Saturday, May 10, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
Look who is socializing with the Clintons
The New York Times
Here is what the Clintons said about Rev. Wright
The campaign also provided a letter Mr. Clinton sent to Mr. Wright the next month thanking Mr. Wright for a “kind message” and saying he was touched by his prayers. A spokesman for the campaign said it was providing the information to show that Mr. Wright was well respected by many, including Mr. Clinton.
A spokesman for Mrs. Clinton said Thursday night that the campaign did not believe the Clintons had met with Mr. Wright before the speech or were aware of any views expressed by him at his church.
hat tip John America Blog
Here is what the Clintons said about Rev. Wright
The campaign also provided a letter Mr. Clinton sent to Mr. Wright the next month thanking Mr. Wright for a “kind message” and saying he was touched by his prayers. A spokesman for the campaign said it was providing the information to show that Mr. Wright was well respected by many, including Mr. Clinton.
A spokesman for Mrs. Clinton said Thursday night that the campaign did not believe the Clintons had met with Mr. Wright before the speech or were aware of any views expressed by him at his church.
hat tip John America Blog
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Rewind by Driss R. Temsamani
"I was born next to a pond. A fragile leaf from a strong tree, I blossomed to a tall branch. Too ambitious for my pond and too rebellious to stay in my tree, I decided to change my destiny and break free.
Growing up, I met many mentors: a wise frog, a humble fish, and a duck; all tried to teach me the ways of the pond. My biggest adventure began when I met the most wonderful butterfly. She made everything so simple that I dared to leave my pond and venture to the vast ocean.
As the currents drifted me away, toward the burning sun, I realized that I was at a point of no return. I bounced left and right against the waves, and to make the best of the trip, I decided to have fun and not look back.
While drifting in the ocean, I met sharks, eels, and even some killer whales. I also met some stingrays, but always avoided their enchanting and sensual moves. They all told me things that I can barely remember; but one thing for sure, I have always stayed alert to their ways and hollow looks.
Day after day, the currents drew me further away from my home. The farther I got, the wiser I became: from migrating birds, I learned history; from a school of fish, I learned leadership; from the manatees, I learned compassion; and from one particular dolphin, I learned to love.
One day, I found myself riding a storm. I had never seen such a thing. I started to despair; then I remembered patience, courage, and grace. I remembered the words, but could not remember the wise who spoke them. Only one picture came to my mind: a tree, tall and strong, and defiant to the hurly winds. The harsh rains made me remember the frog…the catfish…and the duck of the old pond.
My skin shivered, and a flood of confidence invaded my body. With confidence, I confronted the storm, and as the time passed, I survived. I become confident, arrogant, strong, smart, and ready for any challenge that may come. I continue the ride.
The sun set on a beautiful and endless horizon, and from nowhere, I was hit from behind, only to realize that the fight had just begun. With courage, I confronted my fears. I fought with a cold heart, selfishness, and dry eyes. The hours felt like days; the days felt like months; and the years felt like seconds. One night, bleeding and tired, I crashed on a rock and I decided to rest. My will was broken and I had many scars. I realized that I had lost a lot of companions along the way; the goldfish, the seahorse, and the migrating turtle.
Feeling lonely, I remembered my home, and I cried alone in the dark. As my last tear dripped, I glanced at the sky and I saw a shooting star. I smiled, made a wish, and decided to rest for a while. Right before I closed my eyes, out of the deep of the darkness, the dolphin appeared and with her soft skin, she touched me and ended the restless night.
The next day, I woke up to a new morning, and I found that the ocean was calm. I was ready to drift again toward my destiny: I wanted to let my roots grow; I wanted to see many leaves blossom; I wanted to honor the tree. I was determined not to rest until I found my own pond."
Flying kites
Painting by Marcio MeloMy daughters and I spent yesterday afternoon flying kites,there is something magical about flying kites. It was fun,refreshing,full of joy and laughters. The kites flew so high, the wind was perfect, our little princesses kites flew much better than the fancy wired ones on the lake. Everyone got to enjoy our kites, babies were hoping to try to reach high, toddlers were pointing and screaming in joy how high they were.
