PEER PRESSURE – Previously posted or published: # 56 December 2007
PEER PRESSURE LEADS TO SHEER PLEASURE? Don’t count on it, and don’t take it to the bank.
Peers are persons of approximately one’s own age and station or status in life. Your peers are those of your own age and/or standing in the community or society in which you live, work, and/or study, and with whom you frequently, if not always, associate. In other words, the people you normally, or usually, do things with; for example: go to parties/dances; go on picnics or trips; go camping; go to school, or to clubs; play games; converse, argue, or discuss mutual matters that concern you, or attend social gatherings (church, ceremonies, or celebrations) etc., and peer pressure is the sort of pressure these people exert on you.
Often, they’re not your actual friends or acquaintances, but friends, acquaintances, family members, relatives, or associates of your friends: My friend’s friend is my friend, my friend’s enemy is my enemy, my enemy’s enemy is my friend, and my enemy’s friend is my enemy. It may seem confusing, but it is really very simple. If you look at it well.
Some, or most, if not all, drink and/or smoke; a few, if any, don’t. Some, or most, if not all, use drugs; a few, if any, don’t. Some, or most, if not all, have boy-friends/girl-friends; a few, if any, don’t. Some, or most, if not all, indulge or participate in certain activities that may not be morally or socially right – I hope I do not have to spell them out – a few, if any, don’t; and so on, and so forth. Those who do, begin to suggest or offer to the others things they do that the others don’t; and sooner than later they begin to lure, needle, goad, coax, or pester the others; trying to get them, to do it, too.
“Light a cigarette, or take a drag from mine. Get a glass of whisky, Etc, or take a sip from mine. Do this or that, or try this or that.” Then they begin to ask questions, and make remarks like: “Who is your boy-friend or girl-friend? You mean you haven’t got one? Good God! And at your age! You don’t know what you’re missing, or how to live! You’re a coward! That’s it! What’s wrong with doing or having this or that or these or those? Who do you think you are? You think you are better than us, don’t you? We’re not good enough for you, are we? Look. Either be like us, or leave us alone. You’re either with us, or against us. Join us, or get lost!” No boy or girl likes to be or feel alone. Everyone likes to be part of, and feel they belong to, a team, or a group, or a gang. It’s the herd instinct – don’t forget that Humans are descended from APES!
And if it so transpires that she has a boyfriend with whom she is in love – and they’re both serious and intend to get married when the time and the conditions are right – he tells her: “If you truly love me, you will let me.” And even if he is decent enough – God forbid – not to say it, his peers peer at him, at first, as if he were a walking-talking dinosaur; then later, they begin to needle, goad, coax, and pester him with questions and remarks like: “Have you done it with her yet? By God, Bo! What are you, a wimp? Or perhaps you’re Gay? Listen; if you ‘don wanna’ (don’t want to) or ‘canna’ (cannot) do it, step aside and let those who ‘canna’ and ‘willa.’ She doesn’t really love you or care for you. If she did, she would.” And to her, it’s the other way round: “What’s the matter with you, Boe? Are you a Lesbian? Hey! Listen. Bo is a good-looking guy and he’s very nice, so if you don wanna or canna do it, some of us girls canna and willa.”
And this – and several other similar questions and remarks which are too many to mention here, and which all of you out there know quite well, plus a few more besides – goes on and on until the others yield, finally. And then they, too, are hooked, or caught in the trap, without any hope, or means, of ever escaping or avoiding what they have (at the time) accepted and/or have become accustomed or addicted to; and, sooner than later, they, too, become one of them; and thus, a few rotten apples in the barrel, slowly but surely, rot all the other apples; and the process continues – fresh apples never cured or converted rotten ones. It’s always the other way round.
AND, these activities and indulgence usually, if not always, lead to very serious and often dire consequences and conditions that involve a lot of trouble, pain, misery, anxiety, and frustration that require very costly treatments, highly potent drugs (exposure to more drugs), medicines, prolonged and tedious and cumbersome processes and procedures that may or may not, cure or reverse them, because these conditions – both mental and physical; I’ll leave the spiritual to those of you out there who believe in it and know it, since I don’t – are usually, if not always, incurable and irreversible.
