Readers’ Responses to Our Question (31)

The biggest story of 2007 is $100 oil.

When we look back on 2007 we will note that it was the first year when it was impossible to ignore that the endless growth our economies have depended on almost religiously was predicated on endlessly available cheap energy that we can now no longer pretend is going to be available to any of us, ever. The longed-for breakthroughs in alternative energy and efficiency didn't arrive in 2007 with $100 oil, won't arrive in 2008 with even more expensive oil, and in fact will never arrive because of something few people understand or have planned for--fossil fuels have a remarkably high Energy Returned on Energy Invested compared to any other known or economically feasible energy source. Failure to understand the concept of EROEI and the actual or imminent global peak in FF production dooms most of our current plans for improving the world, hence the importance of the story.

Of course, the biggest story of Pakistan was assasination of Benazir Bhutto. She herself invited her murder by not following instructions given by Govt. Security so she had it.

Imagine the hypocracy of USA that despite knowing all about her proven cases on corruption in Swiss courts and also knowing that she had already completed two tenures as Prime Minister and there was no provision in the Constitution for the 3rd term, USA still wanted her to become Prime Minister of the country for the 3rd Term.WHY....? was it in the interest of Pakistan or USA...? and why she did not come to participate in 2002-Elections...? because USA did not need her then.

Can US allow a corrupt politician to contest for the Presidential Elections-2008 even for the first time in its own country...? Never ever, then why it was all fine for another country...?

As for as loss to the country was concerned I do not think that Pakistan or the people of Pakistan lost a good leader because a sincere and a good leader, of a country, can not be so corrupt as she was, a proven corrupt politician of the country so the people of Pakistan did not lose anything.There are many others like her and Allah will also deal with them accordingly and timely as all the military governments have always been negotiating as per their requirements but they are unaware of thy wrath which comes suddenly and surprisingly.

The biggest story in Pakistan, during 2007, was the Lal Masjid operation (Red Mosque). It was the most awful story of failed governance. This operation raised lot of basic questions. For example, mode of operation, ideology of Pakistan, justice system in Pakistan, social system in the country, Education system in Pakistan & etc.

Lot of Pakistani’s believe that assassination of Benazir Bhutto & series of suicide bombing in the country is a result of this operation.

Naveed Sadiq Khan
Lahore-Pakistan

First a comment that Conscient-to-the-world is a nutcase.

The biggest story in Pakistan, during 2007 (one of the most terrible in recent times) was the Lal Masjid operation (Red Mosque). The insanity of the "students" and their clerics, the violence, and the fact it was happening in Islamabad shocked many Pakistanis.

However I regret that the "free media" in Pakistan portrayed the Lal Masjid gangsters as heroes and the security forces as villains.

Tom Wonacott,

I knew there were always risks involved in calling for a truce, however short. Now I hear you'll be on the front line only infrequently.

Take care. We are worth more than our best opinions.

I'll keep an eye open for when your name appears on the screen... At this stage of the game, I would not want to "disappoint" you the moment you show up, would I?

Regards

What was the biggest news story in your country in 2007, and why?

There were many big news stories. But many of the stories and concerns which most impressed me came from my own mind.

I will now relate a concern which was a 2007 story to me personally and which I believe will be a story for the next one hundred years.

The problem I mean is the concept of education--the notion of educating people, having institutions for such, etc. To be absolutely clear, we have this notion of erecting institutions for the purpose of education and all people are supposed to pass through these institutions and in passing through quality of life is elevated.

But for many years now it has been obvious that the educational system does not really work a nurture over nature magic--that in fact what we really have is a process of selecting from the masses the more qualified human beings who are...supposed to turn right around after being educated and help the masses, help society.

Naturally we can see that the less effective education really is, the more its nurture over nature effect is something of a myth, the more we have a vicious circle: we have institutions erected which select the best but the best cannot really elevate the masses, and either the best come to effectively replace the masses from which they come or the masses undermine the very institutions which are supposed to educate them.

What I am questioning here in the broadest sense is the very direction of society, what we mean by society getting better. In common parlance we speak of each person getting an opportunity, that we move increasingly toward true democracy rather than merely republicanism (let alone lesser structures), but our institutions--especially the educational--speak of a process of selection, of increasingly choosing the more intelligent, and we can see that society in fact moves in this direction rather than any other (I am speaking of primarily America here).

I believe this conflict will increasingly become apparent to all, and furthermore I would say one of the main problems the U.S. is having with the middle eastern nations and the third world in general is that the U.S. is a society in which institutions are more firmly in place to put into operation the selection process I speak of (under the guise of educating all) while in the middle east, etc. the masses are much stronger than any institutions which exist to select from the masses the best people.

I believe over the coming century we will be forced to ask if indeed we can elevate the masses, transform them according to the educational ideal, and if we cannot...But why not cut to the chase? I believe the biological sciences are going to get ramped up to an unbelievable level because I believe through the biological sciences only the vicious circle will be broken ( I mean this notion we have today of selecting the best through education who are supposed to turn around and empower the great majority who are precisely not the best). We all exist daily with the notion that the Phd is the more qualified individual but then accept in perfectly contradictory fashion that there will always be a vast majority who are not Phds but somehow always serviced by Phds.

