NR PLUS Religion

Reclaiming the Path of Moderation in Islam

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Fundamentalists are gaining momentum across the Muslim world, but their conception of Islam relies on a flawed reading of the Koran.

NRPLUS MEMBER ARTICLE L ast week, Islamists blocked the construction of the first Hindu temple in Islamabad, Pakistan. The project was meant to symbolize tolerance in an age of radicalism. Instead, controversy has turned it into an emblem of dogmatism in the Muslim world. The Pakistani government’s decision to withdraw its support from the temple project is but a symptom of a wider trend. While fundamentalist clerics fought against the Hindu temple in Pakistan, a Turkish court revoked Hagia Sophia’s status as a museum, paving the way for its conversion into a mosque. A few hours later, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the …

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Music

The Broken-Hearted Bee Gees

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The Bee Gees died professionally twice, in less than a decade, then three of the four Brothers Gibb (two of them Bee Gees) died too young. This is why HBO’s documentary about one of the biggest pop groups of all time is called The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart instead of The Bee Gees: You Should Be ... Read More
Music

The Broken-Hearted Bee Gees

By
The Bee Gees died professionally twice, in less than a decade, then three of the four Brothers Gibb (two of them Bee Gees) died too young. This is why HBO’s documentary about one of the biggest pop groups of all time is called The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart instead of The Bee Gees: You Should Be ... Read More
Media

Joseph Epstein and the ‘Dr.’ Controversy

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Some authors append “Ph.D.” to their name in their tagline and sometimes even in their byline. Editors routinely delete it. Likewise with “Dr. Jones” in running text. It’s Ms. Jones, if the publication is old school. If not, Firstname Jones on first mention and just Jones after that. Granted, some ... Read More
Media

Joseph Epstein and the ‘Dr.’ Controversy

By
Some authors append “Ph.D.” to their name in their tagline and sometimes even in their byline. Editors routinely delete it. Likewise with “Dr. Jones” in running text. It’s Ms. Jones, if the publication is old school. If not, Firstname Jones on first mention and just Jones after that. Granted, some ... Read More

Doctor Jill Biden

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Last night on Twitter I commented that I think that the rote insistence that Jill Biden be referred to “Doctor Jill Biden” is kind of silly (that’s how President Obama referred to her). This elicited a remarkable amount of anger. I then made things worse by explaining that Jill Biden isn’t a “real” ... Read More

Doctor Jill Biden

By
Last night on Twitter I commented that I think that the rote insistence that Jill Biden be referred to “Doctor Jill Biden” is kind of silly (that’s how President Obama referred to her). This elicited a remarkable amount of anger. I then made things worse by explaining that Jill Biden isn’t a “real” ... Read More