Mixed Assessments on Iran and Nuclear Weapons

Iran appears, at least in part, to have recovered from the Stuxnet worm attack.  The Iranians have replaced the hardware, but it is unclear whether they have control over the software.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/15/AR2011021505395.html?sid=ST2011021404206

On the other hand, the New Intelligence Estimate suggests that the Stuxnet worm has had considerable impact.  Just as important, the sanctions seem to be having an impact on some Iranian leaders, who question the wisdom of developing a nuclear weapons program given the economic impact of sanctions.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703373404576148581167010572.html

The Missing in Egypt

Serious human rights abuses in Egypt remain:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/18/world/middleeast/18missing.html?hp=&pagewanted=all

Massive Labor Unrest in Egypt

Given possible destabilizing effects, this is something to watch:  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/18/world/middleeast/18egypt.html?hp

Mass Tree Deaths in Amazon and Climate Change

Have we reached the tipping point?  http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/feb/03/tree-deaths-amazon-climate

MERS Mortgages Rejected by Court

This is a move toward some kind of fairness (I hope).

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/15/merscorp-decision_n_823302.html

“Palestine, an Obsession of Radical West, Not Arabs”

This essay is impressive.  Brendan O’Neil absolutely nails it.  This is all about victims and who is the biggest victim.

Back when Israelis looked like victims in the fifties and sixties, the same lefties loved Israelis and Jews (by the way, I’m no conservative either).  Israelis and Jews were good victims then too.  Until Israel won wars in 1967 and 1973, the Israelis and Jews (because of the Holocaust experience) were the favored victims.  Many Jews were glad to have their support, but now I realize what that support actually meant.  Jews are fine for these protesters as long as they remain victims:  holocaust survivors, victims of anti-semitism, and poor Israelis facing massive odds against far more populous Arabs.  However, God forbid that they should defend themselves and emerge victorious.  Like the Palestinians, Jews were a tribe that middle-class empathizers could “coo” over.  We’re still a tribe.  Only we’ve made the mistake of forming a prosperous, democratic county and protecting ourselves.

There’s no question that Israel has done things that are problematic, especially the settlement policy.  Israelis have also fallen into the trap of responding to every Palestinian provocation with force.  There’s racism against Arabs that is prevalent in Israel.

Still this is a democratic society (the only full-fledged democracy in the Middle East) that is under siege from surrounding countries who want to annihilate it and to remove all Jews from the Middle East.  Israel’s own Arab citizens have more economic opportunity, mobility, and freedom than the vast majority of other Arabs and Muslims in the Middle East. It is a diverse society that has women serving in the military, gay pride parades, as well as Arab and Ethiopian Jews.

In the end, whether you are Israeli/Jewish or Palestinian, most in the West look at you as a symbol, a trope.  Not many really give a hoot about you, except in so far as you conform to some preconceptions that elicit feelings of tenderness or revulsion.  It’s not just liberals, but conservatives, as well, especially some fundamentalist Christians.  The latter see Palestinians as Muslim allies of the Anti-Christ ready to destroy Christianity, while Jews are ancient witnesses to Christ whose presence in the “Holy Land” will help usher in the Second Coming.  Of course, in this scenario, the returned Christ will pretty much kill all of us, Muslim and Jew alike, unless we convert.

It would be nice if people could look at us, both Jews and our Palestinian cousins, as fellow human beings.  Perhaps that’s too much to ask.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/palestine-an-obsession-of-radical-west-not-arabs/comments-e6frg6zo-1226006572220

Freedom

Freedom is a choice we have every second of every day.

Starting Blocks and Finish Line

We do not start in the same place at the beginning of our lives.  It’s not where we end up that matters, but how far we travel.

“Maybe this is the Moment to Put Our Trust in Freedom”: Natan Sharanksy

I stand with Sharansky.  Freedom is the only real hope for peace.  In the end, if we support dictatorships against democratic movements, we will alienate the vast majority of Arab/Muslim populations, and we will give them only one option:  the Muslim Brotherhood.  A truly democratic society, not only with elections, but with independent institutions and the capacity to pursue whatever wants to pursue (i.e. freedom), sounds the death knell for extremist, violent, backward-looking, tyrannical, theocratic religious movements.  Freedom is also what the U.S., Israel, and other democracies are supposed to stand for.  Of course, failure is possible, but the risk is worth it:  http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Editorials/Article.aspx?id=207745

See also the excellent article by Jackson Diehl on the upsides of Egypt’s revolution
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/12/AR2011021200483.html

