Saddam Hussein's Execution

You can watch the complete video of Saddam’s execution here. And by complete I do mean that you can watch the actual hanging.

I’m posting this because I believe that if a society allows it to happen, they should be able to watch it.

Christmas Whish List

This is a time for people to ask for presents. I don’t believe in Santa Claus but to be safe I will write him the following letter:

"Dear Santa Claus,

I don’t know if I was good this year so I don’t ask you much. Well I won’t ask you big presents like a winner lottery ticket, a house, a car, an Ipod or the new Playstation3. No, this year I just want to hear some words from some particular persons. This are the phrases that I want to hear:

From George W. Bush: “I quit!!!”
From Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: “I have just cancelled all the nuclear projects to create a nuclear bomb”
From suicide bombers: “Not today, not tomorrow, and not ever!”
From Palestine Authorities: “We will live in peace”
From Israel Authorities: “We will live in peace”
From Ben Laden: “What I did was wrong”
From all countries in the world: “We won’t break the obligations of the charter of the UN”
From the G7 Leaders: “We forgive the undeveloped countries debt”

Well, Santa Claus, for now it is what I remember (if I know anymore I will write you again).

I don’t think it is much. Do you?

Best Regards,

Stran"

[Final Note: I will take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas! I hope that everything you wish will come true!]

An help on Freedom of Speech

[Note: if you find this product important please link or send this post or advertise the content of it]

I never thought of talking on this site about a product, but I think this one can make a change on the use of Internet in countries that have censorship. On the 1st of December it was release the Psiphon software. This software is a "censorship circumvention solution that allows users to access blocked sites in countries where the Internet is censored. Psiphon turns a regular home computer into a personal, encrypted server capable of retrieving and displaying web pages anywhere.
Psiphon operates through networks of trust. There are Psiphon providers who install and administer a Psiphon server (psiphonode) in an uncensored country, and Psiphon users (psiphonites) who log in and access the server from a country that censors the Internet". (taken from here).

You can download this software for free from the Psiphon site (click here). The idea is that the Psiphon providers will have a secure URL that Psiphon users can use when navigating the web. This URL is only given by the providers to persons that they want by the process of social networking (emails, posting on blogs, etc...). Since I am not a Web software expert I urge you to go to the site to know more (they have a good explanation on their FAQ which is in English, Spanish and Chinese) .

I already downloaded it and I am currently still learning how to use it. I know that for now probably it will be easy for the countries that have censorship to single out this addresses and find who is using it (i am not completely sure about this statement) but in the future if there is a massive existence of Psiphon providers it will be eventually impossible for authorities to single out and block this URL's.

I don't know if I am being too optimistic but I really think that we can make a difference by using this software and contribute to reinforce the freedom of speech and the free use of the Web.
Sometimes a little effort can make a huge difference, I hope that this will be the case.

Poverty: what is to be done?

The Conservative press consultant Ellee Seymour, provides a good piece on what poverty is like in her neck of the woods, Norfolk, England.

As to the question of 'what is to be done'? It seems that many on the right in Britain haven't got the faintest idea. I argued that rapid and unprecedented economic growth should do the trick for the worst off in our society.

However, in the comments section, I thought it was rather worrying, that even amongst some Tories', who are normally pro-economic growth - there was a palatable air of disdain about the notion of rapid economic growth - what seems to me to be an obvious answer to poverty.

Christianophobia

When cartoons depicting Islam in an unfavourable light were published by a Danish newspaper there were calls for censorship, bomb threats, death threats and Danish embassies set on fire - as far as I recall, there was little response from the non-Muslim Danish public.

However, when a small Christian congregation tries to get a few squatters evicted from their building there's a 1000-strong protest involving clashes with the police.

TIME's Person of the Year 2006

First of all congratulations to us, net users!!!

Taken from Time (to see the complete article click here)

"(...)But look at 2006 through a different lens and you'll see another story, one that isn't about conflict or great men. It's a story about community and collaboration on a scale never seen before. It's about the cosmic compendium of knowledge Wikipedia and the million-channel people's network YouTube and the online metropolis MySpace. It's about the many wresting power from the few and helping one another for nothing and how that will not only change the world, but also change the way the world changes.

The tool that makes this possible is the World Wide Web. Not the Web that Tim Berners-Lee hacked together (15 years ago, according to Wikipedia) as a way for scientists to share research. It's not even the overhyped dotcom Web of the late 1990s. The new Web is a very different thing. It's a tool for bringing together the small contributions of millions of people and making them matter. Silicon Valley consultants call it Web 2.0, as if it were a new version of some old software. But it's really a revolution.

And we are so ready for it. We're ready to balance our diet of predigested news with raw feeds from Baghdad and Boston and Beijing. You can learn more about how Americans live just by looking at the backgrounds of YouTube videos—those rumpled bedrooms and toy-strewn basement rec rooms—than you could from 1,000 hours of network television.

And we didn't just watch, we also worked. Like crazy. We made Facebook profiles and Second Life avatars and reviewed books at Amazon and recorded podcasts. We blogged about our candidates losing and wrote songs about getting dumped. We camcordered bombing runs and built open-source software.

America loves its solitary geniuses—its Einsteins, its Edisons, its Jobses—but those lonely dreamers may have to learn to play with others. Car companies are running open design contests. Reuters is carrying blog postings alongside its regular news feed. Microsoft is working overtime to fend off user-created Linux. We're looking at an explosion of productivity and innovation, and it's just getting started, as millions of minds that would otherwise have drowned in obscurity get backhauled into the global intellectual economy.

Who are these people? Seriously, who actually sits down after a long day at work and says, I'm not going to watch Lost tonight. I'm going to turn on my computer and make a movie starring my pet iguana? I'm going to mash up 50 Cent's vocals with Queen's instrumentals? I'm going to blog about my state of mind or the state of the nation or the steak-frites at the new bistro down the street? Who has that time and that energy and that passion?

The answer is, you do. And for seizing the reins of the global media, for founding and framing the new digital democracy, for working for nothing and beating the pros at their own game, TIME's Person of the Year for 2006 is you. (...)"

The Future of European Union

Today is the final day a summit of the leaders of EU in Brussels. Many issues were debated and the most important ones were the enlargement of EU, the reform of EU and EU constitution. Of course the most mediatic topic was the Turkey's application. It was decided to slowdown this process. To the others aspiring members the message was dubious: "We understand the need to combine the strategic vision of enlargement with the capacity of integration of the European Union" said Jose Manuel Barroso, Commission President (Taken from here)

In my opinion this constant indecision about the enlargement of EU is affecting all the processes inside the EU. In the past 5 years the main focus was in integrating new countries in the Union and we totally abandon the reinforcement of the internal relations and institutions. There were "injuries" that didn't heal and there were no effort in doing that.

There is still no common voice in foreigner affairs (the Iraqi crisis was a good image of that) and most of the population of the countries inside the Union still have a negative image of the politics of the Union (the politicians are guilty for this because they used the excuse of EU rules to implement unpopular politics).

We need to have clearer goals for the Union, so for me the future of this Union passes through this definition before more countries enter it.

I am a strong Federalist supporter, can this be future?
Well, I hope so!

Zimbabwe

Middle Classes Tooling up

First Post is reporting that the middle classes are quietly arming themselves with a variety of weaponary easily available on main land europe. A Smith & Wesson being far more effective than an ASBO unquote.


