1
POPSA book about the life and thought of Ibn 'Arabi
Ibn 'Arabi is also known as the Shaykh al-Akbar, the greatest Shaykh. He was born in Al-Andalus in the mid twelfth century and lived half his life there before travelling east. He wrote prodigiously and claimed never to write anything he had not experienced personally. His influence on the development of Sufism was immense. What I appreciate so much about this biography by Stephen Hirtenstein is the way he introduces the reader to the thought of Ibn 'Arabi and also describes the historical context in which he lived, wrote, and pursued his spiritual path. Many scholars see Ibn 'Arabi as being equally significant to our present day concerns alonside the work of Jalaluddin Rumi. To read this book is like stepping into the times of Ibn 'Arabi in Al-Andalus and bathing in his spiritual wisdom. Having lived in Andaluci I often had a sense of his presence in the places he had been whether in the mosque of Cordoba, the port of Adra, or under the mulberry trees in the Alpujarran mountains.
22
POPS"Artwork inspired by the mysteries and marvels of science." wonderful images "I am often very inspired by science - books on popular science and maths, documentaries, and of course rubbish sci fi films. Here is some of the artwork inspired by the mysteries and marvels of science." The wonderful image is an original drawing by the artist Masonic Boom, aka Kate St.Claire, as part of her series of "science"
14
POPSWho are you? ask wiki... By Sunday morning, YoungTrigg came forward, still anonymous, on his or her Wikipedia user page: “It’s not true that ‘all of my edits made Palin look better.’ ” The new availability of info, and hence influence poses many new questions of ethics.. it seems like the future-now becomes more interesting... :)
19
POPSPalin as President of the U.S. Senate? It's VP's job: But she has never even served in a legislature!How would she possibly know how to manage America's most difficult legislative body? Let alone how she would possibly step in, if needed, for the President, in a nation still at war. Take a deep look at McCain's judgment here. What a reckless, foolishly political nomination this is for the nation! And compare her credentials to Joe Biden's . . .
3
POPSMrs. Conservative So what we will see in the next days and weeks--what we have already seen in the hours after her nomination--is an effort by all the powers of the old liberalism, both in the Democratic party and the mainstream media, to exorcise this spectre. They will ridicule her and patronize her. They will distort her words and caricature her biography. They will appeal, sometimes explicitly, to anti-small town and anti-religious prejudice. All of this will be in the cause of trying to prevent the American people from arriving at their own judgment of Sarah Palin.
2
POPSBarack Obama: Leap of Faith
but because they're confused about the roots of his politics. Sen. Obama accumulated his victorious lead early with a liberal coalition willing to vote for him mainly for reasons of faith – upper-middle-class whites, black voters and young idealists -- all attempting to complete the civil-rights promise, answer the post-partisan appeal, or vote against the war and George Bush. His coalition's limitations hit the wall in Ohio. Here Sen. Clinton discovered her Rosie-the-Riveter persona, and it worked. I watched her sell bread-and-butter policy before blue-collar crowds in Youngstown, Akron and Cleveland. She was tremendously good at it. He just wasn't. The Sunday before the Ohio vote, Sen. Obama abandoned Ohio. The way Hillary won in these crucial November swing states may have fatally damaged his candidacy. His problem is that there is nothing in it (biography) to suggest he has spent any significant time thinking about these people other than as a political abstraction.
4
POPSAudacity of Vanity FTA Obama also says every child should learn to speak Spanish; he doesn't. He says we are 'embarrassing' to have fallen behind in our multilingual skills and can only say "merci beaucoup", yet he doesn't speak French. "we are the ones we've been waiting for.."...the royal 'we' I suppose.
4
POPSFrank Buck - Bring 'em Back Alive Buck was a man of his era... Hard drinking, hard living, self-made entrepreneur and showman extraordinaire. Buck's fame led to an entire occupation by circus workers today - wild animal tamer. Never a man to turn down a "buck," Buck was a shameless self-promoter and claimed to have even tracked down a Yeti once.
2
POPSBlackbeard (S9 Biography)
The Scourge of the Spanish Main and the last Great Pirate of the Age of Sail (Jean LaFitte was a smuggler) Blackbeard's life is shrouded in myth and legend and facts about him are verd hard to verify 300 years later. Edward Teach or possibly Thatch, was famous for several things that are documented and reek of the strange and as Kenneth Hite says, High Weirdness. He would drink a mixture of gunpowder and rum set aflame... Talk about a Belch you do not want to be around. He tied "slow matches" (used for lighting cannons) into his hair and beard so there would be a wreath of smoke around his head. He shot his best friend and first mate, Israel Hands in the knee, crippling him for life just a day before his death at Okecroake Island off NC. When Israel asked why, Teach said he was saving his life! (Knew about his own death? Planned it himself?) Weirdest Fact: Held Charleston, SC hostage for several weeks until his ransom was paid - a box of Native herbs and Tobacco... See what I
7
POPSBo Diddley Dies In Florida At 79 Like B.B. King and other great blues and rhythm-and-blues artists, Diddley's first exposure to music came from church, in this case the Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church on Chicago's South Side. He learned to play the violin and the trombone. At age 12, Diddley took up the guitar after hearing John Lee Hooker's 1949 rhythm-and-blues hit, ``Boogie Chillen.'' ``Diddley claimed that playing the violin influenced his muted-string, choke-neck style of rhythm -- an early forerunner of funk that can be heard on songs like `Pretty Thing,''' the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame says in its official Bo Diddley biography.
15
POPSlooking for Kafka in Tel-Aviv ?!! Hoffe died this year, leaving the inheritance to her two daughters. Researchers are hoping they will now be given access to the materials, which will help shed light on Kafka's biography and will likely spark new interest in the author in the academic and literary worlds.
2
POPSGareth Richard Vaughan Jones 1905-1935 I must confess utter ignorance about this man. His story, legacy, and journalism should be read and studied by everyone. I encourage everyone to read the short biography at the link. This is a must read in my opinion. Also, his reports from Germany and Italy are absolutely fascinating and are free of the typical filter we usually get regarding information about this era.
2
POPSTop 10 Likely Titles For The Next Stephen King Book Hey, do not get me wrong... I love the King. And as a struggling writer in the same genre I can only aspire to his heights of greatness... That said, this is a LMAO List and I give it props.. Stephen has also gone on the record to say that there has been times he knew he was not trying his best nor doing a credible job, but any Author who can say otherwise for their own self may cast the first Word Processor...
6
POPSObama: It's Only About Winning But here's what's scary: For all of Kerry's reputed smoothness and Eastern intellect, he often tied himself in knots trying to reconcile his absurdly opposing positions. Obama can flip and flop with unmatched alacrity and facility and with the absence of self-consciousness and accountability of an accomplished sociopath . This guy doesn't even acknowledge he's changing positions; he does it without breaking a sweat and never looks back. I ask you to consider the common thread underlying these turnarounds his nearly immediate backtracking on whether Iran poses a serious threat to America; his progressive position shifts on Iraq from "don't go in, stay in, and get out"; and his vigorous defense then abandonment of both his pastor and his church. The common thread, in a word, is expedience. It is not toughness; it is not savvy; it is not gravitas; and by all means, it is not admirable. Barack Obama is every bit as politically calculating as Bill Clinton but twice as smooth.
1
POPS2008 Pulitzer Prize Winner Being the hispanophile that I am, I guess I need to read this one. Especially since I spent my 40th birthday in the D.R. If you read, please let me know what you thought about it.
2
Pops
Newest Clips
Latest Comments
Most Pops
Print
Save
Turn on live update