Think Forward.

"Onions are good for you" said the onion peddler 1041

Sheikh Flakho, 9 d.
(this is a follow up to my previous article "the thief of cope") Onions are great. Very versatile, easy to grow, and delicious. I like eating onions. But sometimes, I need to cook for guests that can't stand them. I might try to sneak the onions in a sauce or call the guests out on their fraudulent taste-buds. What I never do though, is try to convince them to eat my onions because they are good for their health. It's an easy trick. Appeal to authority. But whose exactly? Who is telling people that onions are good for them? Scientists? But who is paying the scientists to say that? It doesn't take much head scratching to figure out the obvious : it's the onion peddler. The field of technology is full of onion peddlers, especially those selling “the next big thing”. It doesn’t take that much nooticing to point out that the people making the most egregious predictions about the future are the ones selling the technologies of the future. Often, they are supported by the ones that can bill you to integrate it. It's easy to forget, but these onion peddlers are just selling you their very fancy onions. With classic technologies, the worst that could happen was wasting money on tech that brought little value to a business. From outside, it looked like big companies passing around their money to other big companies. They bought onions because everyone had them in their kitchen. Whether the promised benefits followed was not of much importance. The more money was wasted, the more buzzwords a CEO could cram into his TedTalk. But AI is different. It's not just about a few companies selling their bots to everyone. It's not about a CTO collecting Saas bills like pokemon gym badges to increase his tech-cred. It's not about tricking a bunch of silicon-valley investors to buy a couple of sport cars then closing down the shop. You may have heard the expression "nothing ever happens"? well this time something is actually happening: a massive devaluing of the economic worth of humans. If you thought that class struggle was a thing of the past, AI will make you look back fondly on slavery. Slaves were needed by their masters; the project of AI is precisely to make you unneeded. Someone watched that Elysium movie and thought we should shoot for that. No more upward mobility through education; there are no jobs to move upward to anymore. Or maybe no more education period. Why train you when we can just train AI instead? The trained AI doesn’t need to be better than you, it just needs to ape you. Your career prospects are already dead, you just don't know it yet. You may be tempted to rationalize why the economic machine still needs you. Fatal mistake. Rationality is a tool that the onion peddler takes out of the shed when it's time to cut down on expenses. The ones who own the economic machine, the ones who steer it, they are not rational. They are emotional, they are class-aware, they have an agenda, and they remember. They hate costs, but they don't hate them equally. You, the human, you're the worst kind of cost. All of these years that the proletariat has been bullying the bourgeois-god-kings with labor laws and fair wage demands... well, it's time for revenge. We like to think of businesses as systemic entities that follow the rules of a game described in an economics' textbook. But who writes those textbooks? Surprise, it's the onion subsidized friends of the onion peddler. So textbooks will tell you that businesses do everything in their power to maximize profit, but what they won't tell you is that they only maximize profit as far as they can control you. When you think of yourself as essential for the operations of a company, that's control you are taking from them. When you try to unionize, that's control you are taking from them. Remember, control trumps short term profit. Sure, AI might result in a degradation of the quality of the goods and services at first, but that's a price they are willing to pay to get rid of you. Because as a human, you wish for a better tomorrow. Somehow nowadays, that's too greedy. The utopia of the rich is a world without the poor. Literally. It's a hard pill to swallow, but sugar-coating requires sugar, and the sugar peddler happens to be friends with the onion peddler. Next, we'll discuss why AI cannot innovate, and why MBA suits can’t understand that.
Sheikh Flakho

Sheikh Flakho


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Closing a Year, Opening Paths ... 333

Fatima Zahra Sahli, 2 d.
Some endings mean more than just the conclusion of an academic calendar. The final session with my Royal Army students young women I’ve guided through two intense years will remain etched in my memory as a suspended moment, full of emotion, meaningful silences, and eyes that said everything. They are now being deployed across the Kingdom. Some will find themselves in remote units, far from one another, but I know that an invisible, unbreakable bond will continue to connect us. These two years weren’t easy. The demands of military training, the discipline of the institution, the academic expectations... But through it all, I made a point of keeping something alive; their humanity. Alongside knowledge, structure, and rigor, I wanted them to preserve and protect their capacity for empathy, presence, and sensitivity. On the last day, they briefly broke with military protocol. In the middle of their march, they stopped. A rare gesture. Almost forbidden. But deeply sincere. They wanted to say goodbye. To show me, in their own way, that something had mattered in our shared journey. I know they wanted to hug me. And even though they didn’t, I am certain they will now know how to offer those “hugs” differently through kind words, quiet support, and a respectful gaze to anyone in need. As I left the center, I realized something essential; to teach is often to plant a seed in soil we may never see again. But we do it with the faith that it will grow. See you next year with new students, new souls to guide.

