In the western Afghan city of Herat, where there are no cinemas and women only venture outside wearing head-to-toe veils, Rahima, Rita, Mariam and Monirah are women of ill repute. But in following their dreams to become actresses in a country where just five years ago film and theatre were banned under the Taleban government, the women are mavericks trying to bring culture to their war-ravaged homeland.
To be an actress in Afghanistan doesnt bring you anything but a bad reputation, says Rita Hosseini. But someone has to do it. What is a country without culture, without stories to make us dream, without cinema? asks the widow who tints her hair and lines her almond eyes with dark khol.
Hosseini, who is raising two young children alone, makes her living as a dishwasher in a restaurant. Acting, she says, is just for fun. Cinema is for art and for pleasure, she says.
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A treatment to cure HIV/AIDS and asthma allegedly based on a combination of seven herbs mentioned in the holy Quran has swept the Gambian capital, The Independent newspaper reported on Saturday. The British daily noted that Banjul is routinely home to hundreds of patients waiting to place themselves under the healing hands of President Yahya Jammeh, who has long boasted of his mystical powers. The paper quotes him as saying that he treats asthma patients, restricted to 100, either on Fridays or Saturdays and 10 HIV/AIDS patients on Mondays and Thursdays.
Jammeh claims that he recently received a mandate to treat a large numbers of people, adding that the cure takes only one day to take effect. He did not say who had bestowed the mandate on him, which apparently provides specific days for each treatment. Nor did he identify the herbs.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/04/2007 00:00 ||
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Posted by: john ||
02/04/2007 14:27 Comments ||
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Ooh, I know. It's 11 secret herbs and spices learned while working in a fine dining establishment in Yahya's youth.
Posted by: ed ||
02/04/2007 15:47 Comments ||
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Look at it this way: This time it's herbal and doesn't involve a two-year-old virgin. The only thing getting aids during this process is the herbs. And any subsequent partners. After a while, you'll only have the intelligent ones left.
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/04/2007 19:40 Comments ||
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When I hear "Herbal Remedy," I immediately think "Faith healing", neither works, but people can be fooled into thinking it works, until they die, of course.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/04/2007 21:26 Comments ||
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Scientists have alerted British Columbia's emergency-planning department to the possibility of a catastrophic earthquake striking the province's southwest coast next week. While the probability of a quake is still low, rapid strides in earthquake detection have given federal scientists with the Pacific Geoscience Centre on Vancouver Island greater confidence in their ability to predict when and where one will occur. Garry Rogers, a seismologist at the centre, compared the current earthquake odds to the dangers of driving a car.
Everyone drives their car every day, and the probability of getting in a car accident is small, Dr. Rogers said. But during rush hour, the probability of getting into an accident is much higher. Well, Vancouver Island is now driving in rush hour.
What prompted the alert was a series of imperceptible tremors emanating from deep beneath the ocean, which scientists now recognize as ominous warnings that the earth is on the move again off Vancouver Island. They now estimate the long-awaited giant quake will hit closer to the island's western shoreline than previously thought.
The tremors occurred on what is known as the Cascadia subduction zone, which lies beneath the Pacific Ocean off the West Coast and runs from Vancouver Island to Northern California. The rumblings began last week near Puget Sound near Seattle and made their way north to Vancouver Island in recent days.
#2
Guam's K57 Radio was the only local Media to publicly announce our recent 2.0'er - for days before, there were minutae, barely feelable tremors-shakes, oft several times a day, culmin in the 2.0. Hopefully, we're done for awhile.
#3
This is just great! With 3 major TV networks in Seattle, I have to read Rantburg to find out that Vancouver Island, about 10 miles from me, as the crow flies (sitting on the western side of Whidbey Island, looking at the glow of Victorias's lights right now), is gonna do some shaking, and we in the US will feel nothing.
