My questions for Obama by Fidel Castro

The brightest and best of the presidential hopefuls seeks to extend a cruel, immoral Cuba blockade

It would be dishonest of me to remain silent after hearing Barack Obama's speech delivered at the Cuban American National Foundation last Friday. I feel no resentment towards him, for he is not responsible for the crimes perpetrated against Cuba and humanity. Were I to defend him, I would do his adversaries a favour. I have therefore no reservations about criticising him and expressing myself frankly.

What were Obama's statements? "Throughout my entire life, there has been injustice and repression in Cuba. Never, in my lifetime, have the people of Cuba known freedom. Never, in the lives of two generations of Cubans, have the people of Cuba known democracy ... I won't stand for this injustice ... I will maintain the embargo."

This man who is doubtless, from the social and human points of view, the most progressive candidate for the US presidency, portrays the Cuban revolution as anti-democratic and lacking in respect for freedom and human rights. It is the same argument US administrations have used again and again to justify crimes against our country. The blockade is an act of genocide. I don't want to see US children inculcated with those shameful values.

No small and blockaded country like ours would have been able to hold its ground for so long on the basis of ambition, vanity, deceit or the abuse of power, the kind of power its neighbour has. To state otherwise is an insult to the intelligence of our heroic people.

I am not questioning Obama's great intelligence, his debating skills or his work ethic. He is a talented orator and is ahead of his rivals in the electoral race. Nevertheless, I am obliged to raise a number of delicate questions. I do not expect answers; I wish only to raise them for the record.

Is it right for the president of the US to order the assassination of any one person in the world, whatever the pretext? Is it ethical for the president of the US to order the torture of other human beings? Should state terrorism be used by a country as powerful as the US as an instrument to bring peace to the planet?

Is an Adjustment Act, applied as punishment to only one country, Cuba, in order to destabilise it, good and honourable when it costs innocent children and mothers their lives? Are the brain drain and the continuous theft of the best scientific and intellectual minds in poor countries moral and justifiable?

Is it fair to stage pre-emptive attacks? Is it honourable and sane to invest millions and millions of dollars in the military-industrial complex, to produce weapons that can destroy life on earth several times over? Is that the way in which the US expresses its respect for freedom, democracy and human rights?

Before judging our country, Obama should know that Cuba - with its education, health, sports, culture and science programmes, implemented not only in its own territory but also in other poor countries around the world, and in spite of the economic and financial blockade and the aggression of his powerful country - is proof that much can be done with very little. Cuba has never subordinated cooperation with other countries to ideological requirements. We offered the US our help when hurricane Katrina lashed the city of New Orleans. Our revolution can mobilise tens of thousands of doctors and health technicians. It can mobilise an equally vast number of teachers and citizens who are willing to travel to any corner of the world to fulfil any noble purpose, not to usurp rights or take possession of raw materials.

The goodwill and determination of people constitute limitless resources that would not fit in the vault of a bank. They cannot spring from the hypocritical politics of an empire.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/may/29/barackobama.cuba

Beijing – Olympics'08

The Olympic Games have drawn to a close with a glittering ceremony inside Beijing's Bird's Nest Stadium.

Spectacular fireworks kicked off the proceedings, while a beautifully choreographed drumming and dancing display recalled the opening ceremony.

It was a more celebratory affair, as exuberant athletes, dancers and musicians got into the party spirit.

The Olympic flag was handed to London mayor Boris Johnson, with organisers briefly showcasing the 2012 Games.

The countdown to 2012 has started, and organisers will know they have a great deal to live up to with China hosting one of the best organised Games in history and staging some of the most memorable opening and closing ceremonies ever seen.

Beijing's dramatic farewell to the 29th Games of the modern Olympiad got under way with a magnificent firework display, which quickly segued into an amazing display of dancing and drumming.

Scottish cyclist Chris Hoy, who claimed three gold medals in Beijing, carried the flag for Team GB as more than 200 flag bearers led the way for the thousands of athletes.

After speeches from Liu Qi, president of the Beijing Organising Committee, and International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge, the Beijing Games were officially declared to be over.

China staged the Olympics against a background dominated by fears of pollution, worries over security and protests about its human rights record.

But the sporting action was enthralling, with highlights including Michael Phelps swimming to a record eight gold medals and Jamaica's Usain Bolt breaking three world records on his way to three golds.

"We have come to the end of 16 days which we will cherish forever," said Rogge.

"New stars were born and stars from previous Games continued to amaze us.

"We shared their joys and their tears and marvelled at their abilities, and will long remember their achievements here.

"These were a truly exceptional Games."

The British flag was raised and "God Save the Queen" sung by the choir, before Johnson was handed the Olympic flag from Guo Jinlong, the major of Beijing, and Rogge.

It heralded the start of an eight-minute segment for London organisers to offer a flavour of the 2012 Games, as a red London bus arrived into the stadium.

Hoy, dressed up as a city gent, and fellow British cyclists Victoria Pendleton and Jamie Staff accompanied the bus on bicycles alongside a troupe of dancers holding umbrellas.

Singer Leona Lewis and former Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page emerged as the bus transformed into a grass-covered carnival float, and the pair combined for a rendition of "Whole Lotta Love".

And the biggest star turn came when former Manchester United star and England captain David Beckham arrived to kick a football into the crowd of athletes.

The Olympic flame was then extinguished, before the attention shifted to a "memory tower" in the centre of the stadium.

Legendary Spanish tenor Placido Domingo and Chinese soprano Song Zuying joined forces to sing, while Hollywood actor Jackie Chan later joined a throng of dancers and singers for a closing number.

The sporting action was finally brought to an end earlier in the day, with France's men claiming gold in the final of the handball.

It was the 302nd and last gold medal to be awarded, and followed Sunday's finals in boxing, basketball, volleyball and water polo, while Kenya's Sammy Wanjiru won the men's marathon.

Diplomacy and Democracy

Although it is totally objectionable that Russian troops should enter Georgia territory, once a part of the Soviet Union, one cannot help in some way being sympathetic to Russia's anxiety. Although the pretext for the "invasion" is something else, at the core, although not overtly stated, is the missile defence system the United States is setting up in Georgia and the move to absorb Georgia into the NATO. The US of course explains that this move is directed against possible attacks by Iran, but this disguise is too thin and even it would not expect Russia to fall for it. Russia indeed has retorted rhetorically to the US, saying how it would like it if Russia were to also set up a similar missile battery in Mexico claiming it is not meant for use against the US. This is a tricky question in diplomacy. There is no doubt that Georgia as a sovereign state is allowed to make friends with any country it pleases, and it also has a right not to be invaded by another country. But the question is, should such freedom of sovereign countries be at the cost of causing insecurity to regional neighbours and upsetting regional stability? Shouldn't the intent of international diplomacy be predicated by peace and stability considerations and not the familiar Cold War strategies where every move is meant to silently and insidiously undermine the rival's confidence? After all the unparalleled mayhem that the world has been through in the 20th Century, isn't it still time for Machiavellianism to give way to Gandhigiri?

To make the scenario a little more immediate, how would India have liked the US installing a missile battery in Bhutan saying their object is not India but China, or China to have developed an air force base in Nepal? Conversely, how would China have liked India to have a similar missile delivery system in Vietnam? The answers are obvious, and in fact behind the show of bonhomie, there is still this element of suspicion and disguised hostility in the befriending of the military junta in Burma first by China and then followed by India. It is also not altogether insignificant that the biggest loser in this case is neither India nor China but a gritty lady called Aung San Suu Kyi and her pro-democracy movement. It does seem, when it comes to hard diplomacy, even democracy becomes a dispensable commodity, easily replaced by despotic dictators and autocratic feudal rulers. Economic alliances yes, but we are of the opinion that there ought be an international law or convention which prohibits military alliances aimed at disturbing regional stability.

By contrast, developments in South Asia region have not been altogether negative in the past decade. Yesterday the President Gen. Parvez Musharraf of Pakistan bent to popular will and resigned, removing hurdles before the popular government the country has recently elected. There however is a long road ahead before democracy and its values set root in Pakistan, but as commentators have pointed out, the country has a priceless asset in its fiercely independent media, which some say is even more critical than the Indian media, much less controlled as it is by the corporate culture. Earlier Bhutan's King Jigme Singye Wangchuck voluntarily stepped down and allowed the kingdom to transition into democracy. As to how healthy the Bhutanese democracy is, it is not altogether certain yet. For one thing democracy here is still in its infancy, and for another the country is not exactly known for an independent media, making it difficult for the world to assess or separate official propaganda from facts on the ground. The third country in the region to decide to switch to democracy is Nepal. Nepal's case may be of much more interest to the Northeast, and in particular Manipur, for the multiplicity of ethnicity that make up the country is pretty similar to the situation in the state. While the Nepal monarchy lasted, autocratic rule ensured dissent is strictly denied. As for instance, the numerous ethnic communities of the country were not allowed to speak in their respective dialects publicly and only the national language, Nepali, was officially allowed. In the then theocratic Hindu state, beef eating even by traditionally beef eating communities were prohibited. Untouchability was also an accepted institutions. It remains to be seen how the former Maoist guerrilla ideologue, who has since been sworn in as Prime Minister, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, or affectionately 'Prachanda' manages to forge unity amidst these differences. The challenge before him, and how he tackles them, will surely be closely watched in many quarters in strife torn Manipur. 

Courtesy:The Imphal Free Press

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Counter Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School at Vairangte

The Counter Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School (CIJWS), in
Vairengte, Mizoram, India is a training institution of the Indian
Army specializing in unconventional warfare, specially guerrilla
warfare.

* 1 Motto
* 2 History
* 3 Training methods
* 4 International Participation
* 5 Other Institutions
o 5.1 Forum Discussions and Blogs

Motto

The motto of CIJWS is "fight the guerrilla as a guerrilla".

History

The original plans to setup a counterinsurgency unit to train
soldiers came up following fighting with mizo militants in the 1960s.
The idea to set up the jungle warfare school was conceived by former
Indian Army chief Field Marshal S.H.F.J. "Sam" Manekshaw some time in
1967 when the army soldiers suffered heavy casualties at the hands of
the northeastern rebels who were adept at hit-and-run guerrilla
strikes and ambushes, and were experts at using the thick jungle
terrain to their advantage.