“Sport for All”: A Shared Space for Humanity 334

Fatima Zahra Sahli, 2 d.
1 min read.
During the training I recently led for sports coordinators and facilitators, my goal wasn’t simply to transfer knowledge. I aimed for something deeper: to inspire. To encourage these men and women to wear different hats not just as instructors, but as educators, mediators, trusted figures… and most of all, as conveyors of meaning. The concept of “sport for all” goes far beyond facilities and access. It is, first and foremost, a human project. At its core lie two essential foundations: - self-acceptance, - acceptance of others. From this dual acceptance arises the possibility of truly inclusive spaces, where everyone feels legitimate to participate, to grow, and to belong. Throughout the training, I saw something rare in the eyes of the participants; a genuine interest, a hunger for understanding. They weren’t just passively absorbing models, tools, or theories. They wanted to go deeper. They wanted each concept to connect with the complex human realities they encounter every day in their communities and sport programs. This experience reminded me once again that sport reflects the human condition. It can exclude or unite. It can reinforce inequality or break it down. It can become a space of judgment or a space for healing and resilience. The individuals we train today will shape what "sport for all" becomes tomorrow. To capture the spirit of this training, I’m sharing below a short recap video that reflects both the energy and the shared humanity we experienced.
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Le ciel et la lune 462

Boucharfou, 3 d.
1 min read.
SOUVENT JE SCRUTE LE CIEL ET CE DEPUIS MON JEUNE AGE JE CONTEMPLE LA LUNE JE VOIS SI ELLE SEMI OU PLEINE JE COMPTE LES ÉTOILES JE CHERCHE CELLE DU NORD JE DEVINE MARS JE CHERCHE JUPITER JE SURVEILLE LES ÉTOILES FILANTES JE RECHERCHE LES OVNIS ET AUTRES EXTRA TERRESTRES JE REFAIS LE COMPTE DES ÉTOILES JE RECHERCHE D'AUTRES LUNES JE PASSE DES HEURES COMME CA A COMPTER ET RECOMPTER A VÉRIFIER LE NOMBRE D’ÉTOILES ET FINALEMENT JE REPLONGE DANS LA RÉALITÉ ET LE QUOTIDIEN LE TRAIN TRAIN ET QUAND LA NUIT REVIENDRA JE REGARDE MON CIEL DE NOUVEAU JE COMPTE ET RECOMPTE LES ÉTOILES JE SCRUTE LA LUNE JE LA DÉVISAGE JE LA REGARDE EN FACE BIEN EN FACE ELLE ROUGIT JE ROUGIS ELLE S’ÉCLIPSE JE SUIS SES TRACES ELLE SE COUCHE JE LA LAISSE ROUPILLER JE ME LÈVE ALORS ET JE SCRUTE LE CIEL BLEU JE DÉTESTE LE SOLEIL QUI ÉBLOUIE JE METS DES LUNETTES POINT D’ÉTOILES POINT DE LUNE SOUDAIN LE SOLEIL EST CHASSE SES RAYONS AUSSI SON ÉBLOUISSEMENT DISPARAIT ET LA LUNE SE LÈVE ET SE RELÈVE MAJESTUEUSE COMME D'HABITUDE ET EN DOUCEUR ELLE ENVOIE SES DOUX RAYONS POINT D’ÉBLOUISSEMENT ET SOUS SON CLAIR VOYONS LE CLAIR DE LUNE JE SCRUTE LE CIEL A LA RECHERCHE DE JUPITER MARS ET AUTRE NEPTUNE SANS LASSITUDE NI AMERTUME JE LA DÉVISAGE ENCORE ET ENCORE SANS REPIS JE LA FIXE ELLE ROUGIT JE ROUGIS JE COMPTE LES ÉTOILES JE COMPTE ET RECOMPTE ET JE VOIS SI LE COMPTE Y EST LA LUNE SE CACHE SOUS UN VOILE ENFIN UN NUAGE MAIS ELLE NE TARDE PAS A REPARAITRE POUR SE CACHER DE NOUVEAU JE LA FIXE ET REFIXE AVEC MON REGARD PATHÉTIQUE ELLE ROUGIT ET VIRE AU JAUNE SA COULEUR MAGNIFIQUE ET TOUTES LES AUTRES ÉTOILES EN FONT DE MÊME Dr Bouchareb Fouad Tous les droits sont protégés

