Foreign Affairs: Algeria on the Brink?

The pressure comes at a bad time for Algeria’s ruling elites, who are struggling to work out what will happen when President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s rule comes to an end. Now 78, Bouteflika has ruled the country since 1999. But after suffering a stroke in 2013, he has rarely been seen in public, leading many to wonder what role he actually plays in managing daily affairs. When he does appear, wheelchair-bound and frail, he is the embodiment of the regime he represents: aged and aloof, part of a generation of 70-year-olds presiding over a country in which roughly 67 percent of the population is under 30. [...]

The dismantling of the DRS also fits within the government's narrative that Algeria has become a normal state; “A Civilian State” has become one of the ruling elite’s favorite slogans. But whether or not the Algerian regime is truly aiming for this goal is uncertain. The slogan rings hollow given that for the past 25 years, the internal security services have operated entirely unchecked. And so when the government claims that the security services need to be dismantled, many Algerians ask, why now? From helping to rig elections to supervising the activities of political parties and activists, the DRS has long wielded power in Algeria. This makes it unlikely that the government will simply discard it altogether. A “cleaned-up” version of the security services, one that the president and his allies can easily tame, is a more probable outcome.

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BBC4 Thinking Allowed: 'Queer' wars, Nigerian beauty pageants

'Queer' Wars: The claim that LGBT rights are human rights meets fierce, sometimes deadly opposition in many parts of the world. Politicians and religious leaders invoke tradition to deflect such universal claims, accusing Western activists of neo colonial interference. Laurie Taylor talks to Dennis Altman, Professorial Fellow in Human Security at La Trobe University, Melbourne, who has examined the international polarisation over sexual rights. He asks how best we can advocate for change in contexts where people face violence and imprisonment for their sexuality and gender. They're joined by Lama Abu- Odeh, Professor in Law at Georgetown University, Washington.

Also, Nigerian Beauty Pageants. Juliet Gilbert, Teaching Fellow in African Studies and Anthropology at the University of Birmingham, reflects on the popularity of such spectacles in a country where crowned winners use pageantry as a 'platform' for success, hoping to overcome the double bind of gender and generation in a deeply religious and patriarchal society.

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BBC4 Beyond Belief: Original Sin

The Catholic Church still affirms the doctrine of original sin. For more than 1,500 years the Church has maintained that the sin of Adam in the Garden of Eden was passed on to every subsequent human being. This meant that every baby was born bad, with its inherent human nature corrupted and attracted to sin. This was not a marginal teaching; it has underpinned Christianity. Ernie Rea and guests discuss the religious, social and cultural legacy of the doctrine of original sin.

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Buzzfeed: Britain To Offer Next-Of-Kin Letters To Same-Sex Couples Travelling Abroad

British same-sex married couples travelling abroad will be able to obtain an official letter from the UK government confirming their next-of-kin status in a world-first aimed at preventing LGBT citizens being denied their rights.

The trailblazing new policy – no other country currently offers this – was prompted by the sudden death four months ago of a British gay man on his honeymoon in Australia. His husband had to suffer the indignity of being told by the state authorities that the death certificate would read “never married” as same-sex marriage was not recognized.

The move will mean that anyone in a civil partnership or marriage will be able to present the document to hospital staff, police, funeral directors, donor organisations, or any officials they might encounter in the event of their spouse being taken ill or dying in a foreign country.

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Deutsche Welle: Islam classes will protect children from fundamentalists, bishop says

State-sponsored lessons in Islam could protect young Muslims from radical ideologies, the Evangelical Church's head bishop has said. The pontiff has called for all schools in Germany to teach the religion. [...]

Six out of 18 German states, including North-Rhine Westphalia, Bavaria, Hesse, Lower Saxony, Rhineland-Palatinate and Baden-Württemberg, currently offer lessons in Islam. Saarland has been experimenting with the idea in junior classes, according to Germany's Standing Conference of Education and Culture Ministers.

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The Atlantic: The Voters Who Want Islam Out of Germany

The AfD’s founder Bernd Lucke, an economics professor, left the party last summer, condemning rising xenophobia. Many other founding members have likewise defected. So who are the new supporters that helped the party to its best-ever election performance a few months ago? Which people, specifically, want to kick Islam out of Germany? [...]

What all these voters seem to share, say the experts studying them, is intense concern about immigration and Islam—issues with extraordinary capabilities for generating strange bedfellows. “Suddenly the far-right is pro-Jewish because it’s anti-Muslim,” said Lenka Bustikova, a political scientist at Arizona State University who has studied far-right movements further east in Europe. “Suddenly with the [influx] of refugees you have this new twist: You are for Western gender rights because you think the Muslims are cavemen. It’s going to be interesting to watch.”

This dynamic may yet tear the party apart, whether at the leadership or at the voter level. Even the AfD’s recent headline-generating manifesto, Arzheimer pointed out, showed signs of a delicate balancing act. “They very carefully avoided anything that could be used against them in some form of formal process. … There is so much leeway in what they have written. ... It might appeal to hard-core rightwingers but also the famous ‘concerned citizens’—part of a catchphrase in Germany: ‘I’m not a racist but I’m very much concerned about [issues] A, B, C.’” But, he continued, if the AfD “give any reason for the public or media to portray them as yet another NPD I’m sure their support will collapse. Those voters, even if they’re worried about Muslims or immigrants, don’t want to be associated with thugs.”

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The Huffington Post: The 11 Most Racist U.S. Presidents

Let’s imagine the unimaginable: Donald Trump was elected president in November. Yes, president of the United States. [...]

Let’s imagine that he did not moderate on his campaign pledges and he carried them out as president. Would a President Trump go down in the annals of American history as one of the most racist presidents ever?

He certainly would face a substantial amount of competition on the racist front. There have been many frightfully racist U.S. presidents in American history. Here are the 11 most racist U.S. presidents of all time.

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Reuters: Putin says Romania, Poland may now be in Russia's cross-hairs

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday warned Romania and Poland they could find themselves in the sights of Russian rockets because they are hosting elements of a U.S. missile shield that Moscow considers a threat to its security.

Putin issued his starkest warning yet over the missile shield, saying that Moscow had stated repeatedly that it would have to take retaliatory steps but that Washington and its allies had ignored the warnings. [...]

Putin did not specify what actions Russia would take, but he insisted that it was not making the first step, only responding to moves by Washington. "We won't take any action until we see rockets in areas that neighbor us."

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