tagged w/ No Blood For Oil
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Its not just about Politics, though Politics is also important here.
Its not just about numbers, though Numbers are important too..
It’s about Faces, So many of them…..
Faces who have seen too much in too little a time. …
Here you see many slums , but no millionaires.
You will find travellers but no destination….
These are internally displaced People of SWAT.
Many of them settled in IDP camps established..
at Mardan, Nowshehra and other areas,
while the majority chose to stay independent.
A large portion of these displaced people arrived at Karachi
where they are living with their relatives, or rented houses
with high rents. This is there story.
Bonier is situated around 60 miles from Islamabad.
An idyllic place with a history full of traditions, simplicity and peace.
All this changed one fine morning….
The terror had finally arrived Taliban’s.
They came with colourful Promises.
The promise of quick justice,
Divine Law, Sharia.
Soon the terror removed its masks and unveiled its true face.
The recent Operation by Pakistan against Taliban forces
For them this was a ray of light, a glimmer of hope.
But everything comes with a price.
The army needed space,
the collateral damage too much a political baggage;
they had to be removed from the war zone.
With in few days more than 1.5 million people left their houses…
and settled for different parts of Pakistan.
Even here, their miseries are far from over.
The new place offers them nothing but a reminiscence
of what they have left behind.
What could have been theirs?
These children are a product of fear;
these faces the faces under terror.
These faces need to be seen,
these voices be heard,
for they tell a story not covered in any of the debate rooms.
They tell why a combination of poverty, ignorance, deception and ultimate terror alters the course of human lives in such a short span of time.
These faces need to be helped.
Because in the end, they are all human faces.
Kazim Raza, Karachi. PakistanIts not just about Politics, though Politics is also important here.
Its not just... more
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Kazim
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2 years ago
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Every morning while on the way to office or coming back in evening it’s not possible for the karachiets to ignore baggers, children with car screen wipers and drug addicts. But unfortunately hardly seen some one talking to them to share there grievan...ces, to know what turns them into a LIFE without SOUL.....
Directed and Produced by Kazim RazaEvery morning while on the way to office or coming back in evening it’s not... more
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Kazim
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2 years ago
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Sans Papiers
The youth of our age, surrounded by a swarm of difficulties and problems is in search of a solution, but what he eventually finds is more and more of difficulties and disappointments. When unemployed and poverty numbs all his senses, paralyzes all his muscles, he feels life is nothing but a futile effort, a bottomless pit of poverty and indigence. According to one estimate, in past 10 years, around 10 thousand Pakistanis have been killed by security forces, crossing Greece-Turkey border illegally. In pursuit of an ever evading happiness, who are these ill-informed people and who are the traffickers involved in this heinous trade of human trafficking. The real issue is how come the educated ones of our country fall prey to these human traffickers. Poverty and related problems are the main reasons behind human trafficking and illegal immigration. Your pursuit of happiness can bring this much misery and suffering, one can only know by meeting the people under Custody of FIA, who have recently been deported from the Turkey Border. It seems an obvious enough advice to have a safe albeit simple life at home, than to a have risky prosperous life abroad. But mired deeply in the troubled waters, it’s only dreams of a happy living that make these people go through all sorts of troubles.
I just pray that my country Pakistan finds a leader, a person who can improve the situation in our country, so that no one thinks about leaving this country and going through this humiliation This heinous crime of Illegal immigration, despite efforts by the State, is flourishing. One obvious contributors of this crime are the people who become a victim of agents’ treacherous promises, lost their lives’ savings and became a victim of dark alleys.
The question that haunts us all is till what time these traffickers would dupe the gullible of their livelihoods and till what time the carcasses of the youth of our country would be feasted by the beasts in unknown wildernesses.
Directed and Produced By
Kazim Raza
Masmedia Productions
Pakistan
923333705114Sans Papiers
The youth of our age, surrounded by a swarm of difficulties and... more
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Kazim
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2 years ago
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Amongst the most beautiful regions of the world, the picturesque valleys of Swat and Buneir used to be huge tourist attraction. The people of this land were remembered for their ethereal beauty and generous hospitality.
But all this changed in a short span of time. These valleys soon became a symbol of terror and insecurity for the tourists. Even the locals started feeling insecure in their homeland.
With a population of around 5 millions, these valleys became a burning inferno right in front of the eyes of the world, fuelled by religious bigotry and fanaticism.
To eliminate the menace of terrorism, Pakistan Army started its operation in the troubled region, the subsequent resistance by Taliban forces turned this halcyon patches into a war zone.
