Michele Pasin / Quotes

Charlie Hebdo assault: the result of years of american foreign policy

We now know that the assault on Charlie Hebdo was the outcome of intra-Wahhabi rivalry. The attack has been claimed by Ayman al-Zawahiri as an al-Qaida initiative, organised by its section in the Yemen. There is no reason to doubt his assertion. His organisation has been outflanked and partially displaced by the Islamic State and a global act of terror was needed to restore its place as the leading terror group. As in other suicide-terrorism outings by al-Qaida, the act itself was well planned and predictably successful, and those who carried it out were duly sacrificed. Al-Qaida’s supporters will now boast that while their rivals kill other Muslims and accept Western largesse, they alone target the West and inflict damage. The fact that all these acts are inimical to the interests of European or American Muslims and benefit only the West seems to escape their attention. David Cameron and other Western leaders insist, as they do after every outrage, that the problem is radicalised Islam and therefore the responsibility lies within the religion. (Why was Catholicism never blamed for the IRA offensives?) The real problem is not a secret: Western intelligence services regularly tell their leaders that the radicalisation of a tiny sliver of young Muslims (more work for the security services in Britain and France than for al-Qaida or ISIS) is a result of US foreign policy over the last decade and a half. Some of these Muslims have been happy to acquire new skills and priorities while fighting in Bosnia and, more recently, Syria.

Saved 5 April 2015 / www.counterpunch.org ↗

#leaders #acts #West

Beguild

The real trap for Grillo, warns Fo, is being beguiled by flattery. Turning again to history, he cites Cola Di Rienzo, the charismatic son of a tavern owner in…

We Need A Surreal Fantasist Like Beppe Grillo To Rescue Italy, Says Nobel-winning Playwright Dario Fo | World News | The Observer #leaders

Every virtuous act is inspired by a dark secret

Khaderbhai once said that every virtuous act is inspired by a dark secret. It mightn’t be true of everyone, but it was true enough about me. The little good…

Shantaram (gregory David Roberts) #course #shadow #motif #acts

The generosity of the very poor

‘There is no act of faith more beautiful than the generosity of the very poor,’ Abdullah said, in his quiet tone. I had the impression that he never raised…

Shantaram (gregory David Roberts) #tone #impression #acts #voice

Japanese culture

Nishida implies that the proper relation between cultures is parallel to that between “I and Thou.” In simpler language: “A true world culture will be formed…

Nishida Kitarō (stanford Encyclopedia Of Philosophy) #nations #culture #reading #West

Nisbett: how Westerners and East Asians think

recent work of Richard E. Nisbett on the differences between how Westerners (Europeans and North Americans) and East Asians (Chinese, Japanese and Korean)…

The Ego Trick (baggini, Julian) #culture #thinking #differences #West

The Buddhist roots of mindfulness

The practice of mindfulness goes back thousands of years. Many spiritual traditions have encouraged presence in the moment as a way to be in touch with our…

A Practical Guide to Mindfulness (Tessa Watt) #mindfulness #Buddhism #meditation #West