Its hardly surprising, the Police are largely in effective against crime, and where as I once I would have intervened in street disturbances, there is no way that I would contemplate doing so, as the chances of getting stabbed a really quite high, and the probability of getting shot in Bristol is also quite high. CCTV has not reduced crime, merely displaced it to the suburbs.


I feel I am entitled to defend my home and family by whatever means are available, sadly the Law does not agree. If the State is failing to protect the Citizen, the Citizen is entitled to protect himself.

EU-Turkish talks in balance as crunch week begins

[Taken from Reuters by Mark John]

"BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU foreign ministers met on Monday for crucial talks on how to penalize Turkey for failing to normalize trade with Cyprus at the start of a week that could derail Ankara's troubled entry negotiations with the bloc.

EU capitals are split between those who would shed no tears if talks with the large, mainly Muslim nation collapsed, and others who say Europe must embrace a strategic partner to bridge the Western and Islamic worlds and secure a future energy hub.

Even before the meeting started, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said positions were too far apart for agreement to be reached on Monday, raising the specter of a crisis summit of the 25-nation bloc on Turkey from Thursday.

But he told German ARD television: "I am very confident that there will be an agreement at the end of this week."(...)"

ID Cards

The Telegraph is reporting a youGov poll that there is is significant opposition to the intrduction of ID cards.70% of the 50% opposed said it was on priciple. There is no logical evidence that ID cards would prevent terrorism, home grown terrorists would be entitled to one anyway, and what is man made can be replicated, as the BBC programme 'my passports and I will show'. For all the pretence of combatting terrorism, the proposed introduction of ID cards is largely seen for what it is, another attempt by government to take control over our private lives.

GUTHRUM

Intelligent Teaching

New Labour’s attitude towards the teaching of Creationism and Intelligent Design has always been a bit slippery, while they never come out in actual support of these so-called alternatives to the theory of evolution they don’t seem that eager to stand in their way either. So it comes as little surprise that they’re doing nothing to prevent the use of information packs provided by ID advocates Truth in Science in science classes.

Both the parliamentary science and technology select committee and Department for Education and Skills have declared the packs inappropriate and unscientific, but they’ve found some support with Education Secretary Alan Johnson and some teachers. They claim that teaching ‘alternatives’ to evolution is the best and most scientific way to go. And on the face of it that’s a fairly credible stance.

The problem with teaching Intelligent Design though is that it’s 10% bad science and 90% bad metaphysics. The only aspect of it that has any real claim to being scientific is the concept of Irreducible Complexity, an idea dismissed by the majority of the scientific community and the subject of not one peer-reviewed paper or article. When held up to the harsh light of day it represents about as credible a challenge to evolutionary theory as breatharianism, and as such it seems quite pointless taking up valuable teaching time to deal with it.

This isn’t to say that Darwinism should be regarded as a ‘sacred cow’. Science at GCSE level should be aimed at teaching students basic scientific principles within the context of mainstream scientific opinion. Emphasising the speculative nature of science and letting children know that a number of important theories are disputed by some is essential for them to really grasp the way science works. But teaching theories accepted only by a minority of people is a waste of time and resources, and should ideally be left for higher education. Even then it shouldn’t rely on information packs from biased organisations.

Animal Killing

I respect the Japanese culture. In many aspects they are very advanced and a very respectful society, but coming up with this video I could not be more shocked. It is not the fact of killing dolphins that shocked me, which I already knew that it was happening there. But what shocked me the most was the brutal way that they do that.

I wonder how a society that is so shy it terms of human contact (where a social kiss can be a very stressful event) can support this kind of activity!!!

Immorality and Religiosity

From Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion (in which he is quoting Sam Harris):

Sam Harris in Letter to a Christian Nation writes:

While political party affiliation in the United States is not a perfect indicator of religiosity, it is no secret that the ‘red states’ are primarily red due to the overwhelming political influence of conservative Christians. If there were a strong correlation between Christian conservatism and societal health, we might expect to see some sign of it in red-state America. We don’t. Of the twenty-five cities with the lowest rates of violent crime, 62 percent are in ‘blue’ states, and 38 percent are in ‘red’ states. Of the twenty-five most dangerous cities, 76 percent are in red states, and 24 percent are in blue states. In fact, three of the five most dangerous cities in the U.S. are in the pious state of Texas. The twelve states with the highest rates of
burglary are red. Twenty-four of the twenty-nine states with the highest rates of theft are red. Of the twenty-two states with the highest rates of murder, seventeen are red.

Dawkins notes that in the U.S. red is conservative and blue is liberal, which is the opposite of how it is in most of the world. I understand that this data may be anecdotal at best, but you can not deny at least some correlation.

This serves as yet another example of how morality does not come from religion. Examples such as the problems in the middle east and elsewhere can even serve to show that perhaps it is immorality that stems from religion.

Obviously not all religious people are immoral, and not all non-religious people are moral, but trends are trends. Why do people feel such a need for religion, even with evidence such as this?

Slavery: reparations for today's blacks is immoral

The issue of reparations for descendants of slaves, is on top of this weeks British political agenda - but, it's still not entirely self-evident as to why the British state should have to pay monies to today's blacks, for a system that was abolished long, long before any of our parents were even born (let alone my generation).

If anything, the very idea of reparation for today's black Briton’s is in the first instance, a diabolical insult. The assumption underlying reparation is that slavery still shackles the feet of today's black Briton's - this notion is rubbish. What I find most objectionable, is the fact that it's millionaire black American lawyers who are the driving force behind all much of this foolish talk.

Besides, Britain cannot seriously afford to entertain ideas about shelling out tonnes of cash to all who demand compensation for things that happened in the distant past - because, it would be only a matter of time before the descendents of Chinese opium dealers come banging on British court doors demanding millions in compensation. Followed closely behind by the Boston tea merchants, and why not South African Boer farmers?

Multi-million pound payout will not heal any division there may be in our society, but it will surely succeed in incensing a whole generation of white Briton's who could rightfully argue that all this nonsense 'is not fair'.

A simple story

Palmdale, California - USA. The day was April 12, 2005. A person lost his life. Another also lost his life, not physical but social. The full story is here.

What strokes me was how can a society condemned 13 years old Greg Harris Jr. to a 12 years of confinement in a youth detention centre. I know that a kid died because of his actions, but what does a society gain with this sentence?

Nothing done will bring back to life that person, and nothing good will be achieved with this sentence. So why? It was the question that yesterday was in my mind and didn’t go away. It was a tragic event, but not rational, not like the sentence. This sentence will kill this kid life. He will spend as much time inside as outside of the youth detention centre. His values will be gain in that youth centre, not the best place to grow, I think.
One question pops up: “Who condemns the condemner?”

And if you read the story I ask I many of you where close to be in Greg’s shoes? Do you feel like a criminal and that you should be locked away? Sometime it was only luck that separated us from Greg. The luck that we had that this little kid didn’t have.

Final note: His appeal just started. I sincerely hope that the sentence will change.

'War' on climate change? Looks just as 'bogus' as the 'war on terror'

According to Michael Meacher, the former environment minister, the British state is now apparently 'at war' over climate change, just like back 'in 1939'. The ex-minister added that 'I think we are at war over climate change and I think we [New Labour] can lead the country'. In case we didn't quite understand what Meacher was saying, he noted that global warming was a challenge to the very 'future of the human species on the planet'. Ok, message received.

