Opinions

In April of this year, I wrote that the upheaval in Syria (the Sunni majority revolt against the Alawite-dominated regime) has turned into a battleground between the Sunni axis led by Turkey and Saudi Arabia and the Shiite axis led by Iran. As events continue to unfold in the region, particularly the Sunni Islamists’ monopolization of the political processes in … (read more)

“To which faction would you have given your support? Whether on the side of the pure or the wicked, you would only have increased your folly”.

Silo, “Humanize the Earth” (Collected Works), Latitude Press, US.

We publish this opinion article about the conflict in Syria and more broadly in relation to the regional conflict in the Middle East.

Americans do it, Spaniards do it, Mexicans do it, Israelis do it, even liberal Canadians do it, let’s do it, let’s criminalise peaceful protest.
As many countries hurriedly pass new legislation – or simply apply “antiterrorist” laws – to forbid nonviolent action, this can only strengthen the resolve of the protesters to stick to it.

15 months after Mubarak ’s ouster, this week Egyptians headed to the ballot box to choose a new President in the country’s first multi-candidate Presidential election. Unlike previous polls when election results had invariably been foregone conclusions, the outcome of this historic vote is uncertain with analysts and voters unable to speculate who the likely winner may be.

I strongly believe that the time is right for Turkey and Israel to mend their critically important bilateral relationship which has suffered a precipitous decline since 2010. With the Middle East in turmoil as a result of the Arab Spring, the perilously unfolding crisis in Syria, the concerns around the Iranian nuclear program…. (read more)….

“More wood, this is war!” The train in the Marx Brothers’ film is the most accurate picture of present-day capitalism. Running away, fleeing forward, dismantling itself to further fuel the machine: destroying rights, guarantees, life, wealth, resources, care, bonds, the entire building of modern social civilization.

Nobody thought that the Police would *actually* allow en encampment opposite the Bank of England, symbol of just about everything that is wrong with the present economic system. But a few tents went up after marching from St Paul’s Cathedral rally and the placards expressed the most important thing: a new generation is busy thinking about how to create a better world.

Shareholder meetings can be routine, unless you are Bank of America, in which case it may be declared an “extraordinary event”. That is what the city of Charlotte, North Carolina called the bank’s shareholder meeting this week. Bank of America is currently the second largest bank in the US (after JP Morgan Chase), claiming more than $2tn in assets.

While Japan is to nationalize Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco), the Indian central government is paying off Tamil Nadu State big-wigs for co-operation to reopen Kudankulam nuclear plant. In Europe the 15M movement is gathering forces while the Greek citizenry rethink the bailout. Such undercurrents indicate a groundswell of hitherto unrecognised forces at work – the human factor!

I was questioned under caution! Not in a gloomy cellar, without blinding projectors like in the movies, without Shin Bet ( Israel Security Agency ) interrogators who shouted and caressed alternately.

The questioning was conducted by officials from the Interior Ministry’s Construction Inspection Unit, in Jerusalem.