Blackwaterization

While Pakistan continues to explode, the hoped for public disavowal and retaliation against the Pakistani Taliban has not come.

While I am all too familiar with the ubiquitousness of conspiracy theories in certain countries, and the fact that sometimes, they are really not all that far off base in places like Russia, Georgia and other countries were criminal mafias, government and business are inextricable linked, this idea that Blackwater (no trying to rebrand itself as Xe) is being paid to commit attacks such as the one against the Meena bazaar in Peshawar and the International Islamic University in Islamabad is particularly baffling and disappointing.

Even young, educated Pakistanis that are not particularly religious are voicing these claims and not particularly blaming the Pakistani Taliban.

The Pakistani Taliban, for their part, are once again being pro-active and jumping on these popular themes in their own, increasingly sophisticated media.

This is not going to end well. Sometimes, you really do reap what you sow.

Proxy Battles in the Arabian Peninsula

Here's an intriguing blog post from FP:

"Are the Saudis prepared to constrain oil prices to weaken Iran? It's an intriguing possibility that, if implemented, could have major implications for U.S.-led efforts to curb the Islamic Republic's nuclear program."

I hadn't realized the Saudis had set such a low range for oil prices, and squeezing Iranian revenues had not occurred to me. This, combined with a reported coming glut in natural gas capacity, while other reports warn of a lack of investment in oil capacity, could have immense consequences for the Iranian economy, not to mention the hold of the clerics on power.

The Muppets in Palestine

One ritual I miss from the US is getting a big fat latte from a favorite coffeehouse and spreading out the Sunday New York Times. Sometimes the NYTimes Magazine has almost nothing of interest for me, but they pretty consistently come up with some great stories.

One such example is Can the Muppets Make Friends in Ramallah?, published back in September.

There are so many issues going on in this one effort to extend a worldwide franchise to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. Finding and developing local talent. Trying to create a joint production with Israel (which of course requires two different languages). Trying oh so hard to keep politics out of the stories yet making sure content is local and familiar.

I had no idea that Sesame Studios existed, let alone that it keeps such tight oversight on the content of national productions all over the world.

And the Muppets even have the same carriage and tone.

Home

This is a lovely photo series of the homes people make in slums.

Slums are often not what we picture in our heads, with unwashed masses living in filth. In Turkey, Morocco and many other countries, slum-dwellers keep their small living spaces far cleaner than the average middle class American.

In this piece, I love the bright colors. In Turkish slums the inside walls and balconies are often painted bright pastel green, blue or purple, while the exterior of the buildings is only cement and some exposed brick that one could imagine disintegrating in seconds in an earthquake.

Foreign Policy loves lists

Marc Lynch, formerly Abu Aardvark, has an excellent post called 10 Questions on Combating Violent Extremism, (a replacement for the 'global war on terror?').

Wither American foreign policy on this issue? This post is highly relevant given the painfully long deliberations of our strategy in Afghanistan, something I myself am of two minds on.

On the one hand, meddling in the affairs of the Middle East and South Asia has always produced serious problems (not to mention our meddling in South America). Sometimes we need to just step the hell back, quit lecturing and undermining our entire effort by not practicing what we preach, and let people figure out their own way.

On the other, in Afghanistan we made a commitment, we haven't delivered on what we promised, and it seems morally wrong to throw our hands and quit now.

That being said, there simply are not enough troops, not to mention qualified and willing civilians, equipment, or contractors with scruples to carry out an effective counterinsurgency. So I guess, to my surprise, I'm leaning towards lessening our presence rather than ramping up. However I certainly don't think it's right to abandon those populations in calmer areas where locals have no interest in helping opposing militant forces to those very militants.

In any case, Lynch's piece is definitely worth reading.

enjoy.

fits and spurts

So, like everything I do, this blog is another thing that I do in fits and spurts. Most of the work I do is contract or freelance, so sometimes I have lots of time, sometimes I have no time to do anything but fall into bed when I come home.

However, I've been enjoying this blogging thing, and as it has actually been picked up a little despite my refusal thus far to stage a full-scale launch and link it to all my other social media, I do think it's something I will keep doing, even if I continue to have a couple weeks on followed by a couple weeks off. There is so much fascinating work going on in development, energy and security, there's never a shortage of issues and developments to write about.

So thanks to those that have followed me and linked to me.