Who do "they" really think "we" are ... bunch of lolly pop sucking kids ... well, some say that some Muslims are precisely just that ... why - becuase they seem to be ever so ready to happily take a sit-down shower under the breaking news by CNN & the crackling leaks of falsehood & baloney by NY Times. I think the adage fits well here ... "shame on you if you fool me once & shame on me if you fool me twice" ...
Well, friends, other than the barrage of press releases & statements praising spooks ... plz ALSO read this - an informed citizenry with a bit of fire in the belly almost guarantees good democracy.
------------------
1) FBI blows it (http://www.alternet.org/world/140209/fbi_blows_it%3A_supposed_terror_plot_against_ny_synagogues_is_bogus/)
2) The Newburgh Four (http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/05/the_newburgh_four_--_and_the_goverment_mole_who_be.php?ref=m1)
3) Portrait of an idiot (http://www.schneier.com/essay-174.html)
4) Connect the dots that tells us spooks are idiots (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090521/ap_on_re_us/us_foiled_terror_plots_glance)
5) This is a long but essential read in view of FBI's agents/provocateurs recently confirmed to be inside the Mosqaues (http://web.mit.edu/gtmarx/www/neglected.pdf).
6) Not much different across the pond - see this http://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#inbox/1216106b024ae722.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Sunday, May 10, 2009
A CITIZEN'S FILE ON OBAMA'S 100 DAYS
A Citizen’s File On President Obama’s One Hundred DaysBy Shakeel Syed
While appreciating the first one hundred days of President Obama’s term, let us examine one of his key foreign relations issue, i.e. Palestine and ask of him to match his rhetoric with actions.
1. Dec ’08 / Jan ‘09: Israeli massacre of Gaza started on Dec 27, ’08 and stopped three days before Obama’s inauguration on Jan 17, ‘09. President Obama chose to remain silent saying, “there’s only one President at one time.” Unlike his silence toward the Israeli massacre in Gaza, he was quite vocal during a similar but relatively less violence in Mumbai.
2. Jan ’09: At his inauguration, although President Obama talked about poor people of the world and the nations with plenty but did not speak of the abject poverty under occupation and their prospects and our promise for peace in Middle East.
3. Jan ’09: Iran’s attempt to make itself energy independent is routinely condemned by the President but he failed to answer the question of Helen Thomas (ABC) – “if he knows of any State in the Middle East region who does have nuclear arms,” and the President answered – “I do not like to speculate.” President Obama clearly lacked the courage to acknowledge the Nuclear Israel and its arsenal.
4. Jan / Feb ’09: President Obama rightfully advocated speaking with all known and perceived adversaries (Iran & North Korea) except Hamas. Even John McCain at one point expressed the importance of speaking to Hamas for peace in Middle East.
5. Feb ’09: In spite of the recent Gaza massacre (arguably war crimes by Israel) and continued Israeli occupation of Palestine, President Obama grants more than $3 billion financial aid (not counting the military aid) to Israel and $900 million to the Palestinians. This is clearly an ethical disparity worth of reconciliation.
6. March ‘09: President Obama deserves to be commended for his stated policy of diplomacy and dialog (Iraq, Iran, Korea, Venezuela, etc) over his predecessor’s preferences. However his administration chose to completely boycott the Durban-II conference (in Geneva) on racism unlike George W. Bush who at least sent a delegation (2001) even though they had walked out.
As the first African-American President one would have expected Obama to champion the discussions on racism even if this conference were to question Israel’s (alleged) apartheid policies.
7. March ’09: The Obama administrations pick to become the nation’s top intelligence analyst has withdrawn his nomination after an intense lobbying campaign by backers of Israeli government policies. Former US Ambassador Charles “Chas” Freeman had come under Republican-led opposition over his comments criticizing Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land. Freeman has years of diplomatic experience, including stints as US ambassador to Saudi Arabia and assistant secretary of defense. Some Democrats joined in on the opposition to Freeman’s appointment.
Democratic Senator Charles Schumer took credit for Freeman’s withdrawal, saying, “I repeatedly urged the White House to reject him, and I am glad they did the right thing.”