Peer Pressure is the means and the method by which those that are caught in the traps – or quagmires of sins and iniquities – lure, coax, induce, seduce, and sometimes even intimidate and threaten and/or force others to join them.
Children and teenagers, especially, must be taught and encouraged to say “NO” to their peers – or anyone else, for that matter – whenever it is important and necessary to say “NO” before it is too late, because a great teacher and tutor (that’s yours truly, ME) once said: “It is very easy to form a habit, but very difficult, if not impossible, to break or stop it.” And: “What you hide from your children at home, they will discover outside the home.” As for your peers: “To give a glass of water to a monkey is easy; to get the glass back is something else.”
Your peers, and your friends, for that matter, are temporary, but your parents and family are permanent. Never commit yourself to, or allow yourself be swayed by, your peers or anyone – whoever they or he or she may be, otherwise you will find yourself in a position or situation in which you begin to feel you have certain duties and obligations towards them or him or her, and/or that you owe them some sort or form of loyalty and, again, that you mustn’t betray their trust; and you certainly don’t need that.
This same great teacher and tutor (that’s ME again) once said: “Know your enemies and beware of your friends; because only your friends can get close enough to you to harm you since you keep your enemies at a distance; and your real enemies are those who would hinder you, and deviate you, or lure or coerce you away from your studies, duties, and obligations and responsibilities toward yourself and your parents and your family; in other words, lead you astray. So, in fact, your enemies are your friends.”
Today, they are there, and they demand your company and participation or indulgence in their sins and iniquities – body and mind – and full attention; tomorrow, they are gone, and have left you in the lurch, so to speak. Also, and this is very important, after all is said and done, and like the great teacher and tutor said: “If they were your true friends, they would understand, and respect your feelings, and your right to choose a way of life that you like, and that suits you, and is good for you, not them.”
The Admistrator has reduced this ALBAWABA BLOGGERS SITE to......A SITE FOR BANAL AND INANE ADVERTISEMENTS
THE TIMES OF INDIA, REDIFF, and IST-AGENCIES Wednesday 3rd July 2008
Osama Bin Ladin is on his death bed! If the US Central Intelligence Agency is to be believed, the notorious international terrorist is suffering from terminal kidney disease and that he couldn’t possibly survive for more than six to nine months.
Meanwhile, according to a media source, the US has an agreement with Musharraf to launch direct attacks targetting the elusive Osama Bin Ladin in Pakistani territory without prior permission from Islamabad. Predator-Drones may strike Bin Ladin's hide-out without permission beforehand from Islamabad if the US locates him in Pakistan's rugged tribal areas.
The right by the US to launch attacks was granted by Musharraf after Pakistan had joined the war against terrorism. The US has the options to send special operations teams into Pakistan if Ladin's exact location is determined, but military officials have said that it would be the Predator, not boots on the ground, that would be dispatched to kill the Al-Qaeida leader. Predator drones could be airborne and redirected in flight in a matter of minutes.
My comments: What a waste! And what a pity! With his hundreds of millions of dollars – plus the hundreds of millions donated to his cursed cause by hate-blinded and xenophobic mad-people like him – Osama Bin Ladin could have done a lot of good for Islam and hundreds of thousands of people all over the world – especially Moslems – but he chose to do evil, and blemished the image of Islam at the same time and in the same process.
What a sorry end for a man who could have gone down in the history of Islam as a great leader – like the late Imam Musa Sadr or even Salah El Din El Ayyoubi. Now he is very ill and dying of a terminal disease – and the very country that could have saved his life or helped him now hunts him like a rabid jackal. It just goes to show how fickle Human-Apes are. When they are young and strong and in good health, they think and even believe they are Gods and that they can do anything…and live forever. I repeat: What a waste! And what a pity!
After he is dead, may God rest his soul in Hell, and may Satan attend him well in Heaven! I wonder! How many virgins will Osama Bin Ladin get when he gets there – wherever there is? After all, he is not just an ordinary Moslem. He did a lot, not for the cause of Islam, but to curse Islam, and to bring death and destruction to too many to count, and paved the way for too many to follow in his cursed footsteps.
