2019

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Saudi archeologist Muhammad al-Maghthawi has published a photograph of an inscription in the vicinity of Medina that seems to be the first to mention the Prophet’s third wife, `A`isha. It seems to date from the first century of the Muslim era (A. H.), and is probably from the late […]

Ukraine

Ukraine gave up its Nukes for a US Security Pledge; Then Trump Muscled Zelensky by Cutting Mil. Aide

William H. Espinosa

(Informed Comment) – In the coverage of the current scandal, no one seems to be writing about the national security debt the US (and others) owes the Ukraine. Large numbers of missiles and nuclear weapons infrastructure were located in the Ukraine when the Soviet Union collapsed and Ukraine became independent. In fact, for a while, […]

Islam

The Qur’an, the Prophet, and a Forgotten History – Juan Cole in conversation with Hamza Yusuf

Juan Cole

From the podcast of the journal Renovatio: Journal of Zaytuna College. Juan Cole’s Muhammad: Prophet of Peace Amid the Clash of Empires (2018) retells the history of the prophetic period in seventh-century Arabia through the context of a brutal war between the Iranian Sassanian Empire and the Roman Empire in the Near East. In this […]

Climate Change

World’s Largest offshore Windfarm to power 1 mn British Homes & other Good Climate News

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Hanna Ziady at CNN Business reports that just next year, in 2020, the world’s largest offshore wind farm will open 75 miles off the eastern, Yorkshire coast of Britain. Hornsea I alone will power 1 million homes. Britain, with a population of 66 million, has 27 million households. It has […]

Constitution

Trump’s Ukraine Plotting Has Been Happening in Plain Sight. So Why Didn’t We See It?

ProPublica

It’s not just that there’s a lot to pay attention to.

Constitution

Founders: Removal from office is not the only purpose of impeachment

The Conversation

By Clark D. Cunningham | – As Congress moves toward a possible formal impeachment of President Donald Trump, they should consider words spoken at the Constitutional Convention, when the Founders explained that impeachment was intended to have many important purposes, not just removing a president from office. A critical debate took place on July 20, […]

censorship

With outbreak of New Demonstrations, Egyptian Authorities warn Foreign Journalists not to do their Jobs

Brian Whitaker

(Al-Bab.com) – The Egyptian authorities have issued a notice to accredited foreign journalists based in Cairo. Basically it seeks to restrict their reporting of demonstrations by demanding compliance with some rather bizarre “professional standards” — presumably with the threat of expulsion if they disobey. Here is the text: The State Information Service calls upon Correspondents […]

Climate Crisis

As humans burn fossil fuels, global sea level is rising 2x the rate of the 20th century

The Conversation

By Cassandra Brooks | – The U.N.‘s climate panel report released Sept. 25 makes crystal clear that the planet’s oceans, snow and ice are in dire trouble and the damage is causing harm to the people who depend on them. Even with aggressive efforts to lower greenhouse gas emissions, many nations will struggle to adapt. […]

Egypt

Egypt’s Sisi Regime again Engages in Mass Arrests of Protesters as West looks the other Way

Jonathan Fenton-Harvey

(Informed Comment) – The sheer brutality of Egypt’s Abdel Fatah al-Sisi’s military regime once again came to light, following another crackdown and mass arrests on protesters. Meanwhile, many Western leaders at the latest United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York again show no sign of addressing such abuses from their ally. Small but widespread […]

Archives for 2019

The First Inscriptional Evidence for the Wife of the Prophet Muhammad, Aisha