Who Controls America?

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The financial oligarchy exercises incredible political influence on Washington decision-makers by dominating ex-officio appointed bodies that in reality shape the foreign and domestic policies of the United States but fall outside the constitutional structure. This pattern of supra-governmental bodies setting national policies makes a mockery of the principle of the sovereignty of the people.

By Prof. Arthur Kane Scott

A bitter divide exists over the distribution of economic resources. Roughly two percent of the world population controls nearly 80 percent of the resources, and only 20 percent remain for the other 98 percent of the global population. In 1992, 64 percent of the working US population reported a gross adjusted annual income of less than $30,000.

Who are the two percenters? They are composed of the industrial elite who came to power between the Civil War and World War I, including, among others, Armour & Swift (meat and packaging) Flieschmann (bread), Pulitzer (media), Heinz (food), Manville (asbestos), Eastman (film), Duke (tobacco), Firestone (rubber), Pabst (beer), Chrysler (autos), Morgan (finance), Rockefeller (petroleum), Ford (autos), Vanderbilt (railroads), and DuPont (chemicals). Today the managerial elite from Fortune 500 companies have joined their ranks. Multi-national corporations have enormous global reach, as represented by Lee Iacocca of Chrysler, Bill Gates of Microsoft, and Intel chairman Andrew Grove, Time Magazine’s 1997 “Man of the Year.”

Executive salaries in America have soared into tens of millions in the 1980s and 1990s. For example, E. Richard Jones, a Safeway executive in 1996, had a base salary of $731,000, but his stock options placed his total executive package at $16.07 million. Rises in executive largess, however, come at the expense of both white and blue-collar jobs. The Adjusted gross annual salary for 64 percent of the population in 1992 was only $29,500. Acquisitions and mergers caused downsizing, plant closings, and further layoffs. Families can no longer maintain a reasonable lifestyle with only one paycheck — hence the necessity of working wives and mothers.

Not only do the two percenters control the economy, but more seriously, they manipulate the culture through their ownership of the mass media: Television and movie productions, newspapers and magazines, radio and music, museums and arts, foundations and institutions of higher learning. Major corporate players in the information business include General Electric/NBC, Westinghouse/CBS, Disney/ABC, and Rupert Murdoch/Fox. Time Warner/AOL controls a $25-$30 billion industry that ranges from magazines, books, and movies. Time’s purchase of Turner Communications with its CNN affiliates transformed it into a media colossus.
Media concentration by three or four giants augurs poorly for the future of investigative reporting, and it raises serious doubts about news integrity as well as mass conditioning and manipulation. The Board of Directors of these media conglomerates come from the same circle of companies that influence government policy makers. They are recruited from ITT, IBM, Philip Morris, Dow Chemical, J.P. Morgan, Rand, Carnegie Corp., AT&T, Chase Manhattan, Citibank, ALCOA, Bulova, and Metropolitan Insurance. Government too, has a major stake in influencing the news, which probably explains why Bill Casey, the CIA Director under President Reagan, served on the boards of the NY Times, LA Times, NBC, and CBS.

Media and its Corrupting Power

The media implicitly mirrors the interests and power of corporate America. News reporting reflects biases that favor management over labor, large corporations over small entrepreneurs, the rich over the middle class and the poor, whites over peoples of color, male over female, militarism over disarmament, profit over ecology, class over equality.

This perspective explains why the media rarely pursues controversial topics such as why there are 40 million poor in the land of milk and honey, or why 14,000 workers die each year from occupational hazards, or another 100,000 workers die prematurely.

White-collar crimes abound but remain inexplicably glossed over, whereas street crimes are investigated and reported ad nauseam. Personalities and celebrities dominate the front page, and this preoccupation with their foibles and misdeeds keeps Americans distracted from the structural inequities in taxes, health insurance, educational opportunity, jobs, and the environment.

Americans are subject to a constant barrage of images and sounds that promote escape into materialism and consumerism, keeping the citizenry mired in debt and the corporation wealthy. As media critic Mark Crispen described it, “The true cause of the enormous ills that now dismay many Americans — the universal sleaze and dumbing down, the floodtide of corporate propaganda, the terminal insanity of American politics — has risen not from any grand decline in national character … but from the inevitable toxic influence of those few corporations that have monopolized the culture.”

Sports represent another powerful media attention-getting distraction. Professional sports, a multi-billion dollar entertainment industry, reinforce the underlying values that fuel the economic system: achievement, power, individualism, winning, sacrifice, money, and discipline. This accent on winning creeps into every aspect of life from Infancy, surreptitiously preparing American youth to be future warriors of global Americana.

Replacing the bat with a semi-automatic rifle only involves a sleight of hand in which the Drill Instructor replaces the coach. But even in sports, race, gender, and class differences are evident. Polo, yachting, and horseracing activities mainly patronized by the rich for obvious reasons, whereas baseball, basketball, and football were historically considered poor or working class activities.

The 1980s changed the status of professional athletes as their salaries soared, transforming them into a new class of millionaires. Fan disaffection from baseball developed over their strikes and because of the money gap separating them from the players. Tennis, golf, skiing, and scuba diving fall within the middle and upper middle-class range. Paradoxically, though black players dominate basketball, there are few black coaches and no black owners. The absence or lack of black managers and owners sends out the message that no matter how talented black athletes may be, they still lack the know-how and the resources crucial to ownership, and that they will always remain on the string of WASP America.

Unfortunately, sports hype instills among inner city youth the false belief that the only way for them out of the ghetto lies through professional sports. The sadly overlooked reality is that the number of positions available is only 3,000 to 5,000. But the press seldom discusses the issue of opportunity. Instead, they tantalize the youth with stories of triumph, glamour, and wealth. As a result, inner city kids spend more time cultivating athletic rather than academic skills. When their “hoop dreams” shatter, they have no fallback position, no employable skills, disillusionment sets in and for some — crime becomes the only game in town.

Business and Political Influence

The financial oligarchy exercises incredible political influence on Washington decision-makers by dominating ex-officio appointed bodies that in reality shape the foreign and domestic policies of the United States but fall outside the constitutional structure. This pattern of supra-governmental bodies setting national policies makes a mockery of the principle of the sovereignty of the people.

One such corporate body is the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). It was founded after World War I by grants from Rockefeller, Ford, and Carnegie. Its mission was to develop global policies that benefited what President Calvin Coolidge described as “the chief business of America — is business.” The Council was composed of 25 major corporations, including, among others, Morgan Guaranty Trust, Chase Manhattan, Citibank, and IBM.

Some of the Council’s self-serving accomplishments included creation of the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, NAFTA, and GATT. In the early 1970s the Council created the Trilateral Commission as a spin-off, to look at how international development was affecting business in Western Europe, America, and Japan.

What’s mind-boggling about the CFR and the Tri-Lateral Commission (TC) is that it involves only about 3,000 individuals, but these individuals have extraordinary impact on policy decision. The CFR and TC were intimately involved in Johnson’s decision to escalate the Vietnam War, and their belief that the Soviet Union was a much greater threat than it actually was, led Reagan to ante up the armament race, nearly bankrupting the nation.

Another curiosity is that nearly all cabinet appointments have served on either the CFR or TC or both. Warren Christopher, Secretary of State under Clinton, served on both the CFR council and TC commission. His successor, Madeleine Albright, was on the CFR.

