the judiciary's sentencing policy is ridiculous

4 year prison term for a man convicted of molesting a female student at Muta University. Six years and 8 months for a man having consensual sex with a female under 18.

BUT if you murder a woman in the name of so called 'honour' you get a lesser sentence. As my fellow blogger J has written, this ridiculous situation should be stopped. It is unbelievable that judges hand down the above sentences but will not do the same for premeditated murder. I think the first change in the law should be that the victim's families should not be allowed to drop charges as the offender is within the same family! T

More on 'words'

Here's an interesting article .... on the power of words .... all the way from Tel Aviv.
J


http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article18096.htm

In the name of Honour … Your Excellency, Time to DO the right thing

Words are no longer enough, writing is no longer enough to quell the outrage I feel within when it comes to so called crimes of honour ... will it ever end? Children are being killed not just by parents, but also by the judicial system. Murder of one's children it seems, is not deemed a heinous crime by judges such as Mohammad Ibrahim, Azzam Obeidat and Qassim Dughmi and why … because of words. A 15 year old daughter murdered by the hands of her father because of words that warranted her death. And why? Simply because she did not get 'permission' (those damnable words again) to see her mother.

Since when does a child need permission to see its parent?

In this particular case, the judges mentioned above decided to reduce the killer's sentence, as they said "to help the defendant in life and because the victim left home without his permission and cursed him”.

…. "to help the defendant in life and because the victim left home without his permission and cursed him”.

But the victim is dead and buried; how do they know the truth ... through the words of the man who killed her??

So from now on any man can bludgeon his children, wife, sister, mother to death and turn their beautiful god given minds and bodies into a bloody mess because of words … and know that he will get away with a light sentence and more words of sympathy from the judiciary to ease his over pumped ego.

Words, words are killing us time and time again … and in the name of what? 'Honour'? Another word that has a twisted meaning.

One would expect adults to do the honourable thing and defend the weak, but instead they beat them again and again with empty words and shallow, callous reasoning that bears no logic in the realm of justice. This can only lead to more of the same, as we continue to beat down the nails in the coffin of the next victim, and the next, and the next …

Source: Jordan Times, Rana Husseini, Monday, July 30, 2007

J

married to another man

'Following the first Zionist Congress in Basel in 1897 at which the idea of establishing a Jewish state in Palestine was first mooted, the rabbis of Vienna dispatched two representatives to investigate the suitability of the country for such an enterprise. The men reported the result of their explorations in this cable to Vienna:

The bride is beautiful, but she is married to another man.'

This is how Ghada Karmi's book 'Married to Another Man' - Israel's Dilemma in Palestine, begins. A must read for all those interested in the Middle East. T

tawjihi celebrations

Out on the streets today there were many cars with young people poking out in all directions dashing through the traffic and honking like mad. I suppose one can look at it two ways. Should they be allowed to do this as it is a danger to themselves and to others? Or am I being a joy killer and we should let them express their happiness in this way? T

Of Footballs and Foes

The Arabic dailies are full of the good news for once; the Arabs have the final say – in football at least. Saudi Arabia and Iraq are through to the finals of the Asian Cup. And as the Iraqis try to celebrate their great win over Korea and savour a fleeting moment of joy, two bombs go off in Baghdad, callously claiming the lives of sixty Iraqi men, women and children.

Hubby thinks that like the Arabs win in football, they could win in politics too; by using the same nimble tactics with the ball as it goes "toz, toz, toz" all the way to their adversary's net. For those of you who don't know the meaning of 'toz' it refers to the sound a bouncing ball makes; but it also has another meaning ...
… mildly put, 'buzz off'!

J

Of Squirrels and Espionage

Photos courtesy of http://freerepublic.com


'Spying squirrels apprehended near the Iranian border …' I read this morning;
And I had to laugh! But I truly could not make any sense of it.
'what's going on here' I asked hubby over breakfast as we tucked into some zeit and zartar, olives and lebaneh … that all Arabian breakfast.


'Fabrication or Fact?'

"Well … the Iranians are a little paranoid, the squirrels could have been tagged for scientific purposes…" …

"Do you blame them being paranoid" says me "they're about to be obliterated off the face of the planet by the world's only superpower …"

Laughter!

"I find your madness cuter and cuter" says hubby all bubbly "hello pretty" he adds …

"Hello pretty mad blonde bombshell, right! What the hell do you mean now??" shouts me back in return as an olive goes flying across the table …

"We were talking about squirrels, habibati, and you turned the subject into the wider dimension of excusing paranoia …."

Paranoia or propaganda, fact or fabrication, I am still no nearer to understanding the role of squirrels in the wider scheme of espionage … or even, come to think of it, the current state of men's minds ...


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v42/tc080651/talibansquirrel.jpg

Maybe it was an intelligence agent-cum-scientist with a terrific sense of humour … just testing the great human potential for sensory perception – proving that squirrels on the prowl in Iran really will send people nuts!

Point proven!

J

John Pilger on the state of journalism today

A speech "The Invisible Government" by John Pilger: "who describes how propaganda has become such a potent force in our lives and, in the words of one of its founders, represents 'an invisible government'."

"The enduring tragedy of Palestine is due in great part to the silence and compliance of the so-called liberal left. Hamas is described repeatedly as sworn to the destruction of Israel. The New York Times, the Associated Press, the Boston Globe—take your pick. They all use this line as a standard disclaimer,and it is false. That Hamas has called for a ten-year ceasefire is almost never reported. Even more important, that Hamas has undergone an historic ideological shift in the last few years, which amounts to a recognition of what it calls the reality of Israel, is virtually unknown; and that Israel is sworn to the destruction of Palestine is unspeakable. There is a pioneering study by Glasgow University on the reporting of Palestine. They interviewed young people who watch TV news in Britain. More than 90 percent thought the illegal settlers were Palestinian. The more they watched, the less they knew—Danny Schecter's famous phrase."

Full speech click here: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article18046.htm

J

The modesty bus

Ever heard of a modesty bus??

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6584661.stm

A neatly conjured up Israeli creation for another form of oppression: of women in Israel;

'But, but 'Israel', the beacon of democracy in a world of demagoguery, can't possibly oppress women' I hear some say;

… 'they only oppress Palestinians - and they don't count' …. J

A chat with a Director at a University in Lebanon – June 2007

I sat in the waiting room
Anxious,
On two counts:
How would it all unfold in Lebanon,
the Middle East's jewel in the Arabian crown;
And how would my son fit into life at uni with all this uncertainty?

My turn, and I went into the director's office and met a charming lady of stature, herself a former graduate of years long past;
"Do not fear" she said
"It will be solved, it has to be!
We cannot live like this.
We are all so tired of this insanity."

"No time for peace, nor the joys of childhood … how we all survived is a mystery."

And I felt the sadness all consuming
As her head dropped, her eyes glistened and the
Corners of her mouth symbolized the pain of decades of man's inhumanity to man;
and the unfathomable question: why? … why do people not matter in politics?

But then it passed, replaced by hope; a smile and a determined
dignity that it will be solved.

"It simply has to be …" she said, raising her head high,

"… for the sake of … everyone … the young …!".

J

GETTING TIRED OUT