N.B: Laden is an English word that means loaded, weighed down, or burdened; only Ladin can be a name or a surname. How the MMMMMMMMMMM-Media love to wallow in banalities, inanities, trivialities, and errors!
SYRIA AND IRAN WILL GO THEIR SEPARATE WAYS SOON – I told you so! What I see and say today, you will see and hear tomorrow
Israel & Syria to extend Turkish-sponsored talks
AFP Thursday 3rd July 2008
ANKARA: Israel and Syria have agreed to extend indirect talks under Turkish mediation. Turkey’s Foreign Minister said on Wednesday the conference, which began on Tuesday – the third set of Turkish-sponsored talks in the city – marked an initial stage in resumed diplomacy. The FM also expressed the hope that the Middle Eastern powerhouses would get round the same table for direct negotiations. The renewal of political dialogue between Israel and Syria was announced simultaneously in March after an eight-year hiatus.
Syria said, at the time, it had received Israeli commitments for a full withdrawal from the occupied Golan Heights, seized four decades ago, although Israel has been tight-lipped on the controversial issue.
Israel’s Prime Minister said Israel was willing to make major concessions in what was seen as a reference to the Golan Heights, which were captured in the 1967 Middle East War and annexed in 1981 -- never recognised by the International Community.
Israel for direct talks with Syria very soon
Reuters Thursday 3rd July 2008
Israeli Prime Minister called on Thursday for quickly starting face-to-face negotiations with Syria after a third round of indirect peace talks mediated by Turkey ended with an agreement to meet again.
DAMASCUS: Un-named French Officials said that Syria and Iran do not agree on a number of issues that may result in a rift and that Syria may reconsider its relationship with Iran. For one thing, Syria opposes the idea of a confessional Iraqi State under Iran's influence – read my postings: 7 / 8 / 50 / 92 / 122 / 135 / 137 / 138 / 161 / 162 / 170 / 268 / 269.
For another, Lebanon; Syria no longer wants any further involvement in the dire and fragile political situation in Lebanon, or to strengthen the Shiite militia and political organisation: Hezballah. In actual fact, Hezballah IS Iran in Lebanon and it is a very dangerous and serious threat to Lebanon and Israel/Palestine, and most especially to Syria – read my postings: 264 / 266 / 267 / 291.
Syria is more interested in strengthening and developing its ties with the European Union and western countries, and negotiating with Israel, and she is ready to sign an agreement with the EU, which would then become a means for Syria to normalize its relations with the EU and create political, trade, investment, social, cultural, and security links; she is also afraid that her renewed peace talks with Israel will make Damascus hostage to any conflict or confrontation between Israel and Iran.
Dear readers and fellow-Apes; no comments. Just read the above postings, and thank you
THALASSAEMIA Part I – Make the necessary effort to search for, diagnose, and treat the root-cause; otherwise………
Thalassaemia, UK, thalassemia, USA: is normally or usually an inherited autosomal recessive blood disease. The genetic defect results in a reduced rate of synthesis of one of the globin chains that make up hemoglobin, which causes the formation of abnormal hemoglobin molecules, and which in turn causes the anaemia which is the characteristic presenting symptom of thalassemia. However, thalassaemia can be caused by vector-borne diseases of which malaria is the main and worst culprit – read my postings #292, 293, 294, 295, 296, and 297 on Mosquitoes and Malaria.
Autosomal: a chromosome other than one that determines sex
Globin: the protein component of hemoglobin
Haemo or hemo: a prefix – definition: blood. Greek haima
Haemoglobin or hemoglobin: red blood cells containing iron and protein that transport oxygen to all parts of the body
Thalassemia is a quantitative problem of too few globins synthesized, whereas sickle-cell disease – another product of malaria – is a qualitative problem of synthesis of non-functioning globins. Thalassaemia usually results in under-production of normal globin proteins, often through mutations in regulatory genes that imply structural abnormalities in the globin proteins themselves. The two conditions may overlap, however, since some conditions which cause abnormalities in globin proteins – sickle-cell disease – also affect their production – thalassaemia.