Is Meacher really calling for the re-militarisation of our society, with his ideal image of WWII and wartime rationing? Even back then in 1930s, wartime rationing was only achievable by terrifying the British public into believing that Britain was about to be invaded, hence the need for militarising society and austerity measures.

More to the point, Meacher's bogus call to arms against climate change is totally unconvincing - the idea that the future of the whole of humanity somehow hangs in the balance because of climate change, is risible. This is not science speaking, Meacher's doom and gloom predictions are based on pure speculation.

Meacher once took the British government to task for its role in the bogus 'war on terror'. He bemoaned the fact that Britain had launched a full-scale war against Iraq based solely on dodgy information about WMD. Yet, Meacher's theories about the 'end of humanity' are just as 'bogus' as the original reasons why Britain went to war with Iraq. Indeed, Meacher’s theory has failed a basic test, Karl Popper's test of falsifiability. Meacher's dire warning says far more about him, than it does about the future of humanity.

WoSie Awards

Another year is about to end. Many events occurred during this year that marked our lifes. In this sense and in conformity with the spirit of this site we created the “WoSie awards”. This is an “open giving” awards which you have a major role.

The categories and respective nominations are completely free, and during this month you can send an email to mywosie2006@hotmail.com with your suggestions or leave here a comment with your proposal of categories, nominations or simply supporting an already created category and/or nominations. Your imagination will be the only limit to this Award.

In December the top 10 categories (and respective nominations) will be presented to voting, after the quality vote of members, and the Winners will be presented on 3 of January 2007.

[See some proposals on comments area]

Corruption

Recently it was turned public the 2006Corruption Perceptions Index. From the results it is obvious the link between poverty and corruption. Like Huguette Labelle said “corruption traps millions in poverty”.

Once again (like in other development index) Scandinavian countries are on top of this index (Finland is the first) as countries with less perceived corruption.

Globally industrialized countries have less perceived corruption and the poorest countries have stronger perceived corruption. In terms of evolution Algeria, Czech Republic, India, Japan, Latvia, Lebanon, Mauritius, Paraguay, Slovenia, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uruguay had a significant improvement of this index and Brazil, Cuba, Israel, Jordan, Laos, Seychelles, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia and the United States had a significant worsening of this index. In the case of USA he is on the 20th place equal to Chile and Belgium.

When discussing development and inequality between countries we sometimes forget of the internal causes of poverty. Corruption acts as a break in the development of wealth permitting people to profit from unjustly acquired wealth. An example is Kenya. Bribery costs about US $1 billion each year to theirs population, but more than 50% live on less than US $2 per day.

Britain needs a Bill of Rights

In her speech to the Royal United Services Institute, Margaret Beckett (the British Foreign Secretary) has joined her New Labour colleagues in calling upon British Muslims to lead the fight against Islamic extremism. The speech followed the well worn path of: “We know most Muslims despise these extremists, but it would be nice if they could actually tell us when they hear about a terrorist plot.” Most notably, she’s called upon them to spread the good word about life in Britain when they travel abroad to Islamic countries. Presumably in the hope that some deranged Islamist will abandon his plan to attack Britain after hearing from his brother’s friend’s aunt that really we’re not so bad.

When it comes to the Muslim community, New Labour is really trying to have its cake and eat it: repeatedly stating that we’re all in this together, then singling out Muslims as a special case. Muslims must do more to tackle extremism, we’re told. So does that mean the rest of us can carry on as we are? Yes, one of the biggest threats we face is from Muslim extremists, but there are better ways of getting the message across. Less divisive ways.

It’s the responsibility of everyone to deal with extremists - be they political, religious, or nationalists – including, as they’re part of British society, Muslims. Whether we like it or not, we are all in this together. It’s not just Muslims who come into contact with extremists, and it’s not just non-Muslims who are affected by their actions.

The debate about extremism, and how best we can deal with it, is part of a much larger debate about citizenship: What does it mean to be a British citizen. While we’ve had numerous speeches about the British “way of life”, Ministers have continually ignored the most fundamental requirement of an inclusive and democratic society: a set of rights guaranteed to every citizen. Such a democratic ‘Bill of Rights’ (unlike the one we already possess) would firmly emphasise that those it applied to were full British citizens, and provide a means of addressing grievances, should anyone feel they’ve been treated unfairly or singled out.

While talk of citizenship remains abstract it remains too elusive. We need something concrete. Maybe then we’ll be in a position to argue over how best we can tackle those who mean us harm.

Defending your ideas

Okay, why is academic freedom important? Because in order to think, in order to exercise your freedom, you need to be educated – and in order for people to be educated they need to have the freedom to consider a very wide range of ideas, to have their own preconceptions questioned, and questioned vigorously. They have to learn how to tolerate ideas that are really abhorrent to them. They need to learn the difference between ideas and actions. They need to learn that people can have very different ideas, and they can debate them without coming to blows.

You know, in our world today, one way you can stop people from coming to blows about their conflicting ideas is by teaching them how to argue, and teaching them not to be afraid of argument. There’s an important difference between being embarrassed or feeling intellectually or emotionally wounded because you’re at the losing end of an argument, and actually being physically assaulted. I think it’s incredibly important for students to learn how to argue, and to learn how to appreciate and even enjoy argument.

Wendy Kaminer on academic freedom.

Minority and Majority

"Truth always rests with the minority, and the minority is always stronger than the majority, because the minority is generally formed by those who really have an opinion, while the strength of a majority is illusory, formed by the gangs who have no opinion."

A century ago Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard said the above. So there is no reason to ignore the power of minorities. But because of the fact that minorities represent a tiny obstacle between majority and totality or total purity, they are being pushed to the edge everywhere. Even in a democratic environment all what the nationalist movements do is the inclusive categorization of human beings forcing minorities to conform or change.

Naeem Mohaiemen writes with rage towards his fellow Bangladeshis about maltreatment of the religious minorities especially Hindus. While Rama portrays how Muslims are being neglected by the Hindu majority in India.

Is that a problem of the Indian subcontinent only? Such treatments against minorities exist everywhere, visible or invisible, big or small. For an example while driving in Berlin my every trivial mistake is let known by a honk (it is treated as a social duty) by the vehicle following me. Call me cynic but I am trying to find an answer why the same mistakes by the locals are mostly ignored by the same.

Or is this how minorities think? Is it an inferiority complex? Why do majorities have to always keep in mind that minorities can be sensitive. Minorities can be tyrants also. A dissenting minority feels free only when it can impose its will on the majority: what it abominates most is the dissent of the majority.

I think the need for reconciliation and integration of minorities is vital in every society. We all need to broaden our mind and accept others as fellow human beings irrespective of their race, culture or nationality. Minorities and majorities should learn to respect each other and clear all the confusions and misconceptions between them. They should feel what actions can hurt and what actions can heal.

Naeem coins his act of conscience:

I shout at all of you with rage, because I refuse to accept a haven for me that is a nightmare for others. There is still time to stop this with our words, our actions and our bodies.

I wish we all could think like him.

Carbon rationing? Emm... No thanks

Normally whenever I think about rationing, I think about the period of instituted austerity for civilians during World War II, that didn't even end until the 1950s. The image is of people queuing up in long lines with ration books in hand to get their 'fair share' of scarce resources like food or clothing.

