Things in Life are going some how strangely, Kinda depressed with them i guess. Allah does what is best for one and i hope i can see this. Don’t know what to write or say but feel like writing or speaking my self out, when i start writing i find that i am hollow from inside and nothing coming out of me to put on this blog, i guess life is sometimes like that.
Student shot with Taser by UCPD officers
I bet he was a terrorist and maybe a sleeper cell. Lets see what comes out of the independent investigation they just setup.
Student shot with Taser by UCPD officers
Incident occured around 11:30 p.m. in the Powell Library CLICC computer lab
UCPD officers shot a student several times with a Taser inside the
Powell Library CLICC computer lab late Tuesday night before taking him
into custody.
No university police officers were available to comment further about
the incident as of 3 a.m. Wednesday, and no Community Service Officers
who were on duty at the time could be reached.
At around 11:30 p.m., CSOs asked a male student using a computer in
the back of the room to leave when he was unable to produce a
BruinCard during a random check. The student did not exit the building
immediately.
The CSOs left, returning minutes later, and police officers arrived to
escort the student out. By this time the student had begun to walk
toward the door with his backpack when an officer approached him and
grabbed his arm, at which point the student told the officer to let
him go. A second officer then approached the student as well.
The student began to yell “get off me,” repeating himself several times.
It was at this point that the officers shot the student with a Taser
for the first time, causing him to fall to the floor and cry out in
pain. The student also told the officers he had a medical condition.
UCPD officers confirmed that the man involved in the incident was a
student, but did not give a name or any additional information about
his identity.
Video shot from a student’s camera phone captured the student yelling,
“Here’s your Patriot Act, here’s your fucking abuse of power,” while
he struggled with the officers.
As the student was screaming, UCPD officers repeatedly told him to
stand up and said “stop fighting us.” The student did not stand up as
the officers requested and they shot him with the Taser at least once
more.
“It was the most disgusting and vile act I had ever seen in my life,”
said David Remesnitsky, a 2006 UCLA alumnus who witnessed the
incident.
As the student and the officers were struggling, bystanders repeatedly
asked the police officers to stop, and at one point officers told the
gathered crowd to stand back and threatened to use a Taser on anyone
who got too close.
Laila Gordy, a fourth-year economics student who was present in the
library during the incident, said police officers threatened to shoot
her with a Taser when she asked an officer for his name and his badge
number.
Gordy was visibly upset by the incident and said other students were
also disturbed.
“It’s a shock that something like this can happen at UCLA,” she said.
“It was unnecessary what they did.”
Immediately after the incident, several students began to contact
local news outlets, informing them of the incident, and Remesnitsky
wrote an e-mail to Interim Chancellor Norman Abrams.
http://dailybruin.com/news/articles.asp?id=38958
The video is here if anyone wants it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3CdNgoC0cE&eurl=
Vatican enters Muslim veil debate
Ok now we have the Vatican entering this debate about Veil, Common Caths let it be, we dont need your opinion, atleast we are not abusing little kids.
Vatican enters Muslim veil debate
By David Willey
BBC News, Rome
A senior Vatican cardinal has expressed concern over the use of some Muslim veils by Islamic immigrants in Europe.
This is the first time that the Vatican has joined in the Europe-wide debate on how women who insist on wearing the veil affect the integration of Muslims.
Cardinal Renato Martino said immigrants must respect the traditions, culture and religion of the nations they go to.
They ought to abide by local laws banning the wearing of certain types of Muslim veils, he added.
“It seems elementary to me and it is quite right that the authorities demand it,” said Cardinal Martino, who heads the Vatican department dealing with migration issues.
He was speaking at a news conference launching a papal statement calling for laws which encourage the better integration of migrants.
Here in Italy, a law was passed during the attacks of the Red Brigades urban guerrillas three decades ago which still makes it an offence to cover your face in public if your identity is challenged by a policeman.
At that time there were very few Muslim women immigrants in Italy.
Common values
Another Vatican expert on immigration, Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, said it was important in the course of dialogue with Muslims to make them understand that the consequences of some of their religious traditions might not be positive in the societies in which they now find themselves.
