Pervez Musharraf speaks at Stanford

From the Students for an Open Society blog, January 16, 2009:

Pervez Musharraf, former president of Pakistan, spoke at Stanford’s Memorial Auditorium today, thanks to the ASSU Speakers’ Bureau and Stanford in Government.

The very first utterance Musharraf made, even before “Thank you for the introduction,” was “Bismillahi al-rahmani al-rahimi.” That is, “In the name of Allah, most gracious, most merciful.” This is the first sentence of every chapter of the Qur’an (except Chapter 9) and is the first line of the constitutions of many Islamic countries. By beginning with this line, Musharraf wanted everyone present to know that he was not only making his statements as a Muslim, but as a pious Muslim. I have never personally heard any speaker begin with this phrase, and I have heard many Muslims speak at Stanford, including a past president of the Shariah Scholars’ Association of North America.

Abroad in Moscow: Living in the State of Denial

Originally published January 9, 2009.

I thought I knew what to expect. The dozens of articles, interviews, and books I had read about Russia had painted a picture in my mind of a land where “honest policeman” is an oxymoron, half of the population is paralyzed by AIDS or tuberculosis, and racism has seen a resurgence so epic that every minority trembles in fear at the mere thought of walking the streets at night. I was soon to learn that the situation on the ground was slightly more nuanced, to say the least. Granted, I spent most of my time in Moscow (which, according to most Russians, is “not Russia”), but nevertheless I feel that my three months in that city left me with a decent understanding of the Russian Federation’s present situation and general mindset.