There are more Middle Eastern Christians than ever before, and they are poised between emergence as a new political force in a democratizing region and the dangers to them of fundamentalism and political repression. The arguments you see for Christian decline in the region are mostly wrong. If we count the Christians in the Arab […]
Cairo Symphony Orchestra: “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”
Cairo Celebration Choir & Cairo Symphony Orchestra: “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”
Christmas in Bethlehem has special Significance for Palestinians
Euronews reports on Christmas in Bethlehem and the Palestinians: Some 15,000 pilgrims are in the city and, despite fears raised by the Gaza fighting, hotels are fully booked.
200 Dead, Many Children, in Syrian aerial bombing of Halfaya
Opposition forces said that Syrian fighter jets bombed the town of Halfaya near Hama on Sunday. The bombs struck a crowd standing in line to buy bread, and some 200 victims are said to have been killed, and dozens more injured. The attack on Halfaya likely was the regime’s response to its fighters confronting the […]
Muslims of Liberated Saraqeb, Syria, put up Christmas Tree for Local Christians
Muslims of Syrian town of Saraqeb put up Christmas tree for local Christians. The young man who is being interviewed stresses the unity of all Syrians, whether Muslim, Christian, Druze, etc. The Syrian revolutionaries took it at the beginning of November. It was subsequently the site of the execution of captured Syrian army troops. Last […]
Egypt’s Controversial Fundamentalist Constitution Meets Low Turnout
Egyptians went to the polls again Saturday in the second round of the constitutional referendum. The provinces or governorates that voted in this round were disproportionately rural, and early returns suggested a big “yes” vote, perhaps as high as 70% or so. Rural areas are strongholds of the Muslim Brotherhood and other fundamentalist forces, though […]
Abraham Lincoln on the Purpose of Government (Or He Wouldn’t be in GOP Today)
From Abraham Lincoln: Complete Works, Comprising His Speeches, Letters …, Volume 1, p. 92: “If we except the light and the air of heaven, no good thing has been or can be enjoyed by us without having first cost labor. And inasmuch as most good things are produced by labor, it follows that all such […]
Top Ten Ways NRA Stole Christmas this Year
The tone deaf and horrifyingly self-serving speech given by Wayne LaPierre of the National Rifle Association on Friday cast a pall over our holiday season. At a time of national mourning and determination finally to rein in the plague of semi-automatic weaponry infesting our society, the speech was an exercise in blaming everyone but the […]
The Real War on Christmas: GOP Rejection of Tax Rise on Rich could End Tax-Break for Charitable Giving
Many worthy institutions in the United States, from universities and cancer research centers to soup kitchens, art galleries and public radio, are supported by donations from private citizens. One of the motivations for this charitable giving is that it typically reduces one’s tax bill. In essence, the government allows us to steer a certain amount […]
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