Buttermilk & Molasses

KEEPING UP WITH THE JAMAAT

KEEPING UP WITH THE JAMAAT AL-ISLAMIYYA'S Well, they're not exactly the Jones', but rather one of a list of terrorist groups explained on the Council on Foreign Relations' Terrorism Q&A website. A thoughtful, detailed primer on aspects of the world most people never imagined were worth keeping track of before last September.

IVY LEAGUE OR BUST! I've

IVY LEAGUE OR BUST! I've just signed myself up for a series of sculling lessons in attempt to establish the Ivy League credentials that the Fates denied me when my parents turned out not to be Boston Brahmins. Now to find a sporty hat to wear on the water...

SELF-REPRESENTATION Zacarias Moussaoui's efforts to

SELF-REPRESENTATION Zacarias Moussaoui's efforts to represent himself in federal court would be a great lesson in criminal justice, the legal system and how a courtroom works if more reporters covered it half as well as the NYTimes' Neil Lewis. This piece re-appeared in the International Herald-Tribune yesterday, and gives a good summary of the tete-a-tete between Moussaoui and the judge.

TATTOO YOU The folks at

TATTOO YOU The folks at 20things.org (one of the cooler web ideas this millenium) are sponsoring a contest. The artistic types of the world are encouraged to submit their designs for hip-shaking, groovy tattoos, of which the 20 best will be posted on the 20things.org site. After perusing the contest rules, check out the rest of the site. It's clever.

FRENCH KISSING MINNEAPOLIS Kate Sullivan

FRENCH KISSING MINNEAPOLIS Kate Sullivan and her rockblog have landed in one of my favorite cities for the summer, and apparently one of hers. She kicks her vacation off with a bit of tease: her newfound (and admittedly late) love affair with Lucinda Williams; how much 'apolis' First Avenue rocks; and how Pavement's dull set there years ago set her up for a bad rebound with an old boyfriend. "I blame Pavement for pretty much everything." Yah. Lots of us do.

HOLY WAR ON HOLD IN

HOLY WAR ON HOLD IN BALTIMORE Aukai Collins, aka Abu Mujahid, is killing time in Baltimore these days, after years of killing Russians in Chechnya, training in Osama bin Laden's camps and spooking for the Feds in Arizona. The high-school drop-out and former gang member's story is one of those edgy, almost-crazy tales, which has made it perfect fodder for a book. Or two. He's penned his own account, as has Robert Young Pelton (of "The World's Most Dangerous Places" fame).

OOPS, THEY DID IT AGAIN

OOPS, THEY DID IT AGAIN The Bush girls ponied up to the bar again, this time at DC cheese-spot Stetson's. As the Post's Reliable Souce reports, once someone with a brain in the White House reads this morning's paper, it's likely the girls will be given their own in-house wetbar to keep them off the streets until they turn 21 in November. At least they didn't get nailed table dancing...

CENTRAL ASIA DIARY The Post's

CENTRAL ASIA DIARY The Post's Robert kaiser is spending several weeks on the road through Central Asia, reporting on culture and lifestyles, human rights and politics, the economy and more. He spent the past week in Tashkent, and while not as in depth as, say, the Post's exploration of Siberia last year, he pulls together a broad tapestry of the region. The series will continue for several weeks, and the online version includes photo essays and Q&As with readers.

THE PLAY'S THE THING Even

THE PLAY'S THE THING Even in Kenya, theatre troupes struggle. In this case, it's not a struggle for a focus or topic or even an audience. The struggle in Kenya is to secure a venue (and at an affordable price). Sound familiar? With the Kenya National Theatre overbooked, many groups turn to foreign cultural centers attached to embassies for space. But there's just something so wrong about a Kenyan "Faust," isn't there?

MORE LIP SERVICE FOR AFRICA?

MORE LIP SERVICE FOR AFRICA? Charles Cobb of AllAfrica.com delves into the G-8 summit and today's discussions on NEPAD (the New Partnership for Africa's Development), and wonders what questions aren't being addressed. Many inside and outside of Africa see this new partnership as being updated window-dressing for an old approach: to get development money, play by Western rules. It's arguable whether this is or isn't an appropriate way for funds to be released, but there are other important questions that have less to do with charitable responsibility. Questions about the significant role the West plays in arms distribution on the continent, or resource depletion, or propping up inadequate and corrupt governments. Any re-evaluation of the relationship between African nations and the rest of the world needs to discuss the nature of the relationship -- and the role of both sides in shaping it for the future.