Leftovers.

Sorry things have been so slow around here. We’re gonna rectify this in the next few days.

In the meantime, here are some links for you perusal:

Justin Elliot picks the brain Faiza Patel, a national security expert, about  the myth of Islamic radicalization.

There are these very oversimplified theories of radicalization. One is from a 2007 NYPD report on homegrown terrorism. It’s this “religious conveyor belt” theory that says there is a defined path toward terrorism: young Muslim men who are socially or politically alienated become progressively more religious; they come to embrace the use of violence; and eventually they commit a terrorist attack or support an attack in some way. What the NYPD has suggested — and I think the FBI has signed onto this as well — is that there are markers of each phase. These are primarily religious behaviors. So if a young man stops smoking or stops drinking, maybe that’s a sign that he’s becoming radicalized and is on the path to terrorism.

This is a very reductionist understanding of radicalization, and it’s simply not supported by the social science evidence. … The troubling thing is that the markers, of course, are all religious behavior.

This is your War on Drugs:

A stumbling Framingham SWAT officer accidentally fired his rifle and shot a beloved grandpa to death as he lay face-down on the floor of his own home, authorities admitted yesterday, sparking incredulous outrage by the 68-year-old retiree’s family.

Interracial marriage is on the rise in the U.S., and so has acceptance of interracial unions. But.  “Still, overall acceptance of intermarriage still aligns with the familiar racial hierarchy in that Americans are more comfortable with outmarriages to Whites, than to Asians, Hispanics, and especially Blacks.”

Politically expedient sexism: Rose Ferlita is running for mayor of Tampa, FL. One of her opponents is licking shots at her for being unmarried. Twist? She’s a Republican and the person behind the mailer is a Democrat. “…it’s tied to a man named Scott Maddox, a Democrat who ran (unsuccessfully) for office last year. [He’s] sending out materials that attack candidates from the right by coming up with the types of arguments they imagine will resonate with very conservative voters and thus split their vote.”

You’re not bad at math: your daughter/son/little cousin who stumped you when asking you for homework help  is just learning it very differently than you did. (Or you might actually just be bad at math.)

“I said that ten minutes ago.” Word.

Aristide returns to HaitiHow Obama’s plans for high-speed rail in Florida died. Black Brits are shut out of top universities.

G.D.

G.D.

Gene "G.D." Demby is the founder and editor of PostBourgie. In his day job, he blogs and reports on race and ethnicity for NPR's Code Switch team.
G.D.
  • Concerned Voter

    The group is based in Tampa and is run by someone who lives in Tampa. Maddox lives in Tallahassee. This group has no connections to Scott Maddox, other than it was one of the many 527 groups involved in last year’s statewide elections.

    Tampa politics sure are heating up…