These days, the scarce resource seems to be energy, and environmentalists are demanding that it's time we made World War II like sacrifices for the sake of the planet. In the Newstatesman, Mark Lynas argues that it's not enough to drive less, fly less or consume less, we need to do much, much more that. Indeed, he argues that the;

"best indication of whether a person truly grasps the scale of the global climate crisis is not whether they drive a hybrid car or offset their flights, nor whether they subscribe to the Ecologist or plan to attach a wind turbine to their house. The most reliable indicator is whether they support carbon rationing".

In an era of plentiful, Lynas is openly advocating imposing harsh austerity. It hasn't even occurred to Lynas, or George Monbiot that there might be an alternative to green authoritarian carbon rationing. The author Daniel Ben-Ami points out that giant hydroelectric dams and nuclear power for example do not emit any greenhouse gas - geoengineering also offers many possibilities in the future in terms of energy. Ben-Ami also adds that carbon rationing 'would literally leave billions of people mired in poverty' - but what would environmentalists care about that? All they seemed to bothered about is the 'war against climate change', like nothing else mattered

USA Elections

Today, at 11:00 GMT (6 a.m. EST) United States will start to decide all 435 House seats, 33 Senate seats and 36 governorships. The polls start to close at 23:00 GMT (6 p.m. EST) but in some cases the results will be known pass many hours from the closure time.

While is almost sure that the Democrats will win control of the House of Representatives (last time that this happened was in 1994), the control of the Senate will be uncertain till the count of the votes.

If these previews occur then, no longer will Bush (and Republicans) have total control of Democratic Institutions in USA. Will this affect his politics, or will it make no difference at all?

Saddam

It seems a little telling that the voices who complained about the timing of the Lancet report on the Iraqi deathcount have been fairly muted about the decision to announce the execution of Saddam Hussein so close to the US Mid-Term Elections. (The Times has a cartoon of the judge about to announce the verdict when Bush pops up, noose in hand, stating: "I'm George W. Bush and I approve this message").

The trial of Saddam Hussein was supposed to mark a fresh beginning for Iraq, a symbol ogf justice to help usher in a new era of democracy. Instead, it's seemed little better than the show trials held under the rule of the former dictator: the verdict decided on Day 1, followed by a pantomine of a trial for the cameras.

Iraqi blogger Riverbend is particularly scathing of the whole sorry mess:

When All Else Fails...
… Execute the dictator. It’s that simple. When American troops are being killed by the dozen, when the country you are occupying is threatening to break up into smaller countries, when you have militias and death squads roaming the streets and you’ve put a group of Mullahs in power- execute the dictator.

Everyone expected this verdict from the very first day of the trial. There was a brief interlude when, with the first judge, it was thought that it might actually be a coherent trial where Iraqis could hear explanations and see what happened. That was soon over with the prosecution’s first false witness. Events that followed were so ridiculous; it’s difficult to believe them even now.

The sound would suddenly disappear when the defense or one of the defendants got up to speak. We would hear the witnesses but no one could see them- hidden behind a curtain, their voices were changed. People who were supposed to have been dead in the Dujail incident were found to be very alive.

Judge after judge was brought in because the ones in court were seen as too fair. They didn’t instantly condemn the defendants (even if only for the sake of the media). The piece de resistance was the final judge they brought in. His reputation vies only that of Chalabi- a well-known thief and murderer who ran away to Iran to escape not political condemnation, but his father’s wrath after he stole from the restaurant his father ran.

So we all knew the outcome upfront (Maliki was on television 24 hours before the verdict telling people not to ‘rejoice too much’). I think what surprises me right now is the utter stupidity of the current Iraqi government. The timing is ridiculous- immediately before the congressional elections? How very convenient for Bush. Iraq, today, is at its very worst since the invasion and the beginning occupation. April 2003 is looking like a honeymoon month today. Is it really the time to execute Saddam?

A number of groups have rushed to condemn it as well.

Ted Haggard Steps Down

Ted Haggard has stepped down as the president of the National Association of Evangelicals after a male prostitute in Denver claims that they had a three year long 'business' relationship. Following the downfall of Ted Haggard, aka “Art”, here’s a round up of some of his most shining moments as the leader of over 30 Million bigots.
Richard Dawkins lets Ted Haggard talk at him, from the series “The Root of all Evil”
Ted Haggard’s wikipedia page- keep checking back for updates about the latest scandal.
Ted Haggard’s personal webpage.
New Life Church webpage.
PDF of the New Life Church Press Release about Haggard putting himself on administrative leave.
OneGoodMove’s piece.
The Denver Post - Haggard Admits Some Indiscretions.
The New York Times article.

Militias kill 63 in Darfur

By Opheera McDoom at Reuters

"TINE, Sudan (Reuters) - Attacks in West Darfur have killed at least 63 people, half of them children, as rebels on Friday accused Khartoum of remobilising Arab militia after suffering two military defeats on the Sudan-Chad border.

"The government have begun mobilizing the Janjaweed widely, especially in West Darfur, because they want to clear the area and move north along the border and defeat us," said Bahr Idriss Abu Garda, a leader of the National Redemption Front (NRF).

Rebels from the NRF alliance said of the 63 dead, 33 were children. The United Nations said 27 of those were under 12 and urged the government to protect civilians.(...)"

Flag burning? Why not, it's a free country

The Guardian reported that the British police want to see the burning of flags at demonstrations in the UK outlawed. Indeed, the chairman of the Metropolitan Police Authority, Len Duvall argued that people;

"have the right to [demonstrate] but they must do so peacefully and without causing undue offence."

The Labour MP Shahid Malik also supports the police proposal; he added that these 'appear to be sensible proposals which I believe all sensible people, irrespective of religion or race, will support'.

Well, I'm sorry, but the police and Shahid Malik are talking complete and utter nonsense. For a start, the proposal is a blatant restriction on our right to free speech. I personally don't go around burning flags at demonstrations, but in a free society if other people want to do such things, why can't they?

Whether we like it or not, flag burning is a form of political speech. If the police, or anyone else for that matter finds it offensive, then that's just tough. I certainly wouldn't want to live in a society where the police determine how offensive a demonstration may be.

I militantly agree with Brendan O’Neill’s assessment of this issue, it's bad enough that free speech is under attack, on top of that, the police want to restrict our right to be offensive at demonstrations too - well, as O'Neill rightfully argued, they can just f**k right off.

Iraqi Crisis

Two years and 8 months has passed since America decided to invade Iraq and there’s still no solution to problem created by Bush’s decision.

With the last kill October ranked 4^th in the most deadly month to American troops in Iraq reaching 100 soldiers dead this month. Since the war started 2.801 US troops have died and among this ones 18% aged between 18 and 20 years old (if you increase the period to 22 years old then the percentage increases to 43%). But war has a different king of “causalities”. Approximately 10 to 15 % of US troops returning home suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and about the same percentage suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Depression and those returning go home to face a more during “war”, normal life, as you can read in this Washington Post article.

But not only are US troops suffering from this war, this war is even more dramatic to civilians. In October 2004 Lancet Journal issue a study were they estimated that 100.000 civilians were killed since the invasion and now estimates that can exceed the 600.000 civilians causalities.

With this I am not saying that we were better off with Saddam’s regime, it was a blood driven dictatorship (for example the Kurdish genocide), far from any value that I defend. But I think ,next time, before an American president (this case Bush) decides to commit a country in a personnel war he must think of the consequences of his decision. After all while people are dying in Iraq he is drinking his whiskey in the comfort of the White House.

