Host Liane Hansen speaks with photographer Norman Gershman about his book Besa: Muslims Who Saved Jews in World War II, which is also the subject of a documentary called God’s House. Greshman spent five years collecting stories of Albanian Muslims who harbored Jewish refugees during World War II. Full transcript from NPR.
Category: activism
Kabul US embassy guards ‘staged near-naked parties’
Private contractors hired by the US Government have jeopardised security at the American embassy in Kabul with lewd, drunken conduct and an understaffed guard force at a time of rising violence in the Afghan capital, a watchdog group says. Full article.
Sen Coburn Tells Women Crying Over Health Care “Govt Is Not The Answer”
here’s an idea: the govt shouldn’t be asked to help with healthcare, neighbors should help one another.
intl visitor leadership program – dinner at our house, aug 31, 2009
the u.s. dept of state’s bureau of educational and cultural affairs administers the intl visitor leadership program, a professional exchange program designed to build mutual understanding between the u.s. and other countries of the world. i had the opportunity to host a dinner for 4 guests from israel – two muslim and two jewish.
in the back, from L to R: eyal, me, josephine (the coordinator), tzahala, my mom, in front: raida and faten.
Cindy Sheehan: America needs to wake up
‘Patient capital’ and power by Bina Shah
On Pakistan-US relations: “The US invests in our education, health or power crisis, but with no short-term expectations, no pressure, no demands. They act as a friend helping out another friend in need. They wait, patiently, for the long-term di…vidends of this investment: an improved opinion of the US and the elimination of resentment.”
just one question for this woman: what is she smoking!!! the unfortunate full article.
Why We Need Government-Run Universal Socialized Health Insurance
Pakistan: No Military Campaign Against the Taliban
“For the Obama Administration, the Pakistani military’s reluctance to take on the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan doesn’t bode well for the pursuit of U.S. interests. Washington would like Islamabad to confront the groups that pose a direct threat to NATO forces across the border in Afghanistan – the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network.”
tell me again what this war is all about? protecting pakistanis from the extremists or keeping the american occupation viable?
read full article.
Blast kills 16 Pakistan cadets; NATO trucks bombed
Bombings targeted a Pakistani police station and set a NATO fuel convoy ablaze Sunday, killing 16 cadets in the northwest’s Swat Valley and threatening the supply line to international forces in Afghanistan in a separate attack near the border. Full article.
France: Woman Wearing Hijab Denied Entry By Bank
“the problem is that france is a traditionally conservative, catholic country. the visible growth of the muslim population since the second world war is regarded as a threat to the french way of life.” Full article.
As Obama Golfs with UBS CEO Days After Firm Avoids Criminal Prosecution, UBS Whistleblower Given 40 yrs
remember BCCI, the ultimate banking scandal? it was child’s play. now at UBS, their employees smuggled diamonds in toothpaste tubes in order to save their clients some tax money. and what did they get for all their fraud and tax evasion? the whistleblower got 40 months but the bank CEO got to play golf with obama. wow.
Is Using A Minotaur To Gore Detainees A Form Of Torture?
omg, this is hilarious – and to the point!
“Umeed e Sahar” by LAAL, based on the poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz
For Pakistani Rockers, A Plugged-In Protest
It’s not uncommon for Pakistanis to sing poetry and use it in political protests. So when Pakistan’s first Communist rock band re-appropriated decades-old verses about hope, its songs became the soundtrack to Pakistan’s lawyers’ movement. Full article.
Flushing Blackwater
On August 19, the New York Times revealed that the company was, in fact, a central part of a secret CIA assassination program that Dick Cheney allegedly ordered concealed from Congress. Blackwater is also being investigated by the Justice Department for possible crimes ranging from weapons smuggling to manslaughter and by the IRS for possible tax evasion. It is being sued in federal courts by scores of Iraqi civilians for alleged war crimes and extrajudicial killings.
Despite these black marks, the Obama administration continues to keep Blackwater on the government’s payroll. In Afghanistan and Pakistan, Blackwater still works for the CIA, the State Department and the Defense Department to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars, and its continuing presence is an indicator of just how entrenched private corporations are in the US war machinery. Full article.