Recommended Reading Part I.
In solidarity with the people of India
No “top billing” today. I thought perhaps I would separate this edition into Mumbai and non-Mumbai sections, gathering some of the most interesting posts on the former and giving the reader a break from that topic with the latter.
Part I: On the Mumbai Massacre:
Naxalite Rage – Mumbai Overrun
Shlok Vaidya deserves high praise for being all over this story with unique insights and explanations generally unavailable anywhere else, on his blog, twitter and other forums. The rest of the blogosphere was following in his wake.
Pundita – Mumbai Massacres: At the intersection of piracy and terrorism , Nov 30 John Batchelor Show on The Battle of Mumbai and More on “A disquieting response to India’s 9/11 from Bush and Obama”
Pundita’s call to pick the brains of Lt. Gen. Paul van Riper makes me think that, like the Roman Senate commissioning Pompey to destroy the pirates of the Aegean, it would simply be easier and quicker to give van Riper an anti-Piracy command on the Horn of Africa. Unfortunately our system does not work like that. Also note in the second post by Pundita, she draws attention to Shloky’s radio appearance on the John Batchelor Show.
SWJ Blog – How the Mumbai Attack Differs
Analysis by Bill Roggio.
Abu Muqawama – It was “Gangsta Gangsta” at the top of the list, then I played my own s*** it went something like this
AM catches some heat in the comments.
Kings of War – Some Answers… And a Few Burning Questions
First rate commentary on Lashkar-e-Taiba.
HG’s World – Mumbai Questions?
Round-up and commentary by HG99.
Chicago Boyz – Mumbai Musings
Looking at Mumbai from a different perspective.
Whirledview – Mumbai: A Roster of the Horrified-and the (Evidently) Not So Horrified
As opposed to the Turks, Iranians, Malaysians and Indonesians, the Sunni Arab states (Kuwait excepted) are conspicuously silent on the massacre in Mumbai.
That’s it.
November 30th, 2008 at 9:14 pm
One of the great things about blogs is that they thread together information and present it better than almost any other current media outlet.
As opposed to the Turks, Iranians, Malaysians and Indonesians, the Sunni Arab states (Kuwait excepted) are conspicuously silent on the massacre in Mumbai.
The silence is deafening….
Appreciate the link, and feel honored to be in such esteemed company.
December 1st, 2008 at 4:11 am
The blogs have had the best analytic coverage of this sickening event.
December 1st, 2008 at 5:32 am
On the other hand, the Western media and blogosphere have been conspicuously focused on Mumbai and silent about the fact that twice as many people died in ethno-religious bloodletting in Nigeria over the same weekend. Explain that, will ya?
December 1st, 2008 at 2:11 pm
Hi Diodotus,
.
What is the density of ISP connectivity in the river delta in Nigeria ?
December 1st, 2008 at 5:27 pm
Apparently there is some Internet connectivity in Nigeria. I keep getting emails that say wealthy relatives of mine died in a car crash (or plane crash) in Nigeria and I need to claim their fortunes. (Sometimes those emails originate from Nigerian IP addresses, but with all the trojaned machines on the internet, you never know.)
On a more serious note, I think the religous violence Diodotus is talking about happened in central Nigeria rather than the Niger delta (which has its own problems of insurgency and piracy/kidnapping.)
December 1st, 2008 at 6:24 pm
Hi Patrick,
.
I think the difference in reporting has much to do with connectivity and MSM culture rather than racism, as I infer that Diodotus is suggesting. Mumbai is a global center and densely networked in terms of communication, rural Nigeria is less so. Mumbai fits a lot of narrative "hooks" that editors look for to grab reader/viewer attention while Nigeria’s higher body count does not. When an African story fits MSM frames – say Dar Fur or the anti-Apartheid movement in S.A. back in the 80’s – it receives more attention. The Congo is the most underreported important story of all but going there (as with Algeria in the 90’s) is expensive, difficult and dangerous for journalists. So they don’t.
December 1st, 2008 at 10:58 pm
Outrageous, large-scale, sub-animal level brutality is considered to be normal for Africa.
.
If Nigerians massacre each other it is a dog-bites-man story.
.
Plus all the stuff Zen said.
December 2nd, 2008 at 11:25 am
I believe the difference is there are no westerners involved in the violence in the Niger delta, if the were dozens of americans, brits, germans, and israelies, being excuted in the Niger Delta I’d imagine we would have a lot more coverage of events there.Safe to say there would be a media feeding frenzy. When bombs go off in India, as they do on a regular basis, there is little comment in the west, since they are only killing locals.Its not racism per se, its just more news worthy when there are white people involved. Coverage of the congo ended when the Belgium nurses headed home.On another note, this attack has a real retro feel, kind of like a PLO attack in the 60’s.
December 3rd, 2008 at 12:35 pm
"As opposed to the Turks, Iranians, Malaysians and Indonesians, the Sunni Arab states (Kuwait excepted) are conspicuously silent on the massacre in Mumbai. "
Ain’t their own kind gettin’ hurt, guess the muthaf***as could care less. Law of the realm : if it ain’t your kin, it don’t ever matter.
December 6th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Listened to radio broadcast by Wayne Madsen in which he identified Muhammed Dawoo (? – hope I am remembering that right) as the main man behind it; also that he is part of the Afghanistan Muhajadeen (sp) network put together by the CIA and part of their original terrorist database later morphed into what is called Al Qaida, one of which’s translations is, literally, ‘the database’. The reason for the attack had something to do with the US’s pivoting into the Afgh-Pakistan region of late, one thrust of which was to request Pakistan to hand Dawoo over to them, something which the latter did not take to kindly.
I did not hear the whole broadcast and so am not sure if this was explained in more detail, i.e. why the Mumbai attacks, even assuming he is correct that they were orchestrated by Dawoo, had anything to do with the US-Pakistan business, and if so, how they affected it in any way, i.e. what he achieved or was trying to achieve with them. Turning India against Pakistan? Embroiling the US in a much messier conflict than simply mucking around in Pakistan to keep their bomb-making defense contractors flush with cash, or what?
But he was very confident in proclaiming that this was the man behind it.
javascript:set_playlist(‘#EXTM3U$&**&$##EXTINF:3600,$&**&$#http://216.240.133.177/archives32/Madsen/2008/11/Madsen_1_112908_180000.mp3′,’m3u’);
http://www.republicbroadcasting.org/index.php?cmd=archives.month&ProgramID=56&year=8&month=11&backURL=index.php%253Fcmd%253Darchives.getyear%2526ProgramID%253D56%26year%3D8%26backURL%3Dindex.php%253Fcmd%253Darchives
December 6th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Hi Ash,
I think you might mean Dawood Ibrahim.
The CIA did not create the Taliban, who emerged in Pakistani refugee camps about five years after the Soviet War had ended.
December 8th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
This book on India looks very interesting:
SUSTAINING INDIA’S GROWTH MIRACLE: Jagdish N. Bhagwati, Charles W. Calomiris — Editors
http://www.hindu.com/br/2008/11/11/stories/2008111150031400.htm