Finally, the National Security Council members who advise the president on foreign affairs are CFR and TC members. At one time, David Rockefeller, chair of Chase Manhattan, headed both bodies.

Such concentration of power in the hands of wealth contributes to the political apathy and cynicism rampant among the people. The political system denies the people meaningful dialogue and participation.

War / Wall Street Debacle

The Iraq War dramatically weakened the American economy for most except for the 2 percenters, Wall Street, large corporations, giant Banks, and the military-industrial complex with its armament minions and their K street lobbyists. Bush sweetened the pot for the 2 percenters by giving them handsome tax breaks in 2001/03 on the grounds that it is the “rich who drive the economy.”

Despite Bush’s largess to rich, Wall Street was a ticking “greedy” time bomb ready to implode over arcane investments including derivatives, hedge funds, complex bundling of securities, rampant inside training, despite guru Alan Greenspan’s assertion as  Fed Chief that the “economy was fundamentally sound”.

Greenspan simply refused to reign in the overheated $8 trillion “housing bubble”.  Its dramatic collapse in 2008 translated into an $110,000.00 loss for the average American family as measured by losses in home values as great as the 1930’s, putting families in “underwater” situations, owing more on their homes than they were worth. 

It was estimated that more 11.3 million homes representing 24 % of all residential homes will be underwater by 2010.  In the first quarter alone, there were nearly a million foreclosures forcing many homeowners to walk away driven in part by their belief that Wall Street, especially Banks, had stuck it too often to Main Street.

The home mortgage debacle was compounded by a terrible spike in unemployment. In 2010, unemployment hovered around 10-12% with manufacturing areas particularly being hammered. Economists have indicated that the true unemployment rate is closer to 15% as many people are either unemployed, underemployed or have become discouraged and have dropped out of the employment market altogether. 

Detroit alone has a whopping 30-50% unemployment rate becoming a ghost of its former self.  Today, it seeks to downsize from a city of a million to a city half that size through a process of urban redevelopment. 

Detroit’s collapse is largely connected with the fall of General Motors which historically had been the corporate “weather bell” for America, the cliché being “as GM went so went the economy’.  By 2008, GM and Chrysler together received Federal “bailouts” of 40 billion dollars through TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Fund) despite the unheeded objections of Main Street. 

These funds called for management reorganization, fuel economy cars, closing of unprofitable dealerships/models, and better quality/marketing against Japanese/Korean brands that had become dominant in the American marketplace.  Though there was strong opposition to the bailouts, by early 2010 Chrysler/GM paid back their loans and seemed to be on the road to recovery

The High unemployment and auto bailouts however, were only symptomatic of the financial crisis which was in fact triggered by the laissez-faire practices of Wall Street and the Feds; it started with the Reagan administration and accelerated under Clinton/Bush. The deregulation of Banking/Wall Street became policy with neither the Federal Reserve nor Securities Exchange Commission exercising any effective control.  Instead, regulators have been cozying up with Wall Street. 

Milton Friedman School of Economics, Chicago School, with its emphasis on profits/privatization/free market dominated public policy and played into the hands of wheelers and dealers who came to the fore in a casino game called Wall Street. 

The market bust began with Bear Sterns collapse in 2008.  Bear Sterns was the fifth largest US Investment Bank, which, following 9/11, bet too heavily on manufacturing and mortgage-backed securities.  Its unraveling signaled a dramatic Wall Street meltdown and a financial crisis that threatened global economy.  As Bear Sterns profitable mortgage hedge fund collapsed, its bankruptcy sent shock waves across global financial markets including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers and AIG.

On October 6, 2008, Wall Street stocks collapsed 21%, and that time was called “Black Week”, leading Henry Paulson, Secretary of Treasury, formerly of Goldman Sacks, to propose the $700 billion TARP to salvage Wall Street and the global economy by purchasing distressed assets and pouring capital into hurting banks alleged “to be too big to fail”.

Although Wall Street welcomed the bailout, “Main Street” was incensed, seeing in it as another example of “Federal Welfare” for the rich in which the greedy excesses of Wall Street would be passed on to American taxpayers — and Wall Street poker players would escape from being held accountable for their excesses. 

The Bush government scrambled to salvage the economy:  Initially, Paulson planned to purchase toxic assets from the Banking establishment but this strategy proved inadequate, being compounded by the collapse of another Wall Street giant, Lehman Brothers, in the fall of 2008. 

To stop the Wall Street bleeding, Ben Bernanke, succeeding Alan Greenspan as Fed Chief, pressured Bank of America to absorb Merrill Lynch, another Wall Street icon wobbling on the edge of bankruptcy.  Many feared that Merrill’s collapse would herald the unraveling of the global economy.  Both Lynch/Lehman got caught like Bear Sterns with huge exposures in unsecured mortgages. 

To weather the storm, Paulson simply opened the coffers of taxpayer money in bailouts to banks and other threatened industries without negotiating any terms regarding management, reform of the system, transparency, and payback timelines.  Adding insult to injury, Wall Street firms continued to pay their managers humongous salaries, for instance AIG paid out $218,000,000 in bonuses. 

Such callous Wall Street behavior incensed the American public who saw their middle class life go up in smoke including marginalized retirement programs, double digit layoffs and worst of all, loss of homes. Banks, mortgage brokers, agents and the general optimism about the upward trend of the housing market had allowed almost everyone to purchase, even when their credit scores did not warrant loans.

Ironically, however, the greed of Wall Street came home to roost in Bernie Madoff’s 50 billion dollar ponzi “heist” that shocked the 2 percenters as it was they who were fleeced by one of their own.

The rip-off was worse than the ENRON debacle! Madoff showed just how deep the madness of materialism had penetrated the American psyche throwing the country into an unethical storm in which money, power, control and position were the dominant values threatening in the process democratic values of fairness, transparency and truthfulness.

The challenge confronting America under Barack Obama consists of revitalizing the political, socio-economic process and restoring government to the people.

Arthur Kane Scott is Professor of Humanities and Cultural Studies at Dominican University of California and Fellow of American Institute of International Studies.

12-27

A Thought Experiment: Iran

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By Gonzalo Lira

A whole bunch of American ships are headed to Iran, including one aircraft carrier. Some claim this deployment is “normal”, while others think it might be the first move in a U.S. offensive against Iran, either actual or diplomatic.

From the Iranians’ point of view, there’s only one way to look at this deployment: As another provocation.

American leadership—educated at the best schools and colleges, multi-cultural up the wazoo—don’t have a clue why Iranians feel besieged. They have no idea why Iran acts the way it does. They don’t even realize that they don’t understand Iran’s motivations.

There has been a complete lack of imagination, in America’s dealings with Iran—and that failure of imagination is why things are so f***ed up in the Middle East. (Is there any other way to characterize the whole mess? False politesse does not capture the sheer f***ed-up-edness of the situation.)

Iran: The failure of imagination has been Iran.

So perhaps a thought experiment is in order—for once, let’s try looking at the world from the Iranians’ point of view:

To begin: Let’s imagine some obscure Brazilian terrorist attacks China, way on the other side of the earth, literally. This Brazilian and his minions blow up the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, in one fairly spectacular terrorist attack.

We’re in America—this shouldn’t involve us. But as a consequence of these terrorist attacks, the Chinese—screaming for vengeance—deploy their sophisticated weapons and their millions of soldiers, and invade Canada. Supposedly, this Brazilian terrorist who attacked China is hiding out in the Great White North—which is why the Chinese are invading Canada.