Needless to say under such a notion as we currently live with there is no evolution of society in even a loose sense let alone a biological one. So the big question for the coming century with these reflections in mind is how to get to more Phd caliber human beings in an ethical sense--and in general how to ethically transform and enhance man according to the biological understanding of the world.

That for me is the big story of 2007--the secret one--and one of the biggest stories of the century ahead of us.

your counterpoint will be missed tom
peace

The Iraqi Surge.

It changed the dynamic in Iraq, at least through the media. It worked definitely short term. The bigger question is what is the long term result of not only the surge the the Iraqi policy in total.

Itaq is still an American failure through a monumental bad judgment call of George W.
My hope is the surge will be a process through which Americans can extricate themselves out and away from the big pit.

It's unlikely George W. will take advantage of that.

The second biggest story, the fall out of the surge, is the 2008 candidates for U. S. Presidency. Only McCain will talk straight about his vision for America in Iraq. And that makes him an unlikely winner.

Ann Yurek

Tom,

I sincerely hope all is well with you. I'll miss the banter. Keep in touch and keep working on the concept of humanity. You are too intelligent not to get it sooner or later.

After my labotomy I'll let you know if it turned me into a conservatve.....

BobL

See what happens when you post a perfectly legitimate conservative opinion, you get hammered by someone from the other side of the world (and, of course, thats what makes PostGlobal a legitimate political forum).

I'll be posting infrequently in the future so take care (also Victoria, Rick, JRLR, Pilger, Zolton - a Hungarian in France, Shiveh, MikeB, Salamon living in one of the great countries in the world, others).

BOB,

My abrupt reaction, which was after reading your comments, was a bit natural and is regretted, as I did not read TOM's comments which you replied sarcastically.Sorry once again. Regards

Barely we entered 2008 and the Lula's government already found a way to recompose the CPMF it lost (that was some R$40bi annual revenue.

The Minister of Finance has just said that Lula really promised not coming up with any package or new tax increase, well, the Minister has just remarked that Lula said and kept its promise...for final days of 2007. We are in 2008 and the gov. has already moved on to take steps to recover around 30 bi out of the 40 that was predicted for this fiscal year.

What is going up in order to recompose what was lost:

IOF – Imposto sobre Operacoes Financeiras
FTT – Financial Transactions Tax
Increase = 0,38% (the same percentage charged by thed now over CPMF) This tax is charged on exchange rate operations and will affect mainly the borrowers. The money will become more expensive. This increase is expected to reach around r$8bi per annum for the gov.

CSLL – Contribuicao sobre Lucros Liquidos
CSLL – Contribution on Net Profits
Incidence - Financial Institutions
Increase - from 9% to 15%, which should represent R$2bi per annum.

Also according to the Minister of Finance, R$20bi will be cut off from the legislative, executive and judiciary budgets (no details how that will be done)

Finally, the remaining R$10 bi is expected to come from an increase in the fiscal revenue.

There are some bureaucratic procedures in the way, but the gov. looks resolved to recompose or recover the huge amount of resources it just lost on early December last year.

Many Brazilians would expect (and still expect) the gov to improve the way it manages its financial resources, to improve its managerial skills and refrain itself from enlarging the the Estate unnecessarily. There are so many ministers (I guess they are 37 ministers...just dont ask me who is who or who is doing or responsible for what,. I know the main ones only...me and I bet the majority of he Brazilian population).

I am not against social programmes, but I am against the use/manipulation of poverty to secure power and win hearts and minds on false premise. A strong civil society is born when their rights are secured before Law and that it exists for all and it is be adhered by all. A strong civil society with conscious citizens is born when their members are capable by themselves to move on, to choose consciously, knowingly; to think for themselves and think critically (that implies being able to reason and criticise the politicians they elected -- and not being manipulated by them).

When (and if we reach that stage), then on this day, we will be a nation of free individuals able to make choices. Not a mass of Estate's dependants. Functional literates that grow to adore blindly 2the hand that feeds them"...How disgusting such a perspective for our future!

This government has contribute its lot, exactly like the one before it. It is time to move on to higher stages. This is the meaning of progress!

This is Politics. This is to envision a sound, lasting legacy, a real one.

Lula is a very cognitive being. I still do not comprehend why he, with his witty, could not figure out yet what lies ahead. If he is pressed by his party, the PT, then they have learned nothing over the last 5 years in office, and they have learned nothing with past mistakes and rights (there were !) by the previous government. In the end, they have changed nothing in the Brazilian political scenario...they are just doing more of the same...Sad!

And finally they would have repeated the old formulas masked under a new "roupagem".

I hope time prove me wrong. But all looks the same and it is not an ispiring view. It is just about power once again.

Our potential as a nation risks to remain just that. Time waits for no one.

PS.: The figures on the tax inrease I obtained at a news just posted on a Brazilian blog: http://oglobo.globo.com/pais/noblat/

although bob and tom were both being highly sarcastic- it is kind of sweet that they stepped into each others shoes, if only for one satirical moment.

Sajid,

Sorry if you ddn't understand my post. It wasn't designed to be meant literally. It was a spoof on Tom Wonacott's post about his turning into a liberal.