Lovely afternoon on the first day of spring.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Stop the war
California AP
Atlanta AP
Washington Reuters
Iowa, AP
Cambridge, Mass. AP
New Jersey AP
San Francisco AP
Washington, DC Reuters
South Carolina AP
Virginia AFP
Chicago AP
London AP
Istanbul,Turkey AP
Anti-Zionist Jews for peace Reuters London
AP Madrid
AFP California
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Rumi
Soul receives from soul that knowledge, therefore not by book
nor from tongue.
If knowledge of mysteries come after emptiness of mind, that is
illumination of heart. Rumi
JOY!
My friend M. With my daughter L."Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born."
Anaïs Nin
Monday, March 17, 2008
My Marrakesh
Maryam from My Marrakesh blog brought a breath of fresh air to my world when I discovered her blog. Amazing blog with the most vibrant and artistic pictures. Maryam and I share a lot in common and I had the pleasure to count on her expertise for helping me find a Caftan.
Want to see what a Moroccan garden look like? Look at this garden and enjoy the beauty .
One of the posts that I like very much is this one of Amy Leonard.
Want to see what a Moroccan garden look like? Look at this garden and enjoy the beauty .
One of the posts that I like very much is this one of Amy Leonard.
At last
The blogger Gods have granted me my password and I finally can post on my blog again. It has been almost a year since I blogged and there isn't a better time to start blogging again.
I'm simply in the mood.
I'm simply in the mood.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Who is Azmi Bishara?
Arab-Israeli Member of Knesset Azmi Bishara from the Balad Democratic Assembly has a Ph.D. from Humboldt University in Berlin and he is fluent in Arabic, Hebrew, English and German. He has authored several books in Hebrew and German. Dr. Bishara has been regularly writing for the Egyptian Al-Ahram Weekly
American Palestinian New Generation blog has one of the best article's by Azmi Bishara.
Azmi Bishara
Why Israel is after me
By Azmi Bishara, AZMI BISHARA was a member of the Knesset until his resignation in April.
May 3, 2007
Amman, Jordan — I AM A PALESTINIAN from Nazareth, a citizen of Israel and was, until last month, a member of the Israeli parliament.
But now, in an ironic twist reminiscent of France's Dreyfus affair — in which a French Jew was accused of disloyalty to the state — the government of Israel is accusing me of aiding the enemy during Israel's failed war against Lebanon in July.
Israeli police apparently suspect me of passing information to a foreign agent and of receiving money in return. Under Israeli law, anyone — a journalist or a personal friend — can be defined as a "foreign agent" by the Israeli security apparatus. Such charges can lead to life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
The allegations are ridiculous. Needless to say, Hezbollah — Israel's enemy in Lebanon — has independently gathered more security information about Israel than any Arab Knesset member could possibly provide. What's more, unlike those in Israel's parliament who have been involved in acts of violence, I have never used violence or participated in wars. My instruments of persuasion, in contrast, are simply words in books, articles and speeches.
These trumped-up charges, which I firmly reject and deny, are only the latest in a series of attempts to silence me and others involved in the struggle of the Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel to live in a state of all its citizens, not one that grants rights and privileges to Jews that it denies to non-Jews.
When Israel was established in 1948, more than 700,000 Palestinians were expelled or fled in fear. My family was among the minority that escaped that fate, remaining instead on the land where we had long lived. The Israeli state, established exclusively for Jews, embarked immediately on transforming us into foreigners in our own country.
For the first 18 years of Israeli statehood, we, as Israeli citizens, lived under military rule with pass laws that controlled our every movement. We watched Jewish Israeli towns spring up over destroyed Palestinian villages.
Today we make up 20% of Israel's population. We do not drink at separate water fountains or sit at the back of the bus. We vote and can serve in the parliament. But we face legal, institutional and informal discrimination in all spheres of life.
More than 20 Israeli laws explicitly privilege Jews over non-Jews. The Law of Return, for example, grants automatic citizenship to Jews from anywhere in the world. Yet Palestinian refugees are denied the right to return to the country they were forced to leave in 1948. The Basic Law of Human Dignity and Liberty — Israel's "Bill of Rights" — defines the state as "Jewish" rather than a state for all its citizens. Thus Israel is more for Jews living in Los Angeles or Paris than it is for native Palestinians.
Israel acknowledges itself to be a state of one particular religious group. Anyone committed to democracy will readily admit that equal citizenship cannot exist under such conditions.
Most of our children attend schools that are separate but unequal. According to recent polls, two-thirds of Israeli Jews would refuse to live next to an Arab and nearly half would not allow a Palestinian into their home.
