Healthy Lifestyle

Eating healthy and as a result being healthy, feeling good about yourself, and looking good is no accident. Sometimes its hard work depending on your starting point. No one single habit or routine will get you where you need to be. Just prayers, no matter who you pray to, will not do it either. The suggestions below are just the start. Once you feel and look good many other good things follow. You could become more active, start exercise routine, go out more often, or any number of other things that will complement suggestions listed below.

Start today, start now!

1. Reduce the Portion Size
One of the most important things you can do towards healthy eating. Reduce the portion size to approximately half or at minimum by a quarter. When at the table take small portions and resist the urge for the third helping.

2. Curb the Urge to Eat
If you have had a good breakfast, and you have your lunch waiting but you feel hungry in the middle of the morning curb the urge to eat snacks or whatever you can find in your desk drawer. Get busy with something: Internet, exercise, new project in the office, or just pick up the phone and talk to somebody. Drink some water. Soon enough your mind will be off the food bandwagon and you will enjoy your lunch lot more.

3. No Sodas, just Water Please
Completely stop drinking sodas. The biggest appetite killer, the worst filler without being nutritious, and most calorie laden item on your table could be the soda or any carbonated water. If you must take anything other than water with your meal, make it unsweetened Ice Tea. Hot water towards the end of your meal will increase your metabolism and make you feel better breaking down the fat and grease in the process.

4. Fast Once a Month
Fasting is great to curb your urge to eat. Muslims fast every day for one whole month, but you don't have to. You don't have to convert either. Fasting once a month will do wonders for your health. Eat a balanced meal in the morning, then resolve not to eat until after dark. Do what you always do during the day. Then have a healthy balanced meal at the end of the day and it will help you shed extra poundage faster and easier.

5. Eat A Healthy Meal
Eat a full healthy meal instead of filling yourself up with things you don't like, or want to eat just because you are hungry. If you eat a lot of junk food that works as a filler you will still be "hungry" for a meal at the designated time while you are full with junk food. That is very detrimental to your well being, how you feel the rest of the day or in the morning, and also for your diet plan.

Start today, don't delay!

How not to do Justice - American style

1. Torture
2. Renditions/secret prisons
3. Outsource Torture
4. Secret Evidence
5. Secret Witnesses
6. Defame defense lawyers
7. Incident Isolation
8. tainted evidence
9. juries from tainted cities
10. create technical difficulties and throw out the case, sweep it under the rug

What Would Obama Do

If he ran his presidency as if this is his one and only term in the office

There are people who question if Obama can win second term in the office. At this time he is being kept afloat, barely. The stock market ups and downs are just enough to make it look good for few days, and then it all falls apart until the next cycle. This is well orchestrated. The man behind this facade is the White House Chief of Staff.

Given the disillusionment created at the hands of same set of people, with collusion from the media what if Obama was to break himself free from his current handlers, fire his Chief of Staff and replace him with someone who really deserves the job, and ran his presidency as if this is his last term in the office. What would he do? If he was to keep the promises he made to American people without the interference from his handlers, those who voted for him first time can help him guarantee a win again. As things stand, the ones that voted for him are losing confidence in his ability to deliver on his promises. Not becuase he cannot but because his agenda has been hijacked. (Read analysis if his first term) Those who did not vote for him will never vote for him even if Obama gave them hoards of cash and promised them a place in paradise.
What can he do to affect a 180 degree about face?

He would tell Israel to take a hike
American image has been badly damaged in the eyes of the world, including our most trusted friends for the humiliating defeat of Obama policy when it comes to Middle East peace. The illegal settlements in occupied territories continue, evictions and murder at the hands of IDF continue unabated, the Israeli media war and smear machine continue to pull new tactics to undermine American foreign policy. If Obama ran his presidency as if he only going to be in the office for one term he would stop all aid to Israel until they comply with the legitimate demands of those who want peace in the middle east. He would reign in all the under secretaries running amok at the State Department making their own policy as they go along when it comes to Israeli and middle east politics. These policies are one of undermining Obama's policy of engagement with the leaders in the middle east.

Genuine Effort towards resolving Iranian Nuclear issue
Obama promised diplomacy and an extension of friendship towards Iran. That never happened. The current regime at the state department will not allow that to happen. From the very start of the Obama administration the approach to Iran was that of hostility, outright belligerence, and threats. The policy of disengagement that was put in place by bush/cheney cabal never, for one day, changed. The hand of friendship that Obama wanted to offer to Iranian was cut off as soon as Obama took office. The threat of Military action was never taken off the table, the embargo, and sanctions continue, and the bellicosity that preceded the current administration coming directly from the state department never ceased for one day.
Obama would silence all his detractors at the state department by making a historic trip to Tehran, talking to the Iranians directly, and offering them what no administration has ever done: a genuine engagement for real negotiations.

