In an article published on the wall street journal, the writer reflects the difference between what is happening in Iran and the European Union saying:
"In some countries they rig votes, in the European Union they repeat votes to get the desired result."
Then there is Noam Chomsky whose opinion and speculations regarding different matters are always interesting to read. Chomsky says in a radio interview:
Sunday, 28 June 2009
Friday, 26 June 2009
Michael Jackson Dies
Probably one of the most influential people of the70's, 80's and 90's, "The King of pop" an icon and a reference point for so many people has died yesterday at the age of 50. Whether you like him for his music or dislike him for his attitude or actions, I doubt anyone will deny that he was one of those people whose name (and moon walk) will be known for generations to come.
Wednesday, 24 June 2009
Johann Hari on Iran/Peru media bias
It is not usual that I agree with what Johann Hari says, but this article is his finest for me. It seems that there are some people that are awake and actually to realize what is going on in the world.
Johann Hari: A fight for the Amazon that should inspire the world
Johann Hari: A fight for the Amazon that should inspire the world
Friday, 19 June 2009
Why Not Peru?
The coverage of the western media on the Iranian "revolution" has been so extensive that some outlets have dedicated a minute by minute coverage webpage to follow what is happening there. This meant that whatever is happening anywhere else in the world goes unnoticed. For example what happened in Peru during the demonstrations by the poor and native of that country against the government that had planned to introduce new laws allowing foreign companies to exploit the rainforest which those people lived by. Atleast 60 people have been killed during the demonstrations and many more missing. But this is not important because Peru unlike Iran is not hindering the West and their multinational companies from exploiting their natural resources and allowing them to dominate over the area.
The independent has writen an article about it, yes one article is all that it gets. And the only reason why they did is because it somehow is related to the UK...
The independent has writen an article about it, yes one article is all that it gets. And the only reason why they did is because it somehow is related to the UK...
Lost in Translation..?
Got extremely bored today at work, so I thought to myself what better to do then to check out whats going on in terms of sustainable development in Syria!!! Ya' feel me ! interesting stuff.
So I went on google and searched "Syria Sustainable Development" and as usual the relevant stuff comes up...(?) I was surprised to see that there was a report on the sustainable development programme in Syria that was submitted to the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa. So I decided to read it. It was really enlightening. The environmental management and planning system they were proposing to implement is very similar to the system here in the UK to some respect. Until I hit this bombshell of a sentence:
"MSEA is assisted by a Consultative Technical Committee and nine Environmental Committees reflecting scrotal interests."
SCROTAL??!!! reallyyy? they have scrotal interests? Excuse me if I am mistaken but scrotal does not fit in that sentence at all! unless there is another meaning to that word (from what I know scrotal is basically describing something that has a scrotum... you should google it if you need more info that's as far as I go)
NINE committees reflecting scrotal interests! I think we have some serious scrotal issues in Syria that no one knew about.. we should all get our scrotals checked by those committees before its too late! haha..
This is the link to the report in pdf. click here if interested.
So I went on google and searched "Syria Sustainable Development" and as usual the relevant stuff comes up...(?) I was surprised to see that there was a report on the sustainable development programme in Syria that was submitted to the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa. So I decided to read it. It was really enlightening. The environmental management and planning system they were proposing to implement is very similar to the system here in the UK to some respect. Until I hit this bombshell of a sentence:
"MSEA is assisted by a Consultative Technical Committee and nine Environmental Committees reflecting scrotal interests."
SCROTAL??!!! reallyyy? they have scrotal interests? Excuse me if I am mistaken but scrotal does not fit in that sentence at all! unless there is another meaning to that word (from what I know scrotal is basically describing something that has a scrotum... you should google it if you need more info that's as far as I go)
NINE committees reflecting scrotal interests! I think we have some serious scrotal issues in Syria that no one knew about.. we should all get our scrotals checked by those committees before its too late! haha..
This is the link to the report in pdf. click here if interested.
Global warming sweeps Syrian countryside
DAMASCUS: Some 160 villages in northern Syria were deserted of their residents in 2007 and 2008 because of climate change, according to a study released on Tuesday.
