Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The responsibility for the bombing in Kerman, Iran, on Wednesday that killed at least 84 people and wounded another 284, has been claimed by the ISIL (Daesh, ISIS) terrorist group. The worst terrorist bombing in Iran since the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK) blew up the Iranian leadership in 1981 struck at […]
Can Masha Gessen get an Apology now that Israel’s Smotrich called Gaza a “Ghetto” that Should be Depopulated?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The chief characteristic of the current Israeli government of PM Binyamin Netanyahu is the inclusion in it of elements that were shunned in Israeli politics until recently — the Kahanaists, who are militant racists and Greater Israel expansionists and who, unlike most other right wing forces in Israel, openly proclaim […]
Extreme Right Israeli Gov’t brands “Illegal” Supreme Court’s upholding of Judicial Review; Divisions Loom amid Gaza War
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – In the midst of Israel’s brutal total war on Palestinian civilians in Gaza and its apparent failure to attain its basic war goals, the country’s Supreme Court has issued a ruling sure to throw the country into an unprecedented constitutional crisis. Members of the government criticized the court for issuing […]
The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyam: “When New Year’s rainclouds wash the tulip’s face”
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – In the quatrains attributed to the medieval Iranian astronomer Omar Khayyam, the Rubáiyát, the renewal that comes with New Year is an important theme. Since the Iranian New Year is held on the spring solstice (typically March 21), it is associated with the rebirth of greenery. This year I’m sharing […]
Many thanks – We Reached our Fundraising Goal — Thanks to You
Many thanks to all of you who donated and who support the site by sharing our articles with your circle — by email, on social media or by word of mouth. We’re proud to say that you ensured that we reached our goal this year. Remember, though, that social media are shadowbanning sites that deal […]
33 new Gigs of Solar: Top 7 Renewables Good News Stories in the US for 2023
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The United States has long been characterized by its “can-do” spirit. With all the alarming news about climate change, it is easy for us to lose sight of the progress we are making. Here are IC’s top 7 renewables good news stories of 2023. 1. The solar industry in the […]
South Africa Charges Israel with Genocide at Int’l Court of Justice, as Global South charges West with Hypocrisy
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – South African society has had extensive experience with racial Apartheid (segregation and humiliation) and with genocide, which is defined in international law this way: “Genocide is the intentional a physical destruction of a social group in its entirety, or the intentional annihilation of such a significant part of the group […]
World’s Decades of Silence on Israel’s Colonial Violence is being Reaped in Gaza
( Middle East Monitor ) – “We cannot let the idea take root that an efficient fight against terrorism implies to flatten Gaza or attack civilian populations indiscriminately,” French President Emmanuel Macron stated a week ago. Israel, he said, should: “Stop this response because it is not appropriate because all lives are worth the same […]
In Hottest Year on Record, Global Heating Killed a Taylor Swift Fan at Rio Concert
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says that 2023 is on track to be the hottest year ever recorded, i.e. in the past 174 years. In fact, it likely is hotter than at any time in 125,000 years. Ocean-surface temperatures were also at all time highs throughout the year. Although […]