If anything happens, I'll let you know. Mrs. Ret, works at NASWI hospital, and if something does happen, she will probably be hip deep in casualties. Could get interesting.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - He keeps an itinerary that has all the makings of a full-fledged presidential candidate: South Carolina this weekend, New Hampshire the one before. Which is what Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, says he's leaning toward becoming. "There's a real good chance," Giuliani told The Associated Press on Saturday, after a 30-minute speech and question-and-answer session with party leaders in South Carolina. In a year, they will put on the first-in-the-South GOP presidential primary.
On Giuliani's first visit to New Hampshire last weekend since setting up the committee, he told reporters he'd received a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and support from people. But he said he had not yet decided whether he could make a "unique contribution" toward strengthening the nation that would justify a run for president.
He has emphasized his steady hand dealing with the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. However, his moderate stances on gun control, abortion, gay rights and other social issues could be liabilities for him in a GOP presidential primary that includes hard-core conservatives as a central voting group. For instance, in November, South Carolina voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on same-sex unions.
"The fact is I appeal to conservative Christians the way I appeal to everyone else," Giuliani said at a news conference. "I don't think you have separate appeals to people."
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/04/2007 00:00 ||
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The fact is that he appeals to gun owners in about the same way Ted Kennedy does. That's my fancy way of saying "he doesn't."
Balasore, Feb. 4 (PTI): The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was test fired from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur near here today. After a vertical lift-off at 12.15 pm from launch pad number three at the ITR, 15 km from here, the surface-to-surface missile rose into the sky leaving behind a ribbon of white smoke, defence sources said.
"The launch was successful but we will have to analyse data for making an evaluation," a source said.
The launch was carried out from a mobile launcher, with an indigenously built multi-axle Tatra truck serving as the base platform. The trajectory of the missile's flight was tracked by sophisticated instruments and radars on a ship located close to the point of impact in the Bay of Bengal, the sources said.
The Brahmos -- named after the Brahmaputra and Moskva rivers -- was developed by a joint venture company set up by India and Russia following an agreement signed by the two countries on February 12, 1998. Since its first test on June 12, 2001 from the ITR complex, it has undergone a dozen successful trials.
Brahmos has a range of 290 km with a speed faster than that of sound. It can travel at Mach 2.8 to 3 and carry a conventional warhead of 200 to 300 kg, sources said. The two-stage missile is powered by a solid propellant booster and a liquid propellant ramjet system. The eight-metre sleek missile, weighing three tonnes, is configured so that it can be launched from land, ships, submarines and fighter aircraft.
The BrahMos was jointly produced by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Russia's NPO Mashnistroyemia under the project named PJ-10. An industrial complex has been set up at Hyderabad to manufacture the missile. Brahmos Aerospace CEO A Sivathanu Pillai was present during today's launch. He recently said India was preparing to test the submarine version of the Brahmos by the end of the year.
Posted by: john ||
02/04/2007 13:47 ||
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Meanwhile the Indian LCA prototype PV3 came out in camouflage colors
BEIJING: Ahead of Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing's visit, a Chinese political advisor has accused India of triggering the 1962 Sino-Indian war and cited Beijing's "unilateral" withdrawal after the skirmish as an example of the Communist giant's "peaceful intentions".
"China is a neighbour to a record number of 15 countries, and for historical reasons, it has territorial disputes with nearly each and every one of them," Lau Nai-keung, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) said.
In a commentary entitled "China's re-emergence should be welcomed" in the state-run 'China Daily,' Lau, a Hong Kong-based politician wrote that for many years China has been trying to resolve conflicts with neighbours through peaceful means. "One by one, we have settled national boundary lines without resorting to war," he wrote ahead of Li Zhaoxing's visit to India from February 11.
Turning to India, Lau wrote that "our relations with India have been tense for many decades. The two countries even went to war in 1962. By all accounts, even that of Indian's own investigation, China was the country attacked." He quoted former Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai as saying that "we sent three open telegrams to Jawaharlal Nehru asking him to make a public reply, but he refused. He was so discourteous; he wouldn't even do us the courtesy of replying, so we had no choice but to drive him out." "....To the surprise of the world, China announced its unilateral and unconditional withdrawal to 20 kilometres behind the disputed McMahon Line," he said quoting Zhou.
