Archive for April 4, 2005

La Condition humaine, 1933. René Magritte. 

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

ACLU Urges Congress to Fix Flaws in the Patriot Act (Angry Arab Urges ACLU to Oppose the Patriot Act in its entirety)

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

This is Zionism: “A majority of Jewish Israelis believe that the state should encourage Israeli Arabs to emigrate.”

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

“Politicians in secular France squabbled over whether the government had been right to order flags lowered on public buildings in a sign of respect for Pope John Paul.” (In the US, we are below that debate).

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

Pope John Paul II and Bin Laden. Joseph Samahah, the best Arab columnist, began his article today this way: “Pope John Paul II never met Usamah Bin Laden. But the two men were in the 1980s in the same front. They were marching separately, and striking jointly. The commander of the front was indubitably Ronald [...]

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

Robert Fisk; we hardly knew you. I have always admired Robert Fisk. I like his dispatches and his style. Even when he throws himself into the story, it does not sound like…Thomas Friedman. But I read today several of his articles since the assassination of his friend billionaire Hariri, and I was not amused. He [...]

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

Africa spurns female genital mutilation

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

“In Mexico, Church Loses Influence on Village Life”

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

People struggle to find some good aspects of religion. Without any struggle or effort, I find no virtue in religion.

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

As Hegel once observed, I need to buy more peaches. I want somebody to tell me why Vaclav Havel is supposed to be profound. I mean, I know. He sometimes uses a trick that some European pseudo-intellectuals use, which is to invoke the name of Hegel, hoping that his shadow may cast some profundity on [...]

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

I have posted this poem before in July 2004. I post it again in light of the recent developments in Lebanon:From a poem by Lebanese poet Khalil Hawi (my translation):“…and no divine judge who throws stonesflowers here are without thornsHere, nudity is purity…”Take off those fake faces,torn off the skin of a repugnant chameleonWe have [...]

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

What has Israel contributed to the West Bank? Trash. Literally. 

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

“Israeli academics who refuse to condemn their government’s actions in the occupied territories risk a boycott by the UK’s leading lecturers’ union.” (I am jealous of UK’s leading lecturers’ union)

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

“Israel ‘is sealing off Jerusalem Arabs’”

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

” ‘Friedman,’ I said to myself, looking at this scene, ‘you are so twentieth-century. . . . You are so Globalization 2.0′ ” (Yes. Thomas Friedman has a new book. Friedman, I said to him. You are so boring and uninsightful. You are particularly annoying when you think that you came up with cute phrases. [...]

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

NSC

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

More than 120,000 Lebanese and Palestinians (nobody knows for sure, really) have been killed in the Lebanese civil war. Not once has the UN Security Council met to investigate their deaths. But for one dead billionaire, the UN Security Council will now investigate Hariri’s death. Just tell Kofi Annan that all were billionaires. May be [...]

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad

Hassan Fattah is Back. Hassan Fattah is Back. Wake up the Children and tell the neighbors, NOW. After a long absence, Hassan Fattah is back. But he is not covering Lebanon afterall. Just because his record on Lebanon was at the rate of an error-per-word is no reason to take him away from the Lebanon [...]

Posted on April 4, 2005 by As'ad