Inspiring party: Party for the Animals

"The party believes the extent to which a human society is ‘civilised’ can be measured by the way in which its members treat other living creatures and the natural environment in general." -official website of the Party of the Animals, based in Netherlands.

http://www.partijvoordedieren.nl/content/view/129

According to Wikipedia encyclopedia, The Party for the Animals is a political party in the Netherlands with two seats in parliament. One of its main goals is fighting for animal rights and animal welfare, though it claims not to be a single-issue party. Its chairwoman and political leader is Marianne Thieme. The party was supported in the run-up to the 22 November 2006 parliamentary elections by several Dutch celebrities, such as writers Maarten 't Hart and Jan Wolkers. It is the world's first party to gain parliamentary seats with an agenda focused primarily on animal rights. As of January 1, 2007 the Party for the Animals has 6,370 members."

Campaign against animal cruelty

Boycott KFC - where abuse of chicken, illegal ways of slaughtering and cruelty has been widely reported.

Go to www.KentuckyFriedCruelty.com for details about the campaign, that has recently come to Cairo. In addition, a protest in downtown Cairo at 1:00 pm February 17 is expected to raise awareness of the issue. Attend if you can.

Contacts of campaigners: Jason Baker Cell: +85262007588 Email: jasonb@peta.org
Nadia Montasser Cell: 0103468148 Email: nmontasser@hotmail.com

According to a recent press release by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) , "KFC drugs and breeds chickens to grow so large that many become crippled from the weight of their massive upper bodies. At slaughterhouses that supply KFC, birds who are still alive after having their throats slit are scalded to death in defeathering tanks. "

Spread the scandal!

Bravo Firas - for sharing ...

O Ummah of Mohammed, have you died?
By Firas Al-Atraqchi
First Published: February 9, 2007

The Haram Al-Qudsi (Noble Sanctuary) housing the Al-Aqsa Mosque was invaded and occupied by Israeli police yesterday. Stun grenades were fired by Israeli forces at worshippers. Live ammunition was also used.
And the Muslim world slept.
Israeli forces told the media that they had reinforced an already existing police presence in the area with an additional 3,000 troops.
Why? Israeli authorities feared Palestinian worshippers, who numbered in the tens and hundreds were expected to demonstrate against the Israel excavations near the Noble Sanctuary.
The Israel Antiquities Authority said the excavations, expected to take months, is to strengthen an access ramp to Dung Gate for the "benefit and safety of visitors" after damage caused by an earthquake and snowstorms in February 2004.
The clerics in the mosque urged the Israelis to stop firing at the demonstrators, but to no avail.
And the Muslim world slept.
Not only did the Muslim world sleep, but the two usurpers of Palestine, Hamas chief Khaled Al Meshaal and Fatah President Mahmoud Abbas hugged and kissed in Mecca on Thursday, congratulating each other for having petty turf wars which killed off nearly 60 of their supporters.
Including women and children.
And the Muslim world slept. Careful sleeping giant, for as you slumber others will steal your prayer rug right from underneath you.
And that is what has happened. The Palestinians brutally took arms against one another and while the upper echelons of the rival factions journeyed to Mecca, Jerusalem was the target of an insidious plot.
Divide and conquer, old chaps, divide and conquer.
But it is of no concern to the leaders who rested on finely made Italian furniture shaking hands with those who would wear elegant silken robes worth thousands of dollars.
On Al-Jazeera, Mohammed Hussein, mufti of Jerusalem, called for medical assistance for wounded Palestinian worshippers.
When ambulances arrived, Israeli troops refused to grant them entry. As I write this, I am watching a Palestinian man receiving urgent medical aid for a severe head wound that is too gruesome to describe on these pages.
Mohammed Hussein and the rest of the Muslim clergy then resorted to calling members of the diplomatic corps in Israel begging them to exert pressure on Israeli authorities to allow the ambulances in.
Palestinian civilians who scrambled to rush first aid equipment to the Al-Aqsa Mosque were pushed back by Israeli troops.
Why is this happening now?
First off, the divide and conquer axiom is not to be underestimated. Second, the Al-Aqsa Mosque — and the threats it faces under a brutal Israeli occupation — reverberates with Muslims. Therefore, if you want to provoke Muslims plan your Shavuot outing in the Noble Sanctuary.
And third, which most local experts tend to agree on, is Israel’s attempt to derail mediation and reconciliation in Mecca.
Fatah will be soft on Israel regarding today’s violation. Hamas will not. The two will disagree. A suicide bombing here, a few dead Palestinian children dead there, and Ariel’s your uncle.
Bravo, Mahmoud.
Bravo, Khaled.
You have handed Israel its greatest victory.
The Mosque is built of cement and brick. Human lives are much more expendable. Once, Muslims marched in outrage when holy sites were violated, ignoring that tens of thousands of their brothers and sisters were killed in conflicts partially of their making.
Seven hundred thousand dead Iraqis – no one marches for them, but cartoons and brick are reason for outrage.
But now, even the desecration of holy sites is no longer sancrosanct.
And the Muslim world slept.