Thalassaemia is a hemoglobin-pathogenic condition. It is particularly prevalent among Mediterranean peoples and this geographical association was responsible for its name: Thalassa (θάλασσα) Greek for sea, and Haema (αίμα) Greek for blood
Thalassemia can co-exist with other hemoglobin-pathogenic conditions, of which the most common are: Hemoglobin E-Thalassemia: common in Cambodia, Thailand, and parts of India; clinically similar to β-Thalassemia-major or Thalassemia-inter-media
Hemoglobin S-Thalassemia: common among African and Mediterranean populations; clinically similar to sickle-cell anaemia, with the additional feature of splenomegaly: an enlargement of the spleen, which usually lies in the left upper-quadrant of the abdomen. Splenomegaly is usually associated with an increased workload, and a response to hyper-function. It is therefore not surprising that splenomegaly is associated with any disease process that involves abnormal red blood cells being destroyed in the spleen – malaria. Other causes include congestion due to portal hypertension and infiltration by leukemia and lymphoma – all of these and more are, and can be, caused by malaria.
Hemoglobin C-Thalassaemia: common among Mediterranean and African populations
Hemoglobin C/βo-Thalassaemia: a moderately severe hemolytic anemia/splenomegaly and Hemoglobin C/β+-Thalassaemia: a milder disease
Anyone with – or suspect they have – thalassaemia should consult a properly qualified haematologist who should in turn, and with the assistance of an oncologist, make the necessary effort to search for, diagnose, and treat the root-cause; otherwise the treatments, prescriptions, blood-transfusions, surgeries, and bone-marrow transplants shall all come to naught, and the patient will die, eventually – after much pain, discomfort, misery, sleepless nights and restless days, and anxiety……Etc…to all involved and/or concerned
Thalassemia may co-exist with, or be the result of, folic acid and iron deficiency, only in Thalassemia-Minor. Folic Acid is part of the Vitamin B-Complex, and Iron is ferrous sulfate, which is administered to patients suffering from anaemia. Iron cannot be well- assimilated without Folic Acid
Thalassemia-Major Patients are given frequent blood transfusions that lead to iron overload. Iron-chelation treatments are necessary to prevent iron overload damage to the internal organs in patients with Thalassemia-Major. Because of recent advances in iron- chelation treatments, patients with Thalassemia-Major can live long lives if they have access to proper treatment. Popular chelating agents: deferoxamine and deferiprone and of the two, deferoxamine is preferred since it is associated with fewer side-effects
Chelation treatment: administering chelating agents in order to remove or get rid of an overload of heavy metals such as lead or iron from the bloodstream
The most common complaint by patients is: difficulty in complying with the intravenous chelation treatments because they are painful and inconvenient. The oral chelator Deferasirox was recently approved for use in some countries and may offer some hope
Untreated Thalassemia-Major eventually leads to death usually by heart failure therefore birth screening is very important
In recent years, bone-marrow transplant has shown promise with some patients suffering from Thalassemia-Major. Successful transplants eliminate the patients’ dependencies on blood transfusions
All Thalassemia patients are susceptible to health complications that involve the spleen, which is often enlarged and frequently removed, and gall stones. These complications are mostly prevalent in Thalassemia-Major and Inter-media patients
Thalassemia-Inter-media Patients vary a lot in their treatment needs depending on the severity of their anaemia
Contrary to popular belief, Thalassemia-Minor Patients should not avoid iron-rich foods by default. A serum ferritin test can determine what their iron levels are and guide them to further treatment if necessary. Thalassemia-Minor, although not life threatening on its own, can affect quality of life due to the effects of mild to moderate anaemia; as well as psychic disorders: panic attacks, depression, anxiety, irascibility, sometimes confused states, and mood disorders: digestive disorders: anorexia and/or bulimia; respiratory disorders: coughs, dyspnea, asthma, or intermittent asthmatic crises. In Thalassaemia-major and Inter-Media Patients, these Physical and Psychic (Mental) diseases and/or side-effects are more severe
A spectrophotometer-study showed that the antioxidant, indicaxanthin, found in beets, are more effective than either Trolox or Vitamin C. Collectively, the results demonstrate that indicaxanthin can be incorporated into the redox machinery of β-thalassaemia RBC and protect the cells from oxidation, reducing or interfering with perferryl-Hb, a reactive intermediate in the hydro-peroxide-dependent Hb degradation