Egypt’s Khomeini

I don’t see an Iranian-style revolution as happening, especially given the strong secular culture in Egypt, the existence of many Muslims who support democracy, the antipathy of many Egyptians for Iran, the role of the army, and the educated techie youth generation.  But it’s something to pay attention to and will probably produce some major bumps in the road.

http://www.tabletmag.com/news-and-politics/58461/jewel-of-the-nile/

Here’s also an excellent, clear-eyed summary of the Muslim Brotherhood:  http://www.hudson-ny.org/1882/muslim-brotherhood-reality

California Aid Program for Homeowners Facing Foreclosure

This is what more states and the federal government should be doing.  Unfortunately, many people don’t want to help out, because they believe that homeowners should take responsibility for their poor judgement.  However, government failed to protect home buyers from predatory banks and loan agencies, while massive foreclosures are driving down prices for everyone (not just those facing bankruptcy).   Therefore, we have both moral and practical reasons to support this kind of aid to those facing the trauma of losing their homes.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-keep-your-home-20110210,0,2404099.story

Prehistoric Bird Used Club-Like Wings as Weapons

This would be scary.

http://dailybulletin.yale.edu/article.aspx?id=8134

Genetically Engineered Alfalfa Allowed to Grow Anywhere

For those of us who care about seed integrity, and its relation to human and planetary health, this is not good news.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/28/business/28alfalfa.html?hp

Practice Test-Taking Is Key to Learning

As in most things, practicing what you will be doing at a given time is excellent preparation for actually doing it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/21/science/21memory.html?hp

How Large is God?

We should think of the Source (God) not as an enormous entity, but as the tiniest particle in existence–that from which everything originates.  That’s why we need to let go of our I, our ego.  It’s just too big.

Putting the Axe to Workers Rights

The Wisconsin governor’s proposal  is simply an out and out attempt at destroying public unions.  By taking away collective bargaining and by making it almost impossible to organize and collect dues, the governor is removing a basic human right:  the right to organize and bargain.

Now, I  am certainly aware of the the flaws in unions:  corruption, living in the past, backwardness, seniority over merit, and general ineffectiveness.  The inflexible opposition of unions to workers contributing more to health care and pensions is a serious problem.

At the same time, unions are responsible for worker rights, lunch breaks, the 8-hour day, 40-hour work weeks, overtime, vacations, the weekend, child labor laws, the retirement system, and so much more.  In general, people are unaware that the lives they lead are possible because people died and suffered violence on picket lines.  No matter how flawed our unions are, they serve as a check against an inherently unbalanced relationship between management and workers.  It’s not ultimately the fault of management that absence of unions has led to abuse–it’s simply the human condition.  Without unions (or some kind of collective bargaining forces), workers (both union and non-union) will find themselves going backwards, increasingly losing their time off and unable to live middle-class lives.  And management will find itself saddled with unhappy and unproductive workers, as they shuffle paper on the deck of the Titanic.

I don’t know what to advocate here in terms of union tactics, but I can say that the time is coming when what the Egyptians had to do in a non-violent protest against a cruel dictatorship, we will have to do to preserve our basic human rights in the workplace.  The governor of Wisconsin is betting on public dislike of unions, as he and his corporate, billionaire backers use one segment of the populace to beat down the other.  In the ensuing division, both groups will go down the tubes while the extreme rich grow even richer–unless people stand up for their rights.  They will to have risk their jobs and well-being to make sure that they preserve a reasonable standard of living, which is the foundation on which our democratic republic stands.

This country is not supposed to be a tyrannical plutocracy, where billionaires secretly run the rest of us poor slobs by convincing some of us that we can be rich just like them.  That’s nothing more than a con.  Of course, wealth can be a worthy goal, but it should not be the primary value of a humane society, nor will it lead to a nation’s economic prosperity.  That only occurs when everybody works together, when we each have a voice in the governance of our society, and when we each have realistic access to educational and vocational opportunity.

http://www.thenation.com/blog/158522/dictator-governor-sets-out-cut-wages-slash-benefits-and-destroy-public-unions

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/12/us/12unions.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha23 (via Nelson French)

CIA: Mistakes Lead to Promotions Anyway

Pretty much sounds like most institutions (private and public)  in our country.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/09/AR2011020902119.html (now archived)

See now: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2011-02-09-cia-promotions-errors_N.htm or

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/09/at-cia-grave-mistakes-led_n_820627.html

We will do and We Will Hear (Ex 24.7)

We will do and we will hear (Ex 24.7): Action is the avenue to contemplation and enlightenment.  When you do a good deed, an act of lovingkindness, go and meditate afterwards. The universe will open to you in your humility.

