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micklethwait

My Birthright Summer in Israel - 0 views

birthrightphotos.tumblr.com

birthright summer israel satire

shared by micklethwait on 23 Jul 14 - No Cached
  • micklethwait on 23 Jul 14
     
    A strong satire of Birthright Israel. Likely to evoke an equally strong rejection from many American Jewish students who have taken part in Birthright.
wmulnea

The Isis economy: Meet the new boss - FT.com - 0 views

www.ft.com/...27-11e4-82c7-00144feabdc0.html

shared by wmulnea on 02 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • Iraq’s second city of Mosul looks like a model of success for its new rulers from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
  • But in the back alleys, litter fills the streets. The lights stay on, but only because locals rigged up generators themselves. And under the blare of café televisions, old men grumble about life under Isis’s self-proclaimed caliphate.
  • “We’ve endured international sanctions, poverty, injustice. But it was never worse than it is now.”
  • ...16 more annotations...
  • Abu Ahmed at first welcomed the takeover by Isis,
  • Sunni Muslims in both countries have long felt discriminated against by regimes dominated by rival sects
  • without an economy that gives people a chance to make a living, many say Isis has little more to offer
  • “Compared to past rulers, Isis is a lot easier to deal with. Just don’t piss them off and they leave you alone,” says Mohammed, a trader from Mosul. “If they could only maintain services — then people would support them until the last second.”
  • “They’re operating like something between a mafia, an insurgency and a terror group. Maybe they thought six months ago they were going to function as a state. But they don’t have the personnel or manpower.”
  • the FT found its attempt at state-building has so far failed to win over locals.
  • volunteers handing out sacks of wheat stamped with their black and white seal. They even announced plans to issue a currency,
  • In some cases they say Isis takes credit for systems in place before it seized power. In others, locals say it is stealing the resources of the region it seeks to rule
  • Travellers must stock up on Iraqi dinars to use in Iraq, US dollars for the road and Syrian pounds once they arrive.
  • “I’m against Isis with all my heart,” Mahmoud says. “But I can’t help but admire their cleverness.”
  • Isis struggles to balance its books,
  • services continue to function because of the money Baghdad still pays to former civil servants in Mosul. Isis taxes those employees at up to 50 per cent of their salaries.
  • It is as if Isis is financing itself partly through a pyramid scheme, and this has begun to falter.”
  • Though many now question Isis’s economic management, its military prowess and organisational skills are clear.
  • Isis allows easy movement through its territories to facilitate trade. Trucks passing through are taxed about 10 per cent of the value of their cargo.
  • “I may be a Salafi, but I’m not an idiot,” he jokes.
tdford333

Everything you need to know about the drone debate, in one FAQ - The Washington Post - 0 views

