The [following] clip by Sebastian Walker is the best feature report produced by Al Jazeera on Haiti so far and needs to be watched by everyone, no matter how much they think they already know. Of particular interest is Walker’s highlighting of the NGO industry which seems to be flourishing while Haitians continue to live in misery.
Category: politics
WikiLeaks story soft, coverage a 9/11-like lie
the pakistani army has suffered historically high casualties in the service of the “war on terror”, u.s. drone attacks killed 900 pakistani civilians last year, some 5 million pakistanis have been displaced on account of army actions against the taliban at the behest of the u.s. govt, millions r still stuck in horrific refugee camps, militant groups that were ditched by the pakistani army have been wreaking havoc inside of pakistan, but hey, now that we’ve sifted through 90,000 documents at super human speed and the NYT has declared that there r alleged rumors which suggest that pakistan might be playing a double game, now we can finally come out with it and have a troop surge in pakistan.
India’s Israeli-Arab tightrope walk
Israel is poised to become the largest defence supplier to India, a position currently held by Russia. Israel also trains Indian special forces, which are then deployed in the troubled region of Kashmir and in India’s north-east areas. Full article.
Sunera Thobani: Anti-Racism and the Women’s Movement
Right now, in the context of the war on terror, we are facing a barrage of claims about the supremacy of Western values. This is leading to a resurgence of white supremacy, and the banner of the superiority of Western values is often being carried by Western feminists – as we have seen in debates about veiling, sharia, and “saving” Afghan women. I see feminist organizing changing for the worse with this new self-assertive and self-confident white feminism, which supports the structures of white supremacy internationally. Full article.
Global feminist movements – Sunera Thobani
western feminism – its ties to imperialism and the racialization and demonization of islam. brilliant.
Female Imams Blaze Trail Amid China’s Muslims: NPR
China has an estimated 21 million Muslims, who have developed their own set of Islamic practices with Chinese characteristics. The biggest difference is the development of independent women’s mosques with female imams, something scholars who have researched the issue say is unique to China. Full story.
STONES IN MY HAND (KASHMIR)
The video [below] put together by an unknown young person and set to the Everlast song, “Stone in My Hand” — is a short montage documenting the current popular protests in Kashmir Valley against the Indian occupation. The video has prompted the Indian Security Forces to “launch a manhunt” for the filmmaker, such is the state’s fear of freedom of expression. (Huma Dar, from Truth Alone Triumphs: of David, Goliath, Stones, and Speech)
Tensions rise after Christian deaths
Pakistani human rights and minority organizations are calling for seven days mourning after two Christian brothers were gunned down outside a courtroom in Faisalabad. The deaths led to nearly 10 hours of street clashes between police and Christian and Muslim demonstrators in Faisalabad, a city in Punjab province and the third largest city in Pakistan. Full article.
Arab guilty of rape after consensual sex with Jew
Tzvi Segal, one of three judges on the case, said: “The court is obliged to protect the public interest from sophisticated, smooth-tongued criminals who can deceive innocent victims at an unbearable price – the sanctity of their bodies and souls.” Full article.
Israeli right embracing one state?
Their [Israel’s West Bank settler movement’s] visions still fall far short of what any Palestinian advocate of a single state would consider to be just: The Israeli proposals insist on maintaining the state’s character – at least symbolically – as a “Jewish state,” exclude the Gaza Strip, and do not address the rights of Palestinian refugees. And, settlers on land often violently expropriated from Palestinians would hardly seem like obvious advocates for Palestinian human and political rights. Although the details vary, and in some cases are anathema to Palestinians, what is more revealing is that this debate is occurring openly and in the least likely circles. Full article.
Top Secret America – Frontline video | washingtonpost.com
“Top Secret America” is a project nearly two years in the making that describes the huge national security buildup in the United States after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Watch video here.
Isabel Allende tells tales of passion
fantastic!
Author and activist Isabel Allende discusses women, creativity, the definition of feminism – and, of course, passion – in this talk.
Pakistan Hires Transgender Workers to Shame Tax Delinquents
In one of Karachi’s most posh neighborhoods, only half of the 500,000 residents paid their property, maintenance and water taxes last year.
As a result, the Clifton Cantonment board, like Pakistan itself, is in serious financial trouble.
Fewer than a million out of 170 million Pakistanis voluntarily filed income tax returns last year. The rate is among the lowest in the world.
In a bid for a solution — and some publicity — the Clifton board borrowed a creative idea that alleviated tax woes in neighboring India: It hired a team of transgendered tax collectors to go door to door to embarrass the rich until they pay. Watch video here.
More on how Pakistani Taxes Widen Divide Between Rich and Poor here.
Beyond listening – The Boston Globe
?”The implication that this is a balanced conflict, that everyone needs to just listen and understand more respectfully, ignores the brutal realities on the ground and the massive differences in military and political power. Acknowledging that is key to moving forward.” Full letter here.
Wish You Weren’t Here
“That religion, or the duty which we owe to our Creator, and the manner of discharging it, can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence, and therefore all men have an equal, natural and unalienable right to the exercise of religion according to the dictates of conscience, and that no particular sect or society ought to be favored or established by law in preference to others.” (State of Virginia, 1789)
what i love about this segment is that john stewart is coming at this whole thing from outside the box.
within the framework of “muslims did 9/11” any argument to the contrary will look defensive and weak. for if muslims did 9/11 then it is a slap in the face of the victims to build a “mosque” to the muslim god, in close proximity to ground zero.
however, that framework itself is flawed. “muslims” didn’t do 9/11, misguided militant extremists did. so muslims have every right to build an islamic center in ny just like jews have the right to build jewish centers in ny and elsewhere.
the funny thing is, even if we buy the govt’s story on 9/11 (and it’s hard to do that in view of the govt’s track record), then 9/11 was all about politics and american foreign policy. it was hardly a religious event – how have islam or muslims benefited from what happened? in fact, muslims have suffered most grievously as a consequence of that crime. i guess the idea was to bring the war to the u.s. and make it rethink the wars it funds and carries out in other parts of the world.
stewart is cleverly pointing out that american muslims have the right to practice their religion and build houses of worship like other americans. the constitution guarantees that right. in focusing on that he sidesteps the erroneous argument that “muslims” did 9/11 for some “islamic” reason.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Wish You Weren’t Here | ||||
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