Tag: current affairs – international

Mike Davis, California’s ‘prophet of doom’, on activism in a dying world: ‘Despair is useless’

Lois Beckett in San Diego What keeps us going, ultimately, is our love for each other, and our refusal to bow our heads, to accept the verdict For decades, the southern California writer Mike Davis has obsessively documented the dark side of the Golden state – its wildfires, earthquakes, megalomaniac real estate developers and violent police departments. In… Read More Mike Davis, California’s ‘prophet of doom’, on activism in a dying world: ‘Despair is useless’

Dilip

Mikhail Gorbachev obituary

Jonathan Steele NB: Mikhail Gorbachev was a historic figure, for his courage in steering the USSR toward democracy and the peaceful resolution of conflicts within and without its borders. It is another matter that the political forces at work in a decrepit state structure were too divisive and corrupt for him to forestall disintegration. Foremost… Read More Mikhail Gorbachev obituary

Dilip

Americans are starting to get it: we can’t let Trump – or Trumpism – back in office

Austin Sarat and Dennis Aftergut Polls and election results over the last week reminded Americans that politics seldom moves in a straight line. As in physics, action produces reaction. Overreach invites backlash. For a long while former President Trump and his cronies seemed to be immune from this rule of political life and from the consequences of even the… Read More Americans are starting to get it: we can’t let Trump – or Trumpism – back in office

Dilip

Ukraine war shows it’s time to do away with the racist ‘Clash of Civilizations’ theory

By Katherine Bullock “The clash of civilizations,” wrote the late American political scientist Samuel Huntington in a famous 1993 article, “will dominate global politics.” He predicted: “The fault lines between civilizations will be the battle lines of the future.” Picked apart by critics for conceptual and empirical errors, the tragedy of 9/11 breathed new life… Read More Ukraine war shows it’s time to do away with the racist ‘Clash of Civilizations’ theory

Dilip

U.S. v. Donald Trump: What comes after FBI raid? I know one thing: Be afraid

By CHAUNCEY DEVEGA The Department of Justice is now formally investigating Donald Trump for serious possible, crimes including violating the Espionage Act and obstruction of justice in connection to his unlawful possession of top secret and highly classified materials. During a court-ordered search of his Mar-a-Lago resort and home last week, the FBI retrieved 11 sets of classified… Read More U.S. v. Donald Trump: What comes after FBI raid? I know one thing: Be afraid

Dilip

The Disappeared: How the fatwa changed a writer’s life

NB: The Iranian government has distanced itself from the attack, but a Iranian government-supported newspaper has hailed the attacker as a hero. Religious ‘hurt sentiment’ has become a precursor to contract killing. Religious leaders who call for murder are themselves satanic; does the Divine Creator requires his or her dignity to be defended by mere… Read More The Disappeared: How the fatwa changed a writer’s life

Dilip

Report that FBI sought nuclear documents sharpens Trump showdown with Justice Department

A report that FBI agents searched for classified documents related to nuclear weapons at Donald Trump’s Florida resort could explain the urgency of the unprecedented operation at the home of an ex-President and takes his showdown with the Justice Department to a grave new level. The account in The Washington Post could also undercut Republican lawmakers, who didn’t wait for details of the case… Read More Report that FBI sought nuclear documents sharpens Trump showdown with Justice Department

Dilip