What liberation movement?

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Mixed Priorities: Why Palestinian Unity is Not an Option
While such noble efforts by the UN’s John Dugard, former US President Jimmy Carter and Bishop Desmond Tutu have brought much needed attention to the plight of Palestinians and Gazans in particular, PA officials are too busy attending donor’s conferences and issuing empty statements which few even bother to read. They act as if they are a neutral party caught in the middle of religious fanatics and Israel. Their fight no longer seems even remotely related to Palestine or its people


An Imperfect Offering: Humanitarian Action in the Twenty-first Century**

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'I know what genocide looks like'
She had been raped. Semen and blood covered her thighs. Her ears had been cut off. So had her breasts. Both Achilles tendons had been severed. Her attackers had carefully mutilated her, not to kill her quickly, but just enough to make her die slowly.

He noticed a pattern one of her attackers had carved into her face with a machete. “I turned from her and vomited for the first and only time during the genocide,” he writes. She touched his arm again. “ Ummera-sha,” she murmured. “ Allez, allez … Ummera-sha,” she repeated in a whisper. “Go, go. Courage, courage, my friend,” she was saying. She knew there were hundreds more who needed care. “It was the clearest voice I have ever heard,” Dr. Orbinski says.
"An Imperfect Offering: Humanitarian Action in the Twenty-first Century"
by James Orbinski, M.D. Past President of MSF.

The Arkansas Prison Diet - It Works!

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US prisoner sues over weight loss
Broderick Lloyd Laswell, an overweight prisoner in the United States who is awaiting trial for murder, is suing the authorities for not feeding him enough after he lost about seven stone in eight months inside an Arkansas prison. According to the suit, Laswell weighed 29 stone when he was jailed in September. Police say he has been charged with fatally beating and stabbing a man. He said: "About an hour after each meal my stomach starts to hurt and growl. I feel hungry again.  The only reason we lost weight in here is because we are literally being starved to death."


Shall I finish you off, Tony?

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Lord Levy: 'I warned Tony Blair about long massages with Carole Caplin'


Lord Levy's book reveals that he was asked by a senior figure within Downing Street to confront Tony Blair over "long massages" that the then Prime Minister was said to be receiving from Carole Caplin.

He says he was asked to intervene when rumours swept No10 about visits that the fitness guru was paying to the Prime Minister's country home, Chequers. And when the peer raised the matter at a private meeting in Downing Street, an embarrassed Mr Blair "went bright red".


Wright through the wringer

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Dave Winer on the Rev Jeremiah Wright
Wright says the religion of the people on the deck of a slave ship must be different from the religion from the people under the deck. On the deck, god is justifying the practice of slavery, and below -- god gives them hope that someday they will be free. My people, the Jews, understand this very well, it's part of our tradition. We've just celebrated the holiday of Passover, a feast that's all about the pride of an enslaved people. If we're still telling the story, passing it down from generation to generation, after 3000 years, why should we be critical of the African-Americans who are telling the story of their enslavement, which ended only 145 years ago, and whose manifestations are still with us today.
Watch the video of the interview HERE




JC Power 100 (no relation)

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The Jewish Chronicle Power 100: The people shaping Jewish life in Britain

Coming in at No 76 (up from 92 last year) is Ken Livingstone:
Although he will be less influential after May 1 if he loses the London mayoral race to Boris Johnson, Mr Livingstone, 62, has impressed the Charedi community with his appreciation of its housing problems and his support for new projects. He has raised the prospect of a Charedi presence in the proposed major development of the Thames Gateway. In the short-term, he has held talks with community leaders about providing bigger houses for the strictly Orthodox. However, many Jews find it difficult to forgive his likening of Evening Standard journalist Oliver Finegold to a concentration-camp guard; insulting comments about businessmen David and Simon Reuben; and his hosting of controversial Islamic cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi.
But nosing in front is David Toube (aka DavidT) of Harry's Place who storms in from nowhere to take the No 71 spot:
An up-and-coming name as key contributor to the well-regarded Harry’s Place blog, which is sympathetic to Israel, if at times critical, (sic) (emphasis mine) and exposes what it sees as left-wing hypocrisy. In professional life, the Oxford-educated blogger is an associate at the London office of international law firm Cleary Gottlieb, where he specialises in Financial Services Authority requirements to which regulated companies are subject. He has also authored legal guides and lectured in law at Queen Mary College, University of London.
Via JsansF

Humphrey Lyttleton 23 May 1921 – 25 April 2008

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Obituary: Humphrey Lyttelton

Slightly disconcerting to find the obituary of Humphrey Lyttleton written by George Melly, who predeceased him by nine months. Unlike Melly, who gave up playing jazz in the sixties, only to return later as a rather irritating, glorified Fat's Waller impersonator, Humph continued playing the trumpet to the end. But it's for his radio programmes that I'll remember him most fondly. 'I'm sorry I Haven't a Clue', where he was undisputed champion of the double entendre and 'The Best of Jazz', which was essential listening for any jazz fan.


He was, like Ronnie Scott, the perfect ambassador for jazz, but, as another "old fool", for me he will always be that Pied Piper on the cusp of the 1950s, beating in Snake Rag in a magic cellar when we were young and didn't even know it. - George Melly


Bill Clinton’s Madness...

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...A Consequence of Heart-Bypass Surgery Brain Damage!
One of the savviest politicians of our generation, known for his wit, charm, and calm under extreme pressure, Bill Clinton appears out of character in the speeches and interviews televised since his bypass surgery September 6, 2004—and his mental deterioration may be accelerating. Remember, this is the president who withstood public impeachment before the entire world for his relationship with Monica Lewinski without once losing control. Now, he is easily angered by hecklers, and makes factual mistakes and racial slurs while aggressively defending his wife’s campaign for presidency. Everyone sees his mental and emotional decline, yet to date, no medical professionals have spoken out about the cause or offered help.

Via J-Walk