www.washingtonpost.com/...ut-the-drone-debate-in-one-faq

shared by tdford333 on 08 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • "drone" has come to refer to unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs), which are UAVs equipped with combat capabilities, most commonly the ability to launch missiles.
  • Predators were deployed to Afghanistan almost immediately after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and on Oct. 7, 2001 they conducted their first armed mission there.
  • The current program is jointly administered by the CIA and the Joint Special Operation Command (JSOC).
  • ...16 more annotations...
  • Predator drones can carry up to two Hellfire missiles. Those have warheads of about 20 pounds, which are designed to pierce tank armor;
  • Reapers are another story. They feature a maximum payload of 3,000 pounds, or 1.5 tons. That means they can carry a combination of Hellfires and larger 500 pound bombs like the GBU-12 Paveway II and GBD-38 JDAM. Those have an "effective casualty radius" of about 200 feet.
  • From 2008 through October 2012, there were 1,015 strikes in Afghanistan, 48 in Iraq, and at least 105 in Libya
  • Primarily al-Qaeda and its affiliates. That includes al-Shaabab in Somalia, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (which works in Yemen), and the Haqqani Network in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
  • Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born al-Qaeda operative in Yemen, was killed in a drone strike in 2011, as was his American-born 17-year-old son
  • Ahmed Hijazi, also an American citizen based in Yemen, was killed in 2002. 
  • The National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) will prepare lists of potential targets, which will be reviewed every three months by a panel of intelligence analysts and military officials. They are then passed along to a panel at the National Security Council, currently helmed by CIA director nominee Brennan, and then to Obama for final approval.
  • There is, however, substantial evidence that the percentage of casualties borne by civilians is much lower with drone strikes than with just about any other kind of military intervention
  • It derives the authority for the strikes from the Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) passed in the wake of 9/11, which grants the government broad powers against al-Qaeda.
  • allows states to make war in the interest of self-defense
  • Critics, like UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, summary or arbitrary executions Christof Heyns, say that this defense is a stretch, and the killings plainly run afoul of the laws of war and international human rights treaties.
  • Only the United States and the United Kingdom (which assists in the Pakistan drone effort) currently use drones in combat
  • All told, the GAO estimates that 76 countries, at least, have drone technology.
  • The Yemeni government quietly agreed to the strikes
  • Citizens in both countries deplore the campaigns.
  • there are deeper doubts as to whether the strategy is recruiting more militants than it kills, by turning local populations against the United States.
tdford333

Daniel Byman | Why Drones Work | Foreign Affairs - 0 views

www.foreignaffairs.com/...why-drones-work

shared by tdford333 on 08 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • Whereas President George W. Bush oversaw fewer than 50 drone strikes during his tenure, Obama has signed off on over 400 of them in the last four years
  • And they have done so at little financial cost, at no risk to U.S. forces, and with fewer civilian casualties than many alternative methods would have caused.
  • So drone warfare is here to stay, and it is likely to expand in the years to come as other countries’ capabilities catch up with those of the United States.
  • ...10 more annotations...
  • Critics of drone strikes often fail to take into account the fact that the alternatives are either too risky or unrealistic.
  • Even the most unfavorable estimates of drone casualties reveal that the ratio of civilian to militant deaths is lower than it would be for other forms of strikes.
  • signature strikes,” which target not specific individuals but instead groups engaged in suspicious activities.
  • After a strike in Pakistan, militants often cordon off the area, remove their dead, and admit only local reporters sympathetic to their cause or decide on a body count themselves. The U.S. media often then draw on such faulty reporting to give the illusion of having used multiple sources. As a result, statistics on civilians killed by drones are often inflated.
  • data show that drones are more discriminate than other types of force.
  • Yemen’s former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, also at times allowed drone strikes in his country and even covered for them by telling the public that they were conducted by the Yemeni air force.
  • As officials in both Pakistan and Yemen realize, U.S. drone strikes help their governments by targeting common enemies.
  • A 2012 poll found that 74 percent of Pakistanis viewed the United States as their enemy, likely in part because of the ongoing drone campaign. Similarly, in Yemen, as the scholar Gregory Johnsen has pointed out, drone strikes can win the enmity of entire tribes.
  • Many surveys of public opinion related to drones are conducted by anti-drone organizations, which results in biased samples.
  • And for most Pakistanis and Yemenis, the most important problems they struggle with are corruption, weak representative institutions, and poor economic growth; the drone program is only a small part of their overall anger, most of which is directed toward their own governments.
alarsso

9 questions about Syria you were too embarrassed to ask - The Washington Post - 0 views

www.washingtonpost.com/...ou-were-too-embarrassed-to-ask

syria Assad history civil war current events Middle East

shared by alarsso on 09 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • alarsso on 09 Mar 15
     
    What is Syria? Why the civil war? How did it all go so wrong compared to other countries of the Arab Spring? Why do Russia and Iran still like Syria so much? Why hasn't the US gotten involved? Why are chemical weapons being so heavily differentiated from other regime violent acts?
fcastro2