I have certainly ruffled feathers in Israel. In addition to speaking out on the subjects above, I have also asserted the right of the Lebanese people, and of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, to resist Israel's illegal military occupation. I do not see those who fight for freedom as my enemies.
This may discomfort Jewish Israelis, but they cannot deny us our history and identity any more than we can negate the ties that bind them to world Jewry. After all, it is not we, but Israeli Jews who immigrated to this land. Immigrants might be asked to give up their former identity in exchange for equal citizenship, but we are not immigrants.
During my years in the Knesset, the attorney general indicted me for voicing my political opinions (the charges were dropped), lobbied to have my parliamentary immunity revoked and sought unsuccessfully to disqualify my political party from participating in elections — all because I believe Israel should be a state for all its citizens and because I have spoken out against Israeli military occupation. Last year, Cabinet member Avigdor Lieberman — an immigrant from Moldova — declared that Palestinian citizens of Israel "have no place here," that we should "take our bundles and get lost." After I met with a leader of the Palestinian Authority from Hamas, Lieberman called for my execution.
The Israeli authorities are trying to intimidate not just me but all Palestinian citizens of Israel. But we will not be intimidated. We will not bow to permanent servitude in the land of our ancestors or to being severed from our natural connections to the Arab world. Our community leaders joined together recently to issue a blueprint for a state free of ethnic and religious discrimination in all spheres. If we turn back from our path to freedom now, we will consign future generations to the discrimination we have faced for six decades.
Americans know from their own history of institutional discrimination the tactics that have been used against civil rights leaders. These include telephone bugging, police surveillance, political delegitimization and criminalization of dissent through false accusations. Israel is continuing to use these tactics at a time when the world no longer tolerates such practices as compatible with democracy.
Why then does the U.S. government continue to fully support a country whose very identity and institutions are based on ethnic and religious discrimination that victimize its own citizens?
By Azmi Bishara, AZMI BISHARA was a member of the Knesset until his resignation in April.
May 3, 2007
Amman, Jordan — I AM A PALESTINIAN from Nazareth, a citizen of Israel and was, until last month, a member of the Israeli parliament.
But now, in an ironic twist reminiscent of France's Dreyfus affair — in which a French Jew was accused of disloyalty to the state — the government of Israel is accusing me of aiding the enemy during Israel's failed war against Lebanon in July.
Israeli police apparently suspect me of passing information to a foreign agent and of receiving money in return. Under Israeli law, anyone — a journalist or a personal friend — can be defined as a "foreign agent" by the Israeli security apparatus. Such charges can lead to life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
The allegations are ridiculous. Needless to say, Hezbollah — Israel's enemy in Lebanon — has independently gathered more security information about Israel than any Arab Knesset member could possibly provide. What's more, unlike those in Israel's parliament who have been involved in acts of violence, I have never used violence or participated in wars. My instruments of persuasion, in contrast, are simply words in books, articles and speeches.
These trumped-up charges, which I firmly reject and deny, are only the latest in a series of attempts to silence me and others involved in the struggle of the Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel to live in a state of all its citizens, not one that grants rights and privileges to Jews that it denies to non-Jews.
When Israel was established in 1948, more than 700,000 Palestinians were expelled or fled in fear. My family was among the minority that escaped that fate, remaining instead on the land where we had long lived. The Israeli state, established exclusively for Jews, embarked immediately on transforming us into foreigners in our own country.
For the first 18 years of Israeli statehood, we, as Israeli citizens, lived under military rule with pass laws that controlled our every movement. We watched Jewish Israeli towns spring up over destroyed Palestinian villages.
Today we make up 20% of Israel's population. We do not drink at separate water fountains or sit at the back of the bus. We vote and can serve in the parliament. But we face legal, institutional and informal discrimination in all spheres of life.
More than 20 Israeli laws explicitly privilege Jews over non-Jews. The Law of Return, for example, grants automatic citizenship to Jews from anywhere in the world. Yet Palestinian refugees are denied the right to return to the country they were forced to leave in 1948. The Basic Law of Human Dignity and Liberty — Israel's "Bill of Rights" — defines the state as "Jewish" rather than a state for all its citizens. Thus Israel is more for Jews living in Los Angeles or Paris than it is for native Palestinians.
Israel acknowledges itself to be a state of one particular religious group. Anyone committed to democracy will readily admit that equal citizenship cannot exist under such conditions.