**Bravo, Firas.

Oh Potter!

Lovers of Harry Potter: Did we ever entertain the notion that R.A.B. could be Dumbledore himself, and that the message he left with the locket is meant for Harry Potter to find, as a lead to why Dumbledore let Snape kill him (Yes, Snape did it not because he's evil but because he was forced to do it by Dumbledore. Remember them arguing in the forest and Hagrid hearing bits and pieces of their conversation. Snape seemed reluctant to do something that Dumbledore was urging him to). Anyway, we know that Dumbldore knew the place where they found the last horcrux in HP n' HBP, so he obviously was there before and being an alchemist he recognized the potion that he later drank when Harry was with him. Initially, when he discovered this horcrux, he knew that he had to have someone with him. And Snape had to stay put in Hogwarts. So HP, who will fight Vold, is the obvious choice. Dumbledore sacrificed his life to destroy the horcrux. Perhaps his hand was burned during the first trip to the cave. Perhaps Joe was giving us a clue. Remember when Harry was wondering about Dumbledore's burned hand and Hermoine said: "But there are some injuries you can't cure...old curses...and there are poisons without antidotes." Why did she say "poisons without antidotes?" Hermoine doesn't know but I believe it's a clue from Joanne herself. So it makes sense that Dumbledore would know that he would die, he's a legilimens and occlumens (spelling is so wrong, I know!) so he might have communicated this to Snape at the last moment. Perhaps that's why Snape was almost angry and spiteful as he performed the killing curse on the only man who ever trusted him, and gave him a second chance. The person who also wrote the message must be aware of the prophecy, and although people are vaguely aware that Harry is Vold's nemesis, they're not 100 percent certain that he could stand up to him like Dumbledore would know. Besides, when Dumbledore fell, the amulet/the locket was thrown by Dumbledore's side as if it was meant to be found. Perhaps Dumbledore placed it in the potion during his first visit to the cave in order to make it seem to Harry that this is the horcrux and not the potion. Maybe that's why Dumbledore was suffering (because this part of Voldemort's spirit showed Dumbledore the horrors that this evil wizard had committed). Perhaps Dumbledore drank it and became the Horcrux, and that's why he asked Snape mind-to-mind to kill him (verbally urging him by saying Please Severus). He knew this is the only way that it could be destroyed, and he could only sacrfice himself (which is so Dumbledore). Maybe Snape did not perform the killing curse alone, but a nonverbal curse that would throw the almost-dead dumbledore away and give the present death eaters the impression that he actually killed Dumbledore - further gaining their trust and the trust of the Dark Lord.So in sequence:- Dumbledore goes to the cave to destroy this horcrux- Finds the potion and as an alchemist realizes that it is the horcrux, and that it has to be drank and the drinker has to be killed for it to be destroyed- Goes back and tells Snape about it, and makes Snape promise to kill him, which burdens Snape (the conversation in the forest whose closure Hagrid overhears).- He goes back to the cave, places the locket inside the potion –with the message to Voldemort. It could very well be for Harry. Or for both. The message is clearly written by someone who knows he will sacrifice his life in order to make it possible for Voldemort's equal to finally meet him and destroy him once and for all.- Dumbledore takes Harry to the cave, because he needed him on the journey (perhaps it’s essential that Harry and not Snape is there). - They go back to Hogwarts. When Dumbledore sees the dark mark over the castle, he realizes it has been breached.- You know what happens. There are two possibilities: Snape killed Dumbledore knowing that this is the only way he could destroy the horcrux. Or the inner battle between the good inside Dumbledore and the evil of the horcrux he drank has weakened Dumbledore to the verge of death. He knew he was dying so he urged mind-to-mind Snape to kill him/appear to kill him. Snape performs a non-verbal spell that casts Dumbledore away (make it appear that he’s struck by a spell) and merely pronouncing the killing curse (without meaning it, you have to mean a spell in order for it to be effective). - Dumbledore had a few moments before he succumbed to death to make the locket visible, knowing that there is a good chance that Harry, Hagrid, or any of the good ones would find it. - If it’s Dumbledore, then I have no clue what RAB stands for :) :) Maybe it’s a clue that Harry has to research in order to understand. He might not have spelled it out, just in case that any of the death eaters or the bad guys find the locket and not Harry.- Read the message again: "To the Dark Lord I know I will be dead long before you read this but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hope that when you meet your match, you will be mortal once more. R. A. B."Or may be it's just Regulus Black ... Arghhhh ... GOD! I can make flawed theories forever. But I'll guess I'll never know until next July - enshaallah. I wish I'd be alive till then. I really need to know what happens!!