We Americans express genuine sympathy for the Chinese’ loss. We decide to actually help the Chinese find the Brazilian terrorist! We even decide to help the Chinese with their conquest of Canada! That’s how much we repudiate this cowardly terrorist attack.

But then, out of the blue, the Chinese leader—in a carefully choreographed official speech—declares our country part of an “axis of evil”. And with no provocation on our part—indeed, after we have helped the Chinese conquer Canada—they vow to wipe us out at the slightest provocation, presumably with nuclear weapons.
Then, the Chinese start to claim that Mexico, of all countries, was involved in the terrorist attacks against China. Nevermind that the Mexican leadership hates and fears the Brazilian terrorist. Nevermind that the Brazilian is an ultra-Catholic, who hates and distrusts the Mexican leadership for being born-again Baptists. Nevermind that there’s no rhyme or reason for this alleged collusion.

The Chinese use trumped up and extraordinarily dubious “evidence” to back up this claim of collusion—they even claim that the Mexicans are developing WMD’s that they intend to use on China, which stirs the Chinese populace into a frenzy.

Then, the Chinese illegally invade Mexico, and outright occupy the country.

Our nation now finds itself besieged: There are a hundred-thousand odd Chinese troops in Canada to the north, and another couple of hundred thousand odd Chinese troops in Mexico to the south—all of them armed to the teeth. And back in China, they’re hysterically screaming for “regime change in America”.

We in America know what the Chinese really want—they want our food. We’re the world’s breadbasket. And while China has plenty of food, they want more. They are unwilling to make their citizens pay fair market prices for food—so they want to capture our food, so they can feed their citizens at our expense.

Meanwhile, Venezuela—a country one tenth the size of the U.S. in terms of territory and population—is hell-bent on regional hegemony. Venezuela consistently antagonizes and provokes the U.S. with their undeclared nuclear weapons.

But what can we do? The Chinese support Venezuela with weapons, billions of dollars in aid money, and the full weight of their political and military power. Venezuela provokes us constantly, to the point of stationing three of their submarines—loaded with nuclear missiles—not fifty miles off America’s East Coast. In easy striking distance of America’s major cities.

Meanwhile, back in China, the woman who is the current Foreign Secretary not only openly hates us, she once said that even a minor skirmish with Venezuela would result in the U.S. being “wiped off the face of the map”—meaning, presumably, a nuclear response.

We have no nuclear weapons. But we do have a whole lot of hate for both China and Venezuela—justifiable hatred.

America’s history (in this thought experiment) is inextricably tied to China’s foreign policy. Back in 1953, China forcibly overthrew the democratically elected government of Dwight Eisenhower, in a covert operation known as Operation Ajax.

Then, China installed their puppet-dictator, Richard Nixon, who ruled for 25 years with an iron fist, using the SAVAK—Nixon’s feared secret police, trained by Venezuela’s Mossad security agency, and China’s own CIA.

China and Venezuela kept the puppet-dictator Nixon in power for 25 years, using SAVAK to kidnap, torture and kill American freedom-fighters. Great American men and women were lost. People like Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson, Gloria Steinem, David Halberstam, Woodward & Bernstein, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, Paul Newman, Francis Ford Coppola, Billy Graham, Jerry Falwell, Naom Chomsky, Jonas Salk, Harper Lee, even poor Rosa Parks and countless others were all tortured and/or killed by SAVAK, often with the assistance of Venezuela’s Mossad and China’s CIA.

While the flower of America was being tortured and killed, America’s breadbasket was being raped by Chinese and Venezuelean interests—from 1953 to 1979, they took our food and didn’t pay a dime for it. Or else they “paid” for it by giving their puppet-dictator credit to buy Chinese weapons—weapons which their puppet-dictator then used against American citizens!

Finally, we Americans—after tremendous struggles—managed to overthrow the Chinese puppet-dictator in 1979. (And where did the murderous bastard seek asylum? His patron-state, of course—do we need any more evidence that he was their marionette?)

China declared us a “rogue nation” after we overthrew the dictator who had repressed us so horribly. Since then, 30 years later, the Chinese have been consistently trying to undermine our economy with sanctions and United Nations embargoes.

They’ve succeeded, too—our economy is not a fraction of what it could have been, had the Chinese not had this vendetta against us. They choke our economy, while threatening us with their overwhelming military power, and goad us with the Venezueleans just to annoy and humiliate us.

All because of our resources—the Chinese are so insane to possess what is ours that they will do whatever is necessary to take it away. That is why they hate us. That is why they have interfered unforgivably in our history. That is why they want to destroy our country, and turn it into their “protectorate”—so they can once again rape our land, and take away what belongs to us, and to our children.

They openly say that they want a “Chinese-friendly regime change”. They say they want “moderate Americans” to control our country—but the people they refer to as “moderates” are people who worked for the bloody dictator we overthrew. Our current leaders—members of the America-First/America-Free party, good Mormons one and all—sometimes are over-the-top, no one will deny it: Sometimes they say stupid things. But we trust them. We know they are our representatives—not Chinese puppets, like Nixon and his goons.

The Chinese claim that they invaded Canada and Mexico in order to find this Brazilian terrorist—but with all their power, they still haven’t found him after almost ten years. Was there ever a terrorist? Or was it a false-flag operation? Did the Chinese themselves blow up the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, in order to have an excuse to invade the North American continent? Some of their own people publicly believe that the Chinese government staged the terrorist attacks as an excuse to invade the region—that should tell us something.

The Chinese plan to invade and/or destroy us—that is obvious. So we won’t give them the chance: Instead, we’ll help the Mexican and Canadian insurgents. We’ll give them weapons and money, so we can buy time. Soon, our scientists will develop nuclear weapons of our own: Then neither the Chinese nor the despicable Venezueleans will ever again hold their nuclear sword to our throats with impunity. Soon, we will be able to strike back—and if they provoke us, we will strike back. Even if it means our own destruction.

After all, it’s a thousand times better to die free than to live on your knees. Living under the Chinese-controlled puppet-dictatorship taught us that. We won’t let it happen again.

Here ends the thought experiment—but not the questions.

———————————

First of all, the more you think through America’s provocations and interference in Iran’s history, the more you can’t help but be impressed by Iran’s self-control. They’ve played their cards much better than either the U.S. or Israel.

Precisely because of all the foolish, pointless tauntings and provocations by the U.S. and Israel, I think it’s likely that—regardless of what they say—Iran is very busy trying to acquire nuclear weapons.

Israel’s and the U.S.’s nuclear taunting guarantees that the only thing that will give Iran’s people and leadership peace of mind is a few dozen nuclear-tipped rockets. And they will in all likelihood acquire them—one way or another. Fear will drive them.

For now, Iran’s strategy of quietly but steadily fomenting insurgents in Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine is the only sensible approach Iran can take. It has to keep America pinned down in those two quagmires while it develops nuclear weapons.

Because that’s Iran’s ultimate goal—obviously: From the point of view of Iran’s leadership, any other strategy would be irresponsible and foolish. The Iranian leadership want to protect their population from both the U.S. and Israel. From Iran’s point of view, only the acquisition of nukes guarantees their safety.

However, a nuclear Iran isn’t a disaster—on the contrary: My own sense is, if and when Iran actually acquires nuclear weapons, regional tension will paradoxically ease—think India/Pakistan. And Iran is a far more stable country than Pakistan, with none of the territorial ambitions or frictions.