Chas Freeman blasted lobby groups, lawmakers and pundits who support Israeli government policies for forcing his withdrawal. Freeman wrote, “The tactics of the Israel Lobby plumb the depths of dishonor and indecency…The aim of this Lobby is control of the policy process through the exercise of a veto over the appointment of people who dispute the wisdom of its views, the substitution of political correctness for analysis, and the exclusion of any and all options for decision by Americans and our government other than those that it favors.” Freeman continued, “I regret that my willingness to serve the new administration has ended by casting doubt on its ability to consider, let alone decide what policies might best serve the interests of the United States rather than those of a Lobby intent on enforcing the will and interests of a foreign government.”
One ought to question President Obama what happened to his objectivity and transparency and fairness?
8. March ’09: The same month President Obama appoints Dennis Ross (Israel firster) as a special adviser for Iran and Persian Gulf issues. Ross had already served and failed as Bush Sr. and Bill Clinton’s peace negotiator for Middle East (1980 – 2000) without peace in Middle East. It is paradoxical that Obama, who campaigned on dialoging with everyone, including Iran, would hand the Iran file to Ross, a cog in the machine of Israel's Washington lobby.
9. March ’09: Netanyahu gives his first interview to The Atlantic, in which he threatens to attack Iran to wipe out its nuclear facilities. Following day, President Obama calls Netanyahu and reassures 100% commitment to Israel's defense. One wonders about the anti-war candidate Obama versus the President Obama who is instead of asking Netanyahu to rethink his bombing rhetoric, reassures him.
10. March ’09: Israel attacks Sudan. US media reports that Israel has conducted three military strikes against targets in Sudan. President Obama chooses silence over Israel’s attack on Sudan. Juxtapose his silence toward Israel attacking Sudan versus his vocal demands on Russia to respect Georgia’s territorial sanctity.
11. April ’09: Avigdor Lieberman, a Soviet-born Jew turned Israeli citizen becomes Israeli Foreign Minister. Lieberman, the immigrant/settler Jew from Soviet Union won the Israeli elections, because of, among other rants - “no loyalty, no citizenship,” for Israeli-Arab citizens – who are born and brought up on their Palestinian land occupied by Israel. A fascist demand by any standard but President Obama is quiet to the America’s largest recipient of aid.
These are but few disparities of the US double standards in its dealing with the issue of Israel toward Palestine. So long as the US does not give up these blatant double standards it cannot be an honest broker for peace, neither in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict nor in any other. We must remind President Obama that unless his rhetoric for change is matched by action, peace in Palestine is not possible and without which peace in Israel is impossible.
While appreciating the first one hundred days of President Obama’s term, let us examine one of his key foreign relations issue, i.e. Palestine and ask of him to match his rhetoric with actions.
1. Dec ’08 / Jan ‘09: Israeli massacre of Gaza started on Dec 27, ’08 and stopped three days before Obama’s inauguration on Jan 17, ‘09. President Obama chose to remain silent saying, “there’s only one President at one time.” Unlike his silence toward the Israeli massacre in Gaza, he was quite vocal during a similar but relatively less violence in Mumbai.
2. Jan ’09: At his inauguration, although President Obama talked about poor people of the world and the nations with plenty but did not speak of the abject poverty under occupation and their prospects and our promise for peace in Middle East.
3. Jan ’09: Iran’s attempt to make itself energy independent is routinely condemned by the President but he failed to answer the question of Helen Thomas (ABC) – “if he knows of any State in the Middle East region who does have nuclear arms,” and the President answered – “I do not like to speculate.” President Obama clearly lacked the courage to acknowledge the Nuclear Israel and its arsenal.
4. Jan / Feb ’09: President Obama rightfully advocated speaking with all known and perceived adversaries (Iran & North Korea) except Hamas. Even John McCain at one point expressed the importance of speaking to Hamas for peace in Middle East.
5. Feb ’09: In spite of the recent Gaza massacre (arguably war crimes by Israel) and continued Israeli occupation of Palestine, President Obama grants more than $3 billion financial aid (not counting the military aid) to Israel and $900 million to the Palestinians. This is clearly an ethical disparity worth of reconciliation.