The Army then was only trained in conventional warfare and this type
of unconventional warfare by northeast rebels was unique in its kind.
Therefore, a need was felt to establish an institution, which could
train the Indian soldiers in this unconventional warfare.
Accordingly, in 1967, Lt Col (later Lt Gen) Mathew Thomas,
established an ad-hoc Jungle Training School at Mynkre near Jowai
(Shillong). The school was shifted to its present location, Vairengte
and was redesignated as CIJW School on 01 May 1970.The institute
finally came into being in May 1970 with Brigadier Mathew Thomas at
the helm of affairs.

The crisis in neighbouring Bangladesh (then East Bengal) however
prompted a temporary rethink as the academy trained the Mukti Bahini
guerrillas to attack Pakistan Army strongholds. Operation Jackpot was
one such operation undertaken by the rebels largely aided and planned
by Indians that drove home the strength of this school. After the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, it returned to its primary focus of
imparting serious counter-insurgency (COIN) lessons to Indian soldiers.

During the next three decades, the school at Vairengte has prepared
troops to fight anti-India separatists engaged in low-intensity and
unconventional guerilla warfare against the state forces in different
parts of the country, particularly in the northeast and Jammu and
Kashmir. The School presently runs four counter-insurgency and jungle
warfare courses open only to officers and soldiers below 28 years of
age. The CIJWS has trained more than 300,000 defence personnel since
its inception.

Training methods

Since its inception, the School has constantly evolved in stature and
strength, in keeping with the changing dynamics of insurgency and
terrorism in the country. Its relevance has grown manifold with the
mushrooming of small and big insurgent/terrorist groups in the
country and worldwide. With its vast expertise in counter-insurgency
and counter-terrorism training, it has truly come into its own as a
centre of excellence in such operations. The School has continuously
incorporated all the lessons learnt during such operations and has
painstakingly kept its training curriculum contemporary. It presently
trains over 7000 officers and soldiers every year. Its scope and
mandate has increased with Para Military Forces, Police, Services and
foreign component adding to the numbers and compositions.

The reputation of the CIJWS lies in the fact that the training module
is framed in a highly scientific manner - soldiers receive training
in identifying improvised explosive devices (IED), jungle survival,
counter terrorism, and interrogation techniques.

The training focuses on the physical fitness, reflex firing
techniques and tactical lessons. The module for training is practical
oriented with number of lectures, discussions, case studies, sand
model exercises & outdoor exercises. Live situations are painted
during the outdoor exercises to judge the reaction of the soldiers at
the spur of the moment. The troops are taught to live in difficult
and hostile terrain, eat and sleep like the guerrillas and strike as
silently as the guerrillas. The school boasts of excellent training
areas, training facilities, with thirteen innovative firing ranges
and an outstanding training staff who have first hand experience in
fighting the insurgents and the terrorists within India.

Today, the ultra is educated, uses the Internet for gathering
information, disseminating propaganda, negotiating arms deal and is
familiar with hi-tech explosives.

At the same time the trainee is trained with native skills like using
easily available materials in forest which can be used to devise
deadly traps that can kill an elephant with nothing more than bamboos
and vines. The inherent characteristic of insurgency in the NE india
is its small scale, low profile activities, with the main insurgent
bases located across the border. The main ideology is terrorist use
hit and run tactic that are meticulously planned and ruthlessly
executed by small units, which force a large deployment of armed
forces to counter them. But simply deploying large force is useless
as it never produces any result. Learning to operate in small teams,
studying the pattern of the militants, establishing an intelligence
network, knowing their traditional sanctuaries, maintaining the
element of surprise, selecting the site for counter ambush, observing
the discipline of when exactly to open fire, knowing field craft and
jungle craft well enough to remain undetected, and improvising within
a given situation, is the kind of stuff that breaks an ambush. And
it's this which is taught nowhere else better than at CIJW School.

To fight in the jungle is tough, both physically and mentally. Jungle
operations test soldiers to their limit which needs special tactics,
techniques & procedures. In this scenario soldiers were given
physical drills and common-sense tips on how to survive in the jungle
by studying its characteristics, Dense vegetation with limited
visibility, heavy cross compartmentalization, streams & rivers, heat
& humidity, few roads, numerous tracks and limited communication. It
is in this theater that students live and train.For no matter, how
crucial physical fitness is, it all depends on mental toughness to
survive, trust No One and be alert.

The normal schedule is about six weeks, during which a soldier
undergoes strenuous drills that make him conversant with guerrilla
warfare and low-intensity conflicts.The training module is non-
conventional and once a soldier undergoes training here, he can face
deadly situations anywhere in the world in all-weather terrain, eat
and sleep like a guerrilla and strike as silently as a guerrilla. The
training module includes lectures, seminars and mock operations in
the rugged jungles in Mizoram.The trainees are also exposed to media
interaction, civic actions plus fraternisation, human rights and
collection of intelligence and their analysis.

Soldiers undergoing a course here not only go through rigorous
physical training, but also tough mental training through lectures
and problems posed by the capable instructors of this school. An
importance placed in the top list of this school is how to avoid
collateral damage as much as possible. With precision shooting, the
soldiers engage in exercises where live rounds are used to shoot down
plywood terrorists inside homes and stores without hitting the
civilian population.

The training imparted in this school is of such high quality that
many countries all over the world have recognized this school as the
only place available where their troops can receive training to
combat insurgency and terrorism.

International Participation

Taking in to account the successes in combating militancy to a great
extent, New Delhi in 2001 threw the school at Vairengte open for
soldiers from other countries with three US army officers being the
first overseas batch to be trained.After the 9/11 terror strikes in
the US the jungle warfare school at Vairengte began attracting
military cadets from across the world.In 2003, a group of about 100
elite US commandos completed a three-week anti-insurgency combat
training at the institute. The exercise, codenamed Balance Iroquois,
saw personnel of the US Special Forces undergo an intensive exercise
along with soldiers from the Indian Special Forces battalion at
Vairengte. Troops were trained to feed on venomous vipers, dogs and
monkeys as part of military exercises to sharpen their skills in
jungle survival and combat.

Indian Army soldiers and U.S. Army and National Guard soldiers
trained together in Operation YUDH ABHYAS 04-1 the two forces focused
on reflexive firing, ambush, jungle patrolling, survival in the
jungle and a fast roping technique called slithering.

France, UK, Israel and Italy are the latest have sought India's help
to train their soldiers in counter-insurgency operations at this
elite facility.

Other Institutions

The success of this school prompted Indian army to open another
counterinsurgency training centre, in North Eastern India called as
the Kaziranga special jungle warfare training school in Assam.

India also has a high-altitude commando school at Tawang, also known
as Parvat Ghatak School, in Arunachal Pradesh province in North East
India bordering china. This High-Altitude Commando School is the
highest of its kind in the world.

Musharraf steps down – the Drama on Day I

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Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, facing impeachment on charges drawn up by the governing coalition, has announced that he is resigning.

He went on national TV to say that while he was confident the charges would not stand, this was not the time for more confrontation.

He is accused of violation of the constitution and gross misconduct.

Mr Musharraf has been a key ally of the US in its "war on terror" since he took power in a bloodless coup in 1999.

Reaction in Pakistan is overwhelmingly one of relief that a bruising and lengthy impeachment battle has been avoided, the BBC's Mark Dummett reports from Islamabad.

I leave myself in the hands of the people

Pervez Musharraf

Pakistani president

The key issue now is whether the ruling coalition, which had pushed for Mr Musharraf's exit since winning the February election, can stay united and deliver on its promises, he says.

It will have to agree on a new president, then persuade allies like the US and UK, and its neighbours like India and Afghanistan, that it will be committed to defeating militancy and terrorism, our correspondent adds.

International reaction to Mr Musharraf's resignation was mixed, with the US hailing him as strong ally against terrorism but Afghanistan welcoming his departure as a boost to democracy.

'No bravado'

Looking calm and dressed soberly in a dark suit and tie, President Musharraf said he had decided to resign after consulting his allies and advisers.

Pakistani lawyers dance in jubilation in Karachi

Lawyers in Karachi danced in jubilation at news of the resignation

In a defiant speech, he said he had believed it was his destiny to save Pakistan, helped by God, and that he had prevented it from being declared a terrorist state.

In a clear reference to his political opponents, he accused unnamed elements of putting themselves above the country and seeking to betray it.

"Not a single charge can be proved against me," he said, while conceding he had made mistakes.

An impeachment process would have plunged the country into more uncertainty, he said, and it was no time for "individual bravado".

The outgoing president listed social, economic and infrastructural improvements made during his rule.

"I leave myself in the hands of the people," he concluded.

After making his speech, the former military leader inspected a guard of honour outside his white palace in Islamabad, stepped into a black limousine and left the presidency.

Cheering crowds poured into the streets of Pakistan's big cities to celebrate Mr Musharraf's departure. In Karachi, lawyers danced in jubilation.

'A friend to the US'

Once Mr Musharraf's resignation letter is received and accepted by the speaker of Pakistan's lower house of parliament, the speaker of the upper house will take over as acting president.

MUSHARRAF KEY DATES

President Pervez Musharraf inspects a guard of honour before leaving his palace on 18 August

12 Oct 1999: Deposes PM Nawaz Sharif in coup

20 June 2001: Names himself president while remaining head of the army

12 Jan 2002: Declares war against extremism in Pakistan

14 December 2003: Survives first of several assassination plots

3 November 2007: Declares state of emergency before judiciary can rule on his re-election as president

28 November 2007: Steps down as army chief to become a civilian president

18 August 2008: Announces he will resign as president

He is Muhammad Mian Sumroo, a member of the pro-Musharraf faction of the Pakistan Muslim League.

The new president must be elected by both houses of Pakistan's parliament and the four provincial assemblies.

Reacting to news of the resignation, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice praised him as a "friend to the United States and one of the world's most committed partners in the war against terrorism and extremism".

She said the US would work with Pakistan's new leaders, pressing on them the need to stem "the growth of extremism".

The UK government wished Mr Musharraf well but stressed that relations did not depend on one individual.

India said it had no comment to make on the resignation since it was an internal matter of Pakistan.

Neighbouring Afghanistan, whose own President, Hamid Karzai, had a very fraught relationship with Mr Musharraf, hoped his departure would boost democracy in both countries.