The Italian government is trying to draw up what it calls a Charter of Common Values to get local Muslim leaders to help integrate Italy’s fast-growing population. But it is hard going.
At one recent meeting, a radical Muslim delegate proposed separate charters for men and for women, and favoured the death penalty.
Equal rights for men and women are guaranteed, and the death penalty is banned, under the Italian constitution.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6148968.stm
BBC Urdu and Sexuality
I have been following up with the new articles on the BBC Urdu website about Sexuality, they are trying to enter a so called NO-GO area of Pakistani society. the stories either true or false give us an insight into the society of Pakistani which has existed for long in the Islamic Republic. the question is not that if they are right or wrong but the question is that does this portray the majority of the pakistani culture. I personally think this doesn’t. I think this shows the society that is the elite but not the masses. Buying 11,000 rupees per gram of cocaine is not a common man’s wish as it is too expensive and the common man might make 11,000 rupees for the whole month or two months.
so Does this series portray anything other than elites or the upper middle class of Pakistani society, i don’t think so. I am not denying that these kind of perversive social aspect don’t exist in lower class Pakistani citizens but it is not something that we are proud of or go around telling people. The down fall of the great nation of Andalusia tells us about factors that led to the disappearance of Muslim Spain. among these factors were the openness of such issues like sexuality and perversive actions which became a standard. It became “COOL” to talk about these issues openly and the concept of Sharam or Haya (Urdu) was lost.
I don’t preach that these topics shouldn’t be talked about but talking about these matters in such a manner is not the ideal solution. Islam has given us a very easy framework about these issues. The issues and talks about these matters exists and the way to approach them. To me the articles in the BBC are no more than a compilation of Pornographic stories. It seems they are trying to make the effort to westernize the Pakistani nation faster than anyone. Sadly BBC has a following and i am among the ones who religiously read BBC URDU but seeing the direction they are taking it seems that i wont be a follower anymore :(.
Moroccan airline bans prayer time
Hmm i feel the end of time is very near, sadly the muslims are inviting the wrath of Allah.
Moroccan airline bans prayer time
By Richard Hamilton
BBC News, Rabat
Morocco’s state airline Royal Air Maroc has banned its staff praying at their offices and headquarters.
The company says that in the past its workers have abused the privilege of praying, by taking too much time away from their desks and their customers.
But the airline’s workers as well as Islamist politicians say it is part of a crackdown on their religious freedom.
Praying is one of the five pillars of Islam and regarded as a crucial part of a Muslim’s way of life.
The state airline, partly owned by the Moroccan royal family, is a great source of pride and prestige in the country.
But this latest move threatens to exacerbate divisions in Morocco.
Workers say that they have been banned from praying at work and that a number of prayer rooms have been closed and that they are forbidden from going to the mosque during work hours.
The company would not give an interview but issued a statement saying that while there is no official ban on praying, they had to do something to stop people taking lengthy breaks away from work.
But critics say the issue of praying, like the veil, is part of a more sinister move to rob the country of its Islamic roots.
Political
“I feel very angry about this decision,” says Moustapha Aramid from the Islamic Party for Justice and Development.
“Moroccans have had their liberty and their religious freedom taken away from them. It is very damaging. Royal Air Morocco obviously has absolutely no respect for Islam.”
Analysts say the ban on prayers is really a political move aimed at stamping out radical Islamism.
When an alleged terrorist cell – Ansar el-Mehdi – was broken up earlier this year – two of the suspects charged were the wives of two Royal Air Morocco pilots.
There is a feeling that the company had to do something to respond.
Other complaints from airline staff are that pilots and stewards were not allowed to fast during the month of Ramadan and that female staff are not allowed to wear the veil – although that has been an unwritten rule at many companies for several years.
These issues are becoming a focal point for some very hard questions being asked of this moderate Arabic country – something that is causing serious friction between liberals and traditionalists.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/6120324.stm
Muslim Women Gather for Muslim Feminists Conference
Well there we go again, cant the progressive just let it be.
