RECENT ARTICLES
Ramadan TV Review: Everything that’s wrong about Nagy Atallah
It’s not that the film is about theft: from everyone loves a good heist film [the Italian Job! Ocean’s 11, 12, 13!], never more so when the money is being stolen from the bad guy. [...]
NiTON: Nations in Transition Olympic News
On South Sudan’s flag, Egypt’s uniforms, Saudi Arabia’s female athletes, Ramadan, the minute of silence, and Malaysia’s pregnant athlete. All in one friendly article! Their budgets may be a tad tighter and their delegations smaller, [...]
Joan Juliet Buck, pen for sale (cheap!)
That looks like a very natural picture, that would totally dupe Ms. Buck. The article that Vogue published about Syrian first lady Asmaa al-Assad and has long been removed from their [...]
Ramadan and Tisha B’Av
I started eating last night [28 July / 9 Ramadan / 9 Av ] right as my Jewish colleagues, here in my summer workshop in the US, started fasting – an amusing reversal of situation [...]
Egypt ‘celebrates’ 60 years of military occupation
Hello again! A second blog post this week, also originally posted at "Foreign Policy - Transitions" -- a brief reminder of why the revolution is not over and that battling military rule is as much [...]
My first lady doesn’t wear a tiara (and that’s a good thing)
Long overdue but worth a post as the topic regularly keeps coming back. First posted at Foreign Policy Transitions. This is what I received by email. Classy, right? Since the presidential elections [...]
#SudanRevolts: Why we’re ignoring the revolution in Sudan
Crossposted at Foreign Policy Transitions. In brief: besides, as Jon Stewart says, "we don't care to know enough about countries we meddle in", Sudan has suffered for so long from such negative coverage that the [...]
WWMBD? (What will the Muslim Brotherhood do?)
Crossposted at Foreign Policy Transitions. In short: two elected presidents and one who died then resurrected, a (political) party on the street and possible backroom deals, and we haven't got a clue as to where [...]
Why the bad news in Egypt is worse than you thought
Crossposted at Foreign Policy Transitions. In short: It's not a coup, but we're screwed anyway. This week, the Egyptian military made its boldest attempt yet to regain control over a country that has been slipping from [...]
Article Archive
Egypt After the Spring: Revolt and Reaction.
Egypt After the Spring: Revolt and Reaction. This Adelphi volume brings together senior sch olars as well as rising analysts of Egypt to examine the tumultuous period from the January 2011 uprising against Hosni Mubarak, [...]
The US elections (and their aftermath), covered as we do African elections
Had to be done (actually surprised it hasn't already): Writing about the latest US elections like US media writes about African countries. **COUNTRY CRISIS WATCH** [insert CNN "breaking news" type of jingle] The US of A, [...]
Refugees don’t want handouts: they want jobs
Jobs would give refugees both money and dignity Image: REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke Polykastro, Greece Khaled wakes up early. Most people in the refugee camp in Polykastro, in northern Greece, do – the tents [...]