Mounting pressure

Mr Musharraf's resignation followed more than a year of turbulence.

The unrest began last March when he confronted the judiciary, suspending the chief justice. After widespread strikes and protests, his decision was overturned by the Supreme Court.

Mr Musharraf won the presidential election in October - but the Supreme Court refused to confirm the result.

In November, he declared a state of emergency, citing increasing attacks by militants but eventually stood down as head of the army, giving up his main power base.

The parliamentary election this February, handed a clear victory to the two main opposition parties.

The coalition struck a deal to impeach the president earlier this month and finalised their charges against him hours before he stepped down. 

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India fears vacuum left by Musharraf

The resignation of Pakistan's president, Pervez Musharraf, may have come as a relief to most people in his country.

But in Pakistan's giant neighbour, India, there are some who are less pleased and even anxious at his imminent departure.

Delhi has traditionally been restrained in its comments on Pakistan's internal politics, concerned that it may be seen as meddling.

So its first reaction after Monday's announcement was entirely predictable.

"We have no comments to make on the resignation of President Musharraf of Pakistan", the Indian Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Navtej Sarna, said in a statement. "This is an internal matter of Pakistan", he added.

But even as speculation on General Musharraf's future mounted during the past few weeks, one high-ranking official voiced what many in India fear - that his exit leaves a political vacuum in Pakistan.

In a recent interview, the Indian National Security Advisor, MK Narayanan, said Delhi was "deeply concerned about this vacuum because it leaves the radical extremist outfits with freedom to do what they like - not merely on the Pakistan-Afghan border but clearly on our side of the border too".

"Like nature abhors a vacuum, we abhor the political vacuum that exists in Pakistan. It greatly worries us," he said.

Nuclear neighbours

India has had a mixed relationship with Pervez Musharraf.

The removal of Musharraf would result in the military playing a more autonomous role on issues of relations with India

G Parthasarathy

Retired Indian diplomat

Many in the Indian establishment view him with deep suspicion, especially after the two countries fought a bitter conflict in 1999, in the Kargil region of Indian-administered Kashmir.

As the Pakistan army chief, he was largely viewed as the prime motivator of the conflict, which saw armed insurgents backed by the Pakistan army invade territory under Indian control, provoking a near all-out war between two nuclear-powered neighbours.

And his blunt comments on relations with India - which sometimes bordered on the belligerent - have often left foreign-office mandarins fuming.

But over the years Delhi has also learnt to deal with the former general.

There is a sense in the world's largest democracy that there is more to be gained with a military dictatorship that is all powerful and controls all organs of the Pakistani state, than with a relatively weak civilian administration that may be at odds with the country's powerful intelligence and military.

"The removal of Musharraf would result in the military playing a more autonomous role on issues of relations with India, including policies on [Kashmir], support for the Taleban and control over nuclear weapons," says a retired Indian diplomat, G Parthasarathy, in The Times of India newspaper.

Political uncertainty

A series of recent terror attacks on Indian targets and growing violence in Indian-administered Kashmir has soured the mood after a steady if unspectacular peace process that has been ongoing since 2004.

It culminated in last month's attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, which Delhi publicly blamed on Pakistan's intelligence service - something that was immediately contested by Islamabad.

And last week, India was incensed after Pakistan spoke out against the killing of unarmed protesters in Indian-administered Kashmir by the security forces.

"We have never interfered in Pakistan's internal matters. Pakistan should do the same," warned Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

With relations once again on the downside, the political uncertainty in Pakistan is deeply frustrating for India.

Privately senior Indian officials say they are unsure of whom to talk to in Islamabad and who is in control.

"Is it Prime Minister Geelani, Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari or [army chief] General Kayani?" asked one official, who wished to remain unnamed. "We don't know", he told the BBC.

It is this kind of unpredictability that is very unsettling especially at a time when India is faced with growing insecurity in Kashmir and elsewhere.

More than anyone else, India will be hoping for political stability in Pakistan.

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Pervez Musharraf's mixed legacy

For nearly a decade Pervez Musharraf was the most powerful man in Pakistan.

His resignation marks the end of an era for a country facing enormous economic and security challenges.

He will be remembered for many things.

He overthrew an elected government in a military coup. He took Pakistan to the brink of war with India, only to launch a sustained peace process a few years later.

In the aftermath of the 11 September attacks in New York and Washington he declared his full support for the United States and became a key player in the American-led war on terror.

War on terror

He was also responsible for modernising many sections of Pakistani society.

But he brooked no opposition, and weakened important state institutions. And in the end he has fallen victim to hubris, the feeling that he was indispensable and he could do no wrong.

He leaves Pakistan as a more fragile and fractured country than it was when he came to power.

"There will be a more balanced view of him in the future than there is now," argues Mushahid Hussein, a leading political supporter.

"A lot of things happened in Pakistan for the good under his watch, and I think that is something the history books will recall after some time."

"As far as democracy in Pakistan is concerned," counters Senator Enver Beg of the Pakistan People's Party, "historians will not forgive him."

"He manipulated elections, he hounded his opponents, and he became a dictator. It's not much of a legacy."

His most significant international decision was to throw in his lot with George Bush and the United States after 9/11. He abandoned the Taleban in Afghanistan and worked closely with the Americans in pursuing Islamic extremism.

In return Washington has given Pakistan more than $10bn in aid, mostly to the military, since 2001.

But many of the gains from this strategic alliance have been frittered away.

Pakistan's lawless border regions close to Afghanistan remain a sanctuary for al-Qaeda, and a new Taleban insurgency inside Pakistan has gradually been gathering strength.

Military co-operation with the Americans has also become increasingly unpopular in Pakistan. As President, Pervez Musharraf never managed to persuade a majority of his people that he was doing more than fighting someone else's war.

"He never tried to create an impression in Pakistan that we were fighting for our own country and our own good," says military analyst Talat Masood, a retired lieutenant-general.

"And because of that the Pakistan army became a client army and Pakistan became a client state in the eyes of the people. It was a major failing on his part."

On Pakistan's eastern border, relations with India have also been predictably volatile.

As army chief, Gen Musharraf launched a military adventure in Kargil in 1999, shortly before his military coup. Pakistani soldiers and Kashmiri militants infiltrated Indian territory, before pressure from the United States forced them to withdraw.

Low ebb

And then an armed attack on the Indian parliament in Delhi in 2001 prompted a rapid military build-up on both sides of the Indo-Pakistani border which brought South Asia's nuclear neighbours close to war.

But from 2004 onwards a peace process between the two countries, in which Pervez Musharraf invested a considerable amount of personal prestige, led to a ceasefire and a series of confidence building measures.

As Mr Musharraf leaves office, though, relations with India have fallen to another low ebb.

The government in Delhi is convinced that a suicide bomb attack by Islamic militants on its embassy in Kabul last month was organised under the auspices of Pakistani intelligence agents.

At home Pervez Musharraf's first few years in power seemed to promise the hope of a fresh start and a modernising agenda. He liberalised the economy and the electronic media.

He backed the empowerment of women and made efforts to improve standards in education.

He also has the distinction of leaving high office with no serious charges of corruption against him. In Pakistan, that is quite a rare event.

But in the last 18 months he clearly over-reached himself. He thought he could take on the judiciary, the parliament and anyone else who disagreed with him with no consequence.

'Overconfident'

He sacked the chief justice, imposed a state of emergency and engineered his own re-election as president.

"He was too cocksure, he was overconfident," admits Mushahid Hussein. "But the ground realities had changed."

Critics say one of the most damaging parts of his legacy is the fact that his disregard for civilian institutions has weakened the Pakistani state.

He encouraged the spread of military influence into all walks of life, and always appeared more comfortable with men in uniform.

"He didn't understand the importance of other institutions," says Talat Masood. "And he didn't understand that a country of 160 million people couldn't be ruled by just one man."

In some respects he was a victim of his own success.

The Musharraf era saw the emergence of a more assertive middle class, who were in the forefront of protests against his imposition of emergency rule.

But towards the end of his presidential career even the economic accomplishments he could claim as his own were tarnished by the sapping negativity of months of political crisis.

In July 2008 annual inflation was over 24%, while the value of the rupee fell dramatically as the long political stalemate dragged on.

"He overstayed his welcome," says Enver Beg of the PPP. "It's time for life without Musharraf, it's time to move on." 

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The strongman and the war on terror

The resignation of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf is a sign of how the "war on terror" is changing.

Mr Musharraf was once the lynchpin of Pakistan's alliance with the United States in President George Bush's "war on terror", but the days of a single strongman laying down and executing the policy are gone.

Instead, a longer-term reliance on the emergence of democratic institutions to offer an alternative to extremism is taking place.

This partly explains why for the US and Britain, the departure of their former ally matters less than it once would have. His time came and went.

In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, President Bush drew up battle lines and President Musharraf stepped forward to take his place in the front line.

War on Terror changing

But today, al-Qaeda is seen as a weakened organisation, on the defensive in Iraq and unable to regroup in Afghanistan, while retaining its ambition and potential to cause real damage.

In such a situation, there is less need for battle cries against extremism - and more of a need for the building of representative governments - as in Iraq and now in Pakistan.

The "war on terror" is proving to be a generational struggle, similar perhaps to the Cold War, which saw communism in power across Russia, half of Europe and China for 50 years before it collapsed or significantly changed.

During that time, the Western democracies adopted a twin track approach - maintaining strong military power while developing a responsive form of government.

The same tactics are coming to prominence as the "war on terror" progresses.

Civilian leadership

In Mr Musharraf's place comes a civilian leadership, albeit in an unstable coalition government whose future is uncertain and whose ability to combat the extremism in the tribal areas is untested. Nobody yet knows who will be the next president.

But the coalition was the product of elections, not a coup, and therefore is now being projected by Washington and London as a surer basis for future action than the weakened Musharraf.

It is from the tribal areas, the US and Britain say, that Taleban fighters cross into Afghanistan where they present a real danger to Nato forces supporting the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai.

This link provides a major incentive for the US and UK to follow and - and try to influence - events in Pakistan so closely.

Role of military

A great deal also depends, as always in Pakistan, on the military. The army chief, General Ashfaq Kayani, has moved to align himself with the civilian leadership and not long ago reassigned some senior commanders appointed by Mr Musharraf as a signal of his intentions.