Muslim Women Gather for Muslim Feminists Conference
By Lisa Bryant
Paris
03 November 2006
Muslim women from around the world are gathering in Spain Friday for a three-day conference focusing on the problems of Islamic law and family codes in the Islamic world. The Muslim Feminists meeting aim is to promote the rights of Muslim women.
The Barcelona meeting marks the second international conference of what organizers are calling Islamic Feminism.
The participants come from around the world, and many of them are well-educated women, versed in the Koran. They argue that the Muslim holy book and Islamic sharia laws do not put women on a lower footing than men. Rather, they argue, the religious doctrines have been misinterpreted by men, who offer a chauvinistic take on the texts.
The participants are particularly concerned about acts against women, such as domestic violence, discriminatory family laws and polygamy, which they argue have no place in the Muslim world. They will also talk about restrictive dress codes, family planning and female leadership.
Participants such as one woman, interviewed by France Info Radio in Barcelona, say the cause is all the more powerful, because these feminists are coming from the Islamic world – rather than the West.
The woman said the discourse of Muslim feminists like herself scares traditionalists far more than that of Western feminists, whose calls for equal rights can be dismissed by some Muslims as coming from another culture. Its more disquieting she says, when Muslim women are calling for fairer treatment.
What is the world coming to
What is the world coming to
Cairo street crowds target women
By Magdi Abdelhadi
Arab affairs analyst, BBC News
Egyptians are horrified by the news that women have been assaulted by hordes of young men in the centre of the capital, Cairo.
The incidents were first reported online by Egyptian bloggers, some of whom saw large number of men harassing the women and ripping off their clothes.
It all happened over the Eid al-Fitr period staring on 23 October, as thousands of young men thronged the streets of central Cairo to celebrate the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
One blogger who took pictures of what happened dubbed the incidents “sexual voracity down town”.
According to the bloggers, the attackers targeted veiled as well as unveiled women who happened to be on their own.
The state media ignored the incidents, but ordinary Egyptians where shocked when they heard for the first time eyewitness accounts broadcast on the private television channel Dream.
Women chased
“We saw one girl being chased by a man, her blouse torn off, she ran inside a restaurant,” one eyewitness reported.
We took the girl inside and locked the door. There were four or five of us. But there were hundreds of young men outside trying to break down the door
Cairo shop owner
“Seconds later young boys were shouting that there was another one by the Miami cinema. We went there and saw another girl surrounded by a crowd trying to assault her. She managed to run inside a nearby building.
“A third girl jumped into a cab as she was being chased. But the taxi couldn’t move because of the crowd. Then they tried to pull the driver out of the car then the girl herself,” the witness told Dream TV.
One eyewitness was too embarrassed to recount what he saw: “There were youths harassing the young women. What a shame! I really can not say any more about it.”
Social malaise
One blogger wrote that as the police failed to protect the women, shop keepers had to intervene.
A shop owner described to the TV station what happened: “We took the girl inside and locked the door. There were four or five of us. But there were hundreds of young men outside trying to break down the door.”
The bloggers blamed the incidents on widespread sexual frustration among Egypt’s youths.
Most of them can not afford to get married and premarital sex is strictly forbidden.
One commentator said that this was evidence of the breakdown of law and order in Egypt.
Another said the state deployed the police only to suppress political dissent but could not care less about the welfare of its own citizens.
A psychologist, Amr Abu Khaleel, attributed the predatory behaviour to the possible use of drugs and the breakdown of traditional values.
One prominent writer and journalist, Nabeel Sharaf al-Deen, said that such behaviour was the symptom of a deeper malaise in Egyptian society and warned that such incidents were the first stirrings of much bigger social unrest.
A statement by the ministry of the interior played down the incident, adding that it had not received any complaints from the public. It urged those who had anything to report to contact the police.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6106500.stm
Published: 2006/11/01 14:36:51 GMT
Iraq War Vets Return; Some Have No Home
Very depressing. But this guy is couragous. I hope he does find a good job soon. he deserves it.