Our deapest fear is that we are great

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?” Actually who are you NOT to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. Not just in some of us, it is in everyone. And, as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people the permission to do the same. As we are liberated form our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

-Marianne Williamson 1992

Writing tip: the *most liberating* I have encountered

"Sit down with the least expectation of yourself; say, 'I am free to write the worst junk in the world.' You have to give yourself the space to write a lot without destination."

An eye-opener: have a read!

Cairo streets take on a new dynamic

By Abier El-Barbary
First Published 11/7/2006 7:36:14 AM

The psychology of the harasser and how to fight back

CAIRO: As 17-year-old Layla is walking down a main street in Maadi, she notices a man straddling a bicycle on the corner. As she gets closer, she sees some unnaturally rapid movements underneath the man's galabiya as he hisses indecipherable words at her. A moment later Layla realizes what she's seeing; the man is masturbating.
On-the-street sexual harassment, whether auditory, visual or sensual, is more than common. This and other such incidents map out a widespread and frequent attitude toward women; Layla is not the first woman and obviously will not be the last to have her visual sphere spoiled and violated in such a manner.
In this incident, Layla shouts at him "You're filth! Would you like someone to do that to your sister? Or your mother?" then she bolts into a nearby shop, shaking with shock and anger, while the man calmly pedals off down the street.
One and a half years later, Layla maintains a phobia. The young girl still feels her heart palpitate and crosses the street to avoid anyone on a bicycle.
The stories are many: Dina, another girl, who walks down the same street as Layla, almost every day passing the trendy coffee shop on her right to catch a taxi to university, suddenly feels a swift pinch on her left hip and almost simultaneously a bicycle rider zooms by her as she passes a corner. Realizing what just happened, her mind races from "How embarrassing!"; "Who saw that?"; "Should I just go home now?” to thoughts like "Is everyone on the street looking at my rear?" and "Why didn’t I just swing my bag at him? Push him off his damned bike?" Surprisingly, nobody probably saw it happen. But to Dina, she felt she was under a microscope and the whole neighborhood was focusing “on her rear end,” as she puts it.
Even though the offense might be fleeting, the reaction to it might not be. As demonstrated in these two true stories, the thoughts that follow are often haunting and drenched in self-blame. Initially, there is disbelief about how long the person takes to react to harassment, as in Dina’s case. Usually, a few moments of shock triggered anger. Often women experience an exaggerated sense of self-blame more than anything else, but sometimes it dies down when they allow themselves to realize that those seconds of paralysis are normal.
Women everywhere encounter sexual innuendo on the street, but what sets this kind of behavior firmly in the category of harassment in Cairo? In the West, comments and catcalls on the street are considered more “flattering” so to speak. If a guy calls out to you, “Hey baby,” it feels more like a compliment. Women usually think, “Oh, I must be looking good today.” It is sexual and it habitually means, “You’re looking sexy.”
In Cairo, on the other hand, similar comments make a woman feel self-conscious, stripping her of her ability to blend in. It is the equivalent of someone in the West yelling from across the street, “Hey white girl.” It is stereotypical and it makes women feel singled out of the crowd.
When walking on busy streets, especially among heavy crowds, people naturally assume a kind of anonymity. If someone takes this anonymity away, he leaves his victim feeling vulnerable, particularly if she is a woman. It leaves her feeling suddenly naked and completely exposed. Even very independent women unexpectedly find themselves feeling in need of protection, combined with a sense that she is not sufficient in and of herself.
This feeling of insufficiency is why foreigners residing in Egypt or very self-confident Egyptians are typically bothered more intensely by the feelings that harassment brings out. Women who are not brought up to feel that that they’re the weaker sex suddenly find that harassment brings them down, reducing the equation to one of more primitive muscle power. Harassment completely annihilates the status achieved from mental power, financial position, or even family name. That power is pulled out from under women when they are publicly harassed.
In order to avoid harassment, prepare for it and deal with it if it occurs, first, one has to recognize the process of harassment. What is really going on? It’s interesting to notice that sexual harassers are usually people who are oppressed. Good examples of this are soldiers on the streets with their uniforms and rifles (that they are not trained how to use). They’re given a title, stripes on their shoulders and access to very authoritative symbols, yet they don’t receive a salary that can feed their family at the end of the day. In reality, they don’t have authority, so they are in constant frustration. When there is a wide gap between image and reality, this frustration becomes the dominant factor in harassment (being their reaction to frustration).
Unsurprisingly, you don’t find lucrative happy men harassing people. And that’s key to understanding why sexual harassment is so predominant on Egyptian streets and how it has become more and more common by the year. Statistically most of the harassment that we see is coming from frustrated people targeting women who look comfortable.
