America's response to 9/11 was not truly American

Professor Juan Cole claims that America’s 9-11 response subverted true American values & liberties; survey says,"Stay out America!"; a campaign to save the freedom of the internet in Jordan; and the life of a transsexual in Saudi Arabia.

Should whole countries have been invaded because of the work of the Al Queda 'cartel'?

Juan Cole [2]

America’s 9/11 response subverted our values, liberties (Cole @ Detroit News)

By pursuing wars against states in Iraq and Afghanistan instead of making the destruction of al-Qaida its highest priority, the Bush administration turned America toward perpetual war. Worse, it gave al-Qaida new life and recruiting grounds by militarily occupying Muslim countries and overseeing conflicts that led to the deaths of tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of innocents.

Abu Aardvark [3]

Snapshots of Middle East public opinion

I wanted to briefly note two intriguing public opinion surveys relevant to Middle East policy debate --- one from the United States, and one from Jordan. Both suggest reasons for doubting popular calls for an activist American policy towards Syria and the broader Middle East.... for better or for worse.

Lee Blog [4]

Save the internet in Jordan!

Dear people of the world, Jordanians who believe in internet without censorship supported the campaign against SOPA and ACTA. We bloggers and active people online in Jordan now have our own battle to fight in order to keep our internet out of governmental hands. We’re fighting censorship from a government that is willing to do anything to close our mouths from speaking our minds, from blogging and reporting the news. We’re in real danger and we need all the help and support we could get.

My World and More [5]

Guest Post: The Life of a Transsexual in Saudi Arabia

What's life like for a 25 year old Saudi man who wants to be a female? "My family put holy water and oil on me to “cure” me. They tried everything they could think of. It even went as far as using incense on me for months because they believed that I was under a spell, or possessed by a jin. They even went as far as saying it must be a female jin. "