By Pratik Chougule on September 9, 2007
Finsbury Park, North London
Stepping off the subway at Finsbury Park, the change in scenery could not have been more acute. Just an hour earlier, I had been awed by the grandeur of Big Ben, towering over the British Houses of Parliament. It is the symbol of the England in our history books: a beacon of [...]
Posted in International | Tagged September 2007, Volume VI Number I
By Pratik Chougule on May 1, 2007
In a sense, democracy and the military are inherently at odds. The shouting commands of a drill sergeant to an obedient line of unified, clean-shaven soldiers hardly strike of a democratic exchange of ideas. Secrecy and strategic stealth, hallmarks of military success, stand in marked contrast to the healthy preconditions of open government and freedom [...]
Posted in National | Tagged May 2007, Volume V Number VII
By Pratik Chougule on February 1, 2007
Where are the moderates of the Islamic world? The question has befuddled Americans since the September 11 attacks. Indeed, while President Bush and other leaders of the West have fervently defended Islam as a “religion of peace,” there has been a conspicuous dearth of prominent Middle Eastern leaders openly willing to criticize radical Islam or [...]
Posted in Brown University | Tagged February 2007, Volume V Number V
By Pratik Chougule on February 1, 2007
In the November/December issue of the Brown Alumni Magazine, Lawrence Goodman in “Party Animals” attempted to dissect campus politics at Brown through a profile of Zachary Drew, President, and myself, Vice President, of the College Republicans as well as Tor Tarantola, President, and Craig Auster, Vice President of the College Democrats, respectively. In his balanced [...]
Posted in Brown University | Tagged February 2007, Volume V Number V
By Pratik Chougule on November 16, 2006
In his stirring Second Inaugural Address, President Bush vowed that it is “the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.” Troubles in the Iraq war, however, have instigated a broader [...]
Posted in International | Tagged November 2006, Thanksgiving, Volume V Number IV
By Pratik Chougule on October 20, 2006
In the inaugural lecture of the Janus Forum lecture series, “Ideology in the American Academy,” Mr. James Piereson and Professor Stanley Fish squared off in a discussion on the issue of intellectual diversity in academe. Piereson is president of the William E. Simon Foundation, a private grant-making foundation with broad charitable interests in education, religion, [...]
Posted in Brown University | Tagged October 2006, Parents’ Weekend, Volume V Number III
By Pratik Chougule on October 6, 2006
The popular perception of the Cold War lends itself to the idea that during this time innocent lives were destroyed amidst the irrational fear of Communist subversion. In this narrative, Sen. Joseph McCarthy is the main villain. Typified as a bumbling liar and rightwing opportunist, the term McCarthyism has gained acceptance in American political dialogue [...]
Posted in International | Tagged October 2006, Volume V Number II
By Pratik Chougule on September 1, 2006
On May 17, 1954, the cultural landscape of America was changed forever. The United States Supreme Court unanimously and explicitly outlawed racial segregation of public education facilities. The landmark decision placed the force of the law behind civil rights, inspiring the subsequent Civil Rights movement, which dramatically strengthened minority rights within one generation. [...]
Posted in National | Tagged September 2006, Volume V Number I
By Pratik Chougule on January 1, 2006
After three weeks of lectures devoted entirely to the main theories of international relations, my professor asked the class, “How would you categorize the Reagan Administration?” No one could provide an answer. “The Bush Administration?” Silence again.
Though scholars have written about international politics for centuries, the formal recognition of a separate discipline [...]
Posted in Brown University | Tagged January 2006, Volume IV Number I
By Pratik Chougule on January 1, 2006
PC: Thank you for agreeing to the interview. Your new book investigates the Islamic doctrine of Jihad or holy war and its impact throughout history. As a physician by profession, how did you become interested in the topic?
AB: September 11, 2001 shocked me out of the complete absorption in my career in medicine—specifically, [...]
Posted in Culture | Tagged January 2006, Volume IV Number I
