Who is Bien Pensant?

Bien Pensant is a very old, very good friend of mine who, in what is perhaps a lapse in otherwise impeccable judgment, has agreed to join forces with me on this blog. He's working in a Middle Eastern country, after a stint in North Africa; any more information I'll leave to his discretion to provide.
Suffice it to say, I'm very excited to have BP on board. Our on-again, off-again collaboration dates back to junior high school and "Mark and BP ask the Big Questions," an attempt at investigative journalism that failed to clear the high hurdles for publication in "The Purple Crayon Express", and nearly earned us suspensions to boot.
But that's another story for another day. What's important at present is that BP's on-the-scene knowledge of the Middle East is intimidating, and he's a fantastic writer. I'm elated that he's opening up The Quiet American's new Middle Eastern bureau (if I may be so bold); there's no better man for the job.