Open Thread – Brown Pundits

Ongoing | Israel-Iran Escalation | Open Thread

June 13, 2025June 16, 2025KabirGeopolitics, Middle East, Open Thread, Politics, Religion, Warescalation, Gaza war, Guardian liveblog, Iran, Iran-Israel tensions, Iranian perspective, Islamic Republic, Israel, Middle East, Middle East conflict, Middle East geopolitics, military strikes, preemptive strikes, US-Iran negotiations, war crimes, Western foreign policy, X.T.M commentary, Zionism94 Comments

Editor Note: as this is still sadly ongoing I've made this top of page.

Overnight, Israel launched unprovoked (according to them “preemptive”) strikes on Iran. Troubling times are ahead for the entire Middle Eastern region.

To lay my cards on the table: I am on Iran’s side on this issue. Though I am not a fan of the “Islamic Republic”, there is no excuse for this kind of unprovoked attack on an entire country. If Israel’s aim was to sabotage the ongoing US-Iran negotiations, it has certainly succeeded in doing so. Further, escalation with Iran will distract the international community from the ongoing war crimes occurring in Gaza.

A good resource for further information is this liveblog from The Guardian

I am curious about others’ perspectives on this issue particularly those of X.T.M due to his part-Iranian heritage.

🧵Quick Moderation Note

June 11, 2025June 11, 2025X.T.MBlog, Open Thread, PoliticsBlog, Brown Pundits comments, Comment Policy, Community guidelines, Discourse norms, free speech, India-Pakistan, moderation, Moderation policy, Online discussion, Open Thread, Open threads, Podcast, Politics, Thread managementLeave a comment

Just a heads-up for everyone:

India–Pakistan threads are totally fine when the post is about India–Pakistan, or if it’s an Open Thread. Let the sparks fly there.
But on other posts—please avoid steering every conversation back to India–Pakistan. It’s not always relevant and derails useful discussion.

I won’t be actively moderating every thread. If something is genuinely offensive or disruptive, feel free to flag it—I’ll step in only if needed. Continue reading 🧵Quick Moderation Note

Request for Calm and Civility

June 6, 2025June 7, 2025X.T.MIndia, Open Thread, Pakistan, X.T.Mcivility, commentariat, community norms, discourse culture, free speech, Indo-Pak discourse, moderation, platform standards18 Comments

Dear Punditeers,

A gentle reminder to take a breath and step back. Kabir is entitled to his views—there’s no obligation to counter every provocation point-by-point.

What’s troubling isn’t disagreement—it’s the sheer volume of rage replies. This doesn’t reflect the standard we aspire to. It’s neither civil nor intellectual. The only reason I’m stepping in is because, while I generally prefer light-touch moderation, the tone of these threads now reflects poorly on the broader community. It lowers the quality of both the commentariat and the platform.

We’ve seen this play out before—Sepia Mutiny is a cautionary tale. Let’s not replicate it.

So please: engage with ideas, not just identities. Let’s not derail into yet another endless Indo-Pak back-and-forth. We’re capable of better.

Warmly,

X.T.M

✉️ [Addendum]

On Nivedita’s query, I’ve finally re-created the Brown Pundits email account. It’s hosted on Gmail, but I’ve deliberately avoided posting the full address here to prevent spam harvesters. If you’d like to get in touch privately or share something offline, feel free to reach out via:

📧 brownpundits19 [@g]

Flame Thread Protocols: Honey Kabir

June 1, 2025June 1, 2025X.T.MBlog, Culture, Open Thread, Politics, X.T.MBrown Pundits moderation, comment culture, community norms, digital etiquette, editorial policy, flame thread, Honey vs Kabir, moderation, online discourse, public space online, tone policing80 Comments

A Note from the Editor

Flame thread warning: Honey vs. Kabir.

Last night’s open thread surged past 50 comments—most of it orbiting the now-familiar friction between the two.

Let me be clear: I’m inclined toward Kabir. He’s often overwrought, sometimes hyperbolic, but he’s a known quantity. He’s been part of this space for nearly a decade. He is a “real person.” We know how he argues, where he lands, and the limits of his provocations.

Honey is harder to read. Multiple handles. No clear background. No track record. And a rhetorical posture that feels less like engagement, more like carpet bombing—especially when it comes to Pakistan. There’s a difference between critique and hatred, and it’s usually in the tone. “Pakistanis under-endowed”—LOL, happy to disprove that.

Moderation is evolving. I no longer think of it as refereeing an online debate. I think of it like hosting a discussion in my living room. That means: Continue reading Flame Thread Protocols: Honey Kabir

Jet Lag: India, Pakistan, and the Theatre of the Air

June 1, 2025June 1, 2025X.T.MIndia, Military History, Open Thread, Pakistan, Politics, X.T.Mair dominance, Balakot fallout, Bloomberg interview, fighter jets, General Chauhan, Indian Air Force, Indo-Pak air war, jet losses, military escalation, Pakistan Air Force, South Asia conflict, Subramanian Swamy71 Comments

Since the commentariat can’t resist a good Indo-Pak exchange—especially when it involves fighter jets—here’s a fresh contribution to the theatre. Personally, I’m much more interested in Concord cafés and JD Vance’s selective memory, but one must feed the algorithmic gods. So here’s what S. Qureishi gleefully shared:

A day after Subramanian Swamy accepted 5 jets were down in a Hindi interview, Indian CDS Gen Chauhan accepts jet losses in the recent encounter to Bloomberg. What’s more he accepted that the Indian planes did not fly after May 6-7 and were grounded,

Take that as you will. Fog of war, political spin, or just belated candor—either way, the skies are louder than the silence.

As an aside, I’ve always found Pakistani commentary on India—the civilizational motherland, however estranged—to be oddly fixated. It’s like staring into a mirror with the lights off.

Anyway—comment away, and please play nice. After all, xperia2015 has author privileges and can selectively void what he likes.

Open Thread: Rajiv Gandhi, 34 Years On

May 21, 2025May 22, 2025X.T.MHistory, India, Open Thread, Politics, X.T.M1991 Indian Elections, Comment Policy, Indian National Congress, Indian Political History, LTTE Assassination, Nationalism, Nehru–Gandhi Dynasty, Open Thread, Peddapalli Rally, Politics, Prime Ministers of India, Rajiv Gandhi, South Asia in the 1990s, Tamil Nadu Politics9 Comments

On this tragic day 34 years ago, Rajiv Gandhi was brutally assassinated in Chennai. It would be timely and worthwhile to respectfully reflect on his legacy — the good, the controversial, and the unresolved.

Continue reading Open Thread: Rajiv Gandhi, 34 Years On

I have a new podcast, the Khanversation.

Open Thread – 8/27/2024 – Brown Pundits

August 27, 2024October 4, 2024Razib KhanOpen Thread7 Comments

What’s going on?

Category: Open Thread