Life Without Borders

“Not so different.” 

That is the way to describe any of our lives in the end. But the specific details differ at some moments and so do our perceptions of each other’s lives.

For months I have been serving as the English-language outlet for the voice of a young writer trapped in Afghanistan. To date, I have published 18 of what I’ve variously described as letters from — or conversations with — him. (Soon we will be collecting all of them into a more accessible form.)

As for the specific details, his life must seem quite different from the lives of my readers. He is a member of the Hazara minority, which has long been despised and discriminated against by the dominant groups in Afghanistan, particularly the Pashtuns, who make up the bulk of the Taliban now in control of his country.

Most Hazara are Shia, not Sunni Moslems, whereas the Pashtuns are overwhelmingly Sunni. The internal Islamic conflict is similar to the Catholic-Protestant conflict of centuries past.

Over the years that the Taliban built up and finally seized control of the country, they recruited alienated members of other ethnic groups, especially the Tajiks, Uzbeks and Turkmen to join their ranks. 

But the Hazara stubbornly remained resistant to Taliban control.

Therefore, since late August when the Taliban seized power in Kabul, life has been especially difficult for the Hazaras. Some have been summarily executed by Taliban fighters now in control of the roads and checkpoints simply for being Hazara, or for being openly critical of Taliban rule.

Many others live in fear of suffering a similar fate if they venture out or speak their minds.

No single group currently lives under that kind of blatant threat in the U.S., although the widespread racism, homophobia, misogamy, anti-Semitism, anti-Islam and other hateful ideologies just below the surface of American society require our constant vigilance lest they burst out into the open again at any point.

Here at least anyone can speak his or her mind, for now.

But my Afghan friend also is educated, thoughtful and skeptical of organized religion, centralized power, capitalism — all of the major forces that shape our lives here and around the world.

The majority of humanity lives under the control of despotic rulers — not democratically elected leaders — though few are subject to as harsh extremes as the Hazards face from the Taliban.

So those of us in the (relatively) free world need to remember how despotism can rise and overwhelm the peaceful, thoughtful, skeptical, educated minority by exploiting the ignorance, prejudice, fear and misperceptions of the masses — overseas but here as well.

The would-be despots among us would have you believe that our differences in age, race, gender, religion or lack thereof, class, occupation, status, orientation, belief system, education, location, appearance matter — that they are threats.

But we are not all that different, really. The great majority of people want peace and freedom and to live with dignity. 

And it is never too late to remember that.

THURSDAY HEADLINES:

• FDA advisers narrowly recommend authorization of first antiviral pill to treat covid-19a (WP)

• The omicron variant has been found in 23 countries (NPR)

• Omicron variant detected in California (Politico)

• Omicron Prompts Swift Reconsideration of Boosters Among Scientists— Many public health experts were opposed to a boosters-for-all approach. The new variant is changing some minds. (NYT)

• Severe Covid infection doubles chances of dying in following year, study finds (Guardian)

• In Omicron Fight, Scientists See Glimmers of Hope — Faint signs of hope emerged that a key weapon in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic would still be effective against the new variant, as scientists and health authorities piece together fragmented evidence about it. (WSJ)

• WHO member states will work on a global agreement to deal with future pandemics (NPR)

• W.H.O. Reopens Debate Over Fairness of Pandemic Response — As wealthy countries react to the new Omicron virus variant with travel bans and booster shots, the World Health Organization scolded them, calling the steps ineffective and unfair. (NYT)

• Covid-19 variants may not evolve to be less dangerous (Guardian)

• Germany reported the highest number of deaths from coronavirus since mid-February as hospitals warned that the country could have 6,000 people in intensive care by Christmas, above the peak of last winter. (Reuters)

• Co-founder of Christian TV network that railed against vaccines dies of Covid-19 (Guardian)

• What the AIDS crisis can teach us about the COVID pandemic response (NPR)

• Nigeria said it had confirmed its first cases of Omicron, among them a sample from travelers who came to Nigeria in October, suggesting it had turned up weeks before it was reported in southern Africa.(Reuters)

• Covid and political fatigue 5.0 (Politico)

• Omicron Could Knock a Fragile Economic Recovery Off Track (NYT)

• 15-year-old student kills three, injures eight at high school in Michigan town, authorities say (WP)

• A 4th student has died in the Michigan high school shooting (NPR)

• Court upholds California ban on high-capacity magazines (AP)

• Stock markets roared higher, reversing much of the previous session's losses, as investors used the dip in prices to bet the latest COVID-19 variant would not derail the economic recovery. History says expect a strong December for U.S. stocks, despite Omicron and Federal Reserve worries. (Reuters)

• The immediate and overall consensus after the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization: Roe v. Wade is in serious danger. The conservative majority on the court appeared largely supportive of a 2018 Mississippi law that seeks to ban abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, a law that directly contradicts Roe V. Wade. Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned that the Supreme Court won't survive the "stench" of partisanship in the Mississippi abortion case. [HuffPost]

• As the U.S. Supreme Court heard a Mississippi case Wednesday that could topple abortion rights nationwide, the state’s only abortion clinic was busier than ever: Volunteers escorted patients into the bright pink building while protesters outside beseeched women not to end their pregnancies. (AP)

• Roe v. Wade's future is in doubt after historic arguments at Supreme Court (NPR)