France, Britain dismiss calls to renew relations with Syria's Assad | Reuters - 0 views

www.reuters.com/...n-france-idUSKBN0LV1QM20150227

france britain syria relations ISIS politics

shared by fcastro2 on 06 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • France and Britain dismissed on Friday any suggestion of restoring relations with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, saying this would likely end all hope of a political transition and push moderates into the arms of radical Islamist groups.
  • With the rise of Islamic State insurgents, some European |Union member states are critical of the position in Paris and London and say it might be time to re-establish communication with Damascus given that a four-year-old revolt has failed to overthrow Assad
  • "In reality, Bashar represents injustice, chaos and terror. We, France and Britain, say no to all three
  • ...7 more annotations...
  • the French and British foreign ministers hit back at those who sought a rapprochement with Assad by saying he was using the fear of Islamic State, which has seized wide areas of northern and eastern Syria, to win back international support
  • This week a four-man cross-party delegation of French parliamentarians traveled to Syria and some met with Assad, and triggering a national debate on the issue
  • countries would have to work with Assad to defeat Islamic State, while the U.N. envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said earlier this month that Assad must be part of the solution for defusing the conflict in Syria
  • An initially peaceful street uprising against Assad has spiraled into a civil war that has seen a level of suffering some diplomats see as justifying contacts with Damascus in pursuit of a political solution
  • Britain and France see Assad's departure as a precondition of peace negotiations but the collapse of his government has become less likely as the war grinds on inconclusively
  • For our own security, we must defeat Islamic State in Syria. We need a partner that can act against extremists. We need a negotiated political settlement
  • compromise would be needed between elements of the existing government and relatively moderate opponents of Assad.
  • fcastro2 on 06 Mar 15
     
    Both Britain and France have shunned Syrian President Assad in their quest to fight terrorism. They oppose all that the Syrian government stands for and this is why they will continue to dismiss the Syrian government and any ties with them. 
kkerby223

Saudi women: Pampered or oppressed - 0 views

www.cnn.com/...saudi-women-disagree-rights

men saudi arabia two sides slave

shared by kkerby223 on 12 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • kkerby223 on 12 Mar 15
     
    This article also discusses the two sides of the issue, those for equality and those against it. At the end of the article, there is an interesting perspective I have not seen yet. The perspective of a man. He claims that men are slaves to women every day. When it is worded like that it seems to some men the issue of inequality is not just an issue for women but also for men.
micklethwait

This is what an Israeli airstrike on a building in Gaza looks like - The Washington Post - 0 views

www.washingtonpost.com/...-a-building-in-gaza-looks-like

israeli building gaza demolition

shared by micklethwait on 02 Aug 14 - No Cached
  • micklethwait on 02 Aug 14
     
    The Shujaiyah connection.
micklethwait

» This is what life is like for millions of Israelis during rocket attacks, d... - 0 views

www.jewsnews.co.il/...ol-you-its-a-terrifying-ordeal

shared by micklethwait on 18 Jul 14 - No Cached
  • micklethwait on 18 Jul 14
     
    I can't tell if this news site is just grossly incompetent or a practically undetectable satire.
sheldonmer

Use Of Social Media Leads To News Outlets Providing False Information - WIBW News Now! - 0 views

www.wibwnewsnow.com/ts-providing-false-information

social media false information online news

shared by sheldonmer on 16 Nov 14 - No Cached
    • sheldonmer
      sheldonmer on 16 Nov 14
       
      This article goes into talking about how the speed of news trumps the accuracy of information. In todays fast paced society, social media is a great way to find out whats going on at the drop of a hat. However, the information we are exposed to on a daily basis can be filled with fabrication for many different reasons. This article speaks highly of methods like "crowdsourcing", but goes on to say that a "gatekeeper" for this information is needed, making sure no fabrication occurs. This leads me to think about how in developed countries we even have a hard time spotting false information, and how places like the Middle East must have a even more difficult time finding out whats real, leading to uproar and uncertainty on a large scale.
sheldonmer