Stop the Bailout Scam
Billions and Trillions of dollars have been wasted to artificially prop up economy and that has not helped create single job. Only the larger corporations and their CEOs have benefited from the bailout since there is general perception that the pay czar is an inside man. What it may have done is a backward slide of job loss which is really not a gain but a false hope of an improved economy. That bubble can only last for a short time because there is nothing to sustain those jobs for the long run. The only people that have benefited from the bailout are the ones that never needed the bailout. The people that are pushing the bailout and benefiting from it are the same set of people. It's the trademark collusion of the filthy rich that include the bankers, the media, insurance companies, and the military industrial complex.

Geitner has proven himself to be part of the inside crowd and a failure, as suspected from the day one. Geitner must go. At this point Obama dog is probably a better candidate to run the fiscal house than Geitner.

Bring the Culprits to Justice
Those who have committed heinous crimes against humanity should be brought to justice. That includes some people at the highest levels in the previous government. This has to be done if America is to gain credibility in the world. Without taking this serious step towards correcting the wrongs at the hands of those in power we will lose what is left of any credibility in the eyes of the world. Without credibility the only way to keep our supremacy will be to create more wars, more chaos, more bloodshed. There are no two ways about it.

Universal Truth: If the criminals are not brought to justice they live to do the same or even worse crimes again.

Is there still time for an about face? Very little if any. It will take courage, it will take audacity, the same audacity that brought Obama to the office in the first place.

Will the New York Times ever stop the Politics of Hate Mongering?

Hatred by any other name is still hatred








New York Times need no introduction. It is one of the most widely read newspapers not only in the US but all across the world. What does New York Times as a company count as part of its holdings.

Here's a partial list:
Newspapers
The Boston Globe
The Courier (Houma, LA)
The Daily Comet (Thibodaux, LA)
The Dispatch (Lexington, NC)
The Gadsden Times (AL)
The Gainesville Sun (FL)
International Herald Tribune
Following are the International Herald Tribune Alliances with newspapers around the world
Haaretz (Israel)
Kathimerini (Greece and Cyprus)
JoongAng Daily (Korea)
The Asahi Shimbun (Japan)
The Moscow Times (Russia)
El Pais (Spain)
Daily News (Egypt)
Al Watan Daily (Kuwait)
The Ledger (Lakeland, FL)
The New York Times
The Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, CA)
Petaluma Argus-Courier (CA)
Sarasota Herald-Tribune (FL)
Spartanburg Herald-Journal (SC)
Star-Banner (Ocala, FL)
TimesDaily (Florence, AL)
Times-News (Hendersonville, NC)
The Tuscaloosa News (AL)
The Star News (Wilmington, NC)
The Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Radio
WQCR - FM (New York City)
Other
Boston Red Sox (partial)
NESN (partial)
About Group (About.com)

With a vast empire covering most major areas along with a well established distribution network for its flagship newspaper, the New York Times, there is very little that The New York Times Company cannot influence. Multiply that with the syndication of its publications over the Internet and other electronic media and add the international alliances via the International Herald Tribune and you have making of a media empire. What New York Times says becomes reality.

As the media giant, coming out of city of hate, New York Times has been spewing hatred towards Muslims and Islam for decades now. Never a day has gone by when the New York Times does not carry an article, most of the time several articles in one day, bringing out an aspect of Islam with a negative spin on what could easily be explained otherwise by a scholar of Islam or even a lay person that is even slightly versed in the teachings of Islam. The spin is always negative, the portrayal is always skewed, the outcome is always one sided. Always.

Some examples are more egregious than others and have far reaching consequences. Here are three articles that have appeared within the last three months.

On January 27, 2010 New York Times published what it called "The Jihadist Next Door" written by Andrea Elliott. It was a lengthy article and went into great detail about all aspects of the topic at hand. Not that much of it was accurate, it read very nicely and majority of it sounded very plausible. You have to know a lot about Islam and Muslims in order to look at it critically and refute some of the assertions it made. Unfortunately, most of the readers would have absolutely no clue. At one count there were 263 comments on the article. The article portrayed the life of Omar Hammami, born and raised in America. He went to school in Alabama and attended church while growing up in small town. The article suggests among other things:

• This kind of transition from normal school boy to a Jihadi is rampant among the Muslim youths
• The family structure within the Muslim Household is broken down
• This can happen time and again
• We must take action to prevent this from happening
• We are being over taken by the people with Jihadi agenda
• No one of Muslim faith can be trusted

This article is coming at the heels of another article from the same author about an Imam. One can imagine the mudslinging that went on in that article. That article garnered the author a Pulitzer prize. That is also part of the claim to fame for this article.

