Post Archives

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Here is an index of all posts, easy to find
  1. USAID Insights: Judicial Reform
  2. Galeeb vs ChatGPT on a scathing dissenting court decision
  3. Shane knows you can't run from violence
  5. Staging - Why or Why Not?
  6. Why is American Labor Day not May 1st like almost everyone else?
  7. Difficult Government decision-making. Its not easy being a civil servant. 
  8. USAID Insights: Thwarting Politicians. Another example of USAID's work in Kenya and a preview to my Fall 2025 book, Peace and Security.
  10. British [Museum] Audacity. We are proud of stealing from other cultures.
  11. USAID wins fight against book bans. Another tribute to a USAID 
  12. A.I. in the Bible and Qur'an. What does God say about AI?
  13. Random or Rational Runways? Airport runway numbering: is it random or rational?  
  14. America at 250! Flags, faucets, and fireworks. July 4th Special as America hits 250.
  15. The Toughest Job I Ever Loved: My Journey as a Peace Corps Volunteer in The Gambia. Guest Blogger: Naheed Vadsaria. True peace is born through humanitarian services. Her journey began with the United States Peace Corps (USPC)—the toughest job she ever loved.  This is her story. 
  16. Bonobos, Baboons, and Blue Balled Monkeys. I’ve met all three of these primates: bonobos, baboons, and the blue-balled vervet monkeys. But that’s not the whole list. I’ve also had the chance to observe all members of the great ape family—Hominidae: humans, bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans. How many have you encountered?
  17. How Many Coups Can One Person Witness in a Lifetime? I've experienced three. What about you?
  18. Africa is not a country - As an African, I am horrified at our collective ignorance about the complex continent. How much do you know about it?
  19. Meaningless land acknowledgements - You’ve probably heard them. Have you wondered about the sincerity of the speaker? I think they are meaningless and pointless. 
  20. My US military encounters with women of Djibouti - Guest Blogger: Naheed Vadsaria. Military members can immerse themselves in their host society. Naheed’s deployment would not have been complete without her engagement with Djiboutian women. Read how this opportunity gave more meaning to her deployment
  21. America Just Did The Right Thing (as I asked for in December) - On December 9, 2024, I published a post that was really focused on whether or not America would do the right thing and allow Syria to reboot. This week, I am excited and proud to acknowledge that America set off in the direction I was hoping for. 
  22. State Department slams its own Ambassador to Kenya - State Department’s own investigation led the Ambassador to resign before the report was released. Read about stolen alcohol, lowest morale ever, and violating all kinds of policies. 
  23. Driving animals to extinction: reflection on human power - I met Sudan—the world’s last male northern white rhinoceros—at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in central Kenya in 2009. 
  24. A World in Crisis: Losing Sight of the Human Bond - Guest Blogger: Sohail Chatur - The world feels like it's in crisis. We live in an age marked by deep anxiety and disorientation, where it often seems that everyone is out for themselves. The moral lessons we were taught in childhood—that kindness matters, that community is sacred, that we are all connected—now feel hopelessly idealistic, even quaint. At worst, they seem like relics of a fairy tale no one believes in anymore.
  25. Federal Workers Are People Too - Guest Blogger: Danielle Levine - I was released from the federal workforce twice in the past 2 months. How did this happen? Thoughts and musings from a federal employee who technically doesn't have a job. 
  26. Unbury and unearth history. White House, Slaves, and Easter - The White House has a dark history. Should it really be called white? And no, the inhabitants of Easter Island did not commit ecocide.
  27. Myths about composting and recycling - Everyone, even me, makes three recycling and composting mistakes. First, toss an item into the wrong container. Second, throw away money (literally) by spending more because we believe the item is “greener”. Third, misalign intent and action. 
  28. Obituary. USAID (1961-2025). An Introspection and Prediction. - Obituary with an introspection and prediction.
  29. Gandalf Advice: Pre-destination or Free Will? - “There are other forces in this world, Frodo, besides that of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the ring. In which case, you were also meant to have it, and that is an encouraging thought.” — Gandalf, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
  30. Fact vs Fiction: dissecting our news feeds - How do you distinguish fact from fiction when scrolling through a newsfeed or thumbing through a magazine?