Most of our children attend schools that are separate but unequal. According to recent polls, two-thirds of Israeli Jews would refuse to live next to an Arab and nearly half would not allow a Palestinian into their home.
I have certainly ruffled feathers in Israel. In addition to speaking out on the subjects above, I have also asserted the right of the Lebanese people, and of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, to resist Israel's illegal military occupation. I do not see those who fight for freedom as my enemies.
This may discomfort Jewish Israelis, but they cannot deny us our history and identity any more than we can negate the ties that bind them to world Jewry. After all, it is not we, but Israeli Jews who immigrated to this land. Immigrants might be asked to give up their former identity in exchange for equal citizenship, but we are not immigrants.
During my years in the Knesset, the attorney general indicted me for voicing my political opinions (the charges were dropped), lobbied to have my parliamentary immunity revoked and sought unsuccessfully to disqualify my political party from participating in elections — all because I believe Israel should be a state for all its citizens and because I have spoken out against Israeli military occupation. Last year, Cabinet member Avigdor Lieberman — an immigrant from Moldova — declared that Palestinian citizens of Israel "have no place here," that we should "take our bundles and get lost." After I met with a leader of the Palestinian Authority from Hamas, Lieberman called for my execution.
The Israeli authorities are trying to intimidate not just me but all Palestinian citizens of Israel. But we will not be intimidated. We will not bow to permanent servitude in the land of our ancestors or to being severed from our natural connections to the Arab world. Our community leaders joined together recently to issue a blueprint for a state free of ethnic and religious discrimination in all spheres. If we turn back from our path to freedom now, we will consign future generations to the discrimination we have faced for six decades.
Americans know from their own history of institutional discrimination the tactics that have been used against civil rights leaders. These include telephone bugging, police surveillance, political delegitimization and criminalization of dissent through false accusations. Israel is continuing to use these tactics at a time when the world no longer tolerates such practices as compatible with democracy.
Why then does the U.S. government continue to fully support a country whose very identity and institutions are based on ethnic and religious discrimination that victimize its own citizens?
King of Morocco's wedding put the Mubarak's son wedding to shame
How does Hosni Mubarak face his countrymen when his son gets married and most of the Egyptian youth can't find a job or even dream to get married?. I feel for the Egyptian singles,their families, and for their despair and sadness. They are betrayed by their corrupt government.
Today I was thinking about how Moroccan royals have preserved the country tradition and culture. Watching the wedding of the King of Morocco and reading the news of Gamal's wedding put the Mubarak's to shame.
Today I found myself comparing the event of the public wedding of King of Morocco to the secretive wedding of Gamal Mubarak.
The fact that the King of Morocco's wedding was held in public and the whole country celebrated the happy occasion for three days goes to show how Mubarak and his son is hated among the Egyptians.
Within days after the announcement Rabat, Morocco's capital, prepared itself for the royal weding. Quickly streets were re-embellished and buildings repainted. Flags and banners were planted in the major squares and streets, and gardens were replanted with new trees and flowers. More than 600 traditional Moroccan tents were put up in several parts of Rabat and its twin city, Salé. Meanwhile it was made known that on the occasion of the marriage King Mohammed VI granted free pardon to 8425 prisoners, including 1.080 who are sick, elderly, handicapped or pregnant women. The grace also included prison terms reductions for 42,661 inmates, of whom 1,887 prisoners are sick, old, handicapped or pregnant or breast-feeding women. Two detainees had their life-prison sentence commuted to a 30-year prison sentence.
The wedding celebrations started on Friday July 12th with a procession from the city gate towards the Ahl Fass Mosque in the esplanade of the royal palace at sunset. Representatives of all the regions of Morocco, bearing gifts for the bride, paraded in a colorful cortege, full of beautiful costumes and lots of music. Nearly 1,500 persons from all over Morocco paraded before the king, who watched watched the parade sitting on a throne under a canopy, while VIPs and foreign dignitaries sat alongside under tents. The Wali of Rabat, on horseback, opened the procession, followed by elected representatives, dignitaries, ulemas (theologians), chorfas (descendants of the Prophet) and Koranic school pupils, donning White jellabas. The H'dia (or Ladhiya) ritual - offering gifts for the bride that are symbols of purity and happy life - then began to the beat of drums and sound of trumpets. Men bearing big trays of henne, pure rose water, dates, incense, Arabic gum, and sandal wood, young girls carrying censers, candles, and baskets of rose petals, and folk bands performing typical songs and dances of their respective regions, walked over one kilometer and a half. The ceremony climaxed when the king, accompanied by his brother Prince Moulay Rachid, came down from the Royal stand to be greeted by the enthusiastic delegations and the guests. After the procession 1500 horsemen performed the typically Moroccan fantasia while popular music troupes from all parts of Morocco joined the festivities also.