The report drawn up by the International Institute for Sustainable Development warns of potential armed conflict for control of water resources in the Middle East.
"The 2007/8 drought caused significant hardship in rural areas of Syria. In the northeast of the country, a reported 160 villages have been entirely abandoned and the inhabitants have had to move to urban areas," it said.
In Syria and also in Jordan, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, "climate change threatens to reduce the availability of scarce water resources, increase food insecurity, hinder economic growth and lead to large-scale population movements," the report said.
"This could hold serious implications for peace in the region," the Canada-based institute said.
The study, financed by Denmark, predicts a hotter, drier and less predictable climate in the Middle East, "already considered the world's most water-scarce and where, in many places, demand for water already outstrips supply."
Oli Brown, who co-wrote the report with Alec Crawford, said: "Climate change itself poses real security concerns to the region. It could lead to increased militarization of strategic natural resources, complicating peace agreements."
"Israel is already using climate change as an excuse to increase their control over the water resources in the region," he said.
The IISD said, however, that there is much that national governments and authorities, civil society and the international community can do to respond to climate change and the threats it may pose to regional peace and security.
"They can promote a culture of conservation in the region, help communities and countries adapt to the impacts of climate change, work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and foster greater cooperation on their shared resources," the study said.
Brown and Crawford's report says climate change could affect farm productivity in Syria, where agriculture represents 23% of gross domestic product and employs 30 percent of the active population.
"Some 13% of agricultural land was downgraded between 1980 and 2006 because of ... urban expansion and agricultural, industrial and tourism activities," Fayez Asrafy, a desertification expert, told AFP.
"Rainfall shrank by 10 millimetres (a year) between 1956 and 2006 while temperatures rose by (an average) 0.5 degrees Celsius, though below the worldwide average of 0.6 degrees," Syrian meteorologist Khales Mawed said.
The IISD predicts even modest global warming would lead to a 30% drop in water in the Euphrates, which runs through Turkey, Syria and Iraq, while the Dead Sea would shrink in volume by 80 percent by the end of the century.
more on treehugger.com
The report drawn up by the International Institute for Sustainable Development warns of potential armed conflict for control of water resources in the Middle East.
"The 2007/8 drought caused significant hardship in rural areas of Syria. In the northeast of the country, a reported 160 villages have been entirely abandoned and the inhabitants have had to move to urban areas," it said.
In Syria and also in Jordan, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, "climate change threatens to reduce the availability of scarce water resources, increase food insecurity, hinder economic growth and lead to large-scale population movements," the report said.
"This could hold serious implications for peace in the region," the Canada-based institute said.
The study, financed by Denmark, predicts a hotter, drier and less predictable climate in the Middle East, "already considered the world's most water-scarce and where, in many places, demand for water already outstrips supply."
Oli Brown, who co-wrote the report with Alec Crawford, said: "Climate change itself poses real security concerns to the region. It could lead to increased militarization of strategic natural resources, complicating peace agreements."
"Israel is already using climate change as an excuse to increase their control over the water resources in the region," he said.
The IISD said, however, that there is much that national governments and authorities, civil society and the international community can do to respond to climate change and the threats it may pose to regional peace and security.
"They can promote a culture of conservation in the region, help communities and countries adapt to the impacts of climate change, work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and foster greater cooperation on their shared resources," the study said.
Brown and Crawford's report says climate change could affect farm productivity in Syria, where agriculture represents 23% of gross domestic product and employs 30 percent of the active population.
"Some 13% of agricultural land was downgraded between 1980 and 2006 because of ... urban expansion and agricultural, industrial and tourism activities," Fayez Asrafy, a desertification expert, told AFP.
"Rainfall shrank by 10 millimetres (a year) between 1956 and 2006 while temperatures rose by (an average) 0.5 degrees Celsius, though below the worldwide average of 0.6 degrees," Syrian meteorologist Khales Mawed said.
