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On a New York Times Roll

The NYT had an interesting series of unrelated articles about Muslims over the last week. Deprogramming Jihadists I respect that the article is trying to show how the Saudis are attempting to deal with demon they helped create, but really does not address some of the inconsistencies in the approach. For example: Saudi schools teach a version of world history that emphasizes repeated battles between Muslims and nonbelieving enemies. Whether to Afghanistan in the 1980s or present-day Iraq, Saudi Arabia has exported more jihadist volunteers than any other country; 15 of the 19 hijackers on Sept. 11 were Saudis. and…

Prince of Persia and Orientalism

This New York Time’s commentary ties Edward Said’s classic opus, Orientalism, to the game Prince of Persia. Then it stops. Good idea. Lousy implementation. “C” at best.   We do not see the rest of the world except as a mythologized “us.” To see the world as being composed of difference, means we have to acknowledge difference at home, and perhaps internalize the challenge to our uniqueness. It is far easier to control and encourage emulation of “us,” than to deal with difference. Orientalism, Prince of Persia

Guest Voices: Should we fear Islam? – On Faith at washingtonpost.com

Guest Voices: Should we fear Islam? – On Faith at washingtonpost.com. At a time when our nation is seeing a rise in intolerant behavior, crossing every cultural line, whether based on race, religion or sexual orientation, we seem simultaneously stuck with a national news media that is preoccupied with conflict and controversy when we desperately need one that weighs facts and reports fairly. A recent national news program reinforced these concerns. Let me explain what I mean.