6. March ‘09: President Obama deserves to be commended for his stated policy of diplomacy and dialog (Iraq, Iran, Korea, Venezuela, etc) over his predecessor’s preferences. However his administration chose to completely boycott the Durban-II conference (in Geneva) on racism unlike George W. Bush who at least sent a delegation (2001) even though they had walked out.
As the first African-American President one would have expected Obama to champion the discussions on racism even if this conference were to question Israel’s (alleged) apartheid policies.
7. March ’09: The Obama administrations pick to become the nation’s top intelligence analyst has withdrawn his nomination after an intense lobbying campaign by backers of Israeli government policies. Former US Ambassador Charles “Chas” Freeman had come under Republican-led opposition over his comments criticizing Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land. Freeman has years of diplomatic experience, including stints as US ambassador to Saudi Arabia and assistant secretary of defense. Some Democrats joined in on the opposition to Freeman’s appointment.
Democratic Senator Charles Schumer took credit for Freeman’s withdrawal, saying, “I repeatedly urged the White House to reject him, and I am glad they did the right thing.”
Chas Freeman blasted lobby groups, lawmakers and pundits who support Israeli government policies for forcing his withdrawal. Freeman wrote, “The tactics of the Israel Lobby plumb the depths of dishonor and indecency…The aim of this Lobby is control of the policy process through the exercise of a veto over the appointment of people who dispute the wisdom of its views, the substitution of political correctness for analysis, and the exclusion of any and all options for decision by Americans and our government other than those that it favors.” Freeman continued, “I regret that my willingness to serve the new administration has ended by casting doubt on its ability to consider, let alone decide what policies might best serve the interests of the United States rather than those of a Lobby intent on enforcing the will and interests of a foreign government.”
One ought to question President Obama what happened to his objectivity and transparency and fairness?
8. March ’09: The same month President Obama appoints Dennis Ross (Israel firster) as a special adviser for Iran and Persian Gulf issues. Ross had already served and failed as Bush Sr. and Bill Clinton’s peace negotiator for Middle East (1980 – 2000) without peace in Middle East. It is paradoxical that Obama, who campaigned on dialoging with everyone, including Iran, would hand the Iran file to Ross, a cog in the machine of Israel's Washington lobby.
9. March ’09: Netanyahu gives his first interview to The Atlantic, in which he threatens to attack Iran to wipe out its nuclear facilities. Following day, President Obama calls Netanyahu and reassures 100% commitment to Israel's defense. One wonders about the anti-war candidate Obama versus the President Obama who is instead of asking Netanyahu to rethink his bombing rhetoric, reassures him.
10. March ’09: Israel attacks Sudan. US media reports that Israel has conducted three military strikes against targets in Sudan. President Obama chooses silence over Israel’s attack on Sudan. Juxtapose his silence toward Israel attacking Sudan versus his vocal demands on Russia to respect Georgia’s territorial sanctity.
11. April ’09: Avigdor Lieberman, a Soviet-born Jew turned Israeli citizen becomes Israeli Foreign Minister. Lieberman, the immigrant/settler Jew from Soviet Union won the Israeli elections, because of, among other rants - “no loyalty, no citizenship,” for Israeli-Arab citizens – who are born and brought up on their Palestinian land occupied by Israel. A fascist demand by any standard but President Obama is quiet to the America’s largest recipient of aid.
These are but few disparities of the US double standards in its dealing with the issue of Israel toward Palestine. So long as the US does not give up these blatant double standards it cannot be an honest broker for peace, neither in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict nor in any other. We must remind President Obama that unless his rhetoric for change is matched by action, peace in Palestine is not possible and without which peace in Israel is impossible.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
An Eye Witness Account of Israeli Terror in Gaza
December 29 6:05 PM, Marna house, Gaza city, Vittorio Arrigoni, Volunteer, International Solidarity Movement
An acrid smell of sulphur fills the air while the sky is shaken by earth-shattering rumbles. My ears are now deaf to the explosions, while my eyes are all out of tears from all the corpses. I stand in front of Al Shifa hospital, Gaza's main hospital, and we've just received Israel's terrible threat that they intend to bomb its wing under construction. This would be nothing new, as Wea'm hospital was bombed just yesterday, along with a medicine warehouse in Rafah, the Islamic university, which was also destroyed, along with various mosques scattered along the Strip. Not to mention many CIVILIAN structures.