Go back through a few questions and read my posts and you'll understand I'm the opposite of what you read in my previous post.

To Joao da Rocha:

Could you please make an effort to write in English? This website is viewed and read worldwide ...in English . So, you could make your point widely understood and pehaps get some feedback.

How do you expect, say, the international press and eventually some posters here to get your point if you only write in Portuguese? What is the point in doing so after all?

By the way, does your article -- many facts and sheets, but somehow confuse in other aspects, for instace, the poltical one -- somehow responds to the question posed or was it written with some other purpose? Is this the big news? I didnt get it...(and I think most of the usual posters here).

What CPMF stands for;

CPMF – Contribuicao Provisoria sobre Movimentacao Financeira
CPMF – Provisional Financial Transactions Contribution -- Googl

Some news in English from The Latin American Monitor and the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce

CPMF Defeat: Implications - Latin America MonitorBMI View: In final-hour negotiations, the Brazilian senate has rejected an extension to the CPMF financial transactions tax beyond it current deadline of ...
www.latinamericamonitor.com/file/50768/cpmf-defeat-implications.html - 15k -

Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce, Inc.BRASILIA (Dow Jones)--Brazil's senate early Thursday morning voted to reject extending the country's CPMF financial transactions tax, ...
www.brazilcham.com/default.asp?id=248&c002_ui=sa&c002_id=272 - 31k - Cached - Similar pages

PORQUE OS JUROS ALTOS NÃO SÃO ANALISADOS PELA IMPRENSA ?

Como é impressionante a omissão da imprensa em relação aos juros pagos ou a pagar anualmente pelo tesouro nacional e que consomem mais de 7% do nosso PIB E QUE CORRESPONDE AO MONTANTE DE TODAS AS RECEITAS DAS EXPORTAÇÕES FEITAS PELO BRASIL, EM 2007.

Até nos comentários , em linguagem bem tecnocratica, tentam confundir os brasileiros, mostrando que juros altos é uma decorrência do aumento nos gastos do governo com Aposentadorias e com o funcionalismo públco. O que não é verdade. A verdade, quem ninguem quer mostrar,são os juros pagos pelo governo e que estão em patamares da irracionalidade ou de qualquer justificativa honesta. E o que mais preocupa é o Vice Presidente da república, Dr José Alencar, em entrevista, considerar o governo impotente para tomar a decisão de redução na taxa selic. O país não elegeu banqueiro para priorizar a utilização das receitas do Tesouro,em pagamento de abusivos juros. A falta dessa providencia que estimula a especulação financeira, está custando ao país (ao povo)um custo de mais de 60 bilhões de reais anuais e com uma série de privilégios. Se o governo não pode determinar as reduções nas taxas de juros, quem afinal tem poderes para materializar essa providencia ?. Não tem outra resposta, só mesmo o Chefe Supremo da Nação. O Estado, cujo poder emana do Povo, é maior do que qualquer cartel financeiro nacional e internacional.

Sobre os gastos com pessoal e com os benefícios do INSS, não existe anormalidade, levando-se em consideração que durante décadas o Governo se dedicou a avalizar a concentração de riquesas, ampliando a pobreza e a indigência em nosso país.

Os gastos da previdencia, praticamente empatam com os gastos na rubrica de juros, em relação ao PIB ( 7%). Só q os juros estão beneficiando uma minoria de especuladores, que só concentra riquesas, enquanto as despesas c/ a previdencia atendem direta e indiretamente às necessidades mínimas de mais de 30 milhões de brasileiros que alavancam a produção, o emprego, a renda e o consumo. E as receitas da previdencia estão praticamente empatando com as despesas, além da sua indiscutível e imensurável dimensão social.

E quanto aos gastos com pessoal , indispensáveis para o funcionamento da máquina burocrática do Estado e que consume 4,5% do PIB, esses recursos tem ainda a vantagem de ser colocado em circulação e movimentação da economia, gerando mais produção, empregos, renda e consumo. Antes não havia transparencia maior para esses gastos que eram camuflados através das Ongs e das terceirizações irresponsáveis que acarretavam clientelismo e corrupção.

Tentam, sempre, nos comparar com outros países e economias da america latina , sempre nos nivelando propositalmente por baixo, com relação às despesas públicas , esquecendo as peculiaridades de cada país e que devem ter uma infinidade de camuflagem em suas contas e nas execuções orçamentárias. É bem melhor encararmos as nossas verdades do que ficarmos sempre mirando na realidade e nos exemplos dos outros, para acobertar ou justificar os erros que cometemos.

Ainda sobre a comparação do Brasil com outras nações de primeiro mundo e da america latina, porque não identificar, nas matérias jornalisticas, os ágios que esses países pagam acima da inflação para a rolagem de suas dívidas.

E os recursos que aquí estão faltando para a melhoria na educação, na saúde, no saneamento básico, nos transportes urbanos de qualidade, na construção de ferroviais de norte a sul, leste e oeste, para atender um desenvolvimento nacional sustentável, não é culpa que querem transferir para os gastos com Pessoal ou com os benefícios pagos pelo INSS, MAS A CULPA É DOS PAGAMENTOS DE JUROS ANUAIS, OS MAIS CAROS DO MUNDO, para a rolegem de nossa dívida.

