An Absurd Rite of Passage – Ta-Nehisi Coates – National – The Atlantic.
I wanted to make sure I linked to this excellent op-ed from a young black man, experiencing what all too many of us learn to basically tolerate in New York.
Related Posts
Sadness
We are truly sad at the death of Nick Berg. He was a non-combatant, a secured prisoner, and was killed in the most horrendous way. Our sympathies to his family. Unfortuantely, I believe he would have been killed regardless of whether the details of Abu Ghuraib had come out or not; whether Abu Ghuraib happened or not. The viciousness evident in the video was looking for an excuse to be let loose. Once more, I have to say, these people are animals. The ideology of Islam as hatred has become so embedded in their psyche that they murmur platitudes to…
Geert Wilders and Free Speech
Aziz beat me to it. Geert Wilders was arrested for attacking Islam. Dumb idea. As Aziz says “the best answer to bad speech is more speech.” The best thing to happen now is that a group of Dutch Muslims comes forward to his defense. Islam is bigger than one person, whether OBL or Geert Wilders. It can take care of itself. It’s Muslims who need to care of ourselves, and that doesn’t mean supporting dumb ideas.
Gore in 04!
Al Gore was on fire last night. Speaking at the function arranged by MoveOn PAC, Gore blasted the Bush administration for various crimes. It was a compelling speech that showed Gore’s conviction and passion. It came four years too late for Gore, but I hope that Kerry was taking notice. Gore claimed that America had lost its moral compass, that its ideals and foundations were being systematically undermined, and that the current administration were incompetent at best and criminally negligent at worst. It was a rousing performance that will probably be re-shown on CSPAN. Ghostdog says “four stars and two…