The Red Light Gun Fight
How soon will we begin to fight back against the invasion of our privacy in public?
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Who is Watching Pakistan?
Mumbai is still trembling. There is a want for blood and retribution. What was Pakistan’s role in the bloodbath? Will Pakistan pay for their role in reaping the carnage?
Can Russia and Cuba Save Guantanamo?
Will it take the threat of Russian President Medvedev and Fidel Castro intervening at Guantanamo Bay to end the monstrosity of wrongful imprisonment?
Palin the Pig: 091101 NYC and the Child Martyr
It’s that time of year again when New York City once again feels sorry for itself and the parade of 9/11 martyrs make their mandatory appearance in the pit of what used to be the World Trade Center. This morning, we witnessed the young children of the dead — they “do not remember their father” — but are nonetheless forced to pretend to recall him on television, in speeches they did not write, to help perpetuate the offensive and utterly meaningless “Why Us?” chest thumping that has replaced healing and rediscovery of a forward-propelling hope in America.
Continue reading → Palin the Pig: 091101 NYC and the Child Martyr
Is Poland the 51st State?
On June 22, 2008 — I read an interesting article in The New York Times claiming the sovereign state of Poland was, in fact, the 51st state of the United States.
I wonder what sort of tax rate the people of Poland will pay to help us bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?
Living in Perpetual Terror
Terrorism is not a single, violent, act.
Terrorism is living in fear of what might happen and not what has happened.
Does Bioterrorism Pass the Smell Test?
Yesterday in New York and New Jersey we experienced the strang
e and pungent odor of natural gas. No one could explain then and no one, even today, can begin to explain now. What’s going on in the urban core?
The olfactory mystery in the New York region was matched by strange activity elsewhere. In Austin, Tex., police cordoned off 10 blocks of the downtown business district early yesterday after more than 60 birds were found dead overnight along Congress Avenue, which leads to the State Capitol.Air testing there failed to find a cause, but preliminary results determined that people were not at risk. In New York, the piercing odor was the talk of Manhattan, and it called to mind another mystery: the maple syrup odor that people reported smelling on separate days in late 2005 and whose source has never been established. In yesterday’s case, several people said they were overcome by the odor.
Producing the Body, Perpetuating the Ghost
The production of Osama bin Laden’s 
body — dead or alive — will soon be in our future as will the body of Saddam Hussein hanging dead from its neck.
We will have successfully produced the body — but are we perpetuating the ghost?
Do Osama and Saddam have more value and resonance in death than they had in their lives?
Is there a downside to assassinating charismatic madmen?
By providing their deaths, have we gifted them immortality and martyrdom and a reason for their evil example to be followed by others?
How should bad people be dealt with in the world?
Can we heal the wounds terrorism rips open by engaging in a dialogue with the neighbors of the terrorists?
Is conversation better than condemnation?
Continue reading → Producing the Body, Perpetuating the Ghost
Building Invisible Buildings at Ground Zero
In my article, The Incongruity of Mourning and the 9/11 Memorial, we discussed how to create an appropriate memorial for the World Trade Center loss.
Last week we received updated news the Ground Zero World Trade Center site would be re-built using invisible buildings that blend into the sky, reflect the environment around them and form a transparent skyline while shouting to the world: “Please don’t hit us again! We’re here, but our buildings really aren’t!”
Continue reading → Building Invisible Buildings at Ground Zero
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