Author: Mohammed Abbasi

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Through the Keyhole

Mohammed Abbasi

    A television station aired footage of a very large political demonstration. Then there was a talk session where a group of experts were seated together to air their views. The political analysts spoke about the political parties and interest groups which were stakeholders in what was happening and the possibility that foreign countries were involved. The businessman spoke about how a profit could be made off the demonstrators by selling them things like food, drinks, and flags. The security officer talked about the dangers of civil unrest and the influence of subversive elements.  Each person brought their personal … Continue reading Through the Keyhole

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Man of Pakistani descent appointed as UK’s culture minister

Mohammed Abbasi

Picture of Ali Azmat kissing a baby! AGENCIES Sajid Javid — File photo by Reuters   LONDON: British Prime Minister David Cameron appointed former banker Sajid Javid as the country’s new culture minister, replacing Maria Miller who resigned earlier on Wednesday over an expenses scandal. Javid has served since last year as financial secretary to the Treasury. Cameron said on Twitter that lawmaker Nicky Morgan will step up to the financial secretary post at the Treasury, key to the government’s relationship with the financial services industry, from her current role as economic secretary. Javid, the son of a Bristol bus … Continue reading Man of Pakistani descent appointed as UK’s culture minister

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Christian Taliban in The United States Military

Mohammed Abbasi

“Christian Taliban” vs. Constitution at Air Force Academy “Knowing what’s right doesn’t mean much unless you do what’s right.” Teddy Roosevelt What is the fundamentalist Christian version of the American Taliban up to in these heady days nearing November’s mid-term elections? The answer is a lot, an awful lot (with an emphasis on the word “awful”). The lying, deceitful nature of fundamentalist Christian supremacy truly knows no bounds. This constitutionally derelict cabal isn’t even remotely content with having a massive media empire, a monolithic fundraising base, swelling and dominant hegemony within the ranks of the U.S. Armed Forces, and supreme political sway within civilian … Continue reading Christian Taliban in The United States Military

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Mullahs trying to ban laughter?

Mohammed Abbasi

Militants want ban on laughter, crying, says Chinese governor REUTERS The governor of China’s Xinjiang region. — Photo by Reuters   BEIJING: The governor of China’s restive region of Xinjiang wrote on Monday that Islamist militants were trying to ban laughter at weddings and crying at funerals, as he appealed to people to stamp out the “tumour” of extremism. Xinjiang has been beset by violence for years, blamed by the government on militants and separatists. Exiles and many rights groups say the real cause of the unrest is China’s heavy-handed policies, including curbs on Islam and the culture and language … Continue reading Mullahs trying to ban laughter?

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Change of guard at Mansoora

Mohammed Abbasi

  At a meeting on January 10, 1971, Syed Munawar Hasan, leading a pack of young turks, launched a frontal attack on Syed Abul Ala Maudoodi, the founder and ameer (chief) of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), blaming him for the party’s rout in the country’s first democratic elections. Because of his move, the JI was thrown into turmoil leading to Maudoodi’s resignation the following year.  Forty-three years later, as the Jamaat kicks out Munawar Hsasan from the office of ameer, he has defaced Maudoodi’s party, leaving it in a far worse shape than the founder had in 1972, not only in … Continue reading Change of guard at Mansoora

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India stands at electoral crossroads

Mohammed Abbasi

India starts voting today, and if one were to believe the hype surrounding the electoral bid by Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), then the polls are a mere formality.  The widely held expectation in India, propagated by a credibility-challenged media, is that Modi is a shoo-in for the post of prime minister. But opinion pollsters and media pundits have not always shown accuracy in understanding subtler realities of the world’s largest democracy. They could have goofed up again.  This Monday marked the start of an unprecedented exercise in democracy – the biggest general election in history. The first of 814.5 million … Continue reading India stands at electoral crossroads

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Was Obama ‘for or against’ the Invasion of Iraq?

Mohammed Abbasi

Obama moral compass changes on IraqBy Adil E Shamoo  In a speech in Brussels on March 26, President Barack Obama rejected Vladimir Putin’s assertions regarding the wrongs of the United States invasion of Iraq. Rhetoric aside, the Russian president has no moral standing for the invasion and annexation of Crimea. Nevertheless it is important to look at Obama’s own moral arguments in justifying an invasion that a majority of US citizens regard as a major US foreign policy disaster.  Putin called into question the legitimacy of the coalition behind the Iraq invasion by pointing out that president George W Bush … Continue reading Was Obama ‘for or against’ the Invasion of Iraq?

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New US reality: An empire beyond salvation

Mohammed Abbasi

US Secretary of State John Kerry couldn’t hide his frustration anymore as the US-sponsored Palestinian peace process continued to falter. After eight months of wrangling to push talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority forward, he admitted while on a visit to Morocco on April 4 that the latest setback had served as a “reality check” for the peace process. But confining that reality check to the peace process is hardly representative of the painful reality through which the United States has been forced to subsist in during the last few years.  The state of US foreign policy in the … Continue reading New US reality: An empire beyond salvation

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The many shades of McWorld

Mohammed Abbasi

Some years ago, in response to a rather strong piece on US shenanigans in the Middle East, an American reader wrote back: “Why do you hate America?” As some of my perceptive readers might have already deduced, I get loads of fanmail in response to my weekly rants, especially from my own kind and most of it not most flattering. Yet the accusation ‘why do you hate America’ from an all-American white reader was a little disconcerting. For I do not see myself as an America phobe. The influence of American literature, Hollywood, culture and their collective glorification of ambition, excellence, grit and … Continue reading The many shades of McWorld

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Ocean discovered on Enceladus may be best place to look for alien life

Mohammed Abbasi

  Evidence from Cassini spacecraft suggests a large body of liquid water beneath the surface of Saturn’s moon Enceladus • Interactive: the discovery explained An artist’s impression of the interior of Saturn’s moon Enceladus, based on data from the Cassini space probe suggesting the moon contains a water ocean beneath its south pole. Illustration: Nasa/JPL-Caltech Researchers have discovered a deep saltwater ocean on one of the many small moons that orbit Saturn, leading scientists to conclude it is the most likely place in the solar system for extraterrestrial life to be found. Gravitational field measurements taken by Nasa’s Cassini space probe revealed that a … Continue reading Ocean discovered on Enceladus may be best place to look for alien life