Daniel: This means, eat as many beets as you can, whether in season, fresh and cooked or boiled; or out of season, in cans or jars
Haematology or hematology is the branch of biology (physiology), pathology, clinical laboratory, internal medicine, and pediatrics that is concerned with the study of blood, the blood-forming organs, and blood diseases. Haematology includes the study of etiology – the causes of various phenomena - diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and prevention of blood diseases. The laboratory work related to the study of Haematology is performed by Medical Technologists
Blood diseases affect the production of blood and its components, such as blood cells, hemoglobin, blood proteins, the mechanism of coagulation, etc
Leukaemia or leukemia: Greek leukos λευκός white, and haima αίμα blood; is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow and is characterized by an abnormal proliferation (production by multiplication) of blood cells, usually white blood cells (leukocytes). Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases. In turn, it is part of the even broader group of diseases called hematological neoplasm
Haematological neoplasm or malignancies are types of cancer that affect blood, bone- marrow, and lymph nodes. As the three are intimately connected through the immune system, a disease affecting one of the three will often affect the others as well: although lymphoma is technically a disease of the lymph nodes, it often spreads to the bone marrow, affecting the blood and occasionally producing a Para-protein
Chromosomal translocations are a common cause of these diseases, although this is uncommon in solid tumors. This leads to a different approach in diagnosis and treatment of haematological malignancies
Although hematological malignancies are a form of cancer, they are generally treated by specialists in Haematology, although in many hospitals Oncology specialists also manage or assist in these diseases
Anorexia Nervosa: eating disorder marked by an extreme fear of becoming overweight that leads to excessive dieting to the point of serious ill-health and sometimes death
Bulimia: a condition in which bouts of overeating are followed by under-eating, the use of laxatives or self-induced vomiting. It is associated with depression and anxiety about and over putting on weight
Neoplasm: Cancer (medicine), any of more than 100 diseases characterized by excessive and uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells, which invade and destroy other cells
Oncology: the branch of medicine that deals with the study and treatment of malignant tumors (cancer) and seeks to understand their origin, development, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. A medical professional who practices oncology is an oncologist. The term originates from the Greek onkos (ογκος), meaning bulk, mass, or tumor, and the suffix -ology, meaning the study of
Oncologists often coordinate the multidisciplinary care of cancer patients, which involve physiotherapy, counselling, and clinical genetics, to name but a few. On the other hand, oncologists often have to liaise with pathologists on the exact biological nature of the tumors that are being treatedOPERATION OVERLORD – 6th JUNE 1944 – Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword – Those that have memories to remember, let them do so
Remember the above names well – they are names of beaches along the Normandy coast where hundreds of thousands of especially USA, and French, Canadian, British, Australian, and other allied troops made the final sacrifice, and paid the unknown and immeasurable price for you to be where you are, say what you say, and do what you do today – Oh ye narrow-minded Arab Apes with your short-spanned attention and your memories like sieves, through which the waters of events and incidents seep through and drop down into the drains and gutters of ignorance, indifference, adamancy, asininity, and coarse and callous obtuse moronic naivety, and blind brain-washed hatred; and finally end up in the ocean of Amnesia.
I call your attention to the D-Day landings of the combined Allied forces; The US 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions; and French, Canadian, British and Australian troops on five beaches along the Normandy coast code-named Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword, and the invasion of Europe – Operation Overlord – on 6th June, 1944.
For the umpteenth and last time; the war in Iraq was no mistake.