Lau noted that China and India are now on friendly terms with growing economic ties, and they are closer than ever to a cordial agreement on their borders.
Posted by: john ||
02/04/2007 13:45 ||
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See next page for Indian cruise missile goodness.
NEW DELHI: India for the first time on Sunday expressed its deep disquiet about last month's ASAT (anti-satellite) test when China destroyed an aging satellite in space with a DF-21 missile.
Addressing an aerospace seminar organised by IAF, external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee said: "The security and safety of assets in outer space is of crucial importance... We call upon all states to redouble efforts to strengthen the international legal regime for peaceful uses of outer space."
The language was guarded, and couched in a call for collaborative international action against weaponisation of outer space. But the message was clear and deliberate. According to sources, it reflected the concerns of both the MEA and the ministry of defence, which had hitherto remained silent.
The message had been worked on by the top strategists in the Indian government, reflecting the degree of Indian unhappiness on the Chinese test on January 11. China is traditionally a country the Indian government is loath to criticise openly.
"Satellites play an important role in intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, securing communication and delivering accurate firepower on the ground at large distances. Recent developments show that we are treading a thin line between current defence-related uses of space and its actual weaponisation," he said.
His statement comes ahead of the visit of Chinese foreign minister Li Zhaoxing, who will be here for bilateral talks before a meeting with Indian and Russian foreign ministers. India will raise these issues at the meeting, said sources. The trilateral forum is likely to be used by Russia and India to convey a similar message.
Mukherjee also used the occasion to send another unequivocal message to China, warning it off the Indian Ocean and India's strategic waters. China's interest in extending its influence in this area is not new, but a Hu Jintao visit to Seychelles which comes after intense Chinese interest in Indian Ocean rim countries in Africa and Myanmar compelled New Delhi to finally come out with its disapproval.
Mukherjee said: "We have a strong stake in the security and stability of these waters, which is linked to energy security, since a very large percentage of Asian oil and gas supplies are shipped through the Indian Ocean." India has taken a strong interest in securing sea lanes in Indian Ocean and the Malacca Straits for energy supplies to East Asia.
As for the ASAT test, India's real concern is not so much the space debris as is the prospect that China has taken the technological leap now to be able to target civilian space programmes, reconnaissance satellites etc.
Posted by: john ||
02/04/2007 15:40 Comments ||
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And he is remembering INCORRECTLY, Gorb. The Reds were the invaders in the 1962 Sino-Indian War, and they kept a large chunk of what used to be India and declared it China.
This isn't connected to Oil-for-Food, but it does show how pervasive the corruption is at Turtle Bay.
UNITED NATIONS A central figure in Turtle Bay's procurement scandal, Snjya Bahel, was ordered held without bail yesterday, pending a federal trial on bribery charges.
District Judge Denise Cote agreed with federal prosecutors that Mr. Bahel who was fired by the United Nations last month and whose family lives in his homeland of India presents enough of a flight risk to keep him remanded.
A U.S. attorney for the Southern District, Jacob Buchdahl, presented the changes that occurred since a $900,000 bail was set after Mr. Bahel's arrest last November. His firing by the U.N. last month left Mr. Bahel without a diplomatic visa, Mr. Buchdahl said. More important, a co-defendant, Nishan Kohli, pleaded guilty in December to charges involving a bribe paid to Mr. Bahel and is expected to be the star witness.
In the hearing yesterday, Mr. Bahel's attorney, Richard Herman, said the prosecution asked Mr. Bahel "what he knew about Andrew Toh, others." Mr. Toh, who is Mr. Bahel's former U.N. boss, is currently suspended from his procurement department job, but he continues to draw a full salary.