Apparently, they can no longer find "sensible" targets, the air force and the navy is targeting places of worship, schools and hospitals. It's another 9/11 every single hour, every minute around here, and tomorrow is always a new day of mourning, always identical to the previous one. You notice the helicopters and airplanes constantly overhead, you see a flash, but you're already a goner and it's too late to take flight.
There are no bunkers against the bombs in the Strip and no place is really safe. I can't contact my friends in Rafah, not even those who live North of Gaza City, hopefully because the phone lines are overloaded. Hopefully. I haven't slept in 60 hours, and same goes for every Gazan. Yesterday three other ISM members and I spent the entire night at the al Awda hospital in the Jabalia refugee camp. We were there because we were fearing the much dreaded ground raid that never happened. But the Israeli tanks are posted all along the Strip's border, and their corpse-hungry creaks will apparently form a funeral march tonight. Around 11:30 PM a bomb fell about 800 metres from the hospital, the shock wave blow several windows apart, injuring the injured.
An ambulance arrived, then they blew up a mosque, thankfully empty at that time. Unfortunately, though it actually has nothing to do with bad luck but with the criminal and a terrorist will to massacre civilians, the Israeli bomb has also struck the building adjacent to the mosque, which was also destroyed. We watched as the tiny bodies of six little sisters were pulled out of the rubble – five are dead, one is in life-threatening conditions.
They laid the little girls out on the blackened asphalt, and they looked like broken dolls, disposed of as they were no longer usable. This wasn't a mistake, but a voluntary, and cynical horror. We're at a toll of 320 dead, more than a thousand wounded and, according to a doctor at Shifa, 60% of these are destined to die in the next few hours or days, after prolonged agony.There are many missing, and for the last two days despairing wives have been searching for their husbands or children in hospitals, often to no avail. The morgue is a macabre spectacle. A nurse told me that after hours of searching, a Palestinian woman recognized her husband from his amputated hand. All that's left of her husband, and the wedding band on her finger from the eternal love they had sworn one another.
Out of a house inhabited by two families, very little has remained of their bodies. They showed their relatives half of one bust and three legs. Right now, one of our Free Gaza Movement boats is leaving the port in Larnaca, Cyprus. I spoke to my friends on board. They've heroically amassed medicine and steeped it everywhere in the boat. It should reach the port of Gaza tomorrow around 8:00 AM. Here's to hoping that the port will still exist after another night of endless bombing. I'll be in touch with them for the entire night. Please, someone stop this nightmare. Choosing to remain silent means somehow lending support to the genocide unfolding right now. Shout out your indignation, in every capital of the "civilized" world, in every city, in every square, covering our own screams of pain and terror. A slice of humanity is dying in pitiful in a useless listening.
An acrid smell of sulphur fills the air while the sky is shaken by earth-shattering rumbles. My ears are now deaf to the explosions, while my eyes are all out of tears from all the corpses. I stand in front of Al Shifa hospital, Gaza's main hospital, and we've just received Israel's terrible threat that they intend to bomb its wing under construction. This would be nothing new, as Wea'm hospital was bombed just yesterday, along with a medicine warehouse in Rafah, the Islamic university, which was also destroyed, along with various mosques scattered along the Strip. Not to mention many CIVILIAN structures.
Apparently, they can no longer find "sensible" targets, the air force and the navy is targeting places of worship, schools and hospitals. It's another 9/11 every single hour, every minute around here, and tomorrow is always a new day of mourning, always identical to the previous one. You notice the helicopters and airplanes constantly overhead, you see a flash, but you're already a goner and it's too late to take flight.