Não precisa ser matemático para mostrar essa verdade. Com um Superávit Primário que pode chegar a 4,2% do PIB, algo em torno de 100 bilhões de reais, esse montante não será suficiente para pagar os juros devidos pelo Tesouro Nacional em 2007. Faltarão ainda mais de 60 bilhões de reais para o pagamento desses encargos financeiros . E esses recursos, por falta de disponibilidade do Tesouro serão automaticamente acrescentados à nossa divida interna e externa e o país continuará pagando juros sobre juros. E ainda não sabemos em quanto monta a dívida do Banco Central que será assumida pelo povo, através do Tesouro Nacional.

Portanto, faltam informações completas e sinceras sobre os prejuízos que os juros estão causando ao Brasil.

E hoje, primeiro de janeiro, a imprensa já começa a dar vasão às sugestões dos palpiteiros sobre a Bovespa e sobre o aumento da inflação, sem nenhuma fundamentação científica, racional e real. Compete, nesse momento, como medida preventiva, a CVM agilizar uma varredura nas contas ativas e passivas de todas as empresas ( não são muitas) que tem os seus papéis negociados em Bolsa, para dar transparencia absoluta aos investidores. As Contas Ativas e Passivas desses empresas de capital aberto poderiam ser compulsoriamente disponibilizadas na Internet, sem as maquiagens,mas com informações contábeis reais e o histórico de suas vidas nos ultimos cinco anos.

No entanto, devemos reconhecer que a sensibilidade do presidente da República, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, para viabilizar e concretizar os programas sociais de Governo, teve o mérito do crescimento do PIB, da estabilidade inflacionária e da melhor distribuição das riquesas produzidas pelo País, reduzindo sensivelmente a indigência e a pobreza e ampliando a classe C. O Ano de 2008 será bem melhor do que foi 2007, se o presidente da república fizer uma reflexão bem profunda sobre os males que a selic está causando ao Povo Brasileiro e para a materialização de projetos prioritários.E sabemos que o presidente está ao lado do POVO e basta agir na sua defesa, como sempre o fez.

Well, after going through BOBL-VA's comments I feel pity on him as he badly needs consultation at mantle asylum because he is bent upon killing everyone in the world and sending all Muslims to stone-age.

May Allah bless him to think/act like a normal human being.Amin

Well, without a doubt I've decided to switch party affiliation to the republican party. Not just the republican party, but bish's republican party. I ran right out the other day and bought a Dick Cheney doll to hang on my wall where I used to have a crucifix. My new religion is, "Kill'm all and God will sort it out later." I want the draft reinstated and want to blow those Whacko Iranians into the stone age. Whoops, that was Pakistan I wanted to blow back into the stone age. What the heck, let's just blow all those nasty ME countries back into the stone age. I'm advocating a bounty on every Muslim head. They'll either convert to democracry and Christianity or I'll support wiping them off the face of the planet.

I've decided to tape Rush Limbaugh's show and put it on a tape loop so I can listen to it 24 hours a day so I can hate democrats to. I'll learn to love having democrats around so I can either blame them for everything or becuase I need some group in this country to make fun of.

Maybe, if I do all this I can replace that traitor, Tom Wonacott, who all of a sudden decided to turn into one of those pansy liberals. Someone needs to take his place advocating torture, murder and mayhem and wrapping it all up in the Stars and Stripes and accusing anyone who doesn't agree with me of being un-American. I can be that man for 2008. All I need to do first is get a labotomy.

Miriam Leitao, a Brazilian panelist here, mentions a certain prosecution of 40 politicians (some of them from the higher ranks of the government ) being indicted for bribery, and other crimes. Oh well...nice news, but buried news as soon as possible! They will never suffer the rigour of the law as we, poor Brazilians who work 5/6 days a wee, have only one Christmas Bonus, work 12 months to pay for of them in taxes to the government. We can go behind bars...but not these 40 criminals (they are formally named that way, it is not me). So, as times goes by and while they wait the right opportunity to bury these news...I will get a comfortable chair in the shadow and will wait..I might pay to wait!

BUT the news of the year is another in my opinion!

Our POLITICS that is in minimum caps! politics with no pride whatsoever! No matter the political party...It is a shame. The Estate does not provide the necessary safety for its citizens(there is no sense of security whatsoever!), public schools are HORRIBLE (underpaid teachers, ill formed professionals overall, school infrastructure is unequal and unevenly distribute through the country, particularly in the Northeastern and North regions)... the infrastructure is shabby, ageing, ill maintained...the roads are our "serial killers"...and on top of that, the government had been fighting to keep a compulsory contribution over each and any financial transaction (the damning CPMF!) We already pay the highest taxes imaginable for non-existing or awful public services! And they wanted to keep that CPMF!? What for? to improve in the next 2,5 to 3 years what is in a state of misery (=safety, education and health) all three that supposedly should be Estate priority...yet...Would another few years in office fix the whole shame that is the public services? I dont think so! This huge amount of money would be used to make politics and secure power (by buying political support) an ever growing thirsty for power and for the Estate enlargement in order to accommodate "friends" after elections were won (the old clientelism and what we call "physiologism") at the expenses of the taxers payers while maintaining the same public services and infrastructure found in the medium country in Africa or Haiti! 9Yes, the lyrics says it well: the Haiti is here!)

