You probably know by now that Benazir Bhutto has been assassinated, and a couple of dozen other people murdered besides. It is just one of thousands upon thousands of tragedies visited upon the region, but with wider repercussions. It is the last thing Pakistan needs right now, and by extension, the last thing the region and the world needs.
Month: December 2007
Howard Zinn’s maxims on bombing and war
Howard Zinn reviewed a book by elin o’Hara slavick called “bomb after bomb”. At the end of the review he mentions some of his thoughts on war. I think they are very good and bear repeating.
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My own reflections on my experiences as a bombardier, and my research on the wars of the United States have led me to certain conclusions about war and the dropping of bombs that accompany modern warfare.
Exchange on the Academic Boycott
http://www.zcommunications.org/exchange-on-the-academic-boycott-by-justin-podur
by Justin Podur and Stuart Murray
On November 28, 2007, Ryerson University in Toronto held a debate on “Academic Boycott and Academic Freedom” in the context of Israel/Palestine. Justin Podur wrote an article on the debate (http://www.zmag.org/znet/viewArticle/17261) and one of the debaters, Stuart Murray, replied. An exchange ensued, and we thought it would be interesting to publish the exchange as well.
Murray’s reply to Podur’s article:
Dear Justin,
Me and Stuart Murray on the academic boycott
I sent my article on Ryerson’s academic boycott debate to the debaters and one of them, Stuart Murray, wrote me back. A quite friendly exchange of views ensued, which I thought was itself worth publishing on ZNet. Take a look. I found it (and Stuart) to be more productive and interesting than most such exchanges I’ve gotten into (and made you poor readers suffer).
Venezuela’s Constitutional Reform Fails (For Now)
http://www.zcommunications.org/venezuelas-constitutional-reform-fails-for-now-by-justin-podur
Continue reading “Venezuela’s Constitutional Reform Fails (For Now)”
Chavez’s Proposal Fails – but don’t despair
The Constitutional Reform referendum in Venezuela has failed, and Chavez, unlike the Venezuelan opposition, gracefully accepted the defeat. I know that a lot of people are disappointed, but I think there are some very good things that can come out of this.
Before I get into that, the results. “No” got 50.7% (4 504 351), “Yes” got 49.2% (4 159 392) votes. Abstention was very high, at 44.11%. I got these results from El Tiempo, the Colombian newspaper, and they come from when there were 97% of the votes counted.
Continue reading “Chavez’s Proposal Fails – but don’t despair”