U.S. shares responsibility for plight of Arab Christians

The Santa Cruz Sentinel December 28, 2013
It was the second week in January of 1991. I was in the sanctuary of a large Catholic Church in Baghdad. Every votive candle in the place was lit, no doubt in support of prayers for loved ones in anticipation of the massive U.S. bombing campaign, which was to be known as Operation Desert Storm, which was soon to commence. A member of our group asked the priest whose side the church would be on in the forthcoming conflict. He replied that “the church can only be on one side — that of the victims.” Little did he realize that, less than 20 years later, Iraq’s Christians would become among the greatest victims.

Mandela’s utilitarianism and the struggle for liberation

Open Democracy December 13, 2013
Republished by Huffington Post, International Center for Nonviolent Conflict, Scoop Independent News New Zealand, and Dawson College Inspire Solutions Project
   While many western governments argued that the supposedly benevolent influence of western capital would lead to liberalization and an eventual end to South Africa’s apartheid system, and many on the left argued that liberation would come only through armed revolution, in fact it was largely unarmed resistance by the black majority and its supporters, both within South Africa and abroad, which proved decisive.