My opinion: the biggest news in my country: the Government defeat to keep this CPMF compulsory taxation made in cascades throughout the whole economic chain!

As for the prosecution she mentions in her article...I will sit and wait...in the shadows...I might be dead before any of them, or any other corrupt Brazilian politician suffers the rigour of the law...They have money and powerful influence...we regular Brazilians dont , so we should fear law...but wealth people in Brazil?

TO ALL UNFORTUNATE PAKISTANIS:

THIS 2008 ALL PAKISTANIS MUST ALL GO OUT AND HUNT DOWN ALL AL-QAEDAS, ALL MUSLIM TERRORISTS AND HANG THEM ON ALL TREE YOU CAN FIND IN YOUR NATION IN ORDER THERE WILL BE NO THREAT CAN EXIST IN YOUR NATION! FORGET TO PRAY THIS TIME AND GO HUNT ALL BAD GUY IS BEST WAY TO PROTECT ALL INNOCENTS IN YOUR NATION! ONLY GO TO THE MOSQUES TO PRAY WHEN NO TERRORISTS AROUND YOU ANFD THIS IS THE MOST URGENT RESPONSIBILITY TO ALL PAKISTANIS TO DO FOR PROTECT YOUR FAMILIES AND YOURSELVES! ALLAH CANNOT PROTECT YOU BUT ONLY YOU CAN PROTECT YOURSELVES! MOHAMED CANNOT PROTECT YOU BUT ONLY YOU AND YOUR SELF-DEFENSE TO COMBAT TERRORISTS CAN PROTECT YOU ONLY AND IT IS SIMPLE LIKE 1+1=2!
PLS. ALL GO OUT AND HUNT DOWN ALL TERRORISTS AND WHO SUPPORT TERRORISTS WILL ALL BE HUNG ALL TOGETHER ON ALL TREES IN PAKISTAN! THIS IS THE BEST SOLUTION TO ALL PAKISTANIS AND THIS IS THE MIRACLE ONLY PAKISTANIS PEOPLE CAN DO FOR THEMSELVES AND WILL BE ABLE TO LIVE IN A SAFEST SOCIETY!
ALL PAKISTANIS MUST LOVE EACH OTHER AND MUST GO OUT AND HUNT DOWN ALL AL-QAEDAS AND MUSLIM TERRORISTS UNTIL THE JOB WILL BE WELL DONE AND GO BACK TO ENJOY A BETTER NEW SAFE LIVES TO ALL!
~~~~~~~~~~~GOOD LUCK TO ALL BRAVE PAKISTANIS!~~~~~

Musharrad is the man who smartly used terrorists to kill Mrs. Benazir Bhutto!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
If not! then this bad guy must support all needed demands as police forces and bodyguards to protect her as she always demanded!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This bad guy has always wanted her to die! and best of all in the hands of muslim terrorists as he will have much more chance to win in the coming election without valuable competitor as he always dream to succeed at all means!!! and thanks to muslim terrorists to kill her for him then he never needed spending a single bullet or a bomb to get rid of her!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)

There are so many ways to do harms to Mrs. Bhutto! and this treacherous plan is one of the worst ones!!! and wisely, all the blames from the world related to her death can be tricked and with this simple trick then this bad guy can behave innocently pointing to the muslim terrorists/al-Quaedas as the culprits that are the active or dynamic devastators that they co-joined and definitely well served Mr. Musharrad and while Musharrrad is looked like the ousider but he is a real, passive or static devastator or as a silent killer that he has successfully hidden himself in the darkness with his bloody hands kept in his own pockets! (any question asked?)

In other words, Musharrad successfully let Mrs. Benazir Bhutto walked slowly into her death! as shown! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This "borrowing the wind to uproot a tree" tactic that all men in this world with a minimum intelligence must be able to figure out in few seconds!!!!
(Any question asked?)
All miserable Pakistani people! what are you waiting for???? or come back to he mosques to pray as usual?
For sure, all Pakistanis! you must also have to irradicate all muslim terrorists in your miserable, chaos and unfortunate nation! that is the job one you must act now!!! and it is more important than you go to pray and for sure you will see nothing to happen to your own country after millions hours of praying! because nothing is going to happen from the sky to bring miracle to your nation! but only your hands can bring miracle to your unfortunate citizen and nation! (any question asked?) Pls. hang all al-Qaedas to all trees that you can find in your land! and do not take terrorists prisoners even a single one! to waste food and water to feed them and please save food for your lovely dogs and puppies is much wiser way to do! (any question asked?) Pls. let Satan to take care of all terrorists and al-Qaedas as the worst animals! And one last thing is to catch Bin Laden and his islamic devils to feed your beautiful tigers or crocodiles in order to reduce these devils to kill more Pakistanis and other muslim innocents in the next days! and pls. do it now!!!! and this action is really help all people in your own nation and other nations as well!
These ideas will make some of your murdered innocents to feel happy in heaven if you dedicated yourselves to do so! and especially Mrs. Bhutto, the angel of your nation who sacrificed herself to all of you and you must always to do something in return to her courage and love given to all of you!! And this time pls. do it! without hesistation!

ALL PAKISTANIS CITIZENS! ALL OF YOU SHOULD ENJOY THE NEW YEAR ONLY WHEN ALL TERRORISTS AND AL-QAEDAS ARE WELL HUNG HIGHLY IN ALL TREES IN PAKISTAN! GO FOR IT! AND GO NOW!

CONSCIENCE-TO-THE-WORLD/31/12/2007