George (not wise but no wimp) Bush is only doing what his father was supposed to do, or should have done, immediately after Operation Desert Storm. If anything, it was too little, too weak, and (almost) too late. The mistake was in NOT going in with enough troops and equipment to destroy Saddam's whole system and mechanism and to mop up any resistances, immediately after kicking him and his goons out of Kuwait.
The biggest mistake will be in the USA and Britain, and the coalition forces, tucking their tails between their legs and slinking off like jackals; leaving the Iraqis in the lurch, just as they left Lebanon in the lurch – under and at the mercy of the scorching Syrian and Iranian suns; instead of staying and finishing the job, AND, after all the sacrifices already made!
It seems to me that the rest of the world – the ARABS, especially – hate and bite and insult the HAND that helps and feeds them; and love and kiss and praise the FOOT that kicks and stomps them!
If The USA and her allies hadn’t intervened in World War II and paid the required price in troops and equipment – in blood, guts, lives, limbs, sweat, tears, and resources – all of Europe and the rest of the world, especially the Arabs, would be humming entirely different tunes and singing entirely different songs today – tunes and songs that would have made THE NEGRO SPIRITUALS AND ALL THE DIRGES ever written or composed and sung in every language or dialect at every funeral or solemn ceremony; past, present, and future; sound like the Rhumba, the Cha-Cha-Cha, the Samba, the Mambo, the Lambada, and the Hottest Arabic Belly-Dance anyone could imagine!
After World War II, the USA did not take over Germany and all her conquered territories or countries. She did not take over Japan, either – even after her sneaky and cowardly attack on Pearl Harbour – the Allies freed the conquered territories and countries, gave Germany back to Germany, and Japan back to Japan; after they had surrendered and signed a peace treaty and/or non-aggression agreement or pact!
At the time, The USA had the support of all the allied countries and the rest of the world, including all the Arab countries, and could have done whatever she wanted to do, and yet, she did only what she did; she gave everything back to their rightful owners, with no strings attached, except NO MORE WARS!
Also, if it hadn’t been for The USA and her allies and the coalition forces, Saddam would have annexed Kuwait, and gone on to take Saudi-Arabia and one or two other Arab states. Perhaps there is a Kuwaiti citizen among the readers out there who could, or might, tell us how Saddam’s army – goons – ran amok in Kuwait City and all over Kuwait – looting, robbing, and stealing anything and everything that could be lifted and carried off, and destroying or damaging anything and everything that couldn’t; and killing or beating up and/or raping everyone in sight!
I know not a few Kuwaitis who, if asked, would say: “GOD BLESS AND KEEP AMERICA!”
I cannot decide whether to be amused or amazed or whether to laugh or cry at the way some people – too many of them, if you ask me – behave like obtuse ostriches by burying their heads in the sands of not their inability to see or hear – they are definitely not blind or deaf – but their downright refusal and reluctance to see or hear or face facts!
AND! The facts are: no army could possibly liberate any country without first invading it ONE CANNOT LIBERATE A COUNTRY FROM ITS OPRESSORS AND SUPPRESSORS UNTIL AND UNLESS ONE INVADES THAT COUNTRY FIRST; IN ORDER TO ROOT AND DRIVE THEM OUT!
What did they expect – the obtuse ostriches – The USA and her allies and the coalition forces to do; line up at the borders to Kuwait or Iraq or Afghanistan and yell: “HEY; YOU IN THERE! WE’RE HERE, SEE? SO GET OUT OF THERE?”
HOW OBTUSE CAN SOME – TOO MANY – PEOPLE BE! BY GOD!IRAQ TO SUE COMPANIES/INDIVIDUALS FOR UN OIL-FOR-FOOD SCAMS – The Kofi Annan and the UN Brontosaurus Shits will soon hit the fans – have your umbrellas close at hand, or be ready to run for cover…BY GOD!
By Agence France Presse (AFP) via The Daily Star Monday 30th June 2008
BAGHDAD: Iraq said on Sunday that it planned to file lawsuits against a group of companies and individuals in US courts over their alleged role in the UN OIL-FOR-FOOD PROG during Saddam Hussein's reign.
