RIFLE RANGE BOY

© Manuel Strehl What is in a font, you may think. The choice of a font could be a matter of personal picking. Some may be pertinent in a formal setting (e.g. Times Roman ); other in a jovial environment (e.g. Comic Sans in a birthday party).  Ever since printing became a reality in Europe in the 15th century, blackletter typeface like Fraktur and Antiqua were the mainstay chirography. Most publications were in Latin. Over time as people become more educated, local languages developed and the seed of nationalism was planted. Reformation works of Martin Luther and collection of fairy tales of Brothers Grimm created a need for the schism between Latin and German works. Antiqua was the default script for Latin and Fraktur for German.   All through till 20th Century, Fractur typesetting continued in Germany and many Scandinavian countries. Most of the Europeans had theirs set in Antiqua. The Fraktur-Antiqua difference   persisted till 1941 when the N...

Chasing a Mirage (2008) The tragic illusion of an Islamic State Author: Tarek Fatah Islam has not been receiving a good report card of late. It needs rebranding and an exercise in an improvement of public perception. Tarek Fatah, a vocal advocate against the militancy in Islam and their return to the so-called 'glory days of Islam', is famous for spreading the idea of rational thinking when it comes to religious practices. He opposes unquestioning loyalty to the ulamas and the man-made laws in the guise of religion. Unfortunately, his voice together with the same minded intellectuals like Parvez Hoodbhoy and Hussain Haqqani who call for ijtihad (using the mind to reason) are muffled in the ever loud yells of the radical-minded bigots who are hellbent to infuse their brand of religion to the masses. Even though many disillusioned Muslim citizens from Muslim dominated countries migrate to non-Muslim countries for a better life, their umbilical cord to their old pra...