Video of the Day 27/11/09 – Massacre in Mindanao

Philippines ‘witness’ recounts killings Al Jazeera. 26 November 2009. This video is the best I have yet seen on the Mindanao massacre. Al Jazeera has once again has trumped Western news organizations in investigative ability. The composure of Ismael Mangudadatu is astounding. To lose a wife and a sister and still have the fortitude to […]

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Our Esteemed Ally, the Executioner of Sorcerers.

Human Rights Watch sent this gem to my inbox today: Saudi Arabia: Witchcraft and Sorcery Cases on the Rise.Human Rights Watch. 25 November 2009. (Kuwait City) – The cassation court in Mecca should overturn the death sentence imposed on Ali Sabat by a lower court in Medina on November 9 for practicing witchcraft, Human Rights […]

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Video of the Day 23/11/09 — East vs. West: the Myths that Mystify

East vs. West — the Myths that Mystify Devdutt Pattanik. TED. November 2009. I endorse this presentation with some hesistance. Pattanik’s presentation is convincing, even brilliant, but there are limitations to the argument he makes. It has been 30 years since the publication of Edward Said’s Orientalism. The book’s publication brought about the collapse of […]

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Naxalism: A Short Introduction to India’s Scariest Security Challenge

Prime Minister Mahoman Singh has called them “the single biggest security challenge ever faced by our country”. Fourteen Indian states are struggling to battle the insurgency waged by their 20,000 fighters. Over the last three years some 2,600 people have died by their hands. These are the Naxalites, the source of India’s scariest security challenge. […]

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The Best Headline of the Month Award Goes to…

…Neal McCluskley of the CATO Institute. If China Jumped Off a Bridge, Would We Do It To?Neal McCluskley. CATO@Liberty. 2 November 2009. Of late CATO@Liberty has produced some content sure to be of interest to readers of the Stage. While ideologues to the core, the CATO folks have a special talent for brevity, humor, and […]

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