Egyptians visit Washington to defend their 'revolution' - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the ... - 0 views

www.al-monitor.com/...si-human-rights-terrorism.html

United States egypt egyptian revolution washington

shared by sheldonmer on 03 Nov 14 - No Cached
  • during an anti-Morsi and anti-Muslim Brotherhood protest in Tahrir Square in Cairo, June 28, 2013. (photo by REUTERSAsmaa Waguih)
  • group of influential Egyptians sought to convince a dozen Americans that the removal of elected president Mohammed Morsi in 2013 and his replacement by Field Marshal Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was a plus for Egypt’s political evolution and US interests.
  • Morsi had violated the constitution by claiming dictatorial powers in November 2012 and acquiesced in the brutal beating of demonstrators in front of the presidential palace. Crime rose during Morsi’s tenure and Egyptians were afraid to walk the streets or send their kids to school, she told Al-Monitor.
  • ...10 more annotations...
  • The Americans, in turn, criticized Egypt for criminalizing the Muslim Brotherhood, killing more than a thousand people and detaining thousands more, including journalists and secular liberals, in the aftermath of Morsi’s ouster.
  • Coptic and other Christian leaders and a representative of the Ministry of Endowments. T
  • told Al-Monitor that the Egyptians conveyed their support for Sisi, who, after ruling as head of a military council that replaced Morsi, was elected president in May with a large percentage of votes, although a smaller turnout than in the previous presidential election.
  • Zaki said the delegation also expressed their view that while “we know we are moving toward a strong state, a strong state needs civil society and political opposition.” The third message, he said, was that Egypt wants US support in the fight against terrorism.
  • Washington has praised Cairo for mediating last summer’s Gaza war between Israel and Hamas and expressed sympathy for those fighting Islamic extremists, such as the Egyptian soldiers killed in the Sinai Peninsula on Oct. 24.
  • l some restrictions on US aid to Egypt and many analysts in Washington assert that Egypt cannot return to stability while repressing major components of its society. They also criticize an impending edict for civil society groups to register with the government, which has led many respected foreign-funded nonprofit organizations
  • encouraged the Egyptians to embrace political and religious pluralism. “The Egyptians should understand that no government can deliver peace, prosperity and law and order that does not involve all sections of society,” he said.
  • “Don’t deal with us like a teacher with a pupil,” said Nashwa el-Houfi, a columnist for the daily newspaper Al Watan. “No one has the whole truth. You have part and I have part.”
  • Another plea was for Americans to stop acting as though they knew better what was in the interests of a country with a recorded history going back 7,000 years.
    • sheldonmer
      sheldonmer on 16 Nov 14
       
      This article talks about how some Americans feel like Egypt did itself a disservice by getting rid of Morsi's rule. This article describes the conversation had by some members of the Egyptian delegation that were invited to Washington by Hands Along the Nile Development Services. This articles goes on to talk about different issues regarding U.S., Egyptian relations and basically was the U.S. condones and what it doesn't, as if it mattered.
  • kristaf on 03 Nov 14
     
    The article mentions the views of Americans and the views of Egyptians regarding the state of Egypt with concerns surrounding the Muslim Brotherhood. Egyptians were able to carry a message to Americans. Egyptians voiced their want for U.S assistance with terrorism. 
sheldonmer

Why social media needs to be taught in high school | VentureBeat | Social | by Ronnie C... - 0 views

venturebeat.com/...ds-to-be-taught-in-high-school

social media high school education United States cybersecurity

shared by sheldonmer on 17 Nov 14 - No Cached
    • sheldonmer
      sheldonmer on 17 Nov 14
       
      This article is slightly more off topic, but a great discussion either way. This article argues that social media and or "cyber-security" classes should be taught to high schoolers. I feel like this relate to my topic due to the large demographic of young people involved in the Egyptian Revolution. Although certain technologies might not have been available or were frowned on, learning about social media earlier in Egypt could've gotten the messages out way faster. I also feel like proper education for all people around the world would help prevent people from falling victim to false information on the internet and the agendas behind them. Being able to identify a threat is important in any situation, and although Egyptians used social media to fight against the regime, it later had very negative backlash, full of lies.
nicolet1189