There are no bunkers against the bombs in the Strip and no place is really safe. I can't contact my friends in Rafah, not even those who live North of Gaza City, hopefully because the phone lines are overloaded. Hopefully. I haven't slept in 60 hours, and same goes for every Gazan. Yesterday three other ISM members and I spent the entire night at the al Awda hospital in the Jabalia refugee camp. We were there because we were fearing the much dreaded ground raid that never happened. But the Israeli tanks are posted all along the Strip's border, and their corpse-hungry creaks will apparently form a funeral march tonight. Around 11:30 PM a bomb fell about 800 metres from the hospital, the shock wave blow several windows apart, injuring the injured.
An ambulance arrived, then they blew up a mosque, thankfully empty at that time. Unfortunately, though it actually has nothing to do with bad luck but with the criminal and a terrorist will to massacre civilians, the Israeli bomb has also struck the building adjacent to the mosque, which was also destroyed. We watched as the tiny bodies of six little sisters were pulled out of the rubble – five are dead, one is in life-threatening conditions.
They laid the little girls out on the blackened asphalt, and they looked like broken dolls, disposed of as they were no longer usable. This wasn't a mistake, but a voluntary, and cynical horror. We're at a toll of 320 dead, more than a thousand wounded and, according to a doctor at Shifa, 60% of these are destined to die in the next few hours or days, after prolonged agony.There are many missing, and for the last two days despairing wives have been searching for their husbands or children in hospitals, often to no avail. The morgue is a macabre spectacle. A nurse told me that after hours of searching, a Palestinian woman recognized her husband from his amputated hand. All that's left of her husband, and the wedding band on her finger from the eternal love they had sworn one another.
Out of a house inhabited by two families, very little has remained of their bodies. They showed their relatives half of one bust and three legs. Right now, one of our Free Gaza Movement boats is leaving the port in Larnaca, Cyprus. I spoke to my friends on board. They've heroically amassed medicine and steeped it everywhere in the boat. It should reach the port of Gaza tomorrow around 8:00 AM. Here's to hoping that the port will still exist after another night of endless bombing. I'll be in touch with them for the entire night. Please, someone stop this nightmare. Choosing to remain silent means somehow lending support to the genocide unfolding right now. Shout out your indignation, in every capital of the "civilized" world, in every city, in every square, covering our own screams of pain and terror. A slice of humanity is dying in pitiful in a useless listening.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Change Goes Vacation?
I wonder if ‘change’ could ever rest. I however wish President-elect Obama a relaxing break in Hawaii before he has to make his way to the haunted house climbing over world’s corpses, left behind by his predecessor.
I applauded President-elect when he quickly intervened to fix the economic carnage by convening his economic experts while taking to task the other economic experts. That’s leadership.
I am now bewildered to find President-elect AWOL and instead his Axelrod doing the reckless driving; “President-elect Obama is closely monitoring global events, including the situation in Gaza, but there is one president at a time,” he said on your behalf. And, I ask where is the leadership?
What is worse I ask, the economic crisis or human carnage? And what is better - to lead for the sake of getting a car loan or saving a human life?
I recall the then Presidential candidate Obama preaching humility while campaigning in Israel for American Jewish votes. Here is how the macho mutt expressed his humility during his visit to Sderot in Aug of 2008. “If somebody was sending rockets into my house, where my two daughters sleep at night, I’m going to do everything in my power to stop that,” he told reporters in Sderot, a small city on the edge of Gaza that has been hit repeatedly by rocket fire. “And I would expect Israelis to do the same thing,” said the humble-to-be-commander-in-chief.
Had then Presidential candidate crossed the border into Erez or any other city in Gaza after visiting Sderot, he could have related the lives of Malia and Sasha of South Chicago with Maryam and Fatima of North Gaza. It really is not rocket science to understand the reasons for rockets.
Malia and Sasha are worried about their dog while Maryam and Fatima are worried about their next meal. Malia and Sasha will drive (with a secret service escort) most likely to a private elite school while Maryam and Fatima will walk to a school without desks and books. Maryam and Fatima will play with pebbles as marbles and Malia and Sasha will be listening to Hannah Montana on their iPods.
Yes, Mr. President-elect, you have every reason to watch your daughters sleep and defend them while sleeping under down comforters. And just so the parents of Maryam and Fatima in Erez and million other parents in Gaza, wish to do - watch them sleep and defend them while they are sleeping. But those parents watch something else. Each night, they watch their equally lovely daughters - turning and twisting (on a hard floor) without down comforters and with hungry stomachs.
