Category Archives: politics

Common-sense political economics

Posted on November 17, 2011 by

November 17, 2011 On the two-month anniversary of Occupy Wall Street, I am re-posting some older essays I have written that pertain to this movement. I strongly endorse the OWS policy of not taking any specific position. I think it … Continue reading →

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From Corporations to Nation-States

Posted on September 22, 2011 by

Today we assume that modern nation-states are the successors to early-modern kingdoms and royal colonies. In a spatial sense, I still agree with this: the Republic of France occupies the same territory as the prior Kingdom of France; India occupies … Continue reading →

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The Third World War

Posted on November 8, 2007 by

08 November 2007 / 17 Aqrab 1386 Writing the essay on October 19, and then presenting and discussing the paper yesterday has clarified a few things for me. It seems that the Third-World War is underway. Simply put, it is … Continue reading →

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Hawks hiding among doves

Posted on October 19, 2007 by

19 October 2007 / 25 Mizan 1386 Two weeks ago I took a field trip to a UNHCR resettlement site north of Kabul. We traveled in a bullet-proof white SUV, with doors that must weigh 200 pounds and windows that … Continue reading →

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A change of heart

Posted on July 13, 2007 by

Those of you who are following these webpages know that I am focused on post-war urban reconstruction and political-economic development. And I think Franz Fanon and Desmond Tutu describe the critical steps necessary to get beyond a condition of war: … Continue reading →

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Conflict and modernity

Posted on July 12, 2007 by

The Turkish Cultural Center is the building in the middle. It is very (post)modern, but it fits into the urban fabric extremely well, in part because it makes several comments about the adjacent fabric. I believe this is another new … Continue reading →

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Paying respects for the dead

Posted on June 24, 2007 by

24 June 2007 / 3 Saratan 1386 On June 17, a bomb placed in a police academy bus exploded while the bus was parked in a busy area just outside of the public gate of the Police Commandery. Thirty-five people … Continue reading →

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History not quite repeating itself

Posted on June 17, 2007 by

17 June 2007 / 27 Jauza 1386 I have not blogged in two weeks because I have been working on my dissertation prospectus and a draft of one of the chapters. That is good, and it helps me process information; … Continue reading →

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Portraits, and thoughts on oppression

Posted on May 25, 2007 by

25 May 2007 / 4 Jauza 1386 Note: I have interspersed portrait-photos of Afghans I have taken. In conformance with the principles of the Committee to Protect Human Subjects–to which I am bound as an American university researcher–I must say … Continue reading →

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A little reality-check

Posted on May 16, 2007 by

16 May 2007 / 26 Saur 1386 Imagine life in Afghanistan under the Taliban, who ruled Kabul and most of the country from September 1996 to October 2001. Okay, now let me contest that vision. Yesterday I met a fellow … Continue reading →

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