After 17 years underground, some awful looking insects called cicadas will emerge in billions for a very loud (103db) mating party. Billions! People in the Chicagoland are being told these insects are completely harmless and I can't help it but think what if they weren't! How ironic is it that the most supreme animal on the planet can engineer the deadliest of weapons, enough to eliminate the planet millions of times over; yet, we're looking at these insects with an eerie sense of fatalism! I find the irony quite amusing.
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I wonder sometimes what the fuss is all about and I am not referring to the record itself but rather the accusations / rumors swirling around Bonds regarding his presumed use of performance enhancing drugs or steroids. I admit that my thinking has evolved from outrage to what's the big deal!! Barry's impact on baseball is significant and love him or hate him, he'll always be considered as one of the best ever. The question is obviously whether his record should be considered 'pure' or followed by an '*'. Hank Aaron himself did state that while he can't tell for sure whether Barry used steroid.
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I think the following article in Newsweek is in agreement with my thoughts... () The last paragraph is particularly insightful: "... And by speaking of jihad without alluding to Christianity’s dark history of violence in the name of God—the Crusades, forced conversions, pogroms, the Inquisition—Benedict seemed to be denouncing Islam while failing to acknowledge that any religion, including his own, can be manipulated and perverted to evil ends. “It is very hard to construe the pope’s remarks in a benign way,” says William A. Graham, the dean of the Harvard Divinity School. “His.
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As if we, Muslims, are craving for more publicity... yet again, a legitimate outrage erupted in reaction to some outrageous comments made by Pope Benedict. In a speech given in Germany he said the following: "In the seventh conversation (*4V8,>4H - controversy) edited by Professor Khoury, the emperor touches on the theme of the holy war. The emperor must have known that surah 2, 256 reads: "There is no compulsion in religion". According to the experts, this is one of the suras of the early period, when Mohammed was still powerless and under threat. But naturally the emperor also knew the inst.
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Please read this distrubing article that appeared in today's Wall Street Journal... But first my comments: The dangerous "satanic" moron that's featured in the attached story is emblematic of the challenges the US and the world face in figuring out a a fair resolution to the Middle East conflict(s). .. How can sane people like us blame some minority back home of being radical when a wing of the American church is witnessing a major radicalization (aka anti-Islam) trend... as a matter of fact, one could argue that radicalization back home was the result of decades of defeat and humiliation. ...
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What a sad end to a great career, or is it? Many of us must felt shocked, disappointed, maybe a bit betrayed to see the Great Zidane do the unthinkable in front of billions. What was he thinking? or maybe he wasn't? A colleague at work agreed with me that any one of us is capable of losing it for a second! it's a scary thought, isn't? "that's why I don't carry a gun!" he added... I tend to agree! even something as simple as commuting generates various forms of road rage in us... some take it to a dangerous degree... others don't.. they keep their cool or they possess a higher trigger level. .
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Just a quick random thought! Every time I think we Arabs have hit bottom, something happens to remind me of the Arab genius in self destruction and humiliation. The current brotherly fight between the 2 Palestinian factions might be the spark of a civil war. Israel would love to be the front row spectator of that show. For Fatah militants to destroy government buildings defies logic. Political parties or affiliations do not last, government institutions are forever. Let's pray that calmer spirits take over to show the way. Sent from my BlackBerry wireless handheld. .
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As any proud Tunisian I will be rooting for my "Carthage Eagles" to do well in Germany and make it to the second round... Football (soccer to my American friends) is an amazing human experience.... emotions run high... over 90 minutes one can experience a wide range of human emotions, excitment, nervousness, pride, humiliation, etc... and I am praying that the Tunisian players will play with the right mindset, a conqueror mindset. We can beat anybody, anytime... that's the magic of football and sports in general. I will be supremely happy if I can feel that type of attitude; regardless of the.
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Having been in Silicon Valley for almost a decade, I have a tendency to support and root for any Bay Area company and Google is one of them. To see them rise and innovate was quite an experience and it made other companies such as Yahoo accelerate their innovation efforts. Competition is good. That's the backbone of American capitalism and the reason why this country is so resourceful. What made Google more appealing though is the spirit its founders tried to establish.. from virtually bypassing Wall Street investment bankers and offering their shares online to adopting a quite unique corpor.
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Human nature never ceases to amaze me and give me hope that whatever we think of our world, however cynical we are, the sheer power of our will and creativity can move mountains. This simple lady did not mean to be a hero, nor did she aim to change the world; yet, her act, quite random, served as a wake-up call to her community and made them believe changes are possible. The Arab world needs a few clones of Rosa Parks!.
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Some quick thoughts in reaction to the following Le Monde (http://www.lemonde.fr) Article: () What's ironic about this story is the whole concept of globalization, GATT agreement and WTO was promoted as a great bonanza to small countries despite many people, including me, crying foul since the mid-90's... we're now seeing 2 key players, the super powerful nations and the SLAVE nations... the former such as the USA bends the rules whenever it's convenient... last year farm subsidies in the $B came to the rescue of American farmers while, more recently, new taxes were imposed on Chinese texti.
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Rumors are swirling that the much reviled war criminal Ariel Sharon will be visiting Tunisia as head of the Israeli delegation to an international conference for information technology to be held in Tunis in the mid of November this year () It goes without saying that this news story is far from random and does fit well within the choice of Tunisia as a pilot site for the Greater Middle East Initiative () Normalizing rapports with Israel is almost mandatory. As a Tunisian, I went through the typical stages of shock, anger, denial and am now getting close to the "I don't give a damn" st.
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As a technology fan, I am always on the lookout for new things. I like new designs and am willing to pay extra dollars for the more innovative design. Cars can arguably be considered the epitome of human design. Numerous industries and thouands of components are typically needed to assemble a car. However, when it comes to selling a car that required billions in R&D, countless hours of design and highly structured assembly process, most people will rely on a single sense to make a preliminary buy decision... their vision... beauty appeals to us through our eyes before anything else... manage t.
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I do like Bill Maher, host of HBO's Real Time http://www.hbo.com/billmaher/. I think he's a voice in the wild. A quasi independent journalist who's not afraid of being contrarian and sometimes too controversial for his own good. However, he suffers from the same syndrome he's blaming his enemies (right wing) for... he thinks he's right and everybody else is wrong. . This syndrome goes something like this, I have a superior situation therefore you've got to not only listen to me but "religiously" follow my instructions for the betterment of mankind. That concept by itself makes me sick. When .
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