Lush green fields turned into deadly bunkers, happy faces suddenly plagued by death stricken silence. The ensuing uncertainty culminated into the biggest exodus of human history. Around 3 million people left their homes to taste the bitter tastes of homelessness, settling in the Tent Villages at Mardan, Naushehra and Swabi.
Leaving the war zone was an unavoidable decision, the migration inescapable, but in these testing times, the true essence of people came out. Armed with the sense of compassion, sacrifice and devotion came out the helping hands. And pretty soon many a new shelters started appearing. The sense of homelessness started giving way to a glimmer of hope, peace and security.
A huge contingent of IDPs in Swabi was welcomed b y Mr Liaquat Taraki, the chairman of Tarakai group and Head of Liaquat Khan welfare trust. The aim and mission of Trakai trust is to make Swabi a prosperous district, and to help elevate the living standard of Swabi people by eradicating poverty and backwardness.
Directed and Produced By " Kazim Raza"Amongst the most beautiful regions of the world, the picturesque valleys of Swat and... more
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Kazim
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If for some reason you have been thinking the price of a gallon of gas is what's posted on the price board at your favorite gas station, take a look at this report.If for some reason you have been thinking the price of a gallon of gas is what's... more
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A pre-dawn US raid this morning in the Iraqi city of Kut left two civilians dead and several others captured. Hundreds of local residents took to the streets to condemn the raid, while Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki declared the attack a violation of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between the US and Iraq. He ordered two Iraqi security officials arrested over it, demanded the release of the captives, and for the US to turn over those responsible for the raid to the courts.A pre-dawn US raid this morning in the Iraqi city of Kut left two civilians dead and... more
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Target: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
Sponsored by: The Wilderness Society
At the tail end of the Bush administration, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) worked overtime to rush through "midnight" regulations - making huge tracts of public lands in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming available for commercial oil shale development with sweetheart terms and few environmental protections.
Using current technologies, commercial oil shale development would result in one of the dirtiest fossil fuels the world has ever seen. It would require an extraordinary amount of water and energy in order to turn the waxy kerogen embedded deep within the rock into a synthetic oil substitute. This highly polluting process literally bakes the rock at 500 to 1,000 degrees for more than a year just to liquefy and extract the synthetic crude.
Luckily, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar is making efforts to overturn Bush administration policies, but he needs to know that his actions have full public support! Tell Secretary Salazar that you oppose reckless oil shale development.Target: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
Sponsored by: The Wilderness Society
At the... more
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Join over 67,591 people who have sent a message.
Sign our petition below and we will deliver it to your members of Congress:
"Congress must support bold national policies this year to transition to a clean energy economy and help solve the climate crisis. We urge you to cap carbon pollution to help create the jobs and businesses that will Repower America."
If you care, it is time for you to act. Please sign the petition.
Thanks!Join over 67,591 people who have sent a message.
Sign our petition below and we... more
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On the sidelines of recent climate change talks in Bonn, Germany, Saudi Arabia expressed concern that any major global shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy would threaten its economic survival, Reuters reports. Calling itself one of the most vulnerable countries economically, it said that it wants support for developing alternative sources of energy, specifically developing its vast solar power potential:
[Climate change] is a matter of survival for us, also. [...] Saudi Arabia has not done that much yet to diversify.
We have a lot of sun, a lot of land. We can export solar power to our neighbors on a very large scale and that is our strategic objective to diversify our economy; it will be huge.
We need the industrialized countries to assist us through direct investment, transfer of technologies.
Transfer of technology and investment is one thing, but the idea that Saudi Arabia classifies itself in the same tier of countries, such as Bangladesh, the Maldives, any of the Pacific Island nations, or countless places in Africa, which could well be thrown into environmental turmoil and have far, far less domestic capacity to deal with it seems utterly ludicrous to me.On the sidelines of recent climate change talks in Bonn, Germany, Saudi Arabia... more
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Leila Fadel: Iraqis will hold America accountable for what happens next.
Leila Fadel, Baghdad Bureau Chief of McClatchy Newspapers, speaks to Paul Jay about the changes in Iraq over the past four years. "Things, security-wise, have calmed down," says Fadel. In terms of whether the Iraqi people will be able to provide their own security when the United States leaves, Fadel says that, "there is a sense of a waiting game going on here... I think the fight for power is just beginning." She says that there is, "the sense of the necessary evil, a lot of people want the US to leave but they're not sure that Iraq can defend its borders because its security forces were broken apart and built from the bottom up and they're not ready. They don't have an army that's necessarily loyal to the government, they're loyal to political parties that have sectarian or ethnic leanings. So there's nothing for them to really hold on to or be sure of in their country." People will hold America accountable for their current suffering and what happens next.
