Month: April 2014
When America Leads From Behind
How Wild Lebanese Capitalists Nullified UDHR’s “Right to Housing”
It’s not fair that the capitalists should rule and raise Housing for the poor
Protesters near the Lebanese parliament-Photo source: http://www.alarabiya.net
The fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 have demoted communism and socialism to the least importance upon which capitalistic notions flourished all around the world. Since then, the dominant economic trends revolve around the economic theory of deregulation of the markets and noninterference of governments, theorized as the Free Market system.
In practice, this extortionate version of capitalism ended up being the catalyst that drove most of the world into severe economic recession in 2008. Yet there are some prudent governments, like those of Germany and Scandinavian countries, who were able to contain such worldwide recession with minimal damages to their economies. This, however, is because their legislative systems require certain level of government involvement in regulating the markets.
The rationales behind adopting similar mindful policies stem from the need to uphold stable socioeconomic conditions, secure the welfare of low-income classes thus and…
View original post 1,232 more words
When America Leads From Behind
Syrian catastrophe is because of US and Israel, without doubt!
Mass murder of innocent Syrian people–Photo source http://www.endignorance.org
After a long busy day, many people search the web or switch on their cable television to know what is coming about in this uncertain world. On every international news channel and portal website, they see guiltless people are being deliberately harmed, tortured or killed every day. Around the world, from the Americas to Europe throughout Asia to Africa, traumatic reports and shocking footages of deadly explosions, mass murders and war casualties continue to come along very often.
Noticeably, the larger part of that savagery and bloodshed are taking place in Asia and Africa, where the dogma of “armed resistance is the solution” is fathered, in the turbulent Middle East, North Africa and southwestern Asia zones, in particular. Day to day, hundreds of innocent men and women, adolescents and children are falling dead or incapacitated here and there in many African countries…
View original post 1,052 more words
Photo Essay: The Ismaili Jamatkhana in Myanmar, With Notes on the Community’s Patriotic Spirit
It seems there is an Ismaili Jamatkhana in Myanmar
Editor’s note: This post is an amalgamation of selected photos of the Ismaili jamatkhana in Rangoon taken by Muslim Harji of Montreal Canada during his recent visit to Burma (now Myanmar) with photos and text produced in an earlier piece under the title “Burmese Patriotism” on this blog’s companion literary website, http://www.simerg.com. In the coming weeks, Simergphotos will be publishing more photos from Harji’s exciting seven-week trip to SE Asia. The photo essays will cover many important aspects of life in Myanmar as well as Laos and Vietnam.
PHOTOS AND TEXT BY MUSLIM HARJI
(with additional research and material by Abdulmalik J. Merchant and other sources)
A group photo of visitors with members of Myanmar jamat. Photo: Muslim Harji. Copyright.
I recently spent seven exciting weeks crisscrossing Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), Cambodia and Vietnam with my wife Nevin, and my sister, Mehrun, and her husband Suleman of Edmonton. As part of my visit to Burma, I was very happy to visit the Ismaili jamatkhana in Rangoon (or Yangon) and meet members…
View original post 1,363 more words
Kigali Serena Hotel Wins Coveted CSR Award
Good for Rwanda and for Serena group of Hotels set up by H H Aga Khan IV
Kigali Serena Hotel was recognized by the Rwanda government for its efforts towards environment conservation. The hotel was awarded “Best in Environmental Protection Award”, competing against 14 entrants in various categories that included social community support, environmental protection and conservation, poverty alleviation, workforce and welfare development.
The awards, held for the very first time will seek to evaluate corporate contribution towards sustainable business practice now and in the years to come.
“Work No Words” by His Highness the Aga Khan, and Other Rare Ismaili Historical Quotes on Service
These articles from Abdulmalik Merchant are invaluable
Compiled and prepared by Abdulmalik J. Merchant
Publisher-Editor, Simerg.com
As Canada pays its respect to the volunteers by marking the week of April 6, 2014, as Volunteer Week, we bring you some very rare historical quotations on service and voluntary work which appeared in a special Ismaili Volunteers, Scouts and Guides Souvenir published in 1954 to jointly commemorate the 48th Ismaili Imam’s Platinum Jubilee and the 35th anniversary of His Highness the Aga Khan’s Bombay Volunteer Corps.
WORK NO WORDS
“Today I will give you a small motto and that is “Work No Words”. Labour for the welfare of others is the best way of improving ourselves, because results are sure and certain. If you work for yourselves, you are never happy. This is not a new idea, but this is an outcome of the experience of thousands of years of history.” – 48th Ismaili Imam, Mawlana Sultan Mahomed Shah…
View original post 73 more words
“Presidential election in Afghanistan: Defying the Taliban” — Qantara de article by Emran Feroz
Taliban should be defeated as they hinder progress in Afghanistan
Last Saturday, around 12 million Afghans were called upon to vote for a successor to President Hamid Karzai. Although the Taliban warned that numerous attacks would take place on voting day, large numbers of Afghans refused to be deterred. Details from Emran Feroz in Kabul
The fact that the presidential election in Afghanistan went off relatively peacefully has been widely acclaimed as a great success, especially as there were more than enough reasons to be anxious in the run up to the poll. The past weeks have seen numerous attacks throughout the country, with the extremist Taliban claiming responsibility. Even the city centre of Kabul, previously assumed secure, was not left untouched by the violence. Among other places, a number of polling stations and a luxury hotel frequented by many foreigners were also attacked.
The fact that the presidential election in Afghanistan went off relatively peacefully has been widely acclaimed as a great success, especially as there were more than enough reasons to be anxious in the run up to the poll. The past weeks have seen numerous attacks throughout the country, with the extremist Taliban claiming responsibility. Even the city centre of Kabul, previously assumed secure, was not left untouched by the violence. Among other places, a number of polling stations and a luxury hotel frequented by many foreigners were also attacked.
As if that weren’t enough, the extremists repeatedly called on people to boycott the elections. “Whomever…
View original post 1,052 more words
Zarina's Weblog 