AARDVARK

delivery of fail Originally uploaded by Doc Rogers blog 02...

The record shop I used to use to purchase records and CDs for the disco is to close this weekend. It feels like the end of an era. Back in the days before downloading I would regularly spend over £30...

The latest bombings in Anbar and Mosul seem to have focused some attenion on what's going on with the Sunni Awakenings. Awakenings figures have been grumbling for so long over the delays in their integration into the Iraqi security forces...

Now that my summer session course is coming to an end, I feel like I can finally take a moment to reflect on a few things. I'm coming up on six years of blogging now, which is pretty astonishing. Abu...

I just got off a conference call launching a new report from the Commonwealth Institute: "Quickly, Carefully, and Generously: The Necessary Steps for a Responsible Withdrawal from Iraq." (Download taskforceresponsiblewithdrawal.pdf ). The report was drafted by the Task Force's Organizing...

Last week I wrote about an interesting piece by Mohanna Hubayl on the state of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Gulf. I was curious about the accuracy of his descriptions, and asked some colleagues for their take. I got some...

The R2D2 DVD Projector has to be the ultimate, geekgasm inducing, nerd-wish fulfilment gadget ever made. The manufacturer's website has an excellent promotional video. What more could you ask for? A remote control R2D2; a projector that will project onto...

Via Ethan Zuckerman and Henry Farrell, check out this fascinating exercise in mapping the American political blogosphere (and, via Ethan, John Kelly and Bruce Etling's mapping of the Iranian blogosphere; and some discussion here of the methodology's value); also, check...

A well-placed and savvy political analyst pal of mine just back from Baghdad got carried away in his response to last week's post on "Iraq's Sunnis after the Awakening." As sometimes happens, this evolved into a guest post, which I...

Two major investigations into al-Hurra dropped yesterday, the first by CBS News/Pro Publica (airing on 60 Minutes) and the other by Craig Whitlock of the Washington Post (with part 2 slated for tomorrow). Both delved nicely into the deep, structural...

I've been so busy working on several projects related to Iraqi refugees that I almost completely forgot to mention here that today is World Refugee Day. I was reminded by a mailing from the office of Senator Bob Casey, who...

Sharon: i want to run away today, will you come with me me:OK. Where to? Sharon:anywhere where do you fancy me:Somewhere warm but no pollen Sunny but not sandy Sharon:sounds good me:and an internet connection Sharon:i'll go with that...

Funny enough, if you were to pass a decree that all stupid people have to wear silly hats, there would be a big uproar all over the country. However, if you hand out free flags, the stupid people will come running, collect them and mount them on their cars. The streets have become much safer lately, as every car that you'd better avoid is clearly marked with one of those Stupidity Flags. At least until the european football championship is over, but there's hope that the really stupid people will just keep the flags on their cars. Voluntarily. And if they come out of the cars, some of them even wear silly hats. Voluntarily. Who would have guessed.

I've been playing with a few social networking tools and sites for the last few weeks. At last count, I had a presence on 14 websites, including this. Weblog Tumblr Twitter TwitPic Plurk Brightkite Disqus Flickr YouTube ClaimID FaceBook Friendfeed...