Welcome! This is an unapologetic, agenda-free zone. Just commentaries on current events that’ll move you to think, laugh, rage, and even cry.
Most writers depend on residuals from television reruns and DVD sales to survive between full-time jobs. [Carlton Cuse, writer and executive producer of ABC’s “Lost”] Hollywood went dark yesterday after the studios refused to grant writers a more equitable share of revenues from DVD sales and shows viewed over the Internet and mobile phones, which… Read more.
Last Tuesday Pakistan’s Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, issued a ruling which could only be regarded as an untenable challenge to the authority of General Pervaz Musharraf – who appointed himself president in 2002, after seizing power in a military coup in 1999. Because the court ruled that Gen Musharraf had… Read more.
Saudi King Abdullah created quite a furor on the eve of his state visit to Britain this week. Because, to the utter consternation of his hosts, he decreed that the British were largely to blame for the 7/7 terrorist bombings in London two years ago because they failed to heed clear warnings from his government… Read more.
“No good deed goes unpunished” and “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” are two aphorisms that sum up the scandal now tarnishing the reputation of the most powerful woman on television, Oprah Winfrey. Because, less than a year after the January grand opening of her $40-million “leadership academy for girls” in Johannesburg,… Read more.
Tropical Storm Noel has brought into stark relief the fact that the dangers a storm poses are not only measured by the strength of its sustained winds. Because, even though not quite a hurricane (with maximum winds at only 50 – 60 mph compared to 74 mph for a Cat.1 hurricane), Noel has left a… Read more.
Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or do we participate in a politics of hope? [Barack Obama in his keynote address to the Democratic National Convention in 2004] I’m not sure if it’s blind faith or black pride that is keeping my hope alive that Barack Obama will be elected the next president… Read more.
A year ago this month, Sudanese businessman Mo Ibrahim announced his plan to fund an annual prize to reward “a retired African head of state for excellence in leadership”. But here’s a little of what I wrote back then about the egocentric and oxymoronic nature of this no “Mo” corruption prize: Ibrahim seems to think… Read more.
Even though everyone expected her to be the ultimate winner, Cristina Fernández Kirchner surpassed all expectations by defeating her 13 rivals so decisively in national elections held yesterday that she rendered a scheduled November 25 runoff unnecessary. Under Argentina’s election laws, she needed 40 percent of the vote, with a lead of more than 10… Read more.
He has dispatched Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for one last try at getting the feral factions of the Middle East to the bargaining table. Related Articles: Sisyphean pursuit for peace in Middle East Condoleezza Rice Middle East Read more.
Alas, the mother of all fires still raging in Iraq (and is now spreading into Turkey and Iran) makes those praises in California seem hollow…. Related Articles: California’s fiery Katrina… California fires Read more.
