The Duck of Minerva

Okay Ducks, here are your links from South Asia and Beyond! Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim, the Vice President of Afghanistan, has died of natural causes at age 57.  Marshal Fahim fought along side the Lion of Panjshir, Ahmad Shah Massoud, during the Soviet Occupation.  After Massoud's assassination, Fahim led the Northern Alliance against the Taliban during the American invasion in 2001.  He became the Defense Minister in the transitional Afghan government under Karzai.  Human rights advocates frequently labeled him as a "notorious warlord," but the Government of India at least viewed him as...

Good morning. Here are your links ... Bilal Sarwary at the BBC gives us a glimpse of Helmand province that is rarely seen.  He writes, "This type of checkpost is the real front line. There are poppy fields on one side, police headquarters on the other and constant fights with the Taliban."  So much for Operation Khanjar having made any impact at all... Arshia Sattar at the WSJ defends Wendy Doniger against Penguin's capitulation to censorship demands in India. Ajai Shukla at Broadsword Blog tells us that China is articulating its own vision of the Indo-Pacific, "the Maritime Silk-Route."...

Howdy.  Here are your Monday links... A useful graphic on which countries are taking Syrian refugees. The best tribute to Pete Seeger I saw came from Outlook India, which has audio of Seeger singing Gandhi's "Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram" and Indians singing "Hum Honge Kamyaab" ("We Shall Overcome"). The NY Times' India Ink explains "Why  the US Embassy Releases Pollution Data in Beijing but not in New Delhi." Al Jazeera has a retrospective on the Iranian Revolution, which will turn 35 on 11 February.  Arguably, it was the most important revolution since 1789. Chad Raymond at Active Learning in...

Hi Ducks.  Here are your Monday links: The Disorder of Things has a great post on "Cavity Searches in Intern(ation)al Relations" and ... umm... other forms of intercourse between states. Hamza Saif at Chapati Mystery reviews "Globalism and Vernacular in Contemporary Pakistani Rap."  (Apparently the real Slim Shady is Pakistani. Who knew?) Juan Cole at Informed Comment explains "Why Tunisia's Transition to Democracy is Succeeding while Egypt's is Failing." Max de Haldevang at the LA Review of Books discusses Kyrgyzstan and the Uzbeks.  De Haldevang writes, "Since 2010, Kyrgyzstan has...

Good mornin' Ducks! Here are your links: Oliver Steunkel discusses "The Death of IMF Reform?" at the Post-Western World Blog.  The US Congress' rejection an IMF funding request by the Obama administration "... leaves the 188-nation group without additional resources and blocks an increase in voting power for China, India, Brazil and other emerging markets." Stephen Harner explains "Why China's ADIZ is Necessary" at the China-US Focus blog.  He argues, "The calculation and timing of China’s move may also evidence a reluctant realization that military-to-military dialogue with the United...

Hi, Ducks! Happy New Year!  I'm back after a semester wandering across northern India.  Did you miss me?  Well, here are your links anyway... Professor Ole Wæver argues for "open science to fight big threats." Senator Bernie Sanders has asked the NSA a simple question that may finally make a difference.  (Okay, probably not.) This year will mark the 100th anniversary of World War I.  The New Yorker's archive has an excellent review of recent historical interpretations of the causes and consequences of that great cataclysm.  It is worth a read. The Broadsword blog notes that global defense...