2011

I am excited to announce that the Global Americana Institute has, in partnership with Dar al-Saqi of Beirut brought out a volume of selected writings of Thomas Jefferson in Arabic. It was elegantly translated by Professors Mounira Soliman and Walid Hamamsy of Cairo University and is entitled in Arabic the equivalent of Revolutionary Democracy: How […]

Uncategorized

Is the FBI Lying to Congress about its Abuses of the “PATRIOT” Act?

Juan Cole

Techdirt asks, “Is the FBI lying to Congress about its abuses of the PATRIOT Act? and answers in the affirmative. Actually there is plenty of indication in the public record of abuses in the sense of using the act for criminal rather than purely security-related prosecutions and warrantless wiretapping, something the Bureau initially promised never […]

Uncategorized

Should Professors in Public Universities Give up their Email Addresses?

Juan Cole

The latest McCarthyite tactics of the American Right Wing is to attempt to intimidate professors at public universities by launching Freedom of Information Requests for their emails, as part of a witch hunt for dreaded Liberal Opinions. First, the proxies for the Koch brothers in the Wisconsin legislature went after the emails of prominent University […]

Yemen

Reuters: Saudi-US Plan to Nudge Saleh Out as Demonstrators Stage Tsunami of Taiz

Juan Cole

Reuters reporters in Dubai are saying that a diplomat with knowledge of the negotiations going on between the Gulf Cooperation Council and Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh told them that the plan was to have Saleh step down in favor of a transitional ruling council that would prepare for elections. Among those mentioned as potential […]

Yemen

OSC: Yemeni Tribes, Movements, Youth, Organizations Decry Regime’s ‘Bloody Massacres’

Juan Cole

The USG Open Source Center translates reactions of major political groupings in Yemen to the massacre of protesters in Taiz [Ta’izz] by security forces on Monday and the wounding of some 50 with live fire at al-Hodeida the same day. Yemeni Tribes, Movements, Youth, Organizations Decry Regime’s ‘Bloody Massacres’… Wednesday, April 6, 2011 … Document […]

Energy

Wholesale Solar Energy Costs Rivalling Coal

Juan Cole

Bloomberg reports that wholesale solar energy costs are falling 8% a year and may already rival coal in sunny climes like the Middle East and Japan. They’re expected to be halved in the next decade. Bloomberg writes, “Installation of solar PV systems will almost double to 32.6 gigawatts by 2013 from 18.6 gigawatts last year, […]

Energy

Green Energy in 20-40 Years?

Juan Cole

All the power the world needs could be provided by alternative energy sources within 20-40 years if the political will could be found, according to Stanford researchers. Note that they do not include nuclear energy in their calculations. Part of their technique is to include ‘externalities’ of hydrocarbon fuels in their cost estimates, such as […]

Yemen

24 Dead in Fresh Yemen Violent Repression

Juan Cole

Violent repression of Yemen’s protesters led to 24 deaths on Tuesday in Sanaa and Taizz. Demonstrations were put down near Sanaa university, and dissident Gen. Ali Mohsen Ahmar maintains that an assassination attempt was made on his life by members of the presidential guard. Aljazeera English reports on the renewed protests and violence.

Libya

Impatient Rebels Critique NATO Aid

Juan Cole

Gen. Abdelfatah Yunis, the commander of rebel military forces in Benghazi expressed dissatisfaction on Tuesday with the pace of the NATO/ UN intervention in his country. He worried that Misrata, the country’s 3rd-largest city, might fall altogether any moment. He could not understand why supplies were not delivered promptly to the harbor by NATO ships. […]

Archives for 2011