8 years ago
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Original Sin: the sexual motivation of religious extremists
“In short, the only way to ensure that the evolutionary interests of men and women become identical, which is the only way that natural selection will favor equality, is a monogamous mating system.” By Janet L Factor.
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One Map That Explains the Dangerous Saudi-Iranian Conflict
Due to a peculiar correlation of religious history and anaerobic decomposition of plankton, almost all the Persian Gulf’s fossil fuels are located underneath Shiites. -
The Deceptive Debate Over What Causes Terrorism Against the West
Westerners want to completely absolve themselves and their own violent societies of having any role in the terrorist violence they love to denounce. By Glenn Greenwald. -
After Executing Regime Critic, Saudi Arabia Fires Up American PR Machine
Saudi Arabia’s well-funded PR apparatus moved quickly after execution of Shiite political dissident to shape how the news is covered in the U.S. -
Ryan eyes Islamic State war measure
The new speaker is gauging support for an authorization for use of military force, but his own party and Democrats are wary. -
Some Taliban factions consider joining peace process, others opposed
Some factions within the Afghan Taliban are considering taking part in a peace process that officials from Afghanistan and Pakistan aim to revive next week, several senior members said, in a softening of the militants' recent stance against talks. -
The Stories We Tell About Killing
“Narrative: The central mechanism, expressed in story form, through which ideologies are expressed and absorbed.” – Glossary, U.S. Army Field Manual 3-24. By Jairus Grove. -
Why Are Republicans Swooning for Saudi Arabia?
They claim Arab dictators have brought stability. Really? -
Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr and the Forgotten Shiites of Saudi Arabia
The cleric executed this weekend hailed from a little-known, impoverished community in the most famous Sunni kingdom in the world. -
Some of Saudi Arabia’s executions understandable, says ex-UK ambassador
Sir John Jenkins says he can appreciate why kingdom executed al-Qaida supporters, after Riyadh’s announcement it killed 47 people for terrorism. -
Does the unrest in Saudi Arabia mean their government is tottering?
The Saudi Princes rule one of the nations key to the current geopolitical order. Recent news stories suggest it is tottering, such as the execution of a reformist Shiite cleric. A close look at authoritative sources gives the answer, one that also illuminates other questions about current events. -
Oil drives our Israel policy: New government documents reveal a very different history of America and the Middle East
The protection of American oil interests has been at the heart of U.S. policies for decades. By Irene L. Gendzier. -
The Die Is Cast: The Kurds Cross the Euphrates
Although the latest Kurdish offensive runs the risk of spurring direct Turkish intervention, it could also help isolate Islamic State forces in the area from their capital, with significant implications for the rest of the combatants in Syria. By Fabrice Balanche. -
Stuck in the Middle East
Offshore balancing is the right strategy, if Obama has the courage for it. By Christopher Layne. -
“This Country’s Going to War” from Duck Soup (1933)
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I have to say, I'm disappointed by the author's laser-like focus of monogamy as the only hope of civilization. It seemingly never occurs to her that women might also want more than one partner, and a society that promotes monogamy without consideration for valid, egalitarian alternatives will have its own, different share of problems. Humans are extremely variable which makes black-or-white solutions troublesome.
She has reason for that focus. What she’s dealing with here is more basic, more common, and more anthropologically honest than some John Updike idealization of polyamory. The context here is more Wahhabism than key parties.
By the by, I’m curious so I thought I’d ask you — did you notice the other content modules in the snap? I’m getting the strong impression that main links just whiz people right past more involved snaps nowadays.
Indeed, I doubt the societies where these atrocities are happening are ready for the concept of a woman making her own choices in the first place. Nevertheless, she seems to write this as though monogamy is the only hope for civilization ever and that any deviation will necessarily result in barbarism. I'm sympathetic to her concerns, but there's still that nitpick.
"I doubt the societies where these atrocities are happening are ready for the concept of a woman making her own choices in the first place." LOL