In a society that is a great melting pot something has failed this kid that went from small town USA to being aligned with the Shabab's army in Somalia. Not only that but he also in the process convinced few of his friends to go along with him. That something that has failed this young man is the very phenomenon of melting pot. What exactly is it that drove him to seek out these outside influences that were strong enough to change him from his moderate, even church going upbringing so radically? It's not what one finds on the Internet; it's not what is being preached at the mosques; and it's not what is being taught at schools. What is breaking down is the societal norms of inclusion. The constant bombardment of us versus them. From the time you wake up in the morning to the time you go to bed there is the constant barrage of negativity about one's religion, beliefs, and origins. It is the equivalent of school yard bullying. There is no escape from this which is driving many young Muslims towards seeking out ways to help the downtrodden, a basic tenet within Islam. It's absolutely no different from a jewish kid going to iz-ra-eel to learn more about the history and it's people and then coming back home and supporting iz-ra-eel in any which way he or she can using media, school programs, fund raising, debates, speeches, articles and the positive feedback that goes with that. All of these avenues and outlets are closed for a person like Omar Hammami. None of these normal channels are available to thousands of people like Omar Hammami. When your belief is strong and you want to do something with the strength and desire to help can manifest itself in many different ways.

On March 3rd, New York Times Published an article called "Divorced Before Puberty" written by Nicholas D. Kristof. The article talks about a 10 year old girl getting married to somebody that is about 20 years older than her. The article made it sound like this is something sanctioned by Islamic religion. It also made it sound like it happens everyday and everywhere in the Muslim world. Reality is far from it. The author not only tells the story of this little unfortunate girl but in the process malign Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, both Muslim countries.

There is no doubt about isolated cases of this inhumane treatment of girls and women but Muslims countries are not the only ones where monsters are perpetrating these crimes. Remember the Austrian guy raping his own daughter and having 5 kids with her, the Jaycee Dugard case in California is fresh on our minds, and the celebrity case of the singer of the Mammas and the Pappas having sex with his daughter. Add to these atrocities the child abuse cases in the Catholic church and the church actively hiding and muffling those cases by moving the priests around. All of that is swept under the rug and New York Times does not have much to say about any of that. On some of these cases there have been no reporting by New York Times at all since it did not happen specifically in New York. A rather convenient technicality.

Yemen is the way it is not ONLY because its women are deprived. It could be a contributing factor but not a top of the list contributing factor. It is the one sided policy of discrimination at the international political level of US and other western countries that perpetuate the situation in Yemen. Yemen is being used as the checkmate for Saudi Arabia. It is a well known fact that the militias of the Houti tribe were well armed and had sophisticated weaponry. They even had their own uniforms. That is a pretty good indicator that they are well funded and well armed. Those weapons did not come from Iran. Those weapons were channelled from South Korea to the ports of Sanaa, delivered to Houti tribesmen to fight against the Saudi government troops. The on-again-off-again assault of the Houti tribes over the Yemeni government forces and the Saudi villages is the direct reflection of the failed diplomatic efforts of Hillary Clinton. The rebels have declared truce for now. When the state department would like to do some arm twisting involving Saudi Arabia those Houti Tribesmen will rise again on queue from the operatives of state departments.

For Pakistan the dynamics are even more complex. Under the benign and very pro-American dictatorship of Mr. Musharraf, Pakistan offered its full support to US against the Taliban. This was done at huge risk to Musharraf's own life and well being. As a result of that he was a target of several assassination attempts. The dividend of all this effort and alliance went to India instead in the form of subsidies, equipment, and guarantees for its nuclear program. Not even a thank you for Pakistan. On the contrary there was additional belt tightening of funds and technology transfer to Pakistan. The most important reason: Pakistan is a Muslim country. Nobody from the current regime at State Department will ever support providing what Pakistan really needs to make the right progress in curbing the advances of outside forces like the Taliban.

For both Yemen and Pakistan, poverty is the one and most prevalent reason why women don't go to schools and don't advance to colleges. Schooling of kids is not free in most of Pakistan. When the head of the household has to make a choice between providing food for his family and sending kids to school, the food, a basic necessity, usually wins out, hands down. One must wonder if Kristof took this very real and hard fact into account while writing his well worded malignment of Yemen, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. When is Kristof going to write espousing the benefits of policy of engagement instead of policy of confrontation with both Yemen and Pakistan?

