This piece in The New York Review of Books is worth a look. It’s about how Human Rights Watch criticized Israeli actions in Lebanon, and how a campaign against the organization and its chair have followed. Criticize Israeli policy or actions, and suddenly you’re an Anti-Semite. That defense is getting a little old, if you ask me, but what was interesting was how this response is more notable in America than in Israel itself. In Israel, the IDF took the criticisms constructively, according to HRW. In America? A campaign denouncing the respected organization. (via Dragi on Culturelist)
Tag: politics
“The Muslim Problem”
There’s an interesting post at The Cutting Edge called The Muslim Problem. The comments section gets a bit hairy, and illustrates one reason why it’s so difficult to talk about these issues — people seem to polarize very quickly and very powerfully on it — but the original post is quite interesting. (Via Ritu, and the comments section on her site is interesting too.)
The First!
Today, fully two days after the Nork Nuke test, I finally had someone come up to me and bring the subject up. I actually managed to teach a full two-hour class [edit: I should clarify, this was on Monday afternoon] without anyone mentioning it (though the mood in the room wasn’t good and I wondered why), the day of the test [edit: and only found out about it after the class, because a friend had emailed me about it] . What can I say, I was coccooned in my creative writing for most of the day. But consistently, most of …
What Would Malcolm X Say If He Were Alive Now?
That thought skittered through my head as I thought of how much change has come in the way people in the West see Islam today. I went and queried Google, and what was spat out of the darkness of the Net was this recent interview with Malcolm X’s daughter. It’s pretty short, and nothing surprised me, but interesting just the same. She’s got a website, and a book out, too.
Dear Kim Jong Il
Dear Kim Jong Il, I got the news late in the day, because I was actually doing something constructive with my time. Unlike you. If there is a hell, you’re gonna drink the diarrhea of millions there, you little twerpy sister-fucker. I estimate that you have a couple of more years of life ahead of you, maximum. Enjoy the collapse of your pathetic pseudo-dynasty, you ugly little shit. That is all.
Princeton Voting Study
This is very interesting, and a bit disturbing. Especially how pathetic Diebold’s response is, in the light of the response to the response which is linked on the same page.
About That Coup…
For those looking for information about the coup in Thailand, I forgot to mention here what I was reading to keep up to date: When it first hit the news, Lynn was blogging it at a frenzied pace. These days, she’s in exams and Bangkok Pundit is the place to look for up-to-date info.
Olbermann’s Skewers Bush
Go see. (Via Peking Duck)
Hey Idiot! Now You Want To Give Them More Rights With Censorship?
Adam’s posted about some moron in America who wants to ban Fahrenheit 451 from his kid’s school. I’ll let you go over and read Adam’s post. Go on. Then come back and read on. Back? Good. Aside from Adam’s scathing and totally correct criticisms, there are two things I’d like to add. The Bible is also full of references to getting drunk, violence, “dirty talk” (if he means that talk about sex is dirty, there’s lots of it in the Bible… though why he should think sex is dirty is, well, a topic for a whole other, sad, discussion). Has …
The Eggman Says Kids Were “Egging the Congressman On”?
Oh, I see. Drudge says that the kids were egging on the pedophile Congressman. Well, he is a Republican, so it must be the kids’ fault. Excuse me while I go vomit.