Logan Cochrane

Small State, Big Politics

Professor of Government at Georgetown University in Qatar, Mehran Kamrava, penned one of the most read / taught books on Qatar in 2013 (with a 2015 adding an updated Preface): Qatar: Small State, Big Politics. Having read a few books on Qatar, this is one of the best, although increasingly dated (the content essentially up […]

Tags: #Hedging #Politics #Qatar #Small State #Smart Power

Culture and Imperialism

 Edward Said’s Orientalism (1978) is a foundational text in critical studies, as of this writing was cited nearly 70,000 times. In 1993 Said wrote Culture and Imperialism, which broadens the view, broadens the literature, and engages more literature from the liberation activists and writers, but is cited less (at of this writing nearly 30,000; which […]

Tags: #Colonization #Culture #Edward Said #Imperialism #Revolution

The Global Majlis

Career diplomat and current State Minister Hamad bin Abdulaziz Al-Kawari wrote “The Global Majlis” (arabic 2015, translation 2016) as an “intellectual autobiography”. The book draws on reflections from his work in Syria, Lebanon, France and the US, as well as in Qatar (published by HBKU press). Culture emerges as a key thread throughout the book, as […]

Tags: #Culture #Education #Global Majlis #Hamad bin Abdulaziz Al-Kawari #Qatar

Democracy Project

Starting in 2001 Teodros Kiros began writing articles in Ethiopian newspapers, as a way to engage with the public about democracy and democratization. The articles continued until 2004, and are gathered in his book “Philosophical Essays” (2011). The series of articles are short interventions, and are largely an introduction to Euro-Western thinkers, or a sort […]

Tags: #Democracy #Democracy Project #Ethiopia #Philosophical Essays #Teodros Kiros

Good Muslim, Bad Muslim

In this book Mahmood Mamdani look at the US role in embracing, promoting, funding and engaging in terrorism around the world. Written in 2004 Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War, and the Roots of Terror seems to reflect conversations that the author was having in the years after 9/11. In the first chapter […]

Tags: #Bad Muslim #Good Muslim #Mamdani #Propaganda #Terrorism

Decolonising the University

Following demands – Rhodes Must Fall, Why is My Curriculum White?, #LiberateMyDegree – three editors brought together a diverse group of authors to think about what decolonising the university means (historically and pedagogically) and its experience (in universities and curricula) and reflections of those leading such efforts. Decolonising the University is edited by G. K. […]

Tags: #decolonization #decolonize #Decolonizing the university #Higher education #university

The Triumph of Injustice

Is there a tax collection problem? Are companies not paying their fair share? If so, how much? And, who cares? Is it just because they are smart, as Trump proclaimed when asked about his lack of paying taxes? The Triumph of Injustice: How the Rich Dodge Taxes and How to Make Them Pay (2019) by […]

Tags: #offshore #tax avoidance #tax justice #taxation #Triumph of Injustice

Ending Aid Dependence

Looking for a different perspective on aid? A short publication (144 pages) called Ending Aid Dependence (2008) by Yash Tandon, with a forward by the former President of Tanzania Benjamin Mkapa, is well worth your read. The book is published by Fahamu, which also published Shivji’s book on NGOs. A few notes: “The political rationale […]

Tags: #Aid dependence #conditionality #Dignity #self-reliance #solidarity

The Racial Contract

Mills’ The Racial Contract (1997) is essential reading – short and generally accessible (the philosophy might be a challenge for those outside of it), but well worth struggling through. Charles W. Mills is currently at City University of New York and has written a number of books (reviews of others to come). The book seems […]

Tags: #Race #Racial Contract #Racism #White supremacy #Whiteness

Waqf in the Islamic World

In an earlier post I commented on the remarkable amount of land and resources managed by charitable foundations / endowments in the Middle East and North Africa, but was also challenged to find the primary source for that data (despite digging from reference to reference, only to hit dead ends). To look into the waqf […]