On March 6th New York Times published an article with the heading: "Arabia: Inshallah, Obama" written by Maureen Dowd. Dowd's writing is academic, to say the least. She is what most would call an accidental Journalist. She would be better off writing for a blog instead of writing for New York Times where the readers expect lot more than the rants of an accidental journalist. (she probably does write for a blog with same hatred for Arabs, Muslims and Islam) The article rehearses a conversation between her and Prince Faisal, the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia. The premise of the article, starting from the title, is poking fun at the Arabs in general and an undertone of tongue-in-cheek attitude towards what amounts to policy discussion and serious subject matters such as dealing with settlement activity by the iz-ra-eeli-s, the question of restarting the stalled negotiations for the peace process in the Middle East, and the Iranian crises.

Underlying aspects of the conversation:
First she uses the full name of Barak Obama with the middle name spelled out. Not a coincidence since it's not commonly used. It is only used when the purpose is to spread the controversy. Here is some of what she says:
"The address of the first American president with Muslim roots"
That is a thorn in many voters' side but New Work Times has to publicise that from time to time to keep things in check.

Here she goes for the jugular:
"It’s probably a sign of progress that Prince Saud calls it "a border dispute." Unless it’s just his understated way. He also refers to "the 9/11 incident" and alludes to the Holocaust obliquely as "World War II."" "Despite repeated attacks by Arab states and Arab and Iranian-backed militant groups, and a call for Israel’s destruction by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran, Prince Saud suggested that Israel might be overreacting about security because of "World War II" and that this prevented a peace deal."

Here is the breakdown:

"Despite repeated attacks (justification for what Iz-ra-eel does) Border dispute (read as if he is undermining the severity of the issue), 9/11 being an incident (something that has totally consumed the American psyche when worse atrocities have been committed in the name of 9/11, but the media wants to keep that in the forefront, and despite the fact that many credible American politicians have called it something other than what the American government has led the public to believe), and referring to Holocaust as World War II (anything but that. It's the ultimate weapon in a news person's arsenal alluding to anti-semitism).

Thomas Friedman is the original three headed snake that talks with one head and bites with the other two. Maureen Dowd is clearly following in his footsteps. It would be wise for the Saudi government, and all the Arab and Muslim governments to declare journalists attached in any way to New York Times, Associated Press, and NewsCorp as persona non-grata and not allow any conversations with them especially by those who are in position of power. These so called journalists go there, eat their food, talk to them as if they are friends, put them at ease, get the unofficial take on the current issues and present them to the American public as if it is the official version. American people, not knowing Albania from Zimbabwe believe anything and everything that these journalists put out as news and spit it out on queue at the comments on the news and other forums to malign Muslims and Islam. Two for the price of one. Unfortunately the chances of Prince Faisal reading what is attributed to him in dialogues such as this one from Maureen Dowd in the New York Times are remote at best. What is even more remote is the possibility of any corrections of what is attributed to him. What is almost guaranteed from the likes of Friedman and Dowd is that they will twist and twist again what was said in a private conversation to promote their own nefarious agendas.

These are only three examples of the most recent articles that have helped expose the overall agenda of New York Times of hatred towards Muslims all around the world. More and more articles are showing up on daily basis that are suggesting that hate towards American citizens of Muslim origin or those who may have converted to Islam is OK and in fact maybe called for. There is not one Muslim country that is exempt from the wrath of news hacks at the New York Times. Those who best the agenda of hate among the New York Times and Associated Press writers are sure to get a berth at the highly coveted (kissing each other's ass) Pulitzer Prize.

Oh So "Precious"

This is definitly a chick flick.

However, its a gritty movie that deserves to be seen by the strong and silent type just as well as all the rest. Word of caution: don't go there if you are looking for something cheery and lighthearted.

Oprah produced it so that means it will have something like, "oh you should...." and "we need to...." kind of pontification which was for sure there but not as bad as it usually is in Spike Lee movies. Most all of that is subtle and under the covers. (no pun intended)

There is no pun and there is no humor but if you laughed while watching Pulp Fiction you might laugh at some situations in this movie too. The "funny" is more situational and unintentional than otherwise.

The story of precious may resonate with thousands. Worse still, and unfortunately, some people maybe reliving some part of their lives while watching this movie. The flashbacks and flash forwards are all too real and add that special character to the movie that will make it worth your while.

The story of a young girl that has seen it all and done it all in short span of time what most others do in a lifetime.

The movie initially came off as stuffy and the ending was just blah ending for something that has so much going on throughout the entire movie but more you think about it more it grows on you and you start to see the point of bringing these issue in the fore. Tormented women that have nowhere to go. How many people in our midst are in this situation but we don't know about it. OK, that was crazy question! Bonus: You get to see Mariah Carey sans all the Makeup. Some girls have to do a lot, don't they. Some bonus.

Thank you Oprah.

On a scale of 1-5 and 5 being the best, this movie gets 4-1/2. Make it your first choice except if you are on a first date.