  31. Vengeance in scriptures - God’s revelations have verses on vengeance. Are they original, altered, or something else. R
  32. Shakespeare's "All the world's a stage" - I am beginning to believe that Shakespeare’s passage is really about great empires that have risen and fallen. Think of the Mongols, Mughals, Ottomans, Japanese, Qing, Romans, and British. And America???
  33. Free Speech or Freedom from Speech? - Is retribution for free speech a form of free speech? Where do we draw the line between these logical limits on free speech and just plain irresponsible speech?
  34. Visit the City of Rajneeshpuram....in Oregon - When a controversial cult leader builds a utopian city in the Oregon desert, conflict with the locals escalates into a national scandal. …This show is….riveting, provocative, true crime, media circus, critically acclaimed, cerebral, docuseries, TV --Netflix Series description of Wild Wild Country, 2018
  35. Signs: How Should We Interpret Them? - It's been an emotional and somewhat tumultuous week for many of my readers (Feb 8, 2025). This post explores the meaning of signs, focusing on a faith perspective but prefaced with a bit of much needed humor. 
  36. Is the Establishment Clause a joke? USA is a purely Christian Nation - I finally admit that the Establishment Clause is a joke; America is really a Christian Nation. Read how the recent changes in the Syrian and American leadership overturned my perspective.
  37. Government can be inefficient and redundant - “Federal government employees promote duplication, inefficiency. They squander our tax dollars.” -- an accusation levelled at me directly, in-person, December 2024
  38. Rebels or Revolutionaries; Pirates or Privateers - History—and the labels we use to describe it—often depends on who is telling the story and what narrative they are trying to promote. From rebels to revolutionaries, pirates to privateers, or reformers to radicalists, the same actions can be framed very differently depending on perspective and intent.
  39. Don’t Boycott that Coffee Shop - Portland’s Summer of Rage, coffee shop boycotts, and university campus protests are recent examples of Americans attempting to influence a particular outcome. But were they successful? Today I offer a recent practical example of a successful boycott.
  40. Government Inefficiencies: Are Fish Farms Fishing or Farming? - There is heightened interest in the inefficiencies of the executive branch of the federal government. Today, I unravel some of these inefficiencies using a recent fish farm example. 
  41. Analyzing Bob Marley’s 'Buffalo Soldier' - In my opinion, the infamous Bob Marley, singer extraordinaire, sent us astray with this song Buffalo Soldier.  
  42. Should Muslims have a Christmas Tree? - Merry Christmas. Even to Muslims. Yes, read my blog post on why Muslims should be celebrating Christmas.
  43. The U.S. is a colonial power - Period. Read my opinion and voice your own opinion.
  44. Why Buy Life Insurance for Kids (or grandkids, nieces, nephews) - Why Buy Life Insurance for Kids (or grandkids, nieces, nephews)? I thought it was inconceivable, depressing, and pointless
  45. Consider invisible disabilities before judging others - my experience with sudden total single sided hearing loss
  46. 1992 LETTER on Palestine: Holocaust II? - my letter to the editor published by the newspaper 
  47. My experience as a juror in a medical malpractice wrongful death case - The ridiculously brilliant and impossible American civil jury system
  48. It’s Over. Now can we get to really know each other (Election night, 2024) - Breathe. It’s over. We have a new president-elect. As I reflect on the campaigns, the rhetoric, personalities, attitudes, and language, certain words linger in my mind—words that resonate with my background, interests, and beliefs.
  49. Muslims and Christians who don’t believe in God? Whatever next? - "8 percent of Christians in India do not believe in God." (Pew Research, 2021)
  50. Kill Sea lions who eat salmon - “If you’re a seal, the Ballard Locks are a great place to find a snack. Seals eat a lot of salmon as they migrate through the Locks’ fish ladder to try to reach spawning grounds on the other side. Some of those salmon are Chinook, the only food of the starving Southern Resident orcas.” -- Elis O’Neil, KUOW.org
  51. Voters want racist terms and slavery -  29% of voters opposed “removing historical racial references, such as “negroes,” “mulattoes” and “whites," from the Oregon Constitution." (Oregon Measure 14)
  52. Help your kids succeed (in their retirement) - “Many parents and advisors may not have considered establishing a child’s Roth IRA.” Brian Dobbis, Lorrdabbett.com
  53. You too can change the world - Summary and link to my 2021 book 