Iraq War Vets Return; Some Have No Home
by Libby Lewis
All Things Considered, October 27, 2006 · National Guard Cpl. Joe Raicaldo is home from Iraq with things he didn’t have when he left: an honorable discharge, metal rods and screws up and down his spine, and an arm that moves like a robot’s. He’s also homeless, living in his car. There are at least 600 recent vets who are homeless.
Raicaldo’s story is one that tells how hard it is going to be to weave some of America’s warriors back into the fabric of home.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6394180
Muslim staff in Paris airport row
hmmm lemme guess, they wear a veil
Muslim staff in Paris airport row
Four Muslim baggage handlers are appealing against a decision to bar them from working at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris.
They say that the local government’s decision to revoke their security passes is evidence of anti-Muslim discrimination.
A local government spokesman says the decision was based on an assessment of the terrorist risk.
He denied the move was linked to the men’s religion.
Passes withdrawn
Lawyers acting for the four men say that dozens of other Muslims who work at the airport have also been stripped of their security passes, leaving them unable to work.
The four men, who are of North African origin, say they were summoned by security officials for interviews concerning their employment in August.
A few days later they were told that their airport passes, which gave them access to the area near runways, were being withdrawn.
Criminal complaint
A lawyer acting for the men said the baggage handlers were told they had been barred because they had “not shown that their behaviour was unlikely to violate airport security”.
As well as appealing against the local authority’s decision, the baggage handlers’ lawyers have submitted a criminal complaint for alleged discrimination against the men on the grounds that they are Muslims.
The head of a local government office, Jacques Lebrot, said the ban had nothing to do with religion.
‘Islamic radicals’
“For us, someone who goes on holiday to Pakistan several times raises questions,” he told Reuters News Agency.
Mr Lebrot added that the local authority investigation looked for those who could “compromise airport security”.
A book published by a far-right politician four months before the security clampdown raised questions about France’s airport security.
Philippe de Villiers’ book alleged that Islamic radicals worked at Charles de Gaulle airport and were planning terror attacks.
Finally 'web-rage' is here
Now dont blame this on Muslims
Internet user admits ‘web-rage’
An internet user has been found guilty of what police said was Britain’s first “web-rage” attack.
Paul Gibbons, 47, tracked down John Jones using details obtained online after the pair exchanged insults in an internet chatroom, a court heard.
He travelled 70 miles to Mr Jones’ home in Clacton, Essex, and beat him up with a pickaxe handle in December 2005.
Gibbons, of Southwark, south London, admitted unlawful wounding and will be sentenced on 7 November.
Threatening exchanges
The pair met in an internet chatroom called Yahoo, Islam 10 as both had an interest in the Muslim faith, the Old Bailey was told.
Their exchanges soured after Gibbons accused Mr Jones of spreading rumours about him.
This is the first instance of a web-rage attack
Det Cons Christopher Creagh
“There was an exchange of views between the victim and the defendant which were threatening on both sides,” said prosecutor Ibitayo Adebayo.
Gibbons, a man with a violent past, traced Mr Jones to his home using personal details about himself that he had put online.
Cut with a knife
Gibbons arrived at Mr Jones’ home armed and accompanied by another man carrying a machete, the court heard.
Mr Jones, whose partner and three children were in the house, opened the door holding a knife for protection, said Mr Adebayo.
A fight broke out during which Mr Jones was disarmed and beaten with the pickaxe handle and cut with the knife.
Gibbons fled after the victim’s partner called for help. Mr Jones suffered cuts to his head, neck and hands.
Identity safety
Det Cons Christopher Creagh, of the Metropolitan Police, said: “This is the first instance of a web-rage attack.”
Det Sgt Jean-Marc Bazzoni, of Essex Police, added the case demonstrates the importance of protecting one’s identity on the internet.
“Mr Jones had posted pictures of his family on the web and had chatted to Gibbons on an audio link,” he said.
“It demonstrates how easily other users can put two and two together and also shows how children could also find themselves in danger.”