While on vacation some weeks back, Blythe and I visited the Gamble House in Pasadena, a great example of the American arts and crafts movement and featuring influence from Japanese architecture. During the docent’s tour, I was struck by her references to a principle in the Japanese aesthetic called wabi-sabi that formed a basis for the house’s design, … Continue reading Impermanent, Imperfect, Incomplete
How Are You, Christine, Really?
We have an incredibly short memory span in this country and a news cycle that is even shorter. Just three weeks ago we were mesmerized when a California professor, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, riveted the country with her testimony accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault. Her mesmerizing morning testimony was quickly eclipsed … Continue reading How Are You, Christine, Really?
Truth and Temperament
Like countless Americans, I was riveted today as I watched the Senate Judiciary Committee testimony by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Cavanaugh. While I clearly had other things to do, I found myself mesmerized by the day-long hearing because of its profound personal drama, its sky-high stakes for both the witnesses involved and … Continue reading Truth and Temperament
Pakistan Loses a Hero; I Lost a Friend
This week I received the tragic news of the death of Professor Hassan Murad, founder and chair of Pakistan's esteemed University of Management and Technology (UMT), in a fatal car accident as he returned from a conference at the Khunjrab border with China, the highest international border crossing in the world, where the roads are … Continue reading Pakistan Loses a Hero; I Lost a Friend
Tribute to Dr. Hasan Murad by Junaid Ahmad
A Tribute to Dr. Hasan Murad By Junaid Ahmad Director, Center for Global Dialogue Lahore, Pakistan A visionary has returned to his Creator, and I feel orphaned for a second time. Dr. Hasan Murad was like a father figure for me after my father, Dr. Mumtaz Ahmad, one of Dr. Murad's dearest friends, passed away … Continue reading Tribute to Dr. Hasan Murad by Junaid Ahmad