The biggest news in India in 2007 as far as i am concerned is of a Dalit woman politician not known much outside of India .. Ms Mayawati, a former school teacher. A woman extraordinaire no matter even if one doesnt like her politics. She is a self made woman and has risen to the position of Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh by her sheer hardwork. She has given hope to millions of Dalits in India. They have their own voice now, not beholden to any of the mainstream political parties. She was elected the Chief Minister of the most populous state of India Uttar Pradesh with close to 200 Million people. And the victory of her party is remarkable because they won a simple majority in the state, something unheard of there for the last decade or so. Her party won significant percentage of votes if not seats in the concluded state elections of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. Her aim is to become the Prime Minister of India and she is going about it in right earnest. Opening branches of her party in states such as Tamil Nadu and challenging the conventional wisdom of the traditional two parties who have alternately ruled there since the Congress party was decimated politically in Tamil Nadu in the late sixties. Addressing politically rallies throughout the country and mobilizing not just Dalits (or the most downtrodden), but also other deprived and poor people. She is also pushing for affirmative action or reservations in private sector in India. Whether it is a good or bad remains to be seen. The sentiment behind it cannot be understated. Opportunities should be available for all and not just the privileged few with access. The debate on such issues is bound to get much louder as federal elections loom closer.

So world, do not be surprised if you see an unexpected person as the future Prime Minister of India after the next federal elections in 2009. It might just be the year of BMW, that's Behen Mayawati (translated as Sister Mayawati) as she is known.

I totally disagree with Yousuf Hashmi and Conscience-to-the-world for what they have praised the late Benazir Bhutto. Probably they have forgotten the proven cases of corruption in Swiss Courts against her. She and her husband took away US$:1.6 Billion in addition to the assets they made in Surrey, London, Paris, Spain, Dubai and New York so how can this woman be remembered as an undisputed and most favored leader. Sorry just NOT

The fact is that she had lost all her popularity ever since the people of Pakistan came to know what she has done to the country. Secondly, she had come back to Pakistan after 8 years with evil designs to fulfill an agenda given by USA. Thanks God she could not complete that and the country has been saved.

Why she did not come to Pakistan during the last 8 years to get the democracy restored. She herself never believed in democracy as she never ever hold elections within the party and secondly, her "Will" wherein she has nominated, Asif Zardari, her husband as the next Chairman of PPP. is it democratic...? According to the rules of democracy the Chairman and other office bearers are always elected and NOT nominated. Either her "Will" was fake or she was NOT democratic and all that her cries for restoration of democracy, was a Drama.

The people gathered on 18Oct.07 were hired from the labor markets of Karachi and interior Sind @ Rs.200/- per person and NO commoner came out to 'Receive' her at airport. The media, local as well as international, has been misguided.

The criminals took the advantage of her death and looted the city and the people of Karachi as all these were NOT her workers.Whereas nothing happened in Punjab, NWFP and Balochistan as she had lost her popularity because of the genuine cases against her and her announcement that she will allow US/NATO forces to attack on Pakistani western borders if they find Talibaan and Alqaida people there.And will hand-over Dr. Qadeer to IAEA for interrogation.

US, knowingly that she was one of the most corrupt politician of Pakistan, supported her to be come Prime Minister for 3rd time ONLY to use her to get its objectives fulfilled.

Musharraf has been elected President of the country in-accordance with the constitution of the country which CAN NOT be denied.

PG

Most important events of 2007:

1. The NIE report was a blockbuster. The Europeans have been so swayed by our intelligence that they continue to support sanctions against peaceful Iran.

2. The surge in Iraq has been extremely successful to date. I was completely wrong about the surge. I predicted failure. The surge has brought relative stability to many areas of war torn Iraq, and has routed al-Qaeda fighters in the process. Petraeus (while essentially being accused by Hillary Clinton of lying about the surge results) deserves Time’s Man of the Year award. The cut and run Democrats rarely talk about Iraq now except to mention the economic cost or to push the “good war” in Afghanistan. If the US had followed the lead of Democratic (and left wing liberal) thinking, a bloody civil war would have ensued resulting in potentially hundreds of thousands of Iraqi deaths. A huge story that will not be mentioned on this site.

3. I plan to step down as chairman of the Republican Party [gasps, crying and “no, no, please don’t go” can be heard in the background]. Essentially, I’ve decided I need to take a step back and reevaluate my political thinking - to view the world through the eyes of objective, independent liberal thinking. In this world, I will be introduced to multiculturalism, cultural sensitivity, ethnocentrism and above all, independent thought.

This “reprogramming” will teach me that there is really only one human rights abuser on the planet - Israel. All other human rights abuses either result from Israel’s abuses, US imperialism or are just cultural in nature, thus OK. I will learn to be more sensitive toward Muslim feelings about Israel. Through cyberspace, I will visit the gravesite of the freedom fighter Arafat and by effective sensitivity training will cry at the loss of such a great man. A whole week of the course will be spent on Suicide bombers. I’ll be taught that it is just the way that many Muslims express their inner most feelings. Of course, most of this productive week will be placing the blame entirely on Israel because before Israel‘s apartheid state was created, there were no Muslim suicide bombers, and now its spread everywhere. I’ll also learn that Saudi exported Wahhabism is really a very tolerant teaching of Islam, but women must never be seen riding in cars with strange men because this will rightly upset the Saudi soccer guys and you never know what might happen - but this is OK because we’ll learn we need to accept cultural differences and that one culture is not better than another, just different.

