On long bus rides and flights (of which there have been many during the last 18 months of traveling through Asia and Africa, for a combined total of at least 200 bus-hours), I listen to podcasts. It is a way of depositing knowledge into my brain while still admiring the scenery. The one I listen to the most is an NPR podcast called “Intelligence Squared.” It is described as “Oxford-style debating on America’s shores.” It is both intellectually-stimulating and fits well with my strict “Buy American” policy.
Most recently, I made a 13-hour bus ride from Accra, the capital city of Ghana, which lies on the coast of West Africa, to Tamale, the capital city of the Northern Region. In West Africa, the percentage of Muslims increases as you get closer to North Africa. So, in order to stimulate the brain waves and get mentally prepared for being in a predominantly Muslim area, I listened to an episode of Intelligence Squared in which teams of two debated the following motion: “Islam is a religion of peace.” The debaters ranged from a former jihadist turn peace activist who realized, after going through a period of anger, that his interpretation of Islam as providing a mandate for militancy was all wrong. On the other side of the debate, a Somali immigrant who had lived under the terrible influence of Al Shabab stressed the point that many passages in the Koran advocate violence and any interpretation of the religion must take this salient point into account. It was an interesting debate.
My personal opinion has always been that Islam is a religion of peace. To pull particularly violent passages from the Koran and use them as evidence of Islam’s fundamental commitment to violence is fair, I suppose. But applying the same rubric to the Old Testament of the New Testament leads to the obvious conclusion that Judaism and Christianity are also not religions of peace. And looking at Christianity’s long history of violence, like the Crusades, leads to the same conclusion. Another argument presented as evidence against the motion is that a religion is judged by the actions of its followers. Even if most of the Muslims in the world are moderate in ideology and peaceful in nature, the actions of Jihadists and fundamentalist Muslims speak for the religion as a whole. Again, looking at Sinn Fein in Ireland and the violence between Protestants and Catholics, or at the Jewish Defense League, which is effectively a terrorist organization, leads to the same inevitable conclusion. So, in short, the arguments may be salient, but the ultimate conclusion is that no religion is one of peace. (Actually, the bible has twice as many violent passages of the Koran, but, on a percentage basis, the Koran actually wins).
Followers of the Develop Economies,
“There are two things that matter in politics. The first is money. I can’t remember the second.” – Mark Hanna
What a time to be sort of close to North Africa! Revolutions abound, first in Tunisia, and now Egypt. Normally, Develop Economies would offer his opinion on the significance of the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak and its ramifications for Israel, democracy in the Arab world, civil unrest in Iran, and the foreign policy strategy of the Obama administration. Unfortunately, anything I could say has already been said by countless others. For a play-by-play of the events and a thorough parsing of the discussion among the Egypt bloggers, go to Andrew Sullivan’s 
The Philippines has a rich and complex history that is colored by practically as many different cultures as there are islands. A guy I used to work with used to love telling me about his favorite professor in college, who gave a final exam with only one task: de-colonize colonialism. In other words, deconstruct the culture, the traditions, the idiosyncracies that make the country what it is. Remove all of the external influences that have resulted from the different occupations – the Malaysians, the Spanish, the Americans, and the Japanese. What do you get? I don’t know, but it would look nothing like what the Philippines is today, which is a rich tapestry of traditions that have been shaped by its history.
In less than two weeks, I’ll be moving to Ghana to work as a consultant with an organization called Technoserve. It is my first time to visit West Africa and am excited to learn about the region. Technoserve works to strengthen the economies of the countries it serves by making the industries more efficient and profitable. Founded in the 1970’s, Technoserve began in Sub-Saharan Africa and has since expanded to Latin America and India. Most projects involve agriculture, since the majority of the world’s poor are subsistence farmers, though some focus on tourism, energy, and other sectors. The CEO, Bruce McNamer, explains Technoserve’s approach to economic development in a