Gypsy Scholar

[...] its moves: The ideological purity of the Islamic State has one compensating virtue: it allows us to predict some of the group’s actions . . . . [It] [...]

[...] is the message. From Mezzofiore's further words on the subject, we can see that he thinks the Islamic State itself beheaded its own deputy emir of al-Hesbah when the man was caught smoking: Islamic [...]

[...] A week or two ago, I reported some of Thomas Friedman's findings on Muslims' disgust with the Islamic State and even disgust not only with Islamism but even with Islam itself, some Muslims opting for [...]

[...] , writing in The Australian (January 2, 2015), cites an Australian jihadist fighting for the Islamic State, Abu Khalid, on the view that "Female slavery [is] the biggest honour for non-Muslim [...]

[...] , but that he can say because he's an Islamist: [A]ll the Arab peoples yearn for the rule of Islamic law . . . . Allah be praised, he gave me the honor to pledge allegiance to the Emir of the [...]

[...] , which different than Islam. The difference is that Islam is a religion that uses Islamic law to set up a political system, whereas Islamism is a political system that uses Islamic [...]

[...] is the punishment according to Islamic law? Death. Depicting Muhammad is blasphemy, and blasphemy merits a death sentence. Opinions about [...]

[...] I wonder if this manner of execution used by the Islamic State even finds justification in Islamic law, for I have read this hadith: Ibn 'Abd al-Barr states in al-Tamhid (5:316) that, "When Ibn [...]

[...] The Talos Principle Croteam NYT Chris Suellentrop, a video game critic for The New York Times, describes a video game - The Talos Principle - in his article "Enticing All to See the [...]

[...] crime on the dark net: "On the Hunt for Wall St. Hackers, but Not the Spotlight" (New York Times, November 9, 2014). Lawrence Baldwin is a dark hero of the Internet whom you have probably [...]

[...] Thomas L. Friedman New York Times In an op-ed piece, "Who Are We?" (New York Times, November 15, 2014), by Thomas L. Friedman, a writer whose columns I ordinarily just skim (no [...]

[...] All Dried Out! New York Times Just look at what global warming is doing to the oceans! Thank goodness I'm on the ball and [...]

[...] Richard Torres and Blushing Bride Google Images . . . few of them get serious enough to tie the knot! Richard Torres, however, has just [...]

[...] Google Images Here's my entry for the shortest fairy tale ever: Once upon a time, they all lived happily [...]

[...] . . . ah, now I remember: 'Tis-'Twas New Year's Day! So . . . . . . from Google Images, a documentary shot of the 'War on Alcohol,' I reckon. Anyway, a New Year's greeting for all [...]

[...] "I am Charlie (Hebdo)" Google Images By now, most readers will have seen news of the horrific terrorist attack upon the offices and [...]

[...] Terrance Lindall's Paradise Lost Digital Humanities Project "Milton Revealed" UC Berkeley Emeritus [...]

[...] Terrance Lindall I wish this were in color! 1979 Warren Awards for Creepy and Eerie My artist friend Terrance [...]

[...] ; introduces to a woman most of us here at Gypsy Scholar know only through our contact with Terrance Lindall. That woman is Yuko Nii, an artist who came to the States 50 years ago: Nii moved to the [...]

[...] Milton Shield Click to Enlarge My friend Terrance Lindall - gentleman, scholar, and possibly acrobat - intends to display a bonded-marble copy (shown [...]

[...] Amazon In a book review of J (New York Times, December 12, 2014), a novel by Howard Jacobson, the reviewer Matthew Specktor draws our attention to the book's beginning, a parable: Howard [...]

[...] Howard Jacobson Amazon Site I recently finished reading a novel titled "J." That symbol is intended [...]

[...] Amazon I'm now reading Howard Jacobson's novel The Finkler Question, and it's a humorous read so far - though I've not gotten far [...]

[...] Horace Hodges (L) and Horace Jeffery Hodges (R) HH Takes a Closer Look at Literature I gave my talk [...]

[...] is all I have to say in today's blog entry. I've titled my paper "The Mis-Education of Horace Hodges," and I'm hoping that those present will have a sense of humor . . . [...]

[...] ;Storytelling" conference organizers, who remarked on my talk, "The Mis-Education of Horace Hodges": [Y]our talk was very impressive and inspirational to the students, and I deeply [...]