By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Donald J. Trump’s presidential campaign platform has from the beginning been based on racism, religious bigotry, class warfare of the rich on workers, hatred of women, and a whole series of other unacceptable and disgusting planks. Not since David Duke of the Ku Klux Klan ran […]
Syria: Russia warns of Mideast Apocalypse if US attacks al-Assad’s military
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – ABC News reports that Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned that a U.S. attack on the Syrian army “will lead to terrible, tectonic consequences not only on the territory of this country but also in the region on the whole.” She maintained that if the regime […]
President Trump’s Extreme Vetting of Immigrants (Satire Skit)
Maz Jobrani | (Video skit) | – – “Donald Trump has said that if he wins he will do EXTREME VETTING of all immigrants. He hasn’t said how that would work, but maybe it would go a little something like this?” Maz Jobrani, “Donald Trump EXTREME VETTING
Syria Quagmire: Has Russia Accomplished anything in a year of Bombing?
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Alarabiya says that Russia has killed over 3,000 civilians in its bombing raids of the past year. BBC Monitoring translated an article by Mikhail Khodarenok at the Gazeta.ru site from 23 September that tries to explain why any decisive victory in Syria has eluded Russia during […]
The Shootings you Didn’t Hear Trump Denounce because, not Muslim
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Cable news and social media in the United States don’t go into “OhmyGod there’s only One Story” mode about mass shootings unless they somehow involve Muslims. The downside of this procedure is that Americans think Muslims in the US are way more violent than they actually […]
How the JASTA override on Saudi could Bite Americans in the Ass
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – President Obama vetoed the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, but Congress has for the first time in his presidency over-ridden his veto. This is a disastrous law with potentially ruinous effects on the US economy and US policy. Individual tort suits against other countries had […]
RIP Shimon Peres: Last Great Israeli leader to believe in 2 State solution
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – I met an emperor once, but have only met a couple of presidents. Shimon Peres (1923-2016) was one. I met him briefly in the Green Room when doing an interview with Charlie Rose. The Polish-born Peres made his best impression on me with his support for […]
The Presidential Debate that did not really Happen
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Regular readers will know that in my view the 2016 presidential election did not happen. Likewise, the first debate between the two candidates did not take place. There was no debate as the word is usually understood, where the two take turns setting out policy positions. […]
Syria, Russia push to take East Aleppo pocket as airstrikes kill 66, wound 200
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Only a week after seeming to agree to a ceasefire, Russia and the Syrian regime in Damascus appear to have decided to throw caution to the winds and simply wipe out the pocket of rebel resistance in East Aleppo. If the regime has all of Aleppo, […]
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