There is a particular kind of fear that has no name in ordinary vocabulary—the fear not of punishment itself but of being found out. It is distinct from guilt, which is interior and can be managed, rationalized, or suppressed over time. This fear is about the moment when the interior becomes exterior, when what a … Continue reading The Record They Would Burn the World to Hide
How 1979 Geopolitics Pushed Muslim Countries Toward Tyranny
There is a temptation, when examining contemporary predominantly Muslim countries, more rigid expressions—the political repression, the enforced uniformity, the sanctioned violence—to trace these features back through history until they disappear into some unchanging essence of the religion itself. This is a mistake, and not merely an academic one. It misreads the historical record, misattributes responsibility, … Continue reading How 1979 Geopolitics Pushed Muslim Countries Toward Tyranny
The Arsonist in Uniform: How the U.S. Fuels and Fights the Drug War
Governments often justify their existence by claiming to protect citizens from threats. But what happens when the very institutions tasked with solving a problem are also invested in keeping it alive? This paradox — of the arsonist who then dons a firefighter’s helmet — is nowhere clearer than in the U.S. government’s relationship with the … Continue reading The Arsonist in Uniform: How the U.S. Fuels and Fights the Drug War
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