But the army still faces a huge task in the border regions.

Pakistan remains therefore at the heart of a region of concern for much of the world.

Alarming predictions that a nuclear-armed Pakistan would fall into the hand of Islamic fundamentalists, however, have not materialised. 

*******************************************************

Musharraf resigns: Reaction in quotes

Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf has said he will resign after nine years in office. World figures and Pakistani political leaders have been giving their reaction.

ANAND SHARMA, INDIAN MINISTER OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

It is an internal development of Pakistan. We wish Pakistan stability and we want that peace prevails there and democracy strengthens. We are very clear - we will always be talking to the government of Pakistan and the leadership of Pakistan, whoever is the president or prime minister of that country.

AFGHAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN

We hope that the resignation will have a positive impact on strengthening the government and democracy in Pakistan. Afghanistan wishes a stable, democratic Pakistan based on the rule of law.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, US SECRETARY OF STATE

We will continue to work with the Pakistani government and political leaders, and urge them to redouble their focus on Pakistan's future and its most urgent needs, including stemming the growth of extremism, addressing food and energy shortages, and improving economic stability. The United States will help with these efforts to see Pakistan reach its goal of becoming a stable, prosperous, democratic, modern, Muslim nation.

SPOKESMAN FOR US PRESIDENT GEORGE W BUSH

President Bush is committed to a strong Pakistan that continues its efforts to strengthen democracy and fight terror.

SPOKESMAN FOR BRITISH PM GORDON BROWN

During President Musharraf's time in office we have seen a deepening of UK-Pakistan relations. We wish him well in the future. But relations between the UK and Pakistan don't depend on individuals and, as we have made clear, we support measures that promote strong democratic institutions which lead to greater stability, democracy and rule of law in Pakistan.

DAVID MILLIBAND, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY

Pakistan is a vital friend of the UK and it is essential for Britain's security that it has a strong and democratic government with a clear mandate. The responsibilities on political leaders in Pakistan are now significant. They need to come together to ensure that the recently-elected government carries forward an economic and security agenda consistent with the long-term interests of the Pakistani people.

YASUO FUKUDA, JAPANESE PM

What kind of changes does this bring to the "war-on-terror" and the Afghan situation? I don't expect any significant change for now. I would expect different things would occur later. But it is not a time for us to make predictions.

FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTRY

We would like the next president and the Pakistani government to work together in a constructive climate and with respect for the institutions to address the many challenges facing Pakistan.

GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTRY

The German government hopes that the democratic government in Pakistan, and also the future president, will now seize the opportunity to bolster the democratic institutions in Pakistan and address the urgent challenges facing the country. Germany will continue to stand by Pakistan in the future as the country develops and stabilises its democracy.

RUSSIAN MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Russia hopes that the resignation of Pervez Musharraf will have no negative consequences for the political stability of this great Asian state. We hope that the situation in Pakistan will not leave the limits of the constitutional framework and will remain within the framework of legality and respect for order.

BILAWAL BHUTTO ZARDARI, CHAIRMAN OF PAKISTAN PEOPLE'S PARTY (PPP)

After the martyrdom of my mother (Benazir Bhutto) I said that democracy was the best revenge - and today it was proved true. Someone from the Pakistan People's Party would be the next president of Pakistan but I don't know who that would be.

FAROOQ NAEK, PAKISTAN MINISTER FOR LAW AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS

Democracy is going to flourish in the real sense and the people of Pakistan would see that in this country, the rule of law, supremacy of parliament, would be there.

ENVER BAIG, SENATOR, PPP

This is news which was long-awaited by the people of Pakistan. It is a very wise decision on his part, and it is a big day for the people of Pakistan and for democracy in this country. I think that a realisation has now come that military dictatorships do not give good results.

DELAWAR ABBAS, SENATOR, PAKISTAN MUSLIM LEAGUE (PML-Q)

It is in the larger interest of the nation and the country that President Musharraf has taken such a decision, which we accept as a party. The president, who was a bone of contention for (PPP and PML-Q) is now gone, and now they will start their own course of action and thinking - two separate parties, two separate chiefs.

SYED NAVEED QAMAR, PAKISTAN FINANCE MINISTER

I think we took a long time in getting through this but finally the day has arrived. It is a very happy day for the entire nation and I hope that now the coalition can divert its attention to solving the rest of the problems of the country.

AHSAN IQBAL, SPOKESMAN FOR PML-Q

Our stance is quite clear - that General Musharraf is nobody. If a trial is carried out, then in the future no one in Pakistan will dare to even think of breaking the constitution. The crimes against the Pakistani nation - against Pakistan's judiciary, against rule of law and democracy in Pakistan - those cannot be forgiven by a person or a party.

Courtesy: http://news.bbc.co.uk/

________________________

HOW WOMEN THINK...AND WHY THEY ARE DIFFICULT!!??

HOW WOMEN THINK

FINE

This is the word women use to end an argument when they feel they are right and you need to shut up. Never use "fine" to describe how a woman looks - this will cause you to have one of those arguments.

FIVE MINUTES

This is half an hour. It is equivalent to the five minutes that your football game is going to last before you take out the trash, so it's an even trade.

NOTHING

This means "something," and you should be on your toes. "Nothing" is usually used to describe the feeling a woman has of wanting to turn you inside out, upside down, and backwards. "Nothing" usually signifies an argument that will last "Five Minutes" and end with "Fine"

GO AHEAD (With Raised Eyebrows)

This is a dare. One that will result in a woman getting upset over "Nothing" and will end with the word "Fine"

GO AHEAD (Normal Eyebrows)

This means "I give up" or "do what you want because I don't care" You will get a "Raised Eyebrow Go Ahead" in just a few minutes, followed by "Nothing" and "Fine" and she will talk to you in about "Five Minutes" when she cools off.

LOUD SIGH
This is not actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A "Loud Sigh" means she thinks you are an idiot at that moment, and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you over "Nothing"

SOFT SIGH

Again, not a word, but a non-verbal statement. "Soft Sighs" mean that she is content. Your best bet is to not move or breathe, and she will stay content.

THAT'S OKAY

This is one of the most dangerous statements that a woman can make to a man. "That's Okay" means that she wants to think long and hard before paying you back for whatever it is that you have done. "That's Okay" is often used with the word "Fine" and in conjunction with a "Raised Eyebrow."

GO AHEAD

At some point in the near future! re, you are going to be in some mighty big trouble. PLEASE DO This is not a statement, it is an offer. A woman is giving you the chance to come up with whatever excuse or reason you have for doing whatever it is that you have done. You have a fair chance with the truth, so be careful and you shouldn't get a "That's Okay"

THANKS

A woman is thanking you. Do not faint. Just say you're welcome. THANKS A LOT This is much different from "Thanks." A woman will say, "Thanks A Lot" when she is really ticked off at you. It signifies that you have offended her in some callous way, and will be followed by the "Loud Sigh." Be careful not to ask what is wrong after the "Loud Sigh," as she will only tell you "Nothing"

AND WHY WOMEN ARE DIFFICULT??!!

If you kiss her,

you are not a gentleman

If you don't,

you are not a man

If you praise her,

she thinks you are lying

If you don't,

you are good for nothing

If you agree to all her likes,

you are a wimp

If you don't,

you are not understanding

If you visit her often,

she thinks you are boring

If you don't,

she accuses you of double-crossing

If you are well dressed,

she says you are a playboy

If you don't,

you are a dull boy

If you are jealous,

she says it's bad

If you don't,

she thinks you do not love her

If you attempt a romance,

she says you didn't respect her

If you don't,

she thinks you do not like her

If you are a minute late,

she complains it's hard to wait

If she is late,

she says that's a girl's way

If you visit another man,

you're not putting in "quality time"

If she is visited by another woman,

"oh it's natural, we are girls"

If you kiss her once in a while,

she professes you are cold

If you kiss her often,

she yells that you are taking advantage

If you fail to help her in crossing the street,

you lack ethics

If you do,

she thinks it's just one of men's tactics for seduction

If you stare at another woman,

she accuses you of flirting

If she is stared by other men,

she says that they are just admiring

If you talk,

she wants you to listen

If you listen,

she wants you to talk

In short:

So simple, yet so complex

So weak, yet so powerful

So confusing, yet so desirable

So damning, yet so wonderful... ....WOMEN!

The Golden Triangle – I

Where has all the opium gone?

In the Golden Triangle, the opium warlords have turned to tourist barons, every one. Once the roost of bandits, the notorious triangle has turned respectable, complete with cappuccino stalls. But across the border in Burma, poppies are still the drug of choice

A MIDDLE EASTERN BAZAAR RAGES along the roadway as the asphalt plunges deep into the infamous Golden Triangle. Once the province of tribal warlords and drug barons, the former opium-growing empire straddling the Thai-Burmese border now boasts an endless stream of Kodak and Fuji film stores, food stalls and hotels topped with satellite dishes.

This was heaven to heroin junkies, until the War on Drugs produced perhaps its only victory here. "You won't find a single opium poppy anywhere," boasts a Thai official, and he's quite correct. The only poppies to be found in this Eden of opium fields are on Golden Triangle T shirts.

With the drugs weeded out, a thicket of trinket shops are threatening to turn the Golden Triangle into a giant tourist arcade. The street-side emporium by the border at Mae Sae has it all: inflatable toys, novelty pagers and musical Mao cigarette lighters from China, along with opium scales, bamboo baskets, drawstring hippie pants and hundreds of kinds of handicrafts from the hill tribes of Northern Thailand.

But the real attraction in Mae Sae lies just beyond the wood sign that proclaims: "Northernmost Point in Thailand." Until recently, the sign itself was a landmark. This was as far as tourism reached. The ultimate in exotica for visitors was a snapshot in front of this sign, Burmese border guards in the background. Native girls in woven costumes and wacky headgear provided indigenous color - for a fee.

 However, the forces of free enterprise are on a roll, and today the Burmese are hungry for a slice of the tourism pie. Beginning in March, tourists could pull up to the border post, plop down five dollars, American currency of course, and stroll across the bridge into one of the world's last socialist states.

The transition is subtle, rather than striking. One leaves the clutter of vender stands in consumer-crazy Thailand, crosses the Sai River, and steps into ... a clutter of Burmese street stalls. 

