There were two attacks on US and British troops in Afghanistan on Monday, by members of the Afghanistan armed forces. The American was killed in “the east,” while the two British officers were shot in Helmand province. The USG Open Source Center translated a Pashto report on the Helmand incidents: ‘ Man in Afghan military […]
Republicans Promise to take US Health Care in Direction of Sub-Saharan Africa
(From this site).
Bush Senior Also Promised Moscow more Flexibility after Election
President Obama was caught by an open mic Monday telling outgoing Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that he would “have more flexibility” in missile negotiations “after the election.” Republicans jumped all over Obama for the remark implying that it showed he wasn’t being as tough as he should with the Russians. But reassuring Russians about your […]
Omar Khayyam (80)
A codger staggered drunk out of the bar, a prayer rug over his shoulder and a wine glass in hand. I said, old man, what’s come over you? He said, have some wine; the affairs of this world are just hot air. Translated by Juan Cole from [pdf] Whinfield 80
Basic Facts on Clothing and Murder for American Bigots
Dear American bigots: Basic Fact: Wearing a veil, as Iraqi-American Shaima al-Awady did before she was brutally murdered in her home as part of a hate crime, does not make a person a terrorist. You don’t mind it when pious Roman Catholic women wear a nun’s habit, and you recognize that dress as a sign […]
Faster than Expected Climate Change means drought, war, famine for Middle East, Africa
A new study just published in Nature Geoscience has found it plausible for the first time that the world’s average surface temperature could rise by as much as 5 degrees Fahrenheit (3 C.) by 2050, only 38 years from now. In February, the United Nations warned that the world only has a few years to […]
Omar Khayyam (78)
You ignoramus! This bodily form is nothing. and this speckled dome of the nine heavens is nothing. Be happy that in the realm of being and corruption we are dependent on a single breath; and that, too, is nothing. Translated by Juan Cole from [pdf] Whinfield 78
Israeli Peace Marchers Protest Iran War Talk in Tel Aviv
Haaretz reports that hundreds of Israeli peace activists marched in Tel Aviv on Saturday to protest all the talk of striking Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities. Their placards demanded “No to War with Iran,” and “Talks, not Bombs.” The boldness of this march, given the rightwing political atmosphere in Israel, should not be underestimated. Devastated at […]
Western Intelligence Analysts Worry that Iran Sanctions are Hurting West: IRGC
The USG Open Source Center translates an article from Javan, an organ of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC: Iran’s National Guard), analyzing alleged Western intelligence summits that question the effectiveness of sanctions on Iran. The article should be taken with a grain of salt, but it makes some good points. Iran has used saber-rattling […]
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