Another mouth shutted…

Li Jianping was found guilty of incitement to subvert state power based on his articles written on the Internet and was sentenced to two years in prison. (to know more here)

Li was an Internet essayist who recently run a medical supplies business. He was also founder of Independent Federation of Shanghai Universities (which participated on 1989's Democracy Movement)

With its recent development and openness to foreigner companies we sometimes forget what China still is: a Dictatorship where basic rights are not granted, and where writers still end up in jail.

Bangladesh in turmoil

Bangladesh is going through turbulent times as the row over an interim caretaker government chief persists who will lead the country towards the upcoming parliament election in January 2007.

This unique caretaker government (CTG) system adopted in Bangladesh constitution worked in past three elections. However this time the opposition parties led by Awami League (AL) and its fourteen party alliances were protesting that the designate Chief Justice KM Hasan not to be allowed as Chief of CTG because his past involvement with the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and because of the government’s deliberate attempts to keep him in this position by extending the retirement age of the judges. They claimed that Hasan was too close the government and have accused the outgoing administration of trying to rig elections. Drishtipat group blog has details on the crisis.

On October 27, the Bangladesh government comprising of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the four party alliance ended their five year tenure. In recent times the ruling coaltion was battered by constant opposition protests crippling the country, failure to curb price hike and inflation and mishandling the power and energy sector as demand increased supply, and some dissidents within the party. Former president Badruddoza Chowdhury and a former dissident of BNP and 24 dissident active BNP members led by Oli Ahmed MP formed a new political party called Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) couple of days ago. They have accused the government of carrying out widespread corruption, alleged absence of democracy in the party and supporting the Islamic fundamentalists.

Bangladesh is passing through anxious moments as the events develop. On Saturday 28th Thousands of protesters blocked roads into the capital of Dhaka Sunday as they awaited the word on who would take his place.

Violence erupted in many places across the country as the oppositions protest continued. The protesters had stabs and oars in their hand as prescribed by their party leaders and were put in use as their rage went on when they were attacked by police or the ruling coalition supporters. Bangladesh was in turmoil as 18 persons reported killed and more than 2,000 injured in total. Shahidul News has some first hand pictures of the clashes.

Drishtipat Group blog and The Third World View have updates of the crisis and are providing backgrounds and discussions of ordinary Bangladeshis. Drishtipat urges every Bangladeshi not to be emotional with the current proceedings and try to be sane in tackling the issues. The events took a dramatic turn on 28th of December as Justice KM Hasan refused to take oath “for greater interest of the country”. This has prompted President Iajuddin to call BNP and AL to talks. Then in a surprised move the Presdent Iajudding Ahmed offered himself to be the chief adviser after AL General Secretary Abdul Jalil and his BNP counterpart Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan could not agree on any former judges to head the caretaker government.

Sheikh Hasina, chief of Awami League rejected the offer outright and urged the president to follow the constitution.

Dhaka anxiously waited today to know what decision the President takes. Nazim Farhan Chowdhury of conversation with the optimist analyzes who may be next.

The general Bangladeshis are disgusted with the political acrimony of the two major players who have divided the country rather going forward in unison.

Blog-A-Rythm proposes that BNP and AL leaders should be awarded Nobel acrimony award for turning the peaceful country into chaos in just 14 hours.

In a latest development President Iajuddin Ahmed took oath as the Caretaker government chief at 20:00 hours Bangladesh time despite strong objections by the Awami League and allies.

Rumi of Drishtipat comments: “Here is how democracy dies. Here is how BNP turns into an autocratic party. Good Bye democracy (whatever we had).”

People are contemplating that Army may soon take control to calm the situation. It need not be a coup but the president may declare state of emergency. Earlier it was predicted that Army is reluctant to get into the mess.

In the event of an emergency or martial law, the first casualty is information. The media will be shut down and internet blocked. Somewhere in, a software company and owner of the wap-internet based site Aawaj has taken a revolutionary step. Now people of Bangladesh can send news to the world via sms using their mobile phone. Drishtipat Blog has details to send information to the world if the internet is down.

The Great Fence of USA

Probably inspired on the great wall of China, George W. Bush signed the bill that will allow USA to built a 700-mile border fence along 1/3 of U.S. Border with Mexico. Nobody knows how much will it cost but the value of $1.2 Billion dollars were allocated to this project with the signature of this bill.

He expects with this fence to control the flux of illegal immigrants that go through this border. "Unfortunately, the United States has not been in complete control of its borders for decades and therefore illegal immigration has been on the rise," Bush said.

Many people criticizes this politic not only abroad but also inside the USA. One example is T.J. Bonner, head of the National Border Patrol Council which states that: "A fence will slow people down by a minute or two, but if you don't have the agents to stop them it does no good. We're not talking about some impenetrable barrier".

Well I think that T.J. Bonner is quite right, not only USA will spend billions of dollars, but also will give a bad image of itself, for a measure that ultimately will have little effect. But looking on the bright side , in a far future tourists will have another attraction to see in the USA: "The Great Fence of USA".

[Quotation taken from here at CNN]

Head of Commission for Racial Equality, is a bigot

It's bad enough that the British government have unveiled a dodgy plan, to basically treat Romanians and Bulgarians as if they were the new 'white niggers' of Europe. On top of that, the head of the Commission for Racial Equality, Trevor Phillips, thinks it's perfectly acceptable to label these migrants as 'racists' , even though he admits it's based solely on 'anecdotal evidence'.

Neil Davenport, a writer for Spiked Online recently commented that 'Phillips comments also show what a dramatic turn around there has been on the immigration debate'. He's not wrong there. In the past, it was old-fashioned racists who wanted tighter controls on immigration to keep blacks out. Today, it's anti-racists who demand stricter rules on new migrants all because they apparently want to keep racists out of Britain. The truth is, old school, and new school ignorant attitudes towards immigrants, are just bad as each other.

UPDATE: The Times (London) also thinks that Trevor isn't all that clever.

Janjawid attacks

[Because not all wars get the media coverage of Iraqi war]

Product of the Sudan’s crisis and supported by Sudanese government, Janjawid militia continues their reign of terror, attacking villages in eastern Chad. They are an extremely violent group, normally destroying entire villages on their attacks, looting everything and killing many villagers.

Here is a satellite picture taken of Bir Kedouas village in Chad before and after a Janjawid attack:

Before:

(©DigitalGlobe)

After:

(©DigitalGlobe)

“When the Janjawid arrived, I took my daughter in my arms and ran away but I was shot in the leg and had to slow down. That is when my daughter Husna was shot.”
The father of a three-year-old girl who was killed in Bir Kedouas (taken here).

(The Pictures were taken from here)

Pyongyang threatens war if S.Korea joins sanctions

At Reuters

"SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea warned South Korea on Wednesday against joining U.S.-led sanctions against Pyongyang and said it would take action after any such move by Seoul.

South Korea's participation in sanctions would be seen as a serious provocation leading to a "crisis of war" on the Korean peninsula, a North Korean spokesman for the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.(...)"

United Nations Day

October 24th is United Nations Day. It should be a day to honor the noble ambition of the international organization. Instead, today makes me contemplate the fecklessness of the UN - as rogue countries such as the United States ignore the recommendations of its councils and act unilaterally. The arrogance of the United States to take actions - let alone start wars - without the approval of the other UN member nations astounds me.
What can we expect the UN to be able to accomplish in the world - if we (as Americans) demonstrate that it can be ignored? By our actions we are showing the rest of the world how ineffectual it actually is. Shame on the US for its actions. And shame on the UN for allowing it.

Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2006

[to see the complete list click here]

Not much as change in the last positions in the Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2006.
Facts like the torture death of Turkmenistan journalist Ogulsapar Muradova, a number of Eritrean journalists imprisoned in recent past and the total control of the media from North Korean leader gave this three countries the last place in this index.

The US continues to fall (from 17th in 2002 to 53rd this year), mainly because of Bush administration use of "national security" reason to consider suspicious any journalist who question his politics. The following facts also helped this drop:

"Freelance journalist and blogger Josh Wolf was imprisoned when he refused to hand over his video archives. Sudanese cameraman Sami al-Haj, who works for the pan-Arab broadcaster Al-Jazeera, has been held without trial since June 2002 at the US military base at Guantanamo, and Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein has been held by US authorities in Iraq since April this year" (taken from here at RSF site).

Congratulations to the two new comer's at Top 20, Bolivia (16th) (being in the same place of Canada and Austria) and Bosnia-Herzegovina (19th) placed above some European Union member-state neighbours like Greece and Italy.

On top, Denmark lost its place because of the "cartoons incidents" so the in the first place is
Finland, Ireland, Iceland and the Netherlands.


["Reporters Without Borders compiled the Index by asking the 14 freedom of expression organisations that are its partners worldwide, its network of 130 correspondents, as well as journalists, researchers, jurists and human rights activists, to answer 50 questions about press freedom in their countries. The Index covers 168 nations. Others were not included for lack of data about them." (Taken from this article at RSF site)]

The freedom of dressing

Should people be entitled to dress whatever they want? If we lived in a "black and white" world then the answer should be yes. And should people be entitled to wear veils in public places? Probably the answer would be also yes. But the world is "grey" and these answers aren’t so easy.
Dress codes exists for a long time and are not new now. For instance, going to one extreme, imagine nudists. Where I come from is against the law to be naked on public places, but why shouldn’t we let people be free to wear (or in this case not wear) the clothes? And, if a teacher goes naked to school? Probably you would answer no, she can not. And why, for one simple fact that is public indecency. But why? Because in our culture (almost common to all western culture) the nudity is, in our minds, connected to sex, and in catholic cultures (and many others also) sex is indecent. Isn’t the same process happening with veils?

Straw branded a 'Christian fascist'

By David Paul, Daily Express

"Muslim demonstrators hurled insults at Jack Straw yesterday, calling him a “Christian fascist” and saying he had “declared war” on the Islamic community.
The Commons leader was jeered by furious protesters as he arrived for a surgery in his Blackburn constituency.
Protected by tight security for his visit to a community centre, Mr Straw, who wants Muslim women to remove the veil in face-to-face contacts, refused to speak to the 70 demonstrators. They included a number of women wearing veils.
Police had earlier banned a planned demonstration by 8,000 Muslims on safety grounds.
The crowd included Tasaddiq Rehman, from the Blackburn Muslim Council, who said: “Jack Straw didn’t really start a debate. He declared war against the Muslim community and then he wants a debate.
“This talk about the veil is another affront to the Muslim community. Jack Straw is a Christian fascist.
“He has actually segregated the community in the name of trying to call for Muslims to integrate.”
A group of women wearing niqab veils chanted: 'The veil is our choice and our liberation. The veil is our freedom.'"

Iran says Europe may get hurt for backing Israel

By Alireza Ronaghi at Reuters

"TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Friday Europe was stirring up hatred in the Middle East by supporting Israel and warned it "may get hurt" if anger in the region boiled over.

"You should believe that this regime (Israel) cannot last and has no more benefit to you. What benefit have you got in supporting this regime, except the hatred of the nations?" he said in a speech broadcast on state radio.

"We have advised the Europeans that the Americans are far away, but you are the neighbors of the nations in this region. We inform you that the nations are like an ocean that is welling up, and if a storm begins, the dimensions will not stay limited to Palestine, and you may get hurt."(...)"

The value of nothing

How much is the value of nothing? You could answer nothing. But I think is not quite like that. Think about it.

Imagine agricultural products, everyday you go to the market and you see a lot of agricultural products, but as you can imagine not all products are sold, so they will rotten and go to the garbage. If the purpose of fruit is to be eaten or to be made in a different plant then all those fruits were for nothing, but they cost a lot (not only money but also resources).

Imagine now CD’s. Every year, record companies produce numerous CD’s, but like vegetables and fruits not all are sold, with time they loose any value for the company so they are destroyed. If the purpose of a CD is to be listen then all those CD’s were for nothing, but they cost a lot (not only money but also resources).

Like this two examples many products go to the garbage or are destroyed and will never be used or consumed. You can say that the real value of them is nothing, well probably that is true, but it is a nothing that costs a lot.

Being British

Recent comments by a senior MP in Britain have stirred up a great deal of debate over Islamic dress, and with it has come a lot of talk about integration and Muslims becoming “more British”. But what exactly does that mean?

Over the past year or so the government has attempted to define (in order to encourage) a greater sense of “Britishness” amongst the population – yet, no matter how many lists of values and attributes they come up with, no real satisfactory definition of our national identity has been found. Too vague and it’s too weak to create a sense of community. Too specific and it proves too divisive, leaving out large sections of the country.

Part of the problem is that there often seem to be two separate concepts melded together…

1) Relationship with the state: obeying British law, using British services, voting in elections, standing for public office, etc.

2) Relationship with society: engaging in social affairs, sharing in cultural trends, etc.

It’s hard to see something like the veil as a real barrier to No 1. as extreme clothing doesn’t really affect your legal status. With one or two exceptions (passport photos for example) women can comply with the law, use public transport, and vote or stand for office while veiled.

This is the reason why the state has no business regulating something like clothing. (Unless it’s somehow dangerous to others).

However, it’s the second relationship which sees a number of problems arise.

The main reason for a lot of the unease about Muslims (and other minorities) is the perceived lack of a common frame of reference. No matter which part of the country a “native Brit” comes from, I have a fair idea of what their life is like, and what their views could be. This sense of understanding is lacking when it comes to “alien” cultures - which could explain the ease with which distrust and suspicion spring up. We’re constantly told that a clear barrier exists between the majority of this country’s Muslims and those committing terrorist atrocities in their name, but how many of us have a clear enough understanding of Islam and the Islamic world to judge that assertion properly? How many of us are in a position to judge whether the veil is oppressive or not?

(In the same way: does a lack of understanding of mainstream western culture feed the sense of a general war on Islam among Muslims?)

A sense of “solidarity” across the various religious/ethnic communities in Britain can only come through increased interaction – we need to learn more about them as they learn more about us. This has to be done in a genuine spirit of co-operation. Attempt by one group to force their ideas and values onto another will only increase the sense of separateness.

Blair and his army, marching to different tunes

The British Prime minister Tony Blair, went to extraordinary lengths last week to deny that there was any difference of opinions between him and the head of his army General Sir Richard Dannatt.

Blair tried in vein to argue (but rather unconvincingly) that, in fact, he had agreed with 'every word' that Gen Dannatt had said in the Daily Mail interview. The truth is, the generals’ comments have sent the government all out to sea, more importantly, it has exposed deep divisions and lacklustre loyalty amongst the higher ranks of the military, and the government.

