Category: opinion

Lopsided Struggle for Power in Morocco

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The conflict over Morocco’s cabinet formation is a struggle for power between the PJD and the palace. A Four-party alliance led by billionaire Aziz Akhannouch voted on January 13 for Habib El Malki, a leader of the Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP), to become speaker of Morocco’s House of Representatives. The move was supported by the Party of Authenticity and Modernity (PAM), the Justice and Development Party’s (PJD) main rival, while PJD leader Abdelilah Benkirane strongly opposed Malki’s election, stressing it was a red line that “would force the…

How your Mind Works

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“Mind is the Master power that molds and makes, And Man is Mind, and evermore he takes The tool of Thought, and, shaping what he wills, Brings forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills:— He thinks in secret, and it comes to pass: Environment is but his looking-glass.” -James Allen   The brain is a very real thing. It is a physical object and an organ but the mind isn’t. It is a vessel in which the energy that creates thoughts are contained. With the brain you coordinate your moves,…

A New Policy for North Africa in the Trump Era?

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There has been much speculation across the Middle East and North Africa regarding what U.S. foreign policy in the region will look like under the Trump administration. We can infer some insights from Trump’s comments during the 2016 campaign, from his character, and from the personalities of his recent cabinet appointments. For the Maghreb region of North Africa, the Trump administration will likely continue the same level of engagement as the previous administration, although it will emphasize different policy priorities. Several of the new president’s cabinet appointments, such as retired…

Libya Political Dialogue meets in Tunisia without eastern members

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The UN-brokered Libya Dialogue met in the town of Mammamet in Tunisia to assess the progress of the Presidency Council of the Government of National Accord (GNA) and discuss changing parts of the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA). However, the delegation from the eastern-based rival government the House of Representatives (HoR) was absent from the meeting. According to HoR spokesperson Abdullah Bulaihak, the parliamentary deputy president Emhemed Shouaib and others were ordered not to attend by Ageela Saleh head of the HoR. Apparently Shouaib and the other members of the HoR…

How Obama Changed Perceptions of Black Americans Around the World

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“If so-and-so wins, I’m leaving the country,” is often what you hear after an election. A hollowed refrain, rarely followed up on, and Canada is probably the better for it. But five months after January 20, 2009 — a day as frigid as an angry mother’s stare, when I stood on the Washington Mall amid the warmth of a million other people, questioning Ms. Aretha Franklin’s hat choice and watching our first black president put his hand on the Lincoln Bible, holding my breath when the Chief Justice made a…

Trump and Radical Islam

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In the midst of the preparation to enter the White House as a President of the United States of America, the Islamists in general and in Tunis in particular as well as their allies were surprised of the position of Donald Trump of Political Islam after he had called these days to set a nominal list of the Muslim brotherhood who are on the American soil and classified as terrorists. In fact, this position is not new because Trump has expressed this on many occasions the most important of which…

What is Denglisch and why is it so catchy?

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English has been quietly conquering the German language since the end of the Second World War, with sometimes baffling consequences No other language – apart from Latin maybe – has had such a profound effect on Germany’s people, business and culture, as English. It is omnipresent: in schools, homes, workplaces, government institutions and, for a couple of years, even in primary schools. Yes, that’s right, even four-year-old Germans speak English. If you address people in English anywhere in Germany they will, without a moment’s hesitation, reply in English. My mother…

Flashback: Tunisia’s revolution at 5

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Tunisia continues to defy categorisation. This small North African country with perhaps Africa’s best-educated population (around 10m), has been the continent’s economic star for decades. It was also the byword for stability in a notoriously unstable continent. Zine El Abedine Ben Ali ruled with an iron fist but he delivered growth, education and a sophisticated, modern country that functioned. Many countries, not only in Africa but in the rest of the developing world, have authoritarian, dictatorial rule without anywhere near the level of development of Tunisia. Quite a few, pointing…

Master any skill with these 6 steps

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Robert Greene explained in his book, Mastery, how one can achieve mastery in any skill while clearly indicating that mastery is earned not granted. In the past , there were no books , no internet , no documents that craftsman could learn from . Apprentices had to learn by observing and listening to masters . That is the power of mirror neurons  Today , However , we are very lucky since old teachers and masters have documented most of their knowledge . Although we still have to practice , it…

Germany welcomed far fewer immigrants in 2016

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The immigration crush that created a crisis for the government of German Chancellor Angela Merkeleased markedly in 2016, authorities said Wednesday. Germany received 280,000 asylum-seekers in 2016, less than a third of the 890,000 total in 2015 at the height of the crisis, the Interior Ministry said. War-torn Syria remained the most common country of origin, with Afghanistan and Iraq also responsible for large numbers. “This shows that the measures taken by the government and the European Unionare effective,” Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said. “By means of resolute measures, we have…