New Egyptian Poll from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy

Very interesting.  Only 15% approve of the Muslim Brotherhood, while a mere 1% would support a Muslim Brotherhood candidate.  Elbaradei has very little popular support, unlike Amr Mousa.  Even more surprising, a plurality of Egyptians support the peace treaty with Israel (37% pro vs. 27%  con).  All in all, this is good news.

http://washingtoninstitute.org/templateC11.php?CID=543

Torture by Egyptian Mukhabarat

A window into horror:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/09/egypt-torture-machine-mubarak-security

Floating on a River

So often we seek to go somewhere, to reach a goal, but we’re all floating on a river toward the same place.

Israel-Palestinian Peace Treaty So Close

So agonizingly close–still.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/13/magazine/13Israel-t.html?pagewanted=1&hp

“How Google Removed the Muzzle on Twitter”

On the adaptability and flexibility of technology.  That makes it so much more powerful

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_tec_egypt_google_twitter_tool

Now see: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20110204/us-tec-egypt-google-twitter-tool/

Continuous Compression CPR

Please take a look at Continuous Compression CPR:  Mouth-to-Mouth ventilation is not required. This is not for infants or small children or for someone drowning. (Via Nelson French)
http://tinyurl.com/2fx8r59

What Size Are We?

We are as small as a quark, as large as a universe.

Yoko Ono’s Message of Peace

Sometimes simple ideas are what we need to practice:  “IMAGINE PEACE.”

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mike-friends-blog/imagine-peace-2011

Criticism of Bill Keller on Assange and WikiLeaks

I happen to support the idea of transparent governance as a whole.  Transparency is what the Internet is all about:  while closed, proprietary platforms decline, open source platforms are increasingly flourishing.  This is affecting our politics, particularly in the case of WikiLeaks.  While I recognize the value of secrets for diplomacy, most stuff that is labeled secret should not be.  WikiLeaks has unveiled documents that we have a right to know about and, for that reason, I am glad that we have access to this trove of materials.  Citizens of the US and others need to grow up and understand what’s going on in their home countries and in the world.

I happen to support a robust foreign policy and am not against our Iraq policy, although I recognize the ignorance, cynicism, unnecessary violence, and corruption that drove our policy there.  Nevertheless, I am glad that we have, for example, the WikiLeaks expose of soldiers indiscriminately killing Iraqi civilians.  This is war, and this is what unfortunately and tragically happens in war.  Do we naively believe that war is clean and neat and that soldiers always behave appropriately under incredibly stressful conditions?  War is filled with horror, moral degradation, and murderous rampages (we can read about that as far back as Homer’s Iliad and the Hebrew Bible).  This does not mean that we should never engage in war, although it should be a last resort, but it does mean that we need to acknowledge and recognize what actually does happen in war.  However, it will mean that citizens will have to be grown-up and adult about it.  They will have to have their eyes open before deciding to embark on a war.  That’s what Assange and WikiLeaks force us to be.

At the same time, I don’t think that this is a fair article.  Coleen Rowley criticizes Keller for his views on Iraq, not primarily for his portrayal of Assange in Keller’s recent New York Times piece. I don’t think that Keller’s views on Iraq automatically prejudice him in the case of Assange.  In spite of its massive flaws, I support our policy in Iraq, and yet I am glad for what Assange has done.  Keller was simply pointing out Assange’s strange personality and behavior.  Given the significance of WikiLeaks, Keller’s comments here are newsworthy.  Assange is part of the story.  That does not nullify or diminish the importance of what Assange has done.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mike-friends-blog/nyts-keller-disparages

Religious Leaders Call on Rep. Allen West to apologize for Comments on Islam and Muslim Representative, Keith Ellison

This is hate speech as far as I am concerned.  It is ugly and unacceptable from anyone, especially from a member of the US House of Representatives.  Maybe he’s getting the media attention he craves, but these remarks dehumanize a group of people and create a context for discrimination and violence.

http://floridaindependent.com/20788/religious-leaders-call-on-allen-west-to-apologize-for-intemperate-comments-about-islam

Egypt and Crony Capitalism

Of course, this is far from a free market–when the government picks and chooses the economic winners among its allies and friends.   It’s yet another example of government by the few for the few.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/07/world/middleeast/07corruption.html?hpw

“God”

Instead of using a word for “God,” perhaps we should simply form an out breath–a glottal stop, like the Hebrew letter, “alef.”  When you want to say “God,” just speak with an exhalation.

