Sunday, August 08, 2004

Another Hiatus.  . . . here’s a discussion topic that Albert Chan at USC suggested. What books/articles should every grad student have read before finishing grad school? My suggested answer is None. There’s nothing that is both compulsory for students in history of ethics and in contemporary formal semantics, for instance. Of course there are things that are compulsory within sub-disciplines, but philosophy is now too diverse for there to be any required core readings. I suspect few commentators will agree though… [Thoughts Arguments and Rants] 5:33:20 PM    comment []

SUNDAY COMICS [Begging To Differ] 1:08:35 PM    comment []

Chatting it up in the cyber White House. On CNN [NewsIsFree: Popular Items] 1:06:37 PM    comment []

THE TERROR WEB: Were the Madrid bombings part of a new, far-reaching jihad being plotted on the Internet? by Lawrence Wright, in The New Yorker. Muslim immigration is transforming all of Europe. Nearly twenty million people in the European Union identify themselves as Muslim. This population is disproportionately young, male, and unemployed. The societies these men have left are typically poor, religious, conservative, and dictatorial; the ones they enter are rich, secular, liberal, and free. For many, the exchange is invigorating, but for others Europe becomes a prison of alienation. A Muslim’s experience of immigration can be explained in part by how he views his adopted homeland. Islamic thought broadly divides civilization into dar al-Islam, the land of the believers, and dar al-Kufr, the land of impiety. France, for instance, is a secular country, largely Catholic, but it is now home to five million Muslims. Should it therefore be considered part of the Islamic world? This question is central to the debate about whether Muslims in Europe can integrate into their new communities or must stand apart from them. If France can be considered part of dar al-Islam, then Muslims can form alliances and participate in politics, they should have the right to institute Islamic law, and they can send their children to French schools. If it is a part of dar al-Kufr, then strict Muslims must not only keep their distance; they must fight against their adopted country. The Internet provides confused young Muslims in Europe with a virtual community. Those who cannot adapt to their new homes discover on the Internet a responsive and compassionate forum. “The Internet stands in for the idea of the ummah, the mythologized Muslim community,” Marc Sageman, the psychiatrist and former C.I.A. officer, said. “The Internet makes this ideal community concrete, because one can interact with it.” He compares this virtual ummah to romantic conceptions of nationhood, which inspire people not only to love their country but to die for it. (thanks, Bruce!) 3:39:51 AM    comment []