Arif Maftuhin

Check the pictures I uploaded for another blog here, and then let's review our academic debates and theories on the making of terrorism. Most of those who try to explain the root of terrorism seek to find an answer on the interpretation of religious texts. They assume that a terrorist commits a terror because his faith urges him/her to do so. The scholars hold this theory because they can not rely on economic explanations. The fact that the suicide-bombers and those who hijacked airplanes to attack the World Trade Center came from wealthy families rejected an assumption that economic problem frustrated the terrorists so that they were available to sacrifice their supposed unworthy lives. This group of scholars also refer to another proof that there has never been a poor African committing a suicide bombing. If it has nothing to do with economic problem, then it may be their religion. Why? Because most of terrorists are relatively practicing believers (Muslims). This group of schola...

Check the pictures I uploaded for another blog here, and then let's review our academic debates and theories on the making of terrorism. Most of those who try to explain the root of terrorism seek to find an answer on the interpretation of religious texts. They assume that a terrorist commits a terror because his faith urges him/her to do so. The scholars hold this theory because they can not rely on economic explanations. The fact that the suicide-bombers and those who hijacked airplanes to attack the World Trade Center came from wealthy families rejected an assumption that economic problem frustrated the terrorists so that they were available to sacrifice their supposed unworthy lives. This group of scholars also refer to another proof that there has never been a poor African committing a suicide bombing. If it has nothing to do with economic problem, then it may be their religion. Why? Because most of terrorists are relatively practicing believers (Muslims). This group of schola...

The bus was silent before this man and his three children got on the bus. As usual, nobody talk. Then, his children started to talk loudly, standing on the seat and beating the bus' window. Noisy and disturbing. The father looks careless, letting his children do whever they did. Even, when one of the kids peed there. Some people begun to see each other, communicating with their eyes and gestures as if they said "Some one has to ask the father take care of his children." They felt inconvenient with the situation. Type your summary here One of the women in the bus, looks very annoyed, then moved closer to the father and said, "Would you please take care of your kids, sir?" No response. And she repeated again, "Sir, would you please take care of your children?" The man said, without any expression, "No." "Why?" the annoyed women ask. "My mind is not here. I don't care about what they are doing because I am thinking about their...

"Shiite revival", that is what Vali Nashr said about what happen in the Middle East and I think he is right in many ways. But who made it possible? Shi'is have relatively "disappeared" from the Middle East map for a long time. Although there were a number of great Shiite empires in the past, such as Fatimiyyah and Shasanid, in general we only know significant political appearance of Shi'i in the modern time in the form of Iran, the Islamic republic. One might be surprised to find that what once known as Sunni state of Iraq, supported by much Sunni states when it had confrontation with Iran in 1980s, is in fact another state with Shiite majority in the Middle East. We just know it only after US invasion of Iraq toppling the Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein from his presidency. Now, there are two Shiite states in the Middle East and a significant political Shiite group, whose military power more powerful than the one of the state, in Lebanon. These facts have cha...

I carefully read news about the latest development in the Middle East. The neocon magazine, The Weekly Standard, has for sure to be read to understand America's mind. Not surprising at all to find such articles in the latest edition of this magazine: Its Our [Americans] War; Bomb over Beirut, Hezbollah starts a war; or the most "justifiable" one, Israel's Enemy is America's. Reading such article from the weekly Standard, I am not surprised at all because the magazine claims itself as a proud member of the lobby. Some of them are radical Jews who view Arabs as ugly as Osama bin Laden view Americans. What disappointed me is to find that even New York Time justifies Israeli assault on Gaza and Lebanon. Read their editorial on July 13, "Kidnapping Israeli soldiers to use as bargaining chips for the release of Arab prisoners is horrible behavior for groups that claim international recognition and political legitimacy, as Hamas and Hezbollah do. The same applies to...