been in […]
The Hot Tub of Death? Bill Gates, Hurricane Melissa, and a Civilization Under Threat
Here is my essay for this week’s Tomdispatch.com. Don’t miss Tom Engelhardt’s canny introduction, in which he points to Donald Trump’s climate denialism as a context for that of his “billionaire buddies.” And by the way, it has now been shown that Hurricane Melissa clocked a wind gust of a mind-boggling 252 mph shortly before […]
“Your Reward is Neither Here nor There!” FitzGerald’s The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám 1:24
Stanza no. 24 in the first edition of Edward FitzGerald’s translation of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám makes fun, as A. J. Arberry pointed out, of theologians and philosophers who spoke of metaphysical certainties. Personally, I think there is something almost Buddhist about it (see below). XXIV. Alike for those who for to-day prepare, And […]
The COP30 Climate Meet had One Job, and Totally Crashed and Burned
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – COP30 in Belém, Brazil, has ended without an agreement by member states to reaffirm the phasing out of fossil fuels, which is the only way to avert rolling climate catastrophes. COP28 at Dubai had included such language. The vague advice to countries to cut down on their carbon dioxide emissions […]
India Plans 2.45 Gig Solar Park + 5 GWh Battery in Rajasthan, so why drag its Feet at COP30?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The paradox of India’s unhelpful stance at COP30, which has gone into extra innings over the obstacles the “like-minded developing countries” have placed in the way of a renewed pledge to transition away from fossil fuels, lies in New Delhi’s impressive investments in renewables. That is, even the right wing […]
Global Battle Royale at COP30 between Fossil Fuel Producers and Green Energy Advocates
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Fiona Harvey at The Guardian reports from the COP30 climate conference that a bloc comprising such countries as India, China, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt and Bolivia (under its new right wing President Rodrigo Paz), calling themselves “like-minded developing countries,” are attempting to deep-six the pledge made at COP28 in Dubai […]
Türkiye to host Climate Meet COP31: Can it Rise to Green Energy Leadership Challenge?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Türkiye has emerged as the host of COP31, after a vigorous contest with Australia. In a compromise, the representatives of the world’s nearly 200 countries will assemble in Türkiye for the conference, but Australia will lead the negotiations. COP refers to the Conference of Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, initiated […]
Trump Pledges F-35s to Saudi Arabia in return for an unlikely $1 trillion in Investment, Angering Israel Lobbies
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Al-Jazeera reports on the visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman to the White House. One US goal for the meeting was to induct Saudi Arabia into the Abraham Accords, which Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Kazakhstan have joined, recognizing Israel in return for US economic and […]
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