The change that you often refer to, Mr. President-elect, must be measured not only in how well your daughters can enjoy the slumber but why others’ daughters are unable to merely nap.
Unless you worry about and work for changing the lives of Maryam and Fatima to become just as good if not as better from the lives of Malia and Sasha, you did not really change anything? And, unless these contradictory and painful truths are reconciled, change cannot go vacation.
I applauded President-elect when he quickly intervened to fix the economic carnage by convening his economic experts while taking to task the other economic experts. That’s leadership.
I am now bewildered to find President-elect AWOL and instead his Axelrod doing the reckless driving; “President-elect Obama is closely monitoring global events, including the situation in Gaza, but there is one president at a time,” he said on your behalf. And, I ask where is the leadership?
What is worse I ask, the economic crisis or human carnage? And what is better - to lead for the sake of getting a car loan or saving a human life?
I recall the then Presidential candidate Obama preaching humility while campaigning in Israel for American Jewish votes. Here is how the macho mutt expressed his humility during his visit to Sderot in Aug of 2008. “If somebody was sending rockets into my house, where my two daughters sleep at night, I’m going to do everything in my power to stop that,” he told reporters in Sderot, a small city on the edge of Gaza that has been hit repeatedly by rocket fire. “And I would expect Israelis to do the same thing,” said the humble-to-be-commander-in-chief.
Had then Presidential candidate crossed the border into Erez or any other city in Gaza after visiting Sderot, he could have related the lives of Malia and Sasha of South Chicago with Maryam and Fatima of North Gaza. It really is not rocket science to understand the reasons for rockets.
Malia and Sasha are worried about their dog while Maryam and Fatima are worried about their next meal. Malia and Sasha will drive (with a secret service escort) most likely to a private elite school while Maryam and Fatima will walk to a school without desks and books. Maryam and Fatima will play with pebbles as marbles and Malia and Sasha will be listening to Hannah Montana on their iPods.
Yes, Mr. President-elect, you have every reason to watch your daughters sleep and defend them while sleeping under down comforters. And just so the parents of Maryam and Fatima in Erez and million other parents in Gaza, wish to do - watch them sleep and defend them while they are sleeping. But those parents watch something else. Each night, they watch their equally lovely daughters - turning and twisting (on a hard floor) without down comforters and with hungry stomachs.
The change that you often refer to, Mr. President-elect, must be measured not only in how well your daughters can enjoy the slumber but why others’ daughters are unable to merely nap.
Unless you worry about and work for changing the lives of Maryam and Fatima to become just as good if not as better from the lives of Malia and Sasha, you did not really change anything? And, unless these contradictory and painful truths are reconciled, change cannot go vacation.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Palestinians have the right to defend themselves by any means necessary
Having watched the year[s]/decade[s] long dehumanization, denial of basic human rights of all Palestinians, especially in Gaza, I believe they've the right to defend themselves to restore their dignity and honor - just as anyone else - by any means necessary.
The champions of human rights - may they be of whatever faith (including Muslims and Muslim organizations) need to take a moral Viagra to wake themselves up to their responsibilities.
While CIA is reportedly distributing Viagra to lure the loyalty of Afghan tribal chiefs - let's ask them to also share some with other Muslim chiefs in town! It's about time, don't you think?
The champions of human rights - may they be of whatever faith (including Muslims and Muslim organizations) need to take a moral Viagra to wake themselves up to their responsibilities.
While CIA is reportedly distributing Viagra to lure the loyalty of Afghan tribal chiefs - let's ask them to also share some with other Muslim chiefs in town! It's about time, don't you think?
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Shame on Bush Administration
Washington Post Federal Courts Reporter Del Wilber discusses the case of the Uighur detainees being held at the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center. In October of 2008, U.S. District Judge Richard Urbina ordered the release of the 17 Uighur men into the United States. The Uighurs were cleared for release as early as 2003 but fear they will be tortured if returned to China. Later, the attorneys who represent the 17 Chinese Uighur Muslims participated in a Congressional briefing.
http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-13069
http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-13052
http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-13069
http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-13052
Friday, December 5, 2008
Perils in Parallels
To call the Mumbai tragedy, “India’s 9/11” would be parallel to the chatter of Texan cowboy. Indian officials, I believe, ought to be smarter than that. The 9/11 lexicon is proven to be perilous.