• Members of the Supreme Court’s conservative majority are suggesting they may make sweeping changes to limit abortion rights in the United States. (AP)

• Boarded-up stores and armed guards greet holiday shoppers (SFC)

• Biden to expand National Space Council to advance workforce, climate goals (Politico)

• Why the CIA is so worried about Russia and Ukraine (WP)

• US warns Russia has plans for ‘large scale’ attack on Ukraine(Guardian)

• Is Inflation Sticking Around? Bicycle Makers Offer Some Clues

  Manufacturers are pricing next year’s bikes now, and higher costs for components and supply-chain holdups, combined with still-strong demand, mean increases are coming. (WSJ)

• The main risk to an otherwise upbeat global economic outlook is that the current inflation spike proves longer and rises further than currently expected, the OECD said. Global growth is set to hit 5.6% this year before moderating to 4.5% in 2022 and 3.2% in 2023. (Reuters)

• WTA halts China tourneys over fallout from Shuai sexual assault allegation (WP)

• China told Indonesia to stop drilling for oil and natural gas in maritime territory that both countries regard as their own during a months-long standoff in the South China Sea earlier this year, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The unprecedented demand elevated tensions over natural resources between the two countries in a volatile area of global strategic and economic importance. (Reuters)

• CNN suspends Chris Cuomo ‘indefinitely’ after documents detail help he gave his brother (WP)

• Mark Meadows, Donald Trump's former chief of staff, is cooperating with the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Meadows has produced records to the committee, despite Trump's battle to withhold documents from the probe. By cooperating, Meadows avoids charges of criminal contempt of Congress. [HuffPost]

• Trump tested positive for coronavirus before first debate with Biden, former chief of staff says (WP)

• Biden to expand National Space Council to advance workforce, climate goals (Politico)

• The United States has joined the list of countries where democracy is backsliding, according to a new report by the think tank International IDEA. (NPR)

• The New Right’s Strange and Dangerous Cult of Toughness (Atlantic)

• The civil unrest suffered by the Solomon Islands in the past week raised alarm among leaders of other Pacific island nations that rivalry between China, Taiwan and the United States risked aggravating their region's social and economic problems. "I think what is happening in the Solomons is something we all should be paying serious attention to, because it can happen at any time," former Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Meg Taylor told the Reuters Next conference. (Reuters)

• Biden's young voter problem — Polls show the president’s approval rating has fallen sharply among a key component of the Democratic base: younger voters. (Politico)

• Taliban wages campaign of targeted killings against former members of Afghan security forces (WP)

• Afghanistan economic meltdown one of worst in history, UN says (Financial Times)

• Afghan Journalists in Exile Keep Spotlight on Their Homeland (WSJ)

• Unique effort reopens girls’ schools in an Afghan province (AP)

• Taliban appear positive over education for women (NHK)

• Barbados' declaration of a republic may fuel fervor in other Commonwealth countries to follow suit, but experts say removing the queen requires overcoming political hurdles that have for decades stymied republican initiatives. (Reuters)

• Iran Feels Cornered by the Biden Administration (Atlantic)

• Rep. Omar urges House GOP to address ‘anti-Muslim hatred’ (AP)

• These living robots made of frog cells can now reproduce, study says(WP)

• Contact lost with cargo ship in distress (NHK)

• Rules of war need rewriting for the age of AI weapons (Edit Bd/Financial Times)

• Facebook says it carried out broad takedown of disinformation networks, including some tied to anti-vaccine groups, state actors(WP)

• Space junk forces spacewalk delay, too risky for astronauts (AP)

• Aztec altar with human ashes uncovered in Mexico City (BBC)

• Long-Ago Victim of Vesuvius May Shed Light on Ancient Rome — Archaeologists found the remains of a person buried at Herculaneum in the eruption of 79 A.D., and hope that with modern technology it will yield fresh insights. (NYT)

• Ancient footprints mistakenly attributed to bears were made by early humans (NPR)

• Are we thinking about alien life all wrong? — Professor Brian Cox explains the ‘panspermia’ theory – how life could spread between planets. (BBC)

• NASA Delays Space Walk After It Starts Snowing In Outer Space (The Onion)

THURSDAY’s LYRICS

“The Blues Man”

By Hank Williams Jr.

Best Version: George Jones & Dolly Parton

I'm just a singer, a natural-born guitar ringer

Kind of a clinger to sad old songs

I'm not a walk-behinder, I'm a new note finder

But my name's a reminder of a blues man that's already gone

So I started drinkin', took things that messed up my thinkin'

I was sure sinkin', when you came along

I was alone in the hot lights, not too much left in sight

But she changed all that one night, when she sang me this song

Hey baby, I love you

Hey baby, I need you

Hey baby, you ain't got to prove to me you're some kind of macho man

You've wasted so much of your life running through the dark nights

Let me shine some love light down on the blues man

I got so sick from speedin', all the stuff they said I wasn't needin'

If I was to keep pleasin', all of my fans

I got cuffed on dirt roads, I got sued over no-shows

But she came and took all that old load, down off this blues man

Hey baby, I love you too

Hey baby, I need you

Hey baby, I do get tired of this travelin' band

I'm 30 years old now, nights would be cold now

If you hadn't stuck it out with this blues man

I'm 30 years old now, nights sure would be cold now

If you hadn't hung around with this blues man