Argument
The Case for Shedding Our Skin
After George Floyd’s murder, dozens of colleges and universities introduced DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) programming, eager to implement anti-racist policies and decolonize their syllabuses. But can we really undo racism while upholding race, or do we need to do away with race altogether?
The Ghosts of Calamities Past
The lesson of Iraq is not to retreat into fatalism and make a virtue of apathy. It is to start from a place of empathy and weigh the human cost of both action and inaction. It is to never initiate a war where there is none, but, should someone else start a war, to ensure that it ends in the aggressor’s defeat.
The Disarming of Iraq: What Went Wrong and What Went Right
History ultimately proved the international inspections right, while the cited intelligence was wrong. Why the difference? Unlike the misuse of distorted intelligence based on uncorroborated single sources, the international inspections relied on multifaceted data collection and analysis. Prevented from the comparatively straightforward sequential tasks of verifying Iraqi WMD declarations and elimination anticipated by the 1991 cease-fire, they devised multiple approaches to find overlapping indicators of illicit weapons programs instead.
Saudi Arabia and Iran Poised to Share the Region’s Spoils – On China’s Terms
Nobody is under the illusion that the hatred and rivalry between Tehran and Riyadh will meaningfully abate, though it might result in some relief for the long-suffering populations living in their proxy battlefields. But whatever peace has been brokered had nothing to do with America and its waned regional influence. The Saudis and the Iranians are poised uncomfortably to share the Middle East again, but on China’s terms.
Rewriting India’s History Through School Textbooks
Since the BJP has come to power, there has been a major thrust to rewrite history. On the pretext of easing students’ study load, sweeping changes have been made to school textbooks, removing mention of the 2002 Gujarat Riots, Mughal courts, verses by the Urdu poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz and various important Dalit writers.
The Myth of Pervez Musharraf’s ‘Liberal Dictatorship’ in Pakistan
Since the demise of Pakistan’s former president and military dictator Pervez Musharraf, both admirers and critics have used a peculiar adjective to describe him: “liberal.” In reality, Musharraf’s actions and policies suggested otherwise, exposing a “liberal Pakistan” facade created by the political circumstances of the time.
Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress Has Violated Everything He Stood For
It is now 33 years since the anti-apartheid icon and African National Congress leader Nelson Mandela was freed after 27 years in prison. The ANC, which is currently South Africa's ruling party, has failed to deliver on his vision: Once hailed as a liberator, it has become shrouded in corruption scandals and incompetence.