By Juan Cole The London pan-Arab daily “Hayat” [Life] reports this morning on the air strikes conducted on ISIL positions in Raqqah, Syria, by the United States and several Arab allies. The Syrian government acknowledged that the US gave fair warning it would bomb Raqqah to the Syrian ambassador to the UN. That is, the […]
Archives for September 2014
Largest Climate Rally ever in New York City, other World Capitals
By Deirdre Fulton, Commondreams.org Global mobilization is exceeding expectations on Sunday, with hundreds of thousands of people taking to the streets demanding action on climate change on the eve of the UN Climate Summit. In addition to the massive action in New York City, People’s Climate demonstrations took place in cities and towns across continents, […]
I lived to see the Day when thousands of Kurds take Refuge in Turkey
Reuters: “About 60,000 Syrian Kurds flee into Turkey in the space of 24 hours, a deputy prime minister says, as Islamic State fighters seize dozens of villages close to the border. Sarah Toms reports.” For anyone who knows the history of the Turkish government’s dirty war against Kurdish separatists in the 1970s and 1980s, it […]
“Operation Ice ISIS”: ‘Anonymous’ Hackers take on Extremist Group on Social Media
France24: ” This week #TECH24 brings you an EXCLUSIVE interview with Anonymous on why (and how) the collective decided to join the fight against the ‘Islamic State’ Group.” France24: “Anonymous Vs ISIS”
Heresy & Superheroes: Broken legs, death threats and fatwas: the trials and tribulations of THE 99
By Naif Al-Mutawa Many years ago, I was the volleyball counsellor at a summer camp in New England. It was 1990 and I was fit for five minutes. It seems there’s always an injury I can blame my (lack of) fitness on. That summer was no different. Running into the lake, I slipped. My hands […]
NYC Climate Demo: Top 5 Massive Rallies that had no Effect
By Juan Cole Don’t get me wrong. I am all for demonstrating and admire everyone who came out in New York City on Sunday (some 400,000 according to Time magazine) to demand that world leaders deal urgently with climate change. But I just do have to point out that holding large rallies doesn’t always result […]
Iraq: Are Sunni Arabs of Kirkuk Province Turning on ISIL?
Ahmad Mohammed | Kirkuk | via Niqash.org Sunni Muslim extremists continue to kidnap, execute and otherwise impose their authoritarian rule on locals in the areas they control, such as in southwestern Kirkuk. Slowly but surely though, local resistance against them is growing. Tribal leaders suggest an organized, salaried force is in development. On the 12th […]
How The Koch Brothers Corrupted Florida State University (+163 Other Colleges) (Young Turks)
Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks “In 2007, when the Charles Koch Foundation considered giving millions of dollars to Florida State University’s economics department, the offer came with strings attached. First, the curriculum it funded must align with the libertarian, deregulatory economic philosophy of Charles Koch, the billionaire industrialist and Republican political bankroller. Second, the […]
Climate Marchers join Alarmed Scientists against “Drill-Baby-Drill” Corporations & Politicians
AJ+ interviews Naomi Klein “As people gather in New York City for what organizers are billing as the largest climate-change protest in history, AJ+ asks Naomi Klein about her new book, This Changes Everything: Capitalism Vs. The Climate. She tells us why the planet is doomed if we don’t change course. And why it’s up […]