On offer in the Burmese border town of Tachelik are tacky Top Gun and London Boy watches, soft-porn karaoke videos and vile black-label local whiskey.

Decades of isolation and increasingly bizarre rulers in Burma clearly haven't quelled the appetite for consumer goods, only the production of them. Once Asia's richest nation, Burma is now decades behind even China in churning out imitation Tonka trucks, fake Levis and Ninja Turtle Beach Towels.

In fact, the Pearl of Asia, as Burma was known, must make do as a middle man. Thousands of Thais pour across every day to purchase dried mushrooms, cheap cigarettes and other trinkets from China. They also find tiger paws, skulls in every size and shape, and the skins of snow leopards and other endangered species. Before a doorway ringed by "Merry Christmas" tinsel, one young Burmese lad sells keychains attached to tiny plastic-encased lizards.

Queasiness aside, any commerce is reason for celebration in cash-starved Burma, and there are signs that this is just the beginning of the border boom in Tachelik. A park opened in May, the first of what officials promise will be many tourist traps. A nine-hole golf course opened recently and bamboo scaffolding can be seen everywhere.

Residents say border life is largely free of the repression reported elsewhere in Burma. "The army has no place here," boasts one shopkeeper. "In Tachelik, we are free." As evidence, around the corner is a sign of the National League for Democracy, whose leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, still awaits the transfer of power that she won in a landslide election six years ago. Even as her supporters were rounded up again in Rangoon this month, politics and the pursuit of profits were openly on display in Tachelik.

Nor is Tachelik an isolated example. All along the Thai border, the bustle of construction and hustle of scams shows that Burma isn't that different from the rest of the world, when it comes to the most basic human right: making a buck.

Where Laos, Thailand and Burma meet at the apex of the Golden Triangle, construction has restarted on a huge hotel-casino complex. The Burmese project began in the early 1990s, but was halted by a lack of funds and the drug battles with Khun Sa, which also closed the border at Tachelick for a year, until March.

 Down river from the casino sits a fleet of new hovercraft. Locals say they cost US$1.4 million each, and were financed by Burmese drug lords, who want to switch from opium to group tours, as soon as visa rules loosen on the Mekong River between Laos and China. 

Maesalong Tour just launched this cruise route. Director Tanomsak Serivichyaswad says boats can run the river except during two months of high water, but rapids are nothing compared to the years he spent wining and dining officials to gain approval for the trips. "The river is the easy part," he says wearily. "Organizing this has made me very old."

However, government officials in Laos and Burma, the weak links between booming southern China and northern Thailand, are growing wise to the ways of commerce. In May, they gathered for a "quadrangle" summit and promised to relax visa restrictions and promote cross-border trade

How serious they are remains to be seen, but entrepreneurs are flocking to the Triangle in search of new gold. Le Meridian, the French hotel chain, operates a luxury resort at the very apex of the Golden Triangle, while the ritzy Regent recently opened an opulent boutique resort amongst rice fields and jungles outside Chiang Mai. 

This has long been the stomping grounds of backpackers on trekking tours, and bandits. Now, it looks like big bucks for all.

"Burma and Laos are beckoning," says Duncan Jameson, manager of the Le Meridien Baan Boran, which overlooks both Laos and the 200-room hotel at the Burmese casino site. "Tourists are excited about the possibilities, and so are we." 

By Ron Gluckman.

The concept of Nation state

Traditionally, a nation state is a specific form of state, which exists to provide a sovereign territory for a particular nation, and which derives its legitimacy from that function. The state is a political and geopolitical entity; the nation is a cultural and/or ethnic entity. The term "nation state" implies that they geographically coincide, and this distinguishes the nation state from the other types of state, which historically preceded it. If successfully implemented, this implies that the citizens share a common language, culture, and values — which was not the case in many historical states. A world of nation states also implements the claim to self-determination and autonomy for every nation, a central theme of the ideology of nationalism. 

The nation state model in practice

Political science uses the term "nation state" for most existing sovereign states, even if their political boundaries do not coincide with ethnic boundaries.

In some cases, the geographic boundaries of an ethnic population and a political state largely coincide. In these cases, there is little immigration or emigration, few members of ethnic minorities, and few members of the "home" ethnicity living in other countries.

Portugal is one example of a nation state. Although surrounded by other lands and people, the Portuguese nation has occupied the same territory for almost 900 years. Since its foundation, in 1143, Portugal remained as a single nation living in a single country. Ethnically, Portuguese people are related to various peoples that passed through and settled in the territory of modern Portugal: native iberian peoples, ancient mediterraneans (Greeks, Phoenicians) Celts, Romans, Germanic peoples like the Suebi and the Visigoths, invading Berbers and Arabs and Jews. The modern Portuguese people is a very old amalgam of distinct historical populations. Portugal, particularly the south of what is now that country, was ruled by the Moors for around 500 years. Portugal had a large colonial Empire for more than 500 years. Nowadays, Portugal is a very singular country that is still seen as a nation state. However, Galicians are still considered by some as the same ethnic stock as the Portuguese (specially those in the north).

Iceland is often seen as a strong example of a nation state. Although the inhabitants are ethnically related to other Scandinavian groups, the national culture and language are found only in Iceland. There are no cross-border minorities — the nearest land is too far away.

Japan is also traditionally seen as a good example of a nation state, although it includes minorities of the ethnically distinct Ryūkyū peoples in the south, Koreans, Chinese and Filipinos, and on the northern island of Hokkaidō, the indigenous Ainu minority; see also Japanese Demographics and Ethnic issues in Japan.

Both Iceland and Japan are island nations. Portugal, curiously, is not an island and is surrounded by other historic nations in Europe.

The notion of a "national identity" also extends to countries which host multiple ethnic or language groups. For example, Switzerland is constitutionally a confederation of cantons, and has four official languages, but it has also a 'Swiss' national identity, a national history, and a classic national hero, Wilhelm Tell.

Many historical conflicts have arisen where political boundaries do not correspond with ethnic or cultural boundaries. For example, the Hatay Province was transferred to Turkey from Syria after the majority-Turk population complained of mistreatment. The traditional homeland of the Kurdish people extends between northern Iraq and eastern Turkey, and western Iran. Some of its inhabitants call for the creation of an independent Kurdistan, citing mistreatment by the Turkish and Iraqi governments. An armed conflict between the Kurdistan Workers Party and the Turkish government over this issue has been ongoing since 1984.

Belgium is a classic example of a disputed nation state. The state was formed by secession from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1830 - protected by the Treaty of London 1839, and the Flemish population in the north speaks Dutch. The Flemish identity is also ethnic and cultural, and there is a strong separatist movement. The Walloon identity is linguistic (Francophone) and regionalist. There is also a unitary Belgian nationalism, several versions of a Greater Netherlands ideal, and a German-speaking region annexed from Prussia in 1920, and re-annexed by Germany in 1940–1944.

China covers a large geographic area, and uses the concept of "Zhonghua minzu" — "a Chinese people" — although it also officially recognises the majority Han ethnic group, and no fewer than 55 national minorities.

Where part of the national group lives in a neighbouring nation state, it is usually called a national minority. In some cases states have reciprocal national minorities, for instance the Slovaks in Hungary and the Magyars (ethnic Hungarians) in Slovakia.

National minorities should not be confused with a national diaspora, which is typically located far from the national border. Most modern diasporas result from economic migration, for example the Irish diaspora.

The possession of dependent territories does influence the status of a nation state. A state with large colonial possessions is obviously inhabited by many ethnic groups, and is not a mono-ethnic state. However, in most cases, the colonies were not considered an integral part of the motherland, and were separately administered. Some European nation states have dependent territories in Europe. Denmark contains virtually all ethnic Danes and has relatively few foreign nationals within it. However, it exercises sovereignty over the Faroe Islands and Greenland.

History and origins

The origins and early history of nation states are disputed. A major theoretical issue is: "which came first — the nation or the nation state?" For nationalists themselves, the answer is that the nation existed first, nationalist movements arose to present its legitimate demand for sovereignty, and the nation state met that demand. Some "modernisation theories" of nationalism see the national identity largely as a product of government policy, to unify and modernise an already existing state. Most theories see the nation state as a 19th-century European phenomenon, facilitated by developments such as mass literacy and the early mass media. However, historians also note the early emergence of a relatively unified state, and a sense of common identity, in England, Portugal and the Dutch Republic.

In France, Eric Hobsbawm argues, the French state preceded the formation of the French people. Hobsbawm considers that the state made the French nation, and not French nationalism, which emerged at the end of the 19th century, the time of the Dreyfus Affair. At the time of the 1789 French Revolution, only half of the French people spoke some French, and between 12% to 13% spoke it "fairly", according to Hobsbawm. During Italian unification, the number of people speaking the Italian language was even lower. The French state promoted the unification of various dialects and languages into the French language. The introduction of conscription, and the Third Republic's 1880s laws on public instruction, facilitated the creation of a national identity, under this theory.

The theorist Benedict Anderson argues that nations are "imagined communities" (the members cannot possibly know each other), and that the main causes of nationalism and the creation of an imagined community are the reduction of privileged access to particular script languages (e.g. Latin), the movement to abolish the ideas of divine rule and monarchy, as well as the emergence of the printing press under a system of capitalism (or, as Anderson calls it, "print-capitalism"). The "state-driven" theories of the origin of nation states tend to emphasise a few specific states, such as France and its rival England. These states expanded from core regions, and developed a national consciousness and sense of national identity ("Frenchness" and "Englishness"). Both assimilated peripheral regions (Wales, Brittany, Aquitaine and Occitania); these areas experienced a revival of interest in the regional culture in the 19th century, leading to the creation of autonomist movements in the 20th century.

Some nation states, such as Germany or Italy, came into existence at least partly as a result of political campaigns by nationalists, during the nineteenth century. In both cases, the territory was previously divided among other states, some of them very small. The sense of common identity was at first a cultural movement, such as in the Völkisch movement in German-speaking states, which rapidly acquired a political significance. In these cases, the nationalist sentiment and the nationalist movement clearly precede the unification of the German and Italian nation states.

The idea of a nation state is associated with the rise of the modern system of states — often called the "Westphalian system" in reference to the Treaty of Westphalia (1648). The balance of power, which characterises that system, depends for its effectiveness upon clearly defined, centrally controlled, independent entities, whether empires or nation states, which recognise each other's sovereignty and territory. The Westphalian system did not create the nation state, but the nation state meets the criteria for its component states (assuming that there is no disputed territory).

