Category Archives: Politics

Die Pogromnacht und das Leid der Palästinenser

Posted on 2010-11-11 by Andreas Moser

Beim Gedenken an die Opfer der anti-jüdischen Pogromnacht vom 9. November 1938 konnte sich ein Redner, Alfred Grosser, die Forderung nach der Anerkennung des Leids der Palästinenser nicht verkneifen: Man könne von keinem Palästinenser verlangen, “daß er die Schrecken der Attentate versteht, … Continue reading →

Posted in Germany, History, Holocaust, Israel, Politics | Tagged Nahostkonflikt, Nazis | 73 Comments

Update: UNESCO World Philosophy Day in Iran cancelled

Posted on 2010-11-09 by Andreas Moser

I had already commented about UNESCO’s decision to hold this year’s World Philosophy Congress in Iran and about how Iran thanked UNESCO for this. Apparently, the worldwide protest against UNESCO that ensued has had quite some effect: UNESCO has now … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy, Politics | Tagged dictatorship, Human Rights, protest, protests, Tehran, torture, Unesco, World Philosophy Congress, World Philosophy Day | 2 Comments

Borat or Bilo? No, it’s Nursultan in Kazakhstan.

Posted on 2010-11-07 by Andreas Moser

Four years after the release of Borat (or Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan as the full title is), Kazakhstan still doesn’t seem to have gotten over it. Borat, by and with Sacha Baron … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged Almaty, autocracy, Bilo, Borat, corruption, democracy, elections, Erkin Rakishev, films, gas, Hollywood, Human Rights, Kazakh, Kazakhstan, movies, Nazarbayev, Nurkadilov, Nursultan Nazarbayev, oil, OSCE, OSZE, parliament, parody, petroleum, Sasha Baron Cohen, spoof | 3 Comments

Election Boycott – What is it good for?

Posted on 2010-11-06 by Andreas Moser

If this headline reminds you of the 1970 song “War” by Edwin Starr, then you already have your answer: “Absolutely nothing!” In pseudo-democratic to openly oppressive countries around the world, opposition parties and candidates regularly face a tough choice: Should … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Iran, Politics | Tagged Afghanistan, boycott, Burma, democracy, election boycott, elections, opposition, polls, voting | 1 Comment

Al-Qaeda 2.0: DIY Terror

Posted on 2010-10-30 by Andreas Moser

Remember Al-Qaeda? They used to scare us a bit by hijacking planes and blowing themselves up. With their nasty activities, they have caused us quite some trouble. Recently however, they seem to have experienced some problems of their own. Recruits … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Terrorism, Travel | Tagged al-qaida, Osama bin Laden, Richard Reid, Terrorism, Yemen | 8 Comments

Education Reform, Iranian Style

Posted on 2010-10-28 by Andreas Moser

I have already written about my total lack of understanding for UNESCO’s decision to award the hosting of the 2010 World Philosophy Congress to Iran. But as so often, the Islamic Republic of Iran does not avoid providing plenty of … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Philosophy, Politics | Tagged brain drain, Human Rights, social sciences, Unesco, universities, World Philosophy Congress, World Philosophy Day | 10 Comments

Where did I put that Nuclear PIN?

Posted on 2010-10-23 by Andreas Moser

Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Shelton, has revealed in his book Without Hesitation that during the Clinton presidency, the codes that were necessary to launch America’s nuclear arsenal had gone missing for several months. This is … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Military, Politics, USA | Tagged amimut, Bill Clinton, peace, Shelton, war | Leave a comment

A new Chess War?

Posted on 2010-10-23 by Andreas Moser

Alik Gershon has set a new world record for the most chess games played simultaneously by one player: He played against 523 people, moving from one board to the next in a Tel Aviv square. He only lost 11 of … Continue reading →

Posted in Cold War, Iran, Israel, Politics, Sports | Tagged Alik Gershon, Bobby Fisher, Boris Spassky, chess, Cold War, Gershon, Mahjoob, Morteza Mahjoob, Shimon Peres, world record | 2 Comments

How about some Waffen-SS on the weekend, son?

Posted on 2010-10-19 by Andreas Moser

Richard Iott is the Republican candidate for the 9th Congressional District in Ohio. He is also the father of a son and came up with an interesting idea for what to do with his son on weekends. As a “father-son … Continue reading →

Posted in Germany, History, Holocaust, Military, Politics, USA, World War II | Tagged German history, Nazis, re-enactment, Republicans, Waffen-SS, Wehrmacht | 10 Comments

Nobel Peace Prize 2010 for Liu Xiaobo

Posted on 2010-10-15 by Andreas Moser

The 2010 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to the Chinese writer Liu Xiaobo who is serving a prison term of 11 years for having signed Charter 08, a document that calls for political reforms and civil liberties. More than … Continue reading →

Posted in China, Human Rights, Politics | Tagged civil liberties, Human Rights, Liu Xiaobo, Nobel Peace prize, sanctions, trade | 9 Comments