An Iraqi Government spokesman, Ali Al-Dabbagh, said Baghdad was taking the step to hold all those who benefited from the scams accountable for their actions. The oil-for-food programme was subject to huge financial scandals by companies and others who conspired with the late un-beloved and un-lamented Saddam Hussein to embezzle large sums of money through kickbacks, inflated prices, and the sale, purchase, and supply of shoddy goods. However, Dabbagh did not name any companies or individuals against whom the legal action was planned – but since the oil-for-food programme ran for 8 years (from 1996 until 2003) – when US-led forces invaded and liberated Iraq – we can look forward to seeing, reading, and hearing a lot of interesting names of companies and individuals. I am willing and prepared to bet a bent buffalo nickel dipped in shit that Kofi Annan and his son will be the first two on the list.
Whether the rest of you out there like it and accept it or not, the US and the coalition forces invaded and liberated Iraq – no armies could possibly liberate any country without first invading it. I call your attention – albeit weak and short-spanned (only the illiterate, ignorant, and un-enlightened Apes among you) – to Operation Overlord on 6th June 1944 when the USA and her allies invaded Europe to liberate Europe from Adolph Hitler’s Nazi Heels.
Kindly read my postings: 28 / 29 / 200 / 204 / 206 / 207
AFP via Yahoo! News Alerts Tuesday 1st July 2008
TEHERAN: Iran's Judiciary, public and revolutionary courts, on Tuesday ordered the arrest of Mohammad Javad Haghshenas, the director of a leading reformist newspaper, Etemad Melli, on charges of spreading lies and publishing an insulting article attacking President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for his remarks on the hidden Shiite Imam Mahdi.
The insulting article was written by mid-ranking cleric Rasoul Montajab-Nia who listed several comments attributed to Ahmadinejad on the twelfth imam, known as the Mahdi, who Shiites believe disappeared more than a thousand years ago and will return one day to usher in a new era of peace and harmony. Ahmadinejad and his advisors have frequently said that his government is managed by the imam. Such fictitious and ridiculous rumours weaken the people's faith and lead to ridicule of Shiite Islam. Ahmadinejad has always been a devotee of the Mahdi, and he has already come under fire by clerics over his remarks. Ahmadinejad also raised eyebrows when he said he felt surrounded by a mystical aurora when he gave his first speech to the UN General Assembly in New York in 2005.
Earlier this year, Iran's former top nuclear negotiator Hassan Rowhani complained that superstition was growing in the country and that people were even putting out food for the Mahdi in case he returned that very night.
The Etemad Melli party is headed by influential reformist cleric Mehdi Karroubi, who was Iran's parliament speaker from 2000 to 2004 and a rival of Ahmadinejad’s in the 2005 presidential election.
Do such ridiculous remarks justify the government's mismanagement in the face of the people's discontent and complaints over inflation and the country’s sorry state – with hundreds of thousands of jobless aimless hopeless Iranians roaming the streets of Teheran and hundreds of other cities……? Read my postings: 50 / 122 / 164 / 174 / 216 / 262 – in that order, if you please.
DONE-DEAL for New Lebanese government DONE IN by Michu Aouu: bickering, hassling, haggling, and jitterbug-dancing
Two sides blame each other for latest breakdown
The Daily Star Staff Monday 30th June 2008
BEIRUT: Rival Lebanese factions have reportedly failed to reach a deal on the distribution of portfolios in the new cabinet following reports of a possible rapprochement between Prime Minister-designate, Fouad Siniora, and Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader MP (Major Puppet) Michel Aoun that would eventually lead to the formation of a new government.
But the deal has reportedly stumbled over Aoun's insistence on adding the Public Works and Transportation Portfolios to the package that had reportedly been offered to him, and which included the Deputy-Premier’s Post, the Telecommunications Ministry, and three other portfolios.
Meanwhile, Future Movement MP, Ammar Houri, said on Sunday that Siniora and President Michel Sleiman were close to making a decision to go ahead with the formation of a new cabinet irrespective of whether Aoun agrees to the distribution of government portfolios.
