Can Brooklyn’s Grand Army Plaza Be Car-Free? Mamdani Says Yes. The New York Times
Month: April 2026
NIZAMI ON MEN AND THEIR DESIRES
Interpretation of English translations by Michael Novakhov
Dedicated to my dear friends
Eldarchik Eldarov and Yurochka Rubashenko:
I have lost you, you slipped away through my fingers.
The pain of this loss is even more unbearable 54 years later.
I love you even more now, having realized
What I have lost: The heart of my life.
The mystery set up by men and Gods
Runs deep.
Our souls communicate.
That’s how I feel.
“Free is a man who has no desires.”
Your body is a silver cup I hold,
Your wine I thirst, your lovely wine I drink
Your beauty is Godly, Your beauty is God.
He looks at you, his creation,
And falls in love with you Himself,
Through Majnun eyes
My Soul is trapped within my body
But it runs free with you.
These chains are gold and laws,
But Love burns wild, it’s chainless
Love is just a spell,
Even as long as a thousand years,
Just one breadth
Out of Eternity.
Lover is filled
By his beloved.
Just scratch the cup a little,
And you will see
I am a silent bird in a cage,
My wings are broken.
You drove me crazy,
Sleepless, mad,
In loss of Self, and Mind,
And Reason.
Your Love
Is my Shelter:
I am free there,
Free from my pride
The secret road
I walk to you,
To your house I come,
And kiss your door
O fire of my soul,
Do not burn me,
As I embrace you
And hold you in my arms.
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What will you do when you get lonely?No one waiting by your sideYou’ve been runnin’, hidin’ much too longYou know it’s just your foolish pride
LaylaYou got me on my knees, LaylaBegging, darling please, LaylaDarling, won’t you ease my worried mind?
Tried to give you consolationWhen your old man had let you downLike a fool, I fell in love with youYou turned my whole world upside down
LaylaYou got me on my knees, LaylaBegging, darling please, LaylaDarling, won’t you ease my worried mind?
Make the best of the situation‘Fore I finally go insanePlease don’t say we’ll never find a wayTell me all my love’s in vain
LaylaGot me on my knees, LaylaI’m begging, darling please, LaylaDarling, won’t you ease my worried mind?(Yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah)
LaylaGot me on my knees, LaylaBegging, darling please, LaylaDarling, won’t you ease my worried mind?(Yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah)
LaylaGot me on my knees, LaylaBegging, darling please, LaylaDarling, won’t you ease my worried mind?
LaylaGot me on my knees, LaylaBegging, darling please, LaylaDarling, won’t you ease my worried mind?
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Eric Patrick Clapton / Jim Gordon
Layla lyrics © E P Clapton, Epc Enterprises Llp
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share.google/aimode/Fod6b8p
#SouthCaucasus
#Gay themes in the #Nizami writings
In classical Persian poetry, the concept of the “beloved” often blurred gender lines or explicitly featured male-to-male desire as a standard aesthetic and spiritual trope.
Key Contextual Themes
The Genderless “Beloved”: In the Persian language, pronouns are gender-neutral. This allows the “beloved” in Nizami’s poetry to be interpreted as either male or female. In a Sufi (mystical) context, this ambiguity often symbolizes the soul’s yearning for the Divine.
), the language used to describe beauty often draws from these same-sex poetic traditions.Homoerotic Traditions: Nizami wrote during a period where male homoeroticism was a prominent theme in Persian lyrics. While his major works focus on heterosexual romances (likeLayla and MajnunorKhosrow and Shirat
Layla and Majnun: While this is a story of heterosexual love, scholars often analyze the character of Majnun as a figure who transcends social norms. His “madness” and total devotion are sometimes compared to the “transgressive” nature of queer love in later literary critiques.
Modern Reinterpretations: Today, the Nizami Ganjavi Library at Oxford frequently hosts exhibitions on LGBTQ+ history and the “Queer Armenian Library,” bridging the poet’s legacy with contemporary queer discourse.
University of Oxford +4
If you’re interested in exploring this further, I can look into:
.Specific Sufi interpretations of the “beloved” in theKhamsa
How later poets like Hafiz or Sa’di (who were more explicit about male-to-male love) were influenced by Nizami.
The history of the Queer Armenian Library and its connection to the Nizami Ganjavi Library.Encyclopædia Iranica +4
#Gay themes in the #Nizami writings
Nizami Ganjavi is best known for his romantic epics—collectively called the Khamsa (Quintet)—his relationship with “gay themes” is typically viewed through the lens of classical
#Persian literary traditions rather than modern identity.While the 12th-century Persian poetIn classical Persian poetry, the concept of the “beloved” often blurred gender lines or explicitly featured male-to-male desire as a standard aesthetic and spiritual trope.