The procurement scandal emerged when U.N. staffers complained about senior officials in the procurement department, alleging preferential treatment had been given to certain companies.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/04/2007 00:00 ||
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...Nishan Kohl...is expected to be the star witness.
Be real careful near any open elevator shafts, Nishan...
Health Minister Kamran Baqeri Lankarani on Saturday announced that Irans scientists have produced a herbal medicine that boosts the human immunity system against the HIV/AIDS virus. The herbal-based medication, called IMOD, serves to control the AIDS virus and increases the bodys immunity, Baqeri Lankarani was quoted as saying by the official news agency IRNA. It is not a medication to kill the virus, it rather can be used besides other anti-retroviral drugs, Baqeri Lankarani said on state radio. The drug, made after five years of research, has been tested on 200 patients, IRNA said, adding that it is considered the fifth generation of medications helping control the HIV/AIDS virus. This is a substance good for both AIDS patients and those who carry the virus without showing the symptoms, the director of the project, Muhammad Farhadi, told state television. Farhadi said the medication would now be tested on some 3,000 to 5,000 Iranian patients in the next year to monitor its efficacy. Health Minister Baqeri Lankarani said that the number of HIV/AIDS cases in Iran stands at around 14,000 while 1,700 people have died of the disease. Last June, Iranian officials warned about the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS infections in the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/04/2007 00:00 ||
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When I hear "Herbal Remedy," I immediately think "Faith healing", neither works, but people can be fooled into thinking it works, until they die, of course.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/04/2007 15:02 Comments ||
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The Ochs-Sulzberger-Corleone family is pulling most of the assets they own out of Morgan Stanley after one of the investment bank's fund managers sharply criticized their financial oversight of The New York Times Co. "Hey, you know how to wind up owning $1 million worth of NYT stock? Start out with $2 million."
Last year Hassan Elmasry, an investment manager for Morgan Stanley, withheld votes for several directors at the Times' annual meeting in protest of the company's dual-class share structure, which allows the Sulzberger family to maintain control of the company through a special class of shares with powerful voting rights. I guess that's what John Edwards means when he talks about there being two Americas.
Criticizing the poor performance of the company's shares, Elmasry said at the time that the dual-class structure fostered a 'lack of accountability' to the company's public shareholders. "For gosh sakes, these people think Maureen Dowd should be a regular columnist. The woman's completely starkers."
The company says the structure is necessary to preserve the editorial integrity of The New York Times. If "Editorial integrity" means Pinch's key to the executive washroom.
Elmasry also tried to get a shareholder proposal on the company's proxy statement for this year that would have recommended putting the dual-class share structure to a shareholder vote. Obviously another neo-con bent on democratizing institutions that genetically cannot handle democracy.
But the company, with the blessing of the Securities and Exchange Commission So that's why Luca Brasi was in Washington.
declined to allow the proposal, noting that the only way to change the share structure is by a vote of the Sulzberger family members, and they have indicated they don't plan to do so. "Changing our share structure would contribute to global warming."
Fortune magazine reported the news earlier Friday of the Sulzbergers move, saying the value of the Sulzbergers' assets was close to $640 million. Camel. Eye of a needle. You know the drill.
Posted by: Matt ||
02/04/2007 00:00 ||
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Considering that Morgan Stanley is the only thing that keeps those holdings worth more than zero, they may regret the move.
This is standard blackmail. Other CEOs try to do it too. Why to brokers keep doing it? Because they keep on being right.
(I'll give you a hint. It sure isn't Sulzberger's business skills that's keeping the NYT afloat)
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
02/04/2007 14:08 Comments ||
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I think what John Edwards means by two Americas is Plaintiff and Defendant.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/04/2007 15:01 Comments ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
In the western Afghan city of Herat, where there are no cinemas and women only venture outside wearing head-to-toe veils, Rahima, Rita, Mariam and Monirah are women of ill repute. But in following their dreams to become actresses in a country where just five years ago film and theatre were banned under the Taleban government, the women are mavericks trying to bring culture to their war-ravaged homeland.