Ignorant jihadis 'have bought into fantasy fuelled by social media' | World news | The ... - 0 views

www.theguardian.com/...antasy-fuelled-by-social-media

ISIS Recruitment Taliban War

shared by nicolet1189 on 19 Nov 14 - No Cached
  • boys aged between 10 and 20 who had been radicalised by the Taliban.
  • They all told the same story, sa
  • “They all had impoverished backgrounds, they were illiterate, their families had been approached by the Taliban and were coerced into abandoning their children, they were lambs to the slaughter,” she said.
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • Those from the west are naive and lack imagination, they are chasing a fictional dream, and they often have barely any knowledge of what Islam is.”
  • The book aspiring Isis militants most commonly ordered online before taking off to Syria was Islam for Dummies, she said.
  • “What Isis has done, and they have exceed al-Qaida in this, is take really spectacular control of the narrative of their organisation while sharing that story through masterful use of all mechanisms of the media,” she said
  • propaganda and recruitment videos spreading the jihadi message w
  • Ten years ago, it was difficult to access and acquire videos like the beheadings we have seen unless you were part of an inner circle, but now this material is mainstream, you can access it just by opening Twitter,”
  • “If you are a young person with limited imagination, a limited sense of self, and you are uninclined to engage with your neighbours, friends and a pluralistic society, you are very easily seduced. You’re like a blank canvas.”
  • Differentiating between Islam and Islamism
  • Islamism promotes explicit totalitarianism and the belief that Islam historically had incredible global and geopolitical glory that should be restored through violence, jihadism and barbarity
katelynklug

The Unlikely Young Cosmopolitans of Cairo - 0 views

www.arabmediasociety.com/?article=760

Egpyt Cairo urban lower middle class cosmopolitan

shared by katelynklug on 21 Nov 14 - No Cached
  • katelynklug on 21 Nov 14
     
    Author Heba Elsayed gives a preview of the study she conducted to observe the lower middle class in Cairo. Elsayed describes Cairo as a microcosm of globalization in urban centers. She describes the unique role of Cosmopolitanism in analyzing trends of globalization. She focuses on the lower middle class who, she says, plays the biggest role in incorporating multiple viewpoints in daily life rather than practicing exclusivity like the upper middle class. In addition, she describes cosmopolitanism in terms of internal heterogeneity, describing an 'onion model' of the world, in which the local and national form the core and inner layers and the international and global form the outer layers. She also mentions that nation-states can no longer be regarded as the primary reference point for global citizenry.
nfyffe

Why Does The U.S. Like Iraq's Kurds But Not Syria's? - 1 views

www.npr.org/...kurds-in-iraq-but-not-in-syria

shared by nfyffe on 22 Oct 14 - No Cached
  • nfyffe on 22 Oct 14
     
    In Iraq, Kurdish militiamen fighting the group that calls itself the Islamic State are key American allies. In Syria, some Kurdish fighters battling the very same Islamic State are considered part of a terrorist group, according to the U.S. government. What gives?
katelynklug

Sisi warns Egypt students against 'malicious' acts - 0 views

english.alarabiya.net/...ate-malicious-activities-.html

Egpyt youth politics Sisi Cairo University

shared by katelynklug on 12 Nov 14 - No Cached
  • katelynklug on 12 Nov 14
     
    On Sunday, Sept. 28, President Sisi made a speech at Cairo University, declaring his affection and support for the Egyptian youth. He also warned the students against "malicious" activities and that universities were "solely for education." The speech followed the draft of a new controversial law allowing for the arbitrary firing of faculty members. Sisi pledged to dedicate state resources like special councils and scholarship funds to the cause of the youth demographic.
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