If and when Iran acquires nukes, the U.S. will realize it can’t f*** with Iran anymore—it has to negotiate. The same conclusion will be arrived at in Tel Aviv.

The danger zone, I think, will be that uncertain period before Iran for-sure has nuclear weapons—in other words, the period we are living in now.

It is conceivable that Israel will stupidly launch a pre-emptive strike, in a misguided attempt to “protect Israel” from Iran acquiring nukes. In fact, I would argue that this is a very possible outcome. This pre-emptive strike will bring about a nuclear retaliation by Iran—they’ll simply buy a few from Russia (which would be happy to sell them, if Israel starts launching nukes helter-skelter), and that will be that for Israel. Israel is smaller, and more concentrated. In any nuclear war, Israel will lose.

Now is the danger-time. And it will be the Americans and the Israelis—not the Iranians—who will pull the trigger on the regional suicide.

12-27

A Plague Upon The World: The USA Is a “Failed State”

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By Paul Craig Roberts

This interview was originally published at Global Research.

Interview with Dr. Paul Craig Roberts, former Assistant Secretary U.S. Treasury, Associate Editor Wall Street Journal, Professor of Political Economy Center for Strategic and International Studies Georgetown University Washington DC.

Question:  Dr. Roberts, the United States is regarded as the most successful state in the world today. What is responsible for American success?

Federal Reserve

The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve Board Building

Dr. Roberts:  Propaganda. If truth be known, the U.S. is a failed state. More about that later. The U.S. owes its image of success to: (1) the vast lands and mineral resources that the U.S. “liberated” with violence from the native inhabitants, (2) Europe’s, especially Great Britain’s, self-destruction in World War I and World War II, and (3) the economic destruction of Russia and most of Asia by communism or socialism.

After World War II, the U.S. took the reserve currency role from Great Britain. This made the U.S. dollar the world money and permitted the U.S. to pay its import bills in its own currency. World War II’s destruction of the other industrialized countries left the U.S. as the only country capable of supplying products to world markets. This historical happenstance created among Americans the impression that they were a favored people. Today the militarist neoconservatives speak of the United States as “the indispensable nation.”  In other words, Americans are above all others, except, of course, Israelis.
To American eyes a vague “terrorist threat,” a creation of their own government, is sufficient justification for naked aggression against Muslim peoples and for an agenda of world hegemony.

This hubristic attitude explains why among most Americans there is no remorse over the one million Iraqis killed and the four million Iraqis displaced by a U.S. invasion and occupation that were based entirely on lies and deception. It explains why there is no remorse among most Americans for the countless numbers of Afghans who have been cavalierly murdered by the U.S. military, or for the Pakistani civilians murdered by U.S. drones and “soldiers” sitting in front of video screens. It explains why there is no outrage among Americans when the Israelis bomb Lebanese civilians and Gazan civilians.  No one in the world will believe that Israel’s latest act of barbarity, the murderous attack on the international aid flotilla to Gaza, was not cleared with Israel’s American enabler.

Question:  You said that the U.S. is a failed state. How can that be? What do you mean?

Roberts:  The war on terror, invented by the George W. Bush/Dick Cheney regime, destroyed the U.S. Constitution and the civil liberties that the Constitution embodies. The Bill of Rights has been eviscerated. The Obama regime has institutionalized the Bush/Cheney assault on American liberty. Today, no American has any rights if he or she is accused of “terrorist” activity. The Obama regime has expanded the vague definition of “terrorist activity” to include “domestic extremist,” another undefined and vague category subject to the government’s discretion.  In short, a “terrorist” or a “domestic extremist” is anyone who dissents from a policy or a practice that the U.S. government regards as necessary for its agenda of world hegemony.

Unlike some countries, the U.S. is not an ethic group. It is a collection of diverse peoples united under the Constitution. When the Constitution was destroyed, the U.S. ceased to exist. What exists today are power centers that are unaccountable. Elections mean nothing, as both parties are dependent on the same powerful interest groups for campaign funds. The most powerful interest groups are the military/security complex, which includes the Pentagon, the CIA, and the corporations that service them, the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee, the oil industry that is destroying the Gulf of Mexico, Wall Street (investment banks and hedge funds), the insurance companies, the pharmaceutical companies, and the agri-companies that produce food of questionable content.

These corporate powers comprise an oligarchy that cannot be dislodged by voting. Ever since “globalism” was enacted into law, the Democrats have been dependent on the same corporate sources of income as the Republicans, because globalism destroyed the labor unions. Consequently, there is no difference between the Republicans and Democrats, or no meaningful difference.

The “war on terror” completed the constitutional/legal failure of the U.S. The U.S. has also failed economically. Under Wall Street pressure for short-term profits, U.S. corporations have moved offshore their production for U.S. consumer markets. The result has been to move U.S. GDP and millions of well-paid U.S. jobs to countries, such as China and India, where labor and professional expertise are cheap. This practice has been going on since about 1990.

After 20 years of offshoring U.S. production, which destroyed American jobs and federal, state and local tax base, the U.S. unemployment rate, as measured by U.S. government methodology in 1980, is over 20 percent. The ladders of upward mobility have been dismantled. Millions of young Americans with university degrees are employed as waitresses and bartenders. Foreign enrollment comprises a larger and larger percentage of U.S. universities as the American population finds that a university degree has been negated by the offshoring of the jobs that the graduates expected.

When U.S. offshored production re-enters the U.S. as imports, the trade balance deteriorates. Foreigners use their surplus dollars to purchase existing U.S. assets.

Consequently, dividends, interest, capital gains, tolls from toll roads, rents, and profits, now flow abroad to foreign owners, thus increasing the pressure on the U.S. dollar. The U.S. has been able to survive the mounting claims of foreigners against U.S. GDP because the U.S. dollar is the reserve currency. However, the large U.S. budget and trade deficits will put pressures on the dollar that will become too extreme to be able to sustain this role. When the dollar fails, the U.S. population will be impoverished.

The U.S. is heavily indebted, both the government and the citizens. Over the last decade there has been no growth in family income. The U.S. economy was kept going through the expansion of consumer debt. Now consumers are so heavily indebted that they cannot borrow more. This means that the main driving force of the U.S. economy, consumer demand, cannot increase. As consumer demand comprises 70% of the economy, when consumer demand cannot increase, there can be no economic recovery.

The U.S. is a failed state also because there is no accountability to the people by corporations or by government at any level, whether state, local, or federal. British Petroleum is destroying the Gulf of Mexico. The U.S. government has done nothing. The Obama regime’s response to the crisis is more irresponsible than the Bush regime’s response to Hurricane Katrina. Wetlands and fisheries are being destroyed by unregulated capitalist greed and by a government that treats the environment with contempt. The tourist economy of Florida is being destroyed. The external costs of drilling in deep waters exceeds the net worth of the oil industry. As a result of the failure of the American state, the oil industry is destroying one of the world’s most valuable ecological systems.
Question:  What can be done?

Roberts:  The American people are lost in la-la land. They have no idea that their civil liberties have been forfeited. They are only gradually learning that their economic future is compromised. They have little idea of the world’s growing hatred of Americans for their destruction of other peoples. In short, Americans are full of themselves. They have no idea of the disasters that their ignorance and inhumanity have brought upon themselves and upon the world.
Much of the world, looking at a country that appears both stupid and inhumane, wonders at Americans’ fine opinion of themselves. Is America the virtuous “indispensable nation” of neoconservative propaganda, or is America a plague upon the world?

