Archive for October 30, 2009
Our secrets and their archives
My weekly article in Al-Akhbar: “Our Secrets and Their Archives: Looking for Lebanon in the American [Archival] Collection”
Posted by As'ad at 4:09 PM 10/30/09
Dictatorships that you like
“The press is mute. Reporters Without Borders, a Paris-based watchdog, ranks Tunisia’s press as one of the world’s least free. Many journalists who cheek Mr Ben Ali or his regime have been beaten, imprisoned, sued or intimidated. Naziha Rejiba, …
Posted by As'ad at 8:18 AM 10/30/09
Congratulations
I am sure that you are proud. One of your favorite dictators, Zayn Al-`Abidin bin `Ali of Tunisia, won himself yet another term with 89.61 % of the “vote.”
Posted by As'ad at 8:15 AM 10/30/09
Look at this headline in Prince Salman’s mouthpiece
This is the headline in Prince Salman’s mouthpiece, Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat: “Bush is funny and tells jokes, and stresses his faith in God.”
Posted by As'ad at 8:12 AM 10/30/09
Israel: disgrace unto the nations
“A Palestinian student has been handcuffed, blindfolded and forcibly expelled to the Gaza Strip by Israeli troops just two months before she was due to graduate from university.” (thanks Suad)
Posted by As'ad at 8:06 AM 10/30/09
Why is he a leader?
Look at this inflammatory headline: “F.B.I. Raid Kills Islamic Group Leader in Michigan.” If he were Jewish or Christian, his religion would not have been relevant. He is a small town crook. Leader? Of what and of whom? Who among the Muslims in th…
Posted by As'ad at 7:42 AM 10/30/09
Foreign workers in Israel
“Migrant workers in Israel’s agriculture sector are among the most exploited, according to a 28 October report by Kav LaOved, an Israeli NGO campaigning for the rights of disadvantaged workers in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. N…
Posted by As'ad at 7:37 AM 10/30/09
All that you have done to our people is registered in notebooks
“By year end 1,000 Palestinians will find themselves homeless. The Jerusalem Center for Social and Economic Rights released information detailing the demolition orders of 150 homes in 12 Jerusalem neighborhoods. This number excludes 125 apartments p…
Posted by As'ad at 7:34 AM 10/30/09
Coup Plot in Turkey?
“According to a letter written by the military officer who turned these documents in to prosecutors, the report, titled Information support work prepared by the junta, was only one of the many documents prepared by “the Information Support Departm…
Posted by As'ad at 7:32 AM 10/30/09
Judith Miller: still searching for Iraqi WMDs
“Bizarrely, Miller found hope in an official of the Saudi Interior Ministry — an institution which tortures, executes, and holds people without charges or trial — an official of the state which supports the very ideologies that lead to al Qaeda, t…
Posted by As'ad at 7:30 AM 10/30/09
Lies of Zionism–exposed
“We found no evidence that Hamas used civilians as hostages. I had expected to find such evidence but did not. We also found no evidence that mosques were used to store munitions. Those charges reflect Western perceptions in some quarters that Islam is…
Posted by As'ad at 7:28 AM 10/30/09
Karl Marx in Algeria
This is an interesting account of that trip. Whean in his biography glosses over the trip for some reason. It seems that comrade Marx was scared of us, Arabs. (thanks Moses)
Posted by As'ad at 7:26 AM 10/30/09
This is Zionism
Israeli occupation soldiers are trying to destroy her crops. (AFP)
Posted by As'ad at 7:21 AM 10/30/09
Anna Baltzer on the Daily Show
Anna (who appeared with Mustafa Barghuti on the Daily Show) circulated a message about her appearance. I am citing from it (with her permission): “Last night Dr. Barghouti and I were on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart talking about Palestine. The sh…
Posted by As'ad at 7:18 AM 10/30/09
Are they fit for self-government?
““A change of policy by turning the islands over to the coterie of Tagalog politicians will blight their fair prospects of enormous improvement, drive out capital, make life and property –secular andreligious- most insecure, banish by fear of cr…
Posted by As'ad at 7:15 AM 10/30/09
Saddam’s Memoirs: for those who ran out of sleeping pills
So the not-very-credible lawyer of Saddam, Khalil Dulaymi, has released through a Sudanese publisher what he says are the memoirs of Saddam. Saddam’s daughter’s Raghd, is now endorsing the publication. The account here, sounds like Saddam: full of br…
Posted by As'ad at 7:12 AM 10/30/09
Katib Yasin
Anniversary of his death.
Posted by As'ad at 7:10 AM 10/30/09
Global Gender Gap Index and world tanking: where is the US?
Here is the rank. “Iceland (1) has claimed the top spot of the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index 2009 from Norway (3) which slipped to third position behind Finland (2). Sweden (4) Completed the Nordic countries’ continued dominan…
Posted by As'ad at 7:05 AM 10/30/09
Why?
I posted this yesterday on Facebook/Twitter and thought that i should post here too: “A friend observed that my personality on the blog is different from my personality on Twitter/Facebook.”
Posted by As'ad at 7:04 AM 10/30/09
Prince Sultan’s Health
This is an official word: Prince Khalid bin Sultan spoke about the health of Prince Sultan and said that he shall return to the Kingdom in two months. He said that “the health of Prince Sultan bin `Abdul-`Aziz, the crown prince, is in its best level …
Posted by As'ad at 7:00 AM 10/30/09
Luttwack
Luttwack has lousy politics but can be interesting sometimes. But notice how he assumes that the enemy is Islam and Muslims: “VI. Subversion is the cheapest path to victory. So cheap, in fact, as compared with the costs and risks of battle, that it m…
Posted by As'ad at 6:59 AM 10/30/09
Response to my criticisms
Sa`dallah Mazra`ani, assistant secretary-general of the Lebanese Communist Party, responds to my criticisms of Karim Muruwwah and of the LCP. (thanks As`ad–not me)
Posted by As'ad at 6:57 AM 10/30/09