“How to Build a Progressive Tea Party”

Here’s an idea.  When government officials say we have to cut this or that service, what about the corporations and multi-gazillionaires who aren’t paying their taxes through off-short hide-aways or other loopholes?  When a state says, we can’t support this 50 million K program, what about a company that owes 50 million and hasn’t paid it?  Why is it that most of us shlubs pay our taxes, but corporations and the mega-rich don’t pay theirs?  In Great Britain, an organization called UK Uncut has created a sensation by staging protests and sit-ins at stores whose parent companies have not bothered to pay their taxes.

I don’t see this as solely  a liberal thing at all.  We should all have to play by basic rules that the law fairly applies.  That’s also a deeply conservative value.  Maybe tea party fans could join in too.  If an entity or person is not paying what they owe, then we have the right to pressure the government into making sure that they do.  This is inspiring.

http://www.thenation.com/article/158282/how-build-progressive-tea-party?page=full

Profile of Arianna Huffington

Or how someone can move from a Greek immigrant to a follower of self-help gurus to wife of a Republican multi-millionaire to conservative icon (and supporter of Newt Gingrich!) to liberal icon to media maven.  Wow, that leaves me breathless.  She sure knows how to reinvent herself.  And everyone seems to like her, no matter their political persuasion.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/news/ap/politics/2011/Feb/08/can_huffington_transform_aol_like_she_has_herself_.html

Wael Ghonim’s Television Interview

This is a moving interview that provides insights both into the thinking of the protesters and of the government.  The interview speaks for itself and shows the profound integrity of everyday Egyptians.  I am struck by the deep concern for dignity that Wael consistently mentions.  There is a sense among Egyptians that this government has shamed them and treated them as children.  Young protesters like Wael are educated, cosmopolitan, entrepreneurial, thoughtful, and modern.  They are the future leaders of Egypt and other Middle Eastern nations.  While there are many perils and chances for disasters, Wael and his colleagues should give us all reason to hope for greater peace and prosperity in the Middle East in the long term.

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/08/subtitled-video-of-wael-ghonims-emotional-tv-interview/

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/09/world/middleeast/09ghonim.html?hp

Food Speculators (Banks) Have Driven Up Commodity Prices, Fueling Hunger and Poverty

This is illuminating.  Bank speculators not only caused the crisis in the US and Europe through dubious housing deals, but they have sparked unrest all over the world, now in Tunisia and Egypt, by artificially ginning up the commodities markets.  Blessings, Larry

http://www.webofdebt.com/articles/egyptian_tinderbox.php

Google Exec, Wael Ghonim, Released in Egypt

In the end, you can imprison a person, but you cannot lock up the internet or social media. Egypt’s attempt to control the spread of protest by arresting social media entrepreneurs did not succeed.  However, we can sure see where the real power is now.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/08/world/middleeast/08google.html

Slaughtering and Torturing Dolphins in Taijii, Japan

If you are squeamish, please do not watch this video.  It is hard and painful to see.

The slaughtering and torture of dolphins is a tradition that no longer makes any sense.  Dolphins (and whales) are highly intelligent, sophisticated, relational sea mammals.  In Greek tradition, dolphins were sacred and viewed as friends of humans.  This video and others have brought attention to a horrible practice that we need to stop not only because of its violence and the slow, painful deaths of dolphins, but because it degrades our own moral conscience as human beings.

Blessings,
Larry

http://www.youtube.com/user/delfinusdelphis#p/a/u/0/dY2Fd9eQGZE

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/sep/14/dolphin-slaughter-hunting-japan-taiji (an article that summarizes the practice in Taijii)

http://www.savejapandolphins.org/

“God”

The word, “God,” is a label that often cuts us off from “God,” our Source.

Labels

Rigid labels close us off from one another and ourselves.

Rebel Yoga: Tara Stiles

While many (including me) emphasize the religious and spiritual roots of yoga, Tara Stiles takes another approach.  She just wants people to do yoga and improve their lives and bodies.  She rebels against those teachers who see themselves as gurus.  Her goal is to make yoga accessible rather than difficult and total.  Deepak Chopra is among her students.  I am impressed by her authenticity and determination to simplify this ancient tradition.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/23/nyregion/23stretch.html?sq=yoga&st=cse&scp=2&pagewanted=all

A Petition To Endorse The Statement of 41 Nobel Laureates on the Issue of Academic Boycotts Divestments and Sanctions (Scholars for Peace in the Middle East)

If you are opposed to academic boycotts and divestment (now frequently aimed at Israel) , please forward this to anyone you think might be interested.

http://www.spme.net/cgi-bin/display_petitions.cgi?ID=21
http://spme.net/cgi-bin/display_petitions.cgi?ID=9&Action=View

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