Popular posts

Obituary. USAID (1961-2025). An Introspection and Prediction

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I mourn USAID the way we knew it. The agency that I worked for a decade has essentially disappeared, with only a fraction of it reincarnated and subsumed into the State Department. I empathize with all my former USAID colleagues, contractors, grantees, sub-grantees, recipients, project beneficiaries, vendors, and suppliers in the United States and around the world. All of you are economically and emotionally harmed. The battle will ensue in the Courts and in the end, Congress will have no choice but to act (see my January 4 post explaining this locus of power). The next incarnation of US Foreign Assistance will be skinny, laser-focused, more intertwined with U.S. Peace and Security, and obviously A.I.-driven. Disclaimer: the views expressed in this post are solely my own, published under my first amendment rights, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Government or any of its current or former federal agencies. What Other People Say Designed by  Freepik “Aft...
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Should Muslims have a Christmas Tree?

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“Galeeb, with your background in Islamic Studies, please explain to my spouse why we, as Muslims, should not be putting up a Christmas tree and celebrating Xmas.”  What Do I Think I used to inwardly wince when I saw decorated Christmas trees in the homes of my western Muslim friends or family. Sure, to each their own—but can you explain why you are bringing a core symbol of a Christian religious holiday into your home? Do you also celebrate the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday ? Is your tree reflecting your religious beliefs, or is it driven by social, cultural, national, or capitalist norms? I am a firm believer in intentionality. Act and speak with explicit intention—understand “what” and “why” behind your actions, articulate your reasoning to yourself and others, and remain steadfast in your beliefs. Thus, when someone asked me to explain why a Christmas tree should not belong in a Muslim household, I had to pause. My gut reaction would not suffice; I needed to validate it with logic...
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My US military encounters with women of Djibouti

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  Djibouti is not a country commonly known to the average person—unless they, or someone close to them, is a United States military service member. Nestled in the Horn of Africa, this small nation left a lasting imprint on my heart when I deployed there in September 2023. A Glimpse into Djibouti A former French colony, Djibouti has a population of approximately 994,974 people. The nation is 94% Sunni Muslim, with minorities practicing Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism. Its ethnic composition includes 60% Somali, 35% Afar, and 5% other groups, such as Yemeni Arabs, French, Ethiopians, and Italians. While the Afar people speak Saho-Afar, a Cushitic language, Djibouti’s official languages are French and Arabic. As of 2024, women comprised 50.39% of the population and the men comprise 45.30%. During my deployment, I was eager to understand Djibouti’s society and culture. As a Muslim woman, deeply invested in supporting and educating women worldwide, I longed to learn about ...
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Federal Workers Are People Too

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I was released from the federal workforce twice in the past 2 months. How did this happen? Thoughts and musings from a federal employee who technically doesn't have a job. DISCLAIMER: This is the experience and views of myself alone, published under my first amendment rights. It does not reflect the beliefs or views of any one federal agency nor the United States Government as a whole.  What Other People Say " A majority (56%) say government is “almost always wasteful and inefficient,” while 46% say it often does a better job than people give it credit for"- Pew Research Center, January 7, 2025 "The employees who have so far survived the Trump administration's federal defenestration project are morose. For some, the new workload is untenable. For others, chaos reigns. Scientists have been unable to purchase mice for research, while human-tissue samples have sat on dry ice, unsent, thanks to worker layoffs. Lawyers at the Education Department are racing though a ...
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Consider invisible disabilities before judging others

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“Why is your husband rude, aloof, and anti-social? I called out to him at our community center and he ignored me”. What Do I Think?  I often feel antisocial, aloof, and alone in noisy, crowded spaces. It’s not by choice—I have a disability that makes these situations incredibly difficult. For a long time, I thought I was the only one until I discovered a Facebook group of 5,400 others with the same condition: Single-Sided Deafness (SSD) . For many of us, this condition came on suddenly and without explanation. My right ear stopped functioning between 2 and 4 a.m. on July 1, 2012. The cause? Idiopathic—medical jargon for “we have no clue.” One member of the Facebook group summarized our shared struggles perfectly: “No one can see the fact that I have no idea who is talking to me or where any sound is coming from. No one can see how hard my brain is working to make sense of what I hear. No one can see how exhausted I am.” Single-Sided Deafness often comes with a cruel two-for-one sp...
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It’s Over. Now can we get to really know each other