The nation state received a philosophical underpinning in the era of Romanticism, at first as the 'natural' expression of the individual peoples (romantic nationalism — see Fichte's conception of the Volk, which would be later opposed by Ernest Renan). The increasing emphasis during the 19th century, on the ethnic and racial origins of the nation, led to a redefinition of the nation state in these terms. Racism, which in Boulainvilliers's theories was inherently antipatriotic and antinationalist, joined itself with colonialist imperialism and "continental imperialism", most notably in pan-Germanic and pan-Slavic movements . This relation between racism and nationalism reached its height in the fascist and Nazi movements of the 20th century. The specific combination of 'nation' ('people') and 'state' expressed in such terms as the Völkische Staat and implemented in laws such as the 1935 Nuremberg laws made fascist states such as early Nazi Germany qualitatively different from non-fascist nation states. Obviously, minorities, who are not part of the Volk, have no authentic or legitimate role in such a state. In Germany, neither Jews nor the Roma were considered part of the Volk, and specifically targeted for persecution. However German nationality law defined 'German' on the basis of German ancestry (as it still largely does), excluding all non-Germans from the 'Volk'.

In recent years, the nation state's claim to absolute sovereignty within its borders has been much criticised. A global political system based on international agreements, and supra-national blocs characterized the post-war era. Non-state actors, such as international corporations and non-governmental organizations, are widely seen as eroding the economic and political power of nation states, leading to their eventual disappearance.

What states existed before nation states?

In Europe, in the eighteenth century, the classic non-national states were the multi-ethnic empires,Hellenic Empire, Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire, (the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Russian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the British Empire), and smaller states at what would now be called sub-national level. The multi-ethnic empire was a monarchy ruled by a king, emperor, or Sultan. The population belonged to many ethnic groups, and they spoke many languages. The empire was dominated by one ethnic group, and their language was usually the language of public administration. The ruling dynasty was usually, but not always, from that group. This type of state is not specifically European: such empires existed on all continents. Some of the smaller European states were not so ethnically diverse, but were also dynastic states, ruled by a royal house. Their territory could expand by royal marriage, or merge with another state when the dynasty merged. In some parts of Europe, notably Germany, very small territorial units existed. They were recognised by their neighbours as independent, and had their own government and laws. Some were ruled by princes or other hereditary rulers, some were governed by bishops or abbots. Because they were so small, however, they had no separate language or culture: the inhabitants shared the language of the surrounding region.

In some cases these states were simply overthrown by nationalist uprisings in the 19th century. Some older nation states, such as England and France seem to have grown by accretion of smaller entities, such as city states, before the 19th century, or chiefdoms earlier in history. Liberal ideas of free trade played a role in German unification, which was preceded by a customs union, the Zollverein. However, the Austro-Prussian War, and the German alliances in the Franco-Prussian War, were decisive in the unification. The Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire broke up after the First World War, the Russian Empire became the Soviet Union, after the long Russian Civil War.

Some of the smaller states survived: the independent principalities of Liechtenstein, Andorra, and Monaco, and the republic of San Marino. The Vatican City is not a survival, although there was a larger Papal State. In its present form, it was created by the 1929 Lateran treaties between Italy and the Roman Catholic Church.

Characteristics of the nation state

Nation states have their own characteristics, differing from those of the pre-national states. For a start, they have a different attitude to their territory, compared to the dynastic monarchies: it is semi-sacred, and non-transferable. No nation would swap territory with other states simply, for example, because the king's daughter got married. They have a different type of border, in principle defined only by the area of settlement of the national group, although many nation states also sought natural borders (rivers, mountain ranges).

The most noticeable characteristic is the degree to which nation states use the state as an instrument of national unity, in economic, social and cultural life.

The nation state promoted economic unity, first by abolishing internal customs and tolls. In Germany this process - the creation of the Zollverein - preceded formal national unity. Nation states typically have a policy to create and maintain a national transportation infrastructure, facilitating trade and travel. In 19th-century Europe, the expansion of the rail transport networks was at first largely a matter for private railway companies, but gradually came under control of the national governments. The French rail network, with its main lines radiating from Paris to all corners of France, is often seen as a reflection of the centralised French nation state, which directed its construction. Nation states continue to build, for instance, specifically national motorway networks. Specifically trans-national infrastructure programmes, such as the Trans-European Networks, are a recent innovation.

The nation states typically had a more centralised and uniform public administration than its imperial predecessors: they were smaller, and the population less diverse. (The internal diversity of, for instance, the Ottoman Empire was very great). After the triumph of the nation state in Europe, regional identity was subordinate to national identity, in regions such as Alsace-Lorraine, Catalonia, Brittany, Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica. In many cases, the regional administration was also subordinated to central (national) government. This process was partially reversed from the 1970s onward, with the introduction of various forms of regional autonomy, in formerly centralised states such as France.

However, the most obvious impact of the nation state, as compared to its non-national predecessors, is the creation of a uniform national culture, through state policy. The model of the nation state implies that its population constitute a nation, united by a common descent, a common language, and many forms of shared culture. When the implied unity was absent, the nation state often tried to create it. It promoted a uniform national language, through language policy. The creation of national systems of compulsory primary education and a relatively uniform curriculum in secondary schools, was the most effective instrument in the spread of the national languages. The schools also taught the national history, often in a propagandistic and mythologised version, and (especially during conflicts) some nation states still teach this kind of history.

Language and cultural policy was sometimes negative, aimed at the suppression of non-national elements. Language prohibitions were sometimes used to accelerate the adoption of national languages, and the decline of minority languages, see Germanisation.

In some cases these policies triggered bitter conflicts and separatism. Where it worked, the cultural uniformity and homogeneity of the population increased. Conversely, the cultural divergence at the border became sharper: in theory, a uniform French identity extends from the Atlantic coast to the Rhine, and on the other bank of the Rhine, a uniform German identity begins. To enforce that model, both sides have divergent language policy and educational systems, although the linguistic boundary is in fact well inside France, and the Alsace region changed hands four times between 1870 and 1945.

Minorities

The most obvious deviation from the ideal of 'one nation, one state', is the presence of minorities, especially ethnic minorities, which are clearly not members of the majority nation. The nationalist definition of a nation is always exclusive: no nation has open membership. In most cases, there is a clear idea that surrounding nations are different, and that includes members of those nations who live on the 'wrong side' of the border. Historical examples of groups, who are specifically singled out as outsiders, are the Roma and Jews in Europe.

Negative responses to minorities within the nation state have ranged from state-enforced cultural assimilation, to expulsion, persecution, violence, and extermination. The assimilation policies are usually state-enforced, but violence against minorities is not always state-initiated: it can occur in the form of mob violence such as lynching or pogroms. Nation states are responsible for some of the worst historical examples of violence against minorities—that is, minorities which were not considered part of the nation.

However, many nation states do accept specific minorities as being in some way part of the nation, and the term national minority is often used in this sense. The Sorbs in Germany are an example: for centuries they have lived in German-speaking states, surrounded by a much larger ethnic German population, and they have no other historical territory. They are now generally considered to be part of the German nation, and are accepted as such by the Federal Republic of Germany, which constitutionally guarantees their cultural rights. Of the thousands of ethnic and cultural minorities in nation states across the world, only a few have this level of acceptance and protection.

Multiculturalism is an official policy in many states, establishing the ideal of peaceful existence among multiple ethnic, cultural, and linguistic groups. Many nations have laws protecting minority rights.

Irredentism

Ideally, the border of a nation state extends far enough to include all the members of the nation, and all of the national homeland. Again, in practice some of them always live on the 'wrong side' of the border. Part of the national homeland may be there too, and it may be inhabited by the 'wrong' nation. The response to the non-inclusion of territory and population may take the form of irredentism - demands to annex unredeemed territory and incorporate it into the nation state. Irredentist claims are usually based on the fact that an identifiable part of the national group lives across the border. However, they can include claims to territory where no members of that nation live at present, either because they lived there in the past, or because the national language is spoken in that region, or because the national culture has influenced it, or because of geographical unity with the existing territory, or for a wide variety of other reasons. Past grievances are usually involved (see Revanchism). It is sometimes difficult to distinguish irredentism from pan-nationalism, since both claim that all members of an ethnic and cultural nation belong in one specific state. Pan-nationalism is less likely to ethnically specify the nation. For instance, variants of Pan-Germanism have different ideas about what constituted Greater Germany, including the confusing term Grossdeutschland - which in fact implied the inclusion of huge Slavic minorities from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Typically, irredentist demands are at first made by members of non-state nationalist movements. When they are adopted by a state, they result in tensions, and actual attempts at annexation are always considered a casus belli, a cause for war. In many cases, such claims result in long-term hostile relations between neighbouring states. Irredentist movements typically circulate maps of the claimed national territory, the greater nation state. That territory, which is often much larger than the existing state, plays a central role in their propaganda.

Irredentism should not be confused with claims to overseas colonies, which are not generally considered part of the national homeland. Some French overseas colonies would be an exception: French rule in Algeria did indeed treat the colony legally as a département of France, unsuccessfully.

Future

It has been observed by both proponents of globalization and various future fiction writers that the concept of a nation state may disappear with the ever-increasingly interconnected nature of the world. Notably, the Star Trek mythos, set in the 22nd-24th centuries, describes Earth as having gradually progressed into a united government, which is itself later but one in a federation of many planets. An alternative to World Government or the continuation of a multitude of nation states, is the disintegration of centralized political units into small, local political entities. As the governments of the world spend themselves into bankruptcy people may simply walk away from them. Alternatively, some localities may secede from the centralized states, which will not have the power to stop them.

This disintegration of political unity does not necessarily imply world economic disintegration. In fact the opposite is likely true because political institutions usually create barriers to trade and corrupt the marketplace. A world made up of thousands of politically autonomous municipalities and commonwealths may be the fertile soil from which a more greatly integrated humanity grows. Some are sceptic of the feasibility of this, as groups of humans with no overreaching regulation or control have historically tended to go to war on each other.

Memorable songs collection...

