Monthly Archives: June 2012
The Failed State Index
Back in 1995 I turned down an invitation to get involved in a project funded by Vice President Al Gore’s office to evaluate why states failed. The project proved quite successful (which surprised me), and just last week the Fund for Peace released the eighth … Continue reading
As Inane as Reality TV: Friedman’s “Fear Factor”
Yesterday Thomas Friedman distributed an inane Op-Ed titled The Fear Factor. He attributes to Daniel Brumberg the opinion that the Arab awakenings happened because the Arab peoples stopped fearing their leaders — but they stalled because the Arab peoples have … Continue reading
Sudan Mobilizes
I was caught napping on the situation in Sudan, but in response to government elimination of fuel subsidies there have been 12 days of popular protest, and a major protest has been called for tomorrow (Friday), as well as global … Continue reading
Hunger Strikes; Prison Protests
Yesterday the Georgia Green Party called for Georgia residents to join a hunger strike protesting prison conditions. The Black Agenda Report covers it here. I was unfamiliar with the “Georgia 38,” a multi-racial group of prisoners who 18 … Continue reading
Does Bashar al-Assad Need a Common Enemy?
A friend recently wrote that he was surprised that Assad had not diverted Syrians’ attention abroad: All Assad has to do is make a preemptive strike on Israel and both the opposition and loyalists have a common enemy. My two … Continue reading
Why Obama will Quietly Back SCAF
Credit: Mosha’ab Alzamy/Al Jazeera “Crowds mass in Tahrir against military ‘coup‘” declares Al Jazeera English. In a recent post at Political Violent @ a Glance I discussed the Obama administration-supported coup that aborted what might have been a popular overthrow of … Continue reading
Pinkered
A friend of mine uses the verb “to Rumsfeld” to describe physically forcing something. The back story is apparently an interview with Donald Rumsfeld’s father in which he described his then teenage son’s tendency to solve mechanical problems around the … Continue reading
Having it all
When Michelob Light launched their 1984 “You can Have it All!” campaign I thought it was self-evidently ridiculous (actually, I still do). As such, while I appreciate Ann Marie Slaughter’s decision to discuss the sexism that still exists, her use … Continue reading
Soft Pedaling SCAF
In “Egypt Military Softens Tone as Vote Count Favors Islamists,” The New York Times offers the following assessment of SCAF’s behavior: the generals sought Monday to reassure the public that they had no intention of re-establishing a military-backed autocracy, although … Continue reading
Will Opines 