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Breathe. It’s over. We have a new president-elect. As I reflect on the campaigns, the rhetoric, personalities, attitudes, and language, certain words linger in my mind—words that resonate with my background, interests, and beliefs. Words like African, Indian, civil servant, immigrant, garbage, environmentalist, climate change believer, Muslim, migrant, brown, Ivy League. They’re just some of the many times I heard myself being called out during the campaign. What I Think To move this country forward, we all have to make a genuine effort to learn about, understand, and embrace the other. Why does that person think the way they do? What influences their beliefs? In what ways are we similar and different? The Qur’an, according to Muslims like myself, is the word of God as revealed to Prophet Muhammad. In Sura (Chapter) 4, Ayat (Verse) 1, God reminds us that we were all created from a single being or soul. (If you're curious, you can find several translations of this verse here , keepi...
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America Just Did The Right Thing (as I asked for in December)

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On December 9, 2024, I published this post that was really focused on whether or not America would do the right thing and allow Syria to reboot. This week, I am excited and proud to acknowledge that America set off in the direction I was hoping for. We have begun the complex process of lifting four decades of sanctions and gulf states have offered to pay off some of Syria's debt. Image designed by freepik.com What I said in December: Title: Mistakes: Can we correct, repent, offer reparations, and remember? Today I explore whether we can and do forgive past leaders for their mistakes. “ The American administration made many mistakes against other peoples. Will every American citizen, every American soldier be asked: “Why were you with them? Why were you with them?” He will respond, saying that there was an administration, and there were inherent circumstances unique to this time and place that imposed on me to be here. Administrations are making bad decisions. The American people ca...
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A World in Crisis: Losing Sight of the Human Bond

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The world feels like it's in crisis. We live in an age marked by deep anxiety and disorientation, where it often seems that everyone is out for themselves. The moral lessons we were taught in childhood—that kindness matters, that community is sacred, that we are all connected—now feel hopelessly idealistic, even quaint. At worst, they seem like relics of a fairy tale no one believes in anymore. As adults, we find ourselves in a society that doesn't seem especially caring or communal. We are measured and judged as isolated individuals—through exams we sit alone, performance reviews that magnify our personal wins and failures, and a culture where the most self-interested often rise the highest. It's as if we know, deep down, what an ideal society could look like—but it remains just out of reach, elusive in practice. A Philosopher’s Answer: Nasir Khusraw and the Universal Soul At this juncture, I’ve found unexpected solace in the writings of the 11th-century philosopher-poet N...
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Analyzing Bob Marley’s 'Buffalo Soldier'

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In my opinion, the infamous Bob Marley, singer extraordinaire, sent us astray with this song Buffalo Soldier.   “Said he was a Buffalo Soldier - Win the war for America - Buffalo Soldier, dreadlock Rasta -Fighting on arrival, fighting for survival” -- Bob Marley, Buffalo Soldier, posthumous release, 1983 What Do I Think? What is the “stench” he refers to, and why do we often overlook its devastating irony?  As with his other songs—War, Exodus, Zimbabwe, Get Up-Stand Up, and Africa Unite—Marley calls attention to the struggles of Africans, urging post-colonial unity. Buffalo Soldier, narrows down on the African American regiments of the U.S. Army. These regiments, created by Congress in 1866, served across the Western U.S., Hawaii, and even Alaska. I think Marley’s lyrics speak directly to the soldiers and their descendants, lambasting them to understand their past. "If you know your history,  Then you would know where you coming from,  Then you wouldn't have to ...
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State Department slams its own Ambassador to Kenya

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This post presents verbatim excerpts of a Department of State Office of Inspector General Inspection Report on Kenya in 2012. I did not make them up. Please visit the page https://www.stateoig.gov/reports , enter Kenya in the first field (Keyword of Phrase), select “inspection” in the Category drop down, and open the August 2012 ISP-I-12-38A report (not the 2018 report). Enjoy. The Ambassador has lost the respect and confidence of the staff to lead the mission. Of more than 80 chiefs of mission inspected in recent cycles, the Ambassador ranked last for interpersonal relations, next to last on both managerial skill and attention to morale, and third from last in his overall scores from surveys of mission members. The inspectors found no reason to question these assessments; the Ambassador’s leadership to date has been divisive and ineffective. The Ambassador has damaged the cohesion of Embassy Nairobi’s country team by underscoring differences between offices working directly with Kenya...
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