The Doha Hoo-hah Deal, which ended an 18-month political crisis – but started another even worse crisis – in the country, made it a condition that no members of rival factions could resign after the formation of a cabinet and made it a condition that no cabinet could be formed.
Aoun's performance with respect to the formation of the new cabinet – his insistence on, and persistence in, blocking the formation of a new cabinet indicated that he was not serious about joining the government, and that he preferred to approach the next elections or parliamentary polls while still in the ranks of the opposition.
FPM Policy-maker, Nabil Nicholas, said on Sunday that talking about moving ahead with forming a new cabinet irrespective of whether the opposition agrees to the distribution of portfolios or not proves that Siniora was still operating with the same old mentality.
Earlier on Sunday, senior FPM official Gibran Bassil told An-Nahar that Aoun was no longer ready to give up his demand of getting a sovereign portfolio after Siniora had refused to include the Public Works and Transportation portfolios in the package.
Meanwhile, in an interview published Sunday in the Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper, Arab League chief Amr Moussa warned that Lebanon was nearing a dangerous red line in its failure to form a new unity government under the deal struck in Doha more than five weeks ago. Nearing indeed! Lebanon has already crossed the Red Line and is now headed for the end of the line.
These Arabs are really an amusing and amazing lot. They stipulated each Monkey-Side’s share, instead of also stipulating the portfolios or ministries, and let them go – just like that – knowing fully well that they would never agree on, or to, anything. It’s obvious. If they could or would agree to or on anything, they wouldn’t be there.
For example, they could have stipulated the shares and the portfolios or ministries at the same time and at the same table: This Monkey-side gets eleven portfolios or ministries: Deputy Premier, Telecommunications, Etc, Etc. This Monkey-side gets 15 portfolios or ministries: A, B, C, D, Etc, Etc. And the President gets three portfolios or ministries: A, B, and C. Now, each Monkey sign, or put their thumb-marks – here, along the dotted line. Now, go home and DO IT! And let’s have no more chatter and gibberish! BUT! That would have been an insult to the Arab Mentality.
I am Lebanese, therefore I am Arab – I suppose – but I have managed to veer off the herd and moved to the top of a small hill, where I now sit or stand and watch them as they gallop, fast and furiously, on into the distance. They don’t really know where they are headed but they are all sure of it because they follow the leader – the individual – and HE KNOWS! The foremost follow the Lead-Jackass and the rest follow the herd instinct. Little do they all know or realise that, that Lead-Jackass also follows his nose which follows his instincts. I ASK YOU!
Kindly read my following postings: 40 / 49 / 191 / 290 / and 299The Qatif Girl Rape Case Arabic: قضية اغتصاب فتاة القطيف was a much-publicized gang-rape trial in which many facts were covered and after which the victims was sentenced to lashes for being alone in a parked car with a man she was having an illicit affair with, but was later pardoned after international protests.
The rape victim was an 18 year old girl who was gang-raped along with her companion by seven Saudi men in the city of Qatif, (Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia) in 2006. The local court sentenced the perpetrators to varying sentences involving 80 to 1,000 lashes and imprisonment up to ten years for four of them. The court also sentenced the two victims to six months in prison and 90 lashes each for the separate crime of conducting an extramarital affair. On appeal, the appeals court more than doubled the victims' sentences to 200 lashes on Tuesday 13th November 2007 because, according to the court’s ruling, the victim attempted to use the media to manipulate the Saudi Justice System, causing an international media-uproar over Saudi Judicial practices. On Monday 17 December 2007, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah, issued an official pardon for the girl, citing his ultimate authority to revise discretionary punishments in accordance with the public good, and stated that the Qatif Girl had been the victim of a brutal crime. The pardon was read by Justice Minister Abdullah Al-Asheikh on Saudi Channel One.
The pardon ordered the suspension of the trial against both defendants: the Qatif Girl and her male companion, who had also reportedly been raped, and the continuation of the review of the sentencing of the seven young men found guilty of rape. The king ordered the Ministry of Justice to give the rapists the strictest sentence possible for their crime. The king also issued a warning that no mercy would be shown to those that dared to violate Islamic Laws or pose a threat to public safety.
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