The ashes in Mumbai raise more questions than the number of dead from several countries. It was an international tragedy that the Indian government is partly responsible for, exposing its sorrowful state of intelligence and law enforcement.
Reading the Western press, it seems India is about to bomb Pakistan, which itself is home to the “Islamic Nuclear Bomb.” Reading the Indian press, it seems there are many sane Indians who are questioning the lethargy of the Indian government and challenging the hyper Hindutva leadership. The former is still trying to figure out who to blame and the latter wants to rush and unleash the “Hindu Nuclear Bomb.”
We must not forget that a recent train bombing being assigned to “Pakistani agents” was indeed the work of a serving Indian army officer and his comrades.
Bomb talk is dumb. Bombing Afghanistan was dumb. Bombing Iraq was dumber. The Mumbai tragedy merits a thorough investigation followed by a thoughtful analysis, in that order. The people in India and around the world have learned much since the bomb talk of Cheney & Bush, also in that order.
As an Indian by birth and having watched “investigations” of all sorts while growing up, I say that the current Mumbai “investigation” will be a farce at its best. And, now as an American by choice, I am equally comfortable to say that I do not trust the American government, either.
The sane Indians and Pakistanis must urgently and immediately demand the following:
1. Pakistanis must demand their government ask the United Nations to convene an Investigation Task Force comprising of its nation members but excluding the countries such as Israel, Britain and the United States - parties with direct interests in India and the region.
2. The Indians must demand their government give unfettered access to the United Nations Investigation Task Force to complete its full, independent and impartial investigation of the tragedy.
3. Indians, Pakistanis, Americans and all people of good conscience should call upon United Nations to play its role and not merely remain a spectator.
It is time to act for all people, not just Indians or Pakistanis. In allowing the Indian discourse of 9/11 parallels is perilous for all people.
--------------
An awesome essay by Arundhati Roy crystallizing more --- http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/12/mumbai-arundhati-roy
The ashes in Mumbai raise more questions than the number of dead from several countries. It was an international tragedy that the Indian government is partly responsible for, exposing its sorrowful state of intelligence and law enforcement.
Reading the Western press, it seems India is about to bomb Pakistan, which itself is home to the “Islamic Nuclear Bomb.” Reading the Indian press, it seems there are many sane Indians who are questioning the lethargy of the Indian government and challenging the hyper Hindutva leadership. The former is still trying to figure out who to blame and the latter wants to rush and unleash the “Hindu Nuclear Bomb.”
We must not forget that a recent train bombing being assigned to “Pakistani agents” was indeed the work of a serving Indian army officer and his comrades.
Bomb talk is dumb. Bombing Afghanistan was dumb. Bombing Iraq was dumber. The Mumbai tragedy merits a thorough investigation followed by a thoughtful analysis, in that order. The people in India and around the world have learned much since the bomb talk of Cheney & Bush, also in that order.
As an Indian by birth and having watched “investigations” of all sorts while growing up, I say that the current Mumbai “investigation” will be a farce at its best. And, now as an American by choice, I am equally comfortable to say that I do not trust the American government, either.
The sane Indians and Pakistanis must urgently and immediately demand the following:
1. Pakistanis must demand their government ask the United Nations to convene an Investigation Task Force comprising of its nation members but excluding the countries such as Israel, Britain and the United States - parties with direct interests in India and the region.
2. The Indians must demand their government give unfettered access to the United Nations Investigation Task Force to complete its full, independent and impartial investigation of the tragedy.
3. Indians, Pakistanis, Americans and all people of good conscience should call upon United Nations to play its role and not merely remain a spectator.
It is time to act for all people, not just Indians or Pakistanis. In allowing the Indian discourse of 9/11 parallels is perilous for all people.
--------------
An awesome essay by Arundhati Roy crystallizing more --- http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/12/mumbai-arundhati-roy
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