Category Archives: Uncategorized

Neither Erdoğan’s victory, nor the Muslim Brotherhood’s protests are an Ottoman slap

Nervana

Published in Hurriyet Daily News

Following a trail of setbacks, Islamists in the Arab world have something to celebrate. Their hero, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has won in Turkey’s local elections, a victory Islamists in the Arab world are selling to their followers as their own.

The relationship between Erdoğan and his Arab Islamists is based on mutual exploitation. Erdoğan engineers more domestic popularity for himself by harping on the misfortunes of Islamists. At the same time, Arab Islamists market Erdoğan’s success as proof of the soundness of their ideology, and use his success as a tool to counter misgivings among their junior cadres and supporters.

The essence of this relationship is a mutual feed of victimhood that serves both sides’ interests. Despite the fact that most Arab Islamists acknowledge Erdoğan’s brand of political Islam (which does not promote Sharia) as being different to their own, they have lowered the bar…

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Chile president declares state of emergency in Valparaiso as deadly fire ravage hilltops | News | DW.DE | 14.04.2014

“This could be the worst fire in the city’s history,” Chilean President Michelle Bachelet told reporters late Sunday as smoke continued to billow from the city’s hilltops where fires had broken out the day before, stoked by high temperatures and strong winds.

“The people of Valparaiso have courage, have strength and they aren’t alone,” Bachalet added.

Since Saturday, at least 12 people have been killed in the fires, according to Chile’s interior ministry. It warned that the death toll could rise once rescue teams could begin searching for missing persons.

The disaster has driven 8,000 people from their homes into now overflowing shelters. Initial figures put the number of homes destroyed so far between 500 and 2,000.

President Bachalet authorized the deployment of 2,000 of military personnel to assist firefighters in their emergency operation.

A blaze quickly swept across an underdeveloped area above the city center on Saturday, which lacks proper water and natural gas supplies. The neighborhoods situated on the affected hilltops proved a challenge for emergency responders who often could not gain access to the narrow streets with fire trucks.

Valparaiso, a UNESCO World Heritage Site is known for its cobblestone streets and colorful architecture. Its historic district has been spared from the disaster thus far.

via Chile president declares state of emergency in Valparaiso as deadly fire ravage hilltops | News | DW.DE | 14.04.2014.

Love the Earth

Earth Day and Easter together!

Quaking_Aspen,_Mount_Moran,_Grand_Tetons,_WyomingWallpaper of Quaking Aspen, Mount Moran, Grand Tetons, Wyoming

We don’t have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in the process of change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.” ― Howard Zinn

The A – Z Challenge – Day Twelve

LOVE THE EARTH

Today, I am thinking about two little boys.

They just turned four and they are full of delight, joy, and curiosity. The world is a marvelous place to them – filled with unexpected and hilarious surprises – sort of like the prizes they find in cracker jack boxes.

They love the evergreens that surround their house. They love their their parents and they love each other with an intensity that is usual, I suppose, for twins. They love their grandmother. They love their stuffed lion, elephant, cow, sheep and giraffe, the inanimate friends that crowd their beds and watch them…

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A Republican World – ‘Conservative ‘Christian’ Candidate Insists Disabled Children Are Caused By Prior Abortion’

Whacko self-delusions to support their political beliefs

The Last Of The Millenniums

bob marshall
  • “When you abort the firstborn of any, nature takes its vengeance on the subsequent children.”

‘Bob Marshall stubbornly stands by his 2010 comments about how children with disabilities come about (hint: it isn’t what your doctor will tell you)’.

‘You might recognize his name. He’s the same guy that said abortion in the case of incest isn’t okay, either, because it “might be voluntary.” I guess he never considered “it might not be.”
From : http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/04/12/disabled-children-caused-prior-abortion/

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Egyptian Aak 2014 – Week 15 ( April 7-13)

Nervana

Main Headlines

 Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

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Pope Francis Invites The Homeless, Undocumented Immigrants And Prostitutes To Exclusive Catered Vatican Banquet

Pope Francis is no stranger to controversy, having been a frequent target for criticism by the radical and extreme right. His Holiness, the Bishop of Rome and Vicar of Christ, recently held a banquet at the Vatican. It was unlike any in the entire history of the Roman Catholic Church. Unlike other elite Vatican events, this one had a very unusual guest list, including prostitutes, drug addicts, unwed mothers, undocumented migrants and the homeless. Pope Francis defended the banquet, citing Matthew 9:11-13 from the Bible.

Diversity Chronicle

Francis

By Werombi Towradji

Pope Francis is no stranger to controversy, having been a frequent target for criticism by the radical and extreme right. His Holiness, the Bishop of Rome and Vicar of Christ, recently held a banquet at the Vatican. It was unlike any in the entire history of the Roman Catholic Church. Unlike other elite Vatican events, this one had a very unusual guest list, including prostitutes, drug addicts, unwed mothers, undocumented migrants and the homeless. Pope Francis defended the banquet, citing Matthew 9:11-13 from the Bible. The verses read:

“And the Pharisees seeing it, said to his disciples: Why doth your master eat with publicans and sinners? But Jesus hearing it, said: They that are in health need not a physician, but they that are ill. Go then and learn what this meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice. For I am not come to call the…

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