Israel’s ecocide in Gaza sends this message: even if we stopped dropping bombs, you couldn’t live here

NB: Nothing illuminates the meaning of nihilism better than Zionisms ongoing genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people. The word annihilation derives from nihil: absolute nothingness. So does the term nihilism. In both domestic politics and international relations, the imperial project means precisely this: absolute control or absolute destruction. To understand imperialism we need only take… Read More Israel’s ecocide in Gaza sends this message: even if we stopped dropping bombs, you couldn’t live here

Shahab Ahmed, prominent Islamic scholar (1966-2015)

Beena Sarwar Prominent Islamic scholar Shahab Ahmed, originally from Pakistan, was laid to rest on Saturday morning at the historic Mt. Auburn cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts, his adopted home. Born in Singapore on Dec 11, 1966, he passed away on Sept 17, 2015 in Boston. Dr. Ahmed’s former student Suheil Laher, currently a lecturer on… Read More Shahab Ahmed, prominent Islamic scholar (1966-2015)

Policing Dissent – Amit Shah’s plans risk criminalising protest

The Modi government’s insecurity is evident in its attempt to decode decades of protest as potential subversion. Those who used to accuse public protestors of using a ‘tool-kit’ now clearly want to develop a tool-kit of their own — an alternative official playbook, to deal with all future protests. Meanwhile Niti Aayog declines to furnish information about… Read More Policing Dissent – Amit Shah’s plans risk criminalising protest

The Shipwrecked Mind: On Political Reaction (2016)

NB: The reviewer (and Lilla) are too quick in their assessments of Leo Strauss. True he had right-wing followers (incidentally, card-holding Nazi’s such as Heidegger and Carl Schmitt have left-wing acolytes to this day). But Strauss took Heidegger seriously, and that is why he is the most effective and far-reaching critic of historicism, the core… Read More The Shipwrecked Mind: On Political Reaction (2016)

Mukul Kesavan: Delhi University and the purging of Ramanujan

First posted October 27, 2011 ‘The essay is a marvellous account of the hundreds of ways in which the Ramayana has been told, complete with examples of this narrative diversity. I can’t imagine that the vice-chancellor, a member of that urbane cohort, the Class of ’75, wanted the essay removed because he agreed with the Akhil Bharatiya… Read More Mukul Kesavan: Delhi University and the purging of Ramanujan