12-27

Dearborn–Masjid Al-Salam

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By Musa Odeh

“In the name of Allah Most Gracious Most Merciful.”  This is the scripture written in big bold Arabic letters above the Imams podium at Masjid Al-Salam. 

Masjid Al-Salam, which is located at 3900 Schaefer Road, is fairly new to the Dearborn community and has been open to the public since the first of the year.

“Masjid Al-Salam cost over two million dollars that the Muslim community from all over the world genouresly donated.  In the end it was all worth it because the Masjid turned out beautifully,” said President Adnan El-Kadri.

“Masjid Al-Salam was built because the American Moslem Bekaa Center has become overcrowded.  More and more people were embracing Islam everyday so it became our job to give Sunni Muslims a comfortable place to worship,” said Imam Mohamed Al-Bachir.

Imams rotate giving the Friday lecture every week in order to give Muslims a variety of Islamic speeches.  Recent convert Lune of Bad Boy Entertainment gave last week’s lecture.  The former singer and pop star gave a lecture directed to the Muslim youth and how they should stay close to their religion and avoid the temptations of evil and sin.

Friday lectures are given in Arabic every week at noon.  An English lecture is given for the non-Arabic speaking Muslims weekly at 1:10 p.m.  About 800 Muslims attend the Arabic lecture and 300 Muslims are in attendance for the English lecture.

The women pray on the second floor and can actually see the Imam while he is lecturing via plasma TV.

“We also have about 350 students enrolled in our weekend school.  The curriculum consists of teaching Arabic and Quran,” said Vice President Said Mashgari.

The new mosque also comes equipped with its very own cafeteria and gym.

12-27

Omar Atia Speaks to BMUC About Helping Young People at the Mosque

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By Adil James, MMNS

Bloomfield-June 30-An estimated 3% of Muslim young people feel that they can go from home to school, comfortable in their own skins, without identifying as one person at home and another person at school.

This was the essential shocking fact that Omar Atia mentioned as he began his speech to about 200 people in the conference room at the Bloomfield Muslim Unity Center.  There is actually a larger percentage of Muslim students who just do not identify as Muslim anymore, than there are who both identify as Muslim and feel comfortable in that persona throughout their daily lives.

The theme of his speech was that young people growing up in the mosque are confronted with cultural baggage that prevents them from remaining fully active in the mosque.  Mr. Atia did not fully elaborate on what cultural baggage he referred to, but spoke at length about talented young people who are deemed too young and inexperienced to actively participate in mosque affairs–who are passed over for important jobs that they are capable of doing, while older people in mosque administrations maintain their control or hegemony at the expense of those once-enthusiastic but now jaded young people.

Mr. Atia argued that Islam is meant to benefit all people, but that it cannot benefit all people unless they are able to come to it, just as a hospital cannot benefit sick people unless it admits them.  He said that in fact now, despite our protestations to the contrary, all mosques already contain in them the same social ills that exist in the surrounding society, although those ills may be hidden. 

In order to benefit humanity as much as possible, it is therefore necessary to allow people into the mosque who might have openly sinful lives, so that they can benefit from the teachings of Islam. 

Mr. Atia argued that this is the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (s), who did not exclude people.  He also emphasized that he has seen the benefits of such openness in his own efforts toward working for Muslim communities.

This event at the Bloomfield Muslim Unity Center combined an Ice cream social with the Omar Atia speech.  Adults and small children attended the ice cream social, but only a few young people were present at the Omar Atia event—many adults were present, however, showing their keen interest in the religious safety of their children.

12-27

Hyderabadi Culture Celebrated in Mississauga Ontario

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By Ayub Khan, MMNS

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Bonnie Crombie, Member of the Canadian Parliament, presented Ayub Khan with a certificate of appreciation for his ‘oustanding achievements in community service.’ The citation read, ‘Thank you for your tireless efforts and dedication to making our community a better place.’ The certificate was presented at the annual gala event of the Hyderabad Deccan Foundation of Canada held on June 19, 2010 in Mississauga.

L-R (Rafat Alam, Ayub Khan, Bashir Beg (chairman, HDFC), Bonnie Crombie, Hyder Syed, Anjum Sayeed, and Zaki Ahsan.

Hyderabadi culture, in all its dazzling glory, was in full display at the annual Mehfil-e-Hyderabad gala event held on June 19, 2010 at the Versailles Convention Center in Mississauga. There was music, authentic Hyderabadi food, speeches, a raffle featuring round trip air tickets to Hyderabad from Etihad Airways, and above all great company.  Organized by the Hyderabad Deccan Foundation of Canada (HDFC), the event attracted more than 1200 people some of whom came from as far as Houston, Dallas, Chicago, Detroit, New York, Cleveland, and Connecticut. This year’s event has been widely acclaimed as the largest ever gathering of Hyderabadis all over North America.

Attendees were greeted to a recording of the traditional Hyderabadi shehnai and naubat. Emceed by Mr.Hyder Syed and Ms. Anjum Sayeed the program began with a speech by HDFC president Mr. Bashir Beg.  In his remarks Mr. Beg highlighted the uniqueness of the Hyderabadi culture. “We, Canadians of Hyderabadi origin, are inheritors of a glorious past marked by communal harmony, artistic innovation, linguistic dynamism and cultural vibrancy unparalleled anywhere else in the world. It is a legacy of which anyone could be proud of.  It is this unique heritage which we want to maintain in our adopted homeland and pass it on to our next generations.”

In this regard the Hyderabadi Deccan Foundation of Canada has committed itself to build a Hyderabadi community center in Canada, he informed. HDFC is on the lookout for appropriate available spaces like vacant schools, churches, etc.  Once built the state of the centre will be the first of its kind outside of India and will provide a host of services relevant to the Hyderabadi culture.

Bonnie Crombie, Member of Parliament from Mississauga-Streetsville, and Mississauga city councilors Carolyn Parrish and George Carlson were the guests of honor at the event. In her remarks Bonnie Crombie stated that she is delighted to learn about the rich culture of Hyderabad and is happy to learn that it has now become a part of the Canadian multicultural mosaic.  She praised the numerous contributions Hyderabadi Canadians have made to Canada. Councilor Parrish donated $300 towards the Hyderabadi community center. Councilor Carlson offered his help in locating an appropriate space for the center.  Special greetings were presented on behalf of Mr. Jason Kenney, Minister of Immigration.

Prominent Hyderabadis from Canada and America were honored for their contributions in diverse fields.  The honorees for this year were: Haroon Siddiqui(Journalism), Dr. Taqi Abedi (Literature), Karam Ali Khan (Business), Siddiq Burney (Community Service), and Mirza Pervaiz Baig (Social Networking). 

Mrs. Bonnie Crombie also presented certificates of appreciation for Mr. Bashir Beg, Mr. Javid Raza, and Mr. Mohammed Ayub Khan.

Dr. Taqi Abedi in his gripping lecture spoke on the more than 400 year old history of Hyderabad. He said the multicultural character of Hyderabad should serve as an example for diverse societies.

