Terrorism
Nir Rosen, major war monger
After critiquing Nir Rosen’s shoddy excuse-making for terrorism in January 2009, I paid only slight attention to his work. But on the occasions when I stumbled onto his Twitter feed, I actually had to stop and wonder whether someone had hacked his account. The opinions were so extreme, so loutish, so flagrantly unprofessional, so obviously unbecoming of a Fellow at
Remembering the fallen
The New York City Firefighters Memorial, one of the most peaceful locations in the city, two blocks from my apartment. I sat there often to reflect in the days after 9/11. Hard to believe it’s been nine years since I emerged from the N/R station at 8th Street at about 9:20 a.m., to see a huge cloud of dark smoke high in
“America has disgraced itself”
I agree with this strongly worded assessment of the Cordoba controversy by Peter Beinart. Key point: Once upon a time, the “war on terror” was supposed to bring American values to Saudi Arabia. Now Newt Gingrich says we shouldn’t build a mosque in Lower Manhattan until the Saudis build churches and synagogues in Mecca—which is to say, we’re bringing Saudi
New year, same bloodbath
NYT: A suicide bomber rammed a pickup truck loaded with explosives into a playground crowded with families and children watching a volleyball game in northwest Pakistan Friday. […] All of the victims were civilians, one local official said. Over 20 suicide bombings by Pakistani Taliban since October 2009; over 500 people slaughtered. Who can seriously claim that these murderers are
The fire this time
NYT: LAHORE, Pakistan — Militants set off two bombs on Monday night in one of the busiest markets of this eastern Pakistani city, then sprayed the crowd with gunfire, killing at least 30 and wounding more than 100 others, Pakistani authorities said. It was the latest in a litany of militant attacks against Pakistani civilians.
“My children were crying on top of my wife’s body.”
That’s one of many quotes from survivors featured in “Terror in Mumbai,” a new HBO documentary narrated by Fareed Zakaria. It’s solidly in the running for the most profoundly disturbing hour of television I’ve ever seen. Now, a year having passed since the attacks, and with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh currently visiting Washington, it’s a good time to reflect
Political odds, ends
I didn’t vote for him on November 3, but Mike Bloomberg has done the country a service and I wanted to acknowledge it. In stark contrast to his predecessor, the insufferable demagogue Rudy Giuliani, Bloomberg has voiced support for Eric Holder’s decision to try KSM and other 9/11 defendants in a civilian court here in New York. One now sees
Pakistan WFP bombing PS
I like The Rachel Maddow Show, and I especially admire Maddow’s tenacious reporting on right-wing astroturf efforts to stymie health care reform. She’s getting through to a mass audience with a hugely important point: that in politics, all is not as it seems. Always look behind the curtain. For that very reason, Maddow’s comment last night on Afghanistan-Pakistan was frustrating.