Shamima Begum and the Quality of Mercy
- February 17, 2019
- by
- Matt
What is mercy? The Oxford Dictionary defines it as ‘ compassion or forgiveness shown towards someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.’ This definition highlights the essential component of mercy, which is forbearance and leniency from a position of power and authority.
This concept is well-established in various religious traditions. The Quran declares: ‘ No one despairs of God’s soothing mercy except those who have no faith.’ (Quran, 12: 87). ‘Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted,...
Peter Kosminsky’s Islamic State
- August 22, 2017
- by
- Matt
The violence that we call terrorism has always been surrounded by a curious paradox. On the one hand virtually every terrorist emergency in history has declared terrorism to be a unique threat to society, yet the societies under threat are generally not encouraged and are even actively discouraged from thinking about what terrorism is,...
The Terror Election
- June 04, 2017
- by
- Matt
From a strategic point of view terrorism has a dismal predictability. Whatever its context or motivation its central objectives are usually the same: a) to provoke a militarily more powerful opponent into an overreaction that will strain its opponent’s resources and draw it into a debilitating confrontation from which the terrorist hopes to gain...
Murder in Westminster
- March 23, 2017
- by
- Matt
So far nothing is known about the murderer who thought it would be a good idea to mow down a group of pedestrians and cyclists on Westminster Bridge and assault parliament with a kitchen knife yesterday. The murderer is dead, having completed his homicidal spree with an act of suicide-by-cop that was presumably...
Burkini Madness
- August 25, 2016
- by
- Matt
Anyone who has travelled in France this summer will have found it difficult to ignore the the ongoing state of emergency with which the French state has responded to Daesh’s savage provocations. In Banyuls-sur-Mer, we found the main road by the beach guarded by armed soldiers, presumably mindful of a repeat...
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