Later in the evening the official wedding ceremony took place in the royal palace, and also the Berza - official presentation of the bride to the guests seated in a carrying chair - took place in the intimacy of the royal palace. Simultaneously about 200 other couples from all social classes were also married at the royal palace in Rabat. After this mass wedding King Mohammed VI willingly posed for a photo with the couples.
The bride:-
Lalla Salma Bennani, 24, is from Morocco's middle-class and worked as computer engineer in Morocco's largest private holding ONA Group. Her father is a school teacher in the spiritual capital of Fes, north of Morocco.
I'm proud to be the first blog posting the groom's picture!
Oh well! I can go to bed tonight singing "batalooda.....El Ghorab...Gawzooh ah'la yamama"
Today I was thinking about how Moroccan royals have preserved the country tradition and culture. Watching the wedding of the King of Morocco and reading the news of Gamal's wedding put the Mubarak's to shame.
Today I found myself comparing the event of the public wedding of King of Morocco to the secretive wedding of Gamal Mubarak.
The fact that the King of Morocco's wedding was held in public and the whole country celebrated the happy occasion for three days goes to show how Mubarak and his son is hated among the Egyptians.
Within days after the announcement Rabat, Morocco's capital, prepared itself for the royal weding. Quickly streets were re-embellished and buildings repainted. Flags and banners were planted in the major squares and streets, and gardens were replanted with new trees and flowers. More than 600 traditional Moroccan tents were put up in several parts of Rabat and its twin city, Salé. Meanwhile it was made known that on the occasion of the marriage King Mohammed VI granted free pardon to 8425 prisoners, including 1.080 who are sick, elderly, handicapped or pregnant women. The grace also included prison terms reductions for 42,661 inmates, of whom 1,887 prisoners are sick, old, handicapped or pregnant or breast-feeding women. Two detainees had their life-prison sentence commuted to a 30-year prison sentence.
The wedding celebrations started on Friday July 12th with a procession from the city gate towards the Ahl Fass Mosque in the esplanade of the royal palace at sunset. Representatives of all the regions of Morocco, bearing gifts for the bride, paraded in a colorful cortege, full of beautiful costumes and lots of music. Nearly 1,500 persons from all over Morocco paraded before the king, who watched watched the parade sitting on a throne under a canopy, while VIPs and foreign dignitaries sat alongside under tents. The Wali of Rabat, on horseback, opened the procession, followed by elected representatives, dignitaries, ulemas (theologians), chorfas (descendants of the Prophet) and Koranic school pupils, donning White jellabas. The H'dia (or Ladhiya) ritual - offering gifts for the bride that are symbols of purity and happy life - then began to the beat of drums and sound of trumpets. Men bearing big trays of henne, pure rose water, dates, incense, Arabic gum, and sandal wood, young girls carrying censers, candles, and baskets of rose petals, and folk bands performing typical songs and dances of their respective regions, walked over one kilometer and a half. The ceremony climaxed when the king, accompanied by his brother Prince Moulay Rachid, came down from the Royal stand to be greeted by the enthusiastic delegations and the guests. After the procession 1500 horsemen performed the typically Moroccan fantasia while popular music troupes from all parts of Morocco joined the festivities also.
Later in the evening the official wedding ceremony took place in the royal palace, and also the Berza - official presentation of the bride to the guests seated in a carrying chair - took place in the intimacy of the royal palace. Simultaneously about 200 other couples from all social classes were also married at the royal palace in Rabat. After this mass wedding King Mohammed VI willingly posed for a photo with the couples.
The bride:-
Lalla Salma Bennani, 24, is from Morocco's middle-class and worked as computer engineer in Morocco's largest private holding ONA Group. Her father is a school teacher in the spiritual capital of Fes, north of Morocco.
I'm proud to be the first blog posting the groom's picture!
Oh well! I can go to bed tonight singing "batalooda.....El Ghorab...Gawzooh ah'la yamama"
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