Qifa Nabki
Qifa Nabki
The Perfect March 8 Electoral Strategy? Just Relax…
If I were a political consultant to the March 8 forces, here’s what I would suggest by way of electoral strategy advice: Just relax. March 14 is doing all of its work for you. Each passing week brings another miscalculation by the ruling coalition, another blunder, another poorly-coordinated move. The wire-tapping scandal fizzled when Defense … Continue reading
Is Zaatar the New Ras el-Hanout?
A friend tells me that Chef Eric Ripert from “Le Bernadin” restaurant in NYC was on Top Chef this week, and the six remaining contestants were asked to duplicate one of the items on his menu, and one of the dishes was “zaatar-crusted monkfish”. My fellow citizens, I think that we have finally arrived. A … Continue reading
Can Syria be the Linchpin in Obama’s Mideast Strategy?
As someone who came to consciousness during the period of Syrian control of Lebanon, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t sympathetic to those Lebanese who regard Damascene politics with an innate sense of trepidation. Growing up in such an environment, I’d heard the old box-of-matches-and-pail-of-water argument countless times, while listening in on discussions … Continue reading
Small Time Politics: Lebanon’s Parties Push Pawns In a Locked-Down Electoral Battle
The newspapers, morning radio, and political talk shows are lately focused on several burning issues: wire-tapping in the Ministry of Telecommunications, the budget of the Council for the South, and four Iranian diplomats who were murdered 27 years ago. Earth-shattering, isn’t it? This is what electoral politics amounts to in Lebanon these days: minor flaps … Continue reading
CBS 60 Minutes Segment on Israeli Settlements
I imagine that this video has gone viral by now, but if you have not yet seen it, make sure you do. It is only 13 minutes long. High bandwidth version Low bandwidth version, part 1 Low bandwidth version, part 2
Qifa Nabki 
And the people say…