International Politics and Economy

(By Juan Cole) The title of this piece is provocative and a little tongue in cheek. Were I in Egypt as I publish it, I’m not sure, though, that the authorities would get the joke. The 2011 revolution, which was in part about dignity and personal autonomy and censorship and police torture, apparently went too […]

Dissent

NSA Bulk Surveillance has had no Impact on Fighting Terrorism

contributors

(By Jon Queally) An in-depth analysis of 227 individuals recruited by al Qaida or like-minded groups, and charged in the U.S. with an act of terrorism since 9/11, shows the contribution of NSA’s bulk surveillance programs to these cases was minimal, and that traditional investigative methods were more helpful."Overblown." "Even Misleading." That's a how a […]

Dissent

40 prominent Journalists Call for Release of Detained Colleagues

Juan Cole

Sharif Abdel Kouddous: In a strong show of solidarity, nearly 40 correspondents and editors representing 29 international media organizations are calling for the immediate release of journalists detained in Egypt. On December 29, Peter Greste, Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and Baher Mohamed from Al Jazeera English were arrested by Egyptian authorities and have been held arbitrarily […]

censorship

Top Ten Things wrong with NSA Surveillance of Americans

contributors

(By Peter Van Buren) The debate Edward Snowden envisioned when he revealed the extent of National Security Agency (NSA) spying on Americans has taken a bad turn. Instead of a careful examination of what the NSA does, the legality of its actions, what risks it takes for what gains, and how effective the agency has […]

Dissent

“It’s all Right to Make Fun of the Government”: Bassem Youssef (Egypt’s Jon Stewart)

Juan Cole

Bassem Youssef: “It’s OK to make fun of ourselves” “BBC Newsnight’s Jeremy Paxman talks to Bassem Youssef, also known as the “Egyptian Jon Stewart”, about making people laugh in Egypt today.”

Dissent

Top 5 US Government Decisions that put Troops more at Risk than Snowden Did

Juan Cole

(By Juan Cole) The propaganda wars in Washington continue over Edward Snowden’s revelation that the National Security Agency and other Federal government departments have in the past decade quietly abolished the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, without even telling us that is what they were doing. All Americans, once proud, free citizens of a republic […]

Dissent

How Egypt’s Revolution veered toward Authoritarian Crackdown

contributors

(By Mohammed Fadel) In response to a December 24 bombing in the town of Mansoura, the Egyptian government declared the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization. The decision, which came despite the fact that an al-Qaida affiliated group—Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis—took responsibility for the blast, was a depressing, even inevitable conclusion to the disastrous course of events […]

Africa

The Year in Drone Strikes: As Many as 35 Civilians Dead, 5 Children

contributors

(By Alice K Ross and Jack Serle) In 2013 the number of drone strikes to hit Pakistan fell to the lowest levels of Obama’s presidency: 27 strikes reportedly hit the country’s tribal areas, down from a peak of 128 in 2010. And for the first time since Pakistan strikes started in 2004, there were no […]

Climate Change

Kerry may Nix Keystone XL for Global Climate Agreement

contributors

(By Tina Casey) John Kerry Throws More Cold Water On Keystone XL Pipeline (via Clean Technica) The tubes have been buzzing over a new New York Times report on Secretary of State John Kerry’s aggressive pursuit of a new global climate agreement, which has some clear implications for approval of the controversial Keystone XL tar […]