The main highlight of the event was the musical program featuring the sensational singer Mr. Javid Raza from Connecticut and other local talent. This part of program was organized by Mr. Rafat Alam and emceed by Mr. Zaki Ahsan. Widely praised as the ‘Voice of Rafi,’ Javid Raza lived up to the expectations with his enthralling performance.  His performance included  variety of songs from the classical ghazal of Bahadur Shah Zafar to the more contemporary from the age of Rafi.
Toronto area artistes Rafat Alam,  Naqi Bilgrami, Chandrima Bhattacharya, Rahmat Khan, Tahera Ali, also put up a spectacular performance. Live music was provided by Nadeem Ali and his Avengers Group.

Mr. Zaki Ahsan’s role as the emcee of the musical program was peppered with his frequent jokes leaving the audience in splits.

The enchanting performances continued until 3 am with the audience present in rapt attention.  As part of the raffle winners received various items including two round trip tickets to Hyderabad generously donated by Etihad Airways.

A colorful event souvenir with rare pictures and interesting articles on Hyderabad was also well appreciated by all.

12-27

Community News (V12-I27)

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New halal facility waiting approval in New York

QUEENS, NY–A halal facility in Ozone Park is on its way to become the Queen’s third federally approved slaughterhouse. Madani Halal,the $5 million facility, is is expected to be completed next month. Run by a father and son duo it started operations 1997 from a former auto body shop. It latest expansion has lasted five years.

The new facility will allow the business to tap into the growing demand for halal products, the owners told the New York Daily News.

“It’s exciting, yet nerve-wracking,” said Imran Uddin, owner of the Madani Halal. “We’re spending a lot more money to open a USDA facility, but it allows me to sell to supermarkets, butcher shops, across state lines and even internationally.”
His father, Riaz Uddin, 77, started the family business in 1997, selling a wide assortment of freshly killed poultry, goats and lambs to immigrants.

“Muslim people in our community need a place like that,” Riaz Uddin said of expanding the business. “There’s a demand for halal products, and the Muslim community is growing very rapidly.”

TN Islamic center drops cemetery request

MURFREESBORO, TN–The Islamic Center of Murfreesboro has withdrawn its application and request for a conditional use permit to establish a cemetery in the residential zoning district at its Veals Road lot.

The written request was made Monday by Stephen A. Steele, professional engineer with Huddleston-Steele Engineering, on behalf of the Islamic Center.

“Members of the advisory board of the Islamic Center requested we do this,” said Steele, a partner in the Murfreesboro engineering firm. “They just didn’t think this was a good time to submit the papers.”

Camie Ayash, the spokeswoman for the Islamic Center, said the center’s planning committee decided to pull the request “so that they can sit down with the engineers, and re-review it.”

Ali Hasan condemns Jane Norton’s rant

DENVER,CO–Ali Hasan, former Republican State Treasurer candidate and the most prominent Muslim in Colorado politics slammed Norton for her anti-Islamic rant. In a guest column for the Colorado Statesman he wrote:

“Nothing has hurt the GOP more than Republican candidates who appear senseless or racist — Jane Norton, candidate for the U.S. Senate, has managed to appear as both.

In a redesign of her campaign theme, Norton’s Web site now carries a video that starts with the bold quote, “OBAMA DOCTRINE TO MAKE CLEAR NO WAR ON ISLAM — REUTERS, 5.26.10.” The quote plays over a chorus of dark sounds, communicating that Norton disagrees with Obama — she doesn’t want to go to war against ‘radical Islam’ or ‘fundamentalist Muslims’ — no, Norton wants to go after “Islam.”

As the video plays, one waits for explanation of why all Muslims should be slaughtered, but Norton offers nothing. Is her desire to kill all Muslims based on the fact that many Muslims have brown skin? Or that some speak with accents? Or that some wear turbans? The fact that the quote was displayed without direct explanation leaves the door open to assume that Norton is a racist.”

12-27

Houstonian Corner (V12-I27)

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Most Successful 5th ICNA US South Central Region Conference at U of H

“Usually 800 persons register for our conference and 300 more people show up on the conference day. But this the fifth year for our ICNA Conference of the US South Central Region, more than 1,000 had already registered before the conference and some 500 came on the conference day,” said one ICNA organizer.

“With just $35 and $40, a whole family get registered for the complete one day conference and persons able to listen to leading national scholars and orators of Islam, like this year, Imam Khalid Griggs, Sheikh Nauman Ali Khan, Sheikh Omar Suleiman, Dr. Zahid Bukhari, Imam Abdul Nasir Jangda, Samid AL-Khatib, and the famous Muslim Comedian of “Allah Made Me Funny” Azeem Muhammad. Other attractions this year were Exhibition: “Window to Islam”; Extensive Bazaar and Halal Food on Sale; Parallel Youth Conference – Theme: “Strangers: Questions of Muslim Youth”; Some topics will be: “No Holds Barred – Any Questions”; “Contributions of The Muslim Youth”; “Being Muslim, Around My Friends”; and others,” added the organizer.

This Conference was held as the Fifth Annual ICNA-MAS US South Central Region Conference at the Main Campus of the University of Houston, University Center, and this past Saturday, June 26th, 2010.

Families and their friends’ learned about the various aspect of contemporary societal issue of: Save Family – Save Society. The organizers informed that very crucial and interesting modern world’s topics were presented in the most interactive manner like:

– Talk Show with Imam Khalid Griggs “Generation Gap in Muslim Families”; Interactive Session with Sheikh Nouman Ali Khan on “Peer Pressure: Good Or Bad”; The Family in America: Trends, Challenges, Opportunities (Dr. Zahid Bukhari); Parents and Our Responsibility (Abdul Nasir Jangda); Today You Can – Tomorrow You Cannot (Sheikh Omar Suleiman).

For getting videos of the conference, one can call 1-713-201-8080; 1-225-315-0407; and 1-817-300-9461.

TV Max Television at the International Press Club

Picture AAQ

Wea H. Lee, Chairman of Southern News Group, Houston, Texas, and John Robbins, Director of the International Press Club, hosted a luncheon gathering of the International Press Club (IPC) at the Southern News Group offices on Thursday, June 24, 2010. Present were members of the international press, representing diverse cultures including Muslims-American, Asian, Pakistani-American, Indo-American, Japanese, African, Hispanic as well as community leaders from the Alief and surrounding area. Present were representatives from newspapers, magazine, radio, television and internet media sources in the Houston area.

In his remarks at the meeting, Lee emphasized that the “time is right” for the members of the international press in Houston to come together as a group to not only share in professional journalistic discussions, but also to share business, political and cultural news and events that directly affect the various international communities.

The featured guest was Mr. David Curtin, CEO of TV Max Television, the leading Cable TV Service to several hundred apartment and condominium complexes throughout Houston. Mr. Curtin expressed his willingness to work with members of the international press in the development of the international programming on TV Max, in cooperation with Mr. Wea Lee and ITV International Television.

The IPC joins the International Trade Center and ITV International Television, Digital Channel 55.5 in Houston as another effort on the part of Southern News Group leadership to connect Texas and the local and state economies to world markets. The organization is a non-profit, fraternal organization dedicated to connecting members of the international press in Texas and also welcomes non-media individuals and businesses, with an interest in global news developments that affect the economy of Texas and local communities of Texas.

Southern News Group has published the Southern Chinese Daily News in southwest Houston for over 30 years, and over the years has expanded to 11 other major U.S. cities, and now comprises a diverse media business with an international presence that includes print, internet and television services.