Ever since the Gen Dannatt made his comments, many have hailed him as some type of 'hero'. Indeed, the Stop the War Coalition wasted no time in reprinting the army chief's remarks in their national petition, demanding that the British government withdraw from 'a war and occupation which is now opposed not only by the majority of the British public but by their own army chief'. It's as if the anti-war movement are using the military commander as some kind of pin-up poster boy for peace.

The anti-war movement, while they were falling over themselves must have forgotten that General Dannatt only wants to withdraw from Iraq because he wants those troops to fight in Afghanistan instead. In any case, who ever heard of a serving British general attending an anti-war demonstration?

Six car bombs, clashes kill 20 in Iraq's Mosul

By Ziad al-Taei from Reuters

"MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Six suicide bombers including one in a fuel truck blew themselves up near police stations and U.S. forces in the Iraqi city of Mosul on Thursday in violence that killed at least 20 people.
Another car bomb in the northern city of Kirkuk killed at least eight people and wounded 70 people in an attack aimed at an Iraqi army patrol in a crowded market area.
U.S. Major General William Caldwell said the Mosul attacks by suicide bombers in vehicles were aimed at three Iraqi police stations and two U.S. patrols in the city, which is a flashpoint of insurgent activity north of Baghdad.
Nine charred bodies lay on the debris-strewn streets after the fuel truck attack, which killed 11 people. Shortly after the explosion, insurgents fired mortar shells at another police center and clashed with police. Nine more people were killed in the violence, police said.
Caldwell declined to say whether any U.S. forces were killed in the attacks, which come a day after the U.S. military announced the deaths of 11 U.S. soldiers in one of the bloodiest days in the war for U.S. troops.(...)"

Strong International Organization Wanted

Humankind is currently looking for a Strong International Organization:

Responsibilities (more here):
To maintain international peace and security;
To develop friendly relations among nations;
To cooperate in solving international problems and in promoting respect for human rights;
To be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations.

Skills Required:
Accuracy and diligence;
A strong sense of Justice;
A forward-thinking approach to the management of world problems;
A team builder who can develop and maintain good relationships and gain the confidence of conflicting countries both within the organization and outside.

Painting the town red, sort of

Patna,India,oct 16-Authrities in eastern India are painting a crime-infested town pink in the hope that an image makeover will lift the sagging morale of residents who are fed up with the decline in law and order, officials said monday (for further info see Reuters)
Maby according to this concept we should all start to wear pink colloured shades, if it looks better maby the world becomes better ;-)

The Edukators (Die fetten jahre sind vorbei)*

Is the society system that we are living in the best system?

I don’t have a straight answer for this question, but the question itself is becoming stronger. Many people are starting to doubt that this is the best system to resolve our problems. Many issues arouse from this question – poverty, fair trading, world justice, international law, welfare distribution, security, liberty and eventually day-by-day lifestyle.

In my mind it is becoming clearer that a change will happen. We can no longer ignore the inequality in our world or in our own home country. Every 5 seconds a child dies of hunger-related problem while I happily eat my meal, or how many people have to suffer fighting for this simple right that is freedom of speech?. (to be continued…)

[*Note: Taken from a german movie with the same title which inspired this article]

Arabic bloggers

From a dutch newspaper:
In some countries bloggers are overheard or even arrested.In the article it is stated that in 2003 in Iran the first blogger gets arrested, other bloggers came in action to get him(journalist Sina Matlabi) released.2005 Bahrein owner ( Ali Abdulemam) of Bahreinonline.com gets arrested.In the summer of 2006 the Egyptian blogger Alaa Seif gets arrested and spents 45 days in jail.
In Arabic bloggers there are noticable many women that speak for womensrights/female liberation.
Popular Arabic blogs:Egypt:Http://www.manalaa.net/ (weblog of Alaa Seif)
Saudi-Arabia:Http://saudijeans.blogspot.com
Saudi-Arabia:Http://eveksa.blogspot.com (saudi-eve)
Irak: Http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com
Libanon: Http://anecdotesfromabananarepublic.blogspot.com
Palestinian arias:Http://www.bethlehemghetto.blogspot.com
Also interested in this context Book: Bagdad Burning from author Riverbend which inspired the stageplay Girl Blog

Bush Signs Law on Treatment and Interrogation of Terror Suspects

by NEDRA PICKLER From ABC

"WASHINGTON Oct 17, 2006 (AP)— President Bush has signed legislation that authorizes new standards that expedite the interrogation and prosecution of terror suspects.

Bush's plan becomes law just six weeks after he acknowledged that the CIA had been secretly interrogating suspected terrorists overseas and pressed Congress to quickly give authority to try them in military commissions.

The bill would protect detainees from blatant abuses during questioning such as rape, torture and "cruel and inhuman" treatment but does not require that any of them be granted legal counsel. Also, it specifically bars detainees from filing habeas corpus petitions challenging their detentions in federal courts.(...)"

goedendag to everybody

As most people live their live in ignorance and some who should know better as to have a fixed oppinion, i am glad to join the wall of speech openminded.If noticing i'm stubborn or fixed in my opinion try me and you'll notice i'm the opposite.Not that i go with all winds(although i like sailing :) Sofar for now, looking forward for all your input, as you can look forward to mine.
Ewout

It Happen Today in Rome

By Massimiliano Di Giorgio from Reuters

"ROME (Reuters) - A train on Rome's underground metro system rammed into the back of another at high speed on Tuesday, killing at least two people and injuring as many 50 others, several seriously.
The fire brigade said two people, including a 30-year-old woman, were pulled out of the wreckage dead and some passengers were still trapped underground.
"We are working to free people who are still trapped in the metal wreckage, our aim at the moment is to save lives," fire brigade officer Luca Cari told Reuters outside the station.
The accident occurred when one train arriving at the station at high speed crashed into the back of another that was still discharging passengers at the Piazza Vittorio underground station in the city center.
The crash occurred at 9:47 a.m. (0747 GMT), at the crowded station. Unconfirmed early reports said the driver of the second train did not stop at a red light.(...)"

Europe needs to become more secular

[First of all: thank you to the establishers of this blog for allowing me to post material here - I think they have a great idea, and it deserves to be successful]

What with all the panic over events in North Korea and the Middle East, it’s sometimes easy to overlook the real need for action closer to home - for me, the UK. In light of current tensions, one of the most important issues is how the British, and other European states relate to the various beliefs and outlooks found among their increasingly diverse populations. The argument for increased secularisation, resisted by a number of religious groups, needs to be made, strongly and repeatedly.

It’s increasingly common to see secularism portrayed as anti-religious, with talk of “Secular Fundamentalists” intent on imposing their materialistic philosophy on the rest of the, God-fearing, country. However, it’s wrong to confuse secularism with atheism (or, more accurately, anti-theism), and it’s important to realise that establishing a secular state is in almost everyone’s best interest.

Secularism, in its most basic form, is simply the idea that the everyday business of the state should be conducted on atheistic (in the sense of lacking religion, not opposing it) grounds only – government should not dictate, fund or interfere with religious matters.

In a multi-faith nation, such as the UK, it’s impossible to see how the government can maintain any other position for long, as interfering in religious matters will inevitably involve discriminating against one minority or another. The British government is currently involved in a perilous plate-spinning act, trying to keep various faiths happy through state funding and (often) token representation in government business for self-proclaimed “community leaders”. This is leading to increasing tensions.