Key Contextual Themes
The Genderless “Beloved”: In the Persian language, pronouns are gender-neutral. This allows the “beloved” in Nizami’s poetry to be interpreted as either male or female. In a Sufi (mystical) context, this ambiguity often symbolizes the soul’s yearning for the Divine.
), the language used to describe beauty often draws from these same-sex poetic traditions.Homoerotic Traditions: Nizami wrote during a period where male homoeroticism was a prominent theme in Persian lyrics. While his major works focus on heterosexual romances (likeLayla and MajnunorKhosrow and Shirat
Layla and Majnun: While this is a story of heterosexual love, scholars often analyze the character of Majnun as a figure who transcends social norms. His “madness” and total devotion are sometimes compared to the “transgressive” nature of queer love in later literary critiques.
Modern Reinterpretations: Today, the Nizami Ganjavi Library at Oxford frequently hosts exhibitions on LGBTQ+ history and the “Queer Armenian Library,” bridging the poet’s legacy with contemporary queer discourse.
University of Oxford +4If you’re interested in exploring this further, I can look into:
.Specific Sufi interpretations of the “beloved” in theKhamsa
How later poets like Hafiz or Sa’di (who were more explicit about male-to-male love) were influenced by Nizami.
The history of the Queer Armenian Library and its connection to the Nizami Ganjavi Library.
Encyclopædia Iranica +4–
See Also:
Your beauty is Godly, Your beauty is God.
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Lieutenant General William Hartman, acting director of the National Security Agency (NSA), arrives for a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (Photographer: Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Google Searches
- Counterintelligence Reform Debate Intensifies – GS
- Counterintelligence SECURE Act
- Counterintelligence SECURE Act – AI Review
- Legislative Reform: Congress is debating the SECURE Act, a major counterintelligence reform effort
- Permissive US landscape allowing foreign spies to operate with impunity
- CIA, FBI, and Counterintelligence News Today
Gemini Chats
Based on recent reports and legislative updates, here is a summary of the ongoing debate surrounding the Counterintelligence SECURE Act and the broader U.S. intelligence landscape:
The Counterintelligence SECURE Act
The SECURE Act (Strategic Enhancement of Counterintelligence and Unifying Reform Efforts Act) is a major legislative proposal drafted as part of the House Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026.
Permissive Landscape for Foreign Spies
Proponents of the SECURE Act argue that the U.S. currently suffers from a highly permissive environment that allows foreign adversaries, particularly intelligence operatives from China and Russia, to operate with relative impunity. Reformers in Congress argue that because agencies like the CIA, FBI, NSA, and Defense Intelligence Agency operate in silos, the U.S. response to espionage is too sluggish and uncoordinated to counter modern technological and human threats effectively.
CIA, FBI, and Current Intelligence Disputes
The push for the SECURE Act has ignited one of the most significant open power struggles within the U.S. intelligence community since the post-9/11 reforms, primarily centered around ODNI Director Tulsi Gabbard and FBI Director Kash Patel.
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ODNI’s Stance: The ODNI supports the consolidation, viewing the creation of a centralized command as essential to coordinating national defense and stripping away bureaucratic hurdles that slow down intelligence fusion.
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FBI’s Opposition: The FBI vehemently opposes the legislation.
The Bureau has reportedly warned Congress that the reform would strip them of operational independence, lengthening the chain of command and risking the politicization of sensitive investigations. The FBI argues that routing counterintelligence decisions through the ODNI would severely damage national security rather than protect it.
Experts note that this public dispute highlights deeply differing visions for the future of U.S. counterintelligence: one model that is heavily centralized and coordinative, versus the traditional model that relies on decentralized, operational independence.
This footage features Tulsi Gabbard, Kash Patel, and other intelligence officials addressing Congress, offering direct insight into the leadership dynamics at the center of the current counterintelligence reform debate.
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See Also:
#News #CIA #FBI
Counterintelligence SECURE Act – AI Review https://t.co/ikjp2gvfFo
CIA, FBI, and Counterintelligence News Today – 7:46 AM 4/4/2026
AI Review: Objective, Balanced, Timely.
AI Mode: Current news involving the CIA, FBI, and counterintelligence is dominated by… pic.twitter.com/8a1ZKsBeEW— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) April 4, 2026
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