I’ll learn how Israel affected the Chinese as well. The Chinese had to crush the Uyghurs because they want their own country - like Israel, so the problems surrounding the Uyghurs and Chechnya Muslims (who were crushed by the Russians) can be directly traced to Israel as well. Damn those Israelis for creating their own state. Being a Republican sure blinded me to that truth.

As a Republican, I learned that organ harvesting of the Falun Gong was OK because the Chinese did it for a profit. Well that will all change. I’ll learn the truth - that organ harvesting for profit was imposed on the Chinese by the US export of capitalism. That’s interfering in the internal affairs of a sovereign nation and that’s wrong. We’ll learn that pillaging other countries is OK, but it must never hinge on interference in the internal affairs of that country in any way.

How rude and culturally insensitive for Bush, Merkel and Sarkozy to receive the Dalai Lama in their countries. The Chinese were rightly incensed. The Dalai Lama should just go to South America where all war criminals go and lay low or else the Mossad will hunt him down. The Hans Chinese are invigorating the Tibetan economy and that’s no ones business but the Chinese who are also introducing the Tibetans to their far superior culture.

Well, I’ll learn a great deal more when I actually enter training. You see, I don’t want to be known as Republican talking points Tom anymore. When people see me, I want them to say, hey look, there’s “I’m OK, your OK” Tom, the most objective, independent liberal on the planet…

In Switzerland the most important and unexpected news in 2007 has been the parliament's decision, in December, not to renew Christian Blocher's mandate as a 'conseiller fédéral', although the political party he controls was the one which received the largest percentage of votes at the last election in October.
The Swiss parliament proved its independence in refusing its confidence to a politician considered to be heading a far 'rightist' and 'racist' political party.

From Pakistan we have a very sad and shocking story in the last week of the year 2008.

We have lost a wonderful intelligent and educated Pakistani women who was undisputed most favoured leader of the nation and only hope to the road to democracy.

Benazir Bhutto had all the charisma essential for a news maker. When she moves or speak it becomes a news. But her death in such circumstrances where she was expected to take over the country in two weeks time was shocking.

2007 will definately be remembered as the year of bhutto.

Today on 1st January 2008 I am shocked, depressed and sad. I have not send the greetings to any body and neither my email box and mobile got any.

conscience-to-the-world :
TO ALL UNFORTUNATE PAKISTANIS:

Musharrad is the man who smartly used terrorists to kill Mrs. Benazir Bhutto!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
If not! then this bad guy must support all needed demands as police forces and bodyguars to protect her as she always demanded!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This bad guy has always wanted her to die! and best of all in the hands of muslim terrorists as he will have much more chance to win in the coming election without valuable competitor as he always dream to succeed at all means!!! and thanks to muslim terrorists to kill her for him then he never needed spending a single bullet or a bomb to get rid of her!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)

There are so many ways to do harms to Mrs. Bhutto! and this treachous plan is the worst one!!! and wisely, all the blames from the world related to her death then this bad guy can point to the muslim terrorists that are the active or dynamic devastators that they definitely well served Mr. Musharrad and Musharrrad is looked like the passive or static and as a silent killer or static devastator that he has hidden in the darkness with his bloody hands!

In other words, Musharrad let Mrs. Benazir Bhutto walked slowly into her death! as shown! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This "borrowing the wind to uproot a tree" tactic that all men in this world with minimum intelligence must be able to figure out!!!!
(Any question asked?)
All miserable Pakistani people! what are you waiting for????
For sure, all Pakistanis! you must also have to irradicate all muslim terrorists in your miserable, chaos and unfortunate nation that is the job one youmust act now! Pls. hang all al-Qaedas to all trees that you can find in your land! and do not take terrorists prisoners even a single one! to waste food and water to feed them and please save food for your lovely dogs and puppies is much wiser way to do! (any question asked?) Pls. let Satan to take care of all terrorists and al-Qaedas as the worst animals! And one last thing is to Catch Bin Laden and feed your beautiful tigers or crocodiles!and pls. do it now!!!!
These ideas will make some of your killed innocents to feel happy in heaven! especially Mrs. Bhutto, the angel of your nation who sacrificed herself to all of you! do it!
ALL PAKISTANIS CITIZENS SHOULD ENJOY NEW YEAR ONLY WHEN ALL TERRORISTS AND AL-QAEDAS ARE HUNG HIGH IN ALL TREES IN PAKISTAN!

CONSCIENCE-TO-THE-WORLD/31/12/2007

Let's see.

Would it be the Democrats rolling over and playing dead?

Let me rephrase that.

Would it be Pelosi's faithless capitulation to the White House?

