By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – This year, the merriment of Now-Ruz in Kabul was marred by a suicide bombing that killed at least 33 persons and wounded 68, according to the Afghani Ministry of Health. The perpetrator was allegedly a member of ISIL (which really needs another name, since it isn’t […]
Syria: A Market bombing kills 38 and Explains why Government won Syria War
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – A rocket fired by rebel forces at a market, Kashkul, in the Jaramana suburb of Damascus on Wednesday killed dozens of people. It strikes me that this incident encapsulates the deep tragedy of the Syrian civil war. Jaramana is a mixed Christian and Druze neighborhood 3 […]
Increasingly Ludicrous WH denial that Austin bombings were “terrorism”
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Update: The suspect in the central Texas bombings is dead, after he detonated a bomb in his car on being surrounded by police, and was shot. Two more package bombs were found in Austin and San Antonio Fedex offices on Tuesday, giving evidence of originating with […]
French Ex-President Sarkozy arrested over Libya Campaign money Charges
TeleSur | – – Sarkozy has categorically denied receiving any campaign funding from the North African country. Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was detained by police officers early Tuesday, Reuters reported. The ex head of state was being questioned by magistrates in relation to allegations he received US$61 million in funding for his 2007 election […]
Cambridge Analytica as the Matrix: Information Dominance and the Next Level of Fake News
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The 1999 film “The Matrix,” written by Lana Wachowski (formerly Laurence “Larry” Wachowski and Lilly Wachowski (formerly Andrew Paul “Andy” Wachowski), depicts a future in which human beings have been imprisoned by machines in capsules that siphon off their heat and energy and which create the […]
Turkey takes Afrin, pulls down Statue Now-Ruz Revolutionary Kaveh
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Tuesday, March 20, is the spring equinox this year. Iranians, Kurds, Central Asians and many in Pakistan and India celebrate the equinox as the New Year, which after all makes a lot more sense than starting it in the dead of winter. Spring is symbolically the […]
Trump, McCabe and our Permanent Constitutional Crisis
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Trump’s conviction that being president means never having to say you are sorry, and being able to do whatever the hell you please, is likely to cause him legal trouble sooner or later. His vindictive firing of deputy FBI director Andrew McCabe, just before McCabe could […]
Thousands flee E. Ghouta as Regime Army Advances, Rebels ask for Talks
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Thousands of civilians fled the southern pocket of the East Ghouta suburb of Damascus on Thursday and Friday and Saturday, carrying what few belongings they could with them. The rate seems to have been about 10,000 people a day until today. Russian sources are saying 11,000 […]
Why Electric SUVs will save the American Car Companies, not China Tariffs
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Joann Muller at Forbes, in a piece on Ford Motor Company’s plans vastly to expand its electric and hybrid offerings, puts her finger on something absolutely crucial. Ford and other American car companies really, really need electric sport utility vehicles in order to get through the […]
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