All entries by this author

Analyze Everything

Oct 10th, 2005 7:07 pm | By

Time for a Monday morning tease. Or more of a mock, really. I know I shouldn’t – it’s fish/barrel stuff – but I want to, so I will.

There was this lecture, see. And it was full of new, profound, fresh, original, searching stuff that no one had ever thought of or said before. Not a word of it was stale or familiar or old news.

Jasbir Puar, an assistant professor in the department of Women’s and Gender Studies at Rutgers University, spoke on “Queer Biopolitics and the Ascendancy of Whiteness” yesterday in Stimson Hall to provide a theory for the way race and sexuality affect U.S. and international politics…Puar’s was the first of a series of lectures sponsored

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Queer Biopolitics and the Ascendancy of Whiteness *

Oct 10th, 2005 | Filed by

Identity, intersections, sexuality, complicit, orientalist, race, imperialism, interdisciplinary, turban.… Read the rest



Slavoj Žižek Can be Difficult to Shut Up *

Oct 10th, 2005 | Filed by

Even a joke can be an exercise in theory.… Read the rest



Invisibly, Ominously Getting Healthier and Healthier *

Oct 10th, 2005 | Filed by

We benefit from life-saving forces created over the last century that are mostly imperceptible.… Read the rest



The Future of Australian Secularism *

Oct 10th, 2005 | Filed by

What secularists do not recognise: Christian rhetoric may signal willingness to disable secular state.… Read the rest



The Power of Evangelicals in the US *

Oct 10th, 2005 | Filed by

James Dobson expects payback when Republicans are elected.… Read the rest



Multiculturalism Again

Oct 9th, 2005 6:06 pm | By

How did everything get turned around?

Today, to criticise multiculturalism, one is invariably derided as ‘right wing’ or ‘reactionary’. Conversely, to champion multiculturalism, one is invariably perceived as ‘progressive’ or ‘of the left’. But it should be, and historically it has been, the other way around. Multiculturalism represents the antithesis of the Enlightenment principle of colour-blindness and the notion of the universality of humankind – while the fetishisation of ethnic particularism is a quintessentially Tory ideal. The liberal-left’s love affair with multiculturalism today is a betrayal of what it used to stand for.

That’s for sure. That realization is starting to trickle through, but dang it’s taking a long time. Hurry up, folks! Get a clue. The fetishization of … Read the rest



Earthquake Death Toll Nears 20,000 *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Musharraf appeals for international help.… Read the rest



Salman Rushdie on Jihadism and Male Honor *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

You don’t fight radical conservatism with not-quite-so radical conservatism. … Read the rest



Brainwashing – How to Create Crap Beliefs *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Five core techniques: isolation, control, uncertainty, repetition and emotional manipulation. … Read the rest



Mother Jones Interviews Chris Mooney *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Disdain for science and scientific expertise has been a hallmark of the Bush White House. … Read the rest



Church Allowed to Keep Poster Promising Miracles *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Critics complained to Advertising Standards Authority that the poster was misleading and irresponsible.… Read the rest



The Poverty of Multiculturalism *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

The celebration of ethnic particularism is a betrayal of the socialist ideal.… Read the rest



Everyone but the Perps Will Be Held Responsible *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Avoidance of what al-Qaeda stands for began in 9/11 and has become endemic since. … Read the rest



Panorama Editor Replies to MCB Complaints *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Programme reflected debate within Muslim community about the leadership the MCB offers.… Read the rest



Woman Who Stood Up to Warlords *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Wins seat in Afghanistan’s new parliament.… Read the rest



Amartya Sen: Wrongs and Rights in Development *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Prospect celebrates tenth anniversary by reposting Sen on India and China.… Read the rest



Guardian Tries to be Funny *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Pretend columnist writes mock tribute to Harry of Harry’s Place. Crushing sarcasm.… Read the rest



Secularist of the Year *

Oct 9th, 2005 | Filed by

Women’s rights campaigner Maryam Namazie wins award.… Read the rest



Secularist of the Year Award

Oct 9th, 2005 | By Keith Porteous Wood, Maryam Namazie

Maryam Namazie wins the NSS Irwin prize for Secularist of the Year award

Yesterday, October 8, 2005 Maryam Namazie, adjudged to have made the most significant contribution to the promotion of secularism in the preceding year, was awarded the National Secular Society’s (NSS) first Irwin Prize for “Secularist of the Year” in London. The £5,000 annual prize, sponsored by NSS member Dr Michael Irwin, was presented by Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee at a lunch at the Montcalm Hotel in London. The event also featured cutting edge cabaret from stand-up comedian Stewart Lee, who is also co-author of the controversial “Jerry Springer – the Opera”.

In introducing Namazie, Keith Porteous Wood, NSS executive director stated: ‘Maryam is an inveterate commentator and … Read the rest