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White Rabbit - Jefferson Airplane

One pill makes you larger

And one pill makes you small

And the ones that mother gives you

Don't do anything at all

Go ask Alice

When she's ten feet tall

And if you go chasing rabbits

And you know you're going to fall

Tell 'em a hookah smoking caterpillar

Has given you the call

Recall Alice

When she was just small

When men on the chessboard

Get up and tell you where to go

And you've just had some kind of mushroom

And your mind is moving slow

Go ask Alice

I think she'll know

When logic and proportion

Have fallen sloppy dead

And the White Knight is talking backwards

And the Red Queen's "off with her head!"

Remember what the dormouse said;

"FEED YOUR HEAD

"White Rabbit" is a psychedelic rock song from Jefferson Airplane's 1967 album Surrealistic Pillow. It was released as a single, peaking in the USA at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2004, the song was ranked #478 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. First performed by composer Grace Slick with her band The Great Society in 1966, the song helped convince members of the Airplane to ask Slick to join their band.

One of Slick's earliest songs, written in either late 1965 or early 1966, it cites parallels between the hallucinatory effects of LSD and the imagery found in the fantasy works of Lewis Carroll: 1865's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its 1871 sequel Through the Looking-Glass. Alice, the Dormouse, the hookah-smoking caterpillar, the White Knight, and the Red Queen are all mentioned in the song. Events in the books such as changing size after eating mushrooms or drinking an unknown liquid are also mentioned. The last line of the song is "Remember what the Dormouse said. Feed your head. Feed your head." and does not explicitly quote the Dormouse as is often assumed. The line probably refers to "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," Chapter XI 'Who Stole the Tarts':

"But what did the Dormouse say?' one of the jury asked."

"That I can't remember,' said the Hatter." "

Set to a rising crescendo similar to that of Ravel's famous Boléro, and having a strong Spanish influence to it, the music combined with the song's lyrics strongly suggest the sensory distortions experienced with hallucinogens and the song was later utilized in pop culture to imply or accompany just such a state. "White Rabbit" is one of two songs, along with "Somebody to Love," that Slick brought with her to Jefferson Airplane from her earlier group The Great Society when she replaced original Airplane vocalist Signe Toly.

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Working Class Hero – John Lennon

As soon as your born they make you feel small,

By giving you no time instead of it all,

Till the pain is so big you feel nothing at all,

A working class hero is something to be,

A working class hero is something to be.

They hurt you at home and they hit you at school,

They hate you if you're clever and they despise a fool,

Till you're so fucking crazy you can't follow their rules,

A working class hero is something to be,

A working class hero is something to be.

When they've tortured and scared you for twenty odd years,

Then they expect you to pick a career,

When you can't really function you're so full of fear,

A working class hero is something to be,

A working class hero is something to be.

Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV,

And you think you're so clever and classless and free,

But you're still fucking peasents as far as I can see,

A working class hero is something to be,

A working class hero is something to be.

There's room at the top they are telling you still,

But first you must learn how to smile as you kill,

If you want to be like the folks on the hill,

A working class hero is something to be.

A working class hero is something to be.

If you want to be a hero well just follow me,

If you want to be a hero well just follow me.

Interpretation

Regarded as one of John Lennon's most caustic and overtly political songs, "Working Class Hero" explores themes of alienation and social status from childhood to adulthood, and comments on elements that "distract you from your fate":

Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV,

And you think you're so clever and classless and free,

But you're still fucking peasants as far as I can see.

Controversy

U.S. Representative Harley Orrin Staggers heard the song on WGTB and lodged a complaint with the FCC. The manager of WGTB faced a year in prison and a $10,000 fine, but defended his decision to play the song saying, "The People of Washington are sophisticated enough to accept the occasional four-letter word in context, and not become sexually aroused, offended, or upset." Other U.S. radio stations like WBCN banned the song for its use of the word "fucking". In Australia, the album was released with the expletive removed from the song, with the lyrics censored on the inner sleeve.

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Rhinestone Cowboy – Glen Campbel

I've been walkin' these streets so long

Singin' the same old song

I know every crack in these dirty sidewalks of Broadway

Where hustle's the name of the game

And nice guys get washed away like the snow and the rain

There's been a load of compromisin'

On the road to my horizon

But I'm gonna be where the lights are shinin' on me

Like a rhinestone cowboy

Riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo

Like a rhinestone cowboy

Getting cards and letters from people I don't even know

And offers comin' over the phone

Well, I really don't mind the rain

And a smile can hide all the pain

But you're down when you're ridin' the train that's takin' the long way

And I dream of the things I'll do

With a subway token and a dollar tucked inside my shoe

There'll be a load of compromisin'

On the road to my horizon

But I'm gonna be where the lights are shinin' on me

Like a rhinestone cowboy

Riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo

Rhinestone cowboy

Gettin' cards and letters from people I don't even know

And offers comin' over the phone

Like a rhinestone cowboy

Riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo

Like a rhinestone cowboy

Gettin' card and letters from people I don't even know


Bullet the blue sky – U2

In the howling wind comes a stinging rain
See it driving nails into souls on the tree of pain
]from the firefly, a red orange glow
See the face of fear running scared in the valley below

Bullet the blue sky
Bullet the blue sky
Bullet the blue
Bullet the blue

In the locust wind comes a rattle and hum
Jacob wrestled the angel and the angel was overcome
Plant a demon seed, you raise a flower of fire
See them burning crosses, see the flames, higher and higher

Bullet the blue sky
Bullet the blue sky
Bullet the blue
Bullet the blue

This guy comes up to me
His face red like a rose on a thorn bush
Like all the colors of a royal flush
And hes peeling off those dollar bills
Slapping them down
One hundred, two hundred
And I can see those fighter planes
And I can see those fighter planes
Across the mud huts where the children sleep
Through the alleys of a quiet city street
Take the staircase to the first floor
Turn the key and slowly unlock the door
As a man breathes into a saxophone
Through the walls we hear the city groan
Outside its america
Outside its america

Across the field you see the sky ripped open
See the rain come through the gaping wound
Pounding on the women and children who run into the arms of america



This is a political song that condemns US foreign policy for promoting unrest in Central America.

The lyrics were inspired by Bono's trip to Central America in 1985 as part of Amnesty International. Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen, and The Edge came up with the music, which Bono wrote lyrics around.Bono wanted to draw attention to the damage the US was doing in other countries, which he felt most Americans did not know the extent of. Criticism of America did not hurt record sales there, as The Joshua Tree was the #1 album it's first week. It also didn't hurt Bono's status with American politicians, many of which invited Bono to speak on behalf of various causes.

This was one of the first U2 songs to condemn US politics. They would sometimes call the president on stage during their US shows. The last line about the man who is afraid to leave his house was almost changed to "Because outside is the world" from "Because outside is America." They were not sure they wanted to name the US directly.

________________________________



Where Is The Love – Black eyed Peas

What's wrong with the world mama?
People living like aint got no mamas
I think the whole worlds addicted to the drama
Only attracted to the things that bring you trauma
Overseas yeah we tryin to stop terrorism
But we still got terrorists here livin
In the USA the big CIA the Bloodz and the Crips and the KKK
But if you only have love for your own race
Then you only leave space to discriminate
And to discriminate only generates hate
And if you hatin you're bound to get irate
Yeah madness is what you demonstrate
And that's exactly how anger works and operates
You gotta have love just to set it straight
Take control of your mind and meditate
Let your soul gravitate to the love y'all

People killing people dying
Children hurtin you hear them crying
Can you practice what you preach
Would you turn the other cheek?
Father Father Father help us
Send some guidance from above
Cause people got me got me questioning
Where is the love?(where is the lovex3)(the love2x)

It just ain't the same all ways have changed
New days are strange is the world the insane?
If love and peace so strong
Why are there pieces of love that don't belong
Nations dropping bombs
Chemical gases filling lungs of little ones
With ongoing suffering
As the youth die young
So ask yourself is the loving really strong?
So I can ask myself really what is going wrong
With this world that we living in
People keep on giving in
Makin wrong decisions
Only visions of them livin and
Not respecting each other
Deny thy brother
The wars' going on but the reasons' undercover
The truth is kept secret
Swept under the rug
If you never know truth
Then you never know love
Where's the love y'all?(I don't know)
Where's the truth y'all?(I don't know)
Where's the love y'all?

People killing people dying
Children hurtin you hear them crying
Can practice what you preach
Would you turn the other cheek?
Father father father help us
Send some guidance from above
Cause people got me got me questioning
Where is the love?(where is the lovex3)(the lovex2)

I feel the weight of the world on my shoulder
As I'm getting older y'all people get colder
Most of us only care about money makin
Selfishness got us followin the wrong direction
Wrong information always shown by the media
Negative images is the main criteria
Infecting their young minds faster than bacteria
Kids wanna act like what the see in the cinema
Whatever happened to the values of humanity
Whatever happened to the fairness and equality
Instead of spreading love, we're spreading anomosity
Lack of understanding, leading us away from unity
That's the reason why sometimes I'm feeling under
That's the reason why sometimes I'm feeling down
It's no wonder why sometimes I'm feeling under
I gotta keep my faith alive, until love is found

People killing people dying
Children hurtin you hear them crying
Can you practice what you preach
Would you turn the other cheek?
Father Father Father help us
Send some guidance from above
Cause people got me got me questioning
Where is the love?


This one is about the state of the post 9/11 world, which all but calls for US withdrawal from Iraq.

Black eyed Peas group member Ron Fair started writing it late in 2001, and another member, Will.I.Am, added the socially-conscious lyrics. This was co-written by Justin Timberlake, who also sang on the track. He came up the chorus after hearing the song on the phone. Timberlake was not listed as a featured singer on this and did not appear in the video. His record company wanted to keep his contribution to this low-key because they didn't want it to interfere with his album Justified.

The song took a long time to develop. By the time they recorded the version on the album, they added a string section and recorded vocals by their new member - a female singer named Fergie. They had also changed their sound to appeal to a wider audience.


