Gay marriage, the “polygamy” of 20th century America

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

Speaking of polygamy (see my recent post), there was a very interesting article by Cathleen Kaveny in Commonweal last year tracing the parallels between our controversies today over the place of gay marriage in society and the debate over polygamy in 19th century America (i.e., before the Mormon Church abandoned the practice). I note for the record that, contrary to possible appearances, polygamy is not a preoccupation of mine. I found this article when I happened to investigate a peculiar... Read more

The benefits of being born in a beachside country

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

There’s an intriguing article in openDemocracy.net ("Aiming for the sea" by George South) about the negative consequences for economic development of being landlocked. We all know that the presence of natural resources often has a decisive impact on a country’s fortunes–in some cases for the worse, though, as the tragic legacy of African diamonds and Arab oil shows; the main blessings for normal people of such easy-to-horde natural resources are often corruption and authoritarianism–but we don’t often consider the importance... Read more

Homosexuality in Afghanistan

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

There’s a really engrossing article in the LA Times, "Kandahar’s Lightly Veiled Homosexual Habits", from 2002 on the coexistence of widespread homosexual practices with Afghanistan’s infamously rigid "traditional" values.[HT: Saracen.nu] The most interesting thing is how they do not define it as homosexual, even though it sounds like some of these guys are very actively engaged in what in the US would be considered a gay lifestyle. (Only the recipient, as it were, is gay.) This macho doublestandard isn’t unique... Read more

Gay “special treatment” and Muslim “special treatment”

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

Came across an interesting statement in an excerpt of an interview from a Danish newspaper on the threat to all that is holy posed by Europe’s increasing multiculturalism that should give homophobic Muslims pause. [Reluctant HT: Danske øjne på svenske forhold] The excerpt from the Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende, inexplicably translated into Swedish, is garden-variety alarmism over immigration and true multiculturalism (as opposed to the fake multiculturalism held up as a model by nationalists where immigrants know their "place" and... Read more

When in doubt give your wife coffee

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

Gleaned while slowly, tenderly, nursing a big cup of joe in a bookstore: "[Today’s coffee craze, with a Starbucks on every corner is] nothing compared to the popularity it enjoyed in the Middle East during the 1500s. In Turkey, a woman could divorce her a man who did not provide enough coffee."(The Greatest Stories Never Told, page 31.) In our case the scenario somehow doesn’t seem all that farfetched, as Shabana’s as much of a caffeine fiend as me. Never... Read more

Random Platitudes dissects the cartoon row

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

A Danish academic has provided a series of really informative and insightful posts on the historical backdrop to the cartoon controversy (e.g., Random Platitudes – The "Cartoon Row" dissected — part 1) . He gets into detail about recent Danish history and shows the real (and underreported) politico-cultural context to this truly bizarre turn of events. And, unlike most of the Danish blogs providing intelligent analysis on the matter, he writes in English. Grab a cup of coffee and curl... Read more

Go Lady Caliphs!

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

I have a heretical admission to make, given that March Madness is underway. Now that I no longer live in Boston and now that professional sports teams are gangs of spoiled prima donnas lacking any local roots and/or loyalty to their "hometowns", it’s pretty hard for me to identify enough with a team to get terribly worked about about its success or failure (of course, my indifference lifted briefly during the Red Sox’ historic triumph over the Curse of the... Read more

Polygamy in American life

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

I came across some interesting articles on polygamy on the occasion of the controversial HBO series "Big Life" (which concerns a polygamous marriage in Utah). One journalist who normally covers economics has written a limited defense of polygamy ("I do, I do, I do, I do: The economic case for polygamy") in Slate. Among other things, he argues that, as counterintuitive as it may be, polygamy can increase some women’s bargaining strength with prospective spouses due to polygamy’s reduction of... Read more

Aqoul: How to be a Muslim reformer

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

‘Aqoul has succinctly summed up everything that’s ridiculous about the mainstream media’s approach to Muslims and Islamic reform (not to mention its love affair with non-entities and self-hating reactionaries) in "How to be a Muslim reformer". It’s dead-on. Read more

Dutch thought police target immigrants

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

The Dutch are challenging the Danes’ claim to having Europe’s most xenophobic and prejudiced immigration policies. A new Dutch policy forces would-be immigrants to take an offensive and politically correct quiz (see Holland launches the immigrant quiz – Times Online ) that is clearly designed to provoke Muslims into disqualifying themselves by expressing illiberal attitudes that aren’t necessarily a sign of religious extremism and which are hardly unique to them. It doesn’t sound like the focus of this quiz is... Read more