Leila Fadel is the chief of the Baghdad bureau of McClatchy Newspapers. She has covered the war in Iraq for Knight Ridder and now McClatchy on and off since June 2005, as well as the 34-day war in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel in the summer of 2006. Prior to joining the McClatchy team she worked at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram as a crime and higher education reporter.
Fadel graduated from Northeastern University in Boston in 2004 and has lived in Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. She speaks conversational Arabic. She was named print journalist of the year by the Houston Press Club for her work in 2005 and won a Katie Award from the Dallas Press Club in 2006 for her portfolio of work.
Her Iraq reporting won her Print Journalist of the Year honors from the Houston Press Club citing her work from "Bedford (Texas) to Baghdad."Leila Fadel: Iraqis will hold America accountable for what happens next.
Leila... more
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Leila Fadel: Leaders of Awakening Councils are arrested, tortured and killed by Iraq government.
Leila Fadel, Baghdad Bureau Chief of McClatchy Newspapers speaks to Paul Jay about the recent escalation in violence in Iraq's capital. She says the former fighters termed the "Sons of Iraq" who have turned on Al Qaeda and joined the U.S. are now being persecuted by the Iraq government. She says the Maliki government is afraid of the power they've accumulated in the neighborhoods they were put to protect by the U.S. and many are now in exile or in hiding.
Leila Fadel is the chief of the Baghdad bureau of McClatchy Newspapers. She has covered the war in Iraq for Knight Ridder and now McClatchy on and off since June 2005, as well as the 34-day war in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel in the summer of 2006. Prior to joining the McClatchy team she worked at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram as a crime and higher education reporter.
Fadel graduated from Northeastern University in Boston in 2004 and has lived in Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. She speaks conversational Arabic. She was named print journalist of the year by the Houston Press Club for her work in 2005 and won a Katie Award from the Dallas Press Club in 2006 for her portfolio of work.
Her Iraq reporting won her Print Journalist of the Year honors from the Houston Press Club citing her work from "Bedford (Texas) to Baghdad."Leila Fadel: Leaders of Awakening Councils are arrested, tortured and killed by Iraq... more
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Chief Warrant Officer Adisa "A.J." Aiyetoro, a 19-year veteran who is stricken with active tuberculosis and unable to wear body armor because of back injuries, according to medical and court records, refused to go. "I'm not getting on that plane," he says. His court-martial on charges of disobeying an order and missing a deployment is scheduled for Monday.Chief Warrant Officer Adisa "A.J." Aiyetoro, a 19-year veteran who is... more
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A usually quiet U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Cemetery, has been unusually active lately. The National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona is a beautiful 225 acre facility located in Phoenix.
For the past 30-45 days in the early hours of the morning until sunset, a massive construction operation has been underway. Major amounts of earth have been excavated out about 9-10 feet deep and 600-1000 feet wide. There is multiple locations on the property like this. From the satellite view there appears to be more sections that have been covered with the concrete lids and backfilled to look as if nothing is there. ABC rock is put in place under the burial vaults for good drainage and solid bedding. This will help not contaminate ground water sources from decomposition of human bodies.
The cleanliness of the heavy equipment operation and the large perfect cuts of earth is im pressive. These Massive concrete boxes are transported from a nearby storage yard on various privately owned flatbed semi-trucks, then unloaded and put into place a half mile away at the actual mass grave site. They are installed tight together side by side with no space in between.
An interview was conducted between my friend and a truck driver involved in this operation. After beating around the bush for ten minutes, the driver admitted “ I got paid a whole lot of money to speak good english.” Take it for what it’s worth but that sounds suspect. The truck driver also admitted “Each burial vault holds four caskets.”
I took note that if caskets were not used you could fit 40 bodies or more in each one.
So if these were to hold four troops each and the truck driver did know what he was talking about; this would mean that there are plans in advance for over 4000 U.S. soldiers deaths.
If these are not to contain caskets and only bodies are inserted there could be room for over 40,000 civilians bodies.
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I don't know about this...it sounds a bit...iffy.