The IISD predicts even modest global warming would lead to a 30% drop in water in the Euphrates, which runs through Turkey, Syria and Iraq, while the Dead Sea would shrink in volume by 80 percent by the end of the century.
more on treehugger.com
Wednesday, 17 June 2009
إلى كل شامي
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
إلى كل شامي لا يعرف قيمة بلده
إلى كل شامي لا يصدق متى تتاح له فرصة السفر والخروج من الشام
إلى كل دمشقي لم يدرك جمال دمشق ولم يحمل لها في قلبه الحب والإخلاص والوفاء
إلى كل مسلم لا يعرف وصية رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بالشام
أهدي هذه الرسالة التي وصلتني في بيان فضل دمشق والشام من أحاديث سيد البشر صلى الله عليه وسلم,
وللاستزادة (كتاب فضائل الشام ودمشق) ((للإمام الألباني رحمه الله)) والذي خرّج فيه أحاديث كتابي (الربعي) و(شيخ الإسلام) عن نفس الموضوع وإليك الرسالة:
لقد ذكر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم الشــام وخصوصاً دمشق بإسمها، من خلال أحاديث صحيحة ومسندة صححها أهل العلم والحديث
قال صلى الله عليه وسلم: ((إن فسطاط المسلمين ، يوم الملحمة ، بالغوطة إلى جانب مدينة يقال لها : دمشق ، من خير مدائن الشام
الراوي: أبو الدرداء - خلاصة الدرجة: صحيح - المحدث : الألباني - المصدر: صحيح أبي داود - الصفحة أو الرقم: 4298
قال عليه الصلاة والسلام: ((ستخرج نار من حضرموت – أو من نحو بحر حضرموت – قبل يوم القيامة ، تحشر الناس)) . قالوا : يا رسول الله فما تأمرنا ؟ فقال : ((عليكم بالشام ))
الراوي: عبدالله بن عمر - خلاصة الدرجة: صحيح - المحدث: الألباني - المصدر: صحيح التر! مذي - الصفحة أو الرقم : 2217
ذكر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فقال: ( اللهم بارك لنا في شامنا ، اللهم بارك لنا في يمننا ). قالوا : يا رسول الله، وفي نجدنا ؟ قال: ( اللهم بارك لنا في شامنا ، اللهم بارك لنا في يمننا )......
الراوي: عبدالله بن عمر - خلاصة الدرجة: صحيح - المحدث : البخاري - المصدر: الجامع الصحيح - الصفحة أو الرقم: 7094
وقال صلى الله عليه وسلم: ((يوم الملحمة الكبرى فسطاط المسلمين بأرض يقال لها : ( الغوطة ) ؛ فيها مدينة يقال لها : ( دمشق ) ؛ خير منازل المسلمين يومئذ .))
الراوي: أبو الدرداء - خلاصة الدرجة: صحيح - المحدث: الألباني - المصدر: صحيح الترغيب - الصفحة أو الرقم : 3097
وعنه صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال: (( عليكم بالشام )).
الراوي: معاوية بن حيدة القشيري - خلاصة الدرجة: صحيح - المحدث : الألباني - المصدر! : صحيح الجامع - الصفحة أو الرقم: 4069
وعنه صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال: ((صفوة الله من أرضه الشام ، و فيها صفوته من خلقه و عباده ، و لتدخلن الجنة من أمتي ثلة لا حساب عليهم و لا عذاب))
الراوي: أبو أمامة الباهلي - خلاصة الدرجة: صحيح لغيره - المحدث: الألباني - المصدر: السلسلة الصحيحة - الصفحة أو الرقم: 1909
وقد ورد عنه عليه الصلاة والسلام أنه قال: ((يا طوبى للشام، يا طوبى للشام، يا طوبى للشام، قالوا يا رسول الله وبم ذلك ؟ قال: تلك ملائكة الله باسطوا أجنحتها على الشام )).
الراوي: زيد بن ثابت - خلاصة الدرجة: صحيح - المحدث: الألباني - المصدر: فضائل الشام - الصفحة أو الرقم: 1
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