Wolraich: Obama at the Gates of... Gates
Dr. C: In Praise of Writing Binges
Maiello: Gatsby Doesn't Grate
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Wolraich: Obama at the Gates of... Gates Dr. C: In Praise of Writing Binges Maiello: Gatsby Doesn't Grate |
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Hi folks! I'm glad to see so many new Dagbloggers. I'm in the middle of an epic holiday but I'm planning on spending a good deal of time in October, catching up on my Dag reading.
I've made it through my first Ramadan and my first Lebaran, which have both been interesting experiences. One of the best new things I learned is that during Lebaran, it is incumbent upon each Muslim to apologize for all of his or her wrongdoing in the past year. One of my friends told me that her family sits around the table, each person taking a turn. By the end, they have all broken down into tears. She said she feels reborn each year, light and free. It sounds to me like a wonderful tradition. We could all do with a little less anger and resentment and a little more forgiveness.
I spent Lebaran snorkeling through on of the best coral reefs in the world. I saw a whole family of Nemos. And Scar. And Dory and Bloat and pretty much everybody in Mr. Ray's class. Yes, that's right. I classify my sea creatures with Finding Nemo characters. Don't judge.
After my week in Sulawesi, I spent a few days relaxing in Malaysia where, through a strange and wonderful family connection, I was treated to home-cooked Malaysian treats and warm hospitality. It's nice to know I have surrogate parents just a few hours away.
That's my quick update as to what I've been up to instead of writing these past couple of weeks. Because my life is amazing at the moment, I leave for Bali on Saturday and will again be away from the computer for several days. I'll miss what's happening here. Dag has always been fun and rewarding for me, but with all of our new contributors, it's becoming the vibrant place I think we all wished it would be.
A collection of links and comments dealing with government spying and intimidation of journalists
By Juan Nagel, Transitions blog @ ForeignPolicy.com, May 16, 2013
[....] The consensus is that Venezuela needs high oil prices just to stay afloat. But if the fracking oil boom results in low oil prices, what does the future hold for the South American country?
Sadly, Venezuelans have nothing else to fall back on. Its private industry is a shambles, and the country is even importing toilet paper. Years of populism have left the state crippled and heavily in debt. The public deficit...
By Aidan Foster-Carter, ForeignPolicy.com Op-Ed, May 20, 2013
[....] Pyongyang's faux rage at Security Council Resolutions 2087 of Jan. 22, and 2095 of March 7, which condemned its rocket launch and nuclear test respectively, recycled similar ludicrous canards it hurled at similar resolutions in 2006 and 2009, calling the Security Council, a "marionette of the U.S." A U.S. plot, and puppet? Hardly: Every resolution has been unanimous. China and Russia water down the wording, but they're on board. It's North Korea versus the world.
And that's just the way they like it. Some believe that all their banging and shouting is just a...
By Jennifer Schuessler, New York Times/Books, May 21/22, 2013
The soldiers who landed in Normandy on D-Day were greeted as liberators, but by the time American G.I.’s were headed back home in late 1945, many French citizens viewed them in a very different light.
In the port city of Le Havre, the mayor was bombarded with letters from angry residents complaining about drunkenness, jeep accidents, sexual assault — “a regime of terror,” as one put it, “imposed by bandits in uniform.” [.....]
“What Soldiers Do,” to be officially published next month by the University of Chicago Press, arrives just as sexual misbehavior inside the military is high on the national agenda, thanks...
So.... are you there, like, with Special Forces?
Navy Seals maybe?
I know you have to keep that part secret, and not questioning your right to kill whoever you want, but but but.... just PLEASE don't turn their way of life into... Indiana.
The tar pits of Indiana.
*shudder*
I could tell you. But then I'd have to send Mega Shark to get rid of you. And you know how Mega Shark is. Send him to eat one guy and he wipes out an entire province. Don't want that on my conscience.
Chapter Two: O vs the Volcano
Not that I wasn't jealous before, but now it is visceral!!!! Have you visited any glow-worm caves? What I love about them is that they are really maggots...a great memory for me. Don't stop telling us all about your adventures. I am putting together a blog about life, death, and getting stuck 30 feet up in trees, and what it costs to get a cat in that situation down.
Do you envy me? I didn't think so!
Great work, Orlando!
Thank for your post, i really love it. I will come again.