Isn’t it cute how NPR’s Morning Edition, after saying something like, “Cokie Roberts, who joins us every Monday morning,” now announces that Ms Roberts joins the ME hosts “most” Monday mornings.
Years of “No, she doesn’t, Gang” have ended.
Phew.
Sphere: Related ContentNPR reports this morning that the Army has established a Counter Insurgency "COIN" class in Iraq. It studies the insurgency and formulates strategies to counter whatever the insurgents come up with.
Excellent. At last we begin to see a movement away from "bring 'em on" to a more subtle and, doubtless, more effective way to fight an "ideological struggle" than brute force.
We need more of that sort of thinking on many more "fronts" in this war.
We can start by encouraging our Islamic fellow U.S. citizens to begin to defuse those suras which contain verses no longer viable in the 21st centurty.
The "war" has begun to move into a more subtle and difficult phase.
The war hawks must cede their prominence in our thinking to a coalition of ideological, economic, and moral strengths all working with brute force to forge a strategy in which all humanity can thrive.
Counter Insurgency
Iraqi War
Ideological Struggle
During today's letters segment, a listener asked why "Morning Edition" spent air time on the recent opening of a "Hooters" restaurant in Israel. Part of the letter asked if an opening of a Hooters would be covered in, say, Costa Rica.
Well, listener, no. The idea of Hooters restaurants stems from the testosterone infused fixation on the mammaries. If one sees a travel picture of Costa Rica, there's a good chance there will be a well endowed woman in a bikini; on the other hand, a similar picture of Israel is less likely to feature a "babe."
Wailing walls, mosques, suicide murders in Israel are far more likely to leap to mind than "hooters." So, an opening of a Hooters, unfortunately, is news--or at least an item of cultural interest.
Now, if you want to ask about the cultural impact of "hooters," much less "Hooters," you might get an interesting conversation going.
NPR
Culture