Veiled girls get harassed as much as the unveiled, so it’s not necessarily about the body parts that women are showing. It is important to recognize that sexuality so to speak is not the dominant theme in harassment.
It is more about the frustrated reaching out to the non-frustrated. We are talking here about people who are hurting and have no outlet. It might seem to the passing woman that harassers are simply passing time, but in reality the act stems from deep hurt and antagonism directed at society.
Therefore, we must realize that the more aggravated the state of the harassers’ frustration, the more they allow themselves to violate others. The more wronged they feel, the more they feel they should wrong others, a common human reaction. When we look at the psychology of hate and anger, it all stems from the seed: “If I’m hurting, I’m going to lash out.”
What happened in the Eid holiday, though, is not typical of what we have seen in past decades on Cairo streets. Rather, the incident seems to represent a new generation reaching a whole new caliber of harassment.
The young adults and the teens — some no more than 12 years old — involved in recent Eid incidents may very well be the consequence of a series of societal changes that are disturbing the average Egyptian parent.
Public schools and their ill-planned attempts to become secular by eliminating religious teachings in 2002 and replacing them with a highly ignored and low-graded “ethics and values” studies have not helped.
Another factor could be the gradual neglect of police adaab and police ahdaas to control perverted behavior; the police ahdaas had always been a force that treated seriously the real threat of delinquent teenagers and those performing public acts of “rude behavior.” The police systems are still there, but they have noticeably pulled back their involvement.
While these extremely limiting influences have been undermined, in their place we find emerging influences of an equally extreme and opposite direction: easy access to sexually explicit material — from bigger-than-life seductive billboards all over Cairo to the inevitable satellite TV programming and Internet.
The influences are extreme and are leaving behind a generation of youth who are both confused and frustrated. So we get guys forming a posse to lash out at girls; we get girls covering their hair with a veil but simultaneously wearing skin-colored, fitted spandex shirts and trousers. Where is the normalcy? Apparently it is becoming a minority in this generation of youth.
The harassment in the Eid, however, was not targeted specifically at either conservative women or those who are not. Notably, an equal amount of offense is generated from harassment whether a woman is veiled or dressed conservatively or not, since it is the idea of being imposed upon that is dominant here. It is very much like rape. Rape would be humiliating to anybody.
While all harassment is an infringement on personal space and comfort, there are degrees of severity. If harassment is only internalized visually where a woman can control it by shifting her gaze, she maintains a certain marginal amount of control. The worst kind of harassment is tactile, when she’s touched.
Assertive people probably feel much more violated than people who are normally submissive (practicing submissive dynamics on a daily basis).
Fighting back against harassment starts with empowerment. Women on Cairo streets can play a role in avoiding harassment or at least in minimizing its effects. How should a woman avoid harassment, putting in mind the mindset of the harasser and placing the behavior in a larger context?
Women have to realize that it’s out there, regardless of where you are and what you’re wearing. It’s true that a woman who dresses provocatively will get attention, triggering people’s gaze (probably from women as much as men), but that does not normally result in harassment. The frustrated mind will act. The comfortable person will notice it, look at it, but not act on it by imposing himself on another.
At the same time, just because there are harassers, doesn’t mean that going out on the Cairo streets involves a whole elaborate ordeal. It’s important for a woman to avoid harassment, but also to do it in the least disruptive way to her.
Preparedness is key. When a woman is prepared, the damage is limited and she can react immediately. The window of opportunity that the harasser normally has (where he can escape without any consequence) may not even exist.
One of the best steps to take is to purchase a whistle. Use it, as opposed to your voice. A long high-pitched siren will bring a lot of attention. And that’s exactly what the harasser does not want.
Basically don’t loiter on the streets, move like a man on a mission with wide strong strides, head up and facing straight ahead, without smiling (unfortunately). Like a soldier’s march, if you will.
Think ahead so as not to be surprised when you are in a harassment situation.
A lot of women like to walk down the street in a self-contained bubble, wearing dark glasses, earplugs or even talking on the phone. This approach has not proved to be very effective or useful because it further reflects a state of comfort, which triggers and exacerbates the frustration.
Definitely if you have the choice to avoid walking alone, take it. Most of the time when you are with your friends, you have more group courage. You are more likely to act defensively and act quicker.
To the foreigners out there, when you walk by the kiosks with three or four soldiers standing around say in a loud assertive voice “Al-salamo aleikom,” to which they must reply. Having exchanged this comment of peace, they will recognize that you’re not so foreign to the culture. At this point, they’re more likely to perceive you as more equal or closer to them.

Abier El-Barbary is a Cairo-based Canadian psychotherapist of Egyptian origins. She is currently a member of the American University in Cairo (AUC) faculty, and a psychologist at the AUC-run Counseling Center.

Source: The Daily Star Egypt www.dailystaregypt.com