Pope Francis comes across in the media as a person who cares for others, and his genial personality, it seems to me, allows him to restate conservative principles in ways that inspire hope in or do not alienate liberals. But liberals need to listen to him carefully to hear the unyielding steel in his voice. […]
Kenya turns to Geothermal Green Energy (Video)
Kenya is blessed with a great deal of hydroelectric power, but its electricity needs outstrip that source’s ability to supply them, a problem that will only grow worse in coming years. One green energy source to which Kenya is turning is geothermal. Because of the Rift Valley, East Africa has enormous geothermal potential. VOAnews reports: […]
Tunisia: Extremists Kill 9 Troops, Defiant Gov’t Sets Dec. 17 Elections
After days of demonstrations and turmoil, Prime Minister Ali Larayedh addressed the public in Tunisia on Monday. Despite calls that he resign in favor of a national unity government, he insisted that he will remain in office, and apparently there will be no major cabinet shuffle. He did make a concession in guaranteeing that new […]
Egyptian Backlash against Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi’s Call for foreign Intervention in Egypt
Maverick Muslim ‘televangelist’ Yusuf Qaradawi has provoked fury in many quarters of Egypt with his recent fatwas and statements on that country. Qaradawi is an Egyptian member of the Muslim Brotherhood who took refuge in Qatar and became a Qatari citizen during the period when the Brotherhood was banned in his country of birth. He […]
All Hell Breaks Loose in Libya
Over the weekend, all hell broke loose in Libya, in worrying ways that suggest that the government is entering new depths of paralysis and incompetence, and the terrorist cells based in Benghazi are making a play for genuine power. The assassination of a militant secularist nationalist in Benghazi just after the assassination of of a […]
Twitter Sexist Bullying: The Criado-Perez Case (Channel 4 Video)
“She led the successful campaign to put a woman’s image on the [British] £10 note – but feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez has found herself the victim of an abusive backlash.” Channel 4 News reports:
The Kidnapper & Torturer vs. the Whistleblower: The Gov’t’s different Treatment of Lady and Snowden (Engelhardt)
Tom Engelhardt writes at Tomdispatch.com: He came and he went: that was the joke that circulated in 1979 when 70-year-old former Vice President Nelson Rockefeller had a heart attack and died in his Manhattan townhouse in the presence of his evening-gown-clad 25-year-old assistant. In a sense, the same might be said of retired CIA operative […]
Egypt: Elbaradei, al-Azhar, Leftist Youth Condemn Excessive Force
Egypt reacted with shock and grief to the massacre of Muslim Brothers early Sunday morning. Even figures who supported the July 3 coup such as Vice President for Foreign Affairs Muhammad Elbaradei and the Rector of the Al-Azhar Seminary criticized the military for using excessive force. It seems clear that Brotherhood members were attempting to […]
Tunisia: Government Teeters on Brink after Slain Leftist’s Funeral.
An estimated 50,000 came out in Tunis for the funeral of the assassinated leftist opposition member of parliament Mohamed Brahmi, leader of the pro-worker Popular Front. [Estimate here). Brahmi was shot 14 times outside his home on Thursday by an unknown assailant. A major suspect is extremist Boubakr al-Hakim, a former recruiter of fighters for […]