Separation of Church(es) and State is the only democratic way forward. We need to reduce religious figures to the position of ordinary private citizens, with no more voice than the rest of us. Religious organisations should be treated no different from secular groups. And funding for purely religious activities should cease.

Government-funded “faith schools” are the most prominent example of state interference in religious matters, and the best evidence against it. Segregated schooling, on whatever lines, will ultimately prove divisive and bad for social cohesion. Educating children from different backgrounds together is the best way to create the sense of an inclusive, united society which the government seems to desperately desire. They also breach the right to freedom of religion, with the government colluding in the imposition of beliefs onto children not yet old enough to make rational choices about their life. While parental (and community pressure) in religious matters will always exist, it’s another matter altogether when the state actively encourages it.

Religious groups which benefit from state support are also in a risky position in supporting it, as, should future governments take a less favourable view of their particular beliefs, they might find themselves being heavily discriminated against in favour of other faiths. The recent commotion about the veil clearly shows the danger of the government wading into these issues.

Secularisation should put all faiths on a level playing field, and put individual choice (the keystone of democracy) in religious matters at the forefront of the state’s involvement.

Freedom of speech -sine qua non-!

What we need is dialogue to understand eachother and bring an end to the clash of civilizaitions.Actually there are no borders between the different world views of human kind but we all bounded eachother with artificial ones.Believing that internet is the most available and qualified instrument to bring people together regardless their nationality,gender,race etc. I hope that this blog will contribute to the harmonization of civilizations.Besides if we leave this crucial mission totally to the politicians,it will take plenty of time.I am very pleasant to take place in such an hamble but bright event.
lots of love
Pinar

Welcome to the Nuclear Club!!!

Welcome to this new hip club. Feel free to join in, you just have to have nuclear bombs or technology. We have different groups so you feel comfortable.

If you are big and western, then you join the group of "i have them in the name of peace".

If you are shy, no problem, you join the group "we are only developing nuclear for civil purposes". To join this last group is easy, gather some nuclear scientist, buy uranium in international market and say to the world that you are not developing a nuclear bomb but if you wanted you could.

If none of this groups interested you then you have the "i just have a nuclear bomb to defend myself".

Come and join now, we are an expanding club and in a near future you can even have the possibility of using one in a coming new war.

Note: if you join the last two groups financial and arms sanctions are part of the package...

More countries could develop nuclear bombs: IAEA

By Karin Strohecker from Reuters

"VIENNA (Reuters) - As many as 30 countries may develop the capacity to produce nuclear weapons swiftly unless more is done to tackle the spread of the technology, the head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog said on Monday.

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), issued the warning a week after North Korea said it had tested a nuclear bomb.

"We are dealing with almost as I call them virtual nuclear weapons states," ElBaradei said in an opening speech to a nuclear safeguards conference in Vienna.

He added a new approach was needed "so not to end up with nine weapons states but another 20 or 30 who have the capacity to develop nuclear weapons in a very short time span."

Five countries -- the U.S., Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom -- have formally declared their nuclear weapons and signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

The four other nations known or suspected to have an atomic bomb are India, Pakistan, Israel, and now North Korea.

ElBaradei said new challenges had emerged as the nuclear technology was available for both peaceful and non peaceful purposes.(...)"

Nuclear weapons - The Power of choice

I know that each country has the right to defend themselves, but i believe that the Nuclear choice is the worst choice of defense. A nuclear weapon has such an destructive power that if a nuclear war goes off then nobody will win. So each money (dollar, euro, pound, etc...) is a waste, because, in the end, it will not be used. It is a choice that each country has, spend their efforts in nuclear guns or spend efforts in developing themselves...

U.N. sanctions on N.Korea expected Saturday

By Evelyn Leopold from Reuters

"UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council expects to impose arms and financial sanctions on North Korea on Saturday for its reported nuclear weapons test, with U.S. intelligence pointing to confirmation that it took place.

Russia and China submitted new amendments to a U.S.- drafted U.N. resolution, which are expected to delay the vote by several hours, but U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said he was confident the resolution would be adopted on Saturday.

In Washington, a preliminary U.S. intelligence analysis has shown radioactivity in air samples collected near a suspected North Korean nuclear test site, a U.S. official said on Friday, five days after Pyongyang announced it conducted the test.(...)"

Welcome in!!!

Welcome in. The first member, besides me have now just accepted my invitation. Today is an historical day. I don't have words to express so i will simply say Thank you! And i hope that you post soon.

Today

Today i don't have any news or personal opinion to write. I am now concentrating my efforts in managing the blog. I hope that all the people that i send the invitation will accept it so that we can start reading your posts.

See you soon,

Stran

Nobel Prize Award

Congratulations to Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank.

Articule by John Acher from Reuters

"OSLO (Reuters) - Bangladeshi economist Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank he founded won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for grassroots efforts to lift millions out of poverty that earned him the nickname of "banker to the poor".

Yunus, 66, set up a new kind of bank in the 1976 to give credit to the very poorest in his native Bangladesh, particularly women, enabling them to start up small businesses without collateral.

In doing so, he invented microcredit, a system that has been copied in more than 100 nations from the United States to Uganda.

"In Bangladesh, where nothing works and there's no electricity," Yunus once said, "microcredit works like clockwork."

The Nobel committee awarded the prize to Yunus and Grameen Bank "for their efforts to create economic and social development from below," it said in its citation.

"Lasting peace cannot be achieved unless large population groups find ways in which to break out of poverty. Microcredit is one such means. Development from below also serves to advance democracy and human rights," it said.

Yunus and Grameen were surprise winners of the 10 million Swedish crown ($1.36 million) award from a field of 191 candidates. The prize will be handed out in Oslo on December 10.

"This is fantastic, unbelievable. Thank you," Yunus, whose autobiography is called "Banker to the Poor," told Norway's NRK television after the announcement. (...)"

French, Armenians and Ottomans

I don't get this relation, i just don't get it. What a waste of time, instead of building bridges they are trying to destroy it.
I don't now many things about Ottoman History, so i can't judge the fact by itself (How many people got killed, etc...). What i don't get is what happened to the freedom of speech in France, and one thing that i would like an answer is: since when politicians are historians?

Nobel Price

Congratulations To Orhan Pamuk for wining this year Nobel Prize for Literature.

Quoting Article written By Sarah Edmonds and Niklas Pollard from Reuters (complete article)

"STOCKHOLM, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Turkey's best-known novelist Orhan Pamuk, who faced trial this year for insulting his country, won the 2006 Nobel prize for Literature on Thursday in a decision some critics called politically charged.

"I am very glad and honoured. I am very pleased," the Turkish writer told Sweden's Svenska Dagbladet newspaper when asked how he felt about winning the 10 million Swedish crown prize. "I will try to recover from this shock."

The Swedish Academy declared Pamuk the winner on a day when, to Turkey's fury, the French lower house of parliament approved a bill making it a crime to deny the Armenian genocide.

In a what was seen as a test case for freedom of speech in Turkey, Pamuk was tried for insulting "Turkishness" after telling a Swiss paper last year that 1 million Armenians had died in Turkey during World War One and 30,000 Kurds had perished in recent decades.

Though the court dismissed the charges on a technicality, other writers and journalists are still being prosecuted under the article and can face a jail sentence of up to three years. (...)"