Month: July 2010

by B. R. GOWANI

“Pakistani volunteers carry bodies of Pakistan Christian brothers who were shot to death as they left a court in Faisalabad, Pakistan on Monday.” PHOTO/Associated Press/The Hindu

Every time a non-Muslim or a Muslim is killed on charges of insulting Islam, Qur’an, or Muhammad, the hands of those Muslims, who are involved in these heinous acts, are strengthened; because the Sunni fanatics wants the non-Muslims and other Muslims either to leave Pakistan or get killed. On the other hand, the secular forces and State of Pakistan are weakened by that degree.

On July 19, two Christian brothers, Sajjad and pastor Rashid Emmanuel (32), were murdered outside a court in Faisalabad on charges of writing a “blasphemous” pamphlet critical of Prophet Muhammad, founder of Islam. A policeman was also critically wounded.

On July 1, over forty people, men, women, and children, were killed in bomb blasts in a famous Sufi shrine of Data Ganj Baksh in Lahore. These are two recent examples of the mindless slaughter of innocent civilians going on in Pakistan for the last few years.

Let’s say, Pakistan is emptied of all the non-Muslims and non-Sunni Muslims, then what? Are the Sunni fanatics going to be at peace? Not really. The next target would be those Sunnis who are not strict interpreters of Islam or its rituals. Once they are gotten rid of, then, the one with the most power would come up with some idiocy and issue an order: Stop shaving and start plucking the armpit hair. Of course, there will be some opposition; so then there will be more killings. The one with the absolute power are also endowed with the most unreasonableness; this one can assert is universally true. (Former US President George Bush was one example.)
Continue reading “Pakistan, NOT ISLAM, is in danger”

by DR. SUSAN BLOCK

The “Make Love Not War” bonobos have a new friend. She’s an ape like them—a brilliant, beautiful, empathetic, courageous creature on the human branch of the primate family tree. Her name is Vanessa Woods, and she has written a wonderful, ground-breaking new book called Bonobo Handshake, a must-read for anyone interested in primatology, anthropology, sex, love, war, peace or that greatest of mysteries we commonly call human nature.

Now, if you don’t know a bonobo from a banana, let me introduce you to our kissin’ cousins who swing from the trees (as well as with each other). Bonobos are a rare species of chimpanzee sometimes called “pigmy chimps,” (Latin: pan paniscus) and, like common chimps (pan troglodyte), they’re over 98% genetically similar to humans. Though they tend to be a lot hairier than us—and they don’t build houses or churches or corporate skyscrapers or Pentagons, like we do—they do look and act remarkably like us in many, often surprising ways.

Counterpunch for more

by ANNIE LEONARD

All those sudsy products like shampoos and body washes that contain sodium laureth sulfate have as a byproduct 1,4-dioxane, a known carcinogen that’s suspected to also cause kidney, nerve and respiratory problems. Unlike many other countries, the U.S. government does not limit formaldehyde, 1,4-dioxane, or most other hazardous substances in personal care products. As a result, independent lab tests found these chemicals in dozens of brands, including Johnson’s Baby Shampoo and Sesame Street Bubble Bath. The companies claim that the chemical levels aren’t large enough to worry about, but I’d prefer not to have any cancer-causing chemicals in my daughter’s shampoo — or mine.

Huffington Post for more

(Thanks to Mukul Dube)

by MAMADOU GOITA

In Africa as a whole, but particularly the western and central regions, agriculture is the primary occupation for the majority of the populations. Mostly it is practised at a rural subsistence level, by families who combine their knowledge, labour, skills and resources in order to create wealth and produce surplus. Production is, first and foremost, to meet the food needs of the family. However, if there is a surplus produced, this is then used to meet other needs. This differs from private agribusiness, where members are linked through capital (monetary contributions of the sole proprietor, or the partners).

Pambazuka for more

by A. N. SHIBLI

The history of journalism in India goes back to 1790, when an Englishman James Augustus for the first time started a newspaper ‘Bengal Gazette’ from Sedampur, a village close to Kolkata. The first Urdu newspaper was also started from West Bengal. In 1822 the Persian weekly ‘Jam-e-Jahan’ was first published in Urdu. Some times it was published in Urdu, at others in Persian and some times in both the languages. During the initial days of journalism every newspaper was a weekly or biweekly and none of them were dailies. On January 14, 1850 Munshi Harsukh Rai started the weekly ‘Kohinoor’. With a circulation of only 350 it was the largest circulated newspaper of that time. The circulation of other newspaper at that time was only 100 to 200.

Bakhabar for more

(Thanks to Asghar Vasanwala)

by LYDIA POLGREEN

MALANG, India — Buddhi Devi was 14 when she was betrothed. In India, that is not unusual: many marry young. Her intended was a boy from her village who was two years younger — that, too, was not strange. But she was also supposed to marry her future husband’s younger brother, once he was old enough.

…

Three brothers married Ms. Dasi, who bore five children.

The logistics of sharing one wife among several men are daunting. All the children, regardless of who their biological father is, call the eldest brother pitaji, or father, while the younger brothers are all called chacha, or uncle.

The New York Times for more

NATIONAL PEACE CONFERENCE
July 23–25, 2010
Crowne Plaza Hotel, Albany, New York

The conference will be televised.
We will livesteam the major sessions to the internet at,
Media Santuary.
The broadcast schedule is here: Media Sanctuary

In these troubled times, Washington’s wars and occupations rage, resulting in an ever increasing number of dead and wounded and the destruction of countries posing no threat to the U.S. Trillions are spent on seemingly endless conflicts in pursuit of profits and global domination, while trillions more are lost by working people in loss of jobs, homes, pensions, health care, and cuts to social programs and public services. The U.S. goes to war to plunder the world’s fossil fuel resources, the unrestrained use of which threatens the future of our planet.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

NOAM CHOMSKY, Internationally renowned political activist, author, and critic of U.S. foreign and domestic policies, MIT Professor Emeritus of Linguistics (via video)

DONNA DEWITT, President, South Carolina AFL-CIO; Co-Chair, South Carolina Progressive Network; Steering Committee, U.S. Labor Against the War; Administrative Body, National Assembly to End the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars and Occupations

Additional Speakers: Joel Kovel, Dahlia Wasfi, Leila Zand, Cheri Honkala, Medea Benjamin, Pardiss Kebriaei, Kathy Kelly, Michael Ferner, Kevin Martin, Michael McPhearson, Nada Khader, Larry Holmes, Michael Eisenscher, David Swanson, Glen Ford, Blanca Missé, Pam Africa, Cindy Sheehan, Fahima Vorgetts, Kathy Black, Debra Sweet, Noura Erakat, Ann Wright (partial list)

National Peace Conference for more

by MOHAMED ABDEL-MAGID

During Afghanistan’s 2009 presidential election, Hamid Karzai promised to call a jirga to encourage peace and political settlement for Afghanistan’s future. Jirga is a Pashto term for a tribal assembly of elders which makes decisions by consensus. For centuries, Afghans have used jirgas to resolve differences and tribal conflicts. In the past, Afghans organized jirgas for their own affairs that were free of foreign interference and demands. This time, the National Consultative Peace Jirga (NCPJ) that Hamid Karzai convened on June 2nd to June 4th, 2010, has been criticized as a waste of time for not following normal tribal structure and, more importantly, because the central government was influenced by foreign support.

Voices for Creative Non-Violence for more

(Thanks to Ingrid B. Mork)

by KATHERINE HARMON

With high-speed DNA sequencing, scientists can look at slight genetic differences among humans, great apes and other primates to arrive at new estimates of when different ancestral groups split.

Scientific American for more