Is this really mass graves or is just a simple renovation or construction project?A usually quiet U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Cemetery, has been unusually... more
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In 2003 Donald Rumsfeld estimated a war with Iraq would cost $60 billion. Five years later, the cost of Iraq war operations is over 10 times that figure. So what's behind the ballooning dollar signs? Joseph E. Stiglitz and Linda J. Bilme's exhaustedly researched book, "The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict," breaks down the price tag, from current debts to the unseen costs we'll pay for years to come.
Thanks WhiteNoise for finding this video.In 2003 Donald Rumsfeld estimated a war with Iraq would cost $60 billion. Five years... more
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In what could turn out to be the greatest fraud in US history, American authorities have started to investigate the alleged role of senior military officers in the misuse of $125 billion in a US-directed effort to reconstruct Iraq.
Our Global Responsibilities: Should philanthropy maintain an exclusively local orientation? International funding barely makes it onto philanthropy's radar screen in the United States. Only about 10% of the U.S. foundation grants, and less than 2% of all U.S. philanthropy --2 cents on the dollar-- goes overseas. And very little gets down to the grassroots, to the people in need. --- Grant Cameron Montgomery, co-founder of Dulzura California-based Family Care Foundation (FCF)In what could turn out to be the greatest fraud in US history, American authorities... more
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In his first budget proposal, President Barack Obama has requested over $205 billion in war funding through the end of fiscal 2010. The funding would be in addition to the $533.7 billion he is asking for the Pentagon’s regular budget next year.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates cheered the movie as a “strong commitment to our security” at a time when the economy is floundering. The move is a break from the Bush Administration’s tactic of funding the war through “emergency” requests. President Obama says putting the war funding “on the books” is important to ensuring officials are honest about the amount of money being spent on the nation’s assorted wars.
(more on site)In his first budget proposal, President Barack Obama has requested over $205 billion... more
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We do have Today at our disposal a fast, fast life of informations trends, politics, entertainment and this and that and that. Many issue of great importance just becomes;
-What is the most trendy news of the day?
Continuing...We do have Today at our disposal a fast, fast life of informations trends, politics,... more
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The United States of America plans to have withdrawn from Iraq by August of 2010, according to Obama officials.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States plans to withdraw most of its troops from Iraq by August 2010, 19 months after President Barack Obama's inauguration, according to administration officials.
The withdrawal plan would fulfill one of Obama's central campaign pledges, albeit a little more slowly than he promised. He said he would withdraw troops within 16 months, roughly one brigade a month from the time of his inauguration.
The officials said they expect Obama to make the announcement this week. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the plan has not been made public.
The U.S. military will leave behind a residual force, between 30,000 and 50,000 troops, to continue advising and training Iraqi security forces, the two officials said. Also staying beyond the 19 months will be intelligence and surveillance specialists and their equipment, including unmanned aircraft, they said.
A further withdrawal will take place before December 2011, the period by which the U.S. agreed with Iraq to remove all American troops.
A senior White House official said Tuesday that Obama is at least a day away from making a final decision. He further said an announcement on Wednesday was unlikely, but he said that Obama could discuss Iraq during a trip to North Carolina on Friday.
End of Excerpt
Another promise kept.The United States of America plans to have withdrawn from Iraq by August of 2010,... more
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Kill! Kill! Kill!, Ex-Marine tells his story about US brutality in Iraq
Former staff sergeant Jimmy Massey explains why US faces bloody insurgency in Iraq.
PARIS - US military training has created troops so desensitised to violence that battleground brutality in Iraq is rampant -- and has helped fuel the bloody insurgency seen there today, a new book released Thursday in France by a former Marine says.
Jimmy Massey, a former staff sergeant, said that the daily attacks now doled out to US-led forces and Iraqi civilians are "because of the brutality that the Iraqi people saw at the start of the invasion."
In his book, " Kill! Kill! Kill!", he says he and other Marines in his unit killed dozens of unarmed Iraqi civilians because of an exaggerated sense of threat, and that they often experienced sexual-type thrills doing so.
The book was being released first in France -- and in French -- because, he said, "I didn't find an American publisher."
The French journalist who helped him write the work, Natasha Saulnier, said she believed the US companies were reluctant to touch the book because its "controversial" nature threatened commercial interests and the US public's image of their fighting forces.
Massey, who left Iraq in May 2003 shortly after US President George W. Bush declared "mission accomplished", wrote the book after being discharged from the Marines with a diagnosed case of post-trauma stress syndrome.
CONTINUED BELOWKill! Kill! Kill!, Ex-Marine tells his story about US brutality in Iraq
Former... more
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