____________________________________


Blowin' in the Wind – Bob Dylan


How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man
How many seas must the white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand
Yes, and how many times must the cannonballs fly
Before they are forever banned
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind
The answer is blowing in the wind

Yes, and how many years can a mountain exist
Before it washed to the sea
Yes, and how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free
Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head
And pretend that he just doesn't see
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind
The answer is blowing in the wind

Yes, and how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky
Yes, and how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry
Yes, and how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind



"Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan and released on his 1963 album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan. Although it has been described as a protest song, it poses a series of philosophical questions about peace, war, and freedom without supplying concrete answers. The refrain "The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind" has been described as "impenetrably ambiguous: either the answer is so obvious it is right in your face, or the answer is as intangible as the wind". The song makes no reference to a specific event.

In 1999, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2004, it was ranked #14 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

________________________

Imagine – John Lennon

Imagine there's no heaven,
It's easy if you try,
No hell below us,
Above us only sky,
Imagine all the people living for today...

Imagine there's no countries,
It isnt hard to do,
Nothing to kill or die for,
No religion too,
Imagine all the people living life in peace...

Imagine no possesions,
I wonder if you can,
No need for greed or hunger,
A brotherhood of man,
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...

You may say Im a dreamer,
but Im not the only one,
I hope some day you'll join us,
And the world will live as one.

"My role in society, or any artist's or poet's role, is to try and express what we all feel.
Not to tell people how to feel. Not as a preacher, not as a leader, but as a reflection of us all."- John Lennon

________________________

The unknown soldier – The Doors

Wait until the war is over
And we're both a little older
The unknown soldier

Breakfast where the news is read
Television children fed
Unborn living, living, dead
Bullet strikes the helmet's head

And it's all over
For the unknown soldier
It's all over
For the unknown soldier

Hut
Hut
Hut ho hee up
Hut
Hut
Hut ho hee up
Hut
Hut
Hut ho hee up
Comp'nee
Halt
Preeee-zent!
Arms!

Make a grave for the unknown soldier
Nestled in your hollow shoulder
The unknown soldier

Breakfast where the news is read
Television children fed
Bullet strikes the helmet's head

And, it's all over
The war is over
It's all over
The war is over
Well, all over, baby
All over, baby
Oh, over, yeah
All over, baby
Wooooo, hah-hah
All over
All over, baby
Oh, woa-yeah
All over
All over
Heeeeyyyy

Where have all the flowers gone – Pete Seeger

Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago?
Where have all the flowers gone?
Gone to young girls, every one!
When will they ever learn, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the young girls gone, long time passing?
Where have all the young girls gone, long time ago?
Where have all the young girls gone?
Gone to young men, every one!
When will they ever learn, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the young men gone, long time passing?
Where have all the young men gone, long time ago?
Where have all the young men gone?
Gone to soldiers, every one!
When will they ever learn, when will they ever learn?

And where have all the soldiers gone, long time passing?
Where have all the soldiers gone, a long time ago?
Where have all the soldiers gone?
Gone to graveyards, every one!
When will they ever learn, when will they ever learn?

And where have all the graveyards gone, long time passing?
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time ago?
Where have all the graveyards gone?
Gone to flowers, every one!
When will they ever learn, oh when will they ever learn?

When you bring people together for any reason whatsoever, you're doing politics.

"Now somebody will ask me, Pete, how can you prove these songs really make a
difference? And I have to confess I can't prove a darn thing, except that
the people in power must think they do something, because they keep the
songs off the air." - Pete Seeger

to be continued...

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BEWARE!!!

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Many of you know that there is a very good opportunity to earn from internet. But practically it is not so easy to earn for any one. (Definitely you will surprise and happy to see those BIG amount people are earning). 

Today number of internet consultants are available in market (see the list below), who offers lots of promises and do their business just by selling you their 10bucks CD (Compact Disk) for Rs.1000/- to 3000/-. After purchasing the kit, you can't start the Internet business easily because there are lot of things which you don't know like :

1.What is web server ?

2.How to make web site ?

3.Where to host web ?

4.What is SEO?

5.How to optimize your website?

6.How to purchase web space ? (This is extra charges you have to pay)

7.How to register to different sites?

8.How to get affiliation?

9.How to get advertisement codes?

10.How to add codes into your web pages?

Here are the names of websites which are acting as internet business guide or say consultants (Few among them might be sincere in providing there services, no

doubt!!). You can get the list of Internet jobs providers 'Internet jobs' 'Part Time Jobs', 'Work From Home' or 'Business Proposals' columns in all newspapers in India or free classifieds of many websites. You can visit the following websites which are providing internet based online money making business/schemes to you !!!

{*Remember, the following sites (or their owner) does not offer any software – for an instance, it just has instructions as to how to make money thru Internet. It teaches you how to do it without a site and teaches you various ways available to earn thru Internet. They however do not guarantee that you will earn for sure but say that they have customers who are happily using their instructions to make money on a regular basis and they are legitimate in terms of giving you what they are promising. They are giving you a cd that has all the instructions for earning money thru Internet. That's it!!

http://www.viksun.co.in/

http://www.jobonnet4u.com/

http://www.i3cash.com/

http://www.jobsjalsa.com/

http://www.netjobs4all.com/

http://www.succeedindia.com/

http://www.onlineworkindia.com/

http://www.paying2surf.com/

http://www.ebusinessonline.net/

http://www.googlenetcash.com/

http://www.netcashincome.com/

http://www.ongoingprofit.com/

http://www.indoforeign.com/

http://www.googlecashkey.com/

http://www.parttimeearn.com/

http://www.parttimejobs4all.com/

http://www.cheque4u.com/

http://www.asknimit.com/

http://www.100rupiya.com/

http://www.netfresher.com/

http://www.esourceservices.com/

http://www.tecmoney.com/

http://www.worldwidetypist.com/

http://www.stayhappyjobs.com/

http://www.ejobs4all.com/

http://www.getmorepaid.com/

http://www.vworksmart.com/

http://www.moneypride.com/

http://www.i3india.com/

http://www.googlecashcow.com/

http://www.indiamailer.com/

http://www.appsoft.org/

http://www.esource.co.in/outsource

http://www.onlinejobs2u.com/

http://www.dhankamao.com/

http://www.mynetbash.net/

[NOTE : These are the just some of the sites which I found while searching for 'internet jobs'. It is not mean that they are giving you nothing. You may purchase the kit from them at your own risk!!!!]

Laugh often, Dream big, Reach for the stars!

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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

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Laughter gives us distance. It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on.

Remember, men need laughter sometimes more than food.

- Anna Fellows Johnston

Nobody ever died of laughter.

- Max Beerbohm

Laugh as much as you breathe and love as long as you live.

Even if there is nothing to laugh about, laugh on credit.

She laughs at my dreams, but I dream about her laughter.

A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor's book.

The beauty of the world has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting the heart asunder.

Laughter is the way to true love.

A man isn't poor if he can still laugh.

Laughter is by definition healthy.

- Doris Lessing

Laughter means sympathy.

With the fearful strain that is on me night and day, if I did not laugh I should die.

- Abraham Lincoln

Laughter is the corrective force which prevents us from becoming cranks.

- Henri Bergson

Always laugh when you can. It is cheapest medicine.

Carry laughter with you wherever you go.

- Hugh Sidey

Laughter is part of the human survival kit.

What soap is to the body, laughter is to the soul.

Laughter on one's lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life.

- Hugh Sidey

Perhaps I know best why it is man alone who laughs; he alone suffers so deeply that he had to invent laughter.

- Friedrich Nietzsche

Laughter is a medicine with no side effects.

Laughter is not at all a bad beginning for a friendship, and it is far the best ending for one.

Laughter is the sensation of feeling good all over and showing it principally in one place.

- Josh Billings

Seven days without laughter makes one weak.

- Mort Walker

Solar eclipse shot from the space – August 1, 2008

--
Kind regards,

Kapil Arambam
Born to be Wild

Contact: +91 - 9818 - 605161
www.kapilarambam.blogspot.com
___________________________________




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What's in a Name? Better Not Ask Cuil

Seeing as how new search engine Cuil.com is, well, a search engine, its founders might have known that people could easily check online the company's claim that the word "cuil" means "knowledge" in Irish. Because, in fact, it doesn't.

Members of an online Irish language forum have been discussing the word and the company's claims of its definition. They say the word is most often translated to mean "corner" or "nook," but has sometimes been used for "hazel," as in the nut.

An online Irish language dictionary defines cúil as "rear." Another uses cuil to describe various kinds of flies. So while the word, or versions of it with and without accent marks, can mean a few different things, most Irish language enthusiasts say it doesn't mean anything like knowledge, despite Cuil.com's claims.

"Cuil is an old Irish word for knowledge. For knowledge, ask Cuil," the company, founded by ex-Googlers, explains on its Web site. The site, and a company spokesman, further explain that the word is used to describe knowledge based on an old Irish legend of the famous Finn MacCuill (sometimes the name is spelled Fionn Mac Cumhail, or better yet, MacCool). Finn, the legend goes, tasted a salmon that had eaten a hazelnut that had dropped into the fountain of knowledge and then he himself gained knowledge. Cuil sometimes means "hazel," the company says, and based on the legend, it is also sometimes used to mean knowledge.

That explanation is new to Foras na Gaeilge, the group that is essentially the official keeper of the Irish language, responsible for promoting use of the language as well as developing dictionaries and new terminologies. "I am unaware myself of the meaning 'knowledge' being with the word 'cuil' in Irish," Stiofán Ó Deoráin, an official on Foras na Gaeilge's terminology committee, said via e-mail.

He did caution that accents can make a big difference in Irish. In fact, cuil should have an accent on the "u" if it is to be pronounced "cool," like the company says it should. Cuil, without an accent, should be pronounced like "quill," Ó Deoráin said. His point was that the accent, in addition to changing the pronunciations, can change the meaning of a word.

Still, people on the Irish language forum couldn't figure anything close to cuil meaning knowledge. They discuss meanings for "coll" and "cul," neither of which mean anything similar to knowledge.

"Too bad they didn't come to us first!" wrote a forum participant identified as Redwolf.

Cuil.com may have been better off by simply being accurate -- it could say that the name was inspired by the famous Finn MacCuill, representing his knowledge. In fact, the company was once called Cuill, but it recently dropped the second "L," so that explanation makes sense and holds water.

Maybe Cuil's founders tried to find an Irish dictionary using their site and couldn't. Searching on Cuil.com for "Irish English dictionary" fails to turn up a link to such a dictionary in at least the first six pages of results.

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/149167/whats_in_a_name_better_not_ask_cuil.html

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