The worst thing about this tale of a Sri Lankan maid’s suffering at the hands of her Saudi Arabian employers is that it’s completely unsurprising. Though the torture the woman endured is notable for its brutality, such abuse is evidently commonplace in Saudi Arabia—to the point that foreign workers are taught to expect beatings: The [...]
Entries Tagged as 'politics'
Off the Books
August 26th, 2010 · 4 Comments
Tags:crime·immigration·law·Philippines·politics·Saudi Arabia·Sri Lanka
Jyoti Devithe is Not a Happy Camper
July 29th, 2010 · 1 Comment
Full context here. Devithe, a legislator in the Indian state of Bihar, probably had her heart in the right place, since massive, endemic corruption can be tough to tolerate. But it’s rarely advisable to take a page from the Taiwanese parliamentary playbook.
The Father of Boom
July 27th, 2010 · 2 Comments
During my guest stint over at Ta-Nehisi’s place last week, a commenter reminded me of my all-time favorite Otto von Bismarck quote: “Politics is the art of the possible.” The unsmiling German statesman may have meant that all successful negotiations must end in compromise, but I’d like to think he also had faith in politics’ [...]
Tags:gadgets·Horace Leslie Galbraith·Jamaica·music·Otto von Bismarck·politics·sound systems·technology·World War II
Splitsville Gets Smaller
July 22nd, 2010 · No Comments
(Cross-posted from Ta-Nehisi Coates) I had to engage in a bit of uproarious guffawing upon reading this brain-dead take on New York’s long-awaited shift to no-fault divorce. The writer pleads for Governor David Patterson to veto the bill, using that tried-and-true “won’t somebody please think of the children!” logic lampooned so memorably on The Simpsons. [...]
Ice Van Wyck
July 9th, 2010 · 7 Comments
At the end of Wednesday’s post about one of the least heralded pioneers of refrigeration, we noted that the “ice lobby” had been instrumental in frustrating John Gorrie’s dreams of freezing water via mechanical means. This notion struck us as rather humorous since we can scarcely think of a less valuable commodity these days than [...]
Tags:Charles W. Morse·crime·economics·Ice Trust·New York City·politics·pseudoscience
The Venezuela of Its Day
June 22nd, 2010 · 7 Comments
We’ve been doing our best to work up a healthy antipathy toward Algeria, whose national team we face tomorrow in a must-win World Cup match. As big fans of The Battle of Algiers and longtime observers of the country’s ruinous civil war, our hearts go out to the Algerian generations that have endured so much [...]
Manipur on the Brink
June 9th, 2010 · 1 Comment
A grim report from North-East India, where Manipur has been under seige for two months: Manipur faces an acute shortage of food and medicines with supplies of essentials cut off for the 60th day Wednesday following an indefinite economic blockade by several tribal groups. “The food crisis is simply acute and also there is a [...]
Now That’s an Exit
June 8th, 2010 · 7 Comments
Some Wired research recently familiarized us with the career of Keeve M. Siegel, a well-known champion of both holography and controlled nuclear fusion. Siegel’s involvement in the latter technology earned him a 1975 invite to Congress, where he was supposed to make the case for additional government funding. But, tragically, he never got the chance [...]
Jamaica’s Crossroads
May 26th, 2010 · 1 Comment
As the violence continues in Kingston, let’s pause to consider the scope of Jamaica’s problems. By any measure, the nation should have long ago started working its way toward the middle of the development tables. Think about how much the place has going for it: lots of bauxite, fertile soil, an English-speaking populace, a thriving [...]
Tags:Christopher Coke·corruption·crime·economics·Jamaica·politics
St. Helena Off Santa Barbara
May 24th, 2010 · 3 Comments
The politics in our native state never cease to entertain, especially when the gubernatorial elections roll around. Who could forget, for example, the ill-fated candidacy of Gary Coleman? This year’s contest seems similarly likely to offer its share of oddities, starting with reactionary Douglas Hughes. Though he has positions on all the major topics of [...]
Tags:California·crime·exile·law·politics
From the Mouths of Giants
May 3rd, 2010 · No Comments
Crazy morning ’round here, as we once again find ourselves butting up against a brutal WIRED deadline. But seeing as how this is an especially dreary Monday, at least here in this rainy metropolis where incompetent bombers run amok, we couldn’t just start your week with pure laziness. So let us spend a few moments [...]
Tags:Georgia·Man Mountain Dean·New York City·politics·sports·wrestling
Spellbound
April 26th, 2010 · 3 Comments
True, some small measure of sanity may soon prevail in Saudi Arabia, where a Lebanese man convicted of witchcraft seems increasingly likely to escape execution. But the anti-sorcery sentiment remains strong in the Persian Gulf, where Bahrain looks set to join the House of Saud in outlawing the dark arts. Could this be a sign [...]
The Coltan Revolution
April 8th, 2010 · 2 Comments
The upheaval in Kyrgyzstan has been both violent and quick, with autocratic president Kurmanbek Bakiyev electing to flee as soon as his security forces proved themselves incompetent. It seems like just yesterday that Bakiyev came to power amidst the hope spawned by the Tulip Revolution. And now destitute Kyrgyzstan is back to square one, in [...]
Tags:Coltan Revolution·Kurmanbek Bakiyev·Kyrgyzstan·mobile phones·politics
“Gumaruk Might Not Be Wise…”
April 6th, 2010 · No Comments
We’re just days away from the Sudan’s hotly anticipated elections, and no one can say for certain how the process will unfold. But after reading this haunting dispatch, we fear that violence will mar the nation’s fledgling attempt at democracy. It was written by photographer Pete Muller, who has been accompanying music-star-turned-aspiring-politician Mary Boyoi on [...]
Tags:Mary Boyoi·politics·Sudan
Giving the Junta a Pass
March 2nd, 2010 · 4 Comments
The recent Nigerien coup has put the rest of the world—or at least the part that swears love for democracy—in something of a quandary. Out deepest political principles compel us to oppose the use of force in obtaining power, especially when the afflicted regime was selected at the ballot box. Yet if the old guard [...]
The Hero of Tippecanoe
February 15th, 2010 · 4 Comments
On this President’s Day, we can think of no better way to celebrate our nation’s most exalted job than by recalling the wise, though incredibly logorrheic words of the starcrossed William Henry Harrison. As the American history nerds in the audience will recall, Harrison doomed himself to an early death by refusing to wear a [...]
Tags:Dan the Automator·Handsome Boy Modeling School·hip-hop·holidays·music·politics·President's Day·Prince Paul·William Henry Harrison
The Congressional Culture of Violence
February 2nd, 2010 · 4 Comments
While today’s Congressional politics may seem somewhat distasteful to fans of decorum, Capitol Hill’s past is full of far more vicious conflict between ideological opposites. As noted in this New York Times report from 1856, the people’s representatives were once none-too-shy about resorting to the gun or sword when positions seemed irreconcilable—though, to the American [...]
Tags:Bladensburg Dueling Grounds·Congress·dueling·Maryland·politics·U.S. history
The Antidote to Cathy
January 15th, 2010 · No Comments
Sorry, but we just couldn’t bear to have that dreadful Cathy clip atop the blog all weekend. So we’ll instead leave you with this 1970 campaign ad, which we discovered while reading about Spiro Agnew’s proto-Tipper Gore act in the Rome (Ga.) News-Tribune. Ms. Dickinson eventually lost this election in a landslide, but we still [...]
The Jonestown Diet
January 8th, 2010 · 3 Comments
During one of our recent discussions about food taboos, a sage commenter noted that one of the theories regarding such prohibitions is that they aid social cohesion—if we can all agree to, say, eschew beef or Funyuns, we instantly have something that defines us in opposition to “The Other.” Given the inherent creepiness of that [...]
Tags:cults·food·Guyana·Jonestown·politics·psychology·sushi·Unification Church
Doing Away With the Veneer
December 3rd, 2009 · 8 Comments
Most authoritarians these days know better than to go the Papa Doc Duvalier route and declare themselves president-for-life. The occasional sham election does wonders in terms of keeping off the international heat, especially if your country is an important source of gas or bauxite. But Nursultan Nazarbayev seems to be seriously considering bucking the trend, [...]
Tags:animals·birds·dictatorship·Houbara Bustard·Kazakhstan·politics·Russia·Winter Olympics
Transformation or Calculation?
November 16th, 2009 · No Comments
One of our favorite scenes in The Godfather trilogy occurs near the beginning of the second installment, as Michael Corleone dances with his wife at a lavish party in honor of their son’s First Communion. Kay Corleone asks her hubby when, exactly, the family will go legit—something that Michael promised several years prior. “I’m trying, [...]
Tags:crime·Kenya·Maina Njenga·Mungiki·politics·The Godfather
“Beam the Bomb”
November 11th, 2009 · 3 Comments
After posting a vintage pro-SDI ad on Monday, we got to wondering about this “Coalition for SDI” that sponsored the spot. Who could be so bold as to create the risible “Peace Shield” euphemism? We connected the dots back to Daniel O. Graham, who claimed to be the coiner of the term “Strategic Defense Initiative.” [...]
Tags:1980s·Daniel O. Graham·Lyndon LaRouche·politics·space·Strategic Defense Initiative
Desperate Times, Desperate Measures
October 28th, 2009 · No Comments
We recently argued that symbols do, indeed, matter. Is it possible that someone in the administration of Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki read our screed? Because the Nairobi regime has suddenly decided to make a rather brilliant token gesture, obviously designed to indicate a willingness to tackle government excess: it’s forcing officials to give up their [...]
Tags:cars·corruption·Kenya·politics
Casting With Disaster
October 15th, 2009 · 5 Comments
As we went digging into our pocket for some change this morning, we came up with a piece of currency sure to give the vending machine a case of indigestion: a 20 shilling coin from Kenya, a souvenir of our recent East African jaunt. Before tossing back the useless money in frustration, however, we noticed [...]
Tags:animals·Burma·coins·currency·economics·Ivory Coast·Kenya·North Korea·politics·Roman Empire·Turkmenbashi·Turkmenistan
The Waga Toso Loophole
October 13th, 2009 · 5 Comments
We’re in the midst of watching The Nazis: A Warning from History, which really should be required viewing for anyone who casually throws around Hitler analogies when discussing contemporary politicians. It’s chilling stuff through-and-through, loaded with interviews with unrepentant party members and victims of persecution alike. The series essentially argues that the Third Reich was [...]
Tags:Adolf Hitler·books·Germany·Mein Kampf·Nazism·politics·TV
Controversial Prizes
October 9th, 2009 · 2 Comments
We usually care little for news of prizes—we refuse to watch the Academy Awards, for example, and we’re always hard-pressed to name the regining National Hockey League MVP. But we can’t help but take note of this morning’s news regarding our president’s newly minted Nobel laureate status. Talk about a topic sure to stay on [...]
Tags:Barack Obama·Carl von Ossietzky·Nobel Peace Prize·politics
The Insects Cannot Hold
October 8th, 2009 · 2 Comments
The fact the map above is entirely green-and-white attests to the success of one of modern history’s great international projects: the FAO‘s Locust Watch. When the project started in 1979, the ravenous critters were a regular menace from Mali to eastern India, in large part because of a lack of information flow—countries were seldom aware [...]
A Hole in the Happiness Theory?
September 24th, 2009 · 6 Comments
So many statistical goodies to sift through in the latest report on American asylum cases (PDF). But by far our favorite oddity can be glimpsed in the chart above. What’s going on with the Bhutanese? Only three citizens of the isolated kingdom claimed asylum in the U.S. three years ago, and then none in 2007. [...]
Your Friendly Neighborhood Birther
July 30th, 2009 · 2 Comments
On his way out of town, our pal Oken was sharp enough to snap the church sign to the right, which stands a mere block away from Microkhan world headquarters. This particular church, which gained some infamy during last year’s election, is evidently none too fond of the man currently occupying the White House. Oh, [...]
Tags:Atlah·Barack Obama·birthers·conspiracy theories·James David Manning·politics·religion
Goons Never Go Out of Style
July 17th, 2009 · No Comments
A recent rash of moonshine deaths in Gujarat got us thinking about the state’s failed prohibition policy (PDF). While liquor bans may have some discernible impact in isolated villages, they’re doomed to failure in larger regions that are tied to wet neighbors via modern highways. But the black market for legit liquor is only for [...]