For additional information contact John Robbins, Director, IPC of Texas at 832-448-0193, or by email at john@scdaily.com

12-27

Ghana Leads Remaining Muslim Stars

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By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

2010-logo The round of 16 at the 2010 FIFA World Cup has begun, and teams have come and gone, with the cream now rising to the top. There has been attrition of the Muslim contingent in the tournament, with the only Muslim nation, Algeria, as well as a Muslim-laden French team both having been eliminated in the group stages. But Muslim soccer indeed lives on at the World Cup, led by the Black Stars of Ghana.

Ghana faced the United States in the round of 16 in a hard-fought battle that had to go into extra time. The Black Stars went on the scoreboard first with a quick goal at the 5 minute mark. They then held the lead for much of the match until a United States penalty kick tied the score after 62 minutes. The two teams remained tied through the end of regulation time and through stoppage time, necessitating 15 minutes of extra time. And it was early in this extra period when Ghana tacked on the decisive second goal and held on for a 2-1 victory. The Muslim presence on the team lies in the midfield, which is manned by the Ayew brothers, Andre and Abdul Rahim, as well as Sulley Ali Muntari. Andre Ayew currently is employed by Marseille of the top French league, although he was most recently was on loan to a lower division club, AC Arles-Avignon. Abdul Rahim Ayew plays professionally for El Zamalek in the Egyptian league. The Ayews’ father, Abedi Pele, was three-time African Footballer of the Year. Sulleyman Ali “Sulley” Muntari plays for the current winners of the European Champions League, Internazionale Milan. Ghana next faces Uruguay in the quarterfinals.

A couple of European teams remain in the World Cup with Muslim contributors, chief among them Germany. The Germans boast a talented midfield consisting of Muslims Mesut Oezil and Sami Khedira. Oezil, of Turkish descent, plays for Werder Bremen of the German Bundesliga, but he has reportedly attracted the attention of several English Premier League clubs with his exploits in this World Cup. Khedira, of Tunisian descent, plays professionally for VfB Stuttgart. Serdar Tasci, of Turkish descent, also plays for Stuttgart, and is a reserve defender for the German national team. Germany handily defeated England 4-1 in the round of 16, and will face the vaunted Argentinian team in the quarterfinals.

Holland also continues on in the tournament with Muslims on the roster. The Dutch have been very impressive thus far, having won all of their matches, and one of their young studs is Ibrahim Afellay. Afellay is an attacking midfielder for PSV Eindhoven in the Dutch league, and in 2007 he won the Young Player of the Year award in Holland. He is of Moroccan descent. Afellay is joined on the team by Khalid Boulahrouz, a reserve defender. Boulahrouz, also of Moroccan descent, has played for a number of big clubs thoughout Europe, including Hamburg, Sevilla, and Chelsea, and he currently plays for Stuttgart. The Dutch disposed of Slovakia in the round of 16 and will now face the powerhouse Brazilian squad in the quarterfinals.

12-28

Muslim Highs and Lows on NBA Draft Night

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By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

1 iamnjsp FUTTERMAN MURRAY
File:  Hamady N’Diaye

The 2010 National Basketball Association draft of amateur players took place on June 24th and several Muslim college basketball players were waiting in anticipation of their names being called. But it was a night of both excitement and disappointment for Muslim basketballers. The star of the night from the Muslim contingent was clearly Wake Forest University’s Al-Farouq Aminu. The sophomore small forward was the 8th pick in the first round of the draft, selected by the Los Angeles Clippers. He is expected to get a legitimate shot at the starting small forward spot with L.A. to play alongside the 1st overall pick from last year’s draft, power forward Blake Griffin.

Florida State center Solomon Alabi took an unexpected slide in the draft. Alabi, who was born in Nigeria but moved to Orlando, Florida at age 15, was originally projected to be taken in the top 25 picks of the 1st round. But he inexplicably slid to the 50th overall pick (20th pick in the 2nd round), where he was taken by the Dallas Mavericks. Dallas subsequently sold his rights to the Toronto Raptors. An athletic, shot-blocking 7-footer like Alabi would normally have been in great demand, so this was a puzzling course of events. However, some light was shed on the situation the next day when it was revealed that Alabi had tested positive for Hepatitis B, and this medical information was disseminated to all NBA teams just prior to the draft. Alabi’s agent subsequently assured all parties that this is positive test is a common occurrence for people from the African continent, and that it would be treatable without interfering with his performance.

Rutgers center Hamady N’Diaye was selected approximately where he was projected. He was taken with the 56th overall pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves and subsequently traded to the Washington Wizards. N’Diaye, a Senegal native, should have a decent shot at playing time in a young Washington frontcourt.

A 4th member of the Muslim contingent, however, did not get drafted. St. Mary’s center Omar Samhan went the entire two-round draft without getting selected. However, this does allow the 6’11” Samhan to find the best possible team situation for him. And he has now signed a free agent contract with the Dallas Mavericks, giving him the opportunity to play on their summer league team, with hopes of impressing Dallas and all of the other teams with his play.

12-27

Qureshi and Mirza at Wimbledon

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By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

Sania Mirza_351 Pakistan’s Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and India’s Sania Mirza represented the sporting Ummah at the 2010 All-England Tennis Championships, more commonly known as Wimbledon. Pakistani doubles specialist Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi has gotten some momentum going in England. Paired up with Indian partner Rohan Bopanna, the duo has reached the quarterfinals of the men’s doubles competition. Most recently, in the round of 16, they defeated Lukas Lacko and Sergiy Stakhovsky 7-5, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2. The round before that they emerged victorious from a marathon match with Philipp Marx and Igor Zelenay 6-7 (6-8), 6-4, 6-4, 4-6, 13-11. Qureshi and Bopanna now face Jurgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner in the quarterfinals.

Hyderabad’s Sania Mirza has struggled with injuries in recent months. And her struggles spilled over into her performance on the court, as she was easily dispatched in the first round of the women’s singles event 6-4, 6-1 by 55th seeded Angelique Kerber of Germany. Mirza started out on a positive note in the women’s doubles competition, teaming up with Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki to defeat England’s Anne Keothavong and Melanie South 6-4, 6-1 in the first round. However, Mirza and Wozniacki went down in defeat in the second round to 11th seeds Cara Black of Zimbabwe and Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia. The final score was 7-6 (7-0), 6-3.

12-27

Indo-Pak Talks Welcomed!

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By Nilofar Suhrawardy, MMNS India Correspondent

NEW DELHI: Notwithstanding the apprehensions voiced in certain quarters about “futility” of Indo-Pak talks held last week in Islamabad on sidelines of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) conference, their diplomatic significance cannot be ignored. Talks were held at several levels with utmost importance being given by both sides to maintain an air of diplomatic warmth and cordiality. This spirit was visible as the two Foreign Secretaries Nirupama Rao (India) and Salman Bashir (Pakistan) exchanged smiles and shook hands (June 24). Similarly, Home Ministers P. Chidambaram (India) and Rehman Malik (Pakistan) held talks with an “open heart” (June 26). Chidambaram also declined to pay much attention to Indian flag being displayed upside down on the table where he and Malik sat down for talks. Chidambaram paid greater attention to “minor error” being corrected immediately after he pointed it out. “Visual in one of the channels showed that the Indian flag had been upside down when there was one on one meeting between me and Rehman Malik. That was the first visual but immediately after we sat down I noticed the error…..it was put right. I think it is a minor mistake and I don’t think we should make much of it. The flag was put right,” he said.

