Aside

Dear Ms. Ali, I’m really not sure what your credentials as an Islamic scholar are, beyond the fact that you are a Muslim-turned-atheist and have aligned yourself with the ideals of American conservatism. As such, I’m not sure why when you speak that the whole world sits up and listens. I too, do not claim to be an expert on Islam, but having a secular Muslim father, and an observant Muslim grandmother, I feel that it is my obligation to…

Gabe and Max answer questions on Boing Boing TV:

As promised, here’s the 47-minute unedited interview with MC Hammer. Interview with MC Hammer (47:21) – MP3

Wired News publishes CQ’s insistence that their reporting on this falafel fiasco was right all along. Like you, we take the issues of national security and civil liberties very seriously, which is why Jeff Stein thought it important to write about the domain management program. His sources described to him the intelligence-gathering program that involved the sales of Middle Eastern food in some detail, and we had no reason to believe that those sources inaccurately portrayed it when the column…

Dear Friends, I’ve been informed that my radio piece on the return of President Ahmadinejad’s blog will be airing today. Will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams): New York – 3 pm Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org Washington, DC – 8 pm Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org Los Angeles – 12 pm Pacific – KPCC – 89.3 FM – www.kpcc.opg Boston – 4 pm Eastern – WGBH – 89.7…

I’ve been informed that my radio piece on MC Hammer’s DanceJam.com will air on Morning Edition today! It will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams): New York – 5 am to 9 am Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org Washington, DC – 5 am to 10 am Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org Los Angeles – 2 am to 9 am Pacific – KPCC – 89.3 FM – www.kpcc.opg Boston –…

Paul Boutin astutely observed that the NYT buried the lede when it said that there are no less than 16 American spy agencies. My favorite? The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency — in other words, map spies! Speaking of maps and puzzles, check this: WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The only surviving copy of the 500-year-old map that first used the name America goes on permanent display this month at the Library of Congress, but even as it prepares for its debut, the 1507…

How come no one told me that the prime minister of Estonia, Andrus Ansip, was in San Jose last week? Anyway, he was there to open up a new “tech embassy” downtown. (I’m assuming that this is the first of its kind anywhere in the world.) SJBJ: “Silicon Valley changed the world, Andrus Ansip told a small gathering of reporters and city hall officials Friday afternoon. “All of our companies would like to cooperate more with the companies in Silicon…