John Bolton and His Controversial Op-Ed Against Morocco: Hostility with Troubled Roots... 816

Aziz Daouda, 6 d.
John Bolton, former U.S. National Security Advisor under Donald Trump, has just published an op-ed in the Washington Times, notably favorable to the Polisario thesis and thus to the Algerian position. The text recycles arguments Bolton has already put forward in the past. He notably defends the outdated idea of a self-determination referendum and accuses Morocco of obstructing the implementation of UN resolutions. It should be recalled once again that the referendum proposal, which Morocco had put forward in Nairobi, has been obsolete and abandoned by the Security Council since 2007; as for accusing Morocco of hindering the process, this is simply false in light of the UN resolutions over the past 20 years. Bolton lies, and he knows it. He is accustomed to it. How can one not think that this is clearly an attempt by this forgotten figure of history to regain relevance, a will to manipulate public opinion, but above all an intention to harm by pleasing the enemies of the Kingdom. This position strangely fits, without surprising, into the continuity of the official rhetoric of the Algerian military junta, the main supporter of the Polisario. It is a blatant alignment and rapprochement that raises questions about Bolton’s integrity. Let us just recall that Bolton was abruptly dismissed by Donald Trump in 2019, officially for strategic disagreements, but according to some observers, also due to questionable connections. Regarding the matter concerning the Kingdom, Bolton regularly frequents Algiers and collaborates with well-paid Algerian lobbyists such as David Keene, former NRA president, engaged in defending the Algerian cause in the United States. This closeness fuels suspicions of a relay role for Algerian interests, aiming to influence American policy. Nothing to be proud of for the jubilant military junta. It is used to contradiction and blunt communication turning the slightest detail into a victory. Bolton no longer counts and has no impact. In his rhetoric, Algiers pretends to ignore that the same Bolton supports the use of force against Iran, Algeria’s strategic ally. Iran, which the Algerian president will soon visit... It is also this same Bolton who pushed for the transfer of the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem... A strange supporter of the Palestinians to take one of their enemies as a reference. Bolton’s article fits into a morbid continuity. He shamelessly and unashamedly tries to discredit Moroccan policy and its growing influence on the international stage while defending separatism. He ignores the terrorist nature of the Polisario, opposing an entire faction of Republicans with Joe Wilson as spokesperson. The latter is logically pushing for a vote very soon in the U.S. Congress on a law designating the Polisario as a terrorist organization. Paradoxically, Bolton’s desperate offensive comes at a time when Morocco is achieving major diplomatic successes. The Kingdom has recently further strengthened its ties with several African countries, Kenya being the latest example. Thanks to its autonomy plan for the Sahara, widely recognized and supported by the international community, Morocco is reaping success after success. The vote on the latest Security Council resolution on the issue shows that even countries that once voted out of ideological principle against anything favorable to Morocco no longer do so, quite the opposite. Moreover, the closure of the Polisario Front’s office in Damascus illustrates Morocco’s growing influence in the Middle East. Thus, unanimity is almost reached in favor of Morocco at the Arab League today, with the obvious exception of Algeria alone, perfectly isolated, even neutralized and weakened in everyone’s eyes. At heart, Bolton’s op-ed seems intended to soothe the wounds of Algiers and the separatists, who are losing ground to Morocco’s assertion. The autonomy plan proposed by Rabat is increasingly endorsed on the international stage, while the Polisario sees its influence diminish. It is becoming inaudible and has no other escape than to cling to a few fringe extremist demonstrations here and there. This stance therefore appears as a last gasp from a retreating camp. Lacking any real leverage to influence American or global policy, Algiers and the separatists quench their thirst by drinking the words of marginal figures without substance. To better understand this posture, it must be recalled that John Bolton is a controversial figure in American politics, known for his ultra-conservative positions and aggressive foreign policy approach, often described as neoconservative. His dismissal in 2019 was marked by major disagreements with the Trump administration, but also by suspicions of dubious connections with certain foreign circles. Bolton is suspected of involvement in several controversial international operations, including organizing coups d’état, reinforcing the image of a man with brutal methods and strongly marked convictions. In sum, John Bolton’s recent op-ed in the Washington Times illustrates a persistent hostility towards the Kingdom by a fading figure; a pontiff driven by an outdated political vision. The signatory’s stance is disconnected from current geopolitical developments. It once again shows that Algiers, through its parrot media, is ready to cling to any nonsense, provided it fits its outdated narrative. Above all, it highlights the irreversible decline of the Polisario and Morocco’s growing success on the international stage.