Not surprisingly, even though India and Pakistan retain differences on certain issues, including Kashmir, their talks have been welcomed. Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna regards talks between Chidambaram and Malik as a positive move in development of Indo-Pak ties. Chidambaram is the first Indian minister to visit Pakistan since Mumbai terror strikes (November, 2008). Sharing his views with media, Krishna said: “I don’t think that we had any high expectations. The Home Minister has gone to Islamabad to attend a meeting of SAARC Home Ministers. Incidentally, he had a bilateral meeting with the Pakistan Minister for the Interior, and he also met the Foreign Minister of Pakistan, so, well, a beginning has been made.”

Krishna regards Chidambaram’s Pakistan visit as a significant landmark in Indo-Pak relations. “Well, I am going to Islamabad on the 14th of July and then I am going to have my bilateral meeting with Foreign Minister Qureshi and the leadership of Pakistan and see what comes out of that,” he said.

Krishna’s comments also suggest that the diplomatic situation would have been worrying had Indian leaders decided not to go to Pakistan or even if they had gone for the SAARC conference, they may have chosen not to meet Pakistani leaders. In this context, Indian leaders’ Pakistan-visit during which they attended SAARC conference and also held meetings with Pakistani leaders adds weight to diplomatic importance India and Pakistan give to improving image about their bilateral relations. Their move certainly has had some impact as suggested by reactions to their bilateral meetings in Islamabad.

In their joint declaration, the G-8 countries have welcomed Indo-Pak talks. The declaration issued (June 27), after a two-day meeting in Toronto (Canada), states: “We welcome and encourage the recent steps taken by the Governments of Pakistan and India to advance their bilateral relationship, and urge all countries of the region to work together actively in the interests of regional peace and stability.”

Expressing United States’ appreciation for Indo-Pak talks, US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said in Washington: “Just as we’ve said many, many times, we appreciate and certainly endorse increasing dialogue between Pakistan and India. It is in their self-interest and our larger interest to see dialogue that can help to resolve tensions that exist between the two countries.”

At the end of three-day SAARC conference, SAARC Secretary General Sheel Kant Sharma complimented India and Pakistan for holding their talks. While addressing a joint press conference with Pakistan Home Minister Malik, Sharma “applauded” India and Pakistan for holding their bilateral talks. Without openly referring to Indo-Pak tension over terrorism, Sharma said that “things could be changed through dialogue.”

Without doubt, India and Pakistan still retain differences on steps being taken by the other country to solve the Mumbai-case and punish the guilty. Nevertheless, talks held in Islamabad are certainly suggestive of their being keen to develop their bilateral ties, a major diplomatic move that has been appreciated and welcomed. This approach certainly defeats the notions held about Indo-Pak talks being “meaningless.”  The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had described Indo-Pak talks as an “exercise in futility” (June 25). BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said that bilateral talks held no significance till terrorism “sponsored by Pakistan” remained a menace.

India and Pakistan, however, have indicated that they are ready to hold talks at various levels. This point is further supported by chiefs of intelligence agencies of India and Pakistan holding a meeting in Islamabad (June 26), during which they discussed cooperation in security and in combating terrorism. Besides, India will host the first meeting of SAARC anti-terrorism mechanism early next year. This was indicated by the statement adopted by SAARC home/interior ministers. The meeting will discuss common methods to fight terrorism in the region.

While addressing a joint press conference (June 26), Chidambaram and Malik said India and Pakistan have agreed to address the issue of terrorism seriously. Central Bureau of Investigation (India) and Federal Investigation Agency (Pakistan), the two countries’ intelligence agencies would work together regarding terrorism and prevent Mumbai attacks from being repeated.

12-27

Blood Pressure

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science 06-28-10 Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure of blood on the walls of blood vessels. During each heartbeat, BP varies between a maximum (systolic) and a minimum (diastolic) pressure. BP decreases as the circulating blood moves away from the heart through arteries. It drops most rapidly along the small arteries and arterioles, and continues to decrease as the blood moves through the capillaries and back to the heart through veins. Gravity, valves in veins, and pumping from contraction of skeletal muscles, are some other influences on BP at various places in the body.

The term blood pressure usually refers to the pressure measured at a person’s upper arm. It is measured on the inside of an elbow at the brachial artery, which is the upper arm’s major blood vessel that carries blood away from the heart. BP is usually measured by systolic and diastolic pressures, for example 120/80 millimetres of mercury (mmHG), which is 16/11 kPa, for comparison.

BP is usually measured with a sphygmomanometer, which historically used the height of a column of mercury to measure pressure. BP values are reported in millimetres of mercury (mmHg), though some BP devices now do not use mercury.

For each heartbeat, BP varies between systolic and diastolic pressures. Systolic is peak pressure in the arteries, near the end of the cardiac cycle when ventricles are contracting. Diastolic pressure is minimum pressure in the arteries, near the beginning of the cardiac cycle when the ventricles are filled with blood. Normal measured values for a resting, healthy adult human is about  120 mmHg systolic and 80 mmHg diastolic (written as 120/80 mmHg, and spoken as “one-twenty over eighty”).

Systolic and diastolic arterial BPs are not static but undergo natural variations from one heartbeat to another and throughout the day (in a circadian rhythm). They also change in response to stress, nutritional factors, drugs, disease, exercise, and momentarily from standing up. Sometimes the variations are large.Hypertension refers to arterial pressure being abnormally high, as opposed to hypotension, when it is abnormally low. Along with body temperature, respiratory rate, and pulse rate, BP is one of the four main vital signs routinely monitored by medical professionals and healthcare providers.

Arterial pressures are usually measured non-invasively, without penetrating skin or artery. Measuring pressure invasively, by penetrating the arterial wall to take the measurement, is much less common and usually restricted to a hospital setting.

While average values for arterial pressure could be computed for any given population, there is often a large variation from person to person; arterial pressure also varies in individuals from moment to moment. Additionally, the average of any given population may have a questionable correlation with its general health, thus the relevance of such average values is equally questionable. However, in a study of 100 subjects with no known history of hypertension, an average blood pressure of 112/64 mmHg was found, which is in the normal range.

Various factors influence a person’s average BP and variations. Factors such as age and gender influence average values. In children, the normal ranges are lower than for adults and depend on height. As adults age, systolic pressure tends to rise and diastolic tends to fall. In the elderly, BP tends to be above the normal adult range, largely because of reduced flexibility of the arteries. Also, an individual’s BP varies with exercise, emotional reactions, sleep, digestion and time of day.

Differences between left and right arm BP measurements tend to be random and average to nearly zero if enough measurements are taken. However, in a small percentage of cases there is a consistently present difference greater than 10 mmHg which may need further investigation, e.g. for obstructive arterial disease.

The risk of cardiovascular disease increases progressively above 115/75 mmHg. In the past, hypertension was only diagnosed if secondary signs of high arterial pressure were present, along with a prolonged high systolic pressure reading over several visits. In the UK, patients’ readings are considered normal up to 140/90 mmHg.

Clinical trials demonstrate that people who maintain arterial pressures at the low end of these pressure ranges have much better long term cardiovascular health. The principal medical debate concerns the aggressiveness and relative value of methods used to lower pressures into this range for those who do not maintain such pressure on their own. Elevations, more commonly seen in older people, though often considered normal, are associated with increased morbidity and mortality.

There are many physical factors that influence arterial pressure. Each of these may in turn be influenced by physiological factors, such as diet, exercise, disease, drugs or alcohol, stress, obesity, and so-forth.

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