Articles and stories covering a diverse range of topics
Evidence is emerging that doctors and medical scientists are involved in the coercive interrogation of suspected terrorists detained in US facilities in Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere. Is a core value of Western civilization being undermined by how the war on terror is being conducted? …..
….. by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “Biscuits & Morals”
We all want our children to learn English because it is the world’s business language. But will it always be so? Shouldn’t we also be insisting that they learn the language of the country that is likely to dominate at least half the world within another generation?…..
….. by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “Hey, Kids! Anyone for Chinese?”
Being misinformed about what’s going on in politics seems to be the norm these days. Why is clarity so elusive? No answer really. All the news seems to leave us with today is a series of unanswered questions …..
….. by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “Tail Wags Dog?”
A new society is emerging around the world, a new type of economy based on knowledge. This new society is well-nigh upon folks in the West. Hereabouts and elsewhere it is just around the corner. Perhaps a suitable topic for after-Iftar discussions in Kuwait would be the implications for social and economic planning and development …..
….. by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “The Big Change”
Pillage, plunder and rapine are three words that probably best describe how Westerners trapped in occupied Kuwait viewed the activities of the Iraqis. The Iraqis didn’t just hold down the country – they gouged into its vitals and tried to suck it dry …..
….. by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “The Rumours were for Real”
I left Kuwait for Baghdad by road on December 18th 1990. I returned in the summer of 1991 by air. The country was a veritable shambles when I left. Less than eight months later it was still wrecked. Though the roads had been cleared little had as yet been rebuilt. In the decade since then Kuwait has been restored, and is now reforming itself for globalization …..
….. by Paul D Kennedy
I suppose everyone who was in Kuwait for the duration, or at least until the Westerners were allowed out, heard the one about the Iraqi soldier who turned up at a local hospital with severe stomach cramps …..
….. by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “Laughing Guestages”
This brief case study illustrates the devious ways in which technologies are transmitted from one culture to another …..
….. a case study by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “Technological Transfer in Practice”
At the time of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait I was living in a multi-roomed apartment on the 9th floor of a residential complex in downtown Kuwait City. There I felt relatively safe from the confusion I could see down in the streets. My wife, who was Thai, was out of the country on vacation. Tuk, her best friend, was subletting our spare bedroom …..
….. a narration by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “The Visitors”
The other day myself and AA, my best Kuwaiti friend and ex-war buddy, were trucking along Arabian Gulf Street. Behind us the limp sheen of dawn was quickly succumbing to the brash glare of day …..
….. a vignette by Paul D Kennedy Continue reading “Lessons from a unique experience”