Would it be that Cheney and Bush aren't being tried by the US Senate for treason?

Would it be that Bush and Cheney et. al. aren't in The Hague having their posterior handed to them by the World Court?

Difficult to say.

TO ALL UNFORTUNATE PAKISTANIS:

Musharrad is the man who smartly used terrorists to kill Mrs. Benazir Bhutto!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
If not! then this bad guy must support all needed demands as police forces and bodyguars to protect her as she always demanded!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This bad guy has always wanted her to die! and best of all in the hands of muslim terrorists as he will have much more chance to win in the coming election without valuable competitor as he always dream to succeed at all means!!! and thanks to muslim terrorists to kill her for him then he never needed spending a single bullet or a bomb to get rid of her!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)

There are so many ways to do harms to Mrs. Bhutto! and this treachous plan is the worst one!!! and wisely, all the blames from the world related to her death then this bad guy can point to the muslim terrorists that are the active or dynamic devastators that they definitely well served Mr. Musharrad and Musharrrad is looked like the passive or static and as a silent killer or static devastator that he has hidden in the darkness with his bloody hands!

In other words, Musharrad let Mrs. Benazir Bhutto walked slowly into her death! as shown! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This "borrowing the wind to uproot a tree" tactic that all men in this world with minimum intelligence must be able to figure out!!!!
(Any question asked?)
All miserable Pakistani people! what are you waiting for????
For sure, all Pakistanis! you must also have to irradicate all muslim terrorists in your miserable, chaos and unfortunate nation that is the job one youmust act now! Pls. hang all al-Qaedas to all trees that you can find in your land! and do not take terrorists prisoners even a single one! to waste food and water to feed them and please save food for your lovely dogs and puppies is much wiser way to do! (any question asked?) Pls. let Satan to take care of all terrorists and al-Qaedas as the worst animals! And one last thing is to Catch Bin Laden and feed your beautiful tigers or crocodiles!and pls. do it now!!!!
These ideas will make some of your killed innocents to feel happy in heaven! especially Mrs. Bhutto, the angel of your nation who sacrificed herself to all of you! do it!
ALL PAKISTANIS CITIZENS SHOULD ENJOY NEW YEAR ONLY WHEN ALL TERRORISTS AND AL-QAEDAS ARE HUNG HIGH IN ALL TREES IN PAKISTAN!

CONSCIENCE-TO-THE-WORLD/31/12/2007

TO ALL UNFORTUNATE PAKISTANIS:

Musharrad is the man who smartly used terrorists to kill Mrs. Benazir Bhutto!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
If not! then this bad guy must support all needed demands as police forces and bodyguars to protect her as she always demanded!!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This bad guy has always wanted her to die! and best of all in the hands of muslim terrorists as he will have much more chance to win in the coming election without valuable competitor as he always dream to succeed at all means!!! and thanks to muslim terrorists to kill her for him then he never needed spending a single bullet or a bomb to get rid of her!!!! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)

There are so many ways to do harms to Mrs. Bhutto! and this treachous plan is the worst one!!! and wisely, all the blames from the world related to her death then this bad guy can point to the muslim terrorists that are the active or dynamic devastators that they definitely well served Mr. Musharrad and Musharrrad is looked like the passive or static and as a silent killer or static devastator that he has hidden in the darkness with his bloody hands!

In other words, Musharrad let Mrs. Benazir Bhutto walked slowly into her death! as shown! (ANY QUESTION ASKED?)
This "borrowing the wind to uproot a tree" tactic that all men in this world with minimum intelligence must be able to figure out!!!!
(Any question asked?)
All miserable Pakistani people! what are you waiting for????
For sure, all Pakistanis! you must also have to irradicate all muslim terrorists in your miserable, chaos and unfortunate nation that is the job one youmust act now! Pls. hang all al-Qaedas to all trees that you can find in your land! and do not take terrorists prisoners even a single one! to waste food and water to feed them and please save food for your lovely dogs and puppies is much wiser way to do! (any question asked?) Pls. let Satan to take care of all terrorists and al-Qaedas as the worst animals! And one last thing is to Catch Bin Laden and feed your beautiful tigers or crocodiles!and pls. do it now!!!!
These ideas will make some of your killed innocents to feel happy in heaven! especially Mrs. Bhutto, the angel of your nation who sacrificed herself to all of you! do it!
ALL PAKISTANIS CITIZENS SHOULD ENJOY NEW YEAR ONLY WHEN ALL TERRORISTS AND AL-QAEDAS ARE HUNG HIGH IN ALL TREES IN PAKISTAN!

CONSCIENCE-TO-THE-WORLD/31/12/2007

2 stories come to mind. First would be the collapse of predatory lending. Easy money fed to the monitory institutions by the Fed and the zeal to increase the quarterly earnings by the CEO’s of lending institutions shook the base of US economy. Next year's big story might be the collapse of the credit card industry for about the same reasons.

Second big story is the NIE report. It just might have prevented a huge catastrophe by standing up to an out of control white house. By standing to the bulling attitude of the bush gang they started a trend that should bring back balance of power to the American government.