In Perspective

So Bush was in Beantown for a fundraiser, and his Chief of Staff, Andrew Card, was asked about Richard Clarke’s book. Card was honest and said he had not read the whole book. He did say that he thought Clarke’s proposition that Al-Qaeda operatives were in Boston and looking at using liquid natural gas (LNG) was untrue. I got all of the above from an op-ed in the Globe. The funny thing is that one of the front pieces on the Globe, on the same day, was a former counter-terrorism agent talking about the intelligence that has him convinced Al-Qaeda…

1. God creates and sustains all of creation at all times 2. Intellect makes Man unique and exhalted from amongst creation (2:30-34) 3. With the great power of this intellect, comes great responsibility (spider man fans should recognize this mantra) 4. This responsibility is a sacred moral trust (amaana) 5. To the extent we have any power over any other person, or any part of creation, it is within the confines of this amaana. 6. Therefore, by not seizing on every opportunity to do good, you are abusing God. (I borrowed this line from someone else, but I like it…

So proud to know Willow. Looking forward to this book.  ‘Granddad, There’s a Head on the Beach’ and Other Summer Reads – NYTimes.com. But this year’s improbably charming book about hackers is “Alif the Unseen,” a novel prompted by its author’s frustration. G. Willow Wilson, admired for her graphic novels and memoir, says that she was sick of treating her readers as separate factions (“comic-book geeks, literary NPR types and Muslims”) and sick of assumptions that blogging and social media could not have political consequences.  So